This Friday at 7:30 p.m., Stanford (6-3, 5-2 Pac-12) will take on No.9 Washington (8-1, 5-1 Pac-12) at home, a tough matchup that follows a short week where the Cardinal only had six days to rest after a loss to Washington State.
For the Huskies’, they also have a short week, coming off of a decisive 38-3 victory over the Oregon Ducks. They’ve moved up to No. 9 in the AP poll, and they want a victory to move them towards the College Football Playoffs.
After the 24-21 loss last week, Stanford fell out of the top-25 for the second time this season, and will look to prove that it deserves a place in the competition for the Pac-12 North title, as well as a top-25 rank.
With those stakes in mind, let’s look back at the last three meetings between the Cardinal and the Huskies.
September 30, 2016: Washington serves Stanford its worst loss since 2007
No. 7 Stanford was taken down 44-6 by No. 10 Washington in a game head coach David Shaw described as being “as poorly as we could play from start to finish.” Washington scored on every first-half possession, and ended up 23-0 at halftime.
Though Christian McCaffrey ended the game with 223 all-purpose yards, that was about the only good stat for the Cardinal in the game. The Stanford offense had just 213 total yards and allowed quarterback Ryan Burns to be sacked eight times.
The game was marred by poorly executed plays and mishaps. A fourth-and-two snap that came early led to a sack and a turnover-on-downs. The Cardinal made it into field goal range only to be sacked twice and end up having to punt. A Washington punt bounced into a Stanford blocker and was recovered by Washington, leading to a 30-0 game.
In the end, Stanford’s only score was a 19-yard pass from Burns to JJ Arcega-Whiteside, which, fitting the theme of the game, was followed by a failed two-point conversion.
Washington 44, Stanford 6
October 24, 2015: McCaffrey ignites, Hogan shines in homecoming win
10th-ranked Stanford ran over Washington on October 24th, with McCaffrey gaining 300 all-purpose yards and Kevin Hogan passing for 290 yards and two touchdowns, as well as running for 37 yards.
The Cardinal ended the game with 478 yards, compared to Washington’s 231, and held the ball for 40:05 minutes of possession, more than double Washington’s 19:55 minutes. Hogan ended up breaking Andrew Luck’s record for the most career rushing yards of a Stanford quarterback with 987.
Despite these standout performances, the victory really was a team effort. The defense forced five straight punts in the first half, giving Stanford a 17-0 lead at halftime, while the veteran offensive blocked beautifully, allowing the rest of the offense to shine.
It would be Stanford’s sixth straight game with at least 31 points.
Stanford 31, Washington 14
September 27, 2014: Defense leads the way to a close victory
The Cardinal defense kept Washington from getting a single first down for the entire first quarter of the September 27 game against the Huskies, setting the tone for the rest of the match.
Though Washington was undefeated coming into the game, Stanford put consistent pressure on quarterback Cyler Miller, with linebacker Peter Kalambayi coming up with nine tackles and three sacks at the end of the game. However, despite strong playing by the defense, the game was tied at 13 through the third quarter.
Finally, with 4:29 left in the fourth, Hogan rolled right and faked a pass to run it in on first and goal on the five-yard line.
Stanford went on to hold Washington on fourth-and-18, and the Cardinal got the victory.
Stanford 20, Washington 13
Contact Ariana Rollins at arianar ‘at’ stanford.edu.