[Goose]

Stanford also hasn't been able to recruit running backs that could pound it up the gut, mostly because high schools don't do that anymore either. CMAC was great, but he couldn't do that. BL was great, but he couldn't do that either. Shaw always said how good they were as inside runners. It was wishful thinking. They could run inside occasionally, but not at will.

"Pound it up the gut" is more a function of how fast a RB can get to the hole and how good your OL is at creating that hole.  I assure you that it's not as much a matter of running through contact as avoiding contact.  (How are you defining 'inside runs' btw?  Only A-gap runs?  Between the tackles?)

Avoiding contact is great. CMAC and BL made a living that way, making people miss. However, if you are a run first team, there are going to be times that the hole isn't there and the defense is. You need a back that can still make a positive play out of it. I am defining "up the gut" as between the tackles. Stanford has also a set of "stretch" plays that optionally run outside the tackle that I don't think qualifies as "up the get".

Stanford can run the ball successfully if they have a healthy OL with proper S&C.  Period.  There is no reason why Austin Jones won't look like the next Stepfan Taylor if the OL is healthy and blows defenders off the ball each snap.

Probably true. It is a tautology. If the OL makes a hole every time any running back will make yards. However, even "back in the day", that didn't happen. There are always plays where the hole isn't there or it closes rapidly. Stephan Taylor would still make 3 yards on those plays most times. He was 5'11" and 215. He could and did move the pile. Tyler Gaffney was 6'1" and 226. He could move the pile. Austin Jones is 5'10" and 190. He probably won't move the pile. Recall Bryce Love at 5'10" and 200 trying to score /get a first down on 3rd and 1. No hole, he stands there looking for a crease and down he goes. End of story. One can say "Well, that was the OL's fault and their should have been a hole." Maybe, but the defense gets a vote. "Intellectual brutality" needs to include the man with the ball.

The rules haven't changed to disadvantage the run game, and the run game will always be the preferred offensive paradigm if a team can execute their blocking.

Sure the rules have changed to the advantage of the passing game. Most recently, there have been several rule changes to protect the QB. These rules inherently slow down the pass rush because if you hit either low or high it is a penalty and if you collide with the QB after the ball is thrown it is a penalty.

To be clear, I am not recommending abandoning the running game. You have to be balanced or you give the defense an advantage. If you are fortunate enough to have a guy who can move the pile, you use him to do just that. However, if you don't have that you better have a plan to use what you do have to keep the defense off balance. You need to take advantage of the skills your RBs do have. If that is catching swing passes and occasionally running "up the gut", you do that. On third and 1 you better have a way to keep the defense off balance if you can't reliably overpower them.

[Goose]

Stanford also hasn't been able to recruit running backs that could pound it up the gut, mostly because high schools don't do that anymore either. CMAC was great, but he couldn't do that. BL was great, but he couldn't do that either. Shaw always said how good they were as inside runners. It was wishful thinking. They could run inside occasionally, but not at will.

"Pound it up the gut" is more a function of how fast a RB can get to the hole and how good your OL is at creating that hole.  I assure you that it's not as much a matter of running through contact as avoiding contact.  (How are you defining 'inside runs' btw?  Only A-gap runs?  Between the tackles?)

Avoiding contact is great. CMAC and BL made a living that way, making people miss. However, if you are a run first team, there are going to be times that the hole isn't there and the defense is. You need a back that can still make a positive play out of it. I am defining "up the gut" as between the tackles. Stanford has also a set of "stretch" plays that optionally run outside the tackle that I don't think qualifies as "up the get".

Stanford can run the ball successfully if they have a healthy OL with proper S&C.  Period.  There is no reason why Austin Jones won't look like the next Stepfan Taylor if the OL is healthy and blows defenders off the ball each snap.

Probably true. It is a tautology. If the OL makes a hole every time any running back will make yards. However, even "back in the day", that didn't happen. There are always plays where the hole isn't there or it closes rapidly. Stephan Taylor would still make 3 yards on those plays most times. He was 5'11" and 215. He could and did move the pile. Tyler Gaffney was 6'1" and 226. He could move the pile. Austin Jones is 5'10" and 190. He probably won't move the pile. Recall Bryce Love at 5'10" and 200 trying to score /get a first down on 3rd and 1. No hole, he stands there looking for a crease and down he goes. End of story. One can say "Well, that was the OL's fault and their should have been a hole." Maybe, but the defense gets a vote. "Intellectual brutality" needs to include the man with the ball.

The rules haven't changed to disadvantage the run game, and the run game will always be the preferred offensive paradigm if a team can execute their blocking.

Sure the rules have changed to the advantage of the passing game. Most recently, there have been several rule changes to protect the QB. These rules inherently slow down the pass rush because if you hit either low or high it is a penalty and if you collide with the QB after the ball is thrown it is a penalty.

To be clear, I am not recommending abandoning the running game. You have to be balanced or you give the defense an advantage. If you are fortunate enough to have a guy who can move the pile, you use him to do just that. However, if you don't have that you better have a plan to use what you do have to keep the defense off balance. You need to take advantage of the skills your RBs do have. If that is catching swing passes and occasionally running "up the gut", you do that. On third and 1 you better have a way to keep the defense off balance if you can't reliably overpower them.