Reich’s marching orders are to do better than 3-9, which has been Stanford’s record four years on the spin, but even that low bar could be tough. The offense seems to be lacking playmakers, and the defense is projected to be a sieve again. Bill Connelly ranks Stanford’s D as the 96th-best unit in the country.

This past offseason for Stanford was a rollercoaster. The program fired coach Troy Taylor in March after a university investigation. That decision was announced by Stanford general manager Andrew Luck,