Georgia football: Kirby Smart agrees, it’s time to feed Holyfield and Swift
Georgia football is in the closing days on an off week, recovering from an embarrassing loss to LSU on the road. The Dawgs play Florida next Saturday.
Georgia football fans who complained about the team’s lack of a ground last Saturday at LSU, head coach Kirby Smart is right there with you. Elijah Holyfield and D’Andre Swift were dominant with the ball in their hands in Baton Rouge, but after one great first quarter drive, they were rarely a fixture in the offense.
The duo combined for 19 carries and a total of 128 yards, with Swift handling most of the work. He had 72 yards on just 12 carries. Transcending the game at LSU, his yards per carry average has climbed up to 5.5 yards after recovering from a groin injury that hampered him a few weeks ago.
Holyfield, who in the eyes of many is the back most deserving of carries, is averaging less than 10 per game. His 7.5 YAC backs up the claim that he should get the ball more often. About both runners, Smart was very blunt about what he thinks their usage should be for the rest of the year.
"“We’ve got to get both those guys more touches… He’s [Holyfield] in really good condition. I think giving him opportunities and touches to the ball are really important, especially when we’re able to get positive yardage. He’s being productive and that’s really important to our offense. That’s really what our strength is. When you see Solomon and Andrew come off the ball on a double team and move through and you see Cade and Lamont come off and double team people, that’s our strength. He and D’Andre both do a good job of that.”"
It’s understandable if the strategy for the running backs was to keep them fresh all the way through the season. Before the LSU game, they weren’t being relied on to carry the offense punish opponents. But when they ran well against the Tigers, while the passing game struggled, that seemed like the game they were being kept fresh for. Instead, Holyfield and Swift were limited, and Georgia lost by a lopsided margin.
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Fans won’t have to wait too much longer to see if Georgia focuses on the run more. The Dawgs dominated Florida on the ground last year, and they should come out with a chip on their shoulder.