STANFORD, Calif. --
Stanford's wildly successful head coach sits at the helm of a program firmly in college football's elite. But Stanford is also a program renowned for its deep connections to the NFL and the coaching and tactical philosophy of many in the league, not only through the two stints and profound ties to Hall of Famer Bill Walsh, but a host of players, including Broncos legends John Elway and Ed McCaffrey, both of whom are on hand in the Bay Area this week as general manager and radio color analyst, respectively.
Walsh's philosophies still guided the San Francisco 49ers in 1994, when Gary Kubiak worked on the 49ers' staff under Mike Shanahan, then the 49ers' offensive coordinator and then-head coach George Seifert.