It was just a few short weeks ago that Stanford was sitting atop the Pac-10, and the question of whether the Cardinal was a legitimate conference title contender was swirling around.
How quickly things change.
Just like that, the Cardinal is no longer fighting for a conference title, but for its bowl life.
The reason for the two-game losing streak can be summed up in two numbers: 81 points and 1,016 yards.
By Master Tesfatsion
State Press Television
“When our team has played well defensively, they have played confidently within the framework of the defense,” said Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh. “A lot of them are playing outside the framework of the defense [right now].”
Last week, the Cardinal (4-3, 3-2 Pac 10) allowed UA to score 43 points and gain 553 yards of total offense. In its 3-0 start in conference play, the Cardinal allowed a total of 43 points.
“It was a tough game; it was a tough loss.” Harbaugh said of the UA contest. “You are going to feel sick about it. If you don’t feel sick about it, there is a competitive character flaw there.”
With the defense struggling, more pressure is put on the offense, and it hasn’t missed a beat under the direction of redshirt freshman quarterback Andrew Luck. In his first season as a starter, Luck has completed nearly 58 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,589 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions.
Luck has all the physical gifts to be a star in the Pac-10. But his coach, who also played the position, is more impressed with the competitor inside Luck than his physical gifts.
“I love the way he competes,” Harbaugh said. “He has the ability to learn from his mistakes and grow.”
Under Harbaugh, Stanford has struggled at the quarterback position in the past. But in Luck, the Cardinal landed the fourth-ranked quarterback in the 2008 recruiting class behind Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor, Florida State’s E.J. Manuel and Notre Dame’s Dayne Crist.
Harbaugh knew he did not want to throw Luck into the fire right away last season, so he decided to redshirt his prized recruit. Despite a lot of pressure to remove that redshirt when last year’s starter Tavita Pritchard struggled, Harbaugh stuck to his guns.
“It was player development at that point,” said Harbaugh, who played in the NFL from 1987-2001. “There were times where I was close, but I think we made the right decision.”
Luck has been given a lot of help on offense because defenses have had to key on star running back Toby Gerhart. The bruising senior has rushed for 869 yards and 12 touchdowns on the season and ranks fifth in the nation in rushing (124.14 yards per game).
However, Gerhart, the brother of ASU sophomore offensive lineman Garth Gerhart, injured his ankle late in the UA game and could be slowed on Saturday.
“He practiced [Monday] night,” Harbaugh said. “He looked like Toby.”
Whether he’s 100-percent healthy or not, it will be a challenge for Gerhart to get going against the Pac 10’s No. 1 rush defense. The Sun Devils (4-2, 2-1 Pac-10) haven’t allowed a 100-yard rusher this season, but Gerhart has been held under 100 yards just twice in 2009.
“It is going to be a big factor in the game,” Harbaugh said of the battle in the trenches. “The Arizona State defense is a physical and attacking defense. Two opposing wills are going to be meeting head on in this game.”
Stanford needs two wins to qualify for a bowl game, but finding those two wins is going to be a challenge. Saturday’s game against ASU is arguably its most winnable game remaining on a schedule that concludes with Oregon, USC, Cal and Notre Dame.
Harbaugh knows there is no time to dwell on the losing streak if his team wants to see the postseason.
“We are very close, [but] there is a hump we have to get over,” Harbaugh said. “It is a learning process for our team and coaches. We are learning it together. We aren’t going to hide, [we’ll have our] chin up and [we’ll be] charging the enemy.”
Reach the reporter at andrew.gruman@asu.edu
