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Pac-12 Football 2017 preview

By Brad Weiss

SANTA CLARA, CA - DECEMBER 02: Washington Huskies revel in the celebration during the Pac-12 Championship game between the Washington Huskies verses the Colorado Buffaloes on December 2, 2016 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA (Photo by Douglas Stringer/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - DECEMBER 02: Washington Huskies revel in the celebration during the Pac-12 Championship game between the Washington Huskies verses the Colorado Buffaloes on December 2, 2016 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA (Photo by Douglas Stringer/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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PALO ALTO, CA – NOVEMBER 26: Bryce Love #20 of the Stanford Cardinal scores on a fifty yard touchdown run against the Rice Owls in the third quarter of their NCAA football game at Stanford Stadium on November 26, 2016 in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
PALO ALTO, CA – NOVEMBER 26: Bryce Love #20 of the Stanford Cardinal scores on a fifty yard touchdown run against the Rice Owls in the third quarter of their NCAA football game at Stanford Stadium on November 26, 2016 in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Breakout star to watch: RB Bryce Love, Stanford

For the past two seasons, when you thought of Stanford football, you thought of running back Christian McCaffrey. An absolute freak at the running back position, McCaffrey racked up yards like nobody we have seen in a long while in college football, setting the bar pretty high for whichever back replaced him in the starting lineup in 2017. Luckily for Stanford fans, that player is Bryce Love, who looked very good in extended action last season.

Despite being the backup to McCaffrey, Love actually was named Honorable Mention All-Pac-12, after starting a handful of games for the Cardinal. In fact, Love started the Stanford bowl game, racking up 115 yards rushing, and a receiving touchdown in the Cardinal’s Hyundai Sun Bowl victory against the University of North Carolina.

In 2017, it will be Love’s show, and he certainly is not going to back down from the challenge. Replacing a player who consistently racked up over 2,000 all-purpose yards is a tall task, but Love did average over 7.0 yards per carry last season.

A sprinter in the 200m and 400m, Love has blazing speed, and even ran a 4.4 40-yard dash during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl back in 2013.

For Stanford, there are question marks at quarterback, which is going to put more emphasis on them having a stellar run game. Love missed the Stanford opener against Kansas State last season, but still finished with nearly 800 yards and three touchdowns.

He eclipsed the 100-yard mark on three occasions last season, but as the workhorse this season, that number of games should be doubled.