FCS Elon makes its first trip to the West Coast to face a Stanford team trying to bounce back from three lopsided losses
STANFORD, Calif. — Elon has never played a football game on the West Coast. Tonight it plays one at Stanford Stadium.
FCS Elon (4-3) visits Stanford (2-4) at 7:30 p.m. ET on ACC Network Extra in the first meeting between the schools. It's a chance for Stanford to regroup after losses of 35-7 at Duke, 57-3 at Wake Forest and 58-7 at No. 2 Notre Dame.
Stanford, in Tavita Pritchard's first season, has had trouble finding consistency. Quarterback Davis Warren has completed 114 of 195 passes for 1,351 yards, with six touchdowns and two interceptions. Caden High has three touchdown catches, and Micah Ford has four rushing touchdowns. Matt Rose leads the defense with 38 tackles. The Cardinal's only league win came 34-27 over Georgia Tech.
Elon's offense runs through running back Kamerin McDowell-Moore, who has 137 carries for 916 yards and six touchdowns. The passing game has struggled. Elijah Guttman has completed 36 of 85 passes with two touchdowns and five interceptions. Brady Stober, the opening-day starter, returned last week against Wofford after an injury in the Davidson game, but Elon has used three quarterbacks this season and has not announced a starter. Brodie Carroll leads the defense with 68 tackles. Tony Trisciani is in his eighth season.
The Phoenix were shut out 16-0 by Wofford last week, and they lost 30-23 at New Hampshire before that.
The histories are very different. Stanford claims national titles in 1926 and 1940, Jim Plunkett won the Heisman Trophy in 1970, and Bill Walsh, Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw all coached on the Farm. Elon has won 18 conference titles, many of them in its small-college days.
The weather could be a factor. The forecast calls for 90 degrees, which could wear down a visiting team late.
Stanford gets an open week before hosting NC State on Oct. 23.
Stanford's size and depth advantage over an FCS opponent, plus home field, should be the difference. McDowell-Moore can create a few big plays, but Elon's passing struggles make it hard to keep pace. The real test for Stanford is whether its offense can finally turn a good week of practice into a complete game.
Our call: Stanford 43, Elon 13.