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Our Take Two topic this week: Which is the Pac-12's most dangerous trap game?

Kevin Gemmell: Since we're talking trap games this week -- and traps usually involve teams expected to do well -- I see a big one in Week 3 for the USC Trojans traveling north to Stanford.

This game has brought two of the Pac-12's most exciting matchups in consecutive years. There was the last-minute field goal in 2010 and the triple-overtime thriller at the Coliseum last season. No need to bring up the 55-21 game in 2009. It would be easy to assume that because Andrew Luck is gone, the Trojans will now roll over the Cardinal.

Maybe. USC, no doubt, will be highly ranked and heavily favored.

But the X-factor to this game is Stanford head coach David Shaw -- who is especially good at play calling against USC. You don't spend as much time on the offensive side of the ball in the NFL as Shaw did without learning a little something about the Tampa-2 defense, which USC is fond of running given that its defensive coordinator essentially invented it.

The Cardinal were the prickly splinter in USC's side during the Luck era. Luck was able to absorb Shaw's knowledge of USC's defense and they were able to go blow-for-blow with the Trojans. Shaw knows how to scheme against this team and Luck knew how to make that scheme a reality on the field. Although, who throws the Venus on Spider-3, Y-banana? Seriously.

But that era is over. And the Cardinal are going to make their living with a tough ground attack and a vicious front seven. I don't doubt USC's ability to move the ball. And if I'm a Stanford fan, I'm concerned about this becoming a high-scoring affair because the Cardinal have a young secondary and they don't have the horses to match the Trojans drive for drive.

I expect USC to be highly motivated for this game. Not only because of the past, but because of the future. The Stanford game marks the first of four straight tough games for the Trojans -- which is followed by Cal, Utah and Washington. Stubbing their toe early will certainly have ramifications for the rest of the season -- and the rest of the conference.

I don't think anyone will question that position-for-position, USC has more athletes than Stanford. But this will be the Trojans' first real mental test of the season. They'll be coming off an East Coast road trip and then have to go on the road again. Stanford Stadium isn't exactly the toughest venue in the conference, but it's not Disneyland, either. There will be a strong fan presence.

This season is going to be mentally taxing for the Trojans. A win at Stanford will be the first step over the psychological hump.

Ted Miller: One word: Arrrrrghhh!

Everyone knows Oregon's visit to USC on Nov. 3 could be epic. And I've already written about a potential trap game for the Ducks being their visit to California on Nov. 10, the weekend after The Weekend.

Ah, but here's a thought: Oregon has yet to face plant against an inferior team under Chip Kelly. The closest thing to that was a loss at Stanford in 2009, but that was a good Cardinal team.

And so we have the Ducks, almost certainly unbeaten and untested at 4-0, driving up to Seattle to take on Washington State in CenturyLink Field on Sept. 29. The Cougars also could be 4-0. And dangerous.

Fear the Pirate, Oregon. This game smacks of a "I'm baaaaack" opportunity for Mike Leach.

This will be the first road game for whomever wins the Ducks quarterback job. While it doesn't truly qualify as a home game for the Cougars, they should have a crowd advantage. More important, they will have a major experience advantage at QB with Jeff Tuel. Further, you might recall that Washington State played a competitive game in Autzen Stadium last year. The Cougars trailed only 15-10 at the half and actually outgained Oregon 463 yards to 456. It was 29-20 Ducks with four minutes left in the third before De'Anthony Thomas did his thing on a 93-yard kickoff return for a TD.

What happens if Leach's spread passing attack marries perfectly with Tuel and a deep crew of receivers against a Ducks secondary that is talented but still fairly young, particularly at cornerback? What happens if the Ducks offense, gulp, sputters with a young QB on the road?

A long shot, yes. Kelly's Ducks have been notably impressive with their ability to maintain focus each week the past three years. You know: A nameless faceless opponent each Saturday.

Only Leach isn't a nameless, faceless opponent. Everyone knows who he is. And he's tricky. And he's one coach who won't be outsmarted by Kelly.

At the very least, this one should be an interesting test for both teams. And the Cougs have a puncher's -- passer's? -- shot at pulling a shocker.

In case you haven't heard, some news on the Stanford front with an anonymous donor endowing Stanford's offensive coordinator position with Andrew Luck's name. Here's a snippet from the news story:

Through an anonymous donation, Stanford has ensured that former quarterback Andrew Luck's legacy will live on at the university by endowing Luck's name to the offensive coordinator position.

The position will now be formally known as the Andrew Luck Director of Offense.

"It is a huge tribute," Luck said in a statement issued by Stanford. "To have anything endowed in my name is a complete honor. I feel very fortunate to have come to Stanford, and I have always enjoyed representing the university. The offensive coordinators I've had here helped me not only in football, but also to grow so much as a person. To be a part of that leadership and position is a very proud legacy for me."

Pep Hamilton is Stanford's offensive coordinator. He replaced David Shaw, who was named coach following Jim Harbaugh's departure to the NFL.

"It is a tremendous honor to hold this position and to be associated with an outstanding young man like Andrew Luck, who means so much to Stanford football and the Stanford community," Hamilton said. "I will do everything in my power to proudly continue the tradition of creative and exciting offensive football at Stanford."

Only a handful of head coaching positions at private schools are endowed. For example, at Stanford, Shaw's position is endowed and is known as the Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football. Also, all 85 Stanford football scholarships are endowed.

You can read the rest of the news story here.

Lots of mailbag to catch up on. Will try to squeeze out a few more later in the week. For now, to the questions.

Eric in San Francisco writes: You mentioned that it remains to be seen if the three-tight-end plan can continue. It seems that if there was a "next up" young tight end that was sharp enough, then we might be able to hang on to some of those great plays in the playbook. Who is "next up" in the tight end position, and could they be good enough to preserve that 3 TE plan?

Kevin Gemmell: I don't think it's as much the actual playbook as it is the players -- specifically what Coby Fleener was able to do in the offense and the way he could exploit almost every defender who tried to cover him. Stanford has other tight ends -- but no one who is 6-foot-6, 250 pounds and out-run cornerbacks and out-jump safeties. Levine Toilolo and Zach Ertz will continue to bring what they bring -- phenomenal athleticism for their size -- but neither is as fast as Fleener. And to their credit, I think Ertz has better hands than Fleener and I think Toilolo was a better blocker. That's what made the three of them so great. No one on the roster has Fleener's rare combination of size and speed. I do think we'll see some special packages with Ryan Hewitt as a third tight end and Geoff Meinken at fullback. And we have to see if David Dudchock steps up. I don't think the scheme is going to change -- but without Fleener splitting the middle on the deep go route, it's not going to look as pretty.

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Scott in Redwood City, Calif., writes: No, I haven't been predicting a national championship for the 2012 Card. However, I do think they'll be darn good, maybe even great. And then I heard it mentioned somewhere that Tennessee - in its first season without Peyton Manning - won the national title in 1998. So, would you care to get me all goofy and tell me how many other parallels there are between the '98 Vols and '12 Card?

Kevin Gemmell: Well, hmmm. Tennessee started the year ranked No. 10 in the AP poll. I'd imagine Stanford will be anywhere between 10-15. Both teams are/were pro-style offenses. Tennessee faced the No. 2 team in the country in Week 2. Stanford might face the No. 2 team in the country in Week 3. Uhm, let's see... both schools have well-regarded women's basketball programs ... "S" and "T" are consecutive letters in the alphabet ... I don't know. I got nothing else ... have fun with that one, though.

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John in Phoenix writes: All things being equal, wouldn't it make more sense to give Brett Nottingham the nod to be the starter over Josh Nunes given he has another year of eligibility?

Kevin Gemmell: In my experience, all things being equal rarely happens. One of the two will step up (or slip up) in the fall and someone will emerge as the starter. I'm just not sure which one. I've heard good things (and bad) about both from people in the know. My best guess though, is that whoever wins it will be keeping it warm for Ryan Burns. If they approach Burns the way they did Andrew Luck, he'll sit out his first year, which means he won't take the helm until 2014. Eligibility won't matter by that point. If you're Stanford, you want to win now and continue to capitalize on the momentum of back-to-back BCS appearances and a monster recruiting class. If that means swapping quarterbacks in consecutive years, so be it. Do what you can to win now and keep the ball rolling.

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Alan in Palo Alto writes: Any plans to retire Luck's number?

Kevin Gemmell: None that I've heard, but you have to imagine it's coming -- and the sooner the better. From here on out, there should only be one No. 12 in the minds of Stanford fans.

Not sure if anyone caught this article last week by Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports, but there was a fascinating quote that was sort of lost in the shuffle.

The focus of the story is former Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck returning to school to finish his degree, thus forbidding him from doing more work with his new team, the Indianapolis Colts.

Buried a few paragraphs down is a quote from second-year tackle Mike Tepper, who told Silver:

I'm told he was calling out plays like he had the whole playbook memorized, and some of the other rookies were looking around like, 'What?' Some of the guys, including the other QBs, were saying that Luck is already better than 25 of the [starting] quarterbacks in the league.

Let's do a little math: 32 quarterbacks minus 25 quarterbacks equals seven quarterbacks. Which means, according to Tepper, Luck is a top-10 quarterback in the NFL without having thrown a pass.

I'm not going to agree or disagree, I just thought it was awfully high praise considering Luck is yet to take a professional snap.

It's not exactly shocking, either, that Luck has tamed the cerebral part of the game so quickly. It's just one of the many things he excels at. It will be fun to follow this season to see how quickly he can translate what's in his head to what's happening on the field.

And so far Luck is playing it exactly how you'd expect him to, with humility and a quiet confidence. Once hammered with questions about whether he can win the Heisman or if Stanford could return to a BCS game, now he's getting the exact opposite line of questioning regarding the Colts chances of winning more than a handful of games. Here's what he told Silver:

In my eyes, you've got a lot of guys like Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney that didn't miss the playoffs, until this past year, in their whole career," Luck said. "They're winners. What I'm trying to put on my plate is, what can I do to make sure their legacies as winners continue?

And I know that I've seen expectations that we won't do so well -- 'don't expect more than single-digit wins.' Not to discredit anyone, but I have expectations for myself, my parents have expectations for me, and my coaches and teammates have expectations. That's all that matters.

How many times this year did we hear that exact answer -- or variations of it -- from Luck? The only expectations he had to fulfill were those of his teammates, not Heisman voters. The only goals that mattered were those of the people in the locker room, not the public's.

Not sure if Luck is a top-10 quarterback yet. But he's got the sound bite delivery down just fine.

So where do things stand after spring practices and heading into the offseason? Let's see.

(You can check out our January power rankings here).

1. USC: The Trojans are expected to contend for the national title (typing that strikes up a not-unfamiliar feeling). Best starting 24 -- specialists included -- in conference and probably in the nation. Some nagging depth questions. Key is staying healthy, particularly on the lines and at running back.

2. Oregon: Marcus Mariota's spring performance made everyone forget Darron Thomas leaving early, even if it's uncertain Mariota will win the QB job over Bryan Bennett. Defense should be among the best in the conference. Ducks and Trojans meet in the Coliseum on Nov. 3. May be the national game of the year.

3. Stanford: There will be a drop-off post-Andrew Luck, but as long as the running game and front seven on defense remain intact, it won't be as severe as most think, especially since the Cardinal have the exact same schedule as last season.

4. Utah: Best defensive line in the conference. That alone should win the Utes a game or two. And it's good that QB Jordan Wynn is again healthy. Still, Utes need to beat the upper-echelon teams (and stop losing to the lower ones) to really show they have arrived in the conference.

5. Washington: Potentially strong on offense with QB Keith Price, but the line needs to get healthy, and you don't replace Chris Polk with RB-by-committee. The defense should be better with coordinator Justin Wilcox. Still, the power rankings are like Missouri: You've got to Show Me. And, gosh, that early-season schedule is BRUTAL.

6. California: QB Zach Maynard had a strong spring, according to coach Jeff Tedford. Pair that with an A-list receiver in Keenan Allen, good depth at running back and a potent defense, and the Bears could climb these rankings. Check that. Cal stinks. Turrible. There. That should help.

7. UCLA: There is enough overall speed and talent to make an impact for the "defending South champs." The new spread offense could be sneaky-good if the Bruins ever figure out who is going to run it. The switch to a 3-4 defense is a good move for the available talent.

8. Washington State: Of the four new coaches, it's Mike Leach who will probably have the biggest impact early on. Receiver might be the Cougars' deepest position, and quarterback Jeff Tuel can spread it around. Both lines are questions.

9. Oregon State: QB Sean Mannion should be better in his sophomore year, and he has some good targets, starting with Markus Wheaton. Solid at running back and in the secondary. But what about those lines? Really, the Beavers' getting back to a bowl game will end up being about the hogs stepping up.

10. Arizona: QB Matt Scott and the offense have a chance to be good in Year 1 with Rich Rodriguez, though Scott might not be able to run too much option because there's no backup QB. There's talent in the secondary, particularly if Jonathan McKnight comes back healthy in the fall after missing all of 2011 with a knee injury. But there are significant questions at linebacker. And who's going to rush the passer?

11. Arizona State: There's nice depth at running back, and the offensive line was solid during spring practices. The return of LB Brandon Magee will help the defense, as much for his positive leadership as his skill. But there's uncertainty at quarterback, receiver, linebacker and safety.

12. Colorado: The most crushing injury this spring was Buffaloes WR Paul Richardson blowing out his knee. On the plus side, the offensive line looks solid, and Tony Jones stepped up at running back. If everyone stays -- or gets -- healthy, the linebackers will be first-rate. And DE Chidera Uzo-Diribe could be a breakout player. But there are huge questions at receiver, on the defensive line and in the secondary. Colorado may play as many freshmen as any team in the country this year.

Pretty interesting and insightful column earlier this week by Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham (Ala.) News about Stanford coach David Shaw saying that he doesn't want to be a voter again in the coaches' poll.

Writes Scarbinsky:

Bright as he is, Shaw took on an intellectual challenge last year that he would just as soon never tackle again. In his first year as a Division I head coach, he voted in the USA Today poll.

Shaw reflected on that memory Tuesday during a teleconference of Pac-12 football coaches.

"I don't want to be a voter again because I think it's impossible," he said.

Someone should write that down, run off copies and send one to every Division I conference commissioner and university president while they're still trying to figure out what the college football postseason will look like when the BCS contracts expire after the 2013 season.

He goes on to list a number of reasons why coaches shouldn't even have their own poll, and a lot of them make sense. I vote in ESPN's weekly poll, but that doesn't have any bearing on the BCS. Still, I find myself struggling on Saturday nights/Sunday mornings to read box scores, game stories, try to catch some highlights on the Web to validate why I have Michigan at No. 12 instead of No. 14.

Voting -- really, taking the time to do it right -- is hard. And most coaches simply don't have the time or energy to cast an unbiased vote that actually does have some bearing. There's a reason it's jokingly called the sports information directors' poll.

There are a lot of voters in the Associated Press poll who take it extremely seriously and they put in the homework. And there are some who don't. I've seen writers (no names) filling out their top 25 like a student scrambling to finish a multiple-choice test before time's up: "C, C, C, C, C, C,C" without even thinking. The debate comes at an interesting time in college football. Speaking with almost every coach in the Pac-12 last week at the spring meetings in Arizona, the consensus among them was that they wanted some input on how the teams in a playoff are selected. But they also want to take a lot of the human element out of it -- meaning do what you can to settle it on the field. Axing one poll would go a long way toward taking the human element out.

“College Football Live’s” panel of experts preview Stanford's upcoming season.

We fell behind a bit on the recruiting roundups with all of the spring ball and draft excitement. Here's what's happened over the last few weeks:

Virginia is making a play for Stanford commit Doug Randolph, according to The Daily Progress.

The outside linebacker was Stanford's first commit of the 2013 class, committing to the Cardinal back in June of 2011. The No. 23-rated outside linebacker in the country attended Virginia's spring game and the Cavaliers coaching staff has been giving him the hard sell.

Writes Shane Mettlen:

Virginia made a similar attempt to woo Woodberry defensive back C.J. Prosise away from Notre Dame in the days leading up to national signing day in February, but Prosise remained firm with his commitment and signed with the Irish. At this point, it seems like the Cavs have a better shot at converting Randolph, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound Richmond native whose sister attended UVa.

“He’s definitely giving them a look,” Woodberry coach Clint Alexander said. “They’ve been very proactive and he’s been showing more interest. It’s been a matter of getting in front of him and getting him around their guys.”

The story is a couple of weeks old and there has been no movement from Randolph, according to Stanford's ESPN recruiting page. And usually when a guy commits that early, he's in for the long haul. The story also notes that Stanford coaches were on campus last month. They'll need that presence if they hope to keep him locked in.

In other Stanford recruiting news:

• Quarterback committ Ryan Burns (Ashburn, Va.) was considered a "top performer" at the Columbus Elite 11.
• Linebacker Alex Anzalone (Wyomissing, Pa.) decommitted from Ohio State and reopened his recruitment. Stanford is among the school's he's considering.
• Colorado is now in the mix for safety Kameron Miles (Mesquite, Texas) who already has an offer from Stanford. Here's a video of Miles talking about his offers (1. the audio is a little off so turn it up; 2. he mentions Stanford first. Freudian?)
• Stanford was slated for a visit with athlete Tyler Boyd (Clairton, Pa.), who ranks 144 in the ESPN 150, according to ESPN.com's Jared Shanker, though it doesn't look like the Cardinal have offered yet.
• Outside linebacker Peter Kalambayi (Matthews, N.C.) says academics are important to him, which is one of the reasons Stanford is on his list.

Stanford athletic director Bob Bowlsby has accepted the Big 12 Conference commissioner job, with the announcement to be made Friday in Dallas, a source told ESPN.com's Andy Katz.

Bowlsby replaces Dan Beebe, who was fired in September 2011 as the Big 12 seemed on the brink of falling apart, with Oklahoma, Texas and others flirting with the Pac-12.

Chuck Neinas has been serving as the interim commissioner.

Bowlsby has told his staff he will remain with the Cardinal until June, according to The Associated Press.

You can read the complete story here.

The Big 12 has offered its commissioner's job to Stanford athletic director Bob Bowlsby, multiple conference and industry sources told ESPN.com on Wednesday night.

The Big 12 has been searching for a replacement for Dan Beebe, who was fired last year. Chuck Neinas has been serving as the interim commissioner.

A source with knowledge of the situation said late Wednesday night that Bowlsby is expected to accept the job, and a formal announcement from the conference could come as early as Friday.

Bowlsby was in Phoenix the past few days as the Big 12 and Pac 12 meetings overlapped. Bowlsby has a strong relationship with Pac 12 commissioner Larry Scott. Bowlsby was on the search committee that discovered Scott, with the aid of search firm executive Jed Hughes, who has handled both searches for the Big 12 and Pac 12 commissioner's jobs. Hughes was at a different firm for the Pac 12 search firm than he is for the Big 12 search.

You can read all of Andy Katz's story here.

The San Jose Mercury News reported late Wednesday night that Bowlsby has called a staff meeting for today.

Per the Merc's Jon Wilner:

Reasons for Bowlsby to stay at Stanford: It’s Stanford/Palo Alto and the Big 12 is in Dallas; Stanford football’s going well, which was partly his doing; he has family in San Diego; and who in the world wants to deal with Texas and Oklahoma.

Reasons for Bowlsby to take the job: The money (more than $1 million per year, I’d imagine); the sense that Stanford football can’t get any better; avoiding potentially having to fire Johnny Dawkins next spring.

Three consecutive Heisman Trophy runners-up, two consecutive BCS bowl games and final top-10 rankings: Hey, Stanford's special run of football success was fun to watch. It was neat seeing the most academically elite university playing BCS football whipping the big boys.

But we all know it can't possibly last, right? Jim Harbaugh built it and he's gone. Andrew Luck was a once-in-a-generation quarterback, and he's gone. And he took with him three other offensive players among the first 42 selections in the NFL draft over the weekend.

While the Cardinal certainly had more than 15 minutes of fame, it's time for this program to go back to its familiar brainiac territory -- Faulkner, computer chips and advanced algorithms. Leave big-time football the USCs, Alabamas and Ohio States of the nation.

Yes, such talk has worked its way across the grid, onto the Farm and into the Stanford locker room.

"We've talked about that," coach David Shaw said. "But we've also talked about that there can't be anything outside of our meeting rooms that motivates us. The motivation has to come from within. It's the only way that it is real. The only way that it is legitimate. But we've heard it. We know where we're ranked. But preseason rankings don't matter. Postseason rankings do."

In other words, the Cardinal believe reports of their demise are greatly exaggerated.

"They said the same thing when Toby [Gerhart] left and when Harbaugh left," outside linebacker Chase Thomas said. "We're pretty confident. We know what we bring to the table."

Of course, things change. No team can easily replace four elite NFL draft picks from its offense. That's why Stanford may be more about defense in the early going of 2012. Thomas leads a crew of six returning starters from a unit that ranked among the nation's top 30 in both scoring and total defense. The Cardinal's front seven in their 3-4 scheme appears to be particularly strong. Few teams in the nation will be as deep at linebacker, with Thomas and inside linebacker Shayne Skov both rating as potential All-Americans.

But what about that offense? The competition to replace Luck wasn't resolved this spring, with neither Josh Nunes nor Brett Nottingham demonstrating much consistency. And whoever wins the job won't have tackle Jonathan Martin protecting his blind side, or guard David DeCastro grinding defensive linemen into hamburger, or tight end Coby Fleener sprinting open down the middle with his 6-foot-6 self.

"We will continue our commitment to controlling the line of scrimmage," coordinator Pep Hamilton said. "We're going to run power. I don't see us changing much. If anything, if we have a few more opportunities to run power, we'll do that."

That means leaning on running back Stepfan Taylor, who has rushed for 2,770 yards and 27 TDs over the previous three seasons, and a deep stable of backs. That means leaning on a tight end combination -- Zach Ertz and Levine Toilolo -- that is as good as any in the nation, even without Fleener.

Receiver and offensive line? Those two spots remain questions, though the line will welcome back three starters.

Existing talent, however, doesn't tell the whole story of Stanford's potential for sustaining success. The incoming recruiting class is a significant chapter. Rivals ranked it fifth in the nation, Scout seventh and ESPN Recruiting 12th. No team in the nation came close to collecting as many elite offensive linemen: guard Joshua Garnett (Puyallup, Wash./Puyallup), Andrus Peat (Tempe, Ariz./Corona Del Sol) and offensive tackle Kyle Murphy (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente).

Shaw isn't afraid to play the young guys, either. True freshmen will get opportunities on both sides of the ball, including the offensive line.

"There's a reason why we recruited a couple of big-timers at those positions," he said. "They will have an opportunity to play if not start at the left tackle position."

Instead of going away, Stanford may well have found a perfect formula that Harbaugh generated and Shaw has refined. Stanford has a lot to sell a certain type of athlete, one who is equal parts brains and brawn. Despite what many folks think about young athletes, there are plenty who want to challenge themselves intellectually before playing football on Sundays.

"This is a special place that attracts a certain kind of person," said Shaw, a former Stanford player himself. "The GPAs in this recruiting class are high, even positions where they are not always high. Our lowest receiver GPA is a 3.4. Not regular GPA, core GPA. These guys are good students and tough kids."

But how fast are they? A 3.4 is nice, but what about 4.4? The one thing that has held Stanford back is a lack of elite speed all over the field, particularly in the secondary and at receiver. Shaw said they "are getting closer" in terms of speed, but he also admitted that the Cardinal -- just like every other Pac-12 program -- have a bit of an Oregon problem. They are 23-1 versus everyone else over the past two seasons, outscoring those foes 1,024-405. Against the Ducks, Stanford is 0-2, outscored 105-61.

Does Stanford have an "Oregon problem?"

"That's a great question," Shaw said. "I'd like to have a survey on your website if anybody has some ideas. Chip [Kelly] does a phenomenal job."

While Shaw is said this in a good-humored way, it's clear that he and his coaches have spent plenty of time thinking about the Ducks. They recall beating them 51-42 in 2009, particularly how they handled the ebbs and flows of momentum. They know it's about preventing big plays and not wasting opportunities on offense. They know it's about tempo, a pitched battle of contrasting styles. Oregon wants to play fast and slash you. Stanford wants to slow things down and pound you.

At least one insider believes Stanford will sustain its recent run of success.

"Absolutely. Hopefully they do better than we did," Luck said. "I think there are a lot of great players here, starting at the top with the coaching staff. Great players, great recruiting classes. They will only continue to get better."

As for what Stanford will be in 2012, its first season of the post-Luck era, Shaw thinks his team will have the same tough-guy persona. But it'll be angrier.

"We're going to go right at people and hit them in the mouth," he said. "And it helps to feel like you're disrespected."

In honor of the newest Indianapolis Colt, the folks at Stanford put together a highlight reel of Andrew Luck's top 15 plays from his time on The Farm. And they are, in a word, spectacular.

You can watch the full video here and decide for yourself what you think his top 15 are.

Personally, I think the hit on Shareece Wright (ranked No. 10) should have been in the top two or three, simply for the fact that it's something you don't see a quarterback do. Occasionally you see a quarterback make an ankle tackle off of a turnover, or force a guy out of bounds. But that hit was textbook linebacking; head up, shoulders squared, arms wrapped and exploding through the ball carrier. And if you watch the replay closely, he knows he jarred the ball loose and he's immediately scanning to try and find it.

The same goes for the one-handed catch (which I think is appropriately ranked at No. 3). It's special and unique because you just don't see quarterbacks making plays like that.

And the 44-yard throw from his knees (ranked No. 1) against ASU, well that was just silly.

Some of the greatest highlights are of Luck running. We forget how good of a runner he was because his carries were so scaled back in 2011. But it's fun to go back and re-live them.

No doubt, Luck leaves us with many incredible highlights. Thanks to the Stanford athletic department for throwing this together all in one place.

The inevitable is now official. Former Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is an Indianapolis Colt.

Commissioner Roger Goodell had announced the 2012 NFL draft was open and Luck was on the phone with the Colts no more than 15 seconds later.

He got big hugs from head coach David Shaw and teammate Coby Fleener as he made his way to center stage.

"It was everything I thought it would be," Luck told ESPN's Suzy Kolber about the experience of being picked No. 1 overall. "I feel so blessed, so fortunate to be in this situation. I can't wait to start with the Colts."

And what can Indianapolis fans expect from Luck following a 2-14 season?

"Hope for the best," Luck said. "We'll come in and work hard. I know there are a lot of great guys in the locker room already. I feel so honored and so grateful to be able to represent this city now and be part of a team."

Luck becomes the fourth Stanford quarterback selected No. 1 overall, joining Bobby Garrett (1954), Jim Plunkett (1971) and John Elway (1983). Stanford is the only school that has produced four quarterbacks taken No. 1 overall.

Other Pac-12 players:

• Despite a trade, the Minnesota Vikings still got the man they were targeting all along, USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil. Cleveland traded up to the No. 3 spot where the Browns took Alabama running back Trent Richardson. The 6-foot-6, 306-pound Kalil went to the Vikings with the No. 4 pick. He becomes the 76th first round draft pick in USC history and the 22nd USC Trojan offensive lineman drafted in the first round. He's the highest drafted USC lineman since Tony Boselli (1995, second overall).
• Then, there was a long, somewhat surprising lull for the conference. Stanford guard David DeCastro, whom most mock drafts had going in the teens, slipped down to No. 24 where the Pittsburgh Steelers got some pretty good value with the No. 1 guard in the draft. DeCastro was the third offensive lineman taken after Kalil and Iowa offensive tackle Riley Reiff, who went one pick earlier at No. 23 to the Detroit Lions.
• Between the picks of Kalil and DeCastro, there were 13 defensive players taken to just six offensive. That run on defense benefited USC defensive end Nick Perry, who was drafted by the Green Bay Packers at No. 28. He'll join former Trojan Clay Matthews in the Packers' 3-4 scheme. Perry was considered a first/second-round tweener but lands in a pretty good spot.
• With just those four being taken, Fleener and Stanford offensive tackle Jonathan Martin are still on the board. Both were considered potential first round picks -- but Martin's stock had been sliding over the last few weeks while Fleener's star was on the rise. Once thought to be a pipe dream a couple of weeks ago, might we see the Luck-to-Fleener connection in Indianapolis after all?

You didn't think we'd let the day go without something on Andrew Luck, did you? And it happens that Elizabeth Merrill of ESPN.com put together a really great read on Luck, his father Oliver, and how the two are similar.

Thought this was one you all would enjoy.

WHEELING, W.Va. -- On the last Interstate 70 stop before West Virginia mountains give way to Ohio green, a tall man with perfectly swept hair works the White Palace ballroom. He is charming, almost presidential, which is good because this is a heavy-hitter crowd. The governor of the great state of West Virginia is here, as well as a roomful of bankers, lawyers and schmoozers. A prayer is said before their supper of sautéed chicken and green beans, and cocktails are poured in plastic cups.

They have gathered on this late-April night to see Oliver Luck, a man whose bio in the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce dinner program fills an entire single-spaced page. Luck is all over the West Virginia map these days, dining with Boy Scouts and rubbing elbows with Rotarians, because this is what the athletic director for West Virginia University does in the springtime.

He does not rattle off his résumé, which sounds as if it could be a "world's most interesting man" script. Former NFL quarterback. Rhodes Scholar finalist. World traveler. Former president and CEO of NFL Europe. Ran a Major League Soccer team that won a couple of championships. Oh, and he has a law degree, which he picked up taking night classes while in the NFL. But Luck taught his kids to be humble, which is why you'll hear very little about any of this tonight.

He steps to the center of the stage to give his speech about West Virginia athletics, and breaks code a bit, probably to break the ice.

"You know," Luck says as he grabs the microphone, "there's a whole page here dedicated to my bio. And if you go on Wikipedia right now, what you'll see under my name is simply, 'Andrew's dad.'"

The crowd laughs.

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This story appears in the April 30, 2012 NFL draft issue of ESPN The Magazine. Subscribe today!

EVERY FOOTBALL PLAY tells a story. Many stories, actually: those of players, of teams, of the play itself, all intertwined like the wires in a messy circuit box. It's a scout's job to make sense of these stories, distilling them to distinguish the great players from those who only appear so, ultimately seeking to answer the multimillion-dollar question: If players' pasts are woven together, what's the story of each of their futures?

David Shaw, Stanford's coach, sits in his office on a sunny March afternoon with his own story. Shaw, the 39-year-old with a shiny head and a soft voice, spent nine seasons as an NFL assistant and then returned to his alma mater as offensive coordinator in 2007 before succeeding Jim Harbaugh last year. He helped develop, then inherited, what some consider the most talented college offense ever, one that produced 43 points per game last season.

The depth of that prolific offense has now created a historic opportunity. Never before have a quarterback, guard, tackle and tight end from the same college been selected in the first round of the NFL draft. On April 26, that may change. Cardinal right guard David DeCastro is considered the draft's nastiest offensive lineman; left tackle Jonathan Martin is 6-foot-6 and 312 pounds and runs like a tight end; tight end Coby Fleener, 6-6 and 247, runs like a wide receiver. And then there's that Andrew Luck guy.

Theirs is a singular story: seven combined first-team All-Pac-12 slots, three first- or second-team All-America selections and the legacy of turning Stanford from a 5-7 also-ran in 2008 to a back-to-back BCS bowl invitee. Still, years from now, their collective story will almost surely be one of unmet expectations. It's just the way these things go: Of the 15 Miami Hurricanes drafted in the first round from 2002 to '04, only three -- Ed Reed, Vince Wilfork and Andre Johnson -- became superstars. In 2006, five USC players, including Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart, came off the board in the first 45 picks. Combined Pro Bowls: zero.

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