Stanford showed promise, despite 40-14 score vs. Clemson

Jason Burke | Sep 29, 2024

Sep 20, 2024; Syracuse, New York, USA; Stanford Cardinal quarterback Ashton Daniels (14) looks to pass against the Syracuse Orange during the second half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images / Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

While the Stanford Cardinal ended up losing a pretty big "show me" game against No. 17 Clemson by a final tally of 40-14, the team still showed plenty of fight in this one. Who knows, maybe on a different night the score is a bit closer as the game winds down, which was kind of the goal heading in: to keep it close.

Stanford went 0-for-3 on fourth down, including turning the ball over on downs less than two minutes into the game on their own 34. The analytics say that going for it on fourth down in the smart play, but on Saturday night on the road, it just didn't work out. Generally you'll see the Cardinal convert at least one of those fourth and shorts to get a new set of downs instead of setting up the opposition with a great scoring opportunity time after time.

It didn't help that the next two drives for Stanford saw them move the ball deep into Clemson territory, to the seven and the 20, only for QB Ashton Daniels to force a couple of balls into tight coverage and have them end up in the hands of the Tigers.

This game was all about execution early on, and Stanford just didn't do much of that. Still, heading into halftime the score was just 17-7, and the Cardinal were winning the time of possesion battle, as well as chewing up yards on the ground.

Freshman RB Micah Ford carried the ball 15 times for 124 yards, good for 8.1 per carry, and QB Daniels also carried the ball 11 times for 91 yards. Stanford would finish with 236 yards on the ground in the game, finishing with an overall total of 361 yards when you include the work Daniels and Lamson did through the air.

In terms of yards, Stanford only lost that battle to Clemson by 44, which is something to hang your hat on. The Cardinal were able to move the ball well in this game, and with a couple of different decisions by Daniels that led to interceptions deep in the Tigers' zone, or maybe a fourth down to go Stanford's way, this game could have looked just a touch different.

Coming in, there was a belief that if Stanford kept this game to within 10 points, then they would have likely shown enough to be able to finish out the rest of their schedule with enough wins to secure a bowl appearance for the first time in years.

Even with the lopsided 40-14 score, there were enough positives in this one to still see Stanford as a potential bowl contender at 2-2 (1-1) this season. The big question will be how serious the injuries to both Ashton Daniels and Elijah Brown will end up being, and when the Cardinal could potentially see them back on the field.

On the bright side, they have started to establish the run game with Micah Ford, which should serve them well in the coming weeks regardless of who is behind center.