Stanford football's elite group of tight ends is getting a ton of preseason publicity, but it's the running game which will make or break Stanford's bid for a Pac-12 title in 2015. With that in mind, here's a preview of the three guys who will shoulder the majority of the team's backfield responsibility this season.
Christian McCaffrey
McCaffrey is the most exciting offensive player Stanford has had in quite some time -- maybe since Andrew Luck graced the sidelines in Palo Alto. He packed on 10 pounds of muscle this offseason and that's only going to add even more oomph to his deep bag of tricks. Whether David Shaw plugs him in as a traditional tailback, as the triggerman in the Wildcat, as a slot receiver or a punt returner, McCaffrey is the most essential piece to Stanford's attack this year. As he goes, so will Stanford.
Give him a year and he'll be a Heisman finalist, no question.
Remound Wright
Wright has morphed into Stanford's short-yardage power back. McCaffrey will do most of the work from Stanford's own end zone to the opposing ten, but it will be Wright who's tasked with finishing the job when the Cardinal are sitting at first and goal. Wright scored nine touchdowns in the team's final three games last year -- a testament to just how effective he is when the field shortens and the room to work narrows.
Barry J. Sanders
Sanders came to Stanford four years ago burdened with the hype that comes with being the son of an NFL legend. He hasn't measured up to his father's shadow from a production standpoint, and he'll likely only be a change-of-pace back this year when McCaffrey needs a break. Sanders has shown flashes of brilliance in the open field before, but not enough from a consistency standpoint to warrant a significant workload. Expect him to average five-to-six carries a game.
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