The 2017 Georgia Football team is going to be sending plenty of its stars to the NFL and one of them is RB Sony Michel.
What a difference a year makes! In 2017, Georgia went into the NFL draft with only one prospect who had a shot at being drafted. Just a year later, there’s a chance that UGA could end up seeing a record number of players drafted in a single year. I wouldn’t put it past the Dawgs to go in to double digits this class if a few things break their way.
All of this means that there is plenty for Dawg fans to get excited about. A lot of their former favorites are about to start their new careers. So to celebrate, we’re going to do a breakdown of each player who could end up getting drafted.
Much like the real draft, we’re going to be starting at the top of the class and working our way down. Having looked at Roquan Smith and Isaiah Wynn, today we’re looking at running back Sony Michel.
How good was he in Athens?
Michel left Athens as one of the top 5 running backs the school has ever seen. That’s high praise considering the talent that we’ve seen at ‘RBU’. But it’s fully justified for a player who had a huge impact between the hedges.
Coming into Athens as a 5-star prospect, Michel saw himself leapfrogged by Nick Chubb in his freshman year. He only had 64 attempts and 410 yards during that year. However, in 2015, after Chubb injured his knee, Michel stepped in and became a lead back himself. He scored 11 total touchdowns and had his first 1000 yard season while showing himself to be just as good catching the ball as he was running it.
With Chubb recovering from injury, Michel was expected to hold the starting job to start the 2016 season. Unfortunately, an ATV accident left him with a broken arm. Michel would miss camp, but he and Chubb shared carries in Kirby Smart’s first season. A terrible offensive line led to both having disappointing years as the team slumped to 8-5.
With his draft stock not as high as it might have been, Michel returned for his senior season. And what a season it was. All of his promise from the previous 3 years all came out on that team. Michel accounted for 17 touchdowns and over 1300 yards in his final year. He was the offensive MVP of the Rose Bowl and scored 4 times in Georgia’s biggest victory since 1980.
Michel leaves Athens with 3638 rushing yards and 33 TD’s. That’s good for 3rd in UGA history for yards and 5th for TD’s. In short, he’s one of the best running backs Georgia has ever seen. He leaves a legacy that Dawg fans will remember for a long time.