Why Stanford Lost The 108th Big Game - Cal's Great Defense and Stanford Coach Walt Harris Terrible Offensive Game Plan

I'm an Old Blue, so I'm happy Cal won. But I could see Cal was going to win big in the second quarter. By then it became clear to me that Stanford Head Coach Walt Harris devised an inflexible game plan which caused the Cardinal to attempt throw medium range and deep passes, and call middle screens using the running backs and tight ends.

The result: seven sacks by an occasionally blitzing Cal defense using 4-2-5 defenses and placing their strong safety up to either blitz or contain runs.

Harris' staff had no answer for this. Not that there weren't any. Even when it was obvious their game plan wasn't working, they stuck with it. Instead of spreading Cal's defense out with four and five wide receivers and throwing short three-step passes -- all the better to discourage blitzing and form one-on-one matchups -- the Cardinal remained in two-running back sets and used the I formation most of the time. The only really successful pass they had was out of the I and featured a square - in by the tight end.

Playing man-for-man, Cal snuffed out the Cardinals screens, and stuffed the running game -- except when the Cardinal ran wide and forced Cal to run to the ball.

But the Cardinal never made the adjustments necessary to make the game interesting. They pulled their quarterback Edwards because he was being beaten up -- the result of being made to be a sitting duck against Cal's pass rush.

Afterward Coach Harris remarked that Cal has bigger, faster athletes and that's why they won.

No Coach Harris, Cal won because they had a much better game plan. Stanford lost because they had an inflexible game plan.

If Harris maintains this attitude, he won't produce a winner at Stanford.