Saturday Blitz
Fansided

Pac 12 Football: Week One Power Rankings

By Michael Valverde

Sep 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; General view of Pac-12 logo on the field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the NCAA football game between the Stanford Cardinal and Southern California Trojans. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; General view of Pac-12 logo on the field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the NCAA football game between the Stanford Cardinal and Southern California Trojans. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
13 of 13
Next
September 2, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (5) runs with the football past Kansas State Wildcats defensive back Dante Barnett (22) and defensive back Donnie Starks (10) during the second quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
September 2, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (5) runs with the football past Kansas State Wildcats defensive back Dante Barnett (22) and defensive back Donnie Starks (10) during the second quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

The Stanford Cardinals didn’t have it easy when facing the Kansas State Wildcats defense. Only a field goal separated the teams after the first quarter, but when Stanford quarterback Ryan Burns hit Michael Rector on a 40-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter the Cardinals rallied. Four minutes later Christian McCaffery took the handoff and went 35-yards for the score.

The second half was completely the opposite. The Cardinals could not get anything going as they led out the gate with a fumble and four punts. Luckily the defense was there to bail the offense out. The only points was a McCrane 30-yard field goal.

After the Cardinals defense had recorded a safety, Kansas State came back with a touchdown of their own. Quarterback Jesse Ertz connected on a 15-yard pass to Isaiah Zuber to make the score 19-13 with a 1:49 remaining on the clock. After a failed onside kick, McCaffery put the game away when he busted up the middle and took it down the left sidelines for a 41-yard touchdown.

The Cardinals defense delivered with allowing just 335-yards of total offense and collected eight sacks, one safety, and two turnovers. K-State also showed their grit on defense by allowing just 272-yards and 13 first downs.

I am slightly concerned about how Burns will do in this offense. He started the game on fire after converting his first five third-down passes into first downs, but then couldn’t get anything going. The Cardinal had just one first down in the second half before McCaffrey’s second TD run.

This game was won mostly because of Kansas State’s lack of talent, which won’t be the case when playing in the PAC-12.

Home/College Football News