STANFORD, Calif. – To best way to characterize Stanford football is through its physical play and power running game. Nowhere is that more defined than in the 'jumbo' and 'ogre' packages that the offense puts on the field in short-yardage situations.
It's a lot of big bodies on the line and in the backfield. The intention is to jam the ball down a defense's throat and dare it to stop them.
Left tackle A.T. Hall loves it when he sees extra linemen jog on to the field.
"There's no greater feeling than watching them put their hands on their hips, and lining up next to them, and knowing they're thinking, Oh no, here they come again," Hall said. "You can see it in their eyes, and their facial expressions and in their bodies. They know we're going to keep pounding it until they don't want it anymore.
"It hurts us, but I know it hurts them a lot more. That's for sure."
Christian McCaffrey has 980 rushing yards and will surely reach 1,000 against Oregon on Saturday in Eugene. He leads the Pac-12 with 122.5 rushing yards per game.
"What he did last year set such a high bar, that 1,000 yards is like a shrug of the shoulders for him," said David Shaw, Stanford's Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football. "But it shouldn't be. It's a landmark for a reason.
"Now that he's healthy, and with more consistent play up front, you're starting to see once again what he's really capable of."
McCaffrey has rushed for 368 yards in the past two games.
For the past six seasons, the result of Stanford's game with Oregon has decided conference and division championships, and even affected the national championship chase.
Both teams have been eliminated from the Pac-12 North race. While Stanford (6-3, 4-3) has reached bowl eligibility, Oregon (3-6, 1-5) needs to win out to do so.
Still, the rivalry remains big for both programs.
"The records don't matter," Shaw said. "These are two proud football programs that have had some exciting games over the last five-plus years. Back and forth games, big plays. There have been some great players in those games, and some great players in this game.
"These are two offenses that have contrasting styles, but very similar philosophies: Run the ball and produce explosive plays. Our guys are fired up."
A six-man rotation of inside linebackers was not intended to last the season, but it has been so successful that there are no plans to shelve it.
Kevin Palma and Bobby Okereke are tops on the depth chart in Stanford's 3-4 defensive front, but playing time also is divided among Noor Davis, Sean Barton, Mustafa Branch, and Jordan Perez.
Here's how the rotation developed:
"With many new guys, we needed to see everybody, so we started this rotation throughout the spring and into training camp," Shaw said. "It was interesting to see everybody is playing better.
"They feel the competition, but they also are excited to get a chance to play. We started the year not knowing how long it would last, but we got the best versions of all those guys, so we've continued the rotation throughout the year.
"I don't know anybody who's played six inside linebackers for an entire year, but it's been great for us. All those guys have grown and learned."
Palma and Branch got interceptions in the 26-15 victory over Oregon State last week, and Davis, a fifth-year senior, is playing the best of his career.
"We all want to play and be on the field as much as we can," Davis said. "But we understand our roles and what our coach has in mind for us."
Davis reflects his varied background. His mother, Jana, is from Slovakia and his father, Christopher, is from New Jersey. His name, Noor, is Arabic for 'light.'
Hall's interest in Stanford began a decade ago when his father, Travis, was completing an 11-year NFL career as a defensive lineman for a season with the San Francisco 49ers.
A.T. was living in Atlanta where Travis had spent the previous 10 seasons, and came out to the Bay Area to visit his dad during a bye week. It was Travis' idea to watch a Stanford football game.
"If you ever want to be anything one day, whether you get into sports or not, this is where people come to be successful," A.T.'s father told him.
Stanford, in the midst of a 1-11 season, "got smacked," A.T. recalled. "It was pretty bad."
But from then on, Stanford became a goal, even in SEC country where a common response by friends was, "Huh?" But that didn't deter him.
"I did whatever it took," A.T. said. "I just got lucky I guess."
Hall is majoring in science, technology and society, and has an interest in designing cars. That interest was created in high school when his mother's fiance at the time bought a used car and took it apart. He and A.T. spent every weekend putting it back together and making it run.
They did it.
For the record, it was a 1988 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
"It was such a great experience," A.T. said. "That's what got me intrigued on what to study here."
