Stanford Cardinal sophomore making his defense-minded family proud on offense

STANFORD – Sam Roush seemed to follow his bloodlines when he was named the 2021 Tennessee Class AA co-defensive player of the year.

Roush’s maternal great uncle is Pro Football Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen, who spent 15 years as a defensive tackle with the Los Angeles Rams. His maternal grandfather, Phil Olsen, also played defensive tackle in the NFL, while his father, Luke Roush, played safety at Duke.

Roush had a breakout performance for Stanford last week that’d make his football-playing relatives proud – but it was on the other side of the ball, as a tight end. Roush led the team with seven catches for 61 yards in the Cardinal’s 10-7 win at Washington State.

Stanford will likely need another big performance from Roush on Saturday if it hopes for another upset in the Pacific Northwest, this time as a three-touchdown underdog against No. 12 Oregon State (2:30 p.m., Pac-12 Network).

Roush played tight end and defensive end in high school, and he said his defensive-minded family members don’t mind that he lines up on offense now.

“They’re just happy that I’m having fun,” Roush said.

Roush had 11 catches for 118 yards in his first 19 games with Stanford. But since joining the starting lineup after Benjamin Yurosek suffered an undisclosed injury against UCLA, Roush has caught 10 passes for 104 yards in the past two games.

“He didn’t play much or any tight end in high school,” Cardinal coach Troy Taylor said. “He’s really more of a defensive lineman and so his growth has been tremendous.”

Roush played a part in the biggest play against Washington State, a 27-yard reverse pass from QB Justin Lamson that got Stanford to the 1-yard line and led to its only touchdown.

Roush was supposed to be wide open on the trick play – not only did it come off a reverse, but also Lamson would run 20 times and throw only one pass, making a throw even more surprising. A safety came up to stop the run, but a linebacker stayed glued to Roush, forcing him to make a contested catch.

“I mean, the ball skills he showed on that pass from Lamson,” Taylor said. “It was a really good throw and an unbelievable adjustment. He came up with late hands, adjusted to the ball, opened up his hips. We’ve seen that in practice where he’s just gotten better and better and more comfortable.”

Out of concern for head injuries, Roush’s parents didn’t let him play football until he started high school at Valley Christian in San Jose. Halfway through his junior year, he moved to Nashville and played for Lipscomb Academy and then-head coach Trent Dilfer.

Though his accolades as a senior came as a defensive player, he was recruited as a tight end and enrolled early at Stanford. He played primarily on special teams and on running downs as a freshman.

“He wants to be good in all aspects of playing tight end and the run game and pass protection,” Taylor said. “He just wants it so bad, and sometimes you can press when you want to be good at everything. And so I think as you get more experience and he’s playing more, I think he’s become more comfortable, more confident, and a little bit more consistent. He’s become a real factor and advantage for us at that position.”

Roush continued on the punt coverage team this season, so he still gets the chance to hit people like his forefathers used to.

“I get to tackle people every once in a while, and that’s a lot of fun,” Roush said. “But catching passes and blocking people is great too.”

MUST-WIN GAME

Stanford (3-6, 2-5 Pac-12) and Oregon State (7-2, 4-2 Pac-12 , No. 12 CFP) share one thing in common on Saturday — a loss will end their big-picture dream for the season.

The Cardinal must win out (they host Cal and Notre Dame to end the regular season) to get the six wins needed to become bowl eligible. The Beavers are going to a bowl, but must win out — and get help — to keep hopes for a berth in the Pac-12 championship alive.

BIG D

Stanford’s maligned defense showed spark last weekend on the road at Washington State, limiting the Cougars to just 57 total yards in the second half . Oregon State’s Damian Martinez has rushed for an average of 97.6 yards a game and the Beavers collectively are averaging 5.21 yards per rush. Stanford is allowing about 127 yards rushing a game.

Martinez needs 122 rushing yards to reach 1,000 for the season and becoming the 18th player in school history to reach that milestone. He has rushed for at least 100 yards in four games this season. He’s ranked second in the Pac-12 with an average of 97.6 yards a game.

FACTS & FIGURES
The Beavers won the last two in the all-time series against Stanford after an 11-game losing streak. … All three of Stanford’s wins have come on the road. … Oregon State has 30 sacks, second-most in the Pac-12 and 10th nationally. … Stanford wide receiver Tiger Bachmeier has 20 receptions over the last three games. Two weeks ago against the Huskies he became the first true freshman in Stanford’s history with 10 catches in a single game. His 327 receiving yards are the most by a true freshman in the Pac-12 this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.