Healthy bodies and new faces made it look like old times for Stanford. Related Articles College Hotline: Stanford football report card (grading the win over Arizona)

McCaffrey gets back on track for Stanford

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With tailbacks Christian McCaffrey and Bryce Love churning for big gains and the defense in command, the Cardinal steamed to a 34-10 victory over Arizona in the first career start for quarterback Keller Chryst.

It was Stanford’s highest-scoring game of the season, with more meaningful offensive touchdowns in the first half (two) than the Cardinal had produced in the previous four games combined.

“We’ve struggled a bit as the year has gone on,’’ McCaffrey said late Saturday night in Arizona Stadium, “but it felt really good to get back to a little bit of a comfort level.”

Here are four takeaways:

*** The defense was an immovable force.

Stanford has allowed more than 13 points only twice this season, and both occasions (against the Washington schools) came with starting cornerbacks Alijah Holder and Quenton Meeks unable to play.

Holder is out for the season (shoulder), but Meeks is healthy and performing at an all-conference level.

He combined with another dominant game by tackle Solomon Thomas (2.5 tackles for loss) to anchor a first-class performance, albeit against an injury-depleted opponent.

The Cardinal held Arizona to just 286 yards and repeatedly smothered the Wildcats on third down.

“It wasn’t just Thomas — a bunch of guys were making plays,’’ coach David Shaw said. “It was exciting to see. Hopefully, we’ll continue to push ourselves, because as well as we played, we can play so much better.’’

*** Chryst wasn’t terrible.

The best that can be said about the redshirt sophomore’s debut: He made no major mistakes – no game-altering miscues that jeopardized Stanford’s prospects for victory.

But Chryst didn’t exactly validate the decision to change quarterbacks. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes, threw for just 104 yards, had an interception, took four sacks, missed targets downfield and encountered game-management issues.

In other words: He looked like a first-time starter.

But unlike Ryan Burns, who started the first seven games, Chryst had the benefit of full-speed playmakers on his side of the line of scrimmage and a woeful defense on the other.

Arizona was No. 114 in the nation in defense and had allowed an average of 43 points in its previous three games.

Colorado, which held the Cardinal out of the end zone last week in what proved the last start for Ryan Burns, was No. 11.

The best guess is that Shaw sticks with Chryst this week against lowly Oregon State, not because he grabbed the job by the collar but because he’s an intriguing talent and there’s no reason to mess with success.

“I was trying not to truly evaluate him,” Shaw said. “I just wanted to see where he was. He made some plays and missed some plays …

“He was not going to be Johnny Unitas out there. We know he’s going to continue to grow.”

*** McCaffrey played like McCaffrey.

The all-purpose dynamo was in early-season form, scoring on a 45-yard run and producing 225 total yards. (He also had a 66-yard punt return called back because of penalty.)

It helped that running lanes were available. The shuffled offensive line, with true freshman Nate Herbig starting at right guard, overpowered Arizona’s front seven.

McCaffrey teamed with tailback Bryce Love, who ripped off a 30-yard reverse, to inject Stanford’s offense with a big-play component it has lacked.

“This is the first game all year where both guys were 100 percent healthy,’’ Shaw said. “This is what we envisioned all year, but it’s the first game all year that we’ve been able to do it.”

*** Stanford should run the table.

With the playmakers at full speed and the defense dominating, the Cardinal (5-3, 3-3) has an excellent chance to sweep November.

The upcoming opponents (Oregon State, Oregon, Cal and Rice) are a combined 10-22, with nary a winning record in the group.

Yes, Oregon seems to have recovered from its October bottoming, and Cal plays well at home. But if its defense remains stout and Chryst limits his mistakes, Stanford should run the table and finish with a nine-win season.