Last year’s seniors were the first in Stanford history to go to four straight bowl games. In a day and age where bowl games are almost a formality, it’s hard to imagine how this achievement would have taken so long.

Palo Alto is no football wasteland: Talent has always been here — four number-one draft picks, 13 conference titles, and 30 consensus All-Americans to Oregon’s five. But for the longest time it seemed that Stanford oscillated between the gates of history and the gates of hell.

In regards to Stanford’s rise, little more needs to be said. The Cardinal is in its fourth straight season of national championship contention, and yet every year pundits insist that Stanford needs to win and win big in order to maintain its relevance in the college football sphere — as though the Cardinal cannot possibly sustain greatness. But while success can never be taken for granted, at this point excellence can be reasonably expected. This excellence — not greatness but consistency — is what Stanford fans are getting used to. This is what Oregon is getting used to as well.

I don’t resent great programs such as Notre Dame or Alabama that retain their auras of grandeur even in their darkest moments. They are expected to be great, year after year; as the saying goes, bluebloods should never rebuild but simply reload. These programs have set the standard, and Stanford will always aim to better it, to continually raise the bar. The Cardinal is well on its way.

Tonight’s game is in no way, shape or form a reckoning for the Stanford football program. In the long run, nothing Stanford can do tonight, win or lose, can undo what so many players and coaches have taken years to build. Its achievement is clear. I feel confident that Stanford football will still be great even if the Cardinal lose to Oregon tonight.

But that’s not enough, is it? Stanford “bows to no program.” Head coach David Shaw has done plenty to establish himself as an elite coach at this point, but in his third season, the Cardinal has a chance to add yet another paragraph to its already accomplished resume. This year’s incarnation of Oregon is perhaps the finest squad that Stanford has seen since its return to prominence, and in order to win, nothing short of perfection will be required.

It’s not a coincidence that Stanford scheduled the jersey-retirement ceremony of John Elway ‘83 for the Oregon game. The presence of Elway, who started for four legendary years at Stanford yet never made a bowl game, reminds Stanford of how far it has come. But Elway’s enshrinement will also remind Stanford that every once in a while a player has a chance to reach immortality.

The shadows of greatness past will not save Stanford tonight. Andrew Luck ‘12 is not walking through that door; Stepfan Taylor ‘13 is not walking through that door; Zach Ertz ‘13 is not walking through that door; David DeCastro ‘12 is not walking through that door. Somebody among the Cardinal 105 will have to step up. The spotlight of the nation is shining on Palo Alto. Tonight, Stanford Stadium will be once again be consecrated as a theater of dreams, and tonight, once again, the gates of history are open wide.

Winston Shi meditated by his shrine to Stanford football in his room for good luck. If you want in on bringing some luck to the Cardinal, set up a tour of the shrine by emailing Winston at wshi94 ‘at’ stanford.edu.