ATHENS — Richard Samuel showed up for his first interview as the newest Georgia tailback dressed for success. He was wearing a crisply pressed light-blue dress shirt, dark blue slacks and bright blue tie.
But Samuel insists he wasn’t trying to impress anybody. He hopes to do that when the Bulldogs open against Boise State in the Georgia Dome on Sept. 3.
“I feel like this will benefit the team,” said Samuel of the chances of winning that game. “It was the best decision for the team.”
Samuel answered his school’s call for help Thursday when he agreed to move to tailback from linebacker. The rising junior from Cartersville played running back his first two seasons, starting six games as a sophomore. But he agreed to move to linebacker after falling behind Washaun Ealey and Caleb King on the depth chart.
Then Ealey was granted a transfer after spring practice and King was unable to maintain his academic eligibility this summer, and the Bulldogs were left with only three scholarship tailbacks.
“The whole thing, how it happened, is crazy,” Samuel said. I had a feeling something was coming. You know, you hear little rumors and talk about it. It came up after Caleb’s situation. ... I knew something was going to have to be done.”
Samuel actually had made significant progress at linebacker. He had worked his way up to second-team inside linebacker behind Alec Ogletree and was set to see significant playing time both there and at outside linebacker.
Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham wasn’t eager to let Samuel go.
“He has very good size and speed,” Grantham said Friday.” He’s a very explosive guy. When he hits people he shocks them. So we had a spot for him. ... But you always have to do what you feel like is best for the team.”
The 6-foot-2 Samuel got up to 243 pounds playing linebacker. He now weighs 238 pounds after last playing tailback in 2009 at 225.
“I feel like I could play at this weight,” Samuel said. “The only thing I’m going to have to transition is getting my feet back to doing things a certain way and getting back to a running-back mentality. As long as my speed and ability hasn’t decreased, Coach doesn’t care what my weight is.”
Samuel got his first action back on offense came in pass-skeleton drills during Thursday afternoon’s voluntary workouts.
“I still remembered most of the plays and most of the blocking schemes,” Samuel said. “Everything is mostly the same.”
Samuel started six games as a sophomore in 2009 after serving a season as Knowshon Moreno’s understudy. But he had only one 100-yard game — 104 against Arkansas including an 80-yard touchdown run — before being overtaken by King and Ealey in the second half of the season. In two years he gained 528 yards on 114 carries (4.6-yard average) and scored three touchdowns.
Samuel said coaches are “not going to just hand me the position” because he agreed to the move. He’ll have to compete with junior Carlton Thomas, redshirt freshman Ken Malcome, freshman Isaiah Crowell and three walk-ons for playing time. “It’s straight competition,” he said. “The best man’s going to play.”
If nothing else, Samuel said he feels like he can provide some leadership and stability for the running backs.
“I feel like being the one there with the most experience is really going to help them and show them how things are done,” Samuel said.
His sharp-dressed appearance Friday certainly made him like a leader. But that wasn’t his point. He said he is working this summer as an intern in UGA’s compliance office.
“It’s a big learning experience,” he said of working with compliance chief Eric Baumgartner. “There’s a lot that we take for granted. There’s a lot behind the scenes that I’m learning about it.”
In a few weeks, Samuel will be back front and center.
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