STANFORD – When coach Troy Taylor held his first practice at Stanford last spring, he had only one healthy running back at his disposal.
So as the team finished its first practice of fall camp on Tuesday, Taylor was most pleased with the number of players participating.
“The depth is really huge for us,” Taylor said. “Even at the start of camp last year they were low, and then by the end of the year, you just don’t have any guys. So going into camp and having a lot more depth so you can practice more is crucial. We’re young but we’re a much deeper team than we were last year.”
Stanford had 74 scholarship players in Taylor’s first season as the Cardinal went 3-9, losing its last three games by a combined score of 145-55. The team has 83 scholarship players this season, its first in the ACC.
Nowhere is the difference more notable than at running back. Though expected starter E.J. Smith transferred to Texas A&M, the Cardinal had seven running backs in the mix at practice on Tuesday.
That includes sophomore Sedrick Irvin, who made three starts last year and had 26 carries for 113 yards and a touchdown, plus three highly-touted freshmen: Cole Tabb (the No. 29 running back prospect nationally by ESPN), Chris Davis (the top running back recruit in Mississippi per Rivals) and Micah Ford (a two-time New Jersey state player of the year).
“They looked really good,” Taylor said. “Now we need to see them in pads, but they made people miss and didn’t look out of place in the first practice they had in college football, which can be really intimidating.”
Taylor said the biggest adjustment for the freshmen will be in pass protection.
“Most of them got the ball a lot in high school, but they haven’t necessarily pass protected, so they have to learn that,” Taylor said. “But they’re physical, they’re willing, they’re explosive, so they should be good.”
Stanford is expected to take a running-back-by-committee approach, but it’s still unclear if it will do the same at quarterback. Junior Ashton Daniels made 10 starts last season, throwing for 2,247 yards and rushing for 292 while accounting for 14 touchdowns. Daniels will be pushed by Justin Lamson, who made spot starts last season and threw for 504 yards while rushing for a team-high 334 yards and five TDs, and true freshman Elijah Brown, a four-year starter at powerhouse Mater Dei.
Taylor said that Daniels is more comfortable in the offense going through his progressions while moving around in the pocket, while Lamson has improved his throwing technique and has a better understanding of where to go with the ball and Brown built upon his “really good” spring with another strong day on Tuesday.
Stanford has gone 3-9 in each of its last three seasons, but Taylor hopes that the second year in his system for most players will make a difference.
The Cardinal opens at home against TCU (Aug. 30) and Cal Poly (Sept. 7) before playing its first-ever ACC conference games at Syracuse (Sept. 20) and Clemson (Sept. 27).
