Stanford Cardinal Explained: Traditions, Logo & History

Why is Stanford called the most decorated athletic program in college sports?

Because of the breadth rather than any one sport.

Stanford has won 137 NCAA team championships, more than any other university, across water polo, tennis, swimming, track and field, golf, volleyball and more, and it won at least one NCAA team title in each of 49 consecutive academic years starting in 1976-77. It has also taken 26 of the first 31 Directors' Cups, the award for the best overall athletic program in the country, including 25 in a row.

What was The Play?

The end of the 1982 Big Game, and the most famous ending in college football.

Stanford had just taken a 20-19 lead with four seconds left, but Cal returned the kickoff with five laterals and scored as the Stanford band, believing the game was over, came onto the field. The touchdown counted. John Elway's final college game ended in the defeat, and the outcome has been argued about in Palo Alto ever since.

Who were the Wow Boys?

The 1940 Stanford team.

First-year coach Clark Shaughnessy took over a side that had gone 1-7-1, installed the modern T formation, and went 10-0 before beating Nebraska 21-13 in the Rose Bowl. Stanford claims a national championship for the season, though the AP poll — released before the bowl game — had them second. The T formation Shaughnessy brought with him went on to reshape offensive football at every level.

Which quarterbacks has Stanford produced?

An unusual number of them for a program of its size: Jim Plunkett won the 1970 Heisman Trophy and later two Super Bowls with the Raiders; John Elway went first overall in 1983 and to the Hall of Fame; Andrew Luck went first overall in 2012 after two runner-up Heisman finishes; and Trent Dilfer and Steve Stenstrom also reached the NFL.

Luck has since returned to Stanford in a front-office role.

How good is Stanford women's basketball?

One of the sport's defining programs.

Under Tara VanDerveer, who coached from 1985 until her retirement in 2024 and became the winningest coach in college basketball history, Stanford won multiple national championships and reached the Final Four repeatedly across four decades. The program is a large part of why Stanford's overall championship count is what it is.

What is the Big Game and the Stanford Axe?

Stanford's annual football rivalry with California, first played in 1892 and the oldest in the western United States.

The winner keeps the Stanford Axe, a trophy whose early history involves a series of thefts between the two campuses starting in 1899. The rivalry predates almost everything else in West Coast sport and remains the most attended date on either schedule.

Stanford Cardinal Records, Titles & Milestones

How many national championships have the Stanford Cardinal won?

The Stanford Cardinal have won 3 national championships (1926, 1940, 1942).

Do the Stanford Cardinal retire jersey numbers?

Stanford honors its athletes through the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame rather than a broad slate of retired football numbers; Jim Plunkett's 1970 Heisman Trophy remains the program's signature individual honor.

Ring of Honor (5 members)

The Greatest Stanford Cardinal Players of All Time

Who is the greatest Stanford Cardinal player of all time?

By the measure of championships, individual honors, and lasting impact, John Elway tops most all-time Stanford Cardinal rankings. The full top 5 follows.

1. John Elway QB \u00b7 1979-1982

   The most physically gifted quarterback the program has produced, and a consensus All-American in 1982 whose final college game ended on the wrong side of The Play. He went first overall in the 1983 draft and to the Hall of Fame after two Super Bowl titles with Denver. He was also drafted by the Yankees as an outfielder.

2. Jim Plunkett QB \u00b7 1968-1970

   Stanford's only Heisman Trophy winner, in 1970, and the quarterback who led the Cardinal to an upset of undefeated Ohio State in the 1971 Rose Bowl. He was the first overall pick in 1971 and later won two Super Bowls with the Raiders, both times as a starter who had been written off.

3. Andrew Luck QB \u00b7 2009-2011

   Twice the Heisman runner-up and the centerpiece of Stanford's return to national relevance under Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw. He went first overall in 2012 and later returned to the university in a front-office role, an unusual second act for a player of his standing.

4. Christian McCaffrey RB \u00b7 2014-2016

   Set the FBS single-season record for all-purpose yards in 2015 with 3,864 and finished second in the Heisman voting. A complete offensive weapon — runner, receiver and returner — who went on to an All-Pro NFL career and, in the Bay Area, a second act with the 49ers.

5. Tara VanDerveer Head coach \u00b7 1985-2024

   Not a player, and the list is worse without her. She built Stanford women's basketball into a national institution across four decades, won multiple national titles, and retired in 2024 as the winningest coach in the history of college basketball. Her program is a large share of the school's championship total.