Senior defensive lineman Anthony Franklin has not seen much winning in his college career.
During his first three years on the Farm, the six-foot-four lineman from Arizona suffered through three straight 3-9 years. Stanford’s defense was not helping the team stay close in games, as they ranked second-to-last nationally in 2023 in total defense and 94th in rushing yards allowed.
“Notre Dame last year just left a terrible taste in our mouth,” Franklin said, referring to the Fighting Irish’s 56-23 victory in Stanford’s season finale. “They ran all over us. The big emphasis in spring and fall camp was that we got to be able to stop the run this year.”
Stanford has certainly succeeded in that department this year. The Cardinal defense ranks 3rd in FBS football in rushing yards per attempt. During the Sept. 20 game against Syracuse, the defense even showed signs of generating a pass rush.
But for Franklin, the defense’s recent performances were a long time coming.
“I think we’ve always had it. We just weren’t making the plays the first couple of weeks,” Franklin said. “Coach April is putting us in the right spots and giving us the opportunity to [demonstrate] what we have and our talents. [Against] Syracuse we just finally put it all together.”
Stanford limited the Orange to only 26 rushing yards, which catapulted the Cardinal to the third-best rushing defense in the nation. Franklin and the defensive line also were successful against the pass, as the senior defensive lineman recorded a sack — one of four on the night for the Cardinal.
But this Saturday will present a much stiffer test for the defense, as they head into Death Valley to take on the No. 17 Clemson Tigers (2-1, 1-0 ACC). After a slow start against Georgia, the Clemson offense has been on a roll recently, accumulating 59 points against NC State (1-2, 0-1 ACC) last week.
“Clemson is gonna be a different offense than what we’ve seen these last few weeks,” Franklin said. “[They have] a bigger, faster, stronger offensive line [and] bigger, stronger and faster running backs. So it’ll be a challenge.”
Franklin also said keeping the Clemson quarterback, Cade Klubnik, in the pocket will be essential to Stanford’s defensive success.
“Klubnik will make us pay [if we make a mistake],” Franklin said. “[A] huge emphasis this week [is] on pass rush lanes”. The possibility of rainy weather could also make the game a bit more ground-focused.
The defensive line will continue looking toward Franklin to lead them this week with fifth-year defensive lineman Tobin Phillips fighting an injury. However, this is nothing new for the senior, who has been one of the older players in the room for a while. During his sophomore year, the team had no senior defensive linemen, which Franklin said forced him to mature quickly.
The Cardinal will need all the leadership they can get as Clemson will present the biggest challenge of the season thus far. But rather than focusing on any end result, Franklin said he understands the importance of keeping his eyes on the task in front of him.
“We got to focus on tackling low, staying physical and attacking our gaps [against Clemson running back Phil Mafah],” Franklin said. “There’s [also] gonna be a big emphasis on tackling a bigger back this week. We do a lot of tackling drills and I think we’ll be prepared.”