Beyda: In Stanford’s front seven we trust

Say what you want about special teams, but Stanford’s pass defense cost it the Fiesta Bowl.

On that fateful night in January, the Cardinal executed its game plan to perfection in the three other phases of the game: it rushed for 243 yards and three touchdowns, allowed practically nothing from Oklahoma State on the ground and benefited from a 27-for-31, 347-yard effort from Andrew Luck in his final collegiate game. But with Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden throwing for 399 yards of his own, Stanford couldn’t close things out the way it would have wanted to, and Oklahoma State came out on top in overtime.

So as the Cardinal opened its fall training camp Sunday without the three graduated members of its 2011 starting