Stanford makes correct move keeping Bryce Love out of Oregon State game

Bryce Love will not play Thursday night against Oregon State, and now his Heisman campaign is taking a serious hit. But, keeping him away from this one was the correct move to make

Penn State running back Saquon Barkley is unquestionably the leader in the Heisman Trophy race heading into Week 9 of the college football season. But, Stanford’s Bryce Love has been opening more and more eyes with each passing week. Thursday night, Love, the nation’s leading rusher at 1,387 yards, had a great opportunity in front of him to let more people see what he can do, with the Cardinal set to face the Oregon State Beavers on national television.

But, as it turns out, Love won’t be able to take advantage of that opportunity. All week, Stanford head coach David Shaw has proclaimed that Love was a game-time decision, and with game time near on Thursday night, a decision was made. Because of the ankle injury Love has been nursing, the talented junior will not be taking the field against the Beavers in Corvallis.

With Love still trying to catch Barkley in the Heisman race, missing this Thursday night game delivers a brutal blow to his chances. Oregon State boasts one of the worst rushing defenses in the country, so even a somewhat healthy Love would have had a field day tearing them apart. Sure, it wouldn’t be considered impressive to some to see Love toy with Oregon State’s lowly defense, but for some Heisman voters, highlights are enough to sway their decision making. A Thursday night slot at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN was a gift.

Ultimately, though, keeping the star junior from this one was the right move, whether people agree with it or not. We all remember Stanford’s horrible loss to USC earlier in the season, as well as their head-scratching defeat on the road to San Diego State. But, folks should also remember that this Cardinal team, despite those losses, is still very much in the hunt to make it to the Pac-12 Championship Game in December. USC is in the South Division of the conference, and San Diego State is in a different conference altogether in the Mountain West. So, there’s still a chance for Shaw, Love and this Cardinal team to snag the North and a shot at going to a New Year’s Six bowl game.

Without Love, Stanford should still be able to beat the brakes off the Beavers, even with the game in Corvallis. Beginning next week, the Cardinal have two huge North games coming against both Washington State and Washington, so it’s best to make sure Love is as healthy as can be as this team looks to eventually secure the division in a couple weeks.

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It’s disappointing we don’t get to see the greatness that is Bryce Love torture a porous Oregon State defense on Thursday night, but for Stanford, it was the right call to make while thinking of the future. The Heisman run is fun, but they’d no doubt much rather be raising the Pac-12 trophy the first weekend of December.