Where Stanford Football Needs Improvement Through Five Games

Stanford football will be looking to bring everything together during their final stretch of games

Sep 13, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal head coach Frank Reich stands on the sideline during the fourth quarter against the Boston College Eagles at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Week 7 of the college football season is here, and Stanford is coming off of a bye week, looking to even up their record. They enter with a 2-3 mark on the year, and are set to face arguably their toughest test of the season with a road contest against SMU.

The Cardinal have had ups and downs early on this year. They began with back-to-back losses on the road against Hawaii and BYU, but followed with a huge home win against Boston College. On the road, they lost to Virginia but came to The Farm and earned a rivalry victory over San José State. Stanford sits at 2-3, but has shown some terrific signs for the future.

Stanford currently has a few things that they need to specifically work on to give this team their best shot at having a season to remember. Let’s look at three things that the Cardinal need to focus on heading into their final seven games of the season.

Defense

Three games into the season, Stanford looked like one of the best defensive teams in the ACC. Their ability to force turnovers, make huge stops, and give assistance to the offense was incredible—but that all changed recently.

In Stanford’s first three games, they gave up just 23.3 points per game and allowed 342.3 yards per game. In their last two, they've allowed 38.5 points and 557.5 yards per game. Clearly, the defense has tons of potential, but they have to put it together at the right time.

Offensive Line

The O-line was great against Hawaii and especially Boston College. However, with injuries to their two top players, Simione Pale and Nick Fattig, the Cardinal need their depth to step up. If they can get Pale and Fattig back this season, the room should be fine, but without them, they need the depth to step up, just like the Boston College game.

Having better performances from the O-line would also get the running game—which began the season piling up yards—getting going again, which could lead to an even more lethal offensive attack.

Collaboration

One of Stanford’s biggest issues this year has been a simple fact. Their offense and defense have been either amazing or terrible, and it’s always at different times. Both sides of the ball have tons of potential, with solid coaching leaders and productive players on either side.

But when one group has a good game, the other has a bad game, and it seems like there is no middle ground. It’s hard to coach it, but Stanford needs both sides of the ball to be good at the same time, and the Cardinal could have the potential to beat some top teams.

Overall, this bye week is crucially important to Stanford football. With lots to work on, the Cardinal can truly take the next step in winning more games this season.