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Tennessee football: 4 reasons Keller Chryst should be Vols starting quarterback

By Caleb Calhoun

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: Keller Chryst of Stanford celebrates a Stanford touchdown during the College Football Sydney Cup match between Stanford University (Stanford Cardinal) and Rice University (Rice Owls) at Allianz Stadium on August 27, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: Keller Chryst of Stanford celebrates a Stanford touchdown during the College Football Sydney Cup match between Stanford University (Stanford Cardinal) and Rice University (Rice Owls) at Allianz Stadium on August 27, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images) /
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3. In a pro-style offense, Keller Chryst has more proven experience.

One of the reasons Keller Chryst may have been able to pick up Tyson Helton’s offense so fast is because of the fact that he came from the Stanford Cardinal. Playing in David Shaw’s system, Chryst learned the nuances of being a drop-back passer who works efficiently from the pocket.

Jarrett Guarantano, meanwhile, was all but sabotaged by a previous Tennessee football coaching staff that forced him into the spread. Honestly, the fact that he is in contention speaks to how hard he’s worked when you think about what he had to deal with last year.

Still, Chryst is more proven. He was a four-star recruit as a quarterback in 2014, and he has multiple years of experience playing it at this level. For his career, he has thrown for over 1,900 yards to go with 19 touchdowns and only six interceptions.

Now, his completion percentage ranging from 54.2 to 56.6, and his history of injuries don’t bode well for him. That’s why Guarantano is still important to this roster. But his experience combined with what the new offense will allow him to do makes him a perfect fit.

At 6’5″ 239 pounds, he’s the perfect prototype of a pro-style quarterback for Helton and Jeremy Pruitt. That’s exactly what Tennessee football needs, and with an elite group of receivers this year, they want somebody ready to step in immediately. Chryst’s previous experience positions him to do that well. So he should have the advantage.

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