Stanford Football Spotlight on Toby Gerhart
Cardinal Running Back set School Rushing Record Last Year
It doesn't seem like much of a school mark considering the plethora of 1,000-yard running backs in the nation over the years. Those 1,136 yards at Stanford would likely not even make the top 10 at most Division I football schools.
At Stanford, though, it's a breakthrough and suggests the Cardinal could be heading for better days ahead under third-year coach Jim Harbaugh, the former NFL quarterback.
Rebuilding the Winning Tradition
The last winning season for Stanford was Tyrone Willingham's final year there in 2001. Seven years of futility is the longest such streak in Cardinal history.
With names like Bill Walsh, John Elway, Darrin Nelson, Gene Washington, and Jim Plunkett, among other football greats, oozing from the pages of Stanford record books, even such an extended losing streak cannot be tolerated on the academic campus.
Enter Gerhart, who is also a baseball prospect, and his record-setting performance last year. His workman-like effort was appreciated by Cardinal fans and brought a renewed optimism to the coming season.
"We will be better, I know that," Harbaugh said. "We've made methodical improvement in the program and we don't want to limit ourselves. If the ball bounces our way we could compete for the Pac-10 championship this season."
Gerhart the Face of the Stanford Offense
"I want to help this team reach a Bowl game," Gerhart said. "That's the ultimate goal. Numbers, I'd like to score 20-plus touchdowns and be near 2,000 yards."
Gerhart doesn't lack for confidence either. He thinks he can force himself into the Heisman Trophy discussion.
"I definitely want to be involved in the discussion and have my name thrown around," he said. "As a kid I had a goal of winning the Heisman. We're not just looking for the minimum six games, we're shooting for 9, 10, 11, 12 wins. Deep inside I feel that's an attainable goal."
As a sophomore, Gerhart came off the bench to rush for 140 yards on 12 carries with one touchdown before suffering a season-ending knee injury in the third quarter against San Jose State. The performance ranked as Stanford's best rushing effort of the season.
Gerhart became the fifth Stanford football player to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season. This year he's looking to become the second one to achieve the goal in multiple seasons. Only Nelson, who is an administrator at the school after a lengthy NFL career, has done it more than once and he accomplished the feat three times.
Brad Muster, Jon Volpe and former single-season record holder Tommy Vardell are the others. Vardell set his record with 1,084 in 1991. Until Gerhart, no Stanford running back has even reach the the 1,000-yard standard.
"He's a great football player," Harbaugh said of Gerhart. He's physical and runs more like a fullback. Sometimes the things that get lost in the game with him is how he can run away from linebackers after contact. He has good balance and vision. He's the kind who can carry the ball up to 30 times a game and can run all the assortments of plays. He blocks like a fullback and catches like a wide receiver."
Cardinal Looking for a Balanced Approach
Stanford won't abandon its passing game. Harbaugh made that clear by naming redshirt freshman Andrew Luck as his starter over the incumbent Tavita Pritchard.
Luck is a mobile quarterback with the capacity to throw deep and accurate. He's the son of former Houston Oilers quarterback Oliver Luck.
"My dad taught me how to throw a football," Luck said. He told me to get busy and get out of the house. Tavita is an incredibly smart football player and he helped me a lot. He's a great teammate."
Luck has been impressive during fall camp and insists the attitude has shifted at Stanford.
"The losing mentality is completely gone from Stanford," he said. "It starts at the top and coach Harbaugh has a great enthusiasm for football."
Luck enjoys throwing the football but if all he has to do this year is handoff to Gerhart, he'd be comfortable doing just that.
"I wouldn't be complaining," Luck said. "Toby is a great running back."
Toby Gerhart rushes against USC in 2008
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