Know Your Opponent: Stanford Vs UCLA

Stanford Vs UCLA, Rose Bowl, Friday 12:30 p.m. PT

Did you know?

• UCLA lead the series 45-37-3, Stanford holds the current win streak at 6
• UCLA’s biggest win over the Cardinal was 72-0 in 1954, Stanford’s was 82-0 in 1925
• Stanford has the same amount of National Championships as UCLA… 1
• The Stanford band has been “wacky” since the 60’s and has had several interesting incidents in their existence, including playing outside the court house during the O.J. Simpson murder trial

Stanford’s Defense

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Like the Wu-Tang Clan, the Stanford defense ain’t nothing to, um, fiddle around with. Despite having a less than stellar season, head coach David Shaw is still in charge of the toughest defense in the Pac-12… it is on the other side of the ball that has had major problems this season. Anyway, defensively, Stanford has done all they can to keep this ship from sinking. They are 6th in the nation in points allowed (16.5) and in the Pac-12 are #1 in scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense and passing defense. Basically, there is still one part of their game that has a killer instinct.

The Cardinal front seven are as deadly as ever and should be treated that way. Aside from limiting the opposition’s forward progress, they are also very good at getting into the back field. The Cardinal are tied for 3rd in the conference in sacks with 35 for an astounding 270 yards. Seeing as how UCLA is tied for last in the Pac-12 for sacks allowed (34), this offensive line had better keep an eye on these guys.

Stanford’s Offense

The Cardinal have had a difficult season compared to others in recent memory. Though Stanford plays a deliberate and methodical style of football, they have seemed to underachieve this season. That may be an understatement as the back-to-back Pac-12 Champions have gone dismal 6-5 overall and 4-4 in conference.

In the Pac-12, the Cardinal rank no higher than 9th in scoring offense, total offense, rushing offense and passing offense. Now that could directly be linked to their slower style of play, but it can also be linked to the fact that they are not that good. Though they are a middle-of-the-Pac team in overall efficiency, one of the more telling stats (and it is quite obvious from the “eye test”) is that Stanford ranks last in red zone efficiency as they have only scored 69.6% of the time they were within 20 yards of the goal line. UCLA tops the Pac-12 with a red zone efficiency of 95.6%.

Nov 22, 2014; Berkeley, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal quarterback Kevin Hogan (8) on the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the California Golden Bears at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports

The other thing to watch for here is how Stanford plays against UCLA’s defense which has been outstanding the last few games. With an improved pass rush, the Bruins will be looking to get in the back field and disrupt Kevin Hogan who has had a tough year throwing the ball, which will be beneficial to the Bruins secondary. Hogan has a season long of only 52 yards, which is not great considering the other top quarterbacks in the conference have multiple long completions of well over 70 yards. If Stanford plays a short game, then that might just play into UCLA’s hands.

Stanford Vs UCLA: Final Analysis

They only trouble UCLA might actually have is trying to move the ball against Stanford. The Cardinal have suffocating defense, but have also been good at shutting down pass-heavy teams. Rushing teams, not so much. Though Stanford has only allowed 112.8 rushing yards, they have given up 147.2 in their losses (three of the five teams that beat Stanford had excellent run games).

In the blow out loss to Oregon, Stanford gave up a jaw-dropping 267 yards to a running committee. Good news for UCLA, they have a committee of running backs as well! And as we have seen lately, when the Bruins can run, they do quite well opening up the passing game.

Prediction: Stanford 16 – UCLA 35