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Stanford Returns Home to Face USC
Cardinal looking to end five-game skid against Trojans.
THE CARDINAL: Stanford has lost five in a row for the second straight season...The Cardinal nearly ended its losing skid a week ago, but lost a heart-breaking 28-24 decision at second-ranked UCLA...Saturday, Stanford faces a USC team that beat the Cardinal easily a year ago at the Los Angeles Coliseum, 45-21, but lost to Stanford the last time the two teams played each other at Stanford Stadium (24-20, 1996)...The Cardinal has won two of the last three games with USC at Stanford Stadium, winning in 96 and again in 92, but losing in 94...A crowd in excess of 50,000 - the largest of the season - is expected on Saturday...A beanie baby of the Stanford Tree will be given to the first 7,000 kids under the age of 12.
Nov. 1, 1998
USC (6-3, 4-2) at Stanford (1-7, 0-5)
GAME FACTS
TV and Radio Information TV Live, Fox Sports Syndication (Channel 36 in Bay Area) Nov. 7, 3:30 pm Barry Thompkins (play-by-play) David Norrie (analyst) Radio KTCT (1050 AM) Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Bob Murphy (color) 2:30 pm pst pre-game KZSU (90.1 FM) - student Stanford (1-7, 0-5) 9/5 San Jose State L 23-35 9/12 Arizona* L, 14-31 9/19 North Carolina (Fox) W, 37-34 9/26 at Oregon* (FSBA) L, 28-63 10/3 at Notre Dame (NBC) L, 17-35 10/10 Oregon State* L, 23-30 10/22 at Arizona State* (Fox) L, 38-44 (ot) 10/31 at UCLA* (FX) L, 24-28 11/7 USC* 3:30 pm 11/14 Washington State* 12:30 pm 11/21 at California* (KGO) 12:30 pm
USC (6-3, 4-2) 8/30 Purdue W, 27-17 9/12 San Diego State W, 35-6 9/19 Oregon State* W, 40-20 9/26 at Florida State L, 30-10 10/3 Arizona State* W, 35-24 10/10 California* L, 32-31 10/17 at Washington State* W, 42-14 10/24 at Oregon* L, 17-13 10/31 Washington* W, 33-10 11/7 at Stanford* 3:30 pm 11/21 at UCLA* TBA 11/28 Notre Dame 5 pm
Pac-10 Standings Pac-10 Overall UCLA 5-0 7-0 Arizona 4-1 8-1 USC 4-2 6-3 Oregon 3-2 6-2 Washington 3-2 5-3 California 3-2 5-3 Arizona State 3-2 4-4 Oregon State 1-4 4-4 Stanford 0-5 1-7 Washington State 0-5 3-5
TV TIME: Saturday's game with USC will be televised live on the Fox Sports Net syndication package...Kickoff time has been moved to 3:30 pm...The game can be seen on Channel 36 in the Bay Area and in selected markets throughout the country.
A WEEK AGO: Stanford almost pulled off a major upset last Saturday when it led second-ranked UCLA 24-14 in the fourth quarter, but eventually fell 28-24...Quarterback Todd Husak threw for 419 yards (25-of-45, TD) and flanker Troy Walters caught 10 passes for 192 yards, but the Bruins rallied with two fourth quarter touchdowns to record their 17th straight win...When backup QB Randy Fasani hit tight end Russell Stewart on a three-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter, Stanford found itself on top 24-14...The Bruins scored the go-ahead TD with 8:05 remaining in the game...On the Cardinal's ensuing drive, Stanford drove from their own 24 to the Bruins' 27 after converting on three, third down attempts...Husak then hit flanker Jeff Allen over the middle inside the five-yard line and it looked as though Allen would get into the end zone for a go-ahead TD...But UCLA stripped the ball from Allen at the one and it was recovered in the end zone by the Bruins, giving UCLA a touchback.
THE LAST THREE: While the Cardinal finds itself with one win in eight games in 1998, the last three games have seen Stanford tied or ahead in the fourth quarter with a chance for victory...In the end, however, Stanford suffered a seven point loss to Oregon State, 30-23, a six-point defeat in overtime at Arizona State, 44-38, and last Saturday's four-point loss at #2 UCLA, 28-24...Against the Beavers, the game was tied at 23-23 before a Cardinal fumble gave OSU the ball on the Stanford 30 with seven minutes to play...Against Arizona State, Stanford held a 38-31 lead when the Sun Devils took over on their own 20 with 3:32 to play ASU drove 80 yards on five plays for a game-tying TD with 2:05 on the clock...Stanford eventually lost the game when the Sun Devils scored a TD on their first play in overtime...And on Saturday, as noted, Stanford led UCLA 24-14 in the fourth quarter before losing 28-24.
TAKING THE OFFENSIVE: The Cardinal offense has averaged 488 yards in total offense the last three games, 424 via the pass and 64 on the ground...Stanford has also thrown for two of top four passing games in school history during this stretch...The 450 yards passing Oregon State is #2 all-time on The Farm and the 422 last week at UCLA is the fourth highest single game passing total in school history.
THE WALTERS WATCH: Pre-season All-America FL Troy Walters, who missed all of two games (North Carolna, Oregon) and most of two others (three quarters vs. Arizona, all but two plays at Notre Dame), has retruned to his explosive ways since coming back to the lineup vs. Oregon State three weeks ago...Walters, who set a Stanford record by catching 86 passes for 1,206 yards in 1997, has caught 26 passes for 482 yards (18.5 ypc) in the past three games, giving him 33 receptions for the season for 620 yards and two touchdowns...He ranks 15th in the NCAA and second in the Pac-10 in receiving yards per game at 103.33...He caught 10 passes for 192 yards last week against UCLA,his fourth 10-plus reception game of his career and second in a row (10 catches for 131 yards vs. ASU)...The 192 receiving yards in a game tied James Lofton as the fourth best single game in Stanford history...Walters has played in just four full games this season, during which he has 32 receptions for 553 yards (17.3 ypc) - a per game average of 8.0 catches for 138 yards Walters suffered an ankle sprain in the first quarter of the second game of the season vs. Arizona (Sept. 12) and did not return to the starting lineup until game six vs. Oregon State (Oct. 10)...Walters, the son of Minnesota Vikings assistant coach Trent Walters, has a year of eligibility remaining in 1999 and could contend for every Cardinal receiving record by the time he leaves The Farm.
WALTERS IN THE RECORD BOOK: Troy Walters' 10-reception, 192 yard performance at UCLA last week propelled him to #6 on Stanford's all-time career receptions list, tied for #6 on the career receiving yards list and #8 on the school's career all-purpose yards chart...Walters now has 151 receptions in his career for 2,270 yards (15.0 ypc) and 13 touchdowns He has a chance to break the school's all-time career receiving yards record this season Walters is 212 yards shy of Justin Armour's record of 2,482 and he needs to average just 71 receiving yards per game in the final three games to break the record...He will enter the school's all-time top-10 list with his next receiving touchdown...He is four receptions shy of passing both Armour and Jeff James for the #4 slot on the all-time receptions chart...He also has ammassed 3,151 yards in all-purpose running is currently #8 all-time on The Farm...Only seven other players in Stanford football history have gained over 3,000 yards in all-purpose running...Next up for Walters is Damon Dun (1994-97), #7 on the all-purpose chart with 3,210 career yards.
Career Receptions Career Receiving Yardage 1. Darrin Nelson, 1977-81 214 1. Justin Armour, 1991-94 2,482 2. Brad Muster, 1984-87 194 2. Ken Margerum, 1977-80 2,430 3. Vincent White, 1979-82 162 3. Darrin Nelson, 1977-81 2,368 4. Justin Armour, 1991-94 154 4. Ed McCaffrey, 1986-90 2,333 Jeff James, 1984-87 154 5. Brian Manning, 1993-96 2,280 6. Troy Walters, 1996-98 151 6. Troy Walters, 1996-98 2,270 7. Ed McCaffrey, 1986-90 146 Emile Harry, 1981-84 2,270 Glyn Milburn, 1990-92 141 8. Jeff James, 1984-87 2,265 Chris Walsh, 1988-91 141 9. Tony Hills, 1973-76 2,225 Ken Margerum, 1977-80 141 10. Mike Tolliver, 1979-83 1,825
HUSAK'S NUMBERS: First-year starting quarterback Todd Husak is putting up numbers that will rank him among the all-time top-10 single season leaders in school history in passing yards, completions and attempts...After eight games, Husak has completed 186-of-349 for 2,526 yards and 14 TDs...He ranks first in the Pac-10 and seventh in the nation in total offense, averaging 314.75 yards per game He also leads the conference in passing yards per game at 316...He has a chance to become only the third QB in school history to pass for over 3,000 yards in a season...The other two are Steve Stenstrom, who threw for a school and Pac-10 record 3,627 yards in 1993, and John Elway, who in 1982 threw for a school and Pac-10 record 3,242 yards...Husak is on pace to pass for 3,311 yards...Husak is also on pace to break the school record for most pass attempts in a season...He is averaging 43.6 attempts per game - 480 over an 11-game season Stenstrom holds the school record of 455 set in 1993 Husak's 1.75 TD passes per game would give him 19 for the season, which would rank among the top sevenall-time on The Farm Also, the Cardinal QB is on pace to record 256 pass completions, which would place fourth on Stanford's single season chart...Husak has thrown for over 300 yards four times this season and he has passed for 1,204 yards in the last threegames...He had his first 300-yard passing game against North Carolina on Sept. 19 when he completed 23-for-38 for 313 yards...In the first half, Husak completed 16-of-24 for 227 yards and one TD...His next 300-yard passing game occurred vs. Oregon State (Oct. 10) when he broke the school's single game record by throwing for 450 yards on 26-of-48
Two weeks ago at Arizona State, he threw for 335 yards and two TDs (24-of-48)...And last Saturday, he thew for 419 yards against UCLA - the third highest single game total in school history...Husak placed his name in the Cardinal record book by throwing 54 passes - the sixth highest single game total in school history - and the most under head coach Tyrone Willingham, in his debut as the starter in the season opener vs. San Joe State...He completed 29-of-54 for 298 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions against the Spartans...Husak was not officially named the Cardinal's starter until September 1, just four days before the season opener...His 298 yards passing in his starting debut was better than the debuts of the top eight passers in Stanford history, including John Elway in 1980 (250 yards) and Heisman Trophy winner Jim Plunkett in 1968 (277 yards)...Husak's father, Dr. Bill Husak, is the athletic director at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
Husak's in 1998 (8 games): PC-186 PA-349 Yds-2,526 TD-14 11-game projection: PC-256 PA-480 Yds-3,473 TD-19
In The Record Book (Husak stats are full season projections) Season Passing Season Attempts Season TD Passes 1. Steve Stenstrom,'93 3,627 1. Stenstrom, '93 455 1. Elway, '80 27 2. John Elway, '82 3,242 2. Elway, '82 405 Stenstrom, '93 27 3. Steve Dils, '78 2,943 John Paye, '85 405 3. Elway, '82 23 Husak, '98 3,473 Husak, '98 480 4. Dils, '78 22 Husak, '98 19
HUSAK SETS PASSING RECORD: Quarterback Todd Husak broke a 20-year old Stanford record for most passing yards in a game when he threw for 450 against Oregon State (Oct. 10)...Husak, in his first year as the Cardinal's starter, eclipsed the previous record of 430 set in 1978 by Steve Dils...Husak completed 26-of-48 against OSU to go along with TD passes of 27 yards to DeRonnie Pitts and 30 yards to Dave Davis...Husak also has the third highest single game total in school history- a 419 yard performance last week against UCLA.
Top-10 Passing Games 1. Todd Husak, '98 vs. OSU 450 5. S. Stenstrom, '94 vs. UCLA 408 2. Steve Dils, '78 vs. WSU 430 7. John Elway, '82 vs. Ohio St. 407 3. Todd Husak, '98 vs. UCLA 419 8. S. Stenstrom, '93 vs. Oregon 407 4. John Elway, '81 vs. Purdue 418 9. S. Stenstrom, '93 vs. OSU 407 5. John Paye, '85 vs. Oregon 408 10. Jason Palumbis, '90 vs. SJSU 387
HUSAK IN THE PAC-10 RECORD BOOK: Todd Husak's 450 passing yards against Oregon State is the 10th highest single game total in Pac-10 Conference history...Husak also entered the conference record book in the OSU game, but was quickly replaced...He ran his string of consecutive passes without an interception to 159, breaking the Pac-10 season record of 150 set in 1996 by Pat Barnes of Cal...Later in the game, however, Husak's record was broken by the Beavers' Terrance Bryant, who ran his string to 170 before being intercepted.
HUSAK'S BIG THREE: Todd Husak's 1,204 passing yards in the last three games (Oregon State, Arizona State, UCLA) is the highest total in school history for a Cardinal quarterback in three successive games...Husak, who threw for 450 yards vs. OSU, 335 vs. ASU and 419 against UCLA, surpassed John Elway's 1982 back-to-back-to-back performance of 1,171 yards...Other Cardinal signal-callers with impressive three-game numbers include John Paye in 1985 with 1,158 yards, Steve Dils in 1978 with 1,075 passing yards and Steve Stenstrom's 1993 total of 1,069.
PASSING ATTACK: Stanford's passing attack is on pace to become the most prolific in school history...The Cardinal has thrown for 2,747 yards in eight games and is averaging 343 yards per game...The school record is 3,709 set in 1993 Stanford,which needs 963 yards to break the record, needs to average 321 in its final three games to set the new standard...As a team, the Cardinal is averaging 25 pass completions and 48 attempts per game...Those numbers over an 11-game season would give Stanford 528 pass attempts and 279 completions The current team record for most pass attempts in a season is 474 set in 1993...Stanford currently ranks first in the Pac-10 and eighth in the NCAA in passing offense Stanford has thrown over 40 passes in seven of its eight games, including three games in which it threw over 50 passes.
Top Passing Teams in Stanford History Year Head Coach / Quarterback Yards 1. 1993 Bill Walsh / Steve Stenstrom 3,709 2. 1994 Bill Walsh / Steve Stenstrom 3,358 3. 1982 Paul Wiggin / John Elway 3,311 4. 1981 Paul Wiggin / John Elway 3,066 ?? 1998 Tyrone Willingham / Todd Husak 3,777 (projected)
PITTS' PLACE: Junior DeRonnie Pitts, in his first year as a starting wide receiver, is attempting become only the fourth player in school history to record over 1,000 receiving yards in a season...He has caught 59 balls for 829 yards and six touchdowns in eight games...He needs just 171 yards in the final three gams of the season to reach the 1,000 plateau...His per game averages of 7.375 receptions and 103.6 yards are not only among the best in college football, but they project to 81 receptions ford 1,140 yards over an 11-game season...He ranks tied for seventh in the nation and second in the Pac-10 in receptions per game and 14th nationally and first in the conference in receiving yards per game Pitts is also in position to challenge the school record of 1,206 receiving yards in a season set last year by teammate Troy Walters...Pitts is 378 yards from breaking the record and would need to average 126 yards per game to surpass Walters' mark...Pitts caught seven passes for a career-best 169 yards vs. Arizona State...The 169 receiving yards is tied for 15th on Stanford's single game list...Pitts has recorded four games of over 100 receiving yards and in his last five games, he has 40 receptions 651 and four touchdowns...A native of Saginaw, Michigan, Pitts redshirted the 1996 season and was used in a reserve role last year, recording 13 receptions for 195 yards (15.0 ypc) and one touchdown in eight games.
DAVIS DETAILS: Sophomore WR Dave Davis, who redshirted as a freshman a year ago, has caught 46 passes for 692 yards and six touchdowns in his first eight games as a Cardinal...No player in Stanford history has had a better start to his Cardinal career as a receiver than Davis...Those numbers are better than the first seven games of each of the top 10 receivers in the Cardinal record book Davis' 5.75 receptions per game rank him fifth in the Pac-10 and 33rd nationally and his 86.5 receiving yards per game place him sixth in the Pac-10 and 33rd in the NCAA...On Oct. 10 against Oregon State, he recorded career bests for both receptions (nine) and receiving yards (151)...He has three 100-yard receiving games this season (127 vs. Arizona, 108 vs. North Carolina, 151 vs. Oregon State) and has a chance to become only the fourth (or fifth along with DeRonnie Pitts) player in school history to record over 1,000 receiving yards in a season...He is on pace to catch 63 passes for 952 yards.
SMITH'S STATUS: Senior free safety Tim Smith had 11 tackles last week vs. UCLA to give him a Pac-10 leading 88 for the season...Smith's 11.0 tackles per game average also leads the conference...In the last three games, Smith has 38 tackles, two interceptions, a blocked punt, two tackles-for-loss and a pass break-up...Smith had 12 tackles and a blocked punt against Arizona State and a career-high 15 tackles (all unassisted) Oct. 10 vs. Oregon State Smith, who redshirted the 1995 season as a quarterback, had 28 tackles, four interceptions and three sacks in '96 as the backup free safety...He recorded four unassisted tackles in '97 before suffering the ACL injury on a special teams play in the second game of the year at North Carolina, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season...A native of Coalinga, Calif., Smith has one more year of eligibility following the '98 campaign.
THE 1,000 CLUB: Only three players in Stanford football history have recorded over 1,000 receiving yards in a season, but in the Cardinal's pass-happy offense of 1998, two players could top the 1,000 yard barrier...Junior DeRonnie Pitts has already chalked up 829 receiving yards and his 103.6 yards per game average puts him on pace to gain 1,140 Sophomore Dave Davis has gained 692 yards and is averaging 86.5 yards per game - a pace that would net him 952 receiving yards...The top receiving duo in Cardinal history occurred in 1994 when Justin Armour had 1,092 yards and Brian Manning recorded 899 receiving yards...Along with Armour, the only other players in school history to gain over 1,000 receiving yards in a season are Troy Walters (1,206 in 1997) and Gene Washington (1,117 in 1968).
McLAUGHLIN CONTINUES STREAK: Center Mike McLaughlin, bothered by a sprained foot the past two games, continued his streak by starting in his 31st consecutive game against UCLA...A senior from San Jose, California, McLaughlin suffered the injury in Stanford's Oct. 10 game vs. Oregon State...He did not practice prior to the ASU game on Oct. 22, but he recovered enough by gametime to be inserted into the lineup...He played sparingly in the second half, however, with sophomore Zack Quaccia taking most of the snaps Mclaughlin played most of the game last week at UCLA McLaughlin, who has another year of eligibility remaining after the '98 season, has been Stanford's starting center every game since the beginning of the 1996 campaign...He is attempting to become the first Stanford offensive lineman to start every game of his career since guard Andy Papathanassiou (1986-89) and center Andy Sinclair (1985-88).
TYRONE WILLINGHAM: Cardinal head coach Tyrone Willingham, the 1995 Pac-10 Coach of the Year, has compiled a 20-22-1 record in three-plus years on The Farm (1995-98)...He has led the Cardinal to two bowl appearances and is only the third coach in school history to lead Stanford to a bowl game in his first two years on The Farm (the other two are Tiny Thornhill in 1933 and '34 and Bill Walsh in '77 and '78)...Willingham spent 17 years as an assistant coach on the college and professional levels - including three as Stanford's running backs coach under Denny Green from 1989-91 - before being named Stanford's head coach on Dec. 9, 1994.
YOUTH MOVEMENT: To say that the Cardinal is a youthful team lacking in game experience is an understatement...Consider the facts: of the 92 players on Stanford's roster, 54 had never played in a game prior to the start of the '98 season and only five are seniors in their final year of eligibility...Nine players (4 offense, 5 defense) made their starting debuts against San Jose State in the season opener and 18 others played in their first collegiate game...Making their first career starts against the Spartans were WR DeRonnie Pitts, QB Todd Husak, RB Coy Wire, FB Maxwell Stevenson, DE Sam Benner, NT Andrew Currie, DE Riall Johnson, FS Jamien McCullum and CB Ruben Carter...Three of them - Wire, McCullum and Carter - made their college debuts Six true freshman and 18 sophomores (or redshirt freshman) have also played this season...In Willingham's three previous seasons at Stanford, only two true freshman had played - and neither one played enough to earn a letter (Todd Husak and Juan-Carlos Lacey in '96)...This season, no less than six true freshman have seen extensive playing time: RB Brian Allen, WR Ryan Fernandez, OG Eric Heitmann, SS Tank Williams, ILB Cooper Blackhurst, CB Brian Taylor.
BACKFIELD BUSINESS: Stanford's offensive backfield has been hit by a rash of injuries, depleting its depth and forcing the Cardinal to use a one-back formation most of the time...Soph. Coy Wire, Stanford's leading rusher and top receiver out of the backfield, suffered a dislocated left thumb in on Oct 10 in the Oregon State game He has missed the last two games and his status for the remainder of the season in uncertain...He will not play this week vs. USC...Starting fullback Maxwell Stevenson suffered a severe nerve stretch in his neck in the OSU game and he, too, did not make the trips to Arizona State and UCLA...His status for this week's game against USC is doubtful...Backup fullback Byron Glaspie missed the Oregon State and Arizona State games due to a hamstring strain, but he did return and make his first collegiate start last Saturday at UCLA...Junior Juan-Carlos Lacey and true freshman Brian Allen are the team's only remaining running backs while junior walk-on Emory Brock is Stanford's lone fullback behind Glaspie.
MILLER TIME: Senior Kevin Miller is in his fourth season as Stanford's starting punter and third as the team's top placekicker...He is enjoying his best season as a placekicker, hitting on eight-of-11 field goal attempts, while chasing the school record for most punts and most yards punting...For his career, Miller has punted 225 times for 9,021 yards (40.1 ypp) and is within reach of both school records, held by Paul Stonehouse (1989-92)...Stonehouse had 243 punts for 9,512 yards during his four years...As a placekicker, Miller is 25-of-41 on field goals and 61-of-67 on PATs...He is sixth all-time at Stanford in field goals and eighth in PATs...No player in Stanford history has held the starting punting duties for four seasons and the placekicking chores for three years.
BIG GAME NOTES: The 101st Big Game between Stanford and California on November 21 in Berkeley will be televised live to the Bay Area on KGO channel 7 beginning at 12:30 pm...Also, there will be a joint press conference with coaches and players from both schools on Monday, November 16 at Planet Hollywood in San Francisco.
Media Services
Weekly Luncheon
Stanford head coach Tyrone Willingham hosts a weekly news conference each Tuesday throughout the '98 season beginning at 11:30 am in the Arrillaga Family Sports Center...Selected Stanford players are also in attendance...A teleconference from the opposing head coach is conducted.
Practices All practices are open to the media and fans unless otherwise noted ... Media credentials for field access are required and can be obtained by contacting the Media Relations Office ... Players and coaches will be available to the media for approximately 15 minutes following each practice.
On-Line All information and press releases on Stanford football can be found on the Cardinal website at gostanford.com...Player bios, historical data, opponent information and all records can be found at gostanford.com ... Also, all Stanford football games are broadcast live on the internet ... The broadcasts can be accessed through the Stanford home page at gostanford.com or at broadcast.com.
Stanford Football '98 Fox Sports Bay Area will televise Stanford Football '98 each Sunday at 4:00 pm...Each show will include comments and analysis from Cardinal head coach Tyrone Willingham as well as player features and interviews...Brian Webber will host the show.
Satellite Feed The Pacific-10 Conference weekly satellite feed will begin on Wednesday, September 9 and run through November 25 ... Satellite feeds are held each Wednesday from 11:00-11:30 am (pst) on Telstar 4, Transponder 20 (C-Band).
THE OPPONENT
About USC
Location: Los Angeles, California Enrollment: 28,100 Nickname: Trojans Colors: Cardinal and Gold Stadium: Los Angeles Coliseum (92,000) Preisdent: Dr. Steven Sample Athletic Director: Mike Garrett Head Coach: Paul Hackett Record at USC: 6-3 (1st season) Overall Record: 19-23-1 (4th season) 1998 record: 6-3 (4-2 Pac-10) 1997 Final Record: 6-5 (4-4 Pac-10)
Noting the Trojans
USC moved into undisputed possession of third place in the Pac-10 with a 33-10 home win over Washington on Saturday ... In his first career start, Trojan freshman quarterback Carson Palmer went 18-for-31 for 279 yards and a touchdown ... USC led 14-10 after three quarters but scored 19 unaswered points in the fourth ... Two of those fourth quarter touchdowns came on interception returns of 90 and 29-yards by cornerback Antuan Simmons ... Junior tailback Chad Morton leads USC on the ground with 632 yards on 125 carries and six touchdowns, including a 110-yard effort against the Huskies ... USC's secondary has also been dangerous, intercepting 17 passes and returning five of those for touchdowns. Head Coach Paul Hackett
Hackett replaced John Robinson as USC's head coach on Dec. 17, 1997, marking his second stint with the Trojans ... Hackett served as quarterbacks coach under Robinson from 1976-80 ... Hackett has spent most of the last two decades as an assistant in the NFL, and most recently served as offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs (1993-97) ... Hackett, a 1969 UC Davis graduate, is no stranger to Northern California, with stints as a freshman team coach at UC Davis (1969-71), assistant coach at California (1972-75) and quarterbacks coach for the San Francisco 49ers (1983-85) under Bill Walsh.
Series History
USC leads the series 51-24-3, and has won 15 of the last 18 dating back to 1980 ... The Cardinal, however, has won two of the last three meetings at Stanford Stadium, including a 24-20 victory in 1996 ... USC is 27-9-2 all-time at Stanford.
The Last Time
USC racked up 511 yards in total offense en route to a 45-21 victory on Nov. 8, 1997 at the Los Angeles Coliseum ... Troy Walters gave Stanford an early 7-0 lead on a 66-yard punt return, but the Trojans scored the next 31 points to pull away ... Walters was the Cardinal bright spot, with 12 catches for 209 yards and all three Cardinal touchdowns ... He also became just the third player in Stanford history to record over 200 yards receiving in a single game.
Stat Rankings
Stanford Category Avg. NCAA/Pac-10 Rushing Offense 84.0 108 / 9 Passing Offense 343.4 8 / 1 Total Offense 427.4 23 / 3 Scoring Offense 25.5 53 / 7 Rushing Defense 214.8 101 / 10 Pass Eff. Defense 147.7 105 / 10 Total Defense 475.1 108 / 10 Scoring Defense 37.5 108 / 10 Turnover Margin -.13 55t / 5
USC Category Avg. NCAA/Pac-10 Rushing Offense 142.7 62 / 5 Passing Offense 210.9 52 / 9 Total Offense 353.6 59 / 6 Scoring Offense 29.6 34 / 4 Rushing Defense 144.9 52 / 5 Pass Eff. Defense 92.8 4 / 1 Total Defense 349.6 45 / 3 Scoring Defense 18.9 26(t)/ 2 Turnover Margin 1.00 13(t)/ 3
Individual Stat Rankings
Stanford Todd Husak, Pass Efficiency (123.9) 50th NCAA, 6th Pac-10 Todd Husak, Total Offense/gm (314.75) 7th NCAA, 1st Pac-10 DeRonnie Pitts, Receptions/gm (7.38) 7th (tie) NCAA, 2nd Pac-10 Dave Davis, Receptions/gm (5.75) 33rd (tie) NCAA, 5th Pac-10 Troy Walters, Receptions/gm (5.50) 38th (tie) NCAA, 6th Pac-10 DeRonnie Pitts, Receiving yds/gm (103.63) 14th NCAA, 1st Pac-10 Troy Walters, Receiving yds/gm (103.33) 15th NCAA, 2nd Pac-10 Dave Davis, Receiving yds/gm (86.50) 33rd NCAA, 6th Pac-10 Donnie Spragan, Interceptions/gm (.38) 38th (tie) NCAA, 5th (tie) Pac-10
USC Chad Morton, Rushing/gm (90.29) 37th NCAA, 3rd Pac-10 Chris Claiborne, Interceptions/gm (0.44) 27th (tie) NCAA, 3rd (tie) Pac-10 Adam Abrams, Field Goals/gm (1.11) 48th (tie) NCAA, 3rd Pac-10 R. Jay Soward, All-Purpose Rushing/gm (129.38) 37th NCAA, 4th Pac-10
Noting Stanford
Stanford's schedule was ranked prior to the season as the ninth toughest in college football...The Cardinal has already played pre-season top-10 North Carolina and Arizona State, and nationally ranked Oregon, Arizona, Notre Dame and UCLA...Still ahead are games with USC, Washington State and California...Seven of Stanford's opponents played in post-season bowl games a year ago. OLB Donnie Spragan currrently ranks tied for fifth in the Pac-10 and tied for 38th in the nation in interceptions (.38 per game)...Spragan intercepted his third pass of the season last Saturday at UCLA...He is attempting to become the first Cardinal linebacker to lead the team in interceptions since Kevin Baird in 1980...Against UCLA, Spragan had seven tackles, one interception and four pass break-ups. Sophomore Simba Hodari made his first collegiate start last Saturday at UCLA...Hodari replaced injured starter Aaron Focht (hip pointer) and finished the game with nine tackles. Stanford, which leads the Pac-10 in passing, is averaging 65 yards more per game than UCLA, the conference's number two passing team...The Cardinal is averaging over 343.4 yards per game through the air while the Bruins are next at 278.4 yards per game...Stanford last led the conference in passing in 1993 and '94. The Cardinal's 427.8 yards in total offense per game is among the best in school history...It currently ranks eighth all-time...Stanford is on pace to gain 4,705 yards in total offense, which would also rank as the seventh highest single season total in school history. Only four times in Stanford history (1951-97) has the Cardinal rushed for less than 1,000 yards in a season - but that's exactly where the '98 Cardinal are headed Stanford's 84.4 yards rushing per game puts the Cardinal on pace to gain 928 yards for the season...The school record (as far back as records indicate) is held by the 1993 team that gained 700 yards...Oddly enough, that '93 team also set the school record for most passing yards in a season at 3,709 Stanford gained just 825 rushing yards in 1983, 941 in 1985 and 994 in 1989. Stanford has scored at a 77% clip in the Red Zone while its opponents have scored at an 89% rate...In 30 trips in the Red Zone, Stanford has scored 23 times (15 TDs, eight FGs)...Opponents,however, have scored 21 TDs and three field goals in 27 trips in the Red Zone. The 28 poinst scored by UCLA last Saturday represented the first time in eight games this season that Stanford has held an opponent under 30 points.Noting Stanford....
Cardinal freshman CB Garry Cobb from Cherry Hill, New Jersey, has USC roots...His dad, also named Garry, earned three letters as an outside linebacker at USC from 1976-78 He went on to an 11-year career in the NFL (1979-89) with Detroit, Philadelphia and Dallas Garry, Jr., is redshirting the '98 season for the Cardinal. Junior FB Byron Glaspie made his first career start last Saturday at UCLA...Glaspie missed the previous two games due to a hamstring injury, but with the injury to starter Maxwell Stevenson, he could remain the starter for the rest of the season...Glaspie was a linebacker for the Cardinal in '96 an d'97 and was converted to fullback prior to the 1998 season. Stanford's three-quarterback rotation, used in the Arizona State game, was not a part of the game plan at UCLA...Randy Fasani saw playing time in goal-line situations and on two occasions at tight end while Joe Borchard did not play...Fasani hooked up with TE Russell Stewart for a three-yard TD pass play in the third quarter at UCLA to give Stanford its 10-point lead at 24-14...It was Fasani's first career TD pass. The Cardinal defense put together perhaps its best game of the season at UCLA...The 14 points it allowed through three quarters was a season-low as was the 28 points allowed for the game...Also, the Cardinal defense limited the Bruins to just four-of-12 on third down conversions...For the game, Stanford's defense accounted for two quarterback sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble, two tackles for loss and seven pass deflections. Stanford is 13-0 in games it out-rushes its opponents under Tyrone Willingham ('95-98). The Cardinal's starting five offensive lineman have combined to start 124 games over the past four years, including all seven in 1998 Leading the way is C Mike McLaughlin, who has started the past 31 games...OT Geoff Wilson and OG Andrew Kroeker have started 27 each, OT Jeff Cronshagen has started 23 and OG Joe Fairchild 16. Stanford ranks first in the Pac-10 in both fewest penalties and fewest penalty yards ... The Cardinal have been penalized just 54 times for 411 yards in seven ganes. Stanford is second in the Pac-10 in first downs with 185 ... The Cardinal also leads the conference with 114 first downs through the air. Stanford's defense boasts three of the top 11 tacklers in the Pac-10 ... Tim Smith ranks first in the conference with 11.0 per game, while Marc Stockbauer is seventh (8.3) and Aaron Focht is 11th (7.6).In the Record Book
Season Passing 1. Steve Stenstrom, 1993 3,627 2. John Elway, 1982 3,242 3. Steve Dils, 1978 2,943 4. John Elway, 1980 2,889 5. Steve Stenstrom, 1994 2,822 6. Jim Plunkett, 1970 2,715 7. John Elway, 1981 2,674 8. Jim Plunkett, 1969 2,673 9. John Paye, 1985 2,589 10. Jason Palumbis, 1990 2,579 Todd Husak, 1998 2,526
Career Passing 1. Steve Stenstrom, 1991-94 10,531 2. John Elway, 1979-82 9,349 3. John Paye, 1983-86 7,669 4. Jim Plunkett, 1968-70 7,544 5. Guy Benjamin, 1974-77 5,946 6. Jason Palumbis, 1988-91 4,954 7. Chad Hutchinson, 1996-97 4,235 8. Mike Boryla, 1970-73 4,082 9. Dick Norman, 1958-60 3,737 10. John Brodie, 1954-56 3,594 Todd Husak, 1996-98 3,310 Season Total Offense 1. Steve Stenstrom, 1993 3,398 2. John Elway, 1982 3,104 3. John Elway, 1980 2,939 4. Jim Plunkett, 1970 2,898 5. Steve Dils, 1978 2,871 6. Jim Plunkett, 1969 2,786 7. Steve Stenstrom, 1994 2,714 8. Mark Butterfield, 1995 2,581 9. John Paye, 1985 2,549 10. Todd Husak, 1998 2,518
Season Receptions 1. Troy Walters, 1997 86 2. Brad Muster, 1985 78 3. Gene Washington, 1968 71 4. Vincent White, 1982 68 5. Justin Armour, 1994 67 Darrin Nelson, 1981 67 7. Chris Walsh, 1991 66 8. Glyn Milburn, 1990 64 9. Ed McCaffrey, 1990 61 Brad Muster, 1986 61 Chris Burford, 1959 61 Greg Baty, 1985 61 DeRonnie Pitts, 1998 59 Dave Davis, 1998 46
Career All-Purpose Running 1. Darrin Nelson, 1977-81 6,885 2. Glyn Milburn, 1990-92 5,857 3. Vincent White, 1979-82 4,662 4. Brad Muster, 1984-87 4,624 5. Anthony Bookman, 1994-97 3,874 6. Mike Mitchell, 1993-97 3,731 7. Damon Dunn, 1994-97 3,210 8. Troy Walters, 1996-98 3,151