Stanford talks tough about football season ahead despite 17 transfers

5-7 minutes 7/23/2023
LAS VEGAS — From 2009-18, Stanford football went 102-32 with at least eight wins per season and earned six bowl victories, including two Rose and one Orange.
Stanford football over the past three full seasons was a different story, going 10-26 with at least eight losses per season.
“Stanford was the powerhouse. Everyone was afraid to play us. Nobody wanted to play us back in the day,” Stanford linebacker Tristan Sinclair said in an interview with The Chronicle during Pac-12 Football Media Day on Friday.
Wide receiver John Humphreys noted, “There’s been a standard that’s been set by past players and some great teams here at Stanford. … We see the great opportunity we have to get this train back rolling.”
In December, Stanford hired former Sacramento State head coach Troy Taylor to get its program back on track. David Shaw — who led the Cardinal for 12 years — resigned after the season finale against BYU. The coaching change and back-to-back 3-9 records were reasons 17 players (by Taylor’s count) transferred.
“I didn’t take it personally,” Taylor said.
Humphreys, who’s entering his fourth season on the Farm, and Sinclair, who’s headed into his fifth season with the Cardinal, opted to stay. Taylor relished the phone call when Sinclair told him he would be part of Taylor’s first Cardinal team.
“When you feel like you’re losing guys (every day) in the transfer portal,” Taylor said, “and then you have the quality of person like him say they’re going to stay here and would like to build this thing, it’s a nice moment — one I’ll always remember.”
Sinclair and Humphreys own deep roots in the Stanford program. Their fathers, Andy Sinclair (an offensive lineman) and Brad Humphreys (a defensive back), were Cardinal teammates in the mid-to-late 1980s. Now, Tristan Sinclair and John Humphreys are fully behind Taylor, Cal’s starting quarterback from 1986-89.
“He really has two things he really cares about: family and football,” Humphreys said. “And we’re now a part of his family. He treats us like we’re one of his own. …
“That guy loves football. He lives, eats, breathes football.”
Taylor, who will double as the Cardinal’s offensive coordinator, has made his mark tutoring quarterbacks and calling plays. His Sac State team last season went 12-1 and averaged 43 points and 500 yards per game with a fast-tempo approach. Over his three seasons in Sacramento, Taylor’s teams went 30-8.
When Stanford begins preseason camp next month, Taylor will have to choose from four QBs to be the starter: junior Ari Patu, who has thrown for a combined 113 yards the past two seasons; sophomore Ashton Daniels, who ran for 156 yards and three scores last season in a limited role behind Tanner McKee; Justin Lamson, a transfer from Syracuse who did not play in his two seasons with the Orange; and freshman Myles Jackson, who threw for 3,620 yards and 47 touchdowns last season as a junior for Millikan High-Long Beach and then graduated early.
“I’ve learned not to rush things,” Taylor said in reference to when he’ll make his QB decision. “I’ve learned not to make judgments too quick. … Somebody will emerge or maybe two will emerge.”
Taylor employed a two-QB system the past two seasons with the Hornets. Jake Dunniway was more the traditional passer and Asher O’Hara was more a dual-threat type. Taylor had used one main QB throughout his coaching career until 2021, but said his wife, Tracey, gave him the idea of going with both Dunniway and O’Hara.
“It worked, and we just kind of kept rollin’ with it,” Taylor said. “I’m open to playing more than one quarterback, but not (every) situation is the same.”
Heading into the season that begins at Hawaii on Sept. 1, Taylor is concerned about his team’s inexperience, saying “when you lose 12 starters in the transfer portal, you can’t replace all those guys right away.”
In a poll of media members who cover the Pac-12, Stanford was picked to finish last in the conference.
“The media is not out there with us every day and seeing the work that we’re putting in,” said Humphreys, who had 29 receptions for 348 yards last season. “We know what we’re capable of and how we’re going to be able to accomplish the goals that we have set.”
Sinclair added, “It’s not going to be easy. I’m not saying we’re going to be the best team in the Pac-12, but I think (fans) are going to see the competitive spirit and the grittiness and the toughness that Stanford was known for.”
Taylor gave an expected response to a question about the media’s prediction, saying he doesn’t “give it a lot of credence, no offense to you guys. I get it. I can see why they would do that.”
He subsequently noted, “I will say this: We’re going to win championships here at Stanford. I feel as sure about that as the sun will come up tomorrow.
“Now, when will it happen? I don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know when it’s going to happen. We’ll be good when we’re good … but it’ll eventually happen.”