Stanford football's ACC outlook after win over Syracuse

Dylan Grausz | Sep 23, 2024

Sep 7, 2024; Stanford, California, USA; Cal Poly Mustangs running back Aiden Ramos (5) is tackled by Stanford Cardinal linebacker David Bailey (23) during the second half at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

At the beginning of the season, the Stanford Cardinal were projected to finish in last place in their first season in the ACC, expected to struggle against the stiff competition that the conference has to offer. But after picking up an upset win over Syracuse in week four in their inaugural conference game, the Cardinal are one of five teams that come out of the week still undefeated in ACC play, sitting near the top of the standings.

Joining Clemson, Virginia, Boston College and Louisville, Stanford picking up a win over Syracuse means that it will head into next week with a 1-0 record in ACC competition, and with a tough game against Clemson ahead, going into Memorial Stadium with a winning record could bring about even more confidence as the Cardinal prepare to face a tough team.

With eight more conference games remaining, the Cardinal only have two conference games against teams that are currently ranked (Notre Dame is out of conference), as Clemson is ranked at No. 17 and Louisville is ranked No. 15, and proved in the upset win against Syracuse that they are capable of beating anybody, making the upside for the rest of their season much higher than originally expected.

Finishing 3-9 in each of the previous three seasons, the Cardinal’s projected last place ACC finish was justified, considering how they are slated to face a whole new slew of opponents, but showed during the win over Syracuse that despite having to face teams that have high- powered offenses and talented quarterbacks, the defense is much improved over last year to combat that.

They entered the game as the No. 10th ranked run defense in the entire NCAA, allowing just under 40 rushing yards per game to their previous opponents. While Stanford’s pass defense is ranked near the bottom of the NCAA, allowing 298.7 passing yards per game on average, the team has gotten good production out of the defensive players, with the team already having recorded five takeaways in three games, including three interceptions. With only 11 total turnovers recorded last season, they are already showing just how much better they have gotten.

Following Stanford’s matchup against Clemson this week, the team will then face Virginia Tech, SMU, Wake Forest, NC State, Louisville and Cal to make up the rest of its conference slate. With a game against Notre Dame slated to take place between the Virginia Tech and SMU games, the Cardinal will travel to Notre Dame to take on a Fighting Irish team that while ranked No. 16, have shown signs of being very beatable.

In week two, they stumbled against Northern Illinois, getting upset 16-14 at home. The only undefeated team still remaining on Stanford’s schedule is Louisville but everyone else has at least one loss, with schools such as Virginia Tech (2-2), Wake Forest (1-2) and NC State (2-2) all having multiple losses. So far, the conference standings are close and after being able to secure the win in their first game, the Cardinal now become a team that could be one to watch out for the rest of the season.

The season is still young and while anything can happen, Stanford’s early season play could potentially lead them to becoming one of 2024’s most surprising teams.