Stanford Football Makes Tweaks to Depth Chart vs. San Jose State

After dropping to 1-3 with a loss to Virginia, the Stanford Cardinal (1-3, 1-1 ACC) are back and ready to redeem themselves this week against San Jose State. Facing the Spartans for the second straight year, the Cardinal will look to get their revenge after losing 34-31 in upset fashion on the road last season.

Hosting San Jose State this time, the Cardinal will look to improve to 2-3 on the year, and 2-0 in front of their home fans.

With game day fast approaching, the Cardinal have released the depth chart for their Week 5 showdown, and while there are not a lot of surprises, a couple of things do stand out.

Stanford Depth Chart vs. SJSU

Putting together two straight good performances, combining to throw three touchdowns with no interceptions over the last two games, Ben Gulbranson remains as the starting quarterback with Elijah Brown as his backup.

At running back, Micah Ford stays as the starter given how good he has been, with Cole Tabb, Sedrick Irvin and Tuna Altahir all listed as the interchangeable backups, given how they have an 'OR' designation.

At wide receiver, Wisconsin transfer CJ Williams and sixth-year veteran Bryce Farrell will start once again, with both of them coming off 100 yard receiving performances.

Farrell is coming off of a career day where he caught four passes for 135 yards and a touchdown, with his speed providing a major spark to the offense. Williams also had a great game against UVA despite the loss, hauling in nine passes for 103 yards. Caden High is listed as the third starting receiver. Liam Thorpe and Myles Libman are the backups.

But also listed this week is Jordan Onovughe, who missed the last three games with an injury. Having him listed is a promising sign that he will be back and available to play if needed. At tight end, nothing changes as team captain Sam Roush continues to be the starter, while Benji Blackburn—who caught his first career TD last week—will back him up.

On the offensive line, Niki Prongos and Kahlil House make up the starting tackles while Emeka Ugorji and Zak Yamauchi remain as the starting guards. Originally used as depth pieces, injuries to other players and good performances from Ugorji and Yamauchi have earned them the chance to keep playing. Fisher Anderson remains the center.

On the defensive side, the makeup remains the same up front, with Wilfredo Aybar and Tevarua Tafiti making up the two edge rushers while Clay Patterson, Zach Rowell and Anthony Franklin will continue to start inside.

However, Rowell will likely rotate with Braden Marceau-Olayinka, who has an 'OR' designation by his name. Ernest Cooper also has an 'OR' designation behind Aybar, signaling that Stanford will have a heavy rotation on the defensive line this week.

At linebacker, a good run of dominance from Matt Rose has him listed as the sole starter at one of the linebacker spots while Jahsiah Galvan, Hunter Barth and Zach Johnson figure to rotate at the other linebacker spot, with Barth and Johnson both having 'OR' designation by their names right behind Galvan.

In the defensive backfield, cornerback Jordan Washington is still out, making way for Che Ojarikre to start this game alongside Collin Wright. At safety, Jay Green and Scotty Edwards will most likely rotate at one safety spot while Mitch Leigber will solely man the other side.

Overall, despite the Cardinal experiencing some struggles to start this season, depth chart changes are minimal, with Reich and Co. wanting to see what they have to work with. This season has been all about taking steps forward, and regardless of what the record says, the program's main priority this season is to set up future success.

Stanford and San Jose State will kick off on Saturday, Sept. 27 at 4:30 p.m. (PT) from Stanford Stadium. The game will air live on the ACC Network.