Quarterback
Redshirt junior quarterback Steven Threet is 42nd in the country (FBS top 100) in passing efficiency.
His high interception total of 15 (second in the country) has been offset by a high completion percentage and, strangely enough, a high yards per attempt average despite what seems to be a very conservative passing offense.
Threet continued his year-long trend of up and down play at Southern California, with a poor first half and an excellent second half marred by one critical mistake.
Stanford redshirt sophomore quarterback Andrew Luck is the seventh-rated quarterback in the country, though he is widely considered the best NFL prospect in college football.
Luck combines excellent arm strength with fantastic accuracy and is one of the faster players at the position, certainly in the conference.
EDGE: Stanford
Running Back
The duo of sophomore Cameron Marshall and freshman Deantre Lewis continued to impress, combining for over 100 yards on more than five yards a carry against USC.
The two backs combined for just 21 carries, however, bringing question to why they didn’t receive more. USC did stack the box with defenders after initial success on the ground, which allowed for much of ASU’s passing success on bubble screens.
ASU coach Dennis Erickson said that Marshall, who had a key run in the fourth quarter in which he hurdled a defender, was the offensive performer of the game.
Sophomore Stepfan Taylor runs behind one of the best offensive lines in college football, but has done an admirable job replacing graduated Toby Gerhart. Taylor has 11 touchdowns and averages 90 yards per game.
EDGE: ASU
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Redshirt junior T.J. Simpson caught eight passes for 95 yards against the Trojans and is the Sun Devils’ best big play threat.
While ASU’s balanced passing offense will make it difficult for any receiver to crack the top receiving statistical lists, Simpson along with senior Kerry Taylor have combined for 69 catches and close to 900 yards.
Junior Gerell Robinson added two touchdown receptions and with his size, may be ASU’s best red zone target.
Much like ASU, the Cardinal have four receivers with 20 receptions or more, led by senior Doug Baldwin with 500 yards and six touchdowns.
EDGE: ASU
Offensive Line
The Sun Devils’ offensive front gave up four sacks and had protection problems early against a USC front that hadn’t had much success coming in.
However, the Sun Devils offensive line was excellent in opening up holes in the ground game.
According to Erickson, the Cardinal have one of the best offensive lines he has ever seen in all his years coaching college football.
Each man on Stanford’s line except its center measures at least 6-foot-5-inches and 300 pounds. The Cardinal has one of the best offenses in college football, not just because of Luck but their dominant offensive line.
Perhaps the stat of the year: Stanford has allowed just three sacks on the season.
EDGE: Stanford
Defensive Line
It appeared when freshman defensive end Junior Onyeali was in the game that ASU’s pass rush affected USC’s offense. Then Onyeali suffered from what appeared to be either a stinger or a dislocated shoulder and was in and out of the lineup.
Junior defensive end Jamaar Jarrett had another excellent showing, stringing plays out down the line of scrimmage and adding a sack and a half.
Junior defensive end James Brooks suffered a concussion in the first half and hurt the Sun Devils defense against the run.
Stanford does have a standout pass rusher up front, but that’s mainly because they play in a 3-4 defense.
Senior Sione Fua is the token 300-pound nose tackle of such a defense, and is the key player in Stanford’s run defense. Fua has four sacks on the season to go along with clogging the middle on run-downs.
EDGE: Even
Linebacker
Junior linebacker Brandon Magee had a career-high 13 tackles against USC.
Erickson credits much of Magee’s play to studying film like former ASU standout linebacker Mike Nixon. Erickson said that Magee is currently the Sun Devils best linebacker, though when sophomore Vontaze Burfict isn’t getting penalized or lost in coverage, he is one of the best in the country.
In the Cardinal’s 3-4 attack, just like all 3-4 defenses, it’s consistently bringing blitzes from different positions.
Junior linebacker Chase Thomas has been its most effective blitzer, while sophomore Shayne Skov leads the team in tackles. The Cardinal have 21 sacks on the season, most of which have come from its linebackers while at the same time allowing four yards per carry on the season.
EDGE: ASU
Secondary
Junior Omar Bolden had arguably his best game of the season and perhaps one of the best games of his career, shutting down one of USC’s top receivers throughout the contest and returning a fortuitous bounce interception for a touchdown.
ASU held Trojan sophomore quarterback Matt Barkley to just 215 passing yards in 37 attempts, picking him off twice. The Sun Devils’ secondary had one of its better games of the season against USC.
Because of the leads the offense is typically generating, the Stanford secondary is usually facing offenses in pass mode for much of the contest.
Stanford has 11 interceptions on the year while only allowing 200 yards per game.
EDGE: Stanford
Special Teams
With the loss of senior punter Trevor Hankins, the Sun Devils’ special teams not only struggled in punting, but also blocking for extra points, among other things.
Senior cornerback LeQuan Lewis returned a kick for a touchdown and it would seem that most of ASU’s mistakes are correctable. But many believed that after an extra point had already kept ASU from winning a game earlier in the season, it wouldn’t happen again.
If ASU had Stanford kicker Nate Whitaker, they could very well be in position to win the conference, as he has made 13 of 14 field goals on the season.
Stanford has not returned a punt or kick for a touchdown on the season, while ASU has returned three.
EDGE: Even
Stanford’s offensive line and quarterback are perhaps the two best positions on one team in college football and give a decided advantage to Stanford in the upcoming contest.
OVERALL EDGE: Stanford
Reach the reporter at nick.ruland@asu.edu
