It appears the quarterback position at Stanford won’t be quite as unsettled as it could’ve been.
Two weeks ago, reports surfaced that Ryan Burns would be leaving The Farm as a graduate transfer. Now? Not so much.
“I figured I have a great opportunity in coming back, getting another degree and learning from some phenomenal coaches for another year,” the rising fifth-year senior quarterback said in a statement to ESPN.com. “It’s also very important to me to prove to this team and to myself that I can be so much better than I was last year.”
Burns started the first seven games of the 2016 season after winning the job coming out of camp, but then lost it to Keller Chryst midseason. Chryst, however, suffered a significant knee injury in Stanford’s Sun Bowl win over North Carolina late last month; that injury was subsequently reported to be a torn ACL, which will sideline him for the next six months.
Besides Burns, the Cardinal is left with K.J. Costello as the lone healthy scholarship quarterback on David Shaw‘s roster. A four-star 2016 signee rated as the No. 3 pro-style quarterback in the country, Costello took a redshirt as a true freshman.
Preferred walk-ons Brent Peus and Jack Richardson are the only other current options at the position for Shaw and his offensive staff. They also have a commitment from 2017 prospect Davis Mills, the top-rated pro-style passer in this year’s class.