Stanford Spring Football 2015: The latest from the Farm

While the Stanford basketball team seeks to make a splash in the Pac 12 Tournament, the Stanford football team is quietly building a contender in 2015. Here are some of the stories covering the Cardinal’s quest to get back to the top of the Pac 12 mountain.

By nickdempsey Mar 11, 2015, 9:01am PDT

Stanford's difficult path to the playoff - Bleacher Report

"While the season ends with a three-game homestand, it will be difficult. It begins with national runner-up Oregon, continues with Bay Area rival Cal (an improving program) and finishes with Notre Dame. Stanford will be a trendy dark-horse playoff pick this fall, but meeting expectations will be tough with this schedule."

Stanford has an interesting position battle at defensive end - Bleacher Report

"Only Lohn has seen significant time among the players who are healthy and able to play in the spring, as Shittu and Thomas are both out because of injuries. Shittu hurt his knee in October, while Thomas injured his toe at the start of spring ball, per John Taylor of NBC Sports.
Another potential candidate, Luke Kaumatule is working at linebacker, while two signees arrive in the summer to get their shot."

Stanford's Christian McCaffrey continues to show versatility - Mercury News

"Christian McCaffrey has played every skill position except tight end and fullback this spring, and he has been on the field frequently with the first-team offense. But time and placement are only part of the equation with the gifted sophomore. There also is the matter of getting his hands on the ball."

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Hogan In Form - Stanford Athletics

"Hogan announced his intentions early as he completed 11 of his first 12 attempts for 172 yards and three touchdowns on his first three drives. He started the display with a crisply-thrown 35 yard touchdown along the sideline to Michael Rector before finding Dalton Schultz over the middle for a nine-yard scoring strike amidst heavy traffic. Hogan's third drive ended quickly as he found Devon Cajuste for a 61-yard catch-and-run with the big wideout side-stepping a defender and outrunning the secondary in the middle of the field."

Spring position breakdown: Pac-12 North QBs -ESPN

"While other schools are often complicated, Stanford is easy. Fifth-year senior Kevin Hogan is the starter. Any potential questions about that were answered by the way he played late in the 2014 season. So the battle is for the backup job between sophomore Ryan Burns and redshirt freshman Keller Chryst, a pair of prototypical pocket passers standing 6-foot-5 and equipped with big arms. It's an important competition because the winner positions himself for 2016 as a potential multi-year starter."

Stanford's few defensive linemen getting plenty of reps -SF GATE

"With last year's starters — Henry Anderson, David Parry and Blake Lueders — no longer around to give a solid foundation to the defense, the group has been further thinned in spring practice because Aziz Shittu and Solomon Thomas are recovering from injuries."

Offense continues to sparkle in football practices - Stanford Daily

"Stanford's defense, which ranked second in the nation in points allowed per game last season, has faced some growing pains this spring as it attempts to integrate several new faces into the starting lineup. Injuries to rising senior Aziz Shittu and rising sophomore Solomon Thomas has left the Cardinal with only three healthy defensive linemen to rotate into scrimmages."

Pac-12 North 2015 Spring Preview and Power Rankings - Athlon Sports

"Much like the defensive line, the secondary was hit hard by departures. Two All-Pac-12 picks in Jordan Richards and Alex Carter are gone as well as Wayne Lyons and Kyle Olugbode. That means Stanford is replacing four of the top five tacklers in the secondary. Zach Hoffpauir is an excellent player to build around but could depart in favor of baseball. David Shaw needs to find capable bodies for the back end of his defense."

The Machine - Stanford Athletics

"When the unheralded inside linebacker arrived at Stanford from Tucson, Arizona, his goal was to leave his mark on the football program and finish his degree in less than four years.
Martinez is well on his way to accomplishing both.

As a junior last season, the explosive 6-foot-2, 247-pounder led the talented Stanford defense in tackles with 102. It wasn't a complete surprise, since in high school Martinez racked up a school-record 247 stops at Canyon del Oro and was a two-time Southern Arizona Defensive Player of the Year."