Stanford Football: 3 bold predictions vs. Northwestern in Week 1

The Northwestern Wildcats head to “The Farm” to take on Stanford football on Saturday afternoon. Here’s what we can expect in Week 1.

In a battle of the smart guys, Stanford and Northwestern will square off in Week 1 which will be a surprisingly good battle in California.

Will Northwestern continue to shed that underdog status and pull off the ‘upset’ of Stanford or will the Cardinal get back to their grind-it-out ways and have their way with the Wildcats?

3. KJ Costello, Hunter Johnson will have epic duel

Say goodbye to Stanford’s ‘intellectual brutality’. The Cardinal have been spoiled by having great running backs from Toby Gerhart to Christian McCaffrey to Bryce Love but they didn’t have that luxury last season.

You began to see the shift happen last season because of the injuries to the offensive line, and not having that next-level guy in the backfield. They allowed highly-touted quarterback KJ Costello to take the reins and make him — not the running back — the focal point of the offense.

Although they lost JJ Arcega-Whiteside to the draft, they have some elite talent at receiver coming back to surround Costello who might be the best quarterback no one is talking about.

For Northwestern, Clemson-transfer quarterback Hunter Johnson might be the best recruit they’ve ever had in Evanston. No disrespect to outgoing quarterback Clayton Thorson, but Johnson is more of a difference-maker than he was. He has all the tools to be a great quarterback and can help in the running game with his legs.

They might not have the big-time recruits that others have, but if you either cover or play Northwestern this should be your mantra: Ignore Northwestern at your own peril.

Both defenses struggled in pass defense last season, and they open the season having to defend two elite passers — that’s a recipe for a lot of yards in the air. Expect 300 yards from each quarterback.