Stanford is long removed from its last powerhouse era under Jim Harbaugh and early in David Shaw’s tenure, but that isn’t to say Troy Taylor isn’t the man for the job.
Part of the newly-restructured ACC, Stanford has an uphill climb to get back to national prominence, highlighted by understandable difficulties in the transfer portal.
Who are the Stanford Cardinal’s top returning players?
Stanford Cardinal Top Returning Players
10) Tristan Sinclair, LB
Tristan Sinclair is an overall solid linebacker who doesn’t do any one thing spectacularly but has gotten better in every facet of the game each year.
Now a sixth-year senior, Sinclair will play extensively as a middle linebacker. With over 100 tackles in his career, he’s one of the most experienced players on the team.
9) Zahran Manley, CB
One-half of an extremely talented corner duo, Zahran Manley is an extremely long corner who excels in pass coverage. Though he’s physical, he often struggles to wrap up as a tackler and, as a result, missed a lot of tackles last season.
If he cleans that up, Manley will be a more complete player, which will only help the defense.
8) Gaethan Bernadel, LB
A strong tackler, Gaethan Bernadel is always around the ball, and he led the Cardinal with 70 tackles last year.
A rare transfer, Bernadel has played over 1,700 snaps for FIU in 2021 and 2022 and then for Stanford last season. He’ll look to be a bit more consistent in coverage, but he’s an experienced presence in the middle.
7) Connor McLaughlin, OT
One of two returning starters on the offensive line for the Cardinal, McLaughlin is a massive, strong right tackle. He’s a mauler in the running game, but he’ll need to improve some as a pass blocker to help the Stanford offense take the next step in 2024.
6) Scotty Edwards, S
Scotty Edwards was the definition of steady last season on the back end, making the Cardinal secondary a strong unit in Taylor’s first season. He picked off two passes last season and was especially solid against some of the league’s best passing offenses and played his best football down the stretch.
5) Levi Rogers, OC
Levi Rogers took a huge step forward under Taylor after struggling a bit in 2022. In his second year as a full-time starter at center, Rogers allowed just one sack all year. Ironically, that was against Sacramento State.
Against Pac-12 competition, Rogers allowed just seven pressures.
4) Tiger Bachmeier, WR
Tiger Bachmeier, prior to last season, was more well-known for his brothers’ talent than his own, but he became one of the primary receiving targets down the stretch.
Bachmeier was moved all over the formation in 2023, especially as he came into his own at the end of the year. The Cardinal enter this year with more than one proven skill player.
3) Ashton Daniels, QB
Ashton Daniels shared starting duties at the beginning of last year, but he quickly took the reins as the full-time quarterback midway through the season.
A true dual threat, Daniels was asked to do a lot without much help. He struggled a bit down the stretch, but this is clearly his team now, and he has a lot returning at the receiver positions.
2) Collin Wright, CB
Collin Wright hardly ever came off the field last season and was the unquestioned leader in the secondary. Not only was he solid in coverage, but he also racked up 61 tackles for the Cardinal defense.
This defensive unit has the chance to be special, but only if Wright can continue to improve on his strong 2023 season.
1) Elic Ayomanor, WR
Elic Ayomanor is the headliner, and it’s a huge deal that Stanford was able to keep him in 2024. He was the top option by a substantial margin last year, racking up over 1,000 yards, including an absurd 13-catch, 293-yard performance in a comeback win over Colorado. Most of that came with Travis Hunter as the primary defender in coverage.
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