Defense Denies Huskies

SEATTLE – Kevin Hogan’s five-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter proved to be the difference for the 16th-ranked Cardinal in a 20-13 victory over previously-undefeated Washington. The win is the first in conference play for Stanford in the 2014 season, erasing bad memories of a 2012 loss in Seattle that was eerily similar to Saturday’s contest for most of the way.

But Stanford (3-1) would not be denied this time around – not with a defense allowing just 179 yards of total offense, not with a Ty Montgomery who would not be deterred from finding paydirt and not with an offense that produced in the red zone when it mattered most.

“Congratulations to our defense. Once again, they won the game for us,” Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football David Shaw said after the game. “It wasn’t just the last drive; it was how they played the entire game. We put pressure on the quarterback, stopped the run and played smart defensively.”

The beginning of the game had a very familiar feel to it as far as UW-Stanford contests are concerned. Ty Montgomery, who ran the opening kickoff back against the Dawgs in 2013, nearly housed the opening kick Saturday but was dragged down from behind at the Washington 35. Hogan and Co. got one first down before Husky linebacker John Timu broke up a third-down pass to force a field goal attempt. Jordan Williamson booted it through from 35 yards out for his third field goal of the season, putting the Card up 3-0.

Saved by some yellow laundry on what would have been a John Ross 100-yard kickoff return, the Stanford defense stood tall and forced a three and out thanks to Kyle Olugbode deflecting Miles’ 3rd-and-1 pass attempt.

While the Cardinal attack moved the ball well, Williamson’s right boot provided the only scoring for the Card in the first. Fortunately, the defense was more than up to the task, as Washington three-and-outs became a first-quarter motif – the Huskies did not get a first down in the first 15 minutes of the game.

The game began to open up offensively in the second quarter, when Stanford finished off a nine-play, 77-yard drive. Using a nice mix of the run and pass, Stanford faced a 3rd-and-2 at the Husky 17-yard line. Hogan rolled out to his left and found Ty Montgomery for a short gain to move the sticks… or so it seemed. Instead of moving the sticks, Montgomery shrugged off two tacklers and bulldozed a third into the end zone to put the Cardinal up 10-0.

But the Washington offense wouldn’t stay down for long. With the Dawgs having already converted one 3rd-and-11, Cyler Miles rainbowed one to Jaydon Mickens for a 25-yard touchdown pass on another 3rd-and-11 play to cut the Stanford edge to 10-6.

Stanford responded right back with another score, this time a 32-yard field by Jordan Williamson to cap off a 10-play, 67-yard drive that increased the edge to 13-6.

The Cardinal appeared to have control of the game, forcing another Husky punt (Washington punter Korey Durkee deserves mention here for his rugby-style punts that averaged 51.7 yards per boot – Montgomery later would call him the best punter he’s ever seen) and driving out of its own territory on offense in large part due to an impressive 18-yard run by running back Remound Wright, who stiff-armed a Husky tackler to pick up some extra ground. But on 3rd-and-inches, linebacker Shaq Thompson ripped the ball right out of Wright’s cradling right arm and ran it back 32 yards to the house. Although it looked like Wright’s progress was stopped by the time Thompson knocked it loose, there was nothing instant replay could do to overturn the call and an extra point tied it up at 13.

Through 30 minutes, Stanford had dominated the game, outgaining the Huskies yardage-wise 237-90. But here we were, all knotted up at 13.

Sounding like a game that was played three weeks ago at Stanford Stadium?

The first drive third quarter only provided more of the same uneasiness, as Stanford was able to move the chains and traverse deep into Husky territory … only to come up empty-handed after a missed 46-yard field goal. After a Hogan interception and three-and-out, the Stanford offense again picked up steam, with a great play design that led to a 28-yard pitch-and-catch between Hogan and tight end Eric Cotton.

No points in the third quarter, but Stanford was driving entering the fourth, which opened up with an 18-yard gain from Montgomery on an end-around that put Stanford into the red zone for the fourth time of the game. However, the ghost of USC past would rear its ugly head, as Hogan fumbled on third down to eliminate what would have been a short field-goal attempt for Williamson.

Bending but not breaking, the Washington defense was playing its part.

Anything the Huskies could do defensively, however, the Cardinal could do better. Much, much better. Linebacker Peter Kalambayi was everywhere, finishing the game with a career-high nine tackles and three sacks. The defensive front was making life very uncomfortable for Cyler Miles, who spent a good chunk of his day trying to make quicker-than-hoped-for decisions.

The fearless Chris Petersen, who made a name for himself at Boise State by running gadget plays (see the 2007 Fiesta Bowl), was more than willing to roll the dice. Fourth-and-1 near midfield – keep the offense out there. Fourth-and-9 midway through the fourth – time for a fake punt.

But the disciplined Cardinal fortress was impenetrable on this Saturday. Although the defense was helped by a bobbled snap on the fourth-and-1 play early in the third quarter, there was no such aid on the fake punt besides the presence of a menacing Zach Hoffpauir – he’d have none of Shaq Thompson’s efforts to change the tide of the game.

Given a short field with 7:37 remaining in regulation, the Cardinal offense rose to the occasion and went to work. And while it wasn’t the same kind of power football that had been so prolific on The Farm in recent years, Stanford recommitted itself to the ground game and was especially effective on this drive nonetheless.

Hogan for three on first down. Hogan for 11 on second to move the chains. Hogan for two more. Kelsey Young now – a one-yard loss, but a 15-yard face mask would take care of shifting the sticks.

Back in the red zone again, Young made his mark by bursting through the line to the tune of a 12-yard gain.

Now facing a first and goal at the Washington 5-yard line, Hogan rolled out to his right with the whole world in his hands. Just needing to beat one defender to get to the corner pylon, Hogan faked a throw to the end zone, perhaps getting the defender to hesitate just enough to allow him that extra bit of space he needed to dive for the goal line. Touchdown Stanford. 20-13 with 4:29 left on the clock.

“Let’s go!” Hogan yelled to his teammates for all to hear back at home who were watching the game on FOX.

All the Farm Boys needed was for their defensive brethren to answer the bell a couple of more times.

Yielding just one first down immediately after Hogan’s scamper, the Cardinal defense had to get one more stop after Washington punted it away and Stanford elected to force the Huskies to use all of their timeouts with three safe runs.

Although Washington had good field position and was able to convert one fourth-and-long, the defense was able to clamp down again. Flushed out of the pocket on 2nd-and-10 at the Cardinal 28, Cyler Miles had no choice but to get rid of it, lest he feel the wrath of Kalambayi one more time. And while he did throw it away, the ball did not get back to the line of scrimmage, resulting in an intentional grounding, a 10-second runoff of the clock and another sack for the sophomore linebacker from North Carolina. This put Washington really behind the 8-ball, and a 4th-and-18 play would only result in a five-yard gain for Miles, who again was hurried into a decision. With Stanford in possession of the football and Washington out of timeouts, the game was effectively over.

“We knew we would face some sort of adversity,” Hogan said. “I would not have liked it to be turnovers but it happened and we knew we had to respond and we did.”

It wasn’t the prettiest of wins and there is plenty of work to be done to stay a serious contender in the Pac-12 North, but the victory formation never gets old.