Stanford tabs Ben Gulbranson as QB1

Ben Gulbranson, long a backup for Stanford's ex-Pac-12 rival Oregon State, will be the Cardinal's starting quarterback to open the season.

Stanford interim head coach Frank Reich named Gulbranson, a redshirt senior, his starter Monday ahead of the season-opening trip to Honolulu to face Hawaii on Saturday.

Gulbranson's chief competition was redshirt freshman Elijah Brown, a former four-star recruit who played in three games before being redshirted last year.

"That has nothing to do with a lack of confidence in Elijah," Reich told reporters. "(Elijah) is a really good player. He's had a phenomenal camp. Like was mentioned earlier, Ben's experience probably gave him the edge in the long run, but we're super excited about Elijah and the rest of the group."

Reich said Gulbranson showed "good command and mastery of the offense" throughout fall camp, among other positives.

Gulbranson chose to transfer to Stanford after the Cardinal's new general manager and former No. 1 overall NFL draft pick Andrew Luck reached out to him.

He'll also play for Luck's former coach with the Indianapolis Colts in Reich.

"Just trying to learn as much as I can from those guys," Gulbranson said. "Obviously NFL guys that have seen so much football and have learned so much, and they are just great teachers. They always have something new that I've never even really thought about or heard about, and it's really great having them."

In 18 appearances for Oregon State (2020, 2022-24), Gulbranson has completed 61.8 percent of his passes for 2,648 yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also has scored six rushing touchdowns, five coming during his redshirt freshman campaign at Oregon State in 2022.