Dec 1, 2001
San Jose, Calif. - Randy Fasani threw for one touchdown and ran foranother as No. 12 Stanford ended three years of frustration with a 41-14victory over San Jose State on Saturday.
Brian Allen scored twice for the Cardinal (9-2), who hadn't beaten theSpartans (3-9) since 1997.
Edell Shepard caught seven passes for 107 yards for San Jose State,including one for a touchdown, and has 83 for the season, a school record. GuyLiggins caught 77 in 1987. Clint Carlson threw two touchdown passes as theSpartans dropped their third straight.
Luke Powell also was instrumental in Stanford's victory. He caught atouchdown pass, set up another score with a 54-yard reception and returned apunt 58 yards. He finished with six catches for 157 yards.
Fasani, in his second start since returning from a knee injury, completed 13of 22 passes for 257 yards as the Cardinal extended their winning streak tofour games.
Stanford, which has already accepted a bid to play in the Seattle Bowl onDec. 27, won nine games during the regular season for just the second time in50 years and the first since the Bill Walsh-coached team of 1992 went 9-3.
The Cardinal opened the scoring late in the first quarter. On the first playfrom scrimmage, the 5-foot-8 Powell managed to catch a 54-yard pass from Fasanidespite double coverage. That put the ball on San Jose State's 17. Six playslater, Allen scored the first of his touchdowns from 3 yards out.
Stanford defensive end Louis Hobson intercepted Marcus Arroyo's pass at theSpartans 19. After a sack, Fasani found Powell wide open in the end zone for a27-yard scoring play on the second play of the second quarter.
Fasani raced 34 yards for another touchdown late in the quarter.
With the exception of the opening drive, which resulted in a missed fieldgoal, the Spartans' offense was largely ineffective.
Carlson, who started three games earlier in the season before suffering abroken thumb, replaced Arroyo and directed two San Jose State scoring drives inthe second half.
On the Spartans' first drive of the second half, Carlson drove the team 73yards in 17 plays, throwing a 9-yard scoring pass to George Campos afterscrambling away from trouble.
Stanford answered at the start of the fourth quarter when Allen scored on an8-yard run, set up by a 27-yard reception by Powell.
San Jose State pulled to 27-14 with 10:38 remaining on Carlson's 7-yard passto Shepard, but the Cardinal put the game out of reach when Casey Moore raced13 yards for a score with 5:30 left.
Justin Faust went 2 yards for a touchdown in the final minute.
Spartans linebacker Brian Foreman left the game with a concussion near theend of the first half.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jeff Garcia, a San Jose State grad, wasinducted in the school's Ring of Honor at halftime.
By RICK EYMER
Associated Press Writer