There is a lot of talk about Vaz vs Mannion in the game thread. I don't know what to make of the situation. I think it was handled entirely wrong (Vaz should have started vs Washington; Mannion should have played vs ASU when he was actually recovered), and now there's a mess. Both guys have pluses and minuses that we all see. Since Mannion has more long-term upside he's the obvious play. The players seem to like Vaz more, though, and he had two nice games. Who knows, but now it's a mess due to the Washington game. I blame Riley, ultimately. It wasn't that hard a situation to manage, and he botched it.

Regarding today's game, I saw the Beavs slowly grab momentum through the 2nd and 3rd quarters. The irony is that they lost momentum on Romaine's third FG. When that ball went through, and Riley gave his shit-eating grin + fist pump, I knew the game was over. Counter-intuitive, I know, but Riley thought he had the game won there. Why wouldn't he? The D was playing great. But players sense when a coach lets up, and they follow the lead. So what happens on the next drive? Stanford marches down the field like they hadn't done for two quarters, the D lets up, guys miss tackles, Stanford scores on a huge play.

On the Beav's side, the play calling turns ugly and one-dimensional/predictable…pass heavy, but conservative passes (having the QB roll left on a 3rd and 2? Horrible call, but they always have horrible calls in key downs). We see OSU do this all the time when games are in the balance. It's like a vice clamps Riley's sack when it matters most. This is what I'd expect from a nice guy, beta coach. It's also why I came up with the win cap idea (not sure how that will turn out…Cal and N-State look like wins, but who knows now). Either way, there is definitely a win cap on clutch games, and it is pretty much zero. Hey, like the election, the majority have spoken, and they'll get what they ask for. Most OSU fans want this guy as coach, so this is what they'll get.

It was nice being emotionally checked out. Didn't care at all, just enjoyed a good game.

One more thing: Refs called a great game. We get on their case over constant F-ups, but that was a nicely called game.

Alamo Bowl is still in play (mathematically, so is the RB), but more likely it's the Holiday Bowl (formerly Sun Bowl). This is a good example of how things revert to the mean. Start slow, end fast; start fast, end slow. Does it matter? In the end, the trend is your friend, and the trend screams mediocrity.

If the winner of this game stays in the top 14, they're going to the Rose Bowl.

That's what is on the line.

That Washington loss is going to look worse as the season progresses–even with a win vs Stanford we'll be nail biting.

Here's a Stanford perspective from gomightycard. I usually do yearly interviews with them but passed this year; Cliff fields some questions. I think he's close to the mark on his analysis. The pivotal matchup is the Beav's run game vs the Cardinal D. If the Beavs get 100 yards they win.

One thing to watch for: Stanford's new QB. We always joke around about backups coming in and lighting it up. Let's see if it happens again.

Tough call, but I like Stanford in a close game, even though I think Stanford and their coach are both overrated. I think they'll shut down the run game (not a big Ward fan, Woods isn't himself, and Agnew fumbles) and that'll lead to trouble in the passing game.

24-16