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Message: [QUOTE="YKCornelius, post: 5328980, member: 9864"] Rooster, great analysis once again. To me, the Cardinal's season last year reflected a confluence of events that they simply weren't prepared for. Make no mistake, they had to sleep in the bed they made. The first event was the move to the ACC and all of the x-country travel that comes with it. I contend that due to Tara's scheduling of the ten previous seasons - where she seemingly avoided games east of the Rockies like the plague - the coaching staff, trainers and therefore the players were not ready for the demands of travel to ACC locations. In Tara's last five seasons, Stanford played six regular season games east of the Rockies (losing three), and in her last two years a grand total of ZERO. No wonder they were 2-8 in ACC away games last year, with most of the games not close (whereas the two wins were very close - single possession). Second was the departure of Tara - which felt more like an abdication following Stanford's alignment to the ACC. Yeah, it's tough coming in behind a legend, but doubly tough if you are left with hybrid offense that hinges on the success of your experienced bigs taking an abundance of threes. Third was the departure of All-American Iriafen to USC. Having your superstar leave the program to chase NIL dollars had to be a shock to the entire program. Everybody had to rethink their roles pretty quick. That said, this is Stanford - the Harvard/Duke of the west coast. With all that brain power applied to the task of managing x-country travel, one should expect better results in conference this year. As you pointed out, the incoming freshmen are a talented bunch so it all comes down to how well Coach Paye can integrate them into the team. With very few seniors on the team, IMO it would be a mistake for Coach Paye to rely too heavily on her experienced returnees. Give the newbies the room to make mistakes and grow. As I pointed out in the Bold Take thread, I'm expecting Stanford to make the NCAA tournament this year. Given the rebuilding that many ACC teams have to undertake this season, I think ending the conference between 6th and 8th is most likely for the Cardinal. If the freshman show up big, I believe they could surprise folks and earn a bye in the tournament. I will be very interested to read where the other coaches and the media project them to be heading into the season. Love your analysis - can't wait for the next one! [/QUOTE]

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