By Matthew E. Milliken
MEMwrites.wordpress.com
Sept. 30, 2023
Stanford football dropped a 21-20 decision to visiting Arizona on Saturday night as the Troy Taylor coaching era continued to have a rocky start.
The challenges will only get more difficult going forward for the Cardinal, which fell to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the Pac-12. Of the remaining eight opponents on Stanford’s schedule, five are ranked in the top 25, while two others — Colorado and UCLA — got enough votes in the most recent Associated Press poll to rank among the top 30 teams in the nation. (All of the opponents except Cal placed in the top 25 the previous week.)
Arizona, now 3-1 after winning its conference opener, rallied behind backup quarterback Noah Fifita for a go-ahead touchdown and then used a combination of defense and offense to keep Stanford out of the end zone in the one-point decision. The Wildcats also benefited from a pair of misfires from an unlikely source. The Cardinal’s best player, senior placekicker Joshua Karty, pushed a pair of 51-yard field-goal attempts wide right by perhaps five combined feet. The two straight misses broke a streak of 26 consecutive made field goals dating back to the start of the 2022 season.
The Wildcats got the ball to start the game but were held to a three and out. Three plays later, freshman running back Sedrick Irvin took a handoff at the home 48, broke away from five would-be tacklers and rumbled for 45 yards before being pushed out at the visitor 7-yard line. The Cardinal stalled there, however, and settled for a 35-yard Karty kick to take a 3-0 lead.
Arizona drove 39 yards before punting from the home 36. Stanford’s offense answered with a three and out.
The Wildcats used a 24-yard Jonah Coleman rush and an eight-yard pass completion to reach second and two at the home 25. But the Cardinal defense stonewalled two rushing attempts and Jayden de Laura threw incomplete on fourth and two.
Going the other way, sophomore quarterback Ashton Daniels recorded consecutive 25-yard throws to senior tight end Benjamin Yurosek and freshman wideout Tiger Bachmeier to advance to the visitor 25. But Daniels was sacked for a six-yard loss and Irvin was tackled in the backfield on third and 16. Karty came on for a 51-yard try and booted the ball wide right as time expired in the first quarter. It was Karty’s first miss since sending a 58-yard try wide right by inches against Notre Dame on Nov. 27, 2021.
The visitors needed just three plays to take the lead, with de Laura making throws of 14, 17 and 36 yards. On the last play, tight end Tanner McLachlan blocked sophomore defensive lineman Jaxson Moi outside and then ran straight ahead, blowing past redshirt senior inside linebacker Tristan Sinclair. De Laura faked a throw to the left and looked right before passing to McLachlan, who reeled in the ball at the 20. The white-jerseyed, blue-panted senior then evaded a diving tackle attempt by freshman safety Che Ojarikre around the 15 and easily went the remaining distance for the touchdown and a 7-3 Arizona advantage.
Later in the second quarter, sophomore quarterback Justin Lamson converted third and 15 for Stanford with a 26-yard completion to senior receiver Bryce Farrell. Lamson was sacked on the next play but rallied with a 15-yard rush on second and 17 before moving the sticks with a third-and-two keeper. Lamson then threw to sophomore receiver Elic Ayomanor for 11 yards.
Two plays later, Daniels — Taylor has liberally switched quarterbacks over the last two games — threw an interception that was wiped out by pass interference. The penalty set up first and goal at the 2. Farrell then veered to the left and extended the ball across the goal line on a play that was originally ruled a one-yard rush. The Thousand Oaks, Calif., native was awarded a touchdown after video review, putting the Cardinal on top, 10-7. That was the score at halftime.
Stanford got the ball coming out of the break but had to punt after Farrell was tackled in the backfield for a seven-yard loss on second and 11. (It was the receiver’s third rushing attempt.) After DJ Williams converted fourth down with a three-yard run, Arizona crossed midfield with a 25-yard connection from de Laura to senior receiver Jacob Cowing. A few plays later, de Laura faked a handoff to the right that fooled the entire Stanford defense, allowing the quarterback to run around left end for an easy seven-yard touchdown. That gave Arizona a 14-10 lead.
The Cardinal quickly answered with an 11-play, 75-yard march that saw Lamson throw incomplete on the first snap before Daniels hit Bachmeier for 13 yards on the very next play. Daniels was then sacked. However, on third and long, he threw a dart that Bachmeier caught on the run for a 35-yard gain with a defender seemingly draped over his back. It was an impressive reception for the long-haired Lake Elsinore, Calif., freshman, whose 93 receiving yards led all players in the game.
Stanford’s next third down saw Daniels find Ayomanor for 20 yards on what appeared to be a touchdown before the receiver was ruled down at the 1. On the following play, Irvin was met by a wall of players when he tried to go up the middle, but he kept his head and bounced outside for a touchdown. Irvin’s first collegiate touchdown, coming in his first collegiate start, gave the hosts a 17-14 lead late in the third quarter.
On the ensuing drive, de Laura was flushed out of the pocket by a heavy rush and appeared to injure a leg while throwing incomplete as he was being chased toward the sideline. Stanford got the ball back at its 33-yard line with six seconds to go in the third quarter.
Daniels played the entire series, running twice for 10 yards and completing four of seven pass attempts. His second run converted fourth and one with a three-yard surge, the first time the Cardinal moved the sticks on fourth down in three attempts this season. But none of Daniels’s throws went for more than 11 yards, and the final attempt fell incomplete on third and six at the visitor 33. Taylor then called for Karty, whose 51-yard try again went wide right by a short distance. This time, a television replay clearly showed that the holder had the ball’s laces facing toward Karty on the attempt, which is the opposite of the desired orientation.
Stanford isn’t the type of team that can flub many scoring opportunities and still secure a win. Arizona took over at their 33 with Fifita under center and went 67 yards in nine plays culminating in a two-yard Williams touchdown. The drive was keyed by receptions of 15 yards by Cowing and 18 by McLachlan and featured some power rushing plays against a flagging defense. Williams’s score left the Cardinal down four points midway through the fourth quarter.
With time now a factor, Lamson converted third and nine by pulling the ball and running for 10 yards. A pass-interference flag and a 16-yard throw from Daniels to Mudia Reuben helped put the Cardinal at the visitor 21. But Daniels, facing third and 16 after an incomplete throw and a sack, then made an illegal forward pass after being flushed out of the pocket. On fourth and 17, Taylor summoned Karty, who drove a 46-yarder through the uprights to cut the deficit to 21-20 at the 3:09 mark.
Stanford needed to get the ball back quickly, while Arizona needed to play keepaway. The guests succeeded by refreshing the downs twice. Fifita was able to kneel twice as time expired to preserve a one-point victory for the Wildcats.
The Cardinal close out a three-game home stand tonight against No. 9 Oregon, which is 4-0 (1-0 Pac-12).
Links
• ESPN
Arizona–Stanford team statistics
Arizona–Stanford box score
Arizona–Stanford play-by-play
Arizona–Stanford video highlights
• GoStanford.com
2023–24 Stanford football media information
2023–24 Stanford football roster
Arizona–Stanford interactive box score
Arizona–Stanford static box score, style A (PDF)
Arizona–Stanford static box score, style B (PDF)
• ArizonaWildcats.com
2023–24 Arizona football roster
• YouTube
Arizona–Stanford video highlights by Matthew Loves Ball
Arizona–Stanford full game by MeHa TV
• Social media
Start of thread: Game tweets by @memomoment
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