No. 18 Stanford (6-2, 5-1 Pac-12) is heading to Pullman, Washington to face off against the No. 25 Washington State Cougars (7-2, 4-2 Pac-12) on Saturday. Both teams are looking for a win in order to assume its place in the Pac-12 Championship game.
Stanford is seeking to continue a five-game winning streak, and also show that they’re a better team that what last week’s 15-14 win over Oregon State had shown. Playing without Bryce Love, Stanford only rushed for 81 yards, a season low, and with Love still marked as a gametime decision, senior quarterback Keller Chryst and junior running back Cameron Scarlett might have to pick up the slack against the Cougars.
Washington State is coming off of a 58-37 loss against Arizona, where they benched former Heisman candidate quarterback Luke Falk in favor of Tyler Hilinski, who threw four interceptions. However, the Cougars have won all six of their home games this season, and the forecast in Pullman is currently calling for snow, making for a harsh environment for Stanford.
With the upcoming battle in mind, here’s a look at the last three meetings between these two teams:
October 8, 2016: Luke Falk leads Washington to a rout
Stanford’s last meeting against Washington led to the second time Stanford had back-to-back losses in the David Shaw era.
Stanford trailed from the beginning, and though a pick-six by Frank Buncom in the third quarter gave the team hope with 21-10, three consecutive touchdowns by the Cougars, two thrown by Falk, crushed the Cardinal’s hopes. This loss snapped Stanford’s eight-game winning streak against Washington State.
The Cardinal only managed 61 rushing yards, with Christian McCaffrey jogging off the field after an injury in the third quarter. Ryan Burns threw for a career-high 222 yards, and Keller Chryst saw more playing time than usual, but only went 2-of-9 for 12 yards.
For its part, the Stanford defense intercepted Falk twice, and sacked him twice as well. However, the lackluster offense only made it to the red zone twice.
Washington State 42, Stanford 16
October 31, 2015: Hogan shines in a close finish
For a brief moment, it looked like Stanford’s 6-0 conference record would be shattered by a 43-yard field goal by Washington State in the final seconds.
But the field goal hooked right, and Stanford emerged victorious in Pullman.
The Cardinal was lead by quarterback Kevin Hogan, who only passed for 86 yards, but ran 14 times for 112 yards, which included two touchdowns. He ended the game with more rushing yards than McCaffrey, who was successfully used in a couple of fakes that allowed Hogan to make some big plays.
Stanford trailed 15-3 with 11 minutes left in the third quarter, but came from behind to win the game, largely in thanks to two interceptions by Quenton Meeks, the first and second of his college career. Shaw’s mid-game adaptation away from the McCaffrey-run/Hogan-pass offense was also instrumental in allowing the Cardinal to win.
Stanford 30, Washington State 28
October 10, 2014: Hoffpauir holds Washington State
Washington State in 2014 was the nation’s best offense.
However, free safety Zach Hoffpauir ended the game with 15 tackles, the most for any active Stanford player for a single game. The Cardinal held the Cougars to 266 total yards, more than 300 below their average.
Though the offense played well, with Hogan throwing for three touchdowns and no interceptions, big penalties meant a lot of points were left on the field. However, the Stanford defense played well enough to stifle the prolific 2014 Cougars offense.
Stanford 34, Washington State 17
Contact Ariana Rollins at arianar ‘at’ stanford.edu.