With the selection of No. 3 Stanford and No. 4 Oklahoma State â€" two of the most potent offenses in college football â€" to play in this year’s edition of the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, the expectation is that this will be one of the best bowl games of the season.
These two teams have never met on the football field.
A look at the most recent Fiesta Bowl odds shows the Cowboys listed as 3.5-point favorites, while the over/under sits at 74 points.
Stanford
The Cardinal missed out on a chance to play in the Pac-12's inaugural title game, finishing 8-1 in conference play (tied for best in the league), but losing the tie-breaker to Oregon, who beat them earlier this year. Stanford did manage to win their last two games, however, the most recent a 28-14 victory over Notre Dame. The Cardinal finished the regular season a perfect 5-0 on the road.
Stanford enters ranked 5th in the nation in scoring (44 ppg) while recording 481 yards per game (273 passing, 208 rushing). Andrew Luck completes 70 percent of his passes for 3,170 yards and 35 touchdowns with nine interceptions.
Griff Whalen leads the receiving corps with 49 catches (14 more than anyone else) for 664 yards and four TDs, while Stepfan Taylor anchors the running game with 1,153 yards and eight TDs on 5.6 yards per carry.
Stanford is ranked 23rd in the country in scoring defense (20 ppg), giving up 331 yards per game (241 passing, 90 rushing) while compiling 38 sacks and forced 21 turnovers â€" two of which were returned for TDs (Michael Thomas, interception; Max Bergen, fumble).
Jarek Lancaster leads the unit with 63 tackles, while Michael Thomas has 61 tackles and a team-best three interceptions. Chase Thomas pitches in with 8.5 sacks and five forced fumbles.
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State started 10-0 this season, and looked well on their way to a possible BCS Championship game appearance before suffering a shocking double-overtime loss at Iowa State. The Cowboys bounced back well, however, blowing out instate rival Oklahoma, 44-10. Oklahoma State went 5-1 on the road this season, including wins at Texas and at Texas A&M.
OSU ranks second in the country in points scored (49 ppg) and recording 557 yards per game (386 passing, 171 rushing). Brandon Weeden completes 73 percent of his passes for 4,328 yards and 34 TDs with 12 interceptions. The offensive line has allowed 11 sacks.
All-American Justin Blackmon leads the receiving corps with 113 receptions for 1,336 yards and five TDs, while Joseph Randle anchors the running game with 1,123 yards and 23 scores on 6.0 yards per carry.
Defensively, the Cowboys rank 61st nationally in points allowed (26 ppg) and give up 446 yards per game (266 passing, 180 rushing) while recording 28 sacks and forcing 42 turnovers â€" three of which were returned for TDs (Richetti Jones and Josh Stewart, fumbles; Shaun Lewis, interception).
Daytawion Lowe leads the team wit 88 tackles and three forced fumbles while Jamie Blatnick has seven sacks and two fumble recoveries. Brodrick Brown has five picks to go with two fumble recoveries and Jones has three forced fumbles and three recoveries.
These two teams have never met on the football field.
A look at the most recent Fiesta Bowl odds shows the Cowboys listed as 3.5-point favorites, while the over/under sits at 74 points.
Stanford
The Cardinal missed out on a chance to play in the Pac-12's inaugural title game, finishing 8-1 in conference play (tied for best in the league), but losing the tie-breaker to Oregon, who beat them earlier this year. Stanford did manage to win their last two games, however, the most recent a 28-14 victory over Notre Dame. The Cardinal finished the regular season a perfect 5-0 on the road.
Stanford enters ranked 5th in the nation in scoring (44 ppg) while recording 481 yards per game (273 passing, 208 rushing). Andrew Luck completes 70 percent of his passes for 3,170 yards and 35 touchdowns with nine interceptions.
Griff Whalen leads the receiving corps with 49 catches (14 more than anyone else) for 664 yards and four TDs, while Stepfan Taylor anchors the running game with 1,153 yards and eight TDs on 5.6 yards per carry.
Stanford is ranked 23rd in the country in scoring defense (20 ppg), giving up 331 yards per game (241 passing, 90 rushing) while compiling 38 sacks and forced 21 turnovers â€" two of which were returned for TDs (Michael Thomas, interception; Max Bergen, fumble).
Jarek Lancaster leads the unit with 63 tackles, while Michael Thomas has 61 tackles and a team-best three interceptions. Chase Thomas pitches in with 8.5 sacks and five forced fumbles.
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State started 10-0 this season, and looked well on their way to a possible BCS Championship game appearance before suffering a shocking double-overtime loss at Iowa State. The Cowboys bounced back well, however, blowing out instate rival Oklahoma, 44-10. Oklahoma State went 5-1 on the road this season, including wins at Texas and at Texas A&M.
OSU ranks second in the country in points scored (49 ppg) and recording 557 yards per game (386 passing, 171 rushing). Brandon Weeden completes 73 percent of his passes for 4,328 yards and 34 TDs with 12 interceptions. The offensive line has allowed 11 sacks.
All-American Justin Blackmon leads the receiving corps with 113 receptions for 1,336 yards and five TDs, while Joseph Randle anchors the running game with 1,123 yards and 23 scores on 6.0 yards per carry.
Defensively, the Cowboys rank 61st nationally in points allowed (26 ppg) and give up 446 yards per game (266 passing, 180 rushing) while recording 28 sacks and forcing 42 turnovers â€" three of which were returned for TDs (Richetti Jones and Josh Stewart, fumbles; Shaun Lewis, interception).
Daytawion Lowe leads the team wit 88 tackles and three forced fumbles while Jamie Blatnick has seven sacks and two fumble recoveries. Brodrick Brown has five picks to go with two fumble recoveries and Jones has three forced fumbles and three recoveries.
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