Top Quarterback recruit Keller Chryst commits to Stanford: The Cardinal's next elite QB?

Stanford may have just found its next great quarterback - and it didn't have to leave its own backyard.

Palo Alto high school quarterback Keller Chryst, the number two quarterback recruit in the country according to Rivals.com, officially confirmed his commitment to Stanford on Friday.

The 6-foot-4, 230-pound signal-caller had narrowed his choices down to Stanford, USC, Alabama and Pitt (where his uncle, Paul, is the head coach), but decided on Stanford this week. Naturally, grabbing Chryst is a huge boost to the Cardinal's recruiting class, which made Chryst its seventh commitment.

The word on Chryst is that he is an early incarnation of Ben Roethlisberger - a guy with a big arm, good feet, and the ability to avoid being tackled by almost anybody.

A look at his high school highlights suggests that comparison isn't far off base, as he routinely shrugs off defenders and barrels his way to big plays:

I saw Chryst at the Elite 11 regional camp at the 49ers practice facility in Santa Clara a few months ago, and his impressive size and strength was immediately apparent - he already cuts the figure of a college quarterback.

Here's what I wrote at the time of the Elite 11:

Keller Chryst, the star of the show, had a good, but somewhat underwhelming day overall. He missed a few simple throws in early drills before finding a groove later -- he was the only QB to complete every pass in the end-of-day two-minute drill. Even though I don't think anybody was so blown away that they had to go lie down after watching him, it's very apparent why Chryst is so highly rated. He's able to rip 25-yard passes through the wind and also showed really nice touch on the ball when he threw passes to crossing receivers. Overall, he's got a very advanced arm, and he should be a smashing success in college, no matter which system he chooses -- Pitt, Alabama, Stanford or USC.

While it's true that Chryst didn't have the greatest day ever at the 49ers practice facility, he showed me that he's a perfect fit for Stanford's west-coast offense. He's got the good feet necessary to create those plays on the outside that Andrew Luck was so good at, and Chryst has the advanced arm necessary to make all the timing throws that make the offense dangerous.

Perhaps it's too much pressure to put on a young kid, but someday, the roll call of elite Stanford quarterbacks might just have an addition to Plunkett, Elway and Luck.