Suffering through the second half of Cal’s 37-16 Big Game win in 2008, with 5-6 Stanford’s bowl hopes slipping away in the eleventh hour, I remember the murmurs going through the crowd: “When are they going to burn this Luck guy’s redshirt, already?”

We had heard that quarterback Andrew Luck was special. But back then we really had no idea just how special he was, and we also didn’t realize what an incredible supporting cast he had alongside him.

Four of the members of Cardinal football’s Class of 2012 have walked or will walk across the stage at Radio City Music Hall this week in the early rounds of the NFL Draft. As we watch them go—Luck at No. 1, David DeCastro at No. 24, and Coby Fleener in the early second round, with Jonathan Martin closely after—something will really begin to sink in: We’re going to miss these guys.

A 31-8 record as starters since 2009. A 17-game win streak spanning two seasons. Three straight bowl berths, two of the BCS variety.

Even with the Cardinal’s remaining talent, that’s going to be a tough act to follow. So, as Stanford fans are so fond of doing, let’s look back on better times and relive the top five moments for Luck, Fleener, DeCastro and Martin over the last three seasons.

5. Nov. 20, 2010: Cal crushed 48-14 at Memorial Stadium

After throwing a late interception to cost Stanford a shot at the 2009 Big Game, Luck responded dominantly in Berkeley a year later. The No. 7 Cardinal jumped out to a 45-0 lead through three quarters, with Luck going 16-for-20 with two touchdowns and famously barreling over Cal’s Sean Cattouse on a 58-yard run in the first quarter. Stanford added 232 yards on the ground and the Axe was returned to its proper home on the Farm.

4. Oct. 29, 2011: Stanford beats USC in triple-overtime slugfest

Looking to get its third straight win on the Trojans’ home turf, the No. 6 Cardinal needed a victory to extend its school-record 15-game win streak. Luck and Matt Barkley each fired three touchdowns, but No. 20 USC erased Stanford’s four-point halftime lead to grab a 10-point lead of its own early in the third quarter. Luck engineered two scoring drives in a row, including a 62-yard throw to Ty Montgomery on a gadget play from deep inside Cardinal territory.

The Trojans came back yet again, and Luck had a chance to engineer the game-winning drive in the final minutes. But the golden opportunity turned into disaster in a heartbeat, as the star quarterback misread a route and threw a pick-six, seemingly handing the game to USC on a silver platter—on national TV, no less.

Not so fast. Luck drove 76 yards for the tying score, and Stanford was perfect in the overtime session. Just after Luck converted the two-point try in the third overtime, A.J. Tarpley recovered a USC fumble in the endzone to secure the 56-48 win and keep the Cardinal’s perfect season going.

3. Oct. 9, 2010: Last-second field goal downs the Trojans

It might not have gone three overtimes, but this one was played at Stanford, which definitely counts for something. The No. 16 Cardinal couldn’t pull away from the Trojans in the first half and nearly fell behind on a fumble in the final minute of the second quarter. Luck saved the day, delivering a monster blow to Shareece Wright to save a touchdown.

Those points would come in handy later on, with Barkley throwing for 390 yards and putting his team on top 35-34 with just 1:08 left. But Luck wasn’t done, completing three straight passes on Stanford’s 62-yard drive and centering the ball for a last-second field-goal try. Nate Whitaker’s field-goal try was perfect as time expired, and Cardinal fans flooded onto the field to celebrate their quarterback’s heroics.

2. Jan. 2, 2012: Cardinal comes up just short in the Fiesta Bowl

It’s the only loss on here, but a BCS Bowl is a BCS Bowl, and the de facto third-place game between No. 3 Oklahoma State and No.4 Stanford was a dandy. Luck’s last college game was arguably his best, as he completed 27 of 31 passes for 347 yards. Martin and DeCastro were huge factors on the offensive line and fueled the Cardinal’s 272-to-26 yard rushing advantage. The effort wasn’t enough, however, and after Stanford missed two crucial field goals, the Cardinal would have to leave Glendale empty-handed in the 41-38 OT loss.

1. Jan. 3, 2011: Orange you glad

You can make the argument that the Cardinal’s defense won it the 2011 Orange Bowl, sacking dynamic Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor eight times and shutting out the No. 12 Hokies in the second half. But the lasting image of Stanford’s first bowl win in the BCS era will forever be Andrew Luck to Coby Fleener.

The pair combined for three touchdown passes, all in a 14:44 span in the second half, all for over 35 yards. It was Fleener’s breakout game on the national scene and also one of Luck’s finest, as the junior threw for 287 yards and four touchdowns.

Just like that, the Cardinal was bringing home a bowl full of oranges.

But the thing that Stanford students will always be most grateful for happened years earlier, when the group went out on a limb and committed to a struggling program not far ahead of a 1-11 season. They transformed Stanford into a world-class football program, and for that they will be sorely missed.

@@line:Joseph Beyda can’t believe that Coby Fleener wasn’t picked in the first round, but hopes that somehow the Luck-Fleener duo will be reunited in Indianapolis. Let him know what you think at [email protected].