As Georgia prepared for its previous two games, Mark Richt knew for certain that Todd Gurley was not going to play. But as the Bulldogs prepare to face SEC-rival Florida in Jacksonville on Saturday, the head coach admits he has no idea whether Gurley will be cleared to play.
That’s problematic with his team getting ready to face its most effective defensive opponent of the season. Should the Bulldogs give Gurley the majority of snaps with the No. 1 offense to knock off the rust and build the game plan around his unique talents? Or do they continue to give freshman Nick Chubb much-needed and much-deserved repetitions in preparation for the biggest game of the year?
“We’re giving him a good bit of reps,” Richt said of Gurley, who missed the past two games while his eligibility was under review. “We want to rep him to the point where if he’s able to play, he’ll be able to play well. … We know Todd knows what to do. I mean, all we can do is just keep practicing and focusing on the opponent, then just kind of wait and see. We really don’t know what to expect.
As the “Gurley Watch” stretched into a 20th day without his eligibility quandary resolved, the general feeling in Georgia’s camp is that the Bulldogs can win without him. And that is certainly a justifiable notion, considering they did that in SEC road games against Missouri and Arkansas.
But the idea that the Bulldogs’ offense is just as good with Nick Chubb manning the tailback position as it is with Gurley dotting the “I” is not entirely accurate.
The individual statistical output of the two backs as starters is negligible. Chubb has averaged 172.5 yards rushing and 1.5 touchdowns in two games while Gurley averaged 154.6 yards and 1.6 TDs in five games. But there is a more notable disparity in the overall production on offense when Gurley is in action than when he’s not.
In the five games with Gurley as the primary ballcarrier, the Bulldogs averaged 45 points and 459 yards per game. In the two games with Chubb in charge, those numbers dropped to 38.5 and 382.5. That’s one touchdown and 76.5 yards fewer on average.
Of course, other factors have to be taken into consideration, such as the quality of opponent, defensive contributions, etc. But the bottom line is, Georgia is a better offense with Gurley in it. And that’s of particular importance as the team gets ready to face one of the SEC’s formidable defenses.
Florida enters Saturday’s game ranked third in the SEC and 12th nationally in total defense. The Gators also are third in the league against the run, are giving up only 199 yards passing per game and have forced 16 turnovers.
“You turn on the tape, and it’s evident that theirs is a defense that’s very good,” Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said. “They get after you play-after-play, and they’ve caused every offense they’ve played a lot of headaches. … We know it’s going to be kind of a street fight, and we’ve got to get ready for that and go fight them.”
The best scenario is for the Bulldogs to have both Gurley and Chubb at their disposal, and Bobo said he’s operating under the assumption that they will.
“We’ve got to get him ready like he’s going to play, then we’ll make adjustments kind of like we did with Missouri,” he said. “Hopefully we find out something soon.”
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs insist the limbo regarding Gurley’s status has been no more distracting this week than it was previously.
“I think over the past two weeks you just kind of grow accustomed to it,” quarterback Hutson Mason said. “You’re basically preparing for him not to be in there, even though he is getting a few reps at practice. You’ve got to prepare for the guys you know you’re going to go to battle with. If Todd for some reason is granted his eligibility between now and Saturday, it will only be a bigger bonus.”
Said offensive tackle Kolton Houston: “It doesn’t matter what running back is in the backfield; we don’t pay attention to that. If Todd’s there or if he’s not there, we’re going to have the same plan. We don’t put emphasis on one back, so we don’t pay attention to that. We all block the same way regardless of what back is back there.”
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