After two consecutive BCS
appearances, the #14 ranked Stanford Cardinals now have a reputation to
uphold. The University, the Fans, the Pundits, and everyone else, expect
big things from the Cardinals. At 7-2, and after punting on the first
two drives last week to 1-7 Colorado, Stanford Head Coach David Shaw
benched starting QB Josh Nunes in favor of redshirt freshman Kevin
Hogan. Hogan went on to lead 6 scoring drives and a rout of the
Buffaloes, 48-0. While its easy for Stanford fans and players to get
excited about this, they must be reminded that they were playing
Colorado...and Colorado is no Oregon State.
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| Saturday afternoon we are in for a treat with Oregon State vs Stanford |
This
feature match-up is taking place at "The Farm" at Stanford and will
showcase the skills of young Stanford QB, Kevin Hogan. This game also
features a battle between both of the teams sitting right behind Oregon
in the PAC-12 and will more than likely be the odds on favorite to
compete with Oregon for PAC-12 title. Additionally, the winner of this
game could still be in line for a BCS birth, should Oregon play for the
National Championship. The specifics of this game are really
non-existent because the end result of the game is going to come down to
the play of Hogan. While he looked great against Colorado, #11
ranked Oregon State is the 19th best team in the country for points
allowed which means they will do their best to stifle the freshman QB.
Conversely, Stanford could hold an advantage, because the only game tape
that can be used for preparation against Hogan is last week's game
against Colorado. Since he has played in no other games, this could pose
a true challenge for the Beavers as they travel into Stanford.
Either
way, the fans all around are going to be treated to a great game and a
true chess match as both teams need a victory in order to keep their
hopes alive in both the BCS and PAC-12 contention. Stanford comes into
this game holding a home field advantage and as a result Oddsmakers
currently have them as a 4.5 point favorite (-4.5). With that being
said, I honestly do not see any way that Oregon State finds a way to
lose this game. They are tougher against the run which will put added
pressure on the freshman QB. The score will remain low, but I definitely
feel as though Vegas has this one wrong as Oregon State will leave the
Farm with another victory.
- The Sports Messiah
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