College Football Recruiting

Georgia RB Nick Chubb is standing in for Todd Gurley and standing tall

The former five-star recruit is showing that he’s as capable of being a workhorse back in college as he was in high school.

by Wescott Eberts

Oct 27, 2014, 10:47 PM UTC

Wesley Hitt

No Todd Gurley, no problem for the Georgia Bulldogs.

Freshman running back Nick Chubb has stepped in for the suspended star, launching the Bulldogs to a 45-32 victory over the Arkansas Razorbacks in Little Rock on Saturday, earning the title of SB Nation Impact Freshman of Week 8.

After serving as a workhorse in a 45-0 blowout of Missouri immediately following Gurley’s indefinite suspension for allegedly receiving payment for his autograph, Chubb exploded against Arkansas, gaining 202 yards on 30 carries and scoring two touchdowns in the road victory.

How heavily did the Bulldogs lean on Chubbs? The only other running back to receive a carry was sophomore Brendan Douglas, who didn't see action until taking the final three handoffs on the game's final drive.

“I felt more comfortable back there in the backfield,” Chubb said after the game. “... Todd has big shoes to fill, but I’m coming in here and playing hard.”

He wasn’t the only true freshman running back playing hard around the country, as Oregon’s Royce Freeman once again challenged for the title in scoring four touchdowns and gaining 169 yards in the big win for the Ducks over the Huskies. And in the Chicago area, Northwestern’s Justin Jackson continued his superb freshman season with his third straight game breaking the 100-yard mark against Nebraska.

In Little Rock, Chubb keyed two important possessions for Georgia in the second quarter to take the home crowd out of the game and give the Bulldogs some breathing room.

The 5’10, 225-pounder extended the Bulldogs’ lead to 17-6 with a 43-yard run that showcased his speed and no-nonsense north-south running style.

After the defense forced a three and out by Arkansas, Chubb had five touches on the ensuing six-play drive for Georgia and accounted for 53 of the 62 yards gained. A 33-yard run was the key play to move into the Arkansas red zone and Chubb finished the drive himself with a three-yard touchdown plunge.

Since running backs are typically able to transition quickly to the college game, the expectations were high for Chubb coming out of Cedartown High School in Georgia, though he certainly wasn’t expected to be the feature back by Week 7 of his true freshman season.

Ranked as a consensus five-star recruit, Chubb was a US Army All-American considered the No. 5 running back nationally, the No. 3 player in Georgia, and the No. 34 player nationally in the 247Sports Composite rankings. 247Sports itself may have been more accurate than the rest of the industry in slotting Chubb as the No. 17 player overall and the top player in the state of Georgia.

Last May during track season, he confirmed the athleticism that helped him rush for more than 5,400 yards and 77 touchdowns combined during his junior and senior seasons:

I was asked if #UGA RB Nick Chubb might be a bit stiff. No, he's not. Here he is showing that 40-inch vertical. pic.twitter.com/kgnlgbbncd
— Radi Nabulsi (@RadiNabulsi) May 13, 2014

During his recruitment, Chubb held offers from more than 20 schools, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, South Carolina, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin.

Citing a comfort level with Georgia, the school he said recruited him the hardest, Chubb committed to home-state Georgia in June of 2013, despite the fact that Gurley had run for nearly 1,400 yards as a freshman and fellow consensus five-star running back Sony Michel was already committed to the Bulldogs.

Despite a depth chart that was going to be crowded upon his arrival, the decision by Chubb to pick Georgia over finalists South Carolina and Auburn was hardly a surprise -- his 247Sports Crystal Ball sat at 100% Bulldogs, reflecting a unanimous industry consensus about his choice.

The confidence of Chubb that he could find carriers in a crowded group has already been rewarded by fate as much as by talent given the suspension to Gurley and a shoulder injury to Michel that has kept him out of action.

Regardless, the Georgia product has taken advantage of his opportunities early and coming out of a bye week with head coach Will Muschamp’s future hanging in the balance, the Gators won’t likely be any more happy to see Chubb than they would be happy to see Gurley.

After the last two games, that’s a point that should still stand even if Gurley does return from suspension by then.