Takeaways from Stanford Head Coach Troy Taylor's Recent Media Availability

Dylan Grausz | Aug 15, 2024

Nov 11, 2023; Corvallis, Oregon, USA; Stanford Cardinal Head coach Troy Taylor looks onto the field during the first half against the Oregon State Beavers at Reser Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports / Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Training camp is halfway over and as the season nears, the Stanford Cardinal begin to think about week one, with the TCU Horned Frogs coming to town to kick off the 2024 campaign. Tuesday’s practice was a productive one, with both the offense and the defense taking positive steps towards being ready for game day action. After the training session, head coach Troy Taylor was made available to the media, where he commented on the current state of affairs for Stanford football. Here are five takeaways from what coach Taylor said post practice.

Having practice in the stadium is an important step

While training camp is a great opportunity for scheme installation and doing team stuff in order to get players familiar with playing with each other, the one downside is that practices are held on the practice field, making it hard to truly emulate game-like scenarios. Luckily, the Cardinal opted to hold a practice in Stanford Stadium over the weekend in order to start getting a feel for what game days will be like.

“They’re getting comfortable being out there,” Taylor said. “Especially for the young guys, that’s the first time they’ve ever practiced or played in it. So getting used to seeing it and kind of going through those, that’s really it. And then for [our] coaches, kind of get the feel for being on the sideline.”

Hosting TCU in two weeks when the season kicks off with week one, it will soon be time for fans to pack into the legendary venue to watch the Cardinal begin their new era, and in getting to practice inside the stadium, the team will feel that much more prepared for when real competition comes to town.

New defensive line addition is looking very promising

Needing some more help on the defensive line this season after struggling to form a consistently formidable pass rush in 2023, the Cardinal turned to the transfer portal and ended up landing graduate transfer Clay Patterson from Yale. And as his performance in camp so far has suggested, it appears that Patterson’s addition will provide a big time boost to Stanford’s defense.

“He’s been huge,” Taylor said. “He’s such a big and physical player [and he] brings a lot of maturity and physicality. It’s going to really help us out this year and he’s a great fit on our team as well. Just an awesome kid, great team player [and] we feel very fortunate to have him on our team.”

If the Cardinal are able to bolster their defensive line and create havoc for opposing offenses, it could do wonders for a team looking to return to its glory days. If Patterson is truly as good as advertised, then opponents may have some trouble when going up against the Palo Alto program.

The offensive line could look vastly different

A position group that had some questions coming into training camp, it appears that things are still sorting themselves out on the offensive line, with the coaching staff using a bunch of different rotations during practice, looking to see what they have to work with for this year. 

“We’re just trying to find the best combination,” Taylor said. “So, we got some pieces that we like now we’re just trying to find what the best mixture is. We’re going to have to have good flexibility to be able to move around position by position just because throughout the year, people are going to get dinged up. It’s a physical, physical game so some of it, we do just to get them work in case it has to happen and then while we’re doing that, we’re just trying to see what the best combination is for us as a team.”

Depth is always the key when it comes to offensive linemen, but if Stanford is able to establish its core while also finding the pieces that can be worked in as well, it could create a deadly offense that could spell trouble for the rest of the ACC.

Taylor will not hesitate to play a true freshman if he sees fit

It is not always common, but every now and then teams will see freshmen come in who are ready right away to not only be impact players, but be key starters. In the case of this year’s Stanford team, it looks like some of those freshmen are making their case to see meaningful playing time at some point this season.

“They’re competing,” Taylor said. “Freshman, they come here to compete and if they’re the best players, they will start, doesn’t matter that they’re freshman. Like I said, we’ve got guys that are freshmen that are definitely competing for a job.”

Playing freshmen is not a bad thing, in fact it proves why some of them were highly touted recruits, and if Stanford is able to get some true freshmen into the mix, it could provide added hope to the future and give the next generation of Cardinal players early experience before they see their roles really expand.

Running backs continue to impress

While there have been many bright spots throughout training camp, it is entirely possible that none have been brighter than the running back position, an area of concern last year, but has looked to have taken a major leap. While Sedrick Irvin is the expected starter, some of the new players at the position, such as sophomore Champ Hampton, freshmen Micah Ford and Chris Davis Jr., are showing that the depth in the running back room is in good shape.

“The young running backs are doing a great job,” Taylor said. “They’re being pushed in terms of getting lots of reps and they have done a really good job.”

It still remains to be seen what will happen this season, but for a team that is experiencing change in all aspects, having options to choose from and flexibility at a position like running back will help make things easier and give Taylor and the coaching staff potential for greatness.