Six things we learned about Stanford football at ACC media day

Coach Troy Taylor talks travel challenges, NIL and much more during team’s first ACC media availability in Charlotte, N.C.

Trepidation, nervousness or perhaps uncertainty were not in Troy Taylor’s vocabulary on Tuesday morning.  

It didn’t take long for the optimistic second-year Stanford football coach to share his thoughts on the Cardinal’s move to the Atlantic Coast Conference after the Pac-12’s implosion.

In fact, it was the first words out of his mouth at the ACC media day in Charlotte, N.C.  

“We’re thrilled to be here.” Taylor said. “Unbelievable conference. Some great traditions, great coaches, great area of the country. We’re excited about it.”

During Stanford’s first media day as part of the restructured ACC, Taylor addressed his team’s cross-country schedule, how the ACC will affect recruiting, remaining in the same conference with Cal and more. 

Because Stanford recruits nationally, Taylor noted that the Cardinal could actually benefit from playing more games on the East Coast as the program seeks its first winning non-COVID season since 2018. 

“A lot of our roster comes from this side of the country,” Taylor said. “An opportunity to come out and play here three times a year on this coast, I think it’s going to continue to help us in recruiting.”

TRAVELING MEN

Taylor and Stanford may see positives in playing in the Eastern time zone, but it still presents challenges that didn’t exist when former coaches Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw led the Cardinal to 10 consecutive winning seasons from 2009-18.

The Cardinal will trek cross-country to Syracuse for its conference opener on Sept. 20, and then travel down the coastline to Clemson to duke it out with arguably the premier program in the conference the very next week.

“It’s going to be awesome,” quarterback Ashton Daniels said. “They’re known to have one of the greatest college football atmospheres. So that’s going to be a blast going to play in that.” 

Even though the Cardinal will play back-to-back games on the other side of the country, Taylor said that the team will come back to The Farm in between matchups so his players can attend class. 

“We’re going to go out a day early,” Taylor said. “On a Saturday game, we’ll go out on Thursday. Fly in the evening, hopefully get our players acclimated the next day, then we pick up three hours flying back to the West Coast.”

The Cardinal will travel 14,017 miles to play its 12 regular-season games, according to Sports Illustrated. 

Plenty of top-notch teams will travel to The Farm, too, with Virginia Tech and fellow ACC newcomer SMU among the higher-profile opponents. 

LOCAL MATCHUPS

But in a world of unrecognizable conferences with misleading names, Stanford can rely on at least one constant as it attempts to avoid going 3-9 for the fourth year in a row. 

Eternal rival Cal joins Stanford in the ACC, and the teams will play in Berkeley on Nov. 23. 

Instead of the big game being the finale, the Cardinal will close out the regular season by taking a short trip down 280 and playing at San Jose State in the Bill Walsh Legacy Game.

It will be the first meeting between the team since Stanford beat the Spartans 34-13 in 2013.  

“One of the things that makes college football great are the rivalries that have went on for a long time,” Taylor said. “I think it’s important with realignment, all these things that happen, the rivalries are something that’s really important.”

PLAYING THE NIL GAME

In a world where Name, Image and Likeness collectives help elite colleges pay athletes and the transfer portal reshapes rosters every offseason by shuffling upperclassmen around the country, few colleges have the kind of name recognition as the ACC’s Clemson and Florida State.

How in the world can Stanford compete for – and retain – talent when facing those kinds of brands?

Consistently promoting the school’s world-class academic record is a good start, especially for a college that has hardly jumped head-first into the NIL game. 

“We want them to be here for four years,” Taylor said. “I think it’s one of the appeals of Stanford. If you’re smart enough to choose Stanford, I think you’re smart enough to stay until you get your degree. That’s what I’m counting on, at least.”  

BIG PLAYMAKER

The cupboard isn’t totally bare for the Cardinal, who return standout wideout Elic Ayomanor (1,013 receiving yards, six TDs) as the team’s top playmaker and dark horse Biletnikoff Award candidate. 

The 6-foot-2 sophomore burst onto the national scene when he torched CFB 25 video game cover athlete Travis Hunter to the tune of 294 yards receiving and three touchdowns in the Cardinal’s stunning 46-43 overtime victory at Colorado. 

“I’m not really the type of person to set benchmarks in terms of yards or catches or touchdowns,” the Canadian playmaker said. “I think one thing that I want to do or be able to come away with this season is going into the film room every Sunday and thinking, like, I put my all out there every play.”

QB BATTLE

Ayomanor’s talent is unquestionable, but who will throw touchdowns to the redshirt sophomore sensation is still up in the air. 

Daniels got the majority of the action, throwing for 2,247 yards and 11 touchdowns. He enters as the presumptive starter. Justin Lamson was more of a rushing threat, scrambling for five touchdowns. 

But the most intriguing option is highly-touted four-star freshman Elijah Brown, who arrives on The Farm after winning a California state championship with Mater Dei-Santa Ana. 

The 6-foot-2 pocket passer threw for 115 touchdowns and went 42-2 as a four-year starter for the SoCal powerhouse after replacing Bryce Young. 

DEFENSE EXPECTS BETTER

Whoever pilots the attack will need to pick up the slack for a defense that ranked 129th out of 130 teams in total yards allowed last season (462 YPG). 

Sixth-year linebacker and Bay Area native Tristan Sinclair touted the defense’s commitment to physicality to close out Stanford’s media day availability. 

“We want guys that are tough, that are physical,” Sinclair said, “Sometimes you’ve got to ‘Give it up for Stanford,’ make those physical plays, where you got to go in there and good your gap, the C gap, whatever it is.”