Against Irish, Cardinal bring extra beef
Stanford’s offensive line has some unusual positions.
The No. 13 Cardinal will throw all of the above at No. 4 Notre Dame on Saturday in a duel of College Football Playoff contenders.
Stanford’s playoff chances were considered dead after the Oregon loss on Nov. 14, but they’ve been rekindled.
[...] the Cardinal (ninth in the CFP rankings) are favored over a team above them (No. 6).
Redshirt freshman Brandon Fanaika, for instance, is a backup guard, but he’s also the pitbull or fullback in the so-called jumbo packages.
“He either leads Remound Wright or jumps over the top and tries to be a scud missile,” offensive coordinator Mike Bloomgren said.
Scud missile? “He tries to knock the back-side linebacker out of the air.”
The idea is to make the area above the line a no-fly zone for everybody but Wright, the man with the ball.
Fifth-year senior Brendon Austin plays jumbo tight end and is a short-yardage specialist at guard, “a guy we pull a lot,” Bloomgren said.
The huge reinforcements “take a lot of pride” in their roles, head coach David Shaw said.
The NCAA has confirmed that the Bears’ season-opening win over Grambling State will count toward the six victories necessary to make a bowl game, making Cal officially bowl eligible for the first time since 2011, the university said Wednesday.
Cal recently filed a claim with the NCAA Football Oversight Committee after questions arose over an issue regarding scholarships for Grambling State.