Cardinal, Spartans thump, run

PASADENA, Calif. - The game considered to be the first Rose Bowl was staged in 1902 to help pay for the Tournament of Roses Parade. An unexpectedly huge crowd of about 8,000 sat on temporary stands in a park and watched Stanford lose 49-0 to Michigan.

No. 5 Stanford has returned to Pasadena 112 years later, facing No. 4 Michigan State today in the 100th edition of college football’s quintessential bowl game.

“There is a special quality to it,” said David Yankey, Stanford’s All-American left guard. “The Rose Bowl will still go on, but it’s kind of an end of an era in some sense, and we’re excited to be part of that.”

The 100th game falls during the final season of the Bowl Championship Series, and the stadium also will host the last BCS title game on Monday.

The Cardinal (11-2) are in their fourth consecutive BCS bowl game after winning the Pac-12, while the Spartans (12-1) blew through their Big Ten schedule and won their final nine games to earn the school’s first trip to Pasadena since 1988.

“Definitely the biggest game in our lives,” Michigan State safety Kurtis Drummond said. “For us to go down in history as potentially one of the best teams, it’s definitely a challenge that we’re all ready to take on.”

The Cardinal won their first Rose Bowl in 40 years by holding off Wisconsin in a defense-dominated game a year ago, and this game has been billed similarly, as a collision of evenly-matched teams with comparable quarterbacks - Michigan State’s Connor Cook and Stanford’s Kevin Hogan, redshirt sophomores whose accomplishments exceed their experience.

Cook has one conference title and a career winning percentage of 91.6. Hogan has two conference crowns and won 88.8 percent of his starts.

Cook averages 186.4 yards passing per game this season and has 20 touchdowns. Hogan averages 191.3 yards passing per game and has 20 touchdowns.

Both are 6-4, attended Jesuit high schools, and come from football-playing families. (Cook’s father, Chris, played for Indiana; several of Hogan’s relatives played for Notre Dame.)

Both quarterbacks are capable of extending plays with their mobility, throwing accurately on the move and striking down field with play-action passes.

“He’s definitely a better athlete than people give him credit for,” Stanford linebacker Shayne Skov said of Cook. “He’s mobile and can throw on the run. At the same time, he’s incredibly accurate. It’s a dangerous combination.”

Both Hogan and Cook are equal-opportunity passers: Stanford has six players with at least 10 catches; Michigan State has seven.

If there’s a difference between the quarterbacks - between the offenses, really - it lies in Michigan State’s preference for trick plays.

“They play a physical run game and keep you honest with just enough gadget plays and shots down the field,” Stanford linebacker Trent Murphy said. “It’s a pretty solid combination.”

Sports, Pages 23 on 01/01/2014

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