No. 14 Washington State visits No. 24 Stanford

Published

No. 14 Washington State (6-1, 3-1 Pac-12) at No. 24 Stanford (5-2, 3-1), 7 p.m. ET (Pac-12 Network)

Line: Stanford by 3.

Series record: Stanford leads 40-27-1.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

This game matches up two of the three teams in the Pac-12 North with one conference loss. The winner will be in position to challenge Washington for a spot in the conference title game, while the loser will be in a big hole.

KEY MATCHUP

Bryce Love vs Washington State D. Love has been much less prolific this season after finishing second in the Heisman voting a year ago as a sore ankle and spotty blocking have hurt him. Love has 348 yards on 87 carries, down from 1,014 on his first 87 carries a year ago, a drop of 7.7 yards per carry. He faces a Cougars defense that held Oregon to 58 yards rushing last week.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Washington State: QB Gardner Minshew. Minshew leads the nation in yards passing per game (392.1) and total offense per game (398.4), while ranking fifth in TD passes (23) and first in the Pac-12 in completion percentage (69.8).

Stanford: QB K.J. Costello made his first career start last year at Washington State, going 9 for 20 for 105 yards in a 24-21 loss. Costello has been much more potent as a passer since then and ranks third in the Pac-12 with 13.5 yards per completion and 8.7 yards per attempt.

FACTS & FIGURES

Washington State has won the last two meetings following an eight-game Stanford winning streak in the series. ... The Cougars are looking to beat ranked teams in back-to-back games for first time since 2002 against Arizona State and Oregon. ... Washington State seeks second straight 7-1 start to season. ... Cougars coach Mike Leach is tied with Jim Walden for third all-time with 44 wins at the school. ... The Cardinal have lost back-to-back home games just once since 2008, falling to Washington State and Colorado in October 2016. They lost at home to Utah on Oct. 6. ... Stanford CB Paulson Adebo ranks second nationally with 2.3 passes defensed per game. ... Cardinal WR JJ Arcega-Whiteside is third in the nation with nine touchdown catches and has 13 TD receptions in his last 10 games.