2015 Stanford Cardinal football team

American college football season August 2023 February 2026 2015 Stanford Cardinal football Stanford Cardinal logo.svg 100 Pac-12 Conference North Division Pac-12 3 3 12–2 8–1 David Shaw 5th Mike Bloomgren 3rd Lance Anderson 2nd Multiple 3–4 Stanford Stadium Pac-12 championPac-12 North Division championRose Bowl champion Pac-12 Championship Game W 41–22 vs. USC Rose Bowl W 45–16 vs. Iowa The 2015 Stanford Cardinal football team represented Stanford University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cardinal were led by fifth-year head coach David Shaw. They played their home games at Stanford Stadium and were members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference. In 2015, the Cardinal were the champions of the Pac-12. After finishing in first place in the North Division, they beat USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game by a score of 41–22."Christian McCaffrey Catapults No. 7 Stanford Past USC for Pac-12 Title", USA Today, December 6, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2015. They defeated Iowa 45–16 in the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2016. The Cardinal finished the season ranked No. 3 in the final Coaches Poll, their highest final ranking in the history of that poll. They were similarly ranked No. 3 in the final AP Poll, their highest final ranking in 75 years, following the 1940 national championship season. Personnel Coaching staff Name Position Stanford years Alma mater David Shaw Head coach 9th Stanford (1994) Lance Anderson Defensive coordinator / outside linebackers coach 9th Idaho State (1996) Mike Bloomgren Associate head coach / offensive coordinator 5th Florida State (1999) Pete Alamar Special teams coordinator 4th Cal Lutheran (1983) Duane Akina Defensive backs coach 2nd Washington (1979) Peter Hansen Inside linebackers coach 2nd Arizona (2001) Tavita Pritchard Quarterbacks coach / wide receivers coach 3rd Stanford (2009) Randy Hart Defensive linemen coach 6th Ohio State (1970) Eric Sanders Defensive assistant 1st UC Davis (2005) Lance Taylor Running backs coach 2nd Alabama (2003) Morgan Turner Tight ends coach 3rd Illinois (2009) Roster 2015 Stanford Cardinal rosterQuarterbacks  8 Kevin Hogan – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'4, 220) 10 Keller Chryst – sophomore (6'5, 231) 17 Ryan Burns – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'5, 225) Running backs  5 Christian McCaffrey – sophomore (6'0, 197) 15 Reagan Williams Freshman (6'3, 218) 19 Ryan Gaertner Junior (5'10, 215) 20 Bryce Love Freshman (5'10, 184) 22 Remound Wright – 10px|Redshirt senior (5'9, 198) 25 Cameron Scarlett Freshman (6'1, 220) 26 Barry J. Sanders – 10px|Redshirt junior (5'10, 191) 35 Daniel Marx – sophomore (6'2, 247) 42 Pat McFadden – junior (5'10, 195) Wide receivers  2 Trenton Irwin – freshman (6’2, 199)  3 Michael Rector – 10px|Redshirt junior 6'1 190)  4 Jay Tyler – freshman (5'8, 167)  5 Kodi Whitfield – senior (6'2, 197)  6 Francis Owusu – junior (6'3, 193)  6 Taijuan Thomas – junior (5'10, 185) 11 Dontonio Jordan – 10px|Redshirt junior (5'11, 188) 13 Rollins Stallworth – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'4, 196) 19 J. J. Arcega-Whiteside – freshman (6'3, 207) 21 Isaiah Brandt-Sims – sophomore (5'11, 175) 41 Addison Johnson – sophomore (5'9, 175) 46 Sidhart Krishnamurthi – freshman (5'11, 175) 81 Conner Crane – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'4, 195) 85 Treyvion Foster – junior (6'1, 213) 89 Devon Cajuste – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'4, 232) Offensive guards/offensive tackles 51 Joshua Garnett – senior (6'5, 317) OG 54 Nick Wilson – freshman (6'3, 268) OG 57 Johnny Caspers – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'4, 292) OG 60 Lucas Hinds – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 290) OG 62 Austin Maihen – freshman – (6'5, 280) OG 64 David Bright – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'5, 290) OG/OT 66 Nick Davidson – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'7, 283) OT 71 Brandon Fanaika – sophomore (6'3, 321) OG 74 Brendon Austin – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'6, 304) OG 75 A. T. Hall – sophomore (6'5, 278) OT 76 Jack Dreyer – freshman (6'8, 286) OT 77 Casey Tucker – sophomore (6'6, 305) OT 78 Kyle Murphy – senior (6'7, 272) OT Tight ends  9 Dalton Schultz – sophomore (6'6, 239) 18 Austin Hooper – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 225) 80 Eric Cotton – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'6, 235) 82 Chris Harrell – senior (6'4, 236) 87 Ben Snyder – freshman (6'4, 240) 88 Greg Taboada – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'5, 235) 99 Luke Kaumatule – senior (6'7, 260) Centers 52 Graham Shuler – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'4, 277) 64 Brian Chaffin – freshman (6'2, 278) 73 Jesse Burkett – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'4, 288) Defensive tackles 58 David Parry – 10px|Redshirt senior 79 Alex Yazdi – 10px|Redshirt junior 95 Lance Callihan – 10px|Redshirt junior Defensive ends  7 Aziz Shittu – senior (6'3, 275) 17 Brennan Scarlett – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'4, 265) 48 Kevin Anderson – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'4, 245) 55 Nate Lohn – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'3, 274) 56 Wesley Annan – freshman (6'4, 285) 66 Harrison Phillips – sophomore (6'4, 255) 75 Jordan Watkins – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'5, 271) 90 Solomon Thomas – sophomore (6'3, 256) 97 Dylan Jackson – Freshman (6'6, 248) Linebackers  3 Noor Davis – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'4, 227) ILB  4 Blake Martinez – senior (6'2, 238) ILB 15 Jordan Perez – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'2, 207) ILB 20 Bobby Okereke – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'3, 217) ILB 27 Sean Barton – freshman (6'3, 212) ILB 31 Mustafa Branch – freshman (5'11, 218) ILB 32 Joey Alfieri – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'3, 228) OLB 33 Mike Tyler – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'5, 225) OLB 34 Peter Kalambayi – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 240) OLB 43 Ryan Beecher– freshman (6'1, 230) ILB 44 Kevin Palma – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'2, 240) ILB 47 Sam Yules – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'2, 221) ILB 49 Lewis Burik– freshman (5'10, 216) ILB 50 Sam Shober– 10px|Redshirt junior (6'3, 223) OLB 52 Casey Toohill – freshman (6'4, 230) OLB 53 Torsten Rotto – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'2, 240) OLB 59 Craig Jones – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'0, 215) ILB 86 Lane Veach – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'6, 233) OLB Defensive backs  8 Frank Buncom – freshman (6'2, 192) CB 11 Terrence Alexander – sophomore (5'10, 178) CB 13 Alijah Holder – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'2, 174) CB 21 Ronnie Harris – 10px|Redshirt senior (5'10, 170) CB 23 Alameen Murphy – 10px|Redshirt freshman (5'11, 185) CB 24 Quenton Meeks – freshman (6'2, 195) CB 38 Ra'Chard Pippens – 10px|Redshirt senior (6'2, 198) CB Safeties  2 Brandon Simmons – 10px|Redshirt freshman (6'0, 182) FS  9 Ben Edwards – freshman (6'0, 191) FS 22 Justin Reid – junior (6'1, 195) SS 28 Denzel Franklin – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'0, 198) SS 29 Dallas Lloyd – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'3, 209) SS 45 Calvin Chandler – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'2, 215) SS Punters/Kickers 14 Jake Bailey – freshman (6'2 186) P 27 Charlie Beall – freshman (6'2 215) K 34 Conrad Ukropina – 10px|Redshirt junior (6'1 185) K 47 Alex Robinson – 10px|Redshirt sophomore (6'0 200) P Long snappers 67 Reed Miller – senior (6'2, 222) 68 C.J. Keller – sophomore (6'3, 215) Terms: Freshman – A player in his first year. Sophomore – A player in his second year. Junior – A player in his third year. Senior – A player in his fourth year. 10px|Redshirt Redshirt – A player who sat out a previous season.Source: 2015 Stanford Cardinal Football Roster Schedule 2015 AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 3 released prior to game Pacific September 5 9:00 a.m. l y y 21 Northwestern Ryan Field Evanston, IL ESPN 6–16 36,024 https://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=400756891 Stanford vs Northwestern Game Summary ESPN September 5, 2015 September 19, 2015 September 12 7:30 p.m. w y UCF Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA FS1 31–7 50,420 https://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=400757023 Stanford vs UCF Game Summary ESPN September 12, 2015 September 19, 2015 September 19 5:00 p.m. w y USC 6 rivalry Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA ABC 41–31 78,306 https://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=400757026 Stanford vs USC Game Summary ESPN September 25, 2015 October 29, 2015 September 25 7:00 p.m. w y 21 Oregon State Reser Stadium Corvallis, OR FS1 42–24 37,302 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757035 Stanford vs Oregon State Game Summary ESPN September 25, 2015 September 26, 2015 October 3 7:30 p.m. w 18 Arizona Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA P12N 55–17 46,628https://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=400757041 Arizona vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN October 3, 2015 October 3, 2015 October 15 7:30 p.m. w 15 UCLA 18 Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA rivalry ESPN 56–35 50,464 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757050 UCLA vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN October 15, 2015 October 16, 2015 October 24 7:30 p.m. w y 10 Washington Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA ESPN 31–14 50,424 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757060 Washington vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN October 24, 2015 October 29, 2015 October 31 7:30 p.m. w y 8 Washington State Martin Stadium Pullman, WA ESPN 30–28 30,012 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757066 Stanford vs Washington State Game Summary ESPN October 31, 2015 November 2, 2015 November 7 10:00 a.m. w y 11 Colorado Folsom Field Boulder, CO P12N 42–10 40,142 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757070 Stanford vs Colorado Game Summary ESPN November 7, 2015 November 8, 2015 November 14 4:30 p.m. l 7 Oregon Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA rivalry FOX 36–38 48,633 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757077 Oregon vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN November 14, 2015 November 20, 2015 November 21 7:30 p.m. w 11 California Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA Big Game ESPN 35–22 51,424 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757084 California vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN November 21, 2015 November 22, 2015 November 28 4:30 p.m. w y 9 Notre Dame 6 Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA rivalry FOX 38–36 51,424 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400757090 Notre Dame vs Stanford Game Summary ESPN November 28, 2015 November 28, 2015 December 5 4:45 p.m. w y 7 USC 20 Levi's Stadium Santa Clara, CA Pac-12 Championship Game ESPN 41–22 58,476 January 1, 2016 2:10 p.m. w y y 6 Iowa 5 Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA Rose Bowl, College GameDay ESPN 45–16 94,268 Game summaries At Northwestern #21 Cardinal 3 0 0 3 Wildcats 3 7 0 6 2015 Northwestern Wildcats football team UCF Knights 0 0 0 7 Cardinal 0 10 7 14 2015 UCF Knights football team At #6 USC Cardinal 7 17 7 10 #6 Trojans 14 7 7 3 2015 USC Trojans football team Stanford–USC football rivalry At Oregon State #21 Cardinal 14 7 14 7 Beavers 7 6 0 7 2015 Oregon State Beavers football team Arizona Wildcats 0 3 14 0 #18 Cardinal 13 14 21 7 2015 Arizona Wildcats football team #18 UCLA #18 Bruins 10 7 3 15 #15 Cardinal 14 21 21 0 2015 UCLA Bruins football team Stanford–UCLA football rivalry Washington Huskies 0 0 7 7 #10 Cardinal 7 10 14 0 2015 Washington Huskies football team At Washington State #8 Cardinal 3 0 17 10 Cougars 3 9 10 6 2015 Washington State Cougars football team At Colorado #9 Cardinal 7 21 7 7 Buffaloes 7 0 3 0 2015 Colorado Buffaloes football team Oregon Ducks 14 7 14 3 #7 Cardinal 10 13 0 13 2015 Oregon Ducks football team Oregon–Stanford football rivalry California Golden Bears 3 3 10 6 #15 Cardinal 7 14 0 14 2015 California Golden Bears football team Big Game (American football) No. 4 Notre Dame #4 Fighting Irish 7 13 9 7 #13 Cardinal 14 7 7 10 2015 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team Notre Dame–Stanford football rivalry In arguably one of the best college football games of the year, a game that had ten lead changes and almost 1,000 yards of offense, Stanford scored five touchdowns in five red zone trips, but it would be Stanford Kicker Conrad Ukropina who hit the game-winning field goal as time expired, which also ended Notre Dame's College Football Playoff hopes while keeping Stanford's playoff hopes alive. With 6:48 left in the game and the Cardinal leading 35–29, the Irish would march 88 yards in 15 plays (using up 6:18 of the play clock). It was capped off by Notre Dame Quarterback DeShone Kizer's two-yard touchdown run to give the Irish the lead with just 30 seconds left in the game. But the Irish defense could not hold as Stanford would go 45 yards in just 28 seconds and finish off the game with the win from Ukropina's field goal. Vs. #24 USC (Pac-12 Championship) #24 Trojans 0 3 13 6 #7 Cardinal 3 10 14 14 2015 Pac-12 Football Championship Game 2015 USC Trojans football team Stanford–USC football rivalry Vs. #6 Iowa (Rose Bowl) #5 Cardinal 21 14 3 7 #6 Hawkeyes 0 0 3 13 2015 Iowa Hawkeyes football team 2016 Rose Bowl Sports analysts had anticipated the contest to be exciting, due mainly to the matchup between Iowa's strong run defense and Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey, the Heisman Trophy runner-up. McCaffrey led the FBS in the 2015 season with 3,864 all-purpose yards, which came from punt/kick returns, runs from scrimmage, and passes out of the backfield. All Purpose FBS Football Statistics - NCAA.com https://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/individual/20 NCAA.com 2016-01-03 In contrast, Iowa's run defense finished the season ranked 14th, allowing only 121 yards per game and having defeated historically rushing teams like Wisconsin, Indiana, and Nebraska. Rushing Defense FBS Football Statistics - NCAA.com https://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/24 NCAA.com 2016-01-03 McCaffrey caught a short pass and turned it into a 75-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. The Hawkeyes were unable to stop him, as he averaged 9.6 YPC (172 yards on 18 carries), returned a punt for a touchdown, and converted many third downs. Though he did not rush for any touchdowns from scrimmage, he proved to be the primary playmaker for Stanford, catching a third of Cardinal Quarterback Kevin Hogan's twelve passes. McCaffrey was such an offensive threat that Hogan was able to make large gains with the read option, including a wide-open first-quarter option TD run. Stanford's 21-0 first-quarter lead was the most first-quarter points scored by one team in Rose Bowl history. Christian McCaffrey sets Rose Bowl record as Stanford routs Iowa https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2016/01/01/christian-mccaffrey-sets-rose-bowl-record-stanford-routs-iowa/78195914/ USA TODAY 2016-01-03 Stanford shut Iowa out in the first half 35–0, with Stanford's 35 points the most scored in the first half of a Rose Bowl in its entire 102-year history. McCaffrey gained a total of 368 all-purpose yards, setting another Rose Bowl record. Iowa was unable to get their run game going, rushing as a team for 1.3 YPC (48 yards on 38 carries). The longest Iowa runs were 14 and 12 yards, Stanford vs. Iowa - Box Score - January 1, 2016 - ESPN https://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore?gameId=400852737 ESPN.com 2016-01-03 as well as a 14-yard scramble by Quarterback C. J. Beathard. Iowa's inability to establish a run game closed up Iowa's potential for play-action passing, which had been Beathard's bread and butter all season. Iowa's halfbacks, their biggest threat all season, were overall unable to garner any significant yardage on the ground. By the second half, Stanford's explosiveness slowed down, scoring just 10 second-half points versus their 35 first-half points. Iowa did not score until the 3rd quarter when placekicker Marshall Koehn kicked a field goal after converting on 4th down earlier in the drive; Beathard threw 2 touchdowns in the 4th quarter, with Koehn missing one of the two PATs. Iowa had a slight advantage in time of possession, possessing the ball for almost 33 minutes, though they were simply unable to make meaning out of their possessions. Iowa also outgained Stanford through the air by a slim margin, with 239 yards to Stanford's 223. Stanford vs. Iowa - Team Statistics - January 1, 2016 - ESPN https://www.espn.com/college-football/matchup?gameId=400852737 ESPN.com 2016-01-03 Rankings 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings 15 9 21 21 RV RV RV NR 21 24 18 20 16 18 15 16 10 11 8 8 9 8 11 7 7 7 15 15 11 13 12 9 7 7 7 5 6 6 3 3 Statistics January 2016 Team Team statistics   Stanford Opponents Scoring 529 316 Points Per game 37.8 22.6 Points Off Turnovers 96 60 First Downs 311 267 Rushing 155 106 Passing 129 145 Penalty 27 16 Rushing yardage 3132 1958 Yards gained rushing 3358 2358 Yards lost rushing 226 400 Rushing attempts 610 453 Average Per rush 5.1 4.3 Average Per game 223.7 139.9 TDs Rushing 33 16 Passing yardage 2965 3198 Comp-Att-Int 213-318-8 271–473–8 Average Per Pass 9.3 6.8 Average Per Catch 13.9 11.8 Average Per game 211.8 228.4 TDs Passing 30 19 Total offense 6097 5156 Total play 928 926 Average Per play 6.6 5.6 Average Per game 435.5 368.3 Kick returns: # – yards 51-1265 70-1473 Punt returns: # – yards 17-154 11-93 INT Returns: # – yards 8-125 8-101 Kick Return Average 24.8 21.0 Punt Return Average 9.1 8.5 INT Return Average 15.6 12.6 Fumbles lost 12-5 10-6 Penalties – yards 78-648 80-742 Average Per game 46.3 53.0 Punts – yards 48-1959 66-2797 Average Per punt 40.8 42.4 Net punt average 37.2 39.1 Kickoffs – yards 96-5900 69-4003 Average Per kick 61.5 58.0 Net kick average 41.4 34.2 Time of possession/game 34:48 25:12 3rd-down conversions 91/182 70/193 3rd-Down Pct 50% 36% 4th-down conversions 13/16 15/24 4th-Down Pct 81% 62% Sacks By – yards 34-260 20-104 Miscellaneous Yards 0 0 Touchdowns scored 68 36 Field goals – attempts 18-20 23-26 On-Side Kicks 0-1 0-3 Red-Zone Scores (54–62) 87% (41–47) 87% Red-Zone Touchdowns (41–62) 66% (21–47) 45% PAT – attempts (67-67) 100% (29–31) 94% Attendance 349,381 221,786 Games/Avg Per game 7/49,912 5/44,357 Neutral Site Games 2/76,372 All opponents Stanford 123 158 132 116 All opponents 68 69 93 86 Pac-12 opponents Stanford 85 127 115 82 Pac-12 opponents 57 49 81 53 Non-conference opponents Stanford 38 31 17 34 Non-conference opponents 11 20 12 33 Players drafted into the NFL 2016 NFL draft Stanford Cardinal Round Pick Player Position NFL club 1 28 Joshua Garnett G San Francisco 49ers 3 81 Austin Hooper TE Atlanta Falcons 4 131 Blake Martinez LB Green Bay Packers 5 162 Kevin Hogan QB Kansas City Chiefs 6 200 Kyle Murphy OT Green Bay Packers References Stanford Category:Stanford Cardinal football seasons Category:Pac-12 Conference football champion seasons Category:Rose Bowl champion seasons Stanford Cardinal football