We asked the football beat writer for the Stanford Daily five quick questions about the Sun Devils’ next opponent. Are the Cardinal ready to compete, or are they still a year away?

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Leveraging the power of our new Facebook page, we asked Stanford Daily football beat writer Wyndam Makowsky five questions to preview the Cardinal.

Q: Give us two guys we should know about for their football prowess.
A: Toby Gerhart and Clinton Snyder. Gerhart introduced himself to the Pac-10 football world last week in a big way: 19 carries for 147 yards and 2 TDs. He’s a strong, two-sport athlete who can drill through the middle or bust it outside. Synder, who has started 23 of 25 games in his Stanford career, switched from MLB to SLB this off season. He is is a superb tackler and pass rusher, and made the preseason Butkus Award watch list.

Q: Give us one guy we should know about for something off the field.
A: Unfortunately for Scottsdale Chaparral grad Ekom Udofia, his best season came as a redshirt freshman in 2006. He made the Pac-10′s all-frosh team, and was poised to be a force on Stanford’s defensive line last season. But he was overshadowed by teammates Pannel Egboh and Erik Lorig and was eventually lost for the year with an ankle fracture. He was poised to come back this year and perhaps return to ’06 form, but was unable to beat out Sione Fua for the starting NT job. Fua, a sophomore, sat out all of last season (after an impressive freshman year in 2006) to go on a Mormon mission. Udofia will still get significant playing time, and, because Coach Harbaugh has made clear that no one’s job is safe, could find himself starting again if Fua falters. But Fua began his season against Oregon State with his first career sack, so don’t expect Udofia in the starting lineup when the Cardinal come to Tempe.

Q: What’s the best case scenario for your squad this weekend?
A: Best case is obviously a win. It doesn’t have to be big, but this is a statement game. Arizona State made Stanford look downright silly last year. Retribution would be nice. But more than that, Stanford is trying to establish itself as an up-and-coming program, one that is no longer in the Pac-10 basement. Beating ASU, a Pac-10 power, would turn some heads. It will also give the Cardinal some momentum as they head down to Texas to face TCU, a team they nearly beat last season on the Farm and a squad they should trump this year.

Q: And the worst case?
A: Worst case is a blowout. A loss is expected, and if the Cardinal can keep the margin to ten points or less, then I’m sure it can be spun as a moral victory. But if Stanford loses by 20+ points, then it’s going to bring on a slew of questions. Was the Oregon State win an aberration? Is Stanford ready to compete? Are they still a Pac-10 bottom-dweller? Etc, etc.

Q: OK, the Cardinal are 14-point dogs. Who you got straight up? Who you got in Vegas?
A: What’s the line? -14? That’s tough. Straight up, I’ll take Arizona State. After the USC upset last season, I won’t write Stanford off against anyone, but I think the Cardinal are another year away from competing with the Sun Devils. But, who am I taking with that spread? Stanford. I’m not terribly impressed with the ASU offensive line, and the Cardinal has a good enough pass rush to keep Carpenter on his toes. But the ASU defense could give Stanford fits–Gerhart will need to have another big game, and Tavita Pritchard and the rest of the offense will need to step up to keep it close.

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