Stanford's ‘Suck for Luck' Casts a Shadow

Just how good is Stanford? So good that the school's Hesiman Tropy candidate has his own Twitter hashtag amongst NFL fans: SuckforLuck.

Andrew Luck can grab the attention of a room these days without muttering a word.

Sporting a buzz cut and a clean-shaven face, Stanford’s standout quarterback created the biggest stir during Bay Area media day Monday just by showing up without his scruffy beard.

Oh, the landscape sure has changed in the region.

Stanford's charismatic head coach may have moved down the road to the 49ers but the team still has plenty of star power in Luck, who is expected to be the No. 1 pick in next year's NFL draft.

With so much hoopla surrounding the Cardinal and their Heisman hopeful this season, rival California and San Jose State find themselves working to crawl out of their neighbor’s shadow.

The extra expectations on Stanford are not only adding to the area’s spotlight, it’s giving players and coaches on the opposite side extra motivation to regain the spotlight.