Cardinal Defense Programming Itself

You’d think some Stanford high-tech whiz working in the Silicon Valley could put together a computer program to help the Cardinal defense simulate what it would be like trying to tackle Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne of Wisconsin.

But five days before the Rose Bowl, the Cardinal hasn’t received any packages in the mail, so it will continue its preparation by letting 235-pound fullback Casey Moore do his best Dayne impersonation.

The problem is Dayne weighs 254 pounds and accelerates like a Corvette.

“One thing I wasn’t expecting is that his speed is amazing,” said inside linebacker Marc Stockbauer after seeing Dayne on film. “He has great breakaway speed and great cutting ability.”

Stanford has been focusing on preventing Dayne from isolating himself against one defender.

“We’ve just been working on getting more than one guy to the ball,” Stockbauer said. “That’s probably the best way to tackle him.”

Asked what he thinks happens when a player collides with Dayne, 230-pound strong safety Tim Smith said, “It’s a big noise and one of them falls.”

Stanford conducted a 90-minute practice Sunday in shorts and pads at USC. There were more than 100 spectators for the open workout. Afterward, the Cardinal boarded buses to watch the Clipper-Celtic game at Staples Center.

*

Last week, Sports Illustrated used the word “outmanned” to describe Stanford’s defense.

Asked what he thought of that portrayal, defensive coordinator Kent Baer said, “I don’t care what they say. If you 1/8stayed 3/8 awake at night worrying what Sports Illustrated says, then I’d have a whole lot more problems than that.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Stanford Log

RECORD: 8-3

17 Texas: 69

54 Washington St.: 17

50 Arizona: 22

42 UCLA: 32

39 San Jose St.: 44

21 Oregon St.: 17

35 USC: 31

30 Washington: 35

50 Arizona St.: 30

31 California: 13

40 Notre Dame: 37