Micah Ford’s breakout night gave Stanford exactly the kind of jolt it needed, and now the Cardinal are asking him to carry that momentum into Friday’s Atlantic Coast Conference matchup with North Carolina State in Palo Alto.
Ford turned in a career performance in Stanford’s 34-7 home win over Elon last Saturday, piling up a career-best 231 scrimmage yards. That total included 179 rushing yards and 52 receiving yards, and he matched the school single-game record with four rushing touchdowns.
"It was honestly just a team effort," said Ford, who has team highs of 529 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. "Just to see the hard work coming to fruition, it just means a lot."
Ford’s night included an 81-yard run on Stanford’s first play of the fourth quarter, a burst that helped put the finishing touch on a dominant second half. His four-touchdown outing was the 10th time a Stanford player has hit that mark in a game, and the last one to do it was Christian McCaffrey in 2015.
Davis Warren had a front-row seat to the show, and the Cardinal quarterback credited the offensive line and the run game for taking over as the game wore on.
"Micah obviously was really good," Warren said. "To see the run game kick into high gear there in the second half was fun to watch.
I'm proud of those guys up front. It's a team effort to run the football."
Warren has thrown for 1,630 yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions for Stanford, which is 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the ACC.
NC State comes in at 3-3 and 1-2 after a bye week that followed a 38-14 loss at home to Wake Forest on Oct. 10. For coach Dave Doeren, the break arrived at the right time.
"Great timing for us in many ways," Doeren said of the bye. "Players and coaches alike, after six games gives you a chance to recover, to rest, to reset, and then to reflect and study."
The Wolfpack also used the week to adjust for an unusual schedule on the West Coast. With the game set to kick at 10:30 p.m. ET, NC State practiced late at night in Raleigh, flew to the Bay Area on Wednesday and then practiced again that night at the same time they’ll be playing.
"That's a challenge," Doeren said. "Obviously, you're at 1:30 in the morning in the fourth quarter.
Done a lot of research on these east to west coast trips. ... So that's what we're doing and looking forward to the opportunity to go out there and play Stanford."
Quarterback CJ Bailey has guided NC State’s offense with 1,507 passing yards, nine touchdowns and four interceptions. His top receiving threat is Keenan Jackson, who has 27 catches for 400 yards and five touchdowns.
The Wolfpack’s rushing game may still be in flux. Jayden "Duke" Scott, who left the Oct. 3 home win over Louisville with a foot injury and then sat out against Wake Forest, remains day-to-day, according to Doeren. Scott has 358 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
These programs have met only once before, and NC State made that one count. Two years ago, the Wolfpack beat Stanford 59-28 in Raleigh, with Bailey going 18 of 20 for 234 yards and three touchdowns.
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The award now moves into its next stage, with the field set to narrow again in December before the winner is eventually announced in the spring. For NC State, Shirleys inclusion is another reminder that some of the most meaningful recognition in college football comes from what happens away from Saturdays, where consistency, character and involvement still carry real weight. [Read more 🡒]