Three Things Stanford Can Learn From Oregon's Blowout Win Over Colorado

Stanford has a tough matchup against No. 9 Oregon on Saturday

On Saturday, Stanford will play against the No. 9 Oregon Ducks who are fresh off a massive win over No. 19 Colorado, in a game where they beat Deion Sanders' squad 42-6. 

The game got out of hand fairly quickly with the Ducks going up by 13 points in the first quarter, as they were by far the better team and were much further along as a unit than the Buffs. Unfortunately for Colorado, the win ended the buzz surrounding them, and it also knocked them out of the rankings.

As for Stanford, it was a clinic of what not to do and what to really focus on this week during practice. Obviously, Stanford has a large hill to climb and come into this game as nearly 30-point underdogs, but there are some points of emphasis that should help them this weekend.

Here are three things that Stanford should have learned from Oregon's victory over the Buffs.

Utilize the run game

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This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, but being able to run the ball effectively always bodes well for an offense no matter how good a defense is. And in this case, Oregon's defense ranks as the No. 11 defense in the country giving up just 4.2 yards per play. Colorado was unable to get anything going on the ground, rushing for 40 yards as a team on 1.6 yards per carry. For Stanford, Troy Taylor needs to feed Sedrick Irvin, and it would also be truly helpful if both E.J. Smith and Casey Filkins could get things going as well. The two veterans combined for two touches in the loss to Arizona, and while Taylor said he wanted to give Irvin a chance, it seems vital to make sure that they can throw anyone of the three running backs at the defense.

Secondary will be under fire

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Stanford's defense as a whole was much better against Arizona than they had been in weeks prior, making life difficult for Jaden de Laura. However, Bo Nix is a dynamic quarterback who can throw and run with the best of them. He torched Colorado with his arm to the point where he barely used his legs at all. He has an elite group of pass catchers at his disposal, which means Stanford's secondary needs to really step up. Their job would be made easier if the pass rush is able get to Nix.

Quarterback's need to be ready to bolt

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Aside from not being able to use their rushing attack, Colorado also failed to protect Shedeur Sanders who was sacked seven times. Colorado's offensive line has given up the second most sacks in the country with 23, and Stanford has given up 13 thus far which is also near the bottom of the country. Oregon has one of the best pass rushes in the country, which means both Ashton Daniels and Justin Lamson need to really have a good sense of when to take off and run. Lamson has been asked to do more with his legs, and has also shown more of an ability to take off when things are collapsing as we have seen in the past three games. While Daniels always has his eyes down field, there comes a point when he needs to realize he needs to get rid of the ball or run.