Peterson fit at Stanford

[donkey687]

I am a big Shaw supporter and believe that the program will go back to being a top 20 program regularly, but if Shaw doesn't turn it around or if Shaw goes elsewhere, I think Peterson is a great fit for Stanford. He values more than football and recruiting character.  When he finally left Boise after rejecting overtures for years, he admitted that the one job that tempted him before taking the UW job was Stanford. Before Stanford offered Shaw, they reached out to Peterson and the timing wasn't right for him to leave Boise, but it seemed he had some regrets about that.  

This quote below from Peterson shows what he values and how Stanford could be a fit. If he is seeking a dispassionate public that doesn't care much about college football, Northern California is the place for him!
In some ways being at UW made the coaching lifestyle easier for Petersen than at Boise: “There’s about 4 million people that don’t even know football happens here, even with the Seahawks and Huskies being here, and I loved it.”

https://twitter.com/BonaguraESPN/status/...4441230339

[BostonCard]

Petersen is a class guy. I was surprised he was taking a step back, and still am curious if it was entirely voluntary, and I agree he'd be a great fit at Stanford. There was a rumor around the time of I think the Harbaugh hiring that Petersen was being considered or was interested in the job. But also he turned down a whole host of jobs because of his son, who was battling cancer.

The quote is weird; there are 4 million people in the Seattle metro area.  I would guess most know that football "happens" there.  In fact, I would guess that a larger share of greater Seattle area knows that football "happens" than the share of the Boise metro area.

BC

[SamuelMcF]

Petersen is a NorCal guy, too. Grew up in Yuba City, ~45 mins north of Sacramento. Played football for Sacramento CC and UC Davis, and started his coaching career at Davis.

I believe he's staying at UW in an advisory capacity, but as a former OC he's not a bad option to keep an eye on.

Side note, I get the feeling that once UW started making NY6 bowls under his tenure, more and more bandwagon Walmart fans started coming out of the woodwork. You know the type. As soon as he stumbled this year, I bet the criticism was intense and loud. The pressure can really get to you. Doesn't seem like his jam.

[BostonCard]

Be careful what you wish for; you never know what you are going to get in terms of head coaches.  You'd hate the guy coming after Petersen to be a Gilbertson (1-10 in 2004), Willingham (0-11 in 2008), or even a Sarkisian (Mr. 7-6).

BC

[Farm93]

Be careful what you wish for; you never know what you are going to get in terms of head coaches.  You'd hate the guy coming after Petersen to be a Gilbertson (1-10 in 2004), Willingham (0-11 in 2008), or even a Sarkisian (Mr. 7-6).

BC

Walsh II came in and everyone thought multipe winning seasons were inevitable.   In year #1 he took Denny's players to fantastic heights.   In year #2 he had his freshman start over others, make massive mistakes in almost every game, and it all fell apart.   Then it became clear Walsh II was not willing or able to still do all the things a coach must do at Stanford to be successful.

Based on the reports Peterson seems like a coach that really wants a year or more away from the game.   That one year will likely make him a top choice when top programs (Texas, Nebraska, Florida, Michigan, etc.) start trying to assess their alternatives. 

His other path is to opt for something a bit smaller in the Group of 5, where people are thrilled to get a 7-5 type season and aren't immediately seeking a new coach after a single sub-par season.

Time will reveal his path but either he will get positions way above Stanford's level (fan base, media attention, etc.) or he will settle into a position without unrealistic expectations.   Either way, IHMO he will not return to programs at Stanford's general level.   

FWIW - I doubt Peterson was forced out because if he was forced out his DC would not immediately get elevated into the Head Coach job.

[BostonCard]

This article seems to agree with you:

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-h...rofession/

Certainly, a disappointing 7-5 season in 2019 has been a blow to everyone in the program, based on the high expectations Petersen has forged during his six years at Washington. But considering his accomplishments, that blip did not result in any significant pressure being foisted upon Petersen – except perhaps that which was self-imposed.

BC

[d4cohn]

Petersen is a NorCal guy, too. Grew up in Yuba City, ~45 mins north of Sacramento. Played football for Sacramento CC and UC Davis, and started his coaching career at Davis.

I believe he's staying at UW in an advisory capacity, but as a former OC he's not a bad option to keep an eye on.

Side note, I get the feeling that once UW started making NY6 bowls under his tenure, more and more bandwagon Walmart fans started coming out of the woodwork. You know the type. As soon as he stumbled this year, I bet the criticism was intense and loud. The pressure can really get to you. Doesn't seem like his jam.

In echoing the point you raised Sam, this was just reported on ESPN: 

https://www.espn.com/college-football/st...-step-down

[BostonCard]

Thanks for the link.  Good for Petersen for being self-aware enough to realize it.

BC

[OutsiderFan]

I don't think David Shaw is stressing about winning like Petersen is. I don't know if that's good or bad. Depends on your perspective. Whatever the case, it seems reasonable to assume Stanford doesn't create stress for a coach like Washington and other places do.

[RJ_82]

My understanding from insiders is that Petersen was set on taking the position that ultimately went to Shaw until he learned that Stanford would not allow junior college transfers, which he'd found to be valuable at Boise State (and UW permits).  Since that recruiting restriction remains in place, he may not now (or ever) be a real candidate? 

Considering that JC transfers could address our periodic lack of depth at specific positions, could this policy feasibly be changed?  If not, (and I can understand why that may be the case) that seems to be a structural disadvantage Stanford has relative to others, although I don't recall it ever being cited as such.

I also grew up in Yuba City, Chris's small hometown, although we did not overlap at its only high school.  Considering his extraordinary financial and overall success relative to his modest, rural/suburban roots, taking time off from the college football grind seems entirely sensible!

[Spiny_Norman]

I have been tracking the P12 All Academic Teams (1st and 2nd teams) by school since 2002.

Stanford of course leads but right behind them in recent years have been Washington and Utah. The 3 most successful coaches in the conference also coach the teams that do the best in the classroom.

FYI, USC has not had a player on the 1st or 2nd teams since 2015. 2019 All Academic probably announced later this week.

[SamuelMcF]

My understanding from insiders is that Petersen was set on taking the position that ultimately went to Shaw until he learned that Stanford would not allow junior college transfers, which he'd found to be valuable at Boise State (and UW permits).  Since that recruiting restriction remains in place, he may not now (or ever) be a real candidate? 

Considering that JC transfers could address our periodic lack of depth at specific positions, could this policy feasibly be changed?  If not, (and I can understand why that may be the case) that seems to be a structural disadvantage Stanford has relative to others, although I don't recall it ever being cited as such.

It seems likely that policy is still in effect. Keep in mind Stanford's undergrad transfer class size is absurdly tiny, something like 30 per year. So in order for Stanford to take a JuCo transfer, the player would need to be an academic rockstar as well as a P5-caliber football player. Generally speaking, those don't happen at prominent football power JuCos...at least as Last Chance U portrayed it. The academic side of the college was merely about qualifying the players for a D1 school at all.

I do see the occasional JuCo player following Mike Eubanks on Twitter. Some of those guys report high GPAs, i.e. a 3.6+ (obviously an arbitrary cutoff on my part). Of course I don't know if football-wise they're considered good enough. However, it does make me wonder if the recruiting staff could lobby admissions to take a flyer once every year or 2 on a standout JuCo player who has demonstrated he can do very well in his college classes.

[cardcrimson]

Aaron Rodgers was a Juco transfer to Cal, but I've no idea his test scores or his high school grades. He did score a 35 on the wonderlic, slightly behind Luck's 37; Elway had a 29. . . .

My understanding from insiders is that Petersen was set on taking the position that ultimately went to Shaw until he learned that Stanford would not allow junior college transfers, which he'd found to be valuable at Boise State (and UW permits).  Since that recruiting restriction remains in place, he may not now (or ever) be a real candidate? 

Considering that JC transfers could address our periodic lack of depth at specific positions, could this policy feasibly be changed?  If not, (and I can understand why that may be the case) that seems to be a structural disadvantage Stanford has relative to others, although I don't recall it ever being cited as such.

It seems likely that policy is still in effect. Keep in mind Stanford's undergrad transfer class size is absurdly tiny, something like 30 per year. So in order for Stanford to take a JuCo transfer, the player would need to be an academic rockstar as well as a P5-caliber football player. Generally speaking, those don't happen at prominent football power JuCos...at least as Last Chance U portrayed it. The academic side of the college was merely about qualifying the players for a D1 school at all.

I do see the occasional JuCo player following Mike Eubanks on Twitter. Some of those guys report high GPAs, i.e. a 3.6+ (obviously an arbitrary cutoff on my part). Of course I don't know if football-wise they're considered good enough. However, it does make me wonder if the recruiting staff could lobby admissions to take a flyer once every year or 2 on a standout JuCo player who has demonstrated he can do very well in his college classes.

[Farm93]

Considering that JC transfers could address our periodic lack of depth at specific positions, could this policy feasibly be changed?  If not, (and I can understand why that may be the case) that seems to be a structural disadvantage Stanford has relative to others, although I don't recall it ever being cited as such.

One of many structural disadvantages that can be creatively transformed into a positive if someone is familiar with Stanford undergraduate environment (see David Shaw) and can credibly explain that positive perspective to the families of recruits.    Most of those structural quirks are forever part of the challenge.  

Stanford University now accepts only a few undergraduate transfers each year, so a football coach banking on more than one or two every four years would have to reset his program model.   Additionally the transfers we are talking would not emerge from your typical western state juco.   

If that report was true Petersen is not the first coach to suspect it would be too tough to put elements of his model in place at Stanford and he won't be the last.

[BostonCard]

Anyone know how much Petersen used junior college transfers at UW?  I don't recall any prominent Huskies in recent years that weren't recruited as freshmen.  I wonder if being at a power 5 university has meant that he doesn't need them as much.  The other thing, of course, is the graduate transfer rule, which to some extent allows schools to plug immediate holes the way they might have with with junior college transfers of old.  Of course the grand total of graduate transfers that we have taken in football is 1.

Curious, are there any inside linebackers or safeties who would want to do a year of grad school at Stanford?

BC

[cardcoug]

I have a hard time envisioning what kind of person would be a JoCo football player who transfers to Stanford.
If a potential transfer was at a junior college because they were D1 caliber at football, but couldn't qualify academically for a D1 school (E.g. had a < 1.0 GPA), there is probably zero chance that admissions would let them through. 
If its the reverse (solid academically but not a D1 caliber recruit out of high school), then that person probably would have had plenty of opportunities at lower division four-year schools with solid academics. Yet they chose to go to a junior college, most likely for football reasons. If that's how they weigh football and academics against each other, why would they transfer to Stanford, as opposed to just about any other D1 program?

Perhaps once every ten years the right case could come along, but I don't see a specific policy forbidding JuCo football transfers having any significant effect on the program one way or the other.

[Farm93]

Anyone know how much Petersen used junior college transfers at UW?  I don't recall any prominent Huskies in recent years that weren't recruited as freshmen.  I wonder if being at a power 5 university has meant that he doesn't need them as much.  The other thing, of course, is the graduate transfer rule, which to some extent allows schools to plug immediate holes the way they might have with with junior college transfers of old.  Of course the grand total of graduate transfers that we have taken in football is 1.

Curious, are there any inside linebackers or safeties who would want to do a year of grad school at Stanford?

BC

I think at UW, Petersen had greater access to the top athletes in the Western States, and thanks in part to the resources at UW those athletes stayed at UW and remained eligible.   However, even at UW there was a chance to reach to jucos in the event of an emergency.  Not only that, but at many large public schools just as a function of the enrollment size there are going to be a decent number of HS football players that can serve as walk-ons or scout players too.  

At Stanford, in the event of an emergency, there are fewer options.   No Greenshirts to boost the Spring practices and use that experience to contribute Day #1 of the next season.   No Greyshirts or quick transfers from jucos LOADED with your second tier recruits.  And less ability to just widen the net to try to grab more recruits for that position in the next recruiting class.

The grad transfers are probably hurting Stanford too, but not much can be done about that.   Many of those that leave are still 2nd or 3rd team types, but they might be important if injuries emerge.   I understand why starting somewhere else is better, but it does take away from team depth and experience.

[81alum]

I remember Peterson being the favorite to replace Harbaugh by many on this board.  I remember being slightly disappointed when we did not get him and being concerned that Shaw would be another Rod Dowhower.

[CowboyIndian]

I also grew up in Yuba City, Chris's small hometown,

Honker!

[CardinalSagehen]

I don't think David Shaw is stressing about winning like Petersen is. I don't know if that's good or bad. Depends on your perspective. Whatever the case, it seems reasonable to assume Stanford doesn't create stress for a coach like Washington and other places do.

I happened to work with the wife of a young defensive assistant at Stanford until last year.  Her reports of the intensity of coaching under Shaw surprised me, because like you, I had assumed Shaw was running a kinder, gentler, “maintenance-mode” environment (despite my respect for him).  She told me about the heat and pressure that was being applied at mid-season after a couple losses. I even bounced off her the idea that Shaw seemed to be a calmer, lower-pressure leader, and she furrowed her brow and shook her head.  Of course, she was young enough not to have been around other coaching staffs, so she and her husband might have perceived “level 5” coaching intensity as “level 10”, but it still struck me how hard they were working and how intensely Shaw cared about winning. She also spoke of 100-hour work weeks and the fact that she barely ever saw her husband during the season (and even for much of the off-season). After those occasional conversations by the coffee machine, I gained a different perspective of Shaw than the one I had inferred from his calm and sometimes low-energy demeanor.