Final Thoughts: Stanford 48, Cal 14

Both Stanford and Cal come in fired up for this installment of the Big Game, but Cal’s flaws were evident from the start. The Golden Bears quickly turned the ball over and the Cardinal turned it into points, setting the tone for the rest of the game. Stanford outplayed Cal on both sides of the ball; after overcoming some initial hiccups, the offense was its usual strong self, while the defense turned in another solid outing in a string of strong performances. By the time the Bears overcame the discipline issues that plagued them early in the game, the Cardinal had found its groove and simply rolled up points and yardage almost at will.

The Axe will now come back to Stanford for the first time since the Card’s 2007 victory at Stanford Stadium.

Both teams have one Pac-10 game remaining on their schedules. Stanford will host Oregon State next weekend, while Cal gets Washington at home.

Final: Stanford 48, California 14

The Axe will come back to Stanford tonight after this victory. The Cardinal thoroughly dominated the Golden Bears in almost every aspect of the game.

Check back later for my final thoughts, plus a full recap later tonight on the Daily’s website!

0:15 remaining, fourth quarter

Cal tries a squib kick, but Stanford just downs it. The Card will kneel out the game from here; since Cal has two timeouts remaining, they can do nothing to stop the Cardinal from doing so. This game will end in a 48-14 victory for Stanford, and the Axe will return to the Farm.

o:24 remaining, fourth quarter

Cal is on fourth down (again) at the Stanford 7-yard line with just 24 seconds remaining. At this point, I’m more interested about what the Stanford students are going to do with that security cordon.

TOUCHDOWN, CAL! The Golden Bears score on a Brock Mansion pass to narrow the gap to 48-14. Still, a comeback at this point is more or less impossible, and I’m not sure I really have anything more to say on the matter.

3:31 remaining, fourth quarter

Cal gets the ball back after forcing a Stanford punt, and has come out throwing on its drive. Both teams, though, are aware of what the outcome is going to be, and the fans do, too, as most Cal fans have begun to leave Memorial stadium. The Stanford corner, however, remains packed, and there is a security cordon in front of the section to prevent any Stanford fans from rushing the field at the end of the game.

5:18 remaining, fourth quarter

TURNOVER ON DOWNS TO STANFORD! A last-ditch attempt by Cal to get some more points on the board ends when Mansion throws a pass through his receiver’s hands on fourth down. Luck and the rest of Stanford’s offensive starters are not in the game, and Stanford is now led by Josh Nunes at quarterback. Stanford will now try to simply run the clock out and keep moving the ball incrementally down the field.

7:04 remaining, fourth quarter

FIELD GOAL, STANFORD! Nate Whitaker drills a 41-yard field goal as the Cardinal rushing attack grinds to a halt inside Cal territory. Stanford took 13 plays on that drive, and it took 7 minutes and 18 seconds off the clock, and the Cardinal leads, 48-7.

Stanford’s victory is all but assured at this point. Cal is not going to come back from this deficit with only seven minutes remaining. I’d be very surprised if Stanford’s starting defenders come out on this drive, and I think we have seen the last of Andrew Luck for this afternoon (though his backup, Alex Loukas, was injured earlier in the game on a direct snap and run play).

14:27 remaining, fourth quarter

TOUCHDOWN, CAL! On a Wildcat direct snap to wide receiver Keenan Allen, the Bears score a touchdown as Allen was chased around the pocket before he threw to an open target in the end zone for a touchdown. One of the more bizarre plays of the day to be sure, but the Bears finally get on the scoreboard. Stanford leads, 45-7.

I find it somewhat ironic that Cal’s only touchdown pass so far hasn’t come from its quarterback. In any case, Stanford will get the ball back on the kickoff and likely pursue a clock-killing strategy, designed to either score or run down as much clock as possible by simply running the football straight at Cal.

End of third quarter: Stanford 45, Cal 0

With only one quarter left to play here at Memorial Stadium, the outcome of the Big Game is not in doubt: Stanford will reclaim The Axe. Though Cal’s offense is finally showing some fight against the Stanford defense (including suddenly decent play from Mansion), the Card will simply milk the clock using its power running game as soon as it gets the ball back. Barring some sort of ridiculous and unprecedented collapse, a 45-point lead with one quarter remaining in the game is simply too much for the Golden Bears to overcome.

4:53 remaining, third quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Wilkerson takes a short three-yard run into the end zone for Stanford’s sixth touchdown of the day. After a converted PAT, Stanford leads, 45-0.

This game has turned into a blowout. Stanford’s going to leave Berkeley with a win today, the only question is what the exact final score will be. Cal has shown no ability to stop Stanford on defense; that last drive took 9 minutes and 17 seconds off the clock and went for 11 plays, and Stanford looked to be simply imposing its will on the Golden Bears. It doesn’t matter what Cal’s offense can do if its defense doesn’t find ways to stop the Cardinal, and right now they’re simply not having the same kind of success they’ve had in this building up until today.

10:10 remaining, third quarter

Stanford forces another Cal punt after a vicious sack by Taylor Skaufel on third down. On the punt return, Terrell had to backpedal all the way into his own red zone, and bobbled the ball several times before finally coming down with it around the 10-yard line and proceeding to run all the way back to the Stanford 44-yard line.

12:09 remaining, third quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Stepfan Taylor runs in his third touchdown of the game from four yards out to open up the scoring in the second half for the Cardinal. A good extra point from Whitaker gives Stanford a 38-0 lead over Cal.

I would be extremely surprised at this point if Cal gets back into this game and mounts a meaningful challenge to Stanford’s lead. While there is still a lot of time left, Stanford just looks so much better right now in every dimension. This next drive will go a long way toward determining whether Cal will get back into the game, and whether head coach Jeff Tedford was able to convince them to not give up on this game in the locker room at halftime.

15:00 remaining, third quarter

The third quarter is underway and Stanford will start with the ball at its own 36-yard line. The Cal fans at Memorial Stadium aren’t giving up on the Bears, though, so this half should be pretty entertaining.

Stanford is moving the ball very swiftly through the air. Luck is absolutely shredding this Cal pass defense, and his offense now is inside the Golden Bear red zone.

Halftime: Stanford 31, Cal 0

It’s time for my halftime thoughts!

Stanford has absolutely dominated Cal today. The Cardinal was a little slow coming out of the gate, but was helped by Golden Bear turnovers and hasn’t looked back since. Meanwhile, the Stanford defense has been stellar and Brock Mansion has looked like, well, a backup quarterback. Stanford has scored 17 points off three Cal turnovers: two interceptions and a fumble on a botched snap. Cal’s offensive ineptitude will have to be fixed if it wants to get back in this game, and Mansion will need to start stepping up and making the kind of big-time plays that have eluded him thus far. Realistically, unless Stanford suffers a big meltdown in the second half, it will be very difficult for Cal to climb back into this one.

On the other sideline, Andrew Luck has looked every inch like the NFL first-round pick most pundits project him to be. He has made every throw imaginable, short and long, to open receivers and ones in double coverage. He has also made plays with his legs, showing a willingness to take off and run when necessary and staying mistake free. So far, Luck has thrown just two incompletions and has gone for 165 yards through the air (with two touchdowns) and 69 yards on the ground. Anthony Wilkerson, the true freshman running back, seems to be splitting time pretty equally with Stepfan Taylor, with both backs getting an identical seven carries and 31 yards (though Taylor has two touchdown runs).

0:22 remaining, second quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Luck throws a 19-yard pass to Doug Baldwin, who makes an incredible leaping grab in the corner of the end zone for another Cardinal touchdown. A converted PAT will give Stanford a 31-0 lead with little time left in the first half.

That touchdown could prove to be a dagger in Cal’s heart. At a minimum, it appeared as though the Golden Bears would enter the locker room with a 24-point deficit: significant, but not insurmountable. However, the turnover and subsequent touchdown is going to make it that much more difficult for the Bears to stay focused and motivated, and the danger that this will turn into an absolute rout must now be lurking at the back of their minds.

Cal will kneel it out to halftime, as it is booed by its own fans heading back into the locker room. The Card, meanwhile, is cheered loudly by the Stanford slice of Memorial Stadium.

1:48 remaining, second quarter
INTERCEPTION, STANFORD! Michael Thomas picks off Brock Mansion for his first interception of the year. Stanford will start with the ball on its own 39-yard line, and it looks like it will not be content to merely run the clock out to halftime.

2:47 remaining, second quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Luck drills tight end Zach Ertz in the end zone for a Stanford touchdown. A good extra point gives Stanford a 24-0 lead.

Stanford moved the ball extremely well on that drive, going 90 yards in nine plays and just under five minutes. The biggest play on the drive was a big completion from Andrew Luck to Doug Baldwin for 47 yards.

While Stanford didn’t grind it out on that drive, it still was able to gain a lot of traction against this Golden Bears defense. Luck was especially impressive, threading passes to his receivers in tight coverage. If Stanford can head into the locker room with this lead, it will be a significant boost to its confidence and make it much more likely that it will win this game.

7:46 remaining, second quarter

Stanford’s defense comes up with another stop on the Golden Bears, and they are forced into another punt. Stanford will start the drive on its own 10-yard line. The Card leads, 17-0.

This next drive will be key to the final outcome of this game. If the Cardinal can mount one of its classic run-heavy, clock-eating drives and get into the end zone, it will gain a commanding 24-0 lead and most of the momentum in this game. Of course, that score is far from a certain victory for Stanford, but it would certainly go a long way toward giving it an upper edge in the Big Game.

10:44 remaining, second quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Stepfan Taylor takes a one-yard run into the end zone for his second score of the day. A converted PAT makes it Stanford 17, Cal 0 here in the second quarter.

Stanford’s offense finally got its running game going on that drive. Anthony Wilkerson had a couple of good runs against the Bear defense, and Luck had plenty of time to make clutch throws and find open receivers. If Stanford’s defense can make a stop on the next drive, the Cardinal will have an opportunity to build a very large lead on the Bears.

Interestingly enough, Stanford has already scored more points midway through the second quarter than Oregon managed all game last weekend. Of course, it got a lot of help from the Bears with their massive penalty tally.

14:12 remaining, second quarter

Cal is unable to convert on third down, and Stanford will start its next drive on its own 14-yard line after a fair catch by Drew Terrell.

End of first quarter: Stanford 10, Cal 0

While the Golden Bears have looked good at times through the early stage of this game, they are getting absolutely killed by penalties. Two pass-interference calls directly led to the Card’s first 10 points, and the Bears will start the second quarter in a third-and-22 situation thanks largely to two undisciplined penalties, one on an illegal snap and the other on an illegal formation. Cal is a talented team, certainly more so than its record would indicate, but sloppiness and a lack of discipline could be its downfall. Overall, Cal was flagged six times in the first quarter for 60 yards in penalties; a lot of teams don’t even get that high in the entire game! For comparison, Stanford was penalized once, for 15 yards.

Turnovers haven’t been kind to Cal, either, as the Card scored its 10 points off two Golden Bear giveaways: a fumble and an interception, both pinned on Mansion.

3:46 remaining, first quarter

TOUCHDOWN, STANFORD! Sophomore running back Stepfan Taylor takes the ball in from four yards out for Stanford’s first touchdown of the game. A good Whitaker PAT makes it Stanford 10, Cal 0. The drive went 95 yards in a hurry, highlighted by a Luck scramble of 58 yards.

While Stanford’s offense looked a lot better on that drive, a lot of the Cardinal’s success was due to bad mistakes on the Golden Bears’ behalf. They suffered yet another pass interference penalty in the end zone, giving Stanford the ball inside its own five-yard line, and completely failed to capitalize on opportunities to close down Luck on his big run. Of course, if the Bears can’t fix their errors, it will work out quite nicely for Stanford.

5:45 remaining, first quarter

Cal is showing the same tenacity and run-stopping defensive ability that slowed Oregon to a crawl last weekend and let the Ducks score just 15 points. Much like last weekend against Arizona State, Stanford is finding little room for its running game, and no back as of yet has really made any progress against linebacker Mike Mohamed and the Cal front seven. The Cardinal has been repeatedly forced into third-down situations, escaping the first one on an offsides penalty and the second one on an Andrew Luck scramble (that, admittedly, went for 58 yards and took the ball all the way to the Cal 21-yard line.) Luck found ways around Cal defenders and fought off a couple of attempted tackles before finally running out of bounds. I just had a flashback to the Washington game, when Luck took a naked bootleg more than 50 yards down the sideline into the end zone.

8:05 remaining, first quarter

INTERCEPTION, STANFORD! Mansion tosses up a soft pass that is brought down for a pick by senior cornerback Richard Sherman. Stanford still leads, 3-0.

There, that’s the Brock Mansion that Stanford fans know and love. The interception was outright easy for Sherman, and Mansion’s intended target looked like he was playing as a defensive back. Looking at it from the other angle, this is exactly the kind of play that Stanford’s defense has made into its hallmark in recent weeks. While the Card’s defense won’t smack around and dominate opposing offenses, it is very good at taking advantage of its opportunities and finding ways to kill drives and halt opposing teams’ momentum.

10:00 remaining, first quarter

The Bears’ offense is looking far better than anyone had anticipated. Shane Vereen is evoking memories of the last Big Game by gashing the Stanford defense almost every time he touches the ball, while Brock Mansion is—somehow—making a solid chunk of his throws. The Bears are now inside Stanford territory, and it looks like they have game planned very well to pinpoint the weaknesses in the Stanford defense.

12:20 remaining, first quarter

FIELD GOAL, STANFORD! Nate Whitaker nails a 20-yarder to put the Card’s first points on the board. Stanford leads Cal, 3-0.

Though the Card got down to the Cal 10-yard line due to a pass interference penalty, the Bears managed to make critical stops inside the red zone on Stanford. The Cardinal gained exactly zero offensive yards on that drive, and even though it scored to draw first blood, its offense will need to perform much better if it wants to win this game.

13:46 remaining, first quarter

FUMBLE, CAL! Cal quarterback Brock Mansion fumbled the snap, and it was recovered by redshirt junior defensive lineman Matt Masifilo. Stanford redshirt sophomore quarterback Andrew Luck and his offense will start their first drive of the game on the Cal 26-yard line.

That type of start was precisely what Stanford was looking for. The Cardinal defense immediately came out and forced the Bears into a mistake, and if Stanford can make them pay for it, Cal will find itself in an early one-touchdown hole.

15:00 remaining, first quarter

Stanford won the toss and deferred, so Cal will start the game with the football.

During the coin toss, both teams emptied the benches and headed to midfield, facing each other down, and two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties were handed down. Stanford wide receiver Jamal Rashad-Patterson was ejected from the game.

The game has started inauspiciously for the Golden Bears; after a touchback, they fumbled on the first play of scrimmage, but managed to recover.

12:20 p.m., Pregame

Welcome to another edition of The Stanford Daily’s live coverage of Stanford football! Today, we are coming to you live from Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif., where the 113th installment of the Big Game is set to kick off in half an hour between the Stanford Cardinal and the California Golden Bears. We’ll be bringing you live updates and instant analysis throughout today’s game, and you can read this week’s Stanford Daily preview here.

Though the Big Game is one of the country’s oldest rivalries, it has been somewhat lopsided in recent years. Cal has won seven of the last eight rivalry contests, including last year’s 34-28 upset in Stanford Stadium.

However, this year looks like a prime opportunity for Stanford to reverse its bad luck from the recent decade. The Cardinal enters the game ranked No. 6 in the BCS standings and second in the Pac-10 conference, with a 9-1 overall record and a 6-1 conference record. Meanwhile, the Bears have been a highly schizophrenic team, going 5-5 and 3-4 in conference. Cal is 4-1 inside Memorial Stadium but 1-4 outside of it, with its lone road win coming by a touchdown in Pullman over Washington State.

Stanford’s last outing, in Tempe, saw the