Pity Keller Chryst. As good as most observers expect him to be, there will be a moment next fall when he will struggle -- perhaps he'll throw two or three interceptions in a single game or have trouble making the right calls at the line of scrimmage -- and the whispers will start. He won't be Kevin Hogan. Imagine what it will be like for him trying to learn the position, trying to master the playbook, and trying to lead his teammates, all beneath the shadow of the great Stanford quarterback who came before him.
Kevin Hogan knows exactly how that is. When Hogan gained the starting job as a redshirt freshman midway through the 2012 season, he wasn't just taking over for Josh Nunes, he was replacing Andrew Luck, the greatest quarterback in Stanford history. (We can debate that at another time, if you like.)
All Hogan did was beat the second-ranked Oregon Ducks in Eugene, follow that up with consecutive wins over UCLA in the season finale and the Pac-12 championship game, and top it all off with a win over Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl. For an encore, he led the Cardinal to a second straight conference championship and another Rose Bowl appearance in 2013.
Even so, the specter of Andrew Luck still lurked over his shoulder. I remember having an argument with a misguided young Stanford fan during the Michigan State Rose Bowl. After listening to him complain about Hogan through much of the game, I had finally had enough and turned around to defend my quarterback. It didn't matter what I said in the stands, just as it didn't matter what Hogan did on the field. This fan's final words to me were, "Kevin Hogan is not a good quarterback." (What he meant, of course, was that Kevin Hogan was not Andrew Luck; he simply lacked the perspective to accept both players as good quarterbacks.)
After such a phenomenal start to his Stanford career, much was expected from Hogan in 2014, but he and the team struggled. What we didn't know at the time, of course, was that he was struggling with something much bigger than an opposing linebacker. How he managed the reality of his father's declining health on the East Coast while attending classes through the week and playing quarterback on Saturdays on the West Coast is completely beyond me, but Hogan soldiered through. He asked for no concessions and gave no excuses, but when his father passed away in November, Hogan responded with his best football of the season, leading the Cardinal to decisive wins over Cal, UCLA, and finally Maryland in the Foster Farms Bowl.
But this is supposed to be about his 2015 season, isn't it?
Like the rest of the team, Hogan didn't get off to a good start in the loss to Northwestern, but he threw for a career best 341 yards the next week against Central Florida and played one of the best games of his life the week after that in the Coliseum against USC. He was 18 for 23 for 279 yards and two touchdowns, but those numbers don't tell the full story. He suffered an ankle injury that would keep him hobbled for weeks, but he fought through the pain that evening and led his team to the victory that jumpstarted this championship season.
Two weeks after that he was 17 of 19 for 217 yards in a 55-17 blowout over Arizona, and threw three touchdowns the week after that in another blowout, this time over UCLA. (That win was Hogan's fifth as a starter over the Bruins, a feat unmatched by any other quarterback in college football history.)
Hogan will never be confused with Cam Newton, but he did his best Superman impression in a tough road game against Washington State on Halloween night. With the Cougar defense completely geared towards stopping Christian McCaffrey, Hogan started running the ball himself. He only threw for 86 yards that night, but he rushed 14 times for 112 yards (more than McCaffrey), including a 59-yard touchdown run.
Some analysts dismissively refer to Hogan as a game manager because he doesn't throw for 350 yards every week, but that discounts what he means to the Stanford offense. Forty-three quarterbacks had more passing yardage than Hogan, but only four had a higher passer rating. Game manager? He's probably one of the best game managers in football. Just ask the folks from South Bend.
Sure, his numbers were great in the regular season finale against Notre Dame (17 for 21 for 269 yards and four touchdowns), but they don't tell the story. When the Irish scored to take a 36-35 lead with thirty seconds to play, all hope seemed lost. But when Hogan came to the line of scrimmage at his own 43 with just twenty seconds left, he had arrived at his moment, the moment when all the questions and criticisms and comparisons fell away. He surveyed the defense, saw what was being given, and he seized it, just as Andrew Luck would have. He saw Devon Cajuste lined up in the slot and threw a perfect ball that was waiting for Cajuste just as he made his break. The resulting 27-yard gain put the Cardinal in field goal range and capped one of the best games any Stanford quarterback has ever had.
A week later he would orchestrate a beautiful offensive performance that crushed USC and earned a third conference championship and Rose Bowl appearance, something no quarterback in Stanford history can match. Kevin Hogan has done everything asked of him, and when he leaves the field on January 1st, he'll do so as one of the four greatest quarterbacks in the history of Stanford football.
So during this Rose Bowl, watch every pass, every run, and every handoff. It isn't likely that you'll see another Stanford quarterback like Hogan for quite some time.
Overall Grade: A