Stanford looks to slow UCLA run attack, close with win
The strangest season in Stanford history will come to an end Saturday against a familiar opponent.
The Cardinal (3-2) will face UCLA (3- 3) at the Rose Bowl, continuing a series that has been played every year since World War II but was only officially added to this year’s schedule
on Sunday.
The game will cap a 19- day trip for Stanford that included stops in Seattle, Corvallis, Ore., and Santa Barbara, due to a Santa Clara County ban on games and practices for contact sports amid a spike in coronavirus cases.
The road trip seems to have galvanized the program. Stanford won at No. 23 Washington and at Oregon State since the health order took effect, and has won three in a row dating back to a win over Cal.
“There are a lot of teams around America that would have folded by now and just said, you know, this is too much to deal with,” Cardinal coach David Shaw said. “Our guys have taken a great attitude. They really are appreciative of the efforts that have gone around them to allow them this opportunity, and they’re doing the best to take advantage of playing the game that they love.”
Stanford and UCLA have both said they will decline bowl opportunities, so this is the final game of 2020 for both teams. Here are the key areas to watch:
RUNNING ATTACK » UCLA broke
an 11- game losing streak against Stanford last season, partly by outrushing the Cardinal 263-55 in the 34-16 win at Stanford Stadium.
The Bruins again have a strong running attack — second in the Pac-12 in rushing offense and third in rushing defense — while Stanford is in the bottom three in the conference in both categories but has improved lately.
Stanford sophomore Austin Jones has rushed for 264
yards in his last two games, and his seven TDs on the ground this season are tied for the Pac-12 lead with Oregon State’s Jermar Jefferson.
UCLA senior Demetric Felton ranks 13th nationally with 115.6 rushing yards per game, and the Bruins have run for at least 200 yards in eight of their last 14 games.
Stanford actually stuffed Felton last year — his seven carries lost 9 yards — though Joshua Kelley had 176 yards on 18 carries. STOPPING DTR » UCLA junior quarterback Dorian Thompson- Robinson is coming off his best performance of the season against
USC, completing 30 of 36 passes for 364 yards and four TDs while also running 10 times for 50 yards. He’s thrown for 12 TDs in four games this year, adding on 260 yards on the ground.
Thompson-Robinson had 13 carries for 66 yards in last year’s matchup. Stanford has struggled against dual-threat QBs this season, and Thompson-Robinson might be the toughest challenge yet.
TURNOVERS » UCLA has committed 11 turnovers in its three losses and just one in its three wins. Stanford has forced six turnovers this season, including a critical
fumble as Oregon State was in Stanford territory in the final minute of the 27-24 Cardinal win.
On the other side, Stanford’s offense has just two lost fumbles and no interceptions. Redshirt junior Davis Mills has thrown 204 straight passes without an interception dating back to last season, the third-longest active streak in the FBS, while the Bruins are second in the Pac-12 with six interceptions.
This might be the final game at Stanford for Mills, who has completed 65 percent of his passes for 1,080 yards in four games this year.