STANFORD, Calif. — The 2023 Stanford football season laid the building blocks for the future of the program. A new head coach, the final season in the Pac-12, and one of the youngest rosters in the NCAA all meant that 2023 was to be a transition year. Still, despite some growing pains, there was no doubt that this version of the Cardinal provided excitement and a look ahead to what the future will look like. Stanford Athletics takes a look at the 2023 season for Stanford football along with the highlights and accolades in the first season under Troy Taylor.
A NEW ERA BEGINS
The 2023 season for Stanford football began on December 10, 2022, with the hiring of Troy Taylor as the Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football. It didn't take long for Taylor to get in the win column at Stanford, as the Cardinal opened the season on the road at Hawai'i and won its season opener 37-24 over the Rainbow Warriors, posting six sacks in a game for the first time since 2018.
There were several improvements by Stanford during Taylor's first season on The Farm:
- The Stanford offense held onto the ball at a far greater rate under Taylor, ranking top-40 in the NCAA in time of possession (31:17).
- Stanford cut down its turnover margin by nine.
- Explosive plays were much more common, with twice as many 40+-yard passing plays as 2022, the most for the team since 2019.
- The Cardinal went 3-2 on the road, posting its first winning record away from The Farm in a non-COVID season since 2018.
COMEBACK AT COLORADO
The highlight of the season came after the team's bye week, when the 1-4 Cardinal went on the road to take on the Colorado Buffaloes in Boulder. Things looked bleak in the first half, where just about everything went wrong for Stanford. The Cardinal were down 29-0 at halftime and went to the locker room ice cold on a chilly night in the Rockies before coming out and setting the field ablaze.
The Cardinal scored touchdowns on its first four possessions of the second half, making it a 29-26 deficit after a Justin Lamson touchdown run. Still, after the teams traded touchdowns, the Cardinal needed one final drive to tie the game. Starting at their own one yard line with 2:55 left in the game, Stanford was able to set Joshua Karty up with a game-tying field goal to send it to overtime at 36-36.
In overtime, Stanford matched a Colorado touchdown with a 30-yard strike to Elic Ayomanor, before getting a turnover in the end zone on Colorado's second drive to set up the game-winning field goal from Karty. Stanford stormed the field after Karty nailed the 31-yarder for the win, capping off a wild 46-43 win.
Some notes from the historic comeback win:
- The fourth-largest comeback and the second-largest road comeback in Pac-12 history.
- This is the largest comeback win in the history of Stanford football.
- By erasing a 29-point deficit, Stanford overcame the largest halftime deficit to win a game in Pac-12 history.
CLOSE CALLS
Not only did Stanford provide a lot of excitement in its wins, but the team was just a few plays away from other wins during the season that could have changed the outlook of the season:
- Stanford lost at home 21-20 to Arizona in Week 5 of the college football season, needing a stop on Arizona's final drive to get the ball back which the team failed to get. That loss stands out following the season, after Arizona went on a run late, finishing the season ranked No. 14 in the CFP rankings and winning the Valero Alamo Bowl.
- The Cardinal lost at home to No. 5 Washington 42-33 but had the ball down by just two points with under six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Washington would remain unbeaten in 2023 by winning the Pac-12 championship game and will play in the College Football Playoffs on New Year's Day.
ELIC EMERGES
One of the best storylines from the 2023 season was the emergence of redshirt freshman wide receiver Elic Ayomanor. After missing 2022 with an ACL injury, Ayomanor took over as the team's top receiving threat and became one of the best receivers in the NCAA.
Ayomanor compiled 1,013 yards on 62 catches to pace the Stanford offense, becoming the first receiver at Stanford with over 1,000 yards since J.J. Arcega-Whiteside in 2018. He also became the first freshman receiver at Stanford to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark. He finished the season ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in receiving yards and led the country in receiving yards by a freshman wide receiver.
His breakout performance came in the win at Colorado, where he compiled 294 yards and three touchdowns. That single-game performance was record-breaking or near-record-breaking in several categories:
- Most receiving yards in a game in Stanford history, surpassing the previous mark of 278 yards by Troy Walters on September 25, 1999.
- Most receiving yards in a game by an FBS player in 2023.
- Second most single-game receiving yards in Pac-12 history (Marquise Lee, USC, 2012, 345).
- First player in the Pac-12 with multiple touchdown receptions of 60+ yards since Washington's John Ross III on November 5, 2016.
- Tied for the second-most receptions in a game by a Cardinal receiver since 2000, trailing only Simi Fehoko's 16 catches on December 19, 2020.
- First game with three receiving touchdowns by a Card since Simi Fehoko on December 19, 2020, one shy of tying the Stanford single-game record.
AWARD SEASON
Five players were given All-Pac-12 honors, the final awards handed out by the conference for football. Joshua Karty was named First Team All-Pac-12 for the second season in a row after setting the Stanford single season record for field goals made with 23.
All-Pac-12 First Team
- Joshua Karty
All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention
- Elic Ayomanor
- Alaka'i Gilman
- Tristan Sinclair
- Benjamin Yurosek
Two Cardinal earned All-America honors from various publications. Karty, who was named a Lou Groza Award semifinalist for the second season in a row, picked up a pair of All-America nods while Ayomanor earned one Freshman All-America award and was this year's recipient of the Jon Cornish Trophy. The award is given annually to the best college football player from Canada.
Joshua Karty
- Pro Football Focus First Team All-America
- The Athletic Second Team All-America
- The Athletic First Team Freshman All-America
- Jon Cornish Trophy