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FACTS & STATS: Site: Stanford Stadium (85,500) -- Stanford, California. Television: None. Home Record: San Jose St. 0-1, Stanford 0-0. Away Record: San Jose St. 0-1, Stanford 1-1. Neutral Record: San Jose St. 0-0, Stanford 0-0. Conference Record: San Jose St. 0-0, Stanford 1-0. Series Record: Stanford leads, 48-14-1.

GAME NOTES: The Stanford Cardinal of the Pac-10 Conference welcome the San Jose State Spartans of the Western Athletic Conference to Stanford Stadium on Saturday night.

San Jose State deserves some credit for scheduling a couple of top flight non- conference opponents, as it began the season with back-to-back bouts against programs that appeared in BCS bowls last season. After getting crushed by USC in the opener on the road by a 56-3 final, the Spartans fell to Utah at home by a much more respectable 24-14 margin. San Jose State will play one more non-league game after this weekend's tilt before diving into a full slate of WAC affairs on October 10th.

As for Stanford, it opened the season with a 39-13 victory over conference foe Washington State, which may have been the nation's worst FBS team a year ago. The Cardinal put forth a solid effort last weekend on the road against Wake Forest, but the result of that non-conference affair was a 24-17 setback. Saturday's tilt marks the first of what will be three straight home games for the Cardinal, the next two of which will be played against Pac-10 foes.

Stanford owns a 48-14-1 series advantage over San Jose State, and the Cardinal have won the last two meetings.

Considering the fact that San Jose State has scored a grand total of 17 points in two games, it is fair to say that the offense has struggled mightily. The Spartans are gaining a minuscule 192.5 total ypg, including a microscopic 15.5 rushing yards per outing. They are averaging 0.6 yards per rush attempt, an embarrassing figure to say the least. Jordan La Secla has take the majority of snaps under center for the Spartans, and he has completed 60.5 percent of his throws for 285 yards with one touchdown and one interceptions. Kevin Jurovich has clearly been the club's top receiver, as he has 12 receptions for 177 yards. In the 10-point loss to Utah, the Spartans posted 264 total yards, 242 of which came through the air. Brandon Rutley did have a two-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and La Secla threw a one-yard touchdown pass to Marquis Avery in the fourth quarter. In all, however, the offense wasn't overly impressive by any means.

While San Jose State is scoring a mere 8.5 ppg, the team is yielding 40.0 ppg to the opposition. Sure, the Spartans played much better in the second game than the first, but there is still a wealth of room for improvement. Let's start with the run defense, as foes are gaining 7.0 yards per carry and just a touch under 300 rushing yards per game. The pass defense is yielding 14.2 yards per completion, and 559.5 total yards per game allowed is simply an unacceptable figure. Tanner Burns leads the Spartans with 19 tackles, and he has forced a fumble. In the 10-point loss to Utah, SJSU permitted 499 yards, and if not for a pair of recovered fumbles, the final score wouldn't have been so close. The Spartans permitted 8-of-15 third down conversion attempts to be successful and finished the game with only one sack.

Stanford is scoring 28.0 ppg this season while churning out 436.0 total ypg. The Cardinal have been balanced offensively, posting 201.5 ypg on the ground and 234.5 ypg through the air, with three touchdowns coming by both means of attack. Andrew Luck is the quarterback for Jim Harbaugh's Stanford squad, and he has completed 59.6 percent of his passes for 469 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Ryan Whalen leads the receivers with 13 catches for 197 yards and two scores. As for the ground attack, Toby Gerhart has been the workhorse as expected, posting 203 yards and two touchdowns on 40 carries. In the narrow loss to Wake Forest, Stanford played fairly well offensively, gaining 391 yards and moving the chains 19 times. Unfortunately, a pair of turnovers played a major role in the setback.

So far this season, Stanford has allowed a grand total of six points in the first half of games. The defense hasn't been nearly as strong in the second half, however, as opponents have scored 31 points over the final two quarters of games. The Cardinal are yielding a mere 18.5 ppg despite yielding 403.5 total ypg. There is room for improvement against both the run and the pass, and the fact that Stanford has yet to record an interception or fumble recovery is a bit concerning. Clinton Snyder leads the Cardinal with 21 total tackles, and 3.5 of Thomas Kaiser's nine tackles have come behind the line of scrimmage. The defense didn't get the job done against Wake Forest last weekend, as the unit permitted the Demon Deacons to post 458 total yards, including over 200 yards both on the ground and through the air. The fact that the Cardinal yielded 251 rushing yards on an average of 5.6 yards per carry is perhaps most troubling of all.

Stanford is happy to be playing a home game, and the crowd will help the Cardinal dispose of San Jose State. Don't expect a blowout, but rather a fairly comfortable Stanford win.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Stanford 31, San Jose State 13