Stanford Football: Top 3 takeaways from Week 1 victory over Northwestern

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PALO ALTO, CA – AUGUST 31: Head coach David Shaw of the Stanford Cardinal looks on against the Northwestern Wildcats during the second quarter of an NCAA football game at Stanford Stadium on August 31, 2019 in Palo Alto, California. Stanford football (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

3. Davis Mills shows promise, but isn’t ready yet

Stanford’s offense was off to a pretty hot start in the first half of Saturday’s game. Quarterback K.J. Costello was enjoying a fine afternoon going 16-of-20 for 152 yards and a TD through essentially two full quarters.

And then disaster struck.

With just two seconds remaining in the half, Costello was hit up high in the facemask by defensive lineman Earnest Brown IV while attempting to slide. The hit shockingly wasn’t called for targeting, despite being flagged for a late hit.

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Costello would not return to the game and his status for the remainder of the season remains up in the air. But in his place, junior Davis Mills was forced into action.

Mills was originally a five-star recruit out of Georgia a few years ago and was ranked as the No. 1 pro-style quarterback in his class. Coincidentally, his runner-up was his adversary in this game — Clemson transfer Hunter Johnson.

And directly behind him was a fellow Georgia quarterback who you may have heard of. Just some guy named Jake Fromm.

Mills had thrown just two career passes prior to Saturday’s game and his inexperience showed. The young signal-caller went just 7-of-14 for 81 yards and fumbled the ball twice on botched handoffs.

However, he showed enough arm talent and poise in the pocket to provide encouragement for the future. But if Costello is forced to miss any significant period of time, the Cardinal could be in deep trouble.

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