Stanford is the hottest thing in the Pac-12 this side of Salt Lake City, and has a chance to dispose of another North Division contender when it hosts Washington. The Cardinal turned its season around following an opening day flop against Northwestern and crept back into the national rankings at No. 10. A sixth straight win is likely against a Huskies squad that could be without starting quarterback Jake Browning, who sustained a shoulder injury last week.
ODDS
While Washington coach Chris Petersen has remained silent on the status of starting quarterback Jake Browning, the line has remained off the board. Regardless of who plays, the Huskies are likely double-digit dogs on the road against one of the hottest teams in the country.
KEY MISMATCH
Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey announced his candidacy for the Heisman Trophy with a spectacular performance against UCLA last week. McCaffrey ran for 243 yards and four touchdowns in just three quarters of work against the Bruins, breaking Toby Gerhart’s single-game rushing record and tying the game record for touchdowns. He also had an electrifying 96-yard kickoff return and amassed 369 all-purpose yards. He threatened the school record of 379 all-purpose yards and likely would have broken it if he didn’t sit the final 15 minutes of the 56-35 win. McCaffrey leads the nation in all-purpose yards, averaging 253 per game. He has 844 yards rushing, 172 receiving, 480 on kickoff returns with another 22 yards on punt returns. He’s averaged 201.7 rushing yards in the past three games.
KEY STAT
48.5 – Stanford’s points per game in Pac-12 play. The Cardinal has scored at least 41 points in its four league games and topped 50 in its last two. Washington allows a Pac-12 low 16.8 points per game to rank 16th nationally.
BETTING ANGLE
Since dropping their season opener at Northwestern, the Cardinal has been a force, winning and covering five games in a row. They ran all over, through and around UCLA last week, winning big and easily covering as a 7-point home favorite. At 4-0 in conference play and a 1.5-game lead in the Pac-12 North, Stanford can already smell that conference championship game berth and the College Football Playoff is a possibility. With the Oregon loss behind them and red-hot Stanford looming, the Huskies are in a tough spot. The Cardinal is seemingly getting better each week behind an offense that scores 49 points per game in conference play. Washington heads to Palo Alto with a big question mark under center. Browning injured his shoulder in last week’s game, leaving his status up in the air for Saturday. Regardless of who takes the snaps, coach Chris Petersen needs more from his passing game, and that won’t be easy against Stanford’s D.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Stanford has been unstoppable lately, piling on the points since its disaster in Evansville on opening day. McCaffrey’s explosiveness coupled with the efficiency of quarterback Kevin Hogan has frustrated opposing defenses. UW can hang tight with their stingy defense, which leads the Pac-12 in fewest points allowed and has surrendered just four touchdown passes. The Huskies’ three losses have come by a combined 15 points, so the D is keeping them in games. But without Browning at the controls, the offense just lacks the firepower to keep up. Stanford won’t match its scoring output from the past few weekends, but it won’t need to light up the scoreboard to capture its sixth straight win.
Stanford 31, Washington 17
The line is off the board with the status of Washington quarterback Jake Browning unknown. NCAAF live wagering during commercials offers an adjusted moneyline, total and spread. Log in and start gambling during the game now!
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