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Aug 23, 2025; Honolulu, Hawaii, USA; Stanford Cardinal quarterback Ben Gulbranson (15) makes a pass against Hawaii Rainbow Warriors during the second half at Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex. Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-Imagn Images Marco Garcia-Imagn Images

Latest on Stanford Quarterback Situation

Originally posted on Stanford Cardinal on SI
By Lucca Mazzie | Last updated Aug 25, 2025 7:41 PM ET

Over the weekend, the Stanford Cardinal opened their 2025 football season with a disappointing loss on the road against Hawaii. Coming off four straight 3-9 years, the Cardinal were not expected to shine, but a new staff including a new interim head coach and general manager made the season very interesting.

In Week Zero, Stanford traveled to the island of Hawaii, where they took on the Rainbow Warriors for a ACC vs Mountain West battle. Although Hawaii came in as -2.5 point favorites, it felt as though this would be Stanford's game to lose.

Stanford looked good early. A field goal followed by an amazing defensive touchdown put the score at 10-0. However, it all went downhill from there. Coaching issues showed, QB play was questionable, and Hawaii scored 23 of the next 33 points, including a walk-off field goal. Hawaii won 23-20.

The biggest issue seemed to be the Cardinal quarterback play. Ben Gulbranson went for 109 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception on 15/30 passing. The stats don’t look great, and the eye test was even worse. Despite the bad performance though, it looks like Stanford will be rolling with Ben Gulbranson for Week Two.

During Monday’s press conference, Frank Reich spoke about the loss and the upcoming matchup with BYU. Reich wasn't asked directly who would be the starting quarterback moving forward, but he did say that they would be continuing with their guys. In other words, as of Monday August 25th, Stanford will looks to be starting Gulbranson against BYU in Week Two.

“We were not good enough in the passing game,” Reich said. “We're flat out, three point something yards per attempt. Not that it's all about the stats, but we need to do better. I think we only gave up the one sack. We had a couple times where we're pressured and Ben did a good job of throwing the ball away.

"I thought most of the game the protection was decent, but we did have our lapses. So we got to be more consistent there and then, as I mentioned earlier, when we have the opportunities for those big, 10, 20, 30 yard plays, we have to make them. And we left about three or four of those out there. I have a lot of room to improve in the passing game, and I'm confident we will make that improvement.”

This isn't exactly what the Cardinal faithful will want to hear. Gulbranson can be a solid quarterback in college football, but he definitely didn’t show it in Week Zero. If he wants to truly prove that he is deserving of the starting spot, he needs to ball out in practice, and have a big game, win or lose, against BYU.

It’s hard to be able to tell who truly will be the starter next week, with there seemingly being room for someone like Elijah Brown to take over the starting role before Stanford takes the field on September 6. His mention of bad QB play could hint at a new starter, but he also said that he would roll with his guys. Whoever the quarterback is in Provo for week two needs to show some talent and give the Cardinal a chance to even up their record.

This article first appeared on Stanford Cardinal on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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