ACC FOOTBALL COMPANION GUIDE • ALPHABETICAL 13 OF 17
2026 Season Snapshot • Stanford, California
4–8 (3–5 ACC)
ACC
Live schedule, lines and results for Stanford.
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HEAD COACH
Tavita Pritchard — 1st season at Stanford
LIFETIME COACHING RECORD
First college head-coaching job
A former Stanford quarterback (beaten out by Andrew Luck in 2009) who developed a reputation as a top QB tutor, including coaching Jayden Daniels to Offensive Rookie of the Year with Washington in 2024. Hired by his old teammate and now-GM Luck in Dec. 2025 as Stanford's third head coach in under two years, following Troy Taylor's for-cause firing and Frank Reich's one-season interim stint.
STANFORD ATS RECORD
No single published career ATS figure
Stanford finished 2025 at 4-8 (3-5 ACC) under interim Frank Reich — the program's most wins since 2020 and its first improvement over the prior year's record since 2015, highlighted by reclaiming the Axe from Cal for the first time since 2020.
HEAD COACH SALARY (2026)
~$4.0M (est.)
TEAM NIL VALUATION (EST.)
Not disclosed
PRIMARY NIL COLLECTIVE
Not publicly named
Coach salary is an industry estimate (Stanford is a private school and does not disclose figures); beat coverage projects Pritchard's deal in the range of $4M annually. Stanford has not disclosed a team NIL figure. GM Andrew Luck oversees football operations, including roster construction and coaching decisions, a distinctly NFL-style front-office structure.
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Multiple • Pritchard-influenced system
Pritchard's own QB-development pedigree (Jayden Daniels' 2024 breakout) shapes the offense around a genuine QB competition (Ben Gulbranson, the Oregon State grad transfer who started 2025; Elijah Brown). Micah Ford (career-high 157 yards in the Cal win) anchors the run game.
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Bobby April • 4th season • 2-4-5
The most stable coaching position on the roster, having survived both the Taylor firing and the Reich interim year — real, rare continuity for a program that's changed nearly everything else.
2025 RECORD
4–8 (3–5 ACC)
Reclaimed the Axe from Cal for the first time since 2020, going 4-2 at home (Stanford's first winning home record since 2018). A real, tangible step forward under Reich that set the stage for Pritchard's hire.
HOME FIELD
Stanford Stadium
Grass, Stanford. A program navigating one of the most unusual coaching situations in the sport — an NFL-style GM structure under Andrew Luck, three head coaches in three years, and real, if modest, on-field progress underneath it all.
| SLOT | PLAYER | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB1 | Ben Gulbranson | Sr | ★★★★★ | TOP TRANSFER Three-star signee (Newbury Park HS, Calif., 2020 class). Oregon State transfer who won a genuine open competition in 2025 fall camp; a real veteran presence (2022 Vegas Bowl MVP at Oregon State) even after a rocky start that included a bench stretch. |
| RB1 | Micah Ford | — | ★★★★★ | Three-star signee (Toms River North HS, N.J.; 2022-23 Gatorade State Player of the Year, 4,570 career rush yds). Posted a career-high 157 yards and a touchdown in the Axe-reclaiming win over Cal; beat writers project him as a real 1,000-yard candidate for 2026 with an expanded role. |
Three-star signee (Newbury Park HS, Calif., 2020 class). Oregon State transfer who won a genuine open competition in 2025 fall camp; a real veteran presence (2022 Vegas Bowl MVP at Oregon State) even after a rocky start that included a bench stretch.
Three-star signee (Toms River North HS, N.J.; 2022-23 Gatorade State Player of the Year, 4,570 career rush yds). Posted a career-high 157 yards and a touchdown in the Axe-reclaiming win over Cal; beat writers project him as a real 1,000-yard candidate for 2026 with an expanded role.
| PLAYER | POS | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Line under new staff | OL | — | ★★★★★ | Protecting a QB competition under a first-year head coach; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1. |
Protecting a QB competition under a first-year head coach; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1.
| PLAYER | POS | NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Front seven under April | DL | Benefits from Bobby April's fourth-year continuity, the clearest defensive stability on a roster that's changed almost everything else. |
Benefits from Bobby April's fourth-year continuity, the clearest defensive stability on a roster that's changed almost everything else.
| PLAYER | POS | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary under April | DB | ★★★★★ | Also benefits from fourth-year coordinator continuity; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1. |
Also benefits from fourth-year coordinator continuity; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1.
2025 ATS
5-7
41.7% cover rate — 60th of 82
2025 Straight up
4-8
Point differential -124
Scoring environment
48
Combined points per game — 62nd highest of 82
Home / road ATS
4-2 · 1-5
Totals 6-6 O/U (4-2 home, 2-4 road)
Points scored / allowed
18.8 per game scored (77th) · 29.2 allowed (61st)
Margin & schedule
Margin of victory -10.3 (75th) · Strength of schedule +3.2
SRS power rating
-6.5
64th of 82 — projected points vs. a league-average team on a neutral field
Offensive SRS
-5.2
64th of 82
Defensive SRS
-0.4
51st of 82
Points (margin of victory)
-10.3 · 75th of 82
Against the spread
5-7 (41.7%) · 60th of 82
Totals (combined PPG)
48 · 62nd of 82
Computed from CollegeFootballData 2025 results and closing consensus lines.
Saved Just J research for Stanford.
Troy Taylor was fired for cause after workplace-conduct investigations; Frank Reich (a first-time college coach, ex- NFL) filled in for one season and outperformed expectations; now Pritchard takes over — three different head coaches across three seasons under GM Andrew Luck.
Stanford's 4-8 in 2025 broke a string of four straight 3-9 seasons and was the program's best mark since 2020 — genuine, measurable progress heading into the Pritchard era.
Beat writers specifically flag matchups with ACC champion Duke, Georgia Tech, 9-win Wake Forest, Notre Dame, Louisville, Virginia Tech, and SMU — real, significant difficulty for a first-year coach to navigate.
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