Does Stanford own the formula to stop Oregon?

George Schroeder | USA TODAY Sports

STANFORD, Calif. — The enduring highlight from their last collision is of a Ducks player running free down the sideline and then suddenly pushed out of bounds. Measured by the final score alone, Devon Carrington's touchdown-saving tackle of Marcus Mariota last season was the difference in Stanford's 17-14 overtime victory against Oregon, an outcome that reshaped the 2012 Pac-12 Conference and BCS championship races.

But the four plays that followed were at least as important, and more emblematic of how Stanford shut down Oregon's high-powered offense like no one else has in recent years.

After Carrington caught Mariota at the 15, ending a 77-yard run that could have been 92, the Ducks came away with nothing. It was only the first quarter, but it was also the rule rather than the exception that night in Eugene, Ore. As the teams get set for a rematch Thursday – again, with Pac-12 and BCS title stakes – the questions linger:

Did Stanford solve Oregon's offense? Or was the shutdown an aberration? The best answer might be: Both.

"You go back and watch that film," said Ed Reynolds, a Stanford senior safety, "and every single guy on that defense played spot-on. We won the one-on-one matchups. You rarely saw a missed tackle. They blow the lid off you once you have one guy miss."

The task this time might be even more difficult. Stanford's defense is comparable to last year's version, but injuries along an already thin defensive line have exacted a toll. Meanwhile, the Ducks, ranked No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and No. 3 in the BCS standings, are averaging 55.6 points and 632.1 total yards. Mariota – who Stanford coach David Shaw said was "the best quarterback in the nation" in 2012, is better in 2013.

With the emergence of a fast, explosive receiving corps – and perhaps, a slight philosophical shift as Mark Helfrich and Scott Frost have taken the reins of Chip Kelly's offense – the Ducks have incorporated a more vertical passing game, which makes them more dangerous. The running game is as potent as ever, and when Oregon running back De'Anthony Thomas made news this week, saying "we should at least put up 40" points against Stanford, it seemed to be less bulletin-board material than confidence, and there wasn't an outward reaction from Stanford.

"That Oregon team a year ago was tough, dominant and athletic," Stanford defensive coordinator Derek Mason said. "Now, they're older, more dominant, more athletic."

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But Oregon was really good a year ago, too. The Ducks were ranked No. 2 in the BCS, averaging 54.8 points and 325 rushing yards. Stanford held them to 198. The defensive performance in 2012 was much more than one play. Or five, counting the subsequent stand. Stanford dominated the line of scrimmage with its 3-4 base defense, pushing Oregon into third-and-long situations, playing nearly flawless assignment football and wrinkling its defensive scheme to try to slow down Mariota's decision-making. When one guy missed, Carrington's touchdown-saving tackle mattered – as well as the defensive stand that followed, which ended with inside linebacker Shayne Skov's tackle of Mariota for no gain on fourth down at the 7.

"Us being able to run him down, stop him, give us another chance, that definitely was huge," outside linebacker Trent Murphy said. "That play could have decided the game, us being able to stop him on that."

Instead, it set the tone and provided confidence. And all of the above resulted in Oregon's lowest point total since the 2009 season opener, Kelly's first game as head coach. But Stanford built that nasty defensive effort in several ways.

Until 2012, the Cardinal struggled like most other teams against the Ducks' fast-paced spread. In 2010, en route to the BCS championship game, Oregon beat Stanford 52-31. A year later, it was 53-30. Way back in 2009, even a Stanford victory fueled by Toby Gerhart and Andrew Luck was a 51-42 shootout. Those results forced Mason back to the drawing board after the season.

Just getting lined up properly, over and over again, might have been the top priority. Over time, Mason simplified the defensive schemes. Coaches got better at getting play calls in faster; the Cardinal now has a basic "safe" scheme players fall back into if the calls are tardy. Stanford prepared for the Ducks by devoting practice time each week to working against the hurry-up. And it didn't hurt that the Ducks' pace is no longer unique; most of Stanford's opponents play at warp speed. But Oregon remains the standard.

"These guys are on another level than anybody else we play," Shaw said.

In tempo? Or talent?

"Yes," he said. "Everything is faster (than other fast-paced spread offenses). They're better at every position. You're talking about arguably the best team in the nation – and they were great last year offensively."

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But Stanford's defense showed a year ago the Ducks can be stopped.

In the six years since Jim Harbaugh's rebuild of the Stanford program began, the Cardinal gradually recruited faster, more athletic defenders, even as the defensive foundation remained a big, physical front seven. Against Oregon in 2012, Stanford controlled the line of scrimmage most of the time. There were fewer missed assignments – and as important, very few missed tackles – than in any other game. Mason also made schematic changes to try to combat the Ducks' zone-read running game.

"We sat down and put our minds together," said Mason, referring to offseason brainstorming sessions. "We talked about old option football and what it looked like, what you had to do in order to make quarterbacks take a little longer with the read."

He positioned the linebackers a couple of yards deeper, allowing them more time to read. And when Mariota ran the zone read, Stanford's defenders waited a half-beat rather than committing to either the quarterback or running back. The goal was to make Mariota pause, as well, and to become indecisive.

"He wants quick reads," Mason said. "The quicker he can make the decision, the quicker he can get the ball to the back in the gap or get it out on the edge. They want to be proactive, not reactive."

So do the Cardinal's defensive players. But they remained disciplined, and slowing down Mariota's decision-making slowed down the Ducks.

"If I can slow him down, it slows everyone down and buys more time for (other defensive players) to come as well," outside linebacker Trent Murphy said. "So even if I did miss him, by that time we have five more guys running to the ball that could help out as well."

It was only one facet of the game plan. Just as important was Stanford's size and strength to control the line of scrimmage. And the defense's attitude, as captured in a tweet sent this week by Murphy: "Oregon is a good football team. But this week game plan is simple-Hard Work, Trust, Discipline, and one mean S.O.B. attitude" – @TMurphy_93

Serendipity matters, too. Go back to that pivotal first-quarter sequence from last season. Oregon's second possession started at its 8, but Mariota broke free for 77 yards. It would have, should have been more.

"In the moment, it didn't feel like a big play," said Carrington, a reserve safety, who had raced from the other side of the field. "It felt like, 'We've just lived to see another down.' "

Even so, it seemed like the Ducks had simply hit a speed bump. After a quick 7-yard pass, Mariota connected with Thomas on second down, open in the backfield with room to run. But the throw was low. Thomas' knee was down when he caught the ball, a loss of 3 instead of a first down inside the 5.

Two plays earlier, Carrington was able to knock Mariota out of bounds only because Thomas, who had been escorting the quarterback down the sidelines, had pulled slightly ahead as if leading a parade into the end zone. If Thomas had been more aware and simply shielded his quarterback, the final score might have been 21-14 Oregon – or 41-14.

"That game probably was over had that happened," Mason said. "But we had the great fortune to have Devon run him down. They had their opportunity on fourth down to push it forward. We were fortunate enough to get a stop, their best on our best. We happened to dodge one there."

With the chance to live another down, the Cardinal regrouped and stuffed the spread.

George Schroeder, a national college football reporter for USA TODAY Sports, is on Twitter @GeorgeSchroeder.