At long last, football season is here! Stanford opens the GM Andrew Luck era on Island time, traveling to Oahu to face the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. The Cardinal open as underdogs, and with generally low expectations this year.
Here at Channel Tree, we aimed to predict the next 3+ months of Stanford football. After all, we can't all be wrong!
Season Record
Jose Saldana: 3-9
Grant Avalon: 4-8
Sam Weyen: 4-8
David Ta: 2-10
Most Exciting Game
JS: SMU, because it’s a home game for me!
GA: Big Game, for better or for worse
SW: at UNC — two former NFL coaches battling it out!
DT: Big Game.
Least Exciting Game
JS: vs Pitt, I just watched The Pitt and that makes me sad for doctors.
GA: at SMU, our fake rival
SW: at Virginia — I’d rather play the UMBC Retrievers
DT: Miami. We don’t have a chance and they don’t have a reason to hate us.
Team Offensive MVP
JS: Ben Gulbranson, QB, I can’t say Andrew Luck so yeah another quarterback.
GA: Micah Ford, RB, showed great flashes as a freshman, and is ready to breakout
SW: Micah Ford, RB. Waaaaay better than Micah Chevy
DT: JonAnthony Hall, WR. Very talented freshman - only if he can come back from injury.
Team Defensive MVP
JS: Tevarua Tafiti, OLB, sick name is going to have a sick year. Plus, his major is too long to say, which is a good thing.
GA: Collin Wright, CB, is going to make the case that he should play on Sundays
SW: Mitch Leigber, S, our fifth year senior who should provide leadership and hopefully some more pick-sixes
DT: Collin Wright, CB, our best player and a team captain makes a statement to the NFL. We are so damn lucky to have him.
Most Improved
JS: Matt Rose, ILB, someone needs to step up and replace the linebackers the Cardinal lost. Can I call you Rose?
GA: Ernest Cooper, LB, is ready to take on a bigger role
SW: Sam Roush, TE. He’s a senior, but he has the talent under an NFL coach’s guidance to take the next step.
DT: Niki Prongos, OL. Very, very, very, very raw but has so much upside. Can’t wait to see him with more knowledge of the game.
Rookie / Newcomer of the Year
JS: Ben Gulbranson, QB, I named him MVP so he has to be Newcomer of the Year. I love taking players from the Pac-12.
GA: Ben Gulbranson, QB, the Oregon State transfer, brings the kind of experience Stanford needs this year as they bridge between regimes
SW: JonAnthony Hall, WR. There are big shoes to fill in the wideout room with Elic Ayomanor’s ascension to the NFL and Tiger Bachmeier’s early graduations / transfer (with a CS degree no less). Hall can and hopefully will fill those shoes.
DT: JonAnthony Hall, WR. With the WR room depleted, look for the talented freshman to get a lot of looks this season.
ACC Title Game
JS: Clemson vs Miami
GA: Clemson vs SMU
SW: Canceled due to new pandemic.
DT: Miami vs SMU
Bowl Game
JS: I was wrong last year, and I will not be wrong this year. NO BOWL FOR YOU!
GA: Maybe next year
SW: I will be satisfied if we can just win one more game than last year (for the first time since 2015)
DT: This question haunts my dreams.
Best Storyline
JS: The return of Andrew Luck’s hairline. Maybe a good foundation for the program to build on.
GA: Andrew Luck and Frank Reich bring back good vibes and recruiting momentum
SW: The revival of the @CaptAndrewLuck twitter account and the 50th anniversary of the Stanford Tree debut!
DT: Captain Comeback Frank Reich engineers a miracle against Bill Belichick. He held the biggest comeback in both college football and the NFL as a player. He will have another massive comeback but as a coach.
At the end of the season, Andrew Luck will be...
JS: Singing Total Eclipse of the Heart after a tough season.
GA: Smiling, and making a killer head coach hire
SW: Making me proud to be a Stanford fan, win or lose. I love him irrationally.
DT: Losing more hair.
Hottest Take
JS: Stanford will be fun to watch at some point, not good, but fun. Maybe for one game or two.
GA: Stanford ruins someone’s CFP hopes
SW: Frank Reich stays a second year for the love of the game.
DT: We are making the right (but small) steps. Time will tell if it is enough.