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Football

Stanford Spring Ball – Week 2

STANFORD, Calif. — Spring football practice at Stanford rolled on this week with four practices and a full week of intensity continuing to ramp up in anticipation of the annual Spring Showcase.
 
Two offensive groups to highlight in week two are ones full of youth: the wide receivers and the running backs. Some of the best young talent on the team resides in these groups, and they are ready to make big strides in 2024.
 
Of the 13 wide receivers on the team during spring ball, only Bryce Farrell and Mudia Reuben have receptions in multiple seasons, and nobody has more career receptions than Elic Ayomanor's 62 (all of which came last season). Eight are underclassmen, and more will join in the fall, creating a wide-open competition for playing time.
 
"We should have a lot more depth this year," said Tyler Osborne, The Krishnamurthi Wide Receivers Coach and Assistant Quarterbacks Coach, explaining how the number of options helps. "But we're still going to be really young. Most of the guys in the room are freshmen or sophomores. Still, I'm really pleased with how the room is progressing and the future of this group."
 
The spotlight will obviously shine on Elic Ayomanor and Tiger Bachmeier, who return for their sophomore seasons. Ayomanor was a First Team Freshman All-America selection by PFF, and Bachmeier led the Pac-12 conference in receptions and receiving yards by true freshmen.

 
Even with those two in the mix, there will be a ton of competition for playing time at the wide receiver position. With so much inexperience, the on-field repetitions aren't the only reps that matter this time of year.
 
"A lot of these guys have never trained as much as their first year in college," Osborne continued, highlighting the importance of reps off the field. "Our strength and conditioning staff have done a phenomenal job with all these guys, getting them bigger, faster, and stronger."
 
There is also a lot of inexperience in the running back room, which figures to grow in the fall when more incoming freshmen join the group. Right now, Sedrick Irvin and Ryan Butler lead the way with the most experience. Irvin carried the ball 26 times for 113 yards and a touchdown as a true freshman, while Butler transferred from Princeton and had 18 carries in his first season on The Farm.
 

 
When the group hasn't had the repetitions carrying the football in-game, spring is such a crucial time for development, and that keeps the goals simple for what running backs coach Malcolm Agnew wants to see.
 
"There's only one thing I'm concerned about: getting better and developing every day," coach Agnew explained. "Some guys are starting to take some steps forward, which is encouraging to see.  We are by no means where we need to be yet, but I really do like the progress we are having."
 
There are opportunities aplenty to develop during spring, and that includes every aspect of the game. In speaking with Stanford Athletics, Agnew mentioned two areas in particular that he wants to see constant development in: protecting the ball and protecting the quarterback.
 
"Those are the top two and not number two," Coach Agnew told reporters. "We spend a lot of time on those two, and then we always try to work with some type of run-read drill each day to make sure our guys stay sharp with our reads in the run game. But we have to be able to protect the ball and protect the quarterback."
 
On the defensive side of the ball, so many returners are ready to make their mark in year two under this coaching staff. One of those players is Collin Wright, who made strides as one of the team's starting cornerbacks in 2023. Wright was one of the better lockdown corners in the Pac-12, and figures to be one of the anchors of the secondary this season.
 
Wright talked about the importance of having another year under the same coaching staff, which is a similar sentiment to what Bobby April talked about last week to Stanford Athletics.
 
"Last year was kind of like an introductory year. Our defense is very complex with multiple schemes and adjustments. So having year two with everyone understanding what's going on and having a lot of growth in the offseason is good for us."
 
Speaking specifically on the secondary, that group figures to return three of its four starters from 2023, or four out of five starters in the team's nickel package. Of those returners, none of them were starters prior to 2023, meaning the 2024 season is the first time this group has experience under Coach Taylor and Coach April.
 
Cornerbacks coach Paul Williams told the media this week just how important that experience is, not just for the team, but to be successful in college football.
 
"It's great because you have good leadership and experience in the secondary," he said about the team's defensive backs. "That's the thing in college football, you're not going to have a good team unless you have experience, older guys, and leadership."
 

 
One of the players transferring onto The Farm is defensive back Jay Green, who spent the first two seasons of his career in the Pac-12 playing corner for the Washington Huskies. Experience doesn't come in many greater fashions than playing in a National Championship game, which Green got a chance to do last season for Washington, meaning he figures to compete for playing time in the secondary this year.
 
He also knows first-hand how talented this Stanford team is, given the Huskies' battle at Stanford Stadium last fall. The Cardinal were potentially one fourth down conversion away from beating the then-fifth-ranked Huskies before they made their run to the title game.
 
"At Stanford, I felt like with the new coaching staff, a lot of those games last year were one possession games and could have been won," Green told Stanford Athletics this week about what stood out about Stanford. "I felt like they were really close to breaking through to something big, so I wanted to come here and win games and focus on my academics."
 
Three more practices are on tap next week before fans will have a chance to see the Cardinal in action during the team's annual Spring Showcase, as part of Cardinalpalooza, on Saturday, April 20 at 12:30 pm inside Stanford Stadium.