Could Stanford Football Bring Back a Familiar Face to Lead the Program?

Just days before spring practices are set to begin, Stanford football is in limbo. On Tuesday, head coach Troy Taylor was relieved of his duties after allegations and investigations of a toxic workplace environment came to light. Now, coming off of a fourth straight 3-9 season for the program, a new era will soon dawn over Cardinal football.

But one name that could potentially be in the mix to land the head coaching job is familiar face-- former head coach, David Shaw.

Shaw, who was fired following the 2022 season after leading the team to its second straight 3-9 campaign, led the Cardinal from 2011-2022 and guided the program to five bowl game wins, including two Rose Bowl wins.

While Shaw's firing was partly due to the fact that the program was struggling to navigate the NIL and transfer portal era, a large reason why the Cardinal were such a strong program for years was due to the leadership of Shaw, who developed multiple high level NFL players en route to keeping Stanford consistently ranked in the Top 25 for a large portion of his tenure.

But perhaps the most important factor in potentially bringing Shaw back is his connection with the program's general manager, Andrew Luck.

During Luck's tenure at Stanford from 2008-2011, Shaw started off as the offensive coordinator before taking over as the head coach in Luck's final college season-- a year in which the Cardinal went 11-2 and fell in overtime to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl.

This propelled Luck even more into being the unquestioned No. 1 overall pick of the Indianapolis Colts in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Luck and his former college coach reportedly still have a strong relationship, and with Shaw's familiarity with the program, it could make the transition that much easier. And with practices soon starting and the prep for the fall season kicking into high gear, an easy transition is the most important thing right now for the rebuilding program.

After spending the 2023 season out of football, Shaw was hired as a senior personnel executive with the Denver Broncos ahead of the 2024 season, and played a role in helping Bo Nix develop into a Rookie of the Year candidate-- which was further heightened when he led Denver to its first playoff appearance since they won the Super Bowl in 2015.

Following a season as an executive in Denver, Shaw returned to a formal coaching role, getting hired by the Detroit Lions in February to serve as their passing game coordinator.

The coaching situation is still developing for the Cardinal right now, but familiarity and someone who is very well trusted could be two big factors that determine who the next head man at Stanford is.

If the program wants both of those things, bringing back a well known and respected coach like Shaw could end up being the best option for both sides.