Keller Chryst injures knee in Sun Bowl vs. North Carolina

Stanford starting quarterback Keller Chryst seems to have suffered a devastating knee injury in the Hyundai Sun Bowl versus North Carolina.

The 2016 Hyundai Sun Bowl was one of the most talked about bowls of the holiday season for two reasons. North Carolina Tar Heels starting quarterback Mitch Trubisky might leave school a year early to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by his hometown Cleveland Browns.

Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey opted to sit out the Sun Bowl to get ready for the 2017 NFL Draft. McCaffrey projects as a mid-to-late first-round pick after his junior season in Palo Alto.

What people are going to talk about from this Sun Bowl won’t be about either player, but Stanford quarterback Keller Chryst. Chryst seems to have suffered a gruesome knee injury and has been replaced by Ryan Burns the rest of the way in El Paso.

Chryst was a five-star recruit out of Palo Alto high school. His uncle Paul Chryst is the head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers. Chryst’s father is long time NFL offensive coordinator Geep Chryst, most recently with the 2015 San Francisco 49ers.

Losing Chryst to a knee injury in the Sun Bowl is horrible for Stanford entering spring practice. Chryst had been playing well in the second half of the 2016 NCAA season. He would have emerged as the Week 1 starter for the 2017 Cardinal.

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This looks to be an injury that will keep him out of spring ball entirely and maybe a good bit of the 2017 season. Chryst isn’t particularly mobile, but has great touch and vision to be a solid pro-style passer for the rest of his college career. Losing McCaffrey to the NFL, Chryst to injury, and the rise of the Washington Huskies will make it hard for Stanford to win the 2017 Pac-12 Championship.