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Christian McCaffrey injury update: Stanford RB uncertain to play vs Notre Dame

By Nathaniel Reeves

October 8, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (5) leaves the field during the third quarter against the Washington State Cougars at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
October 8, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (5) leaves the field during the third quarter against the Washington State Cougars at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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The star Stanford running back’s status will be updated later in the week ahead of the Cardinal’s game against Notre Dame.

A rough season for the Stanford Cardinal could quickly get even worse, as star running back Christian McCaffrey may miss this Saturday’s game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish according to David Lombardi of ESPN.com.

McCaffrey came out of last week’s loss to the Washington State Cougars in the second half due to an undisclosed injury, which many speculated was a potential hip problem. The junior jogged back from the locker room and was seen doing agility drills on the sideline, but did not return to the game with Stanford down big in the fourth quarter.

Stanford head coach David Shaw said McCaffrey was progressing well, and his status would be reevaluated depending on how the week of practice goes.

McCaffrey finished second behind Derrick Henry in the 2015 Heisman Trophy voting behind an NCAA record 3,496 all-purpose yards. That brought high expectations heading into 2016, but McCaffrey hasn’t been on the same level with 520 rushing yards and 145 receiving yards through five games.

Most of that production came in Stanford’s first three games of the season, as McCaffrey hasn’t done much in the past two weeks against the Washington schools, who both dominated the Cardinal. Stanford was behind the entire game against Washington and only got McCaffrey 17 touches, and he carried the ball just eight times last Saturday before coming out.

Even with the down year by his lofty standards, Stanford’s offense is in huge trouble if McCaffrey misses any time. Ryan Burns and Keller Chryst have not been effective quarterback options, while the Stanford offensive line has been dominated the past two weeks.

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Both the Cardinal and Fighting Irish desperately need wins next week to salvage their respective sinking seasons. The Notre Dame defense has really struggled apart from last week’s game which was played in a hurricane, but it’s hard to see Stanford putting up a lot of points on the road if McCaffrey isn’t at full strength.

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