Who will be the lead running back when we get to November?
D’Andre Swift comes into the season as the clear favorite for the job. But with Zamir White now out for the year, will Elijah Holyfield or James Cook step up and take the lead role when we get to the business end of the season?
Alistair:
Before his second knee injury, I was going to say Zamir White who might be the best back I have ever seen in high school. With him now missing the whole season, I don’t think anyone is taking more reps than D’Andre Swift unless he himself suffers an injury. That being said, I do now expect Holyfield and Cook to get a lot more reps than many in the national media expect. Holyfield, in particular, is a player that I would keep an eye on between the tackles and in short-yardage situations.
Davis:
With the recent injury to Zamir White, the answer to this question is a simple one: D’Andre Swift will be Georgia’s running back for the entirety of the 2018 season. Although his opportunities were limited in 2017 because of Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, Swift showed flashes of greatness whenever he had the ball in his hands. He’s an extremely versatile back who is on many preseason Heisman Trophy watch lists. During his short time in Athens, he’s also showed that he’s a durable back capable of playing in the SEC. Get ready for a heavy dose of D’Andre Swift in 2018.
Kyle:
D’Andre Swift without a doubt. He had over 800 yards of total offense as a third-string, true-freshman running back last year. He racked up 800 yards despite the two dudes in front of him rushing for over 1,100 each. That’s impressive. He proved to me all last year that he was ready to take over as the no. 1 back. Now he gets his chance.
Mike:
Sophomore D’Andre Swift will begin the season as the number 1 RB on the depth chart. The question is will he stay there. The answer to this question became a little more obvious during a scrimmage a couple of Saturdays back when freshman phenom Zamir White went down with a season-ending knee injury. I believe a healthy White was the only back on our roster that had even a remote possibility of taking this spot from Swift (I think Swift would have held it regardless, but now it’s his job all season). We will see plenty of freshman James Cook and vets Elijah Holyfield and Brian Herrien. But this is Swift’s gig and it will be in November at well.