ESPN College Football

Stanford head coach David Shaw announced that running backs coach Mike Sanford will take over the recruiting coordinator responsibilities for the Cardinal.

Sanford, now in his second season with the program, fills the void left by special teams coach/recruiting coordinator Brian Polian, who left last month to take a similar position on Kevin Sumlin’s staff at Texas A&M.

Sanford’s new role takes effect immediately.

“Mike Sanford is a proven recruiter who truly loves and understands Stanford University,” Shaw said in a statement. “He works extremely hard and develops great relationships.”

Sanford played an instrumental role in Stanford landing one of the top recruiting classes in the country, which included six players on the 2012 ESPNU 150 list.

In his first year as the Cardinal’s running backs coach in 2011, Sanford oversaw a rushing attack that ranked 18th nationally with an average of 210.6 yards per game.

The move comes on the heels of running game coordinator/offensive line coach Mike Bloomgren being named one of the top recruiters in the country and the No. 1 recruiter in the Pac-12. To round out his staff, Shaw still has to find a special teams replacement for Polian and someone to replace co-defensive coordinator/inside linebackers coach Jason Tarver, who was hired earlier this month as the defensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders.

Sanford, a 2005 graduate of Boise State, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at UNLV. He served at Stanford as an offensive assistant from 2007-2008 before moving to Yale in 2009 (tight ends, fullbacks, recruiting coordinator) and Western Kentucky in 2010 (passing game coordinator, running backs).

Stanford head coach David Shaw has a lot to smile about after hauling in a top-15 recruiting class on Wednesday. With six ESPNU 150 players -- including three of the top offensive linemen in the country and athletic playmakers on both sides of the ball -- Shaw said his team fills much-needed holes and adds depth at other spots.

Here's part one of a Q&A with the second-year head coach.

Q: What are your first impressions of this group?

A: This group has what we're looking for. We wanted to address the offensive line and make sure we had some more playmakers at the wide receiver position. We were going to take a running back if he was a difference-maker. That's what Barry (Sanders) is. Defensively, to be able to come in with the defensive line we've put together in this class, I think is a credit to our coaches and our coaching style and our scheme that these guys are excited to come play for us. Then to get a couple of the top defensive backs at the safety and corner position in the nation is really exciting.

Q: So the offensive line was a target position this year? It didn't just work out that way. You guys were going after linemen all the way?

A: No question. We hadn't gotten enough in the last couple of years. As well as we've played, we haven't been deep. Thankfully for our strength and conditioning program, our guys have stayed pretty healthy so we haven't had to play down to our younger guys. We needed depth, especially with two guys leaving early for the draft. We needed guys to come in and compete right away and I think we've brought some guys in that can do that.

Q: Coach (Mike) Sanford tweeted after Andrus Peat announced: "Our staff reaction was priceless!" What does priceless mean and what was the reaction?

A: It's something you don't feel in the NFL. You draft a guy and you know he's there and you draft him and you get excited. But to sit there waiting and not knowing for sure. Having a good feeling, but not knowing for sure that he was coming to us. Then the announcement was made and we saw the hat. Guys were jumping up and down and pumping fists and high fiving. It was pretty loud. I think it was heard pretty much around the building. Not too much longer, we had the same reaction when Kyle Murphy did his announcement. We jumped up and down and high fived and guys were yelling. It's been a special, special day for us because these guys are our type of guys. They aren't prima donnas that want to come in on a silver platter. The guys we've been recruiting, they want to come in and work and earn what we give them.

Q: How exciting will it be to see these offensive linemen grow together?

A: It's going to be exciting. Anytime you start with a player that does the things you can't teach -- size and athletic ability and flexibility and nastiness -- that's when it's really fun as a coach because now you are teaching the finer points of the game. The techniques and the calls. You're not trying to make up for something ability wise the player doesn't have. This group is really exciting. I think they are humble and they are hungry. The guys on our team are going to welcome them in as true competitors and teammates. It will be a fun group to work with.

Q: You talked about having "that feeling," how confident were you leading up to the Barry Sanders announcement?

A: Very. I think when Barry came to campus for the first time, I think it opened his eyes. I think he saw a place -- like so many guys on our team and committed to us -- the first time on campus it hit them that this is a place they are looking for. It hit them that there is a place out there that is first in academics but doesn't slight in the football category. That's what Barry saw. Barry Sanders is a famous individual. And to be able to sit down and have lunch with Andrew Luck, who is also a famous individual, for people to recognize him, but not bother him -- you're sitting in a place where there are a lot of people that are famous in their own rights in what they do and are really good at what they do. There is an environment that is very comforting to a guy like that who does have some fame and some notoriety to be around people that are just like him.

Q: Noor Davis committed early and was so outspoken in support of the program to other recruits -- how much does it help when you have a guy who is going to sell the program for you and hasn't even signed his letter yet?

A: I think every program in the nation always has one or two of those guys who commit early and is determined to help build the class. Noor has a lot nicknames around here for us. My favorite one is "The Senator." We're talking about a big kid who is imposing physically and extremely intelligent and very well-spoken, very thoughtful in every word that he says, but also very convincing. When you have a guy like that that can be talking to other recruits, he's an example of what we're looking for. Much like Andrew Luck before him and guys we have now that can talk to other recruits and give them an example of what a Stanford man is.

The seventh of 12 quick updates on offseason Pac-12 goings on.

Stanford in a sentence

• There's not much a team can do to improve on a 12-1 finish and No. 4 final ranking -- perhaps the best season in program history -- but the return of quarterback Andrew Luck and nice talent throughout the depth chart has folks whispering about possibilities even loftier than the Rose Bowl.

The big issue

• There are holes to fill on the offensive line, but the chief worries are at receiver and the defensive line.

Quick hit news

• Luck is back, but coach Jim Harbaugh is gone, and he took key members of his staff with him: defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, associate head coach Greg Roman and offensive line coach Tim Drevno. David Shaw was promoted from offensive coordinator to replace Harbaugh, while Pep Hamilton moved up from receivers coach to offensive coordinator. Derek Mason was promoted from secondary coach to co-defensive coordinator with linebackers coach Jason Tarver (Mason will call plays). Mike Bloomgren is the new run-game coordinator/offensive line coach, while Mike Sanford is the new running backs coach. Ron Crook will coach tight ends and offensive tackles.
• The Cardinal was ranked sixth in the preseason coaches poll, its highest preseason ranking in program history.
• Receiver is a key question: The returning wideouts combined for just 49 receptions and four touchdowns. The key player is Chris Owusu, a speedster who missed six game due to injury last season.
• Stanford is, however, stacked at tight end. It will be interesting to see how the depth sorts itself out. Levine Toilolo won the starting job last preseason but then suffered a season-ending knee injury. Coby Fleener ended up winning second-team All-Pac-10 honors, but some thought that Zach Ertz was the best tight end this spring.
• The Cardinal's final No. 4 ranking was its highest since 1940, when it finished No. 2 after a 10-0 season.
• While five starters are gone on defense, the top four tacklers are back: linebacker Shayne Skov, outside linebacker Chase Thomas, free safety Michael Thomas and strong safety Delano Howell.
• Stanford plays seven home games this season -- including a visit from Oregon on Nov. 12 -- and just four conference games on the road. It does not play Utah or Arizona State. So, yes, this is a favorable schedule.

Only Oregon and Washington didn't experience any staff turnover this offseason, so we're running through the staff changes for the other 10 Pac-12 teams.

Next up is Stanford (we're skipping Oregon State for now because its lone vacancy at running backs coach has yet to be filled). The Cardinal saw head coach Jim Harbaugh bolt for the San Francisco 49ers and the promotion of offensive coordinator David Shaw to Harbaugh's former post.

Team in parenthesis is where the departing coach ended up.

Out
Jim Harbaugh, head coach (San Francisco 49ers)

In
David Shaw, head coach (formerly Cardinal offensive coordinator)

Out
Greg Roman, associate head coach (San Francisco 49ers)
Shaw, offensive coordinator/running backs

In
Pep Hamilton, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks/receivers
Mike Sanford, running backs

Out
Vic Fangio, defensive coordinator (San Francisco 49ers)

In
Derek Mason, associate head coach/co-defensive coordinator
Jason Tarver, co-defensive coordinator/inside linebackers

Out
Tim Drevno, offensive line (San Francisco 49ers)

In
Mike Bloomgren, offensive line/running game coordinator

Reaction: Stanford still has a vacancy at tight ends coach. Defensive line coach Randy Hart, special teams coordinator Brian Polian and OLBs coach/recruiting coordinator Lance Anderson also were retained from Harbaugh's 2010 staff. Hamilton and Mason were promoted from within; Hamilton was receivers coach last season, while Mason coached the secondary. Sanford, Tarver and Bloomgren were outside hires. They came from Western Kentucky, the 49ers and the New York Jets. By promoting from within, Shaw ensured continuity from a highly successful 2010 season. His outside hires have an NFL flavor, which players tend to respect. Sanford, a former Cardinal offensive assistant in 2007 and 2008, was quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator at Western Kentucky last season. The loss of Harbaugh, who rebuilt the program from the ground-up, shook Stanford fans, but the departures of Roman, a creative offensive mind, particularly in the running game, and Fangio, who adopted a highly effective 3-4-hyrbid scheme, are nearly as big. Can the Cardinal maintain and even build on their recent momentum? That's the big question for Shaw and his staff.

It might seem very Jim Harbaugh-y that new Stanford coach David Shaw is so eager to get to work that he's schedule his first spring practice for Monday, when the calendar says we're still in winter. But Shaw is fully aware that he's not Jim Harbaugh. He's not going to adopt a Harbaughian pose. It's not likely he will talk about "enthusiasm unknown to mankind" or not bowing down to any program or comparing his quarterback (Andrew Luck) to his wife because both are "perfect."

Harbaugh was often a colorful quote but a prickly interview. He was unpredictable and edgy, incredibly competitive and just a little nutty.

Shaw is polished and measured. As Stanford's head coach, he's going to be David Shaw, and plenty of folks on the Farm think that's going to be a good thing -- see recent good news on ticket sales.

"I just have a different personality," he said. "I'm a different person."

That doesn't mean, however, he's any less competitive. During a short phone conversation Friday, he talked about being "single-minded" and "focused" and getting better each practice. The first task for Stanford this spring is moving past a scintillating 12-1 campaign in 2010. If the Cardinal start believing they've arrived, they surely won't.

As to the business at hand, Shaw announced a couple of staff additions. Mike Bloomgren, a New York Jets offensive assistant, is the Cardinal's new offensive line coach and running game coordinator, and Mike Sanford, a former Stanford assistant who was Western Kentucky's quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator last year, has been hired as running backs coach.

Shaw said the last void on his staff is at tight ends coach. "I'm not going to rush," he said. "I'm not just hiring guys for spring ball."

Previously, Shaw announced that Pep Hamilton had been promoted to offensive coordinator and will work with quarterbacks and receivers and that Derek Mason and Jason Tarver, a former San Francisco 49ers assistant, would serve as co-defensive coordinators. Mason will oversee the secondary and call plays, while Tarver will coach linebackers.

Spring practices will be split into two minicamps. The first session runs Feb. 21 to March 5. The second starts March 28 and ends with the spring game on April 9.

When asked about his primary concerns, Shaw quickly named the offensive line, which must replace three starters, including All-America center Chase Beeler and guard Andrew Phillips.

Other issues: Who's Luck's backup? Who replaces Nate Whitaker at kicker? What about two voids at linebacker and on the defensive line? And who steps in for Richard Sherman at cornerback?

Shaw isn't eager to provide lists of possible answers. He obviously wants to create as much competition as possible. The good news is the Cardinal, who are almost certain to be ranked in the preseason top 10, appear to have plenty of up-and-coming players who are ready to step in.

As for Luck, Shaw isn't worried that a guy touted as the surefire No. 1 pick in the NFL draft this spring had he not decided to return will try to shoulder too much of a burden.

"I love his leadership style because it's a performance-based leadership," Shaw said. "He wants to be one of the hardest workers on the team. He wants to lead by example. He doesn't want to give a whole bunch of speeches."

In other words, Shaw expects Luck to be Luck. Just like Shaw plans to put his mark on the program instead of trying to be the second-coming of Harbaugh.

Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood has landed on his feet after his contract was not renewed in Tucson.

Livengood will be named UNLV's new athletic director Thursday afternoon.

And there's relevance to football here: Livengood will immediately jump into the task of finding a new football coach for the Rebels. Mike Sanford was fired in late November.

There are a few rumors he might go after current Arizona offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes. The Wildcats already lost defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to Florida State since the end of the regular season.

Consider this from the Las Vegas Sun:

On Tuesday, Livengood didn't completely squash rumors that he potentially could bring Arizona offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes with him to Las Vegas to run the show at Sam Boyd Stadium. However, he was persistent, like the other finalists, in saying that previous head coaching experience would be preferred.

"Do I think he's a good football coach? Yes," Livengood said of Dykes. "He's done a remarkable job at Arizona. But, I also said I think in some context, this job might require head coaching experience."

Even if Livengood goes another direction, it's possible a Pac-10 assistant coach or two might be poached by whoever ends up with the UNLV job.

Most assistant coaches want to be head coaches, but it's hard to make that jump because there are only 120 FBS jobs and only 66 of them are in BCS conferences (and Notre Dame).

And only half of those BCS posts are any good.

So when head coaching jobs open up, even for perennial losers, most assistant coaches will raise an interested eyebrow.

That's why the openings at UNLV and San Jose State may cost a Pac-10 team an assistant.

UNLV fired Mike Sanford this week, and California offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig and Washington defensive coordinator Nick Holt are potential candidates, according to this article.

Serious candidates? Probably not. But still.

Here's a guess that San Jose State, which just accepted the resignation of Dick Tomey, also might vet a few Pac-10 assistants.

The problem for Ludwig or Holt -- or Arizona's Sonny Dykes or Oregon State's Mark Banker -- is knowing when to pull the trigger.

If you wait too long, you might never get a shot -- "old" assistants struggle to get respect from programs looking for "hot, young, up-and-comers." But if you jump at a bad job, it may ruin your reputation when you inevitably fail.

Bob Stoops was so highly thought of as a defensive coordinator at Florida that he was able too wait around for programs like Iowa and Oklahoma to fight over him.

Urban Meyer did the steady climb -- Notre Dame assistant, Bowling Green head coach, Utah head coach, multiple national title winner at Florida.

Former UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker was so convinced that he had bucked the "great coordinator but not head coach material" label that he took the top spot at New Mexico State, which is like betting you can survive a tumble into a black hole.

Of course, I thought the same when former Washington State defensive coordinator Robb Akey was hired at Idaho, but Akey's Vandals are 7-4 and likely headed to a bowl game.

That surprising success might get some bigger-name programs to take a look at Akey.

So succeeding in a supposed black hole could lead to a big opportunity later.

Or it can lead to your disappearance from head coaching candidate lists for the rest of your career.

Stay tuned, because there are sure to be other openings -- and other rumors. And possibly a hiring.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

If Oregon State's season had only started the second week of October the previous three years, who knows what might have happened?

The Beavers are 22-3 after Oct. 8 the past three seasons. And are 6-9 before.

After Oct. 8, they have three bowl wins. Before, they have nonconference road losses by 28, 31 and 31 points.

The Beavers probably feel ahead of the game starting 1-0, but they also did that in 2006 and 2007.

	Gene Lower/Getty Images
	The UNLV offense, led by Omar Clayton, was tied for first last season in red zone efficency.

Up next is a visit to UNLV on Saturday.

While many Oregon State fans are probably thinking, "Whew! That's not Penn State or even Boise State," the Rebels are not a gimme. They have 15 starters back -- seven on both sides of the ball plus their kicker -- and lots of other returners who saw action during a 5-7 season in 2008, which included a win at Arizona State. And recall that the Mountain West Conference wasn't too shabby last year, either.

Of most particular concern: The Rebels have an experienced quarterback in junior Omar Clayton -- who threw 18 touchdown passes a year ago with just four interceptions -- and a pair of receivers who are Pac-10 quality in Ryan Wolfe and Phillip Payne.

Clayton & Co. were particularly potent in the red zone. Get this: The Rebels tied Ohio State for No. 1 in red zone offense. Twenty-nine of 37 red zone opportunities ended in touchdowns, so we're not just talking about a bunch of field goals, either.

And, as mentioned a few times, the Beavers have four new starters in their secondary and just three starters back on defense.

"They are productive receivers and there's some experience there and in the spread offense," Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. "It's a lot of one-on-one coverage as you get going. They either run the ball or run the option or fake all that stuff and get you into one-on-one pass coverage. It's going to be a big challenge that way."

So this is a test of your Beavers Don't Start Slowly Again Network.

There's a second level of intrigue. Riley and UNLV coach Mike Sanford are tight. As in darn near best friends tight.

"I think he's the greatest guy in the world," Riley said.

(Riley was exaggerating. Everyone knows you are the greatest guy in the world. Or woman).

They have a long history working together, too. Sanford, a former USC quarterback, coached under Riley at USC and with the San Diego Chargers.

Sanford got his opportunity at UNLV in 2005 after a highly successful run as Urban Meyer's offensive coordinator at Utah. After a slow start, things seem to be trending up in Las Vegas.

"I see that improvement -- I know personally how hard it is to make those jumps," Riley said.

Friendship notwithstanding, the Beavers would like to make a jump to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2005 and see how that might affect the rest of the season.

Of course, that 2-0 start in 2005 was a prelude to a 5-6 finish, one of only two losing seasons that program has posted since 1999.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

What Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty once were to the rest of the world, UNLV is to the Pac-10.

From the Running Rebels' official release: "Since joining the Mountain West Conference in 1999, UNLV has attracted no less than 17 former Pac-10 Conference scholarship players to the roster."

Those 17 come from eight Pac-10 schools -- only Stanford and Oregon State haven't contributed talent.

Thus this inscription outside the football office.

"Pac-10 give me your tired, your poor,
Your suspended masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming bench.
Send these, the teamless, depth-chart-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door -- and offer an alternative route to the NFL!" 

Kidding. That's not inscribed outside the football office. As far as I know.

Here's the rest from the football release, including a list, which includes some familiar names:

PAC-10 EAST?

Since joining the Mountain West Conference in 1999, UNLV has attracted no less than 17 former Pac-10 Conference scholarship players to the roster. In Mike Sanford's first season, QB Rocky Hinds and DB Eric Wright both moved over from USC while DB Mil'Von James came from UCLA. Joining the program in 2006 were former Washington State letterman Lorenzo Bursey Jr. and Arizona WR Gerold Rodriguez. Last year brought former Cal RB Frank Summers, who eventually transferred to a JC before coming to Las Vegas, former WSU DE Preston Brooks, who has three years of eligibility remaining after sitting out 2007, and former Oregon DL Thor Pili, who also played at a JC before making the move to the desert.

This fall brings former ASU signee Martin Tevaseu, who was in camp for the Sun Devils in 2006 before sustaining an injury and eventually returning to his JC. Two other new Rebels -- punter Brendon Lamers (Oregon) and DB Chase Bosley (Washington State) -- were walk-ons at their Pac-10 schools.

PLAYER POS PAC-10 STOP AT UNLV COMMENT

Preston Brooks DE Washington State 2007-SA Sat out last fall
Kevin Brown RB Washington State 2000 798 rushing yards in only season
Deon Burnett RB Washington State 2002-03 Former All-Pac 10 honoree
Lorenzo Bursey DB Washington State 2006-SA Moves to CB for senior year
Larry Croom RB Arizona 2002-03 UNLV record for all-star game invites (3)
Rocky Hinds QB USC 2005-06 UNLV's first 2,000-yard passer since 1997
Mil'Von James DB UCLA 2005-07 Led nation in pass breakups in '07
Jabari Johnson RB Washington 2000-01 268 yards rushing as a senior
Bobby Nero WR Oregon 2000-01 11-game starter in 2001
Thor Pili DE Oregon 2007-SA Slated to start in 2008 as a senior
Gerold Rodriguez WR Arizona 2006-SA Led UNLV in kickoff return avg. in '07
Frank Summers RB California 2007-SA Rebels' leading scorer in 2007
Martin Tevaseu DL Arizona State 2008-SA Looking to start along D-line
Jason Thomas QB USC 2000-02 Stands second all-time at UNLV in tot. off.
Isaac Watts DE Arizona 2004-05 Started eight games as a senior
Shanga Wilson LB Arizona 2000-01 Team captain, 141 TT as a Rebel
Eric Wright DB USC 2005-06 Third-highest NFL Draft pick ever