Grading the Game - Stanford at Washington

Quarterback - I don't know if you should judge Keith Price's performance based on the number of passes he completed or the number of bruises he received. He was 19-37 for 177 yards, one TD, and a pick six interception that accounted for Stanford's only TD of the evening. Price gave his team a chance to win last night by not panicking or making the type of mistakes that USC's Matt Barkley had done ten days earlier. He kept bouncing back after every punishing hit (there were too many to count) and made the plays he had to when the game was on the line. A lot of guys might have folded after that ugly pick six but Price charged back out there and led his team to victory. - Grade A

Running Back - Bishop Sankey arrived big time last night. He showed why recruiting experts tabbed him as the best running back in the West a couple of years ago. He ran with authority last night picking up 144 yards that included a 61 yard touchdown on twenty carries. Kendyl Taylor made his debut at RB which was sort of a new twist. The move brings a little home run speed and some added depth. One criticism this season of Bishop this season is that he isn't strong enough between the tackles. Looks like he got that handled going forward. - Grade A

Receivers - Stanford was all over ASJ last night and that created an opening for Kasen Williams to have a big game. He responded with ten catches for 129 yards and the game winning TD grab in the fourth quarter. This was Kasen's coming out party and it taught the rest of the conference that ASJ isn't the only game breaking receiver on the UW roster. Five other players received Keith Price passes but the bulk went to Kasen who did a good job running routes and getting off the line. Kasen's best catch was in coverage going against two defenders on the sideline during the first quarter which eventually led to a field goal to tie the game. - Grade A

Offensive Line - Washington's patchwork offensive line wasn't perfect but they opened up enough holes to put together enough of a running game to make a serious difference on a night when Keith Price needed all the help he could get. Pass protections wasn't what it needed to be but this was the Stanford front seven they were playing against. Shane Brostek got his first start last night but didn't play much. - Grade B

Defensive Line - They held one of the best power running teams in the country to only 65 yards on the ground. That is quite an achievement for this young group. The key to winning this game was forcing a lot of third and longs. The play of the defensive line was a key component in doing that. Andrew Hudson is becoming a force. JC transfer Josh Banks saw his first action of the season and he looked pretty good. - Grade A

Linebackers - I really like what Thomas Tutogi brings to the lineup. He might have even been the player of the game last night. It has been a long time since we have had a linebacker dominate play like that against a quality opponent. All our linebackers played well and it was great to have Travis Feeney back in the lineup That kid is going to play in the NFL some day. - Grade A

Secondary - Shaq keeps getting incrementally better each week. One thing that helps him back there is that he is surrounded by a bunch of quality players. Desmond Trufant was just amazing last night. He is definitely NFL-ready. Glenn and Parker were a couple of steady hammers back there all night. These guys are really playing well as a unit right now. - Grade A

Special Teams - Travis Coons handled dual duties last night and did a terrific job. Marvin Hall continues to impress as a dynamic return guy. It is just a matter of time before he starts breaking them and taking it home. Coverage was good on kick off returns. One thing Sark said he wanted to do was clean up was the punting. Coons did a nice job and a key stat unnoticed stat was the Cards never returned a single punt all night. That is what you call correct placement and hang time. - Grade A

Coaching - Washington had a solid game plan on both sides of the ball. The defense won the game and the offense played well enough not to lose it. Sark called a pretty good game on offense. Everything he called didn't work but he was able to move the chains pretty well against one of the countries best defenses. What Wilcox and his staff have done with this defense is just amazing. Continued maturation is a big part of the process but they have these guys playing together as a unit which one thing that Coach Holt could never get them to do. When you factor in all th einjuries this team Grade A

Quote of the Night

"They're a totally different team. We didn't rack up as many yards as we did last year, so obviously they are a different team. They came out here to play."

Stepfan Taylor