Stanford Cardinal head coach David Shaw celebrates with the Rose Bowl trophy Tuesday in Pasadena, Calif. (DANNY MOLOSHOK/Reuters)
A goal-line stand started the Stanford Cardinal rise back in October.
This time, the goal-line was on their side, as the Cardinal used a first-quarter denial to set the tone for a knock-'em-down, drag-'em-out 20-14 Rose Bowl win over the Wisconsin Badgers on New Year's Day in Pasadena, Calif.
With Stanford (12-2) up 14-0 early thanks to two picture-perfect drives, Wisconsin (8-6) drove the ball down to the Cardinal one-yard line and looked to be on the verge of clawing their way back into the ballgame.
But reminiscent of Notre Dame's stand Oct. 17 in South Bend -- one that effectively ended Stanford's shot at a national title -- the Cardinal defensive front made a stand of their own, stuffing Badgers' running back James White on a fourth-down wildcat run up the gut
