Nick Chubb said to make no mistake about it. Georgia is still Todd Gurley’s team.
“Gurley’s still Gurley,” Chubb said Saturday. “If he comes back he’ll still be showing out and playing hard like he does. I’m just holding it down ‘til he gets back.”
More like holding it up. For the second straight week, the Bulldogs played had to play without Gurley and, for the second straight week Chubb carried the load in his absence. Making his second start, the freshman from Cedartown had 202 yards on 30 rushing attempts and scored two touchdowns to lead No. 10 Georgia to a 45-32 win over Arkansas at War Memorial Stadium.
Chubb’s performance came a week after he carried the ball 38 times for 143 yards in another SEC road win at Missouri. So Chubb now has 345 yards and three touchdowns in his only two starts/.
“I didn’t take his spot,” Chubb said. “(Gurley) had some trouble or whatever. But it’s his year, his Heisman year, maybe his last year. So I don’t mind. Whatever happens.”
Chubb’s most important work came at the end of the game. With Arkansas holding all the second-half momentum, Georgia took over at its own 36 up two scores with 5:05 to play. Chubb carried the ball on six consecutive plays, going for 11 yards on the first one and 14 on the last. Arkansas burned all three of its timeouts in the interim and the Bulldogs were able to take a knee at the Razorbacks’ 12-yard line with victory secured.
With the win, the No. 10-ranked Bulldogs improve to 6-1 on the season and remain atop the SEC’s Eastern Division at 4-1. Georgia now has a week off before it plays Florida in Jacksonville.
More importantly, the Bulldogs were able to secure to two SEC road victories while arguably the best player in college football was sidelined with NCAA eligibility issues. The junior tailback missed his second consecutive game while on indefinite suspension. The Bulldogs are investigating allegations that he accepted improper benefits by signing autographed merchandise for money.
“We didn’t think much about that,” Georgia coach Mark Richt said. “Football’s a game where guys on your team end up not playing for a lot of reasons. (Gurley) could have easily just sprained his ankle. He had a high-ankle sprain last year. You’ve still got to play. So we know it’s a team sport, and I think we’re becoming a good team. I’m not sure we’re a really good team yet, but we’re getting there.
The SEC loss was the 16th in a row for Arkansas. The Razorbacks fall to 3-4 overall and, with their third loss to a Top 10 team in as many weeks, remain winless under second-year coach Bret Bielema.
Georgia’s defense turned in another impressive performance. Despite some breakdowns that were helped by major penalties in the second half, the Bulldogs came away with four more takeaways in the game. One of those safety Dominick Sanders turned into a 54-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Georgia now has an SEC-best turnover margin of plus-12.
So dominant was Georgia’s effort that the game shouldn’t have even been as close as it was. The Bulldogs led 38-6 at halftime but let Razorbacks cut the margin in half after their first two possessions of the second half. They trailed 38-19 with 2:05 still remaining in the third quarter.
That’s when Georgia made two game-defining plays.
Arkansas’ offense was on the move again when it faced third-and-10 at its own 34. Quarterback Brandon Allen’s pass was tipped by cornerback Brendan Langley and intercepted by his former Kell High teammate Quincy Mauger over the middle. Mauger’s short return set up the Bulldogs at the Arkansas 42.
After two Chubb runs, Georgia faced third-and-four at the Arkansas 36. Hutson Mason then beautifully-executed a play-action fake to Chubb, put a pump-fake on a Razorbacks defensive back, then threw a strike to Chris Conley deep down the left sideline for what would prove to be a victory-clinching touchdown and a 45-19 lead with 13:08 to play.
“That was huge, one of the biggest plays in the game,” said quarterback Hutson Mason, who was 10-of-17 passing for 179 yards and two touchdowns. We weren’t executing very well in the third quarter and we got behind the chains. … We’ve got to do a better job of coming out and not be content. I really don’t think we were content. We just kind of laid off the gas a little bit. But we found a way to win and made plays when we needed to and that’s what matters.”
The seven additional points proved helpful as Arkansas continued to move the football in the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks needed just three more minutes to get the margin back down to 19 points when Allen hit Kendrick Edwards with a four-yard touchdown pass.
Quayvon Hicks recovered Arkansas’ ensuing onside kick attempt at the Arkansas 47. But the Bulldogs couldn’t knock out a first down and ended up having to punt the ball back. The Razorbacks took over at their own 10 down three scores with 7:36 to play.
That proved to be just enough time for Georgia to preserve victory. Thanks to Chubb and company.
“Well, he is built for it,” Richt said of his new star at tailback. “He’s very, very tough physically, mentally. He’s strong.”
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