Players to Watch in Stanford Football's Matchup at Virginia

For the first time all season, the Stanford Cardinal (1-2, 1-0 ACC) are coming off of a win and entering a game week looking to extend their streak. Beating Boston College in upset fashion last weekend in their home opener, the Cardinal will hit the road again this week and attempt to keep the momentum firmly on their side when they take on Virginia (2-1, 0-0 ACC).

Earning the first victory of the Andrew Luck/Frank Reich Era, the Cardinal have a lot of confidence going into the second conference game of the season. Despite still facing a lot of uncertainty, the program believes that they can achieve something special this season and are hungry to prove that they have what it takes to compete for a bowl game appearance.

Even though the Cardinal are 15.5 point underdogs this week, they are ready to pull off another upset and show that even though they are not highly regarded just yet, they can compete against any team that comes their way. Having more of a sense of what kind of team they have, the Cardinal have improved greatly since Week 0 and are looking to take another step forward against the Cavaliers.

Here is a preview of Stanford's matchup against the Virginia Cavaliers.

Game Information

When: Saturday, Sept. 20, 4:30 p.m. (PT)

Where: Scott Stadium (Charlottesville, Virginia)

How to Watch: ESPN/ACC Network

Spread: Virginia (-15.5)

Moneyline: Virginia (-714), Stanford (+505)

Total: O/U 49.5

*Betting odds provided by Fox Sports and are used here as a reference point, not betting advice.

Players to Watch - Stanford

QB Ben Gulbranson

Since struggling in Week 0, leading to Stanford coming up short against Hawaii, there have been calls to bench Gulbranson. After all, Gulbranson is a sixth year player on a program that has young quarterbacks that are more likely to be the face of the future, such as Elijah Brown, Dylan Rizk and Myles Jackson.

After another rough game against BYU—where he threw two interceptions en route to a 27-3 loss—Gulbranson's play has been cited as a big reason for Stanford's early struggles.

But against Boston College, Gulbranson enjoyed a breakout game and was a primary reason for Stanford's win, playing clean football and moving the ball well.

Completing 13 out of his 22 pass attempts for 186 yards and one touchdown, Gulbranson had Stanford's offense humming and looked comfortable and confident in his first ACC game. Virginia is another tough test, and if Gulbranson plays how he did against BC, expect the Cardinal to be competitive in this one.

TE Sam Roush

One of the season captains for the Cardinal, Roush entered the season viewed as a major piece for Stanford's offense, with his talent, leadership and size making him the elite player that he is.

While he experienced a slow start to the '25 season, managing only a combined four catches for eight yards in the first two games, Roush put together an elite game in the win over Boston College and will look to ascend even more against Virginia.

Catching three passes for 79 yards in the 30-20 win, Roush was the recipient of Gulbranson's touchdown pass, making a big play just after the first half two minute warning in finding the end zone and cutting Boston College's lead from 17-6 to 17-13, fueling the comeback that helped the Cardinal win. A big time player for Stanford, the team will need another big game from Roush this week.

LB Matt Rose

When Tristan Sinclair and Gaethan Bernadel left after last season, questions started to arise about the state of Stanford's linebacker room.

A major strength for the past few seasons, the Cardinal found themselves scrambling to reestablish their identity at that spot and were unsure of what they were going to get heading into the first game. But thanks to a hot start this season from Matt Rose, Stanford's linebacker core remains as a backbone for the program.

Leading all Stanford players with 30 total tackles, Rose's best game was against Hawaii where in the 23-20 loss, he made 13 total tackles and recorded a sack, flying all around the field. In the team's week two loss to BYU, he made seven total tackles and played a big role in keeping Stanford in the game until the very end.

Rose had his second double digit tackle game in the BC win, making 10 total tackles. Rose so far has been dominant for Stanford and with the defense playing very well, Rose will need to keep up his good play to continue to give Stanford football a shot.

Players to Watch - Virginia

QB Chandler Morris

Virginia's offense has been good to start the season, currently ranked in the top 10 in the nation for total yards per game.

The strong play from quarterback Chandler Morris has been a big part of it. In Virginia's win over William & Mary, Morris completed 13 out of his 19 pass attempts for 149 yards and a touchdown, helping Virginia put up 55 points. In Virginia's lone loss to NC State, Morris threw for 257 yards and a touchdown pass, while adding three carries for 56 yards as well.

On the season, Morris has thrown for 670 yards, four touchdowns and an interception and has completed 69% of his passes. A dual-threat quarterback, containing Morris will be a top priority for Stanford's defense.

RB J'Mari Taylor

In his first season with Virginia since transferring over from North Carolina Central, Taylor has proven to be a missing piece for the Cavaliers, leading the team in all rushing categories.

His best game came against NC State where despite the Cavaliers losing, Taylor had 17 carries for 150 yards and three touchdowns and was a big reason why the game was as close as it was.

So far on the season, Taylor has 33 carries for 215 yards and six touchdowns and is averaging 6.5 yards per carry. Defensively, Stanford has done a great job against the run, but if Taylor manages another good game, it will be a long day at the office for the Cardinal.

LB Landon Danley

The ACC is a very, very competitive conference and if Stanford wants any shot at competing for a conference title, good offense will be key. But in order for Stanford to see success offensively this week, knowing how good Danley is will be very important.

Missing his true freshman season, Danley made his debut last season but was used sparingly. But in 2025, he has become a regular fixture on Virginia's defense where he has shined, leading all Cavaliers players in tackles with 18.

Danley flies around the field and is not afraid to make a hit so Stanford will need to deal with him whenever they give a player the ball.

By the Numbers

Four - number of teams that Stanford has played for the first time since joining the ACC

Since joining the ACC at the start of the 2024 season, it will be the fourth time that the Cardinal will play a team for the first time in school history. Last season, their first in their new conference, the Cardinal played three teams that they had never played before in Syracuse, NC State and Louisville.

2018 - last time Stanford opened conference play 2-0

In recent seasons, Stanford football has struggled, but pre-COVID, the program was one of the most notable in the country. Looking to start off 2-0 in conference play this weekend, the last time the Cardinal started off with two straight conference wins was 2018, when they beat USC and Oregon. Ending that season 9-4, the Cardinal won the Sun Bowl with a 14-13 victory over Pittsburgh.

Eight - current ranking for Virginia's offense in rushing yards and total yards per game

Despite the 2-1 record, the Cavaliers offense has been on a roll to begin the new campaign. Averaging 556 total yards per game and 266.7 rushing yards per game, the Cavaliers' offense is ranked No. 8 in the nation in those categories.

But Stanford's defense has been on a tear and has been playing its best brand of football in over a decade, allowing its fewest total yards per game since 2014 and its fewest rushing yards per game since 2013.

Score Prediction

Stanford 27, Virginia 17

Coming off of an upset win last week, Stanford will not only go into this game with a lot of momentum, but with a newfound swagger and confidence that they got from beating a team that was deemed superior.

Now, the Cardinal have a chance to achieve something that they have not done since last decade, start 2-0 in conference play. Stanford may be on the road, which is never easy to do, but they will be hungry, confident and determined to win this game.

The win over Boston College awakened something in the Cardinal, and the restored confidence that the offense got combined with the red-hot defense will take down the Cavaliers and get the Cardinal back to .500 heading into their second home game with the chance to match their win total from the previous four seasons.