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Bob Drebin / isiphotos.com
Football

Sundays With Soltau

STANFORD, Calif. – When Stanford left the field at halftime trailing 21-0 at chilly and raucous Husky Stadium on Saturday night, some figured the rout was on.
 
They were wrong.
 
There was no panic after a forgettable first half that saw the Cardinal surrender three consecutive touchdown drives, muster one first down, and lose star wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside to an injury.
 
Early deficits are nothing new for Stanford, which has struck first in just two games this season.

But the team has been resilient. After falling behind 24-7 at Oregon, the Cardinal rallied for a stunning 38-31 overtime win.
 
Last week against Washington State, Stanford fought back to take a late fourth-quarter lead but couldn't hold it.
 
"When things are tough and when things are dark, we are at our absolute best," said David Shaw, the Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football. "I love that about our guys. The problem is, we create the situation that puts us there."
 
The Cardinal (5-4, 3-3 Pac-12) has been outscored 69-28 in the first quarter, a trend Shaw would like to see change in the remaining three regular season games.
 
"We have to find a way to play great football from start to finish," Shaw said. "It's on me, it's on the coaches, it's on the leaders on this football team. We're allowing ourselves to start slowly before we kick it in. When we play our best, we're as good as anybody, injuries or not."
 
Shaw said there were no major halftime adjustments.
 
"We didn't call anything differently," he said. "We didn't change who we play – we played the same guys. They played harder, they played smarter, they played better."
 


Standing tall: Junior tight end Kaden Smith had another monster contest, catching eight passes for 107 yards and a touchdown. It marked the third game this season he has surpassed 100 yards in receiving, Smith collected 120 against Utah on eight grabs and 112 against Washington State on nine.
 
Smith is the first Stanford tight end to produce consecutive 100-yard receiving games since Alex Smith in 2004. The last Cardinal tight end to produce three in one season was Zach Ertz, now a star with the Philadelphia Eagles, who accomplished it in 2012.
 
"We need to come out stronger, faster, on both sides of the ball," said Smith. "I'm proud of my team for fighting through all the adversity we faced."
 

 
Digging in: The defense clamped down in the second half, limiting Washington to 146 yards and two field goals. Three times, the unit forced three-and-outs.
 
Fifth-year senior inside linebacker Bobby Okereke, making his 36th straight start, finished with a team-high 11 tackles. Junior outside linebacker Jordan Fox collected nine stops, while fifth-year senior cornerback Alijah Holder registered seven tackles and forced three pass break ups.
 


Gritty again: Senior running back Bryce Love didn't practice all week and was a game-time decision for the second game in a row. The Cardinal was already thin because junior Trevor Speights did not make the trip.
 
Although less than 100 percent, Love gave his all and ran for 71 yards on 18 carries and contributed a 5-yard scoring run. He also ripped off a 28-yard burst.
 
Love now has 28 career rushing touchdowns, tied for the fifth-most in program history with Brad Muster.

Big loss: Arcega-Whiteside entered the game with 11 touchdown receptions, the second most in the country. He was injured in the second quarter on a twisting tackle by Husky defender Byron Murphy after catching an 11-yard pass from junior quarterback K.J. Costello.
 
"JJ is an All-American," Shaw said. "He's one of the best, if not the best receiver, in America. When a guy like that is not on the field, you miss him."
 
In more ways than one. Earlier in the game, Arcega-Whiteside drew his 12th pass interference penalty of the season. He's also forced two holding calls amounting to a combined 190 yards.  
 
Shaw will update his playing status on Tuesday during his weekly media briefing.


 
O-line shuffle: Due to injuries, Stanford has started five offensive line combinations in nine games. Four first-teamers have missed at least one contest and three have missed multiple games.
 
Junior offensive guard Nate Herbig did not suit up against the Huskies.
 
College debut: With junior Jet Toner unavailable, junior Collin Riccitelli received his first collegiate playing time and kicked two extra points and a 21-yard field goal.
 


Home finale: The Cardinal closes its home season on Saturday at 6 p.m. against Oregon State (2-7, 1-5). Stanford leads the all-time series, 56-25-3, and has won the last eight meetings dating back to 2010.
 
On Saturday, the Beavers lost to USC, 38-21. After missing four games with an ankle injury, Oregon State quarterback Jake Luton returned to the starting lineup and completed 31-of-45 passes for 301 yards.
 
Luton, a 6-7, 230-pound senior, came off the bench in the second half last week to engineer an upset win at Colorado. Trailing by 28 points, he threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns in the 41-34 overtime victory.
 
Last year in Corvallis, Keller Chryst tossed a 3-yard touchdown pass to Arcega-Whiteside with 20 seconds remaining to lift the Cardinal to a 15-14 victory over Oregon State. Portland native Cameron Scarlett led Stanford in rushing with 72 yards on 17 carries, while Toner booted three field goals.

Saturday's contest will be the final home appearance for many Cardinal seniors, who will be recognized before the game.
 
The first 10,000 fans who enter the gates with valid paid tickets will receive Christian McCaffrey bobbleheads – one per person.
 


Extra points … Costello completed 29-of-43 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted three times … He has now thrown at least one scoring pass in 13 consecutive contests … Picking up the slack for Arcega-Whiteside, sophomore tight end Colby Parkinson caught five passes for 79 yards … Sophomore wide receiver Connor Wedington returned after missing the last seven games with an injury. He made impact, catching three passes for 30 yards … Senior wide receiver Trenton Irwin made his first touchdown reception of the season and it was memorable. He made a diving grab in the end zone of a 33-yard pass from Costello with 3:24 remaining in the fourth quarter to pull Stanford within four points … Freshman defensive end Thomas Booker earned his first career start … Freshman defensive end Andres Fox earned his first career sack ... Scarlett caught a career-best three passes … Junior outside linebacker Curtis Robinson saw his first game action of the season after being sidelined by an injury … Pete Higgins '80, MBA '83, Founding Partner of Second Avenue Partners, and former Stanford Trustee and Athletics Board member, served as honorary captain.


 
Quotable
 
"Getting frustrated doesn't help anybody. I don't get frustrated, I get serious." – David Shaw