The ball is on the opponent’s 46-yard line. The quarterback, in shotgun formation, receives the snap at his own 48. He takes a standard three-step drop, looking, but not finding, any open receivers. He steps up into the pocket, where the right defensive end, who has evaded his blocker, is waiting for him. The quarterback scrambles right, only to have the left defensive end lunge at his feet. The quarterback spins, losing his shoe in the process.

He continues running toward the right sideline, the right defensive end in hot pursuit. Just as the defender leaps to make his tackle, and just before a linebacker hits him in the chest, the quarterback unleashes a bomb from his own 45-yard line, which passes over the outstretched hands of a defensive back and lands in the arms of his receiver, who walks the extra three yards into the end zone.

On this, the final play of the half, Stratford High School quarterback Andrew Luck shows off some of the qualities that make him a top-five quarterback recruit: poise in the pocket, mobility, accuracy and arm strength.

The best part about it? He’s coming to Stanford in the fall: the crown jewel of coach Jim Harbaugh’s yet-to-be-completed first recruiting class.

In a press release this June, Luck said that he committed to Stanford in part because he believes “that coach Harbaugh and his staff will get the Cardinal football program headed in the right direction.”

At the time, it was certainly a leap of faith — this was before the “Biggest Upset Ever,” and the Cardinal was coming off a historically terrible season. Yet, Luck saw then what many Stanford faithful see now: Harbaugh’s intensity, his refusal to accept defeat and his subsequent willingness to do everything he can to win.

He will go as far as switching players’ positions to build a more cohesive and competitive team. Case in point: true freshman Chike Amajoyi came to Stanford as a running back prospect — the position that is, by his own admission, more comfortable for him — even though he played both ways in high school. Harbaugh made him a linebacker, and the move is already paying dividends: Amajoyi is a key part of the defensive rotation and an occasional starter who had two sacks against Oregon State on Saturday.

This win-at-all-costs mentality is new to Stanford — Harbaugh’s predecessor, Walt Harris, punted on third down (the ultimate give-up play) on multiple occasions — and recruits are taking note. Already, Harbaugh has landed Luck, ranked the fifth-best quarterback in the country by the recruiting service Scout.com; center David DeCastro, ranked third at his position; and the top punter recruit, Matt Zubyk, among others. He has also signed his main target, speedy and sure-handed wide receiver Chris Owusu.

For the first time in years, Stanford is seriously competing with other Pac-10 schools for players. The Farm is still a potential destination for top recruits such as cornerback Jarred Holley and running backs Sausan Shakerin and Covaughn Deboskie.

Unspoken in this process is the added difficulty for Cardinal coaches to recruit players: not only do they have to convince athletes to come to a program in a rebuilding phase, but they also have to make sure that each player has the grades to be admitted to Stanford. Unlike almost every other Division 1 school, Stanford refuses to disregard academic standards for athletes.

Placed in a near impossible situation, Harbaugh and his staff have done a remarkable job. The current team is still bowl eligible and can add to its win total against a slew of beatable opponents in the coming weeks. When the Cardinal beat USC, the team thrust itself back into the national spotlight amidst cries of “Stanford football is back!” from the faithful. And now, with the additions of Luck and company, the Cardinal has placed itself in a position to be competitive for years to come.

This rapid turnaround has been stunning to witness. But, then again, we should have seen this coming; after all, Harbaugh is known as “Captain Comeback.”

Wyndam Makowsky is a freshman with “an enthusiasm unknown to mankind.”