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GAME NOTES: The seventh-ranked Stanford Cardinal will attempt to extend the nation's longest winning streak to 14 games when it takes on the Washington State Cougars in Pac-12 Conference action this weekend.

Many wondered how the Cardinal would perform without former head coach Jim Harbaugh, who left after last season to lead the San Francisco 49ers. So far, so good for David Shaw, the new head coach of the program, as his team has won its first five games of this campaign by no fewer than 26 points. Stanford's 13 straight victories have tied a school record, so a win in this one would establish a new program benchmark. Last week, the club trounced new conference opponent Colorado in a 48-7 final.

"We have a lot of room for improvement still," said Stanford linebacker Max Bergen, refusing to be content with the early success. "We're still getting better every week and we're going to look at the film and see what we need to improve on."

This game marks Homecoming for Washington State, which certainly could have chosen a less formidable opponent for the annual event. The Cougars have lost two of their last three games since a 2-0 start. Last Saturday's defeat was a heart-breaker, as Paul Wulff's club fell to UCLA by a 28-25 final on the road.

"I thought our players played a good football game, but at the end of the day, they made a few more plays late than we did," said Wulff."

The Cardinal own a 35-25-1 series advantage over the Cougars, which includes wins in each of the last three meetings.

Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is in an enviable position. It has been a long time, decades in the opinion of many, since a collegiate quarterback has been so coveted by NFL franchises. Luck has been truly sensational this season, completing 73.2 percent of his passes for 1,383 yards and 14 touchdowns with only two interceptions. He leads a team that averages 46.2 ppg and 487.8 total ypg, and there is no sign that the Cardinal are about to slow down. Stepfan Taylor paces the ground attack with 459 yards and five scores, while Chris Owusu tops the receivers with 25 catches for 309 yards and two touchdowns. Coby Fleener is worth mentioning as well, as he has scored on five of his 12 catches.

Clearly, Luck and the Stanford offense garner all of the headlines, overshadowing what has been a tremendous defensive unit thus far. Opponents have found little room to run against the Cardinal, who are yielding a modest 61.8 ypg at a clip of 2.1 ypc. Only four passing scores have been permitted, but there is some room for improvement, especially since the Cardinal have only one interception. On a positive note, they have already notched 17 sacks, including five by Chase Thomas.

In the romp over Colorado last time out, Luck completed 26-of-33 passes for 370 yards with three touchdowns, helping the Cardinal to 553 total yards and six touchdowns.

"Every game he does something that not many humans can do," said Shaw of his quarterback.

Meanwhile, the Stanford defense limited the overmatched Buffaloes to 264 total yards, including just 60 yards on 27 rushing attempts. The Cardinal posted a trio of sacks and permitted Colorado to make good on only 2-of-13 third-down conversion attempts.

Challenging that Stanford defense will be a Washington State squad that has scored progressively fewer points in every game since posting 64 against Idaho State in the opener. Still, the Cougars are averaging a solid 40.6 ppg and 492.6 total ypg, numbers that will certainly get the attention of any opponent. Marshall Lobbestael has been dynamite under center, posting numbers that rival those of Luck. The Cougars' senior has completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 1,570 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions, while top receiver Marquess Wilson has 31 grabs for 638 yards and five scores. Rickey Galvin paces the ground attack with 308 yards and three TDs.

Against UCLA last week, Lobbestael threw for 235 yards and a pair of scores, and Washington State made good on 11-of-20 third-down conversion attempts. The Cougars held the ball for nearly 37 minutes, yet still fell short.

Lobbestael took over the reins of the offense when Jeff Tuel broke his collarbone in the opener. Tuel may be cleared to play this weekend, so keep an eye on that situation.

Opponents are posting 25.0 ppg and 363.6 total ypg against the Cougars, who can best be described as a mediocre defensive team. They are allowing just 3.9 ypc to opposing runners, but the pass defense has some room for improvement with three more aerial TDs permitted than interceptions notched. A player to watch is Alex Hoffman-Ellis, who has posted 34 tackles to date, including six TFL.

The Cougars yielded just 371 total yards to UCLA last week, but they surrendered four touchdowns in the clash.

Washington State is no longer the perennial conference pushover, but beating Stanford seems highly unlikely. Expect Luck to put forth another nearly perfect performance.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Stanford 41, Washington State 20