A few years ago, I don't bother to remember exactly when, I called for the firing of Lance Anderson before it was fashionable. Why? Because it was obvious to me Stanford's Run Defense was slipping. It only got worse form there, until the last year of the Shawcolypse in 2022 - with Lance Anderson STILL the DC - Stanford yielded the 2nd worse YPC in FBS, with a mind-boggling 6.3 YPC allowed. Somehow, south Florida was worse,, allowing 6.4 YPC.

In Troy Taylor's first year in 2023, Stanford improved its Run Defense from a still not great, but way better, 4.7 YPC and a #94 in FBS ranking.

Now, in 2024, Stanford is sporting one of the best Run Defenses in the country, with these gaudy ranks:

YPC Allowed: 2.5 (#7 in FBS) - only P4 teams better - Ole Miss, Tennessee, Ohio State, Oklahoma
Rush Yards Per Game: 66 (#6 in FBS) - only P4 teams better - Ole Miss, Tennessee, Iowa

I'm going to hazard a guess that if the Run Defense can get this better, it stands to reason that the Run Offense will improve as well., because stopping the run is about being physical, and that usually doesn't just happen on one side of the ball.

I know it sounds a bit premature, but it might be time to start giving the DC a raise, because there is NO DOUBT other coaches around the country are gonna see what April is doing at Stanford, and want whatever it is that is to create these results at Stanford.

But my bigger question is who around here, or anywhere, imagined Stanford's Run Defense could be so good this year?