by Jerry Feitelberg

Stanford vs. Washington Preview

The University of Washington Huskies arrive at Stanford Stadium to play the Stanford University Cardinal. Both teams are 4-0 overall. Stanford is 2-0 in Pac-12 conference play while the Huskies are

just 1-0. It will be a matchup on the number five rated Cardinal against the 15th ranked Huskies.

Game time is Saturday night at 7:30 pm at Stanford Stadium.

Stanford Coach David Shaw that this is not a “revenge” game for the Cardinal. However, the players are all aware of the defeat the Cardinal suffered last year in Seattle when they were upset 17-13 by the Huskies. The winner of the game will share the lead in the Pac-12 North Division with Oregon.

The Huskies are highly ranked in the NCAA in a number of offensive and defensive categories. They are third in third down conversions, fourth in completion percentage and fifth in total offense as well as second in pass efficiency defense and fourth in scoring defense. The Huskies are led by running back Bishop Sankey who is the nation’s number one rusher averaging 151.8 yards per game. Sankey broke Corey Dillon’s University of Washington record with 40 carries good for 161 yards against Arizona last week. He has rushed for 100 yards in seven of the last nine games and for 200 in two of his last five.

The Cardinal defense will have to be on their A game to slow Sankey down. The Husky quarterback, Keith Price, is now No.12 in the nation in pass efficiency and has moved into in the third spot in UW career passing with 6,997 career yards.

Stanford’s offense will be led by quarterback Kevin Hogan and running back Tyler Gaffney. Hogan is 9-0 as a starter and had a career high 286 yards and three touchdowns against Washington State last week. Gaffney has seven touchdowns(six rushing) through the first four games averaging 4.7 yards per carry. Wide receiver Ty Montgomery had led the team in receptions in all four games and wide receiver Devon Cajuste had four catches for 115 yards and two touchdowns last week against Washington State.

The offensive line will be bolstered by the return of David Yankey who missed last week’s game due to personal receivers. The offensive line features Kevin Danser and Cameron Fleming who are each a candidate for the Outland Trophy. Center Khalil Wilkes helped hold Washington State without a sack or a quarterback hurry.

On defense, defensive end Josh Mauro leads the Cardinal with three sacks. Defensive Tackle David Parry and the other defensive end Ben Gardner have been solid performers. Stanford has outstanding linebackers led by Shayne Skov, A.J.Tarpley, Trent Murphy and James Vaughters.

Free safety Ed Reynolds had six tackles against Arizona State while strong safety Jordan Richards returned an interception for a score against Washington State.

The game looks to be a barnburner with no holds barred between these two fierce rivals. The Huskies own a 41-38-4 advantage in the series between the two teams. The teams look pretty well evenly matched on paper but Stanford has home field advantage and hopefully the 12th man will give the Cardinal the inspiration to win the game.