2021 Stanford Cardinal football team

The 2021 Stanford Cardinal football team represented Stanford University in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cardinal were led by eleventh-year head coach David Shaw. They played their home games at Stanford Stadium as members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference. They finished the season 3–9, 2–7 in Pac-12 play, to finish last place in the North Division. This was Shaw's worst season ever and Stanford's worst record since the team went 1–11 in the 2006 season.

2021 Stanford Cardinal football
ConferencePac-12 Conference
DivisionNorth Division
Record3–9 (2–7 Pac-12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorTavita Pritchard (4th season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorLance Anderson (8th season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumStanford Stadium
Uniform
Seasons
← 2020
2022 →
2021 Pac-12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
North Division
No. 22 Oregon xy   7 2     10 4  
Washington State   6 3     7 6  
Oregon State   5 4     7 6  
California   4 5     5 7  
Washington   3 6     4 8  
Stanford   2 7     3 9  
South Division
No. 12 Utah xy$   8 1     10 4  
UCLA   6 3     8 4  
Arizona State†   0 3     0 5  
USC   3 6     4 8  
Colorado   3 6     4 8  
Arizona   1 8     1 11  
Championship: Utah 38, Oregon 10
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 49:00 a.m.vs. Kansas State*FS1L 7–2428,668
September 117:30 p.m.at No. 14 USCFOXW 42–2856,945
September 185:00 p.m.at Vanderbilt*ESPNUW 41–2321,124
September 253:00 p.m.No. 24 UCLAP12NL 24–3547,236
October 212:30 p.m.No. 3 Oregon
  • Stanford Stadium
  • Stanford, CA
ABCW 31–24 OT31,610
October 87:30 p.m.at No. 22 Arizona StateESPNL 10–2846,192
October 164:30 p.m.at Washington StateESPNUL 31–3426,171
October 307:30 p.m.Washington
  • Stanford Stadium
  • Stanford, CA
FS1L 13–2028,014
November 57:30 p.m.Utah
  • Stanford Stadium
  • Stanford, CA
FS1L 7–5226,410
November 132:30 p.m.at Oregon StateP12NL 14–3535,129
November 204:00 p.m.California
P12NL 11–4149,265
November 275:00 p.m.No. 6 Notre Dame*
  • Stanford Stadium
  • Stanford, CA (rivalry)
FOXL 14–4531,571

[1]

Personnel

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Roster

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2021 Stanford Cardinal football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB 0 Isaiah Sanders GS
RB 2 Casey Filkins So
WR 3 Marcus Graham Jr
WR 4 Michael Wilson Sr
WR 5 John Humphreys So
WR 6 Elijah Higgins Jr
RB 8 Nathaniel Peat Jr
WR 9 Colby Bowman Jr
QB 10 Jack West Sr
QB 11 Ari Patu Fr
QB 17 Dylan Plautz Sr
QB 18 Tanner McKee So
WR 19 Silas Starr So
RB 20 Austin Jones Jr
RB 22 E. J. Smith So
FB 24 Jay Symonds Sr
WR 25 Bryce Farrell So
WR 26 Brendon Barrow Fr
QB 27 Beau Nelson So
RB 28 Dorian Maddox GS
RB 29 Caleb Robinson So
FB 34 Houston Heimuli Sr
FB 48 Coco Lukrich Fr
C 55 Drake Metcalf So
G 57 Levi Rogers So
C 60 Drake Nugent Jr
G 63 Barrett Miller Jr
G 66 Branson Bragg Jr
G/T 68 Max Kalny So
G/T 70 Jason Amler Fr
OT 71 Connor McLaughlin So
G/T 72 Austin Uke Fr
G 73 Jake Hornibrook Jr
OT 74 James Pogorelc So
OT 75 Walter Rouse Jr
G/T 76 Jack Leyrer Fr
G 77 Logan Berzins So
OT 78 Myles Hinton So
G/C 79 Will Gibson Fr
WR 80 David Kasemervisz Fr
WR 81 Brycen Tremayne Sr
WR 82 Jayson Raines Fr
WR 83 Danny McFadden Fr
TE 84 Benjamin Yurosek So
FB 85 Shield Taylor Fr
TE 87 Bradley Archer Jr
TE/DE 88 Tucker Fisk Sr
TE 89 Lukas Ungar So
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
OLB 0 Aeneas DiCosmo Jr
S 2 Jonathan McGill Jr
ILB 3 Levani Damuni Jr
DE 4 Thomas Booker Sr
CB/S 5 Donjae Logan Sr
OLB 6 Andres Fox Sr
ILB 8 Tristan Sinclair Jr
S 9 Noah Williams GS
OLB 10 Jordan Fox GS
OLB 11 Thunder Keck Sr
CB 13 Ethan Bonner Sr
ILB 14 Jacob Magnum-Farrar Sr
OLB 15 Stephen Herron Jr
CB 17 Kyu Blu Kelly Jr
CB 18 Jimmy Wyrick Fr
S 19 Caleb Ellis Fr
CB 20 Jaden Slocum Fr
S 21 Kendall Williamson Sr
ILB 22 Jason Kaul Jr
DE 23 Ryan Johnson Sr
CB 24 Nicolas Toomer Jr
CB 25 Brandon Jones So
ILB 26 William Stockwell Fr
S 27 Omari Porter So
CB 28 Salim Turner-Muhammad Jr
ILB 29 Spencer Jorgensen Jr
ILB 30 Ese Dubre Fr
CB 31 Zahran Manley Jr
S 32 Mitch Leigber Fr
S 33 Alaka'i Gilman So
CB 34 Evan Jackson Fr
DT 40 Tobin Phillips So
ILB 44 Caleb Kelly Sr
ILB 45 Ricky Miezan Sr
OLB 47 Tangaloa Kaufusi Sr
DT 50 Dalyn Wade-Perry GS
OLB 52 Duke Reeder Fr
OLB 54 Kiersten Lee So
DE 55 Matthew Merritt So
ILB 56 Jake Lynch Sr
OLB 58 Wilfredo Aybar Fr
OLB 90 Gabe Reid GS
OLB 92 Lance Keneley So
DE 93 Trey LaBounty So
DE 94 Anthony Franklin Fr
DE 95 Aristotle Taylor Fr
DE 96 Jacob Katona Fr
DE 97 Aaron Armitage Fr
DE 98 Zach Buckey Fr
DT 99 Zephron Lester So
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P 15 Connor Weselman Fr
P 23 Ryan Sanborn Jr
K/P 39 Alexander Thorpe Jr
K 41 Diego Preciado Jr
LS 42 Bailey Parsons So
K 43 Joshua Karty So
LS 49 Kyle Petrucci Sr


Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Lance AndersonDefensive coordinator
  • Tavita PritchardOffensive coordinator / quarterbacks
  • Pete AlamarSpecial teams coordinator
  • Duane AkinaDefensive backs
  • Ron GouldRunning backs
  • Terry Heffernan – Offensive line
  • Bobby Kennedy – Wide receivers
  • Diron ReynoldsDefensive line
  • Eric SandersInside linebackers
  • Morgan Turner – Tight ends
  • Tsuyoshi Kawata – Offensive quality control analyst
  • Greg Mangan – Offensive quality control analyst
  • Steve Donatell – Defensive quality control analyst
  • Patrick Moynahan – Defensive quality control analyst
  • Matt Moran – Special teams assistant
  • Thomas Merkle – Offensive graduate assistant
  • John Sikora – Offensive graduate assistant
  • Admir Fehric – Defensive graduate assistant
  • Jonathan McDonald – Defensive graduate assistant

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

Roster
Last update: October 1, 2021

Depth chart

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As of October 1, 2021

Game summaries

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Vs. Kansas State

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Kansas State Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal (Allstate Kickoff Classic) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Wildcats 7 7 01024
Cardinal 0 0 077

at AT&T StadiumArlington, TX

  • Date: September 4, 2021
  • Game time: 9:00 a.m. PDT
  • Game weather: Indoors
  • Game attendance: 28,668
  • Referee: Chris Coyte
  • TV announcers (FS1): Aaron Goldsmith (play–by–play) and Mark Helfrich (analyst)
Game information

Kansas State began with a 14-point lead at halftime with performances by quarterback Skylar Thompson and running back Deuce Vaughn.[2] The Wildcats managed to score 24 points before allowing Stanford to put points on the board with just 3:16 left in the game. Stanford head coach David Shaw stated: "This game was not indicative of how hard we've played, how hard we've practiced and how well we practiced. Disappointing to me that we didn't go out there and execute better." Shaw is in his 11th season as Stanford's coach. Stanford started senior Jack West at quarterback and rotated him with sophomore Tanner McKee throughout the game.[3]

The Wichita Eagle reported that the stadium was mostly filled with Kansas State fans and that Kansas State significantly out-performed Stanford. Specifically, the paper published that "the Kansas State football team opened its season with a statement victory on Saturday at AT&T Stadium."[2]

At No. 14 USC

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Stanford Cardinal at No. 14 USC Trojans – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinal 7 14 14742
No. 14 Trojans 0 10 31528

at Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA

  • Date: September 11, 2021
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: Sunny, 73 °F (23 °C)
  • Game attendance: 56,945
  • Referee: Michael Mothershed
  • TV announcers (Fox): Tim Brando (play–by–play) and Spencer Tillman (analyst)
  • Reference
Game information

In Tanner McKee's first start as Stanford quarterback, the Cardinal pulled off a surprising rout of USC in the Coliseum, leading by as many as 29 points in the 4th quarter.[4] Following the game, USC head coach Clay Helton was fired and replaced by Donte Williams as interim head coach.[5]

At Vanderbilt

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Stanford Cardinal at Vanderbilt Commodores – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinal 14 13 7741
Commodores 7 7 3623

at Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN

Game information

No. 24 UCLA

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No. 24 UCLA Bruins vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
No. 24 Bruins 14 7 01435
Cardinal 0 7 71024

at Stanford StadiumStanford, CA

  • Date: September 25, 2021
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 73 °F (23 °C) Sunny
  • Game attendance: 47,236
  • Referee: Mark Duddy
  • TV announcers (P12N): Ted Robinson (play–by–play) and Yogi Roth (analyst)
  • Reference
Game information

No. 3 Oregon

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No. 3 Oregon Ducks vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34OTTotal
No. 3 Ducks 0 7 107024
Cardinal 10 7 07731

at Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA

  • Date: October 2, 2021
  • Game time: 12:30 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 80 °F (27 °C) Sunny
  • Game attendance: 31,610
  • Referee: Matthew Richards
  • TV announcers (ABC): Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst), Stormy Buonantony (sideline)
  • Reference
Game information

At No. 22 Arizona State

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Stanford Cardinal at No. 22 Arizona State Sun Devils – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinal 7 0 3010
No. 22 Sun Devils 14 7 7028

at Sun Devil StadiumTempe, AZ

Game information

At Washington State

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Stanford Cardinal at Washington State Cougars – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinal 13 3 01531
Cougars 0 20 7734

at Martin StadiumPullman, WA

  • Date: October 16, 2021
  • Game time: 4:30 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: Sunny, 68 °F (20 °C)
  • Game attendance: 26,171
  • Referee: Micheal Mothershed
  • TV announcers (ESPNU): Kevin Brown, Hutson Mason
  • Reference
Game information

Washington

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Washington Huskies vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Huskies 0 9 3820
Cardinal 3 0 01013

at Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA

  • Date: October 30, 2021
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: Cloudy, 58 °F (14 °C)
  • Game attendance: 28,014
  • Referee: Mark Duddy
  • TV: FS1
  • Reference
Game information

Utah

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Utah Utes vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Utes 14 24 01452
Cardinal 0 0 707

at Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA

  • Date: November 5, 2021
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C) Cloudy
  • Game attendance: 26,410
  • Referee: Francisco Villar
  • TV announcers (FS1): Alex Faust, Petros Papadakis
  • Reference
Game information

At Oregon State

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Stanford Cardinal at Oregon State Beavers – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinal 0 0 7714
Beavers 7 7 14735

at Reser StadiumCorvallis, OR

  • Date: November 13, 2021
  • Game time: 2:40 pm
  • Game weather: 59 °F (15 °C) Sunny, Wind: 5 mph SE
  • Game attendance: 35,129
  • Referee: Mike McCabe
  • TV announcers (P12N): JB Long, Max Browne
Game information
Top passers
  • STA – Ari Patu – 7/14, 51 yards, TD, INT
  • ORE – Chance Nolan – 19/25, 257 yards, 2 TD
Top rushers
  • STA – Isaiah Sanders – 9 carries, 37 yards
  • ORE – B. J. Baylor – 23 carries, 80 yards, TD
Top receivers
  • STA – Michael Wilson – 5 receptions, 50 yards
  • ORE – Trevon Bradford – 3 receptions, 80 yards, TD

California

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California Golden Bears vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Golden Bears 0 14 131441
Cardinal 0 3 0811

at Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA

  • Date: November 20, 2021
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C), Sunny
  • Game attendance: 49,265
  • Referee: Steve Strimling
  • TV announcers (P12N): Ted Robinson (play-by-play), Yogi Roth (analyst)

No. 6 Notre Dame

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Stanford Cardinal – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
No. 6 Fighting Irish 7 17 71445
Cardinal 0 0 7714

at Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA

  • Date: November 27, 2021
  • Game time: 5:10 p.m.
  • Game attendance: 31,571
  • Referee: Gary Patterson
  • TV announcers (FOX): Joe Davis (play-by-play), Brock Huard (analyst)
Game information

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
APRVRVRV
CoachesRVRVRVRV
CFPNot releasedNot released

Players drafted into the NFL

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Round Pick Player Position NFL club
5 150 Thomas Booker DT Houston Texans

References

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  1. ^ "2021 Stanford Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Robinett, Kellis (September 4, 2021). "What we learned from Kansas State's impressive opening victory over Stanford". Wichita Eagle. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  3. ^ "Thompson and K-State open with 24-7 win over Stanford". espn.com. September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  4. ^ "McKee leads Stanford's 42-28 upset rout of No. 14 USC". ESPN.com. September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  5. ^ "USC fires football coach Clay Helton, puts faith in Donte Williams to salvage season". LATimes.com. September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.