The Stanford Cardinal have faced their share of big play receivers this season, including Robert Woods and Marqise Lee of USC, Keenan Allen and Marvin Jones of Cal, Josh Huff of Oregon, Jermaine Kearse and Devin Aguilar of Washington, Marquess Wilson of Washington State ... the list goes on.
Justin Blackmon of Oklahoma State might be the best of the bunch.
The repeat Biletnikoff winner will be a tough test for a Cardinal secondary that is well-tested against good college wide receivers, and David Shaw knows he has his hands full.
"He's not quite the size of [Cal's] Keenan Allen, but he plays big, like Keenan plays," Shaw explained. "That ball goes up, he's jumping over people. He makes the tough, acrobatic catches. He doesn't have the super speed of [USC's] Robert Woods, but he runs great routes like Robert does. He changes direction, so he's in the middle between those two guys probably."
If I were Shaw, I'd probably just concede the short throws to Blackmon and double-cover him, drape the safety over the top to make sure he isn't a threat to burn you downfield. Let Oklahoma State prove they can run the ball against Stanford's stout front seven before considering throwing it up for grabs.
To discuss the Fiesta Bowl with Oklahoma State fans, head to Cowboys Ride For Free. To discuss the Fiesta Bowl with Stanford fans, check out Rule of Tree.