Harbaugh speaks at rally before Cal game

Head coach Jim Harbaugh spoke at a Stanford football rally outside Maples Pavilion before the men’s basketball team’s 79-69 win over archrival Cal yesterday.

The biggest announcement made at the rally was that the Stanford bench will now be moved from the east to the west side of Stanford Stadium. As a result, the student section will be moved to the shady side of the stadium, and Stanford students will no longer have to stand in the sun during afternoon games.

According to Associate Director of Media Relations Kyle McRae, the decision to move the Stanford bench was indeed made to give students the shade.

The rally took place approximately an hour before Stanford tipped-off against the Bears on the hardwood. The Stanford Band was also in attendance.

Ostrander, Bradford and Moore finish up at NFL Combine

Stanford quarterback T.C. Ostrander and wide receivers Mark Bradford and Evan Moore completed their NFL Combine workouts yesterday at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. The three Cardinal had been participating in the all-important draft workout since Thursday.

Ostrander measured in at 6’2” and 227 pounds — a good size (if not an inch short) for an NFL quarterback. The senior’s participation at the Combine was limited due to a strained hamstring. He is an interesting prospect: Like former Cardinal and current Buffalo Bills starter Trent Edwards, he wasn’t widely successful in college, but has the physical attributes NFL scouts look for on draft day.

Moore, who is being projected as a tight end in the NFL, ran a 4.67 40, bench-pressed 225 pounds 16 times and jumped 27 inches in the vertical leap test. Moore dropped a pass during a route-running exercise, however. The senior’s best attribute is his size: He stands at 6’7” and weighs 235 pounds. His decent athleticism plus his build make him an interesting late-round prospect.

The Cardinal player with the best performances throughout the event was Bradford, who is being projected as high as a mid-round pick for his good hands and route-running skills. The senior had the seventh-best bench press for wide receivers, lifting 225 pounds 19 times. He was fourth in the vertical leap at 36.5 inches and ran an average 4.69 40. The Southern California native measured in close to 6’1” and 211 pounds.

The NFL Draft will take place on Apr. 26 and 27.

Men sweep Collegiate Classic

The No. 1 Stanford men’s gymnastics team just keeps on rolling.

With its best team score of the year, the Cardinal topped all competition at the 2008 Pacific Coast Collegiate Classic last Saturday in Oakland. Stanford finished with a score of 361.650, besting No. 3 Oklahoma who came in second with 359.800.

The performance was another impressive showing by the Cardinal — several other top teams were also at the event in addition to Oklahoma, including No. 4 California, No. 5 Illinois, No. 6 Michigan and No. 13 Air Force.

Stanford, now 14-1 on the year, was spurred by individual performances from seniors Chris Harper and David Sender. Harper won the pommel horse with a score of 15.400 while Sender took home still rings with 16.350. The team also saw strong showings from freshman Josh Dixon, redshirt junior Sho Nakamori and junior Bryant Hadden. Dixon finished second in floor exercise with a 15.600, while Nakamori and Hadden tied for second in parallel bars at 14.900.

With the national championships less than a month away, the Cardinal hopes to keep up the momentum this Sunday when it takes on No. 6 Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Lacrosse drops decision to Cal

Stanford women’s lacrosse lost its first Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) game of the season this Saturday after falling to Cal in Berkeley, 11-9.

After jumping in front with two goals in the first two minutes, Stanford went into halftime up 5-4 over the Bears. The Cardinal still held the lead with 14 minutes on the clock, but could not withstand a barrage of three goals from the Bears. Stanford dropped to 3-2 overall and 2-1 in MPSF play.

Despite the loss to Cal, the team saw significant contributions from sophomore Dana Lindsay, who had three goals, and senior Megan McClain, who chipped in two of her own. Senior goalkeeper Laura Shane had 10 saves on the game.

The Cardinal will look to rebound from Saturday’s loss when it takes on Notre Dame this Sunday at home. The team will then face Boston College and Penn the following week.