Stanford preseason All-American left tackle Walker Little won’t return this year because of season-ending surgery, coach David Shaw said Tuesday.
Little, a junior who has been considered a potential 2020 first-round NFL draft pick, suffered a reported leg injury in the season-opening victory against Northwestern and was initially thought to be out until midseason.
“Look forward to him getting healthy and coming back full-go, but it won’t be this season,” Shaw said at his weekly press conference.
Little earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors last season as a sophomore. In 2017, he became the first true freshman to start at left tackle for Stanford since 2000.
His replacement at left tackle last week was a true freshman, Walter Rouse, in a 45-20 loss to Southern California.
Stanford (1-1) plays at No. 17 UCF (2-0) on Saturday, when quarterback K.J. Costello is expected to be available after missing the USC game due to a head injury, Shaw said.