“We wanted to make a statement” : Taking a look back at Stanford’s elite defenses

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images“We wanted to make a statement,” remembers Shayne Skov.

The Stanford defense made plenty of statements with Skov as their middle linebacker, but the best certainly came against Oregon in 2012.

The undefeated Ducks were 21.5 point favorites for good reason. They were averaging 325 rushing per game and had a Heisman contender in Marcus Mariota. Meanwhile, the Cardinal were facing the Ducks at Autzen, the loudest stadium in the country, with freshman quarterback Kevin Hogan and two losses.

Simply put, Oregon could not handle Shayne Skov and company. The Stanford defense held their superstar running back Kenjon Barner to only 66 yards, and the Duck offense, who had…