They're more concerned about their next wine-and-cheese in Palo Alto than Stanford football, with Frank Reich an emergency interim hire after HC Troy Taylor was forced out in March, and a personnel exodus thru the portal thinning the roster. Oregon State transfer Ben Gulbranson also looks very limited in his abilities, and what little success the Cardinal had trying to play smashmouth in Honolulu is unlikely to work in Provo. All bad news for Stanford, as many Big 12 sources are suggesting BYU might be no worse off than last year’s surprise 11-2 entry, with another brawling defense that could force Gulbranson to see shelter, while frosh QB Bear Bachmeier looks an able successor to departed Jake Retzlaff, too. Play BYU

Based on what we saw from both clubs in their openers, this game is grossly mispriced. The Cougars have a strong returning core from what was the Big 12's top defense last year for an 11-2 club and ample firepower on offense. The Cardinal are in a transitional phase following the dismissal of Troy Taylor and their personnel gap versus the rest of the Big 12 is even wider. Their only chance to cover would be to shorten the game with clock-eating drives as they did in their opener against Hawaii but they won't be able to move the Cougars at the line of scrimmage as they did the Rainbow Warriors. We see a massive blowout win on deck for BYU.