Ex-San José State QB Would be a Perfect Fit for the Stanford Cardinal

Emmett Brown showed immense signs of greatness in his lone season with the Spartans, but after being replaced later in the year, Brown finds himself back in the portal. Could Stanford be the ideal fit?

Sep 20, 2024; Pullman, Washington, USA; San Jose State Spartans quarterback Emmett Brown (9) celebrates a touchdown against the Washington State Cougars in the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images | James Snook-Imagn Images

The Cardinal have a big decision to make. After losing quarterbacks Ashton Daniels and Justin Lamson in the portal, sophomore Elijah Brown is left as the presumed starter, with him showing signs at times last year that he could be a very viable option to lead the team this year.

But sustaining an injury in week two that forced him to miss time, Brown ended up only playing in three games, with his development severely impacted due to his limited snaps. And now entering a pivotal 2025 campaign for the program, Stanford needs to decide if he is ready to be handed the keys to the offense.

Coming off of their fourth straight 3-9 season, 2025 all of a sudden becomes essentially a make or break year for the Cardinal, with the program needing to prove that it can hang with any type of team. If the Cardinal determine that Brown is not yet ready to be the full-time starter, they will most likely need to turn to the transfer portal to find their next signal caller.

While many of the more prominent names, such as Kaidon Salter, Fernando Mendoza and Jackson Arnold, have already found new homes, there are still plenty of options still in the portal that continue to go through the process. And one of those names is none other than former San José State quarterback, Emmett Brown.

Brown, who began his college career at Washington State, transferred to San Jose State prior to the start of the 2024 season and began the year as the team's starting quarterback, throwing for 1,621 yards, 16 touchdowns and five interceptions in six starts.

But after being benched in favor of Walker Eget in October despite being in the midst of a strong debut season, Brown found himself once again taking a backseat role, leading to him once again entering the portal.

While Brown has only gotten one season of legit action, what he showed during his tenure at San José State proves that the talent is indeed there. Going from the Pac-12 to the Mountain West, Brown took full grasp of a new offense and instantly was able to excel in it, exhibiting his ability to be a quick learner.

In Stanford's case, having a guy like Brown as its starter would be good, as his talent and experience combined with being able to quickly learn a new offense could make him a day one starter type of player.

The Cardinal have made it no secret that they are ready to not only compete, but they are eager to build a high-powered offense based on the players that they have signed. While Elijah Brown has been around the system already, which could help in getting the new signees up to speed, Emmett Brown's experience being the main guy and ability to run an offense efficiently and effectively could make him the ideal fit to lead Stanford in 2025 and attempt to bring glory back to the school.