Junior running back D.J. Foster carries the ball up the field for an ASU touchdown in the Pac-12 Championship game against Stanford on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013. (Photo by Dominic Valente)After a solid performance last Friday, the Stanford football team is preparing to play a familiar foe it has had success against of late.
The Cardinal (4-2, 2-1 Pac-12) will travel to Tempe this week to face off against ASU, a team whose number it has had in recent years.
Stanford has won the last four meetings with ASU over the past five seasons, with two wins coming a year ago, outscoring their opponents 130-69.
The Sun Devils (4-1, 2-1 Pac-12) are coming off a bye week after an emotional last-second win over USC.
ASU's redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly is expected to play for the first time since injuring his right foot Sept. 13 against Colorado. Coach Todd Graham said Tuesday he expects both Kelly and redshirt junior Mike Bercovici, who has started in Kelly's absence, to play Saturday.
Stanford coach David Shaw said that ASU's offensive attack is multi-faceted and is effective in different ways with either quarterback in the game.
"I think Taylor Kelly ran a little bit more, but after watching (Bercovici) throw for over 500 yards, I'd hate to say the offense isn't as good, because it's just as explosive," Shaw said. "They've got versatility coming out of the backfield (and) they've got big, physical receivers who can make plays down the field also for them."
This season, Stanford has allowed just 10 points per game and allowed a season high of 17 last weekend against Washington State. Shaw said that his team cannot afford to be stagnant defensively against a high-powered offense of ASU that has scored over 40 points and gained over 550 yards of offense per game this year.
"We have to be multiple in our fronts and in our coverages and try to have some disguise factor in what we do and not just line up and play the same thing over and over," Shaw said. "We've got to have some movement. We have to be able to mix it up and still maintain our rush lanes and maintain our run gaps so we can be in position."
For the Cardinal, senior quarterback Kevin Hogan threw for 428 yards and four touchdowns in the two meetings between the teams last season and posted a quarterback rating of 92.9 and 93.4 in those games. So far this season, Hogan has completed 65.5 percent of his passes for 1325 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions.
He will be missing, however, senior wide receiver Devon Cajuste, the team's second leading pass catcher. Cajuste has caught 18 passes for 243 yards and three scores this season.
In Pac-12 Conference games this season, road teams are 14-4, with Stanford accounting for one of the home victories. Shaw attempted to explain why the split is so slanted towards the visitors, and his summation was rather blunt.
"It's a crazy year in the Pac-12," Shaw said. "It's hard to explain it any other way. Every single week is tough, every game is hard. Everything is up for grabs this year."
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Tonis_The_Tiger
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