Andrew Luck, one of the most talented, highly-regarded quarterbacks to come out of Texas, assumes his new role with a mixture of confidence and a knowledge of his lack of expertise.
The 6-4, 235-pound signal caller has a wealth of reference sources surrounding him in the form of incumbent starter Tavita Pritchard, the nephew of former Washington State and NFL quarterback Jack Thompson, his father, Oliver Luck, who played quarterback for the Houston Oilers in the mid-80s, and his coach, another former NFL quarterback.
"It feels great," Luck said after finishing an early fall practice. I know I'm not going to be 100 percent ready and I don't know what to expect. I got acclimated a little bit as a redshirt but I need to understand game situations and my leadership role."
Summer Football Drills
Luck won the starting job after an outstanding spring. He stayed in the area over the summer, working as an intern in the business department of the San Jose Earthquakes, and playing catch with many of his potential receivers.
"The receivers have caught something like 114,000 balls this summer," Luck said. "Griff Whalen caught the most with 10,000 but they all caught a lot of balls."
Senior Richard Sherman, Stanford's active career leader in receptions, receiving yardage and touchdown receptions, requested a move to defense and has earned a spot as a cornerback this fall.
"It was his idea," Harbaugh said. "I can't take credit for it."
What's left is a group of talented, albeit untested, group of receivers, led by juniors Ryan Whalen, Doug Baldwin and Marcus Rance. There's also sophomores Warren Reuland, Griff Whalen and Chris Owusu, and five true freshmen.
Progression of Signal Callers
Pritchard, who has started 19 games for Stanford, began tutoring Luck the moment he arrived on campus last year. They remain close even as Luck jumped over him on the depth chart.
"The situation can always change. Tavita is a great quarterback and incredibly smart. He helps every young quarterback. He helped me a lot. He's a great teammate."
It all starts with his own lineage. Luck is blessed with his father's height, instincts, mobility and intelligence.
"He taught me how to throw the football but he never really pushed me into it," Luck said. "He told me to get busy and get out of the house."
Soccer Player Turns to Football
Although he never saw his dad play, Luck has followed him around the world and become immersed in all aspects of the sport. Soccer was his first love as a young boy growing up in Germany, where he father worked as an executive with NFL Europe.
"I was a striker. I liked to score goals," Luck said. "But I got in trouble when I tried to pick the ball up and throw it. I think soccer is a great game but I just like throwing the ball."
He'll get his chance at Stanford, even with its record-setting running back Toby Gerhart lining up behind him. Gerhart set the school rushing yardage mark last season, becoming the first Cardinal running back to go over 1,000 yards in a season in 15 years.
"He's a great running back," Luck said. "I'm not going to complain about him getting the ball."
A New Standard of Excellence at Stanford
Luck has a chance to help Stanford reverse its trend of losing seasons. It's seven straight since Tyrone Willingham led the Cardinal to a 9-3 record in 2001. Until now, Stanford never had more than a five-year streak of losing records.
"The losing mentality is completely gone from Stanford," Luck said. "It starts at the top and coach Harbaugh has great enthusiasm about football."
Whether that translates into becoming bowl-eligible may just well depend on Stanford's Luck.
Rick Eymer - I have written for The San Mateo Times, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat and am currently working part-time as an assistant sports editor at ...
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