Stanford held the lead on a game opening interception and a 16 play 89-yard drive. Given the strength of the Spartans' defense, the interception was an omen. Caydance would not have used the word lucky, because interceptions were also the product of good defense play. In this case, by Stanford back, Toi Cook.

Sitting above the Stanford sidelines in an unaccustomed sea of fan red, Caydance Skye O'Brien was wearing a white cotton shirt from a Paris maker and comfortable pink shorts from Jones New York. Her strawberry blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail.

In the warm September sun, it was necessary to wear a hat, but she had wisely left her Cal hat at home and was wearing a pink hat embroidered on a silk patch with the initials of her graduate school, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. SAIC.