UGA seniors lead the way
UGA seniors Lorenzo Carter (from left), Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, and Davin Bellamy celebrate their 42-13 win over Kentucky.
ATHENS — Georgia’s journey to the Southeastern Conference championship game — and possibly a shot at the national title — began almost a year ago.
Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, Lorenzo Carter and Davin Bellamy could’ve gotten an early start on their NFL careers.
Instead, all four decided to return to the Bulldogs for one more season. How ‘bout those Senior Dawgs! Chubb has become only the second back in school history to rush for more than 1,000 yards three times. Michel has a shot at a 1,000yard season. Carter leads the team in sacks and tackles behind the line. Bellamy is also a force when it comes to getting after the quarterback.
Together, they’re a huge reason for No. 7 Georgia’s success heading into Saturday’s regular-season finale against Georgia Tech.
“Usually the best teams in the country, they have seniors,” coach Kirby Smart said Monday. “The seniors have been there the most, they make the least mistakes, they have been through it, they’re very calm. That’s what our group has been — good leaders for this team.”
Chubb almost surely would’ve been in the NFL by now if not for tearing up a knee during his sophomore year, which cut short a potential run at the Heisman Trophy. He returned ahead of schedule to play last season, but wasn’t quite the same explosive runner.
After passing on the NFL and another year removed from his devastating injury, he has finally returned to full speed.
“This is something we can always look back on and cherish the moments,” Chubb said of his senior season.
He has surely helped his draft prospects by staying for a fourth season. Same for the other three, who are expected to go much higher than they would have coming out as juniors.
“You really shouldn’t be leaving after your third year unless you’re going to be a first- or maybe a second-round pick,” Smart said. “Every year you go into that with that approach and if they understand what’s best for them, then Curtis Compton / AJC via AP they usually handle that the right way. So I’m really proud of these guys that decided to stay, because I think it was the right decision for each one of them individually. That’s the most important thing.”
The Bulldogs (10-1, 7-1) have clinched a spot in the league championship game for the first time since 2012. They will face either No. 1 Alabama or No. 6 Auburn, with the West Division representative to be decided this weekend at the Iron Bowl. Carter said he wasn’t just thinking about his draft status when he decided to come back for another year.
Carter and the rest of the seniors were irritated about losing two of the last three years to Georgia Tech. They didn’t want to leave Athens with a losing record against their state rival.
“That was one of the things we thought about, I thought about personally, something that I needed to do, something I needed to come back and finish,” Carter said. “Right now, I have a losing record to Tech. All the seniors do. We just wanted to come back and play our brand of football and finish out strong.”