Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello expected to miss spring drills

The Stanford Cardinal will be going down their quarterback depth chart during spring practice, as K.J. Costello is expected to be held out of full drills.

It’s approaching spring practice time in college football, but the Stanford Cardinal are set to get a look at the depths of their quarterback dept chart during their spring session. According to Sports Illustrated’s Bruce Feldman, projected starter K.J. Costello is expected to be held out of full drills due to a hip injury.

Costello took over for Keller Chryst as Stanford’s starting quarterback midway through last season. In 11 total appearances, Costello completed close to 59 percent of his passes for 1,573 yards, with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions. Over the final three games, against Notre Dame and USC to end the regular season then Kansas State in the Alamo Bowl, he had nine touchdown passes.

Chryst has announced he will leave Stanford as a graduate transfer once he finishes his degree in June. So Davis Mills and Jack Richardson are the only quarterbacks currently on the roster besides Costello, with zero career passes in game action between them. It’s worth wondering if Chryst leaving Palo Alto is official in regards to whatever the necessary paperwork is, but he seems set on moving on for his final year of eligibility.

The Cardinal will open the 2018 season at home against San Diego State on Sept. 1, and Costello should be ready to go by then. Risking further injury to his hip is not worth it at this point, and Mills and Richardson should benefit from the extra reps during spring practice.

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Bryce Love, the 2017 Heisman Trophy runner-up, Doak Walker Award winner and Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year, made a somewhat surprising decision to return for his senior season. So the Stanford offense will again be centered on the skills of one of the best running backs in the country, regardless of who is under center next season.