[teejers1]

I think every Stanford fan should be more concerned about the other side of the ball. The Stanford defense has been on a steady decline and has dropped from average to below average over the past 5 years. Last season the defense looked completely overmatched against multiple opponents (USC, UCF, WSU, Notre Dame) and failed to hold a 4th quarter lead against others (Colorado, Cal). There is little reason to expect much more than mediocrity either going forward. Stanford signed only one 4* defender for the class of 2020 but it was Ayden Hector who will never play for the Cardinal. There are no commits for 2021 from the front 7 at all yet. Even in 2022, I count 24 offers on offense, 10 on defense. Of those 10, none are defensive linemen.

Defensive yards per play (rank)
2012 - 4.7 (15th)
2013 - 4.9 (18th)
2014 - 4.2 (2nd)
2015 - 5.6 (70th)
2016 - 5.4 (48th)
2017 - 6.0 (93rd)
2018 - 5.7 (71st)
2019 - 6.3 (109th)

One notable change during this time - Randy Hart retired after the 2015 season.

Completely agreed.  With a competent defense we could have been a bowl team last year, but all anyone ever wants to complain about is the offense (which was not good, at 5.59 yards per play, but wasn't 109th in the nation).

BC

And whose fault is it that the D has "fallen off?"
When your HC is so vested in the O side of the ball, it's no surprise that he focuses on that and the other side suffers.  It shouldn't be that way, but it's completely understandable (especially if you don't have the security/confidence to hire an egocentric, kick-ass-and-take-names DC like Fangio.  But as we've all learned, ambiance - in the locker room and in the coaches' room - is paramount).

[teejers1]

I think every Stanford fan should be more concerned about the other side of the ball. The Stanford defense has been on a steady decline and has dropped from average to below average over the past 5 years. Last season the defense looked completely overmatched against multiple opponents (USC, UCF, WSU, Notre Dame) and failed to hold a 4th quarter lead against others (Colorado, Cal). There is little reason to expect much more than mediocrity either going forward. Stanford signed only one 4* defender for the class of 2020 but it was Ayden Hector who will never play for the Cardinal. There are no commits for 2021 from the front 7 at all yet. Even in 2022, I count 24 offers on offense, 10 on defense. Of those 10, none are defensive linemen.

Defensive yards per play (rank)
2012 - 4.7 (15th)
2013 - 4.9 (18th)
2014 - 4.2 (2nd)
2015 - 5.6 (70th)
2016 - 5.4 (48th)
2017 - 6.0 (93rd)
2018 - 5.7 (71st)
2019 - 6.3 (109th)

One notable change during this time - Randy Hart retired after the 2015 season.

Completely agreed.  With a competent defense we could have been a bowl team last year, but all anyone ever wants to complain about is the offense (which was not good, at 5.59 yards per play, but wasn't 109th in the nation).

BC

And whose fault is it that the D has "fallen off?"
When your HC is so vested in the O side of the ball, it's no surprise that he focuses on that and the other side suffers.  It shouldn't be that way, but it's completely understandable (especially if you don't have the security/confidence to hire an egocentric, kick-ass-and-take-names DC like Fangio.  But as we've all learned, ambiance - in the locker room and in the coaches' room - is paramount).