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[Soapy]

Sports • Football
The Victory Lap: Stanford is for real, Richard Caussin does his best Manu Toomer impression and George O locks in visit

The Stanford Cardinal pay homage to the alma mater following their blowout win over Ohio State. (Photo: Irene Bronner/DS Photos)
By Anthony Metcalf
Published Sep. 15, 2031, 12:54 p.m.

This is weird to say about a team that's coming off two consecutive playoff appearances and entered the week as a top-five team in the country but Saturday's win over Ohio State felt like a watershed moment for the Stanford football program.

They didn't beat Ohio State because of a bunch of turnovers or an all-time performance from a player. They beat them in all phases, looked like the better team, played like the better team and if they played that game ten times, Stanford might win all ten games.

It also puts Stanford in great position as they enter the final stretch of their first half of the season with road trips to LSU and Georgia with a bye in between. Now, all they need to do is split that series, take care of business against UNLV and Hawaii and then its USC-TCU-Oregon in three straight games, all on the road, and they could have locked a playoff spot by November.

Richard Caussin's coming out game
Stanford wasn't as aggressive in the portal as many expected them to be when it came to the linebacker position, despite losing two key starters in Isaiah Lanovoi and Manu Toomer who were their best defensive players, arguably, for the last two seasons.

They banked on Caussin, a fifth-year senior, taking that next step from solid rotation player into a full-time starter and that gamble paid off on Saturday as Caussin intercepted Henry Delos twice in some key moments to begin the rout.

So much is mad about the portal so it's important to shoutout guys like Caussin who easily could have gone elsewhere and played but he bided his time, got better, made plays when the team needed him and had a breakout performance in a big stage on Saturday.

The pursuit of George Ogbonnaya looking more like reality than pipe dream
The next time that the Stanford Cardinal host a football game, five-star quarterback George Ogbonnaya will be in attendance.

Ogbonnaya was live posting during Stanford's win over Ohio State and seemed clearly excited about the direction of the program. Shortly after, he confirmed that he will be taking his official visit to Palo Alto in about a month when they play UNLV.

It's really trending towards a Stanford and Texas battle with the Cardinal continuing to gain momentum in his recruitment. Ogbonnaya has a really good relationship with Coach Mack and the offensive staff and the prospect of playing a national schedule appeals to Ogbonnaya who does have an NIL deal with Nike, which Stanford is sponsored by.

[Soapy]

Week 3 Top Stories
No. 9 SMU falls to No. 20 Penn State behind Jermaine Maggio's five touchdowns
Gators bounce back, hold off 21-point comeback effort from Arizona State
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Week 4 Notable Games
#21 Texas (2-1, 0-0) at #1 Georgia (1-0, 0-0)
#3 Stanford (3-0, 0-0) at #13 LSU (3-0, 0-0)
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Players of the Week
WR Dan Mangum: W 51-48 vs. SMU » 7 Rec, 165 Yds, 4 TD
LB Darien Rees: W 35-31 at UL Monroe » 10 Tkl, Sack, TFL, 4 PBU, FF, 2 FR
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247Sports Five-Star Commitments
None

[Soapy]

Week 4 Preview: at #13 LSU Tigers
Record: 3-0, 0-0 SEC
Head Coach: Lane Kiffin
Offensive Scheme: Veer and Shoot
Defensive Scheme: 3-4

Team Schedule
vs. James Madison (2-1): W 49-10
at Utah (1-2): W 24-17
at West Virginia (1-2): W 52-10

Team Leaders
Passing: J.D. Cote 76 cmp%, 1004 yards, 4 TD, 3 INT, 160.1 passer rating
Rushing: Shakir Dougan 312 yards, 6.0 ypc, 6 TD
Receiving: KeShawn Jerry 17 receptions, 266 yards, TD
Defense: Larry Curtin 13 tackles, 6 TFL, 2 sacks

Injuries
G Shaquille Marks (Senior) Torn Pectoral (Season)
CB Chauncey Ankrah (Senior) Quad Tear (Out)
G DeAndre Wall (Sophomore) Fractured Shoulder Blade (Out)

Players to Watch
QB J.D. Cote (R-Soph) | 6′0″, 197LBS | 91 OVR, 91 SPD, 89 ACC, 96 COD, 98 THP, 94 SAC, 91 MAC, 90 DAC
‣ LSU might be a bit of a paper tiger and the reason for the skepticism around their 3-0 start is centered around Cote. While talented, he hasn't played very well, throwing three interceptions against Utah in a game that LSU almost lost. He's looked good against James Madison and West Virginia and has the physical tools to eventually turn into a really good quarterback but after this defense's performance against a better quarterback, Cote could be in for another long day.

WR Johnathan Dunsmore (R-Jr) | 6′1″, 193LBS | 97 OVR, 98 SPD, 95 ACC, 91 COD, 91 CTH, 90 RLS
‣ Even in good performances, Stanford's defense is good for at least one explosive play given up per game and Dunsmore is the type of receiver they're struggled against. He isn't just a speedster as he runs routes really well, especially double moves. He's yet to break one this year with his longest reception going for 22 yards after totaling 101 receptions for 1,402 yards and ten touchdowns last season but at any point, Dunsmore can break one.

S Jose Ogletree (Sr) | 5′10″, 200LBS | 98 OVR, 96 SPD, 96 ACC, 99 AWR, 79 MCV, 95 ZCV
‣ Stanford loves to find Rodney Cookus across the middle but they'll need to be weary of No. 3 who patrols that secondary. While Ogletree hasn't been productive throughout his career, his measurables and athletic profile could get him drafted in the first round and a breakout performance in a marquee matchup like this is exactly what he's looking for to help his draft stock after sticking it out at LSU for the last four years.

Hard Rock Bet™
Spread: LSU -4
Moneyline: Stanford +155
Over: 60.5

Place your bets and I'll keep track of your winnings/loss throughout the season. The winner's (by percentage with a minimum of 16 bets placed) team of choice will get a rating's bump and choose which conference to be the commissioner of for the following season to select my schedule. The second place will have second choice on which conference and so forth for third and fourth place.

The Bookie
Caesar 6-0
Captain Canada 5-1
redsox907 4-2
YaBoyRobRoy
James
ShireNiner 4-2
djp73 6-2
toysoldier00 3-1

[Captain Canada]

Heartbreaking to say, but this seems like the year for you. Stanford to cover and the over.

[Caesar]

We know the deal by now even though you playing my guys.

Stanford to win, Stanford to cover

[toysoldier00]

Stanford and the under

[ShireNiner]

Stanford and the over and to cover. This is going to be a walk in the park for you after last week.

[redsox907]

Lafittee (SP?) ain't walking thru that door

Stanford and the under

[toysoldier00]

gotta land Ogbonnaya

[Soapy]

Heartbreaking to say, but this seems like the year for you. Stanford to cover and the over.

i thought you were my brother. caesar has infected you.

We know the deal by now even though you playing my guys.

Stanford to win, Stanford to cover

Stanford and the under

Stanford and the over and to cover. This is going to be a walk in the park for you after last week.

locked in.

Lafittee (SP?) ain't walking thru that door

Stanford and the under

he too light in the ass anyway. would have ran power right at him three straight plays and sent him to his brother

gotta land Ogbonnaya

Name aside, this really feels like a must get now.

it would be hilarious if i spent all this energy and he went somewhere else