Although they played hard, the Stanford Cardinal (2-3, 1-2 ACC) were unable to pull off another win, losing 31-7 to Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon. After three conference games, the competitive field in the ACC is starting to become clearer, with top teams emerging and each team’s identity becoming more established.
Through Stanford’s five games and three conference matchups, how has the ACC outlook changed since the win over Syracuse followed by two straight losses? Let’s take a look at where the cardinals stand now and what the rest of the conference will look like.
At the beginning of the season, the Cardinal were expected to finish last in the new ACC. That’s because three straight 3-9 seasons combined with a roster rebuild in a tough conference usually means a struggle for a team in Stanford’s position. However, after defeating Syracuse in Week 4, the Cardinal were able to avoid an 0-3 start in conference play, and as such, currently sit in 13th place in the conference. Five teams remain undefeated in ACC play: Clemson (4-1, 3-0 ACC), Miami (6-0, 2-0 ACC), and SMU (5-1, 2-0 ACC). Virginia (4-2). 1, 2-0 ACC) and Pittsburgh (5-0, 1-0 ACC) lead the standings so far.
Behind Stanford are Florida State (1-5, 1-4 ACC), California (2-3, 0-2 ACC), UNC (3-3, 0-2 ACC) and North Carolina. State University (3-3, 0-2) follows. ACC). The Seminoles are arguably the most surprising, as they are just one season away from finishing the regular season 12-0, winning the ACC Championship and making the Orange Bowl.
Stanford still has seven games remaining, five of which are conference games. Two of those seven games are against non-conference opponents, the next one against No. 11 Notre Dame and the final game of the season against San Jose State, both of which are on the road. Playing Notre Dame on the road could very well be one of the toughest games the Cardinal will play all season. That means conference games against SMU, Wake Forest, NC State, Louisville and California mean more.
SMU, currently ranked 25th in the AP poll, is very much in line with Virginia Tech in terms of the type of team the Cardinal will face, with the Mustangs having a very good offense and scoring. It’s likely to be a very similar match. He scored over 30 points in four of his first six games. Aside from a narrow 18-15 loss to No. 14 ranked BYU, the Mustangs have been dominant, defeating teams such as Louisville, TCU, and Florida State. While it’s certainly possible to win, the Cardinal likely won’t have the advantage in that game.
After that game, the Cardinal will return home to face a Wake Forest team they currently beat by a half-game, but have played one less conference game and their overall record remains the same at 2-3. is. Wake and Stanford are also good teams, but they are evenly matched. If the Cardinals play like they did against Syracuse, they could have this type of game. North Carolina State, which has lost two games to Clemson and Wake Forest so far in the conference, will host the Cardinal in Week 10, but it will be another tough challenge for the Cardinal.
The Cardinal’s conference season then concludes with a home matchup against a struggling Louisville team, followed by a big game on the road against Cal. Cal is no stranger to the Cardinal and is an opponent they have had great success with historically. Following the big game, Stanford will close out the season against Mountain West member San Jose State in the Bill Walsh Legacy Game and will likely enter the contest as the betting favorite.
Stanford went through all sorts of ups and downs this season, but showed plenty of promise and reason for hope for a team expected to finish in its original position. If the team can get a few more wins before the end of the season, they have a chance to shock people.
