2018 Stanford Cardinal football team

2018 Stanford Cardinal football
Sun Bowl champion
Sun Bowl, W 14–13 vs. Pittsburgh
ConferencePac-12 Conference
DivisionNorth Division
Record9–4 (6–3 Pac-12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorTavita Pritchard (1st season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorLance Anderson (5th season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumStanford Stadium
Seasons
← 2017
2019 →
2018 Pac-12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
North Division
No. 13 Washington xy$   7 2     10 4  
No. 10 Washington State x   7 2     11 2  
Stanford   6 3     9 4  
Oregon   5 4     9 4  
California   4 5     7 6  
Oregon State   1 8     2 10  
South Division
Utah xy   6 3     9 5  
Arizona State   5 4     7 6  
USC   4 5     5 7  
Arizona   4 5     5 7  
UCLA   3 6     3 9  
Colorado   2 7     5 7  
Championship: Washington 10, Utah 3
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2018 Stanford Cardinal football team represented Stanford University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cardinal were led by eighth-year head coach David Shaw. They played their home games at Stanford Stadium and were members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference.

Stanford, coming off a 9–5 season and an appearance in the Pac-12 Championship Game in 2017, began the year ranked 13th in the preseason AP Poll. They won their first four games of the year, including wins over No. 17 USC and No. 20 Oregon, and rose to 7th in the polls. The Cardinal then lost four of their next five games, compiling losses to Notre Dame, Utah, Washington State, and Washington. After closing out the regular season with three straight wins, Stanford was third in the Pac-12 North with a conference record of 6–3. They were invited to the Sun Bowl, where they defeated ACC runner-up Pittsburgh to end the year at 9–4 overall.

Stanford's offense was led by junior quarterback K. J. Costello, who led the Pac-12 Conference in passer rating and finished in second in passing yards and touchdowns.[1] Wide receiver J. J. Arcega-Whiteside finished with 1,059 receiving yards and a Pac-12-leading 14 receiving touchdowns. Offensive tackle Walker Little was named first-team all-conference. On defense, cornerback Paulson Adebo led the team with four interceptions and 17 passes defended, and was also named first-team all-conference.

  1. ^ "2018 Pac-12 Conference Year Summary". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved June 18, 2019.