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Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - Printable Version

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Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - davidmlombardi - 11-29-2018

Hey all,

Promised I'd share any larger Stanford features I got a chance to write on here:

https://theathletic.com/682380/2018/11/29/not-the-first-time-big-game-has-gotten-weird-stanford-and-cal-renew-an-eccentric-rivalry-two-weeks-late/

This, on how the history of Big Game always seems to tie together. There's connections between this odd pushed-back 2018 game, to 1982, to the great Stanford revenge of 1990, and more... Hope you all enjoy the game Saturday. Thanks for checking this out!

-David

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - yvonne - 11-29-2018

Thanks, David.

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - Orange Mark - 11-29-2018

Awesome, David, thank you. I have vivid memories of 1990 and all its madness/weirdness.
1990 season was a wild year for college football. Six teams, Georgia Tech and Virginia among them, reached No. 1 in one of the two major polls. Stanford beat Notre Dame on the same day as Colorado's infamous fifth-down game.

“Maybe the poor teams are just sick of losing,” Tommy Vardell said after the Cardinal shocked Notre Dame, 36-31.

Speaking for all Stanford fans who were around back then, we were all SICK of seeing "The Play." That game in Berkeley, revenge was a dish served bold.

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - BostonCard - 11-29-2018

(11-29-2018, 01:53 PM)Orange Mark Wrote:  After Cal went ahead 25-18 late in the 4Q, Stanford punted. Instead of milking the clock on a third down during its ensuing possession, Cal—thank you, OC Steve Mariucci—called a third-down pass. Mike Pawlawski threw it away.


Maybe he should have channeled his inner Shaw and turtled.

BC

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - stupac2 - 11-29-2018

(11-29-2018, 02:38 PM)BostonCard Wrote:  
(11-29-2018, 01:53 PM)Orange Mark Wrote:  After Cal went ahead 25-18 late in the 4Q, Stanford punted. Instead of milking the clock on a third down during its ensuing possession, Cal—thank you, OC Steve Mariucci—called a third-down pass. Mike Pawlawski threw it away.


Maybe he should have channeled his inner Shaw and turtled.

BC

That sounds more like a mistake by the QB than anything. If you call a pass to try to win the game the QB needs to know that if it's not there you just slide. The time is worth more than the yardage you save my chucking it OOB.

Incidentally this is something even the Pros screw up, Phillip Rivers lost a game recently because he tossed a ball to his RB's feet instead of just sliding. He knew as soon as he did it that he screwed up.

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - CTcard - 11-29-2018

(11-29-2018, 03:18 PM)stupac2 Wrote:  Incidentally this is something even the Pros screw up,  

Perhaps that's a good reason many college coaches don't want to put such decisions on the shoulders of their ~20 year old QB.

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - stupac2 - 11-30-2018

(11-29-2018, 03:55 PM)CTcard Wrote:  Perhaps that's a good reason many college coaches don't want to put such decisions on the shoulders of their ~20 year old QB.

Eh, I mean, sure, but it's not that different from having a QB need to lead a game-winning drive where every throw is critical. Especially since in those situations you often have a timeout to go over the play, if your QB can't handle "throw this pass if it's available, run as much as you can then slide if it's not" isn't a particularly complicated instruction.

But even if you really want to run, there are ways to put some window dressing on it with jet motion, QB bootlegs, etc. Which, from my memory, we did very little of (or not at all) when "turtling".

Also, what the heck happened to jet motion in our offense? I feel like we have plenty of guys who could fill that Kelsey Young role, but we hardly ever do it.

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - davidmlombardi - 11-30-2018

Nice list. My favorite memory from the story was John Hopkins getting that knock on his dorm room door weeks after kicking the game-winning field goal. The fan had one of the balls he kicked into the stands and a plate of cookies!


(11-29-2018, 01:53 PM)Orange Mark Wrote:  Awesome, David, thank you. I have vivid memories of 1990 and all its madness/weirdness.
  • To accommodate a 3:30 p.m. kickoff and live regional cable TV coverage, the game was at night—all firsts for a Big Game in Berkeley. It's hard to understate how novel live college football telecasts were back then. Until losing a landmark Supreme Court case in 1984, the NCAA limited teams to six (SIX!) TV appearances in two years. 
  • “Haven’t they learned?” Joe Starkey said on the air, after Cal drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the failed two-point attempt with 12 seconds left. This was an obvious reference to 1982.
  • Beyond the touchdown he hauled in with 12 seconds left, Ed McCaffrey (injured calf) caught only one other pass.
  • In 1989, Stanford overcame a 17-0 hole against Oregon to win 18-17 on a John Hopkins FG as time expired.  A successful onside kick preceded the play. How many kickers convert an onside kick into a game-winning field goal in consecutive years?
  • Kevin Scott recovered the onside kick after Cal's Russell White (40 career receptions) let it slide through his grasp. “My knees were in, but I think my feet were out (of bounds),” Scott said. “I picked up the ball and ran downfield before the ref could change his mind.”
  • Glyn Milburn totaled 376 all-purpose yards to set a Pac-10 record (that Maurice Jones-Drew finally broke in 2004). Cal set a conference record of its own, but paid a price for it...maybe...
  • Anthony Wallace and Russell White eclipsed 1,000 yards for the season during the game. Never before had a Pac-10 team produced two 1,000 yard-rushers in one season. White (18 carries, 177 yards, two scores, 9.8 YPC) didn't carry the ball from scrimmage between the second and fourth quarter’s halfway points. What if Bruce Snyder, who coached running backs for the Rams, rode White like he saddled Eric Dickerson to over 6,900 rushing yards in four years?  Wallace (24-99), a senior, earned the bulk of the carries.
  • After Cal went ahead 25-18 late in the 4Q, Stanford punted. Instead of milking the clock on a third down during its ensuing possession, Cal—thank you, OC Steve Mariucci—called a third-down pass. Mike Pawlawski threw it away.
  • “This is The Play, Part II,” Milburn said after the game. “This is, The Sequel.”

1990 season was a wild year for college football. Six teams, Georgia Tech and Virginia among them, reached No. 1 in one of the two major polls. Stanford beat Notre Dame on the same day as Colorado's infamous fifth-down game.

“Maybe the poor teams are just sick of losing,” Tommy Vardell said after the Cardinal shocked Notre Dame, 36-31.

Speaking for all Stanford fans who were around back then, we were all SICK of seeing "The Play." That game in Berkeley, revenge was a dish served bold.


CardinalSagehen - CardinalSagehen - 11-30-2018

(11-30-2018, 10:17 AM)davidmlombardi Wrote:  Nice list. My favorite memory from the story was John Hopkins getting that knock on his dorm room door weeks after kicking the game-winning field goal. The fan had one of the balls he kicked into the stands and a plate of cookies!


(11-29-2018, 01:53 PM)Orange Mark Wrote:  Awesome, David, thank you. I have vivid memories of 1990 and all its madness/weirdness.
  • To accommodate a 3:30 p.m. kickoff and live regional cable TV coverage, the game was at night—all firsts for a Big Game in Berkeley. It's hard to understate how novel live college football telecasts were back then. Until losing a landmark Supreme Court case in 1984, the NCAA limited teams to six (SIX!) TV appearances in two years. 
  • “Haven’t they learned?” Joe Starkey said on the air, after Cal drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the failed two-point attempt with 12 seconds left. This was an obvious reference to 1982.
  • Beyond the touchdown he hauled in with 12 seconds left, Ed McCaffrey (injured calf) caught only one other pass.
  • In 1989, Stanford overcame a 17-0 hole against Oregon to win 18-17 on a John Hopkins FG as time expired.  A successful onside kick preceded the play. How many kickers convert an onside kick into a game-winning field goal in consecutive years?
  • Kevin Scott recovered the onside kick after Cal's Russell White (40 career receptions) let it slide through his grasp. “My knees were in, but I think my feet were out (of bounds),” Scott said. “I picked up the ball and ran downfield before the ref could change his mind.”
  • Glyn Milburn totaled 376 all-purpose yards to set a Pac-10 record (that Maurice Jones-Drew finally broke in 2004). Cal set a conference record of its own, but paid a price for it...maybe...
  • Anthony Wallace and Russell White eclipsed 1,000 yards for the season during the game. Never before had a Pac-10 team produced two 1,000 yard-rushers in one season. White (18 carries, 177 yards, two scores, 9.8 YPC) didn't carry the ball from scrimmage between the second and fourth quarter’s halfway points. What if Bruce Snyder, who coached running backs for the Rams, rode White like he saddled Eric Dickerson to over 6,900 rushing yards in four years?  Wallace (24-99), a senior, earned the bulk of the carries.
  • After Cal went ahead 25-18 late in the 4Q, Stanford punted. Instead of milking the clock on a third down during its ensuing possession, Cal—thank you, OC Steve Mariucci—called a third-down pass. Mike Pawlawski threw it away.
  • “This is The Play, Part II,” Milburn said after the game. “This is, The Sequel.”

1990 season was a wild year for college football. Six teams, Georgia Tech and Virginia among them, reached No. 1 in one of the two major polls. Stanford beat Notre Dame on the same day as Colorado's infamous fifth-down game.

“Maybe the poor teams are just sick of losing,” Tommy Vardell said after the Cardinal shocked Notre Dame, 36-31.

Speaking for all Stanford fans who were around back then, we were all SICK of seeing "The Play." That game in Berkeley, revenge was a dish served bold.

I've attended a few games with Hoppy over the years and ran into him at some Spring scrimmages. He's a very nice and humble guy. When his Stanford kicking records were being broken recently, he noted that the guys coming up today are extra impressive because the goal posts are narrower than when he played. 

But I'm still pretty impressed with 5 field goals, an onside kick and the game-winner in Big Game! Imagine the pressure, with the weight of history and The Play on your shoulders. Thank you for giving the kicker some love - they deserve more than they usually get!

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - CTcard - 11-30-2018

(11-30-2018, 09:20 AM)stupac2 Wrote:  Also, what the heck happened to jet motion in our offense? I feel like we have plenty of guys who could fill that Kelsey Young role, but we hardly ever do it.

Michael Wilson ran the jet sweep once versus Utah. 
He got the ball with apparently some room to run and proceeded to make a beeline towards the one Ute defender in the area for a loss of one. 
Don't think we've run the play again. 

One issue I have assumed was a concern was the coaches thinking we don't have OL good at getting out wide to block. However, this particular play involves surprising and outrunning the defense as much as blocking, so I am not sure that is valid here. 
Still a mystery outside of wondering whether we really do have guys who would be good at the Kelsey Young role (my memory is that Rector was better at this role than Young, if perhaps doing it less often).

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - BostonCard - 11-30-2018

I wonder if Wedington, who has a background as both a wide receiver and running back, might not be good for the jet sweep (or other sweeps).  Of course, he has been injured for much of the year.

More broadly, some of the faster wide receivers that we have in the first and second year classes might make good candidates for running motion in the backfield.  My guess, though, is that the staff likes to keep the playbook limited early on and focus on getting those players running a handful of plays well (for example, St. Brown running deep routes) and then slowly expanding their playbook over time.  With Irwin (and almost certainly JJ Arcega Whiteside) leaving after this year, those younger players will quickly have to expand their playbook, so I am hopeful we will see more pre-snap motion from the wide receivers next year.

BC

RE: Not the first time Big Game has gotten weird: My feature on Stanford-Cal - TerryMulhern - 02-19-2019

Quote:
  • To accommodate a 3:30 p.m. kickoff and live regional cable TV coverage, the game was at night—all firsts for a Big Game in Berkeley. It's hard to understate how novel live college football your homework help telecasts were back then. Until losing a landmark Supreme Court case in 1984, the NCAA limited teams to six (SIX!) TV appearances in two years. 
  • “Haven’t they learned?” Joe Starkey said on the air, after Cal drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the failed two-point attempt with 12 seconds left. This was an obvious reference to 1982.
  • Beyond the touchdown he hauled in with 12 seconds left, Ed McCaffrey (injured calf) caught only one other pass.
  • In 1989, Stanford overcame a 17-0 hole against Oregon to win 18-17 on a John Hopkins FG as time expired.  A successful onside kick preceded the play. How many kickers convert an onside kick into a game-winning field goal in consecutive years?
  • Kevin Scott recovered the onside kick after Cal's Russell White (40 career receptions) let it slide through his grasp. “My knees were in, but I think my feet were out (of bounds),” Scott said. “I picked up the ball and ran downfield before the ref could change his mind.”
  • Glyn Milburn totaled 376 all-purpose yards to set a Pac-10 record (that Maurice Jones-Drew finally broke in 2004). Cal set a conference record of its own, but paid a price for it...maybe...
  • Anthony Wallace and Russell White eclipsed 1,000 yards for the season during the game. Never before had a Pac-10 team produced two 1,000 yard-rushers in one season. White (18 carries, 177 yards, two scores, 9.8 YPC) didn't carry the ball from scrimmage between the second and fourth quarter’s halfway points. What if Bruce Snyder, who coached running backs for the Rams, rode White like he saddled Eric Dickerson to over 6,900 rushing yards in four years?  Wallace (24-99), a senior, earned the bulk of the carries.
  • After Cal went ahead 25-18 late in the 4Q, Stanford punted. Instead of milking the clock on a third down during its ensuing possession, Cal—thank you, OC Steve Mariucci—called a third-down pass. Mike Pawlawski threw it away.
  • “This is The Play, Part II,” Milburn said after the game. “This is, The Sequel.”
Thanks for the list. I was just checking Glyn Milburn's college stats on Sports-Reference and then found your post. Looking for old pics of Stanford college team.