Tag: Stanford

Oct 20, 2019; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive backs coach Kris Richard on the sidelines in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

Longtime NFL assistant Kris Richard is named Stanford DC

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Stanford has hired longtime NFL assistant Kris Richard as its defensive coordinator under new coach Tavita Pritchard.

Richard, 46, spent 13 seasons as an NFL assistant with the Seattle Seahawks (2010-17), Dallas Cowboys (2018-19), New Orleans Saints (2021-22) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2024). He served as Seattle’s defensive coordinator from 2015-17 and shared the DC duties in New Orleans in 2022.

“Kris Richard is a proven winner and an exceptional defensive mind who has coached at the highest levels of this game,” Pritchard said in a news release. “His ability to develop elite defensive backs in the NFL is well-documented, but what really excites me is his background as a coordinator who builds relentless, attacking defenses.

“Kris brings a championship pedigree and an intensity that will shape our defense into a physical, run-and-hit unit that our guys will take immense pride in. He is a tremendous communicator who connects with people and demands excellence, and I am confident he will build a defense that reflects the energy and toughness that will embody our team.”

Richard, a cornerback, played in 39 NFL games over four seasons with the Seahawks (2002-04) and San Francisco 49ers (2005). He had eight career college interceptions — six in 1999 — at Southern California from 1998-2001 before being selected in the third round of the NFL draft by Seattle.

“My family, the defensive staff, and I are incredibly grateful to join the Stanford community,” Richard said. “Thank you for welcoming us with open arms. We are all eager to get to work cultivating a championship culture and mindset.”

Richard takes on a big task as the Cardinal were 134th and last nationally in passing yards allowed (288.9) per game and 95th in scoring defense at 29.2 points per game.

Stanford opens the 2026 season at home against Hawaii on Aug. 29.

–Field Level Media

No. 9 Notre Dame wallops Stanford, awaits CFP fate

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CJ Carr completed 17 of 27 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns as No. 9 Notre Dame cruised to a 49-20 win over host Stanford on Saturday night.

Jadarian Price had a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown for Notre Dame (10-2), which won its 10th in a row to wrap up the regular season. Aneyas Williams rushed for 83 yards and two touchdowns and Jeremiyah Love had 14 carries for 66 yards and a score.

The Fighting Irish now turn their attention to the College Football Playoff Committee, which will determine the final 12 teams that will compete for a national championship.

Elijah Brown completed 18 of 37 passes for 204 yards, one touchdown and one interception for Stanford (4-8), which lost four of its last five to close the season. Charlie Mirer, son of former Notre Dame signal-caller Rick Mirer, entered the game as a backup and threw a touchdown pass.

Notre Dame outgained Stanford 524-312.

The Fighting Irish jumped to a 14-0 lead after the first quarter.

Love opened the scoring with a 2-yard rushing touchdown on Notre Dame’s first possession. The play marked his 18th rushing touchdown to go along with three receiving scores.

Price followed with a 1-yard rushing touchdown with 1:52 to go in the first quarter. It marked his 11th rushing touchdown of the season.

Notre Dame pulled ahead 21-0 on a fake-punt touchdown early in the second quarter. Luke Talich caught a pass from Joshua Burnham and raced for an 84-yard score.

Williams rushed for a 2-yard touchdown to make it 28-0 with 7:26 remaining in the half.

Stanford finally got on the scoreboard as Emmet Kenney made a 39-yard field goal with 2:38 remaining before the break.

Carr finished the first-half scoring when he tossed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Price with 17 seconds left in the half. That gave Notre Dame a 35-3 lead at halftime.

The lopsided match continued in the second half as Carr connected with Jordan Faison for a 6-yard score to make it 42-3 with 12:43 left in the third quarter.

Stanford scored the next 10 points on a 44-yard field goal by Kenney and a 9-yard touchdown completion from Brown to Bryce Farrell.

Williams responded with a 51-yard rushing touchdown to make it 49-13 with 9:08 to play.

Stanford finished the scoring on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Mirer to Marcus Brown with four minutes left.

-Field Level Media

Stanford tabs former QB Tavita Pritchard as head coach

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Stanford hired Tavita Pritchard, a former quarterback and assistant coach at the school, as its new head coach on Friday.

Pritchard, 38, is currently quarterbacks coach of the Washington Commanders but will leave the NFL team after Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos.

“Winning in college football today requires a leader of men who can build and motivate teams, recruit future stars, and develop and connect with talent,” Stanford general manager Andrew Luck said of his former teammate in a news release. “Tavita Pritchard is exactly the right head coach at the right time to help us build on the foundation of this season and lead Stanford football to its next great era.

“Coach Pritchard is a culture builder, a teacher of football of the highest caliber, and a humble yet determined servant leader who is committed to the success of Stanford’s student-athletes.”

Pritchard played at Stanford from 2006-09 and is famously known for delivering one of the biggest upsets in college football history in his first career start.

Pritchard steered the Cardinal to a 24-23 victory over No. 2 Southern California on Oct. 6, 2007, after Stanford was installed as 41-point underdogs. He tossed the winning 10-yard touchdown pass to Mark Bradford on fourth down with 48 seconds left.

In 2009, Luck beat out Pritchard for the starting quarterback job. Pritchard passed for 2,865 yards and 15 touchdowns and was intercepted 24 times in 31 games (20 starts) for the Cardinal.

After his playing career ended in 2009, Pritchard spent the next 13 seasons on the Stanford staff before taking the job with the Commanders in 2023.

“Stanford is a place like no other and my family and I are full of gratitude to be returning home in every sense of the word,” Pritchard said in a news release. “I have a clear vision of the hard work, brotherhood and tenacity it will take to build a championship Stanford football program. I cannot wait to partner with Andrew and begin working with the best student-athletes in the world to achieve excellence on and off the field.”

Stanford is 4-7 overall and 3-5 in Atlantic Coast Conference play entering Saturday’s season finale against No. 9 Notre Dame. Frank Reich is finishing his stint as interim coach on Saturday. Reich formerly coached Luck with the Indianapolis Colts.

There’s plenty of rebuilding to be done as the Cardinal have not reached a bowl game since 2018 when they went 9-4 under David Shaw.

Last season with the Commanders, Pritchard helped tutor quarterback Jayden Daniels, who had a monster season while winning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

“Tavita will be a fantastic head coach, and I believe he will be especially effective at Stanford,” Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said in the news release. “Players gravitate to him, and he quickly earned their respect and mine. Tavita is smart, collaborative, diligent and he brings people together. He is the perfect coach to build a winning program in today’s college football landscape.”

–Field Level Media

After huge win, No. 9 Notre Dame needs to avoid letdown at Stanford

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Few teams face the type of late-season challenge that No. 9 Notre Dame must confront this weekend.

To put it simply: How does a team stay desperate after posting a 70-7 victory?

The Fighting Irish (9-2) will try to avoid a follow-up letdown when they travel west to play Stanford (4-7) on Saturday night.

Notre Dame is coming off a massive home win against Syracuse last weekend in which the team posted its highest point total since 1932.

Coach Marcus Freeman said he and his coaching staff track “MAs,” which is short for missed assignments. He acknowledged that the staff counted fewer MAs last week than it had all season.

“But there still were some, all right?” Freeman said.

Yet even Freeman could not pretend that Notre Dame had a ton of mistakes to correct going forward.

“There were some guys that did grade 100%,” he said, “and their challenge is, ‘How can we do that the next Saturday?’ And the only way I know how to do that is to prepare the right way. And if you didn’t get 100% or grade at 100%, let’s go to work and let’s try to attack and find ways to fix it.”

The Cardinal will try to play the spoiler role in their season finale. They face little pressure as they already have been eliminated from bowl contention, and few will expect them to challenge a top-10 opponent.

Yet Stanford is coming off a 31-10 win over Cal, and it will attempt to end the season by registering back-to-back victories for the first time. Prior to beating the Golden Bears, the Cardinal lost by five points on the road against North Carolina.

Stanford interim coach Frank Reich said he and his players were excited for this weekend’s challenge.

“Obviously, this team that we’re playing is very good, so that’s where all our focus needs to be,” Reich said. “And I think as a player, you enjoy playing the legacy programs, the teams that have that kind of reputation, that have earned that reputation.

“It’s an opportunity to put our program, to measure our program, against someone like that and to really be in the spotlight against a very good team.”

The top task for Stanford will be to slow down Notre Dame’s potent 1-2 rushing attack that features Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. Love has rushed for 1,306 yards and 17 touchdowns this season, and Price has produced 659 yards on the ground and 10 TDs.

Fighting Irish freshman quarterback CJ Carr also has shined, passing for 2,536 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also has tallied three touchdowns on the ground.

On defense, Leonard Moore and Tae Johnson lead the Fighting Irish with four interceptions apiece. Both players have returned one pick for a touchdown.

Stanford quarterback Elijah Brown, who replaced Ben Gulbranson as the starter this month, has completed 56 of 90 passes for 625 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

“Extremely poised, very accurate,” Reich said. “Nothing’s too big for him.”

Micah Ford leads Stanford with 643 rushing yards and four touchdowns. CJ Williams is the top target in the passing game with 58 catches for 735 yards and six scores.

Stanford is 4-1 at home. Notre Dame is 3-1 on the road. The Fighting Irish have won five of the teams’ past six meetings, including the past two.

–Field Level Media

Micah Ford, Stanford’s defense overwhelm Cal

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Micah Ford rushed for 150 yards and a touchdown, Stanford’s defense scored twice and set up a third score and the Cardinal took advantage of Cal mistakes to run away with a 31-10 victory in the 128th annual Big Game late Saturday afternoon in Stanford, Calif.

Elijah Brown threw a touchdown pass to CJ Williams, Jay Green and Darrius Davis turned fumble recoveries into scores and Emmet Kenney added a field goal for the Cardinal (4-7, 3-5), who snapped a four-game losing streak in the San Francisco Bay Area rivalry and took over ownership of the ceremonial “Axe” for the next calendar year.

In a complete reversal of form, the Cardinal dominated both sides of the ball in the final 30 minutes while extending a 14-10 halftime advantage — built on the fumble returns — into the final margin.

After being held to 71 yards in the first half, the Cardinal got a 36-yard Kenney field goal to cap a 31-yard drive, a 4-yard TD run by Ford after a Matt Rose fumble recovery at the end of a 20-yard possession and a 34-yard Brown-to-Williams TD hook-up to complete a 58-yard drive on consecutive possessions bridging the third and fourth periods.

Ford’s 150 yards were seven fewer than the 157 he ran up in a career-best performance against Boston College in September. Brown finished 10-for-20 for 123 yards without an interception.

Jacob De Jesus caught 14 passes for 96 yards, and Trond Grizzell had nine for 104 yards for the Golden Bears (6-5, 3-4), who have already gained bowl eligibility. Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele completed 33 of 49 passes for 269 yards without a touchdown or interception.

Seeking a second straight win after upsetting Louisville in its most recent outing, Cal controlled much of the first half, outgaining the hosts 196-71, but the team found itself down 14-10 at the break thanks to the fumble-return TDs by Green and Davis.

De Jesus had eight of his catches for 60 yards in the half, and Sagapolutele ran for a 7-yard score, but the Golden Bears were overpowered by the two mistakes.

After a 40-yard field goal by Abram Murray had given Cal an early 3-0 lead, Omar Staples forced a De Jesus fumble and Green dashed 49 yards with a scoop-and-score to put the Cardinal on top in the third minute of the second period.

The same scenario unfolded later in the period when Sagapolutele’s TD run was offset by a Caden High hit on Kendrick Raphael, producing a fumble that Davis took 17 yards into the end zone with 1:05 left in the half for a 14-10 lead the hosts never relinquished.

Cal had the game’s only three turnovers.

–Field Level Media

Cal, Stanford set for 128th edition of the Big Game rivalry

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Highly decorated coach Frank Reich would love nothing more than to add to his impressive resume when he leads Stanford up against visiting Cal in the annual Big Game rivalry Saturday.

A two-time former NFL head coach who won a Super Bowl ring as offensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018, Reich agreed to coach Stanford this season on a one-year interim basis after Troy Taylor’s April firing.

He’ll make his Big Game debut Saturday in his second-to-last game at the Stanford helm, seeking to add his name to a list of rivalry-winning Cardinal coaches that includes Pop Warner, Bill Walsh and Jim Harbaugh.

Despite Stanford (3-7, 2-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) already being assured of a losing record, Reich admits he’s learned that beating Cal can be how any Cardinal season is remembered.

“I’ve really enjoyed being part of this community and realizing how big this is,” he assured reporters this week. “I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Cal (6-4, 3-3) won last year’s 127th rendition of the Big Game 24-21 at home thanks to two fourth-quarter touchdown passes from Fernando Mendoza to Jonathan Brady.

Mendoza has since transferred to Indiana, where he is a Heisman Trophy candidate this season, handing the ball off at Cal to freshman quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who has thrown for 2,518 yards and 13 touchdowns this season.

Two of those TD’s and 323 of those yards came in Cal’s most recent outing, a 29-26 overtime win at 14th-ranked Louisville.

While Stanford acknowledges Reich’s agreement with the school is a one-and-done, Cal fans are hoping the same isn’t true for their freshman standout.

Pressed on the issue this week, the Hawaii native wasn’t promising anything.

“I’m just ready to take in the (Big Game) experience,” he said of his future this week. “My main focus is winning this game on Saturday. But I’m pretty sure (I’ll be back), yeah.”

Stanford is expected to counter with a freshman of their own. Elijah Brown replaced Ben Gulbranson for the second half of the Cardinal’s 35-20 home loss to Pittsburgh on Nov. 1, then threw for 284 yards and a score as the starter in a 20-15 loss at North Carolina in Stanford’s most recent game.

Both teams had a bye last week.

-Field Level Media

North Carolina records nine sacks, defeats Stanford

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Gio Lopez threw two second-half touchdown passes and North Carolina’s defense was in control for most of the game in a 20-15 victory against Stanford on Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Jordan Shipp made five catches for 83 yards and a touchdown, as the Tar Heels (4-5, 2-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) won back-to-back games. They picked up their first ACC home victory of the season.

Lopez was 18-for-25 for 203 yards for a North Carolina offense that was limited to 50 rushing yards.

Redshirt freshman Elijah Brown, making his first start, was 27-for-39 for 284 yards with a touchdown and an interception for Stanford (3-7, 2-5), which dropped its third game in a row. Brown was sacked nine times, while Micah Ford rushed for 68 yards on 17 carries.

Stanford’s second fourth-quarter touchdown came with 1:48 left on Brown’s 24-yard toss to CJ Williams. The Cardinal fumbled on a failed two-point conversion play.

Stanford regained possession at its own 20-yard line with 42 seconds remaining and out of timeouts following a North Carolina punt. However, a sack pretty much ended it.

Earlier, North Carolina drove 75 yards to begin the second half, using 12 plays to break a tie on Lopez’s 20-yard pass to Davion Gause. The Tar Heels didn’t have a possession longer than six plays in the first half.

Following Khmori House’s interception, Rece Verhoff booted a 48-yard field goal in the opening minute of the fourth quarter for a 13-3 lead.

Lopez then threw a 55-yard touchdown pass to Shipp, who had his career-long reception.

Stanford scored its first touchdown on the ensuing possession on Cole Tabb’s 1-yard run capping a 75-yard march. A two-point conversion pass failed.

While the score was tied 3-3 at the half, the Tar Heels already had collected six sacks, including three on the first three times Brown dropped back to pass.

North Carolina’s first-half sack total was double the number of the team’s three first downs on offense.

Emmet Kenney, who missed from 41 yards in the second quarter, was good from 38 yards away to end the first half as the Cardinal ran off the final 4:27 of the half with a 16-play drive.

North Carolina won despite a season-high 11 penalties.

–Field Level Media

North Carolina set for Stanford in matchup of former NFL coaches

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North Carolina might be in position to gain a little momentum in what has been a challenging season.

The Tar Heels will look for back-to-back Atlantic Coast Conference victories when they face Stanford on Saturday afternoon in Chapel Hill, N.C.

North Carolina (3-5, 1-3) will aim to pick up steam after snapping a four-game losing streak with a 27-10 victory at Syracuse last Friday. The next day, Stanford (3-6, 2-4) dropped a 35-20 decision to Pitt.

It’s a matchup involving former NFL head coaches, with North Carolina’s Bill Belichick (New England, Cleveland in the NFL) and Stanford interim coach Frank Reich (Carolina, Indianapolis).

“Some familiar faces this week with Frank and (Stanford general manager) Andrew Luck,” Belichick said. “Those guys were hard to compete against at a different point and time. Have some memories and real battles with the Colts.”

Neither man is putting much emphasis on the coaching ties.

“The last thing in the world this is about is any kind of matchups that we’ve had,” Reich said. “I’m only interested in our team and our players. My only motivation is for the good of this team.”

Reich announced a quarterback change, with redshirt freshman Elijah Brown replacing Ben Gulbranson as the starter, calling it somewhat of a gut feeling in making the switch.

“Obviously a tough decision because Ben has done some really good things this year,” Reich said.

Brown has played in three games this season, throwing for one touchdown. He was in the game late vs. Pitt.

“I think Elijah is very instinctive at the position, very accurate passer,” Reich said.

Belichick said there’s not much footage of Brown to study.

Part of the objective for Stanford, Reich said, is to get back closer to a balanced attack. The Cardinal might have a chore against an improving North Carolina defense.

“Obviously a well-schemed defense,” Reich said. “You know when you go up against Coach Belichick and anything that he’s involved with defensively there’s kind of a game-by-game game-planning thing.”

North Carolina’s offense has received a boost from freshman running back Demon June, who notched his second outing of more than 100 rushing yards in the Syracuse game. Of his 117 receiving yards this season, 81 came against the Orange.

Stanford, which will be in its road finale, is 0-5 away from home.

–Field Level Media

Nov 1, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver Kenny Johnson (2) runs the ball against the Stanford Cardinal during the second quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-Imagn Images

Mason Heintschel keeps Pittsburgh offense rolling in road win at Stanford

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Mason Heintschel threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns, Ja’Kyrian Turner rushed for a season-best 127 yards and Pittsburgh ran away from Stanford in the second half for a 35-20 Atlantic Coast Conference victory Saturday afternoon in Stanford, Calif.

Seeking a fourth straight home win, the Cardinal (3-6, 2-4) grabbed a 10-7 lead midway through the first period on a 35-yard pass from Ben Gulbranson to CJ Williams.

But Deuce Spann ran 4 yards for a go-ahead score on the first play of the second period and Heintschel connected with Raphael Williams for a 5-yard TD later in the quarter, helping the Panthers (7-2, 5-1) ease off into a 21-13 halftime advantage.

Pittsburgh then dominated the final 30 minutes on both sides of the ball, with Heintschel completing his big day with a 14-yard scoring strike to Jake Overman before Shawn Lee Jr. intercepted a Gulbranson pass and raced 30 yards for a 35-13 lead.

Stanford’s only score of the second half came with just 18 seconds remaining on a 19-yard pass from backup quarterback Elijah Brown to Williams, his second TD of the game.

Heintschel finished 23 for 38 while recording the fourth 300-yard and third three-touchdown games of his freshman season. He also suffered two interceptions.

Turner’s 127-yard rushing effort nearly doubled the previous best of his freshman season, while Kenny Johnson topped Panthers receivers with four catches for 71 yards and the game’s first score, a 17-yard hook-up with Heintschel.

Gulbranson was intercepted three times during a 17-for-30, 228-yard effort. Brown went 10 for 14 for 102 yards in relief. Both had one TD pass.

Williams was the game’s leading receiver for Stanford with seven catches for 122 yards and the two scores. The Cardinal actually out-passed the visitors 336-304.

In winning its fifth straight game, Pittsburgh outgained the Cardinal 466-326 overall mostly on the strength of five sacks that drove the host’s rushing total into the negative at minus-10. The Panthers rushed for 162 yards.

–Field Level Media

Oct 18, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal safety Omari Gaines (17) and defensive back Sam Neely III (28) celebrate after a victory over Florida State Seminoles at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images

Stanford fined $50K for violating the ACC event security policy

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Stanford was fined $50,000 for violating the Atlantic Coast Conference’s event security policy following Saturday night’s 20-13 victory over Florida State, the conference announced Sunday.

According to the ACC, the violation occurred “when fans entered the field of play after the conclusion of the contest.” Florida State personnel and the officiating crew were attempting to exit the field while the Cardinal and some of their fans were celebrating the victory.

“The conference’s event security policy is designed to protect the safety and well-being of all student-athletes, coaches, officials and fans,” the ACC said in its news release.

The $50,000 fine is for Stanford’s first offense of the policy during a two-year rolling period that applies to football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. A second offense would draw a $100,000 fine and a third occurrence (and further ones) would be cause for a $200,000 fine.

Proceeds under the policy go to the Weaver-James-Corrigan-Swofford Postgraduate Scholarship Fund, which benefits ACC student-athletes pursuing graduate degrees.

Florida State (3-4, 0-4) lost its ninth straight ACC contest. Stanford (3-4, 2-2) is in its second season in the ACC.

–Field Level Media