ATHENS — As Georgia tailback Isaiah Crowell served his recent one-game suspension for a reported failed drug test, his former high school coach tried to perform some long-distance repairs.
First, Carver-Columbus coach Del McGee offered his guy some perspective.
“I tried to give him some examples of other guys who made mistakes and have recovered from it,” McGee said last week.
“He’s not the first person to make a mistake. He’s just got to understand the position he’s in as one of the faces of UGA. That comes with a lot of responsibility.”
Then, when asked about how the Crowell story would eventually play out at Georgia, the coach sounded only positive notes. Already as a freshman, Crowell had made the journey from most ballyhooed recruit to most popular fan piñata.
“He’ll turn out OK,” McGee said.
“Hopefully, he’ll redeem himself Saturday [versus Auburn].”
Turned out, Saturday was mostly a day for a huge victory over a century’s-old rival. The 45-7 victory over Auburn that left the Bulldogs in firm control of SEC East was headlined by Aaron Murray’s four first-half touchdown passes and a Bulldogs defense that dissected the Cam Newton-less Tigers.
Personal redemption was a secondary theme. For the first time in two seasons, Georgia had two backs rush for more than 100 yards in a game. Crowell was one (132 yards). Carlton Thomas, another among three backs suspended at the same time reportedly for the same cause, was the other (127 yards).
Where mid-week apologies sometimes ring hollow to fans, big runs on Saturday tend to be more convincing.
“I wanted to come out and show the Bulldog nation that I belong at Georgia, that I’m happy to be here and that they can be happy that I’m here,” Crowell said postgame.
“You want to come out and right a wrong,” seconded Thomas.
For a freshman of Crowell’s stature, especially, every game is a referendum on his place at Georgia. All the more on weeks that happen to follow highly publicized suspensions.
Three backs — Crowell, Thomas and redshirt freshman Ken Malcome — were suspended for the New Mexico State game, with little risk to the team. Georgia could have picked up a couple guys from the Sigma Nu house on the way to that game, suited them up in low-numbered jerseys, and made out all right.
Presumably a little more ground support would be needed vs. Auburn. Seeing how Georgia’s two best tailbacks came back from the pillory of a very public suspension was one of the central questions to Saturday.
Crowell did not come out as a man possessed by any helpful spirit. He gained but 18 yards in the first half and had the first of his two fumbles. Twice he limped off the field, doing little to change the minds of fans concerned about is durability.
It was up to Thomas — the “other suspended runner,” the miniature (5-foot-7) change of pace guy — to kick-start the Bulldogs’ running game.
Thomas had his long run of the game, 27 yards, on Georgia’s first possession of the second quarter. He ran for 18 more on the next play. But that amounted to nothing, as Crowell came in and dropped the ball into Auburn’s awaiting arms. He would be bailed out when Auburn fumbled on the next play, transferring possession back to the Bulldogs.
For Thomas, the timing of his performance on the heels of his suspension left him in a state of euphoria.
“I’m really proud of myself, and I’m proud of the people behind me,” he said.
As for Crowell, with the exception of another fumble at the top of the fourth quarter, when the game already was won, the second half was a healing experience. He gained 114 of his yards over that span, and chipped in a 9-yard touchdown run that meant little to the outcome, but plenty to his sense of self.
Bulldogs offensive coordinator Mike Bobo seemed impressed. “It was good to see him come back in that second half and finish off runs with great power the way great runners do.”
Earlier in the week, the topic of suspensions was such a raw one that coach Mark Richt uncharacteristically snapped at a questioner who asked if there were any more coming down before the Auburn game.
But Saturday was all about the coach complimenting Crowell and Thomas for they way they worked during their suspension and how they performed here on the other side of them.
“I liked the way they played, no doubt. But I like the way they handled their discipline also,” Richt said.
“They came back and had great focus this week, and you could tell they wanted to make up for the mistakes they made.”
The run-up to Saturday also included a little cross-state chirping between Crowell and Auburn freshman nose tackle Gabe Wright. They were teammates at Carver-Columbus, a familiarity that Wright said would work to his advantage.
“Isaiah can be explosive, just like any other back, but he also can be stopped,” Wright told reporters last week. “That’s one thing I know how to do; that’s something I’ve been practicing to do.”
Wright finished with four tackles, one of them a solo. Crowell had a bunch of yards and a big win. He had won the battle for Columbus. There are more hearts and minds to win before the season is done.
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