A knee injury might keep N.C. State offensive lineman Duran Christophe out as long as four weeks, including the Sept. 3 opener against Liberty, Wolfpack coach Tom O'Brien said Thursday.
Christophe suffered a meniscus tear and underwent surgery on Wednesday. The redshirt sophomore started for the Wolfpack in its Champs Sports Bowl win over West Virginia last season and had been working as the starting left guard in training camp.
O'Brien said Christophe will be out three to four weeks. N.C. State's opener is three weeks from Saturday.
"It's a matter of rehab, and we'll see how he does," O'Brien said. "Better (that it happened) now than September or October."
The injury tests N.C. State's depth on the line, in particular at guard. Junior Andrew Wallace, who started 11 games at left guard last season, is out until October while he recovers from offseason knee surgery. Reserve Torian Box left the program in the offseason.
Redshirt freshman Andy Jomantas and senior Wayne Crawford are listed as the backup guards on the depth chart if Christophe doesn't return before the Liberty game. Junior tackle R.J. Mattes, who played guard earlier in his career, is another option, which would cause more shuffling up front.
"There will be a couple of guys who get a shot if he's not able to play," O'Brien said.
Christophe is the first starter to be injured during practice, but the Wolfpack lost cornerback Jarvis Byrd and running back Mustafa Greene - both projected starters - before camp began. Byrd will miss the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury. Greene is expected to miss the first four games while he recovers from foot surgery.
