Georgia Football: Elijah Holyfield making his case

Georgia Football has four running backs that have all done their part in the first three games of the season, but Elijah Holyfield is increasingly looking the part.

When Elijah Holyfield first arrived in Athens, there was a lot of fanfare. And why wouldn’t there be? He was a local kid, the son of a sporting hero in Evander Holyfield and he sure looks the part when you see him strap on the pads. Who doesn’t want to see that guy strap up and play for the Georgia Football team? Unfortunately, an ankle injury derailed his freshman season and it’s taken him some time to catch back up. A marijuana arrest after that first season certainly didn’t help him either.

UGA had a couple of NFL backs last season so his playing time was limited. Now that Sony Michel and Nick Chubb have departed, we’ve started to see more from Holyfield and it’s hard not to like what he’s shown. Against Middle Tennessee, Holyfield produced his first 100 yard game of his career. He achieved this on just eight carries and it was in large part due to a 66-yard rumble in this first quarter.

There was a lot to like about how Holyfield played this past week. He looked comfortable running between the tackles and bouncing outside if there was space. He also showed a burst of speed to get past defenders, even if he doesn’t quite have the top end jets of say a James Cook. Now a junior, Holyfield looks ready to be more of a featured player for Georgia this season.

That’s a good thing because Georgia needs him. With Zamir White missing the season, the Dawgs lack a true power back other than Holyfield. When the games get tougher later this season, it will likely be Holyfield and Swift that UGA leans on to help them get tough yardage. It’s therefore very good news that Holyfield looks ready for that challenge.

Kirby Smart has high aspirations for this team and Holyfield looks like he’s become a critical part of that. On a team that is loaded with speed all over the field, he still brings some old-fashioned toughness and power to the running game.

It’s great to see a talented player start to put it all together and begin to reach his potential. If Holyfield continues to play like this, there’s a good chance that people start to see him as more than a former heavyweight champions son. He has a chance for a 1000 yard season as we start to get into proper SEC play next week. If he reaches that milestone, that likely means the Dawgs have a great shot to be playing in January once again.