Preview: Stanford heads to Virginia to clash with the Cavaliers
On Saturday at 4:30 PM PT on ACC Network, Stanford football will take on the Virginia Cavaliers on the road in Charlottesville. Stanford comes in at 1-2 overall and 1-0 in the ACC while Virginia comes in at 2-1 overall and 0-0 in the ACC.
Last time out: Stanford defeated Boston College 30-20 on Saturday, September 13th. Cardinal running back Micah Ford led the way with 157 yards on the ground and one touchdown, earning him ACC Running Back of the Week honors.
RECAP: Stanford rallies back to beat Boston College
READ: Micah Ford named ACC Running Back of the Week
READ: Stanford Depth Chart & Injury Report: Virginia Week
On Virginia: The Cavaliers have wins over Coastal Carolina (48-7) and William & Mary (55-16) while losing at NC State (35-31). Even though NC State is an ACC team, their meeting didn’t count as a league game. Thus, Stanford will be Virginia’s true ACC opener.
Senior quarterback Chandler Morris has thrown four touchdowns and one interception for 670 yards on a 69.7% completion percentage. He’s having a solid season and has done a good job of taking care of the ball and being efficient in his throws. Leading the way in receptions is senior wide receiver Trell Harris, who has 14 receptions for 176 yards. Harris is yet to find the end zone.
In terms of receiving touchdowns, four different players have found the end zone once, so the Cavaliers truly like to spread the ball around. Senior wide receiver Cameron Ross (12 receptions for 164 yards), sophomore tight end John Rogers (three receptions for 30 yards), senior wide receiver Jahmal Erdine (11 receptions for 123 yards), and senior tight end Sage Ennis (two receptions for 10 yards) are the four guys who have caught a touchdown pass.
On the ground, senior running back J’Mari Taylor is leading the way both in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns with 213 yards and six touchdowns on 33 carries for a solid 6.5 yards per carry. While he hasn’t yet found the end zone, junior running back Noah Vaughn is number two in rushing yards with 170 yards on 22 carries for a whopping 7.7 yards per carry average. Number three in rushing yards is graduate student Harrison Waylee, who has rushed for 169 yards and four touchdowns on 17 carries for a ridiculous 9.9 yards per carry. With those three running backs, the Cavaliers have a legit rushing attack that isn’t easy to contain.
On defense, junior linebacker Landon Danley leads the way in total tackles with 18 combined tackles (7 solo) and one tackle for loss. Leading the way in tackles for loss is senior defensive end Mitchell Melton, who has 10 combined tackles ( two solo) along with three tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks. Melton played in 13 games for Ohio State in their 2024 national championship season, so he’s played at a very high level. Nobody on the team has more than one sack, so they don’t really have an elite pass rusher per se. They’ve also only had one interception as a defense (sophomore safety Ethan Minter), so they’re not much in the way of ball hawking.
As for special teams, Cameron Ross is doing work in the return game. He has three kick returns for 144 yards including one returned for a touchdown. On punt return, he has eight returns for 98 yards. So, Stanford is going to have to cover well on kickoff and punt. The Cavaliers’ kicker is senior Will Bettridge, who has made all 17 extra point attempts while being 5-7 on his field goals. His season long is 41 yards.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is keep up the defensive intensity. Stanford’s defense has been solid all season long, doing a great job of getting after the quarterback, forcing turnovers, etc. So long as their defense plays like it has been, the opportunity should be there for them provided the offense does their job.
Secondly, Stanford needs to establish the run. Micah Ford has rushed for 100+ yards in two out of three games this season and is coming off a 150+ yard performance. If they get another outing like that from Ford, that will take a lot of pressure off quarterback Ben Gulbranson, who has had a shaky start to the season, to say the least.
Third, Stanford needs to make sure they do a good job in kickoff and punt coverage. As I mentioned, Cameron Ross is dangerous in the return game. If Stanford can make sure he is contained, they’ll be taking a major weapon away from the Cavaliers.
Finally, Stanford needs to get another strong performance from Sam Roush. He had that 69 yard touchdown last week and that gave the offense all sorts of life. If he can have another 50+ yard receiving game, that would do wonders for the Cardinal offense.
Prediction: Last week, I picked Stanford to win when everybody was excepting them to lose by double digits, so I have more faith in this team than anybody. That said, given this week is on the road, I have to go with Virginia. On paper, they should win this game. I’ll say Virginia wins 31-21. Basically the same result as last week (home team by 10).
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