There will probably be an announcement Friday about the quarterback starter, according to David Shaw. I have no reason to change my expectation that it will be Costello.
How do you feel going into Saturday?
"I feel good mainly because of how we worked this week. It's not going to be easy. It's going to be very difficult against a team that's moving the ball and a quarterback who is playing his best football. They're making big plays in the passing game and have a big time NFL running back. It takes more than one guy to bring him down. We need to play better and tackled better than we did against USC and San Diego State.
Offensively, we'll see which quarterback or quarterbacks play. Whoever plays has to play extremely well and we have to make sure Bryce (Love) gets a chance to get to the line of scrimmage. And they do a good job on defense with all the line movement and blitzes. It's going to be a challenge for both sides. It's going to be exciting."
They have a receiver (N'Keal Henry) who gets targeted on 30 percent of the passes they throw. With a guy like him how apt are you to adjust the way you cover or to assign based on how popular he is?
"The problem is you give him too much attention and they kill you in the running game. We got good corners and they have to hold up. We're not going to leave them on an island the entire game, but there are going to be times they have to be matched up. It's understandable why he gets targeted on a third of their passes, because he makes plays. He has great hands, great body control and is a very good football player. We have to mix it up like every week. You can't always do the same thing, but we acknowledge he's their No. 1 target and deserves to be."
Fans got a chance today to read Harrison Phillips' story. Obviously a lot of it is already familiar to you. Can you reflect on his journey to here and what he's proven as a Stanford guy?
"We've had so many outstanding players and people that play here for us and do some great things on and off the football field. Harrison is very unique. I've said it before that it's almost as if he has more hours in the day than the rest of us. He does more daily than most people that you know or that I know. That's how he is driven. I have a lot of respect for that. That's why he's a leader on this football team. That's why he should be an academic all American as well as being a football all American. It's just who he is. He expects nothing less from himself. The journey hasn't been easy. It has been hard. He has a great family base. He has great faith for his own personal base. He's not easily discouraged when tough times come. I still feel like we're still seeing the beginnings of Harrison and what he is going to become over the next decade on and off the football field."
Do you remember that phone call to offer him with him screaming your ear off?
"I've had a few like that. But that one was memorable. That one was memorable. He was very excited. I don't know when the process started how much he really knew about Stanford. He was a really bright kid so for a high academic kid Stanford is always in the mix. I think the more he researched and his family researched the more he saw this was a place he fit. To be able to get that phone -- that's one of the best parts of my job is to be able to call someone and say all of their hard work has paid off. Follow that up by saying, 'Ok, now get ready to work even harder.' That was an exciting day."
The tight ends as a group have had eight catches since the Rice game. How do you feel about how they're developing?
"I think they're developing well. It's always going to be back and forth. I've explained before that when the offense is really working you may have a game when you have seven catches and may have a game when you have one. The ball is going to get spread around. Some of those games when we have a lead, which hopefully happens a lot, in the second half there will be less balls spread around because we're going to run the ball. As we should. We're coming off a couple games where receivers have made some nice plays. Trenton Irwin had more of an impact (against UCLA). JJ (Arcega-Whiteside) had some good catches down the stretch. Connor Wedington had a reverse and a catch. There are only so many balls to go around. Week to week it's just going to however it works out. As long as we win and the ball gets spread around there will hopefully be a different guy each game that has a breakout."
How big a loss was it to not have Sean Barton for UCLA?
"Sean hasn't gotten anywhere close to his potential. His ceiling is so high. It's the physical traits, the explosiveness, the athletic ability, the instincts ... and then it's the mentality. He hates to get blocked. He gets off blocks, accelerates and likes to hit people. He plays the game with a passion and energy that you want everyone on your team to play with. We miss that.
We have guys stepping up who are up to the task. They know we're not just missing a football player. We're missing a presence. Jordan Perez stepped up and has been great. Joey (Alfier) has amped his game up. Alameen Murphy has been more vocal because we're missing that voice. And Justin Reid -- it's almost like everyone has picked up a little of the slack just for the presence that's missing. I'm excited for Sean and he's on the road to recover."
How do you feel going into Saturday?
"I feel good mainly because of how we worked this week. It's not going to be easy. It's going to be very difficult against a team that's moving the ball and a quarterback who is playing his best football. They're making big plays in the passing game and have a big time NFL running back. It takes more than one guy to bring him down. We need to play better and tackled better than we did against USC and San Diego State.
Offensively, we'll see which quarterback or quarterbacks play. Whoever plays has to play extremely well and we have to make sure Bryce (Love) gets a chance to get to the line of scrimmage. And they do a good job on defense with all the line movement and blitzes. It's going to be a challenge for both sides. It's going to be exciting."
They have a receiver (N'Keal Henry) who gets targeted on 30 percent of the passes they throw. With a guy like him how apt are you to adjust the way you cover or to assign based on how popular he is?
"The problem is you give him too much attention and they kill you in the running game. We got good corners and they have to hold up. We're not going to leave them on an island the entire game, but there are going to be times they have to be matched up. It's understandable why he gets targeted on a third of their passes, because he makes plays. He has great hands, great body control and is a very good football player. We have to mix it up like every week. You can't always do the same thing, but we acknowledge he's their No. 1 target and deserves to be."
Fans got a chance today to read Harrison Phillips' story. Obviously a lot of it is already familiar to you. Can you reflect on his journey to here and what he's proven as a Stanford guy?
"We've had so many outstanding players and people that play here for us and do some great things on and off the football field. Harrison is very unique. I've said it before that it's almost as if he has more hours in the day than the rest of us. He does more daily than most people that you know or that I know. That's how he is driven. I have a lot of respect for that. That's why he's a leader on this football team. That's why he should be an academic all American as well as being a football all American. It's just who he is. He expects nothing less from himself. The journey hasn't been easy. It has been hard. He has a great family base. He has great faith for his own personal base. He's not easily discouraged when tough times come. I still feel like we're still seeing the beginnings of Harrison and what he is going to become over the next decade on and off the football field."
Do you remember that phone call to offer him with him screaming your ear off?
"I've had a few like that. But that one was memorable. That one was memorable. He was very excited. I don't know when the process started how much he really knew about Stanford. He was a really bright kid so for a high academic kid Stanford is always in the mix. I think the more he researched and his family researched the more he saw this was a place he fit. To be able to get that phone -- that's one of the best parts of my job is to be able to call someone and say all of their hard work has paid off. Follow that up by saying, 'Ok, now get ready to work even harder.' That was an exciting day."
The tight ends as a group have had eight catches since the Rice game. How do you feel about how they're developing?
"I think they're developing well. It's always going to be back and forth. I've explained before that when the offense is really working you may have a game when you have seven catches and may have a game when you have one. The ball is going to get spread around. Some of those games when we have a lead, which hopefully happens a lot, in the second half there will be less balls spread around because we're going to run the ball. As we should. We're coming off a couple games where receivers have made some nice plays. Trenton Irwin had more of an impact (against UCLA). JJ (Arcega-Whiteside) had some good catches down the stretch. Connor Wedington had a reverse and a catch. There are only so many balls to go around. Week to week it's just going to however it works out. As long as we win and the ball gets spread around there will hopefully be a different guy each game that has a breakout."
How big a loss was it to not have Sean Barton for UCLA?
"Sean hasn't gotten anywhere close to his potential. His ceiling is so high. It's the physical traits, the explosiveness, the athletic ability, the instincts ... and then it's the mentality. He hates to get blocked. He gets off blocks, accelerates and likes to hit people. He plays the game with a passion and energy that you want everyone on your team to play with. We miss that.
We have guys stepping up who are up to the task. They know we're not just missing a football player. We're missing a presence. Jordan Perez stepped up and has been great. Joey (Alfier) has amped his game up. Alameen Murphy has been more vocal because we're missing that voice. And Justin Reid -- it's almost like everyone has picked up a little of the slack just for the presence that's missing. I'm excited for Sean and he's on the road to recover."
