Stanford Football: 5 players to watch in spring game

September 12, 2015; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Bryce Love (20) scores a 93-yard touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Central Florida Knights at Stanford Stadium. The Cardinal defeated the Knights 31-7. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

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Sep 30, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Trenton Irwin (2) is pursed by Washington Huskies defensive back Darren Gardenhire (3) during the second quarter at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports /

In addition to McCaffrey’s receiving out of the backfield, the Cardinal also lose two of their top four receivers from 2016.

The graduation of Francis Owusu and Michael Rector creates opportunities for increased targets for players such as Trenton Irwin. He led the team in receiving last year(albeit with a paltry 34 yards per game). He should manage to snag more than one interception this year, and could see his yards per game rise significantly.

This spring, look to see how Irwin connects with quarterbacks Ryan Burns and redshirt freshman K.J. Costello. With Keller Chryst sidelined with an injury this spring, it will be interesting to see if Irwin and the other receivers build a rapport with one of the other passers.

If Irwin takes that next step and is able to develop into a more consistent threat downfield, that would help open up everything for the offense.

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