Late Saturday night the Stanford Cardinal became the absolute last team in the nation to begin the 2013 season. (And it's my guess that most college football fans, either because they were asleep or they're DirecTV customers without the Pac-12 Networks, still don't know the Cardinal has played.)
Well, trust me when I tell you that the season has begun, and Stanford is 1-0.
San Jose State Spartans
Head Coach: Ron Caragher (1st year at SJSU)
2012 Record:11-2
2012 Bowl: Military Bowl, defeated Bowling Green
Series Record: Stanford leads, 51-14-1
Harbaugh/Shaw Era: Stanford leads, 5-0
Last Season: Stanford 20, SJSU 17
This Season: September 7th
There is tendency to think of San Jose State as a non-conference patsy meant to pad the record and provide an easy start to the season, but this is dangerous thinking. The Spartans gave Stanford much more than most observers anticipated in last year's season opener, and they went on to have one of the best years in the history of the program as they won eleven of their final twelve games and finished 11-2, including a victory in the Military Bowl.
San Jose State's high-powered offense was led by quarterback David Fales, who threw for 4,193 yards and 33 touchdowns in his first season as the starter. Fales returns this year, as does his favorite target, senior wide receiver Noel Grigsby, who caught 82 balls for 1,307 yards and nine touchdowns in 2012. The biggest news, though, concerns a key figure who isn't returning. Head coach Mike MacIntyre was only in charge for three years, but he took the Spartans from eleven losses in 2010 to eleven wins in 2012, and that was enough for him to get a ticket to Colorado, where he'll be the new head coach for the Buffs this season. Ron Caragher, formerly of the University of San Diego, has taken over for MacIntyre.
For a better look at the Spartans, I reached out to Danny Martinez, the moderator for SpartanBlitz's Football Board at SpartanBlitz.com. Now I'll get out of the way.
Continue reading "2013 Opponent Preview:
San Jose State Spartans" »
It isn't about adjusting expectations as much as it understanding the new reality. This team is different, like it or not.
Remember in Back to the Future II when Biff stole Marty's copy of Grays Sports Almanac and used the DeLorean to give it to his 1955 self so that he could win every sports bet for the next fifty years? Well, here's the next best thing.
We here at Go Mighty Card have never condoned gambling, but we noticed something recently that caught our attention. Sure, it might be fun to put down some cash on an individual game, then bite your nails to the nubs for three hours before hopefully claiming your winnings, but we've always been more intrigued by the long-term bet, especially because it always looks so easy to make a fistful of money.
One of the earliest reports from Las Vegas has the over/under for the 2012 Stanford Cardinal set at 7.5 wins. On the surface, eight wins seems like a gimme, so I thought I'd take a look at things game by game, putting each match-up into one of three categories: Guaranteed Lock, Toss Up, or Likely Loss.
This is hardly scientific, and by no means a recommendation on how to spend your hard-earned money, but it gives us an excuse to analyze the schedule a bit. As always, feel free to agree or disagree in the comments section. Could it be possible that Stanford could win only seven games this fall? Let's take a look...
Continue reading "Forecasting Stanford Football in 2012, One Game at a Time" »
We last saw the Stanford Cardinal almost eight months ago as they were running roughshod over Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl on January 3rd. Since then a quarterback decided to stay, a coach chose to leave, two new schools joined the conference, and a Heisman campaign kicked into high gear. Even after all that change, things mostly stayed the same for the Cardinal -- at least according to the scoreboard -- in a 57-3 shellacking of San Jose State.
