Washington @ Stanford preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 27, 2014 ) Stanford 20, Washington 13

Stanford looks to remain in the national-playoff discussion Saturday as the 11th-ranked Cardinal host Washington, which leads the Pac-12 in scoring defense at 16.8 points per game. The Huskies will face their toughest test against a Cardinal offense that has averaged 45 points and 492.8 yards since falling 16-6 to Northwestern in their season opener.

Running back Christian McCaffrey leads the nation with 253 all-purpose yards per game for Stanford, which has outscored opponents by an average of 22.2 points during its win streak and leads the Pac-12 North division by 1 1/2 games. McCaffrey, who has five rushing touchdowns in the past two games, entered the Heisman Trophy race with 243 yards on 25 carries in Stanford’s 56-35 win over UCLA on Oct. 15. Washington's young offense might have trouble keeping pace with the Cardinal, but the Huskies’ underrated defense could keep things close. “You don’t hear a lot about the individual names, the superstar players, but you look at the rankings and you say, ‘Wow, this is a very, very good defense — one of the best defenses in the nation,’” Stanford coach David Shaw told the Seattle Times.

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: No Line

ABOUT WASHINGTON (3-3, 1-2 Pac-12): Freshman quarterback Jake Browning, who has started the Huskies’ first six games, is listed as day-to-day after suffering a right-shoulder injury in last Saturday’s 26-20 loss to Oregon. If Browning is unavailable, either K.J. Carta-Samuels or Jeff Lindquist will lead an offense that figures to lean heavily on freshman running back Myles Gaskin, who has rushed for more than 100 yards in back-to-back games. Bay Area native Travis Feeney has 4.5 sacks at linebacker to lead the Huskies, who have held all six opponents under 200 yards on the ground.

ABOUT STANFORD (5-1, 4-0): The balanced Cardinal offense is engineered by senior quarterback Kevin Hogan, whose 73.2 completion percentage in conference action leads the Pac-12. Since his team’s dismal effort against Northwestern in the opener, Hogan has thrown for 12 touchdowns against two interceptions to complement a dynamic running game powered by McCaffrey, Barry J. Sanders and Remound Wright. Linebacker Blake Martinez averages a Pac-12-high 11.7 tackles to lead the Cardinal defense, which has recorded just three interceptions and nine sacks but ranks second in the league behind Washington allowing 357.3 yards per game.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Stanford has won six of the last seven meetings against the Huskies.

2. Washington has outscored its opponents 76-14 in the third quarter.

3. Stanford has won a nation-best 25 consecutive night games at home.

PREDICTION: Stanford 27, Washington 17