The Stanford Cardinal do have a depth chart ready for the season opener before their matchup with their South Bay rivals the San Jose St. Spartans. It didn't come filled with fanfare, but Kyle Bonagura, beat reporter for the Cardinal with CBS Sports, came up with this list that you can view for your enjoyment.
Let's break it down, piece by piece.
Quarterback: Andrew Luck could've spent the entire offseason chowing down on Grand Slam breakfasts and he'd still be the starter. Brent Nottingham seemed a pretty good bet to move up to the second position, but he's still battling it out with junior Robble Picazo. Stanford would probably be best served if this situation stayed the way it is down the line.
Running back: Stepfan Taylor will start for the second straight year, but don't be surprised if the Cardinal decided to split snaps between all the tailbacks, just like last season. Anthony Wilkerson moves up to the second spot behind Taylor. And it'll be hard for anyone to replace Owen Marecic (Ryan Hewitt assumes this impossible task).
Wide receiver/tight ends: Chris Owusu and Griff Whalen are the starters, with Jamal Rashad-Patterson and Drew Terrell likely to factor in. Although Stanford will have a hard time replacing Doug Baldwin and Ryan Whalen, the Cardinal still can use all three of their main tight ends with Coby Fleener, Zach Ertz and Levine Toilolo, so it's hard to see the Cardinal really falling off too much in the passing game.
Offensive line: If there's any struggle, it'll come in pass protection and run blocking. Only David DeCastro (right guard) and Jonathan Martin (left tackle) remain from the dominant starting units that bulldozed the Pac-10 the last two years. It's possible Sam Schwartzstein, Cameron Fleming and David Yankey won't force too much of a dropoff, but the Cardinal O-line will be much questioned and targeted going into this season as a place of uncertainty.
Defensive line: Terrence Stephens will have a tougher time anchoring the 3-4 at nose tackle than Sione Fua, regardless of how good his motor might be. Thomas Keiser's early departure leaves only fifth year senior Matt Masifilo as a returning starter at defensive end, and no one knows how well Ben Gardner will respond. Expect Stanford's 3-4 to drop off in its efficiency.
Linebackers: Shayne Skov is one of the best and Chase Thomas proved he could be dependable, but neither Max Bergen nor Trent Murphy have started or played much. The Cardinal will have plenty of question marks in many critical positions next season, and it'll be a little harder to cover all these deficiencies up in the second year of the 3-4 scheme.
Secondary: Delano Howell and Michael Thomas should make it tough for any team to throw deep on Stanford, and Jonathan Bademosi has plenty of experience as well. The question comes on the other side, and how well Barry Browning can handle the position on the first week of the job.
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