Stanford came out of the locker room with a three-point lead over Florida State at home. Looking to earn its second ACC win of the season, the Cardinal will be doing so without its starting quarterback moving forward. Ben Gulbranson is out for the rest of the game, head coach Frank Reich told ESPN before the second half began.
“He’ll be down in the second half,” Reich said. “It’s a knee so we’ll see the severity of it.”
A second-year quarterback, Elijah Brown, now takes over. Brown was a big-time recruiting win for Stanford a couple of years ago, now getting some meaningful snaps. Reich expressed confidence in the youngster moving forward.
“Just keep executing one play at a time,” Reich said. “Elijah is a very mature young man, he’s made for this moment. He’s got a lot of football under his belt. We’ve got a lot of confidence in him.”
Brown played high school football at Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei, where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 256 overall recruit in the 2024 cycle, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
This will be Brown’s first action of the 2025 season after getting into three games last year. He completed 58.3% of his throws for 273 yards and two touchdowns. Even a start is thrown in there after getting the nod against Wake Forest. As Reich says, this is nothing new for Brown at the college level.
As for Gulbranson, an injury prevents him from finishing out the game. His 13 pass attempts saw six of them get completed, adding 90 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Not the performance Gulbranson wanted but most attention is currently on his health.
Reich said Stanford is still waiting to hear back on the severity of the injury. Everyone will be hoping it’s nothing long-term and Gulbranson is back on the field soon. The Oregon State transfer continues to be a steady hand for the Cardinal, something they will need in the remaining weeks.
Following Florida State is another matchup vs. a Sunshine State opponent, making the trip to Miami. From there, three of the final four home games are at home, including the season finale against Notre Dame. Pitt also comes to the West Coast, while Reich will take his team to Chapel Hill to face Bill Belichick on Nov. 8.