2021 Georgia Football Roster Preview: Running Backs

Taking a look at the runningbacks on Georgia football’s roster for 2021.

Georgia football has just two Heisman Trophy winners in school history and both of them, Herschel Walker and Frank Sinkwich IV, played running back. This shouldn’t surprise a single Georgia fan. Those aren’t Georgia’s only running backs that have had Heisman talent though. There have been a plethora of Heisman-worthy running backs that have come through Athens.

Running back University is never short on talented running backs. Georgia football fans never have to wonder about whether or not they will have a stud at the running back position. No, instead the question always seems to be “how do you keep the four to six they do have happy?” They always seem to find a way to keep the loaded backfield satisfied.

This season that ability will be put to the test. Georgia football has six very talented runningbacks to keep fed this season.

Zamir White

For the first time since 2013 Georgia football did not have a 1,000 yard rusher. However, according to SEC Stat Cat, Zamir White showed signs of why he was the number one running back in the 2018 recruiting cycle. He paced the rest of Georgia’s running backs with 779 yards on 144 carries for an average of 5.41 yards per rush. He also averaged 2.83 yards before contact and 2.58 yards after contact.

White was Georgia’s only running back that had a share of the carries greater than 20 percent. He carried the ball on 46.75 percent of Georgia football’s running plays. This helped him to lead all backs in broken tackles with 32 and explosive runs with 18. He also came in second in success rate with 54.86 of his runs being successful.

This is White’s final season in the red and black. Now two years removed from two ACL injuries, White should be back to his 2018 form that had NFL scouts salivating at the idea of drafting him.

James Cook

Georgia football’s most underutilized weapon is not a tight end, but a running back named James Cook. He is the kind of player you do not want to meet in the open field. Cook has the ability to elude or flat-out run right by a defender leaving him looking silly. This is a big reason why Cook led all Georgia running backs in yards per rush averaging 6.73. He also led all running backs in success percentage with 60 percent of his runs being successful ones.

Cook really shows his value in the passing game. He caught 16 passes for 225 yards in 2020. Two of those catches went for touchdowns, the only touchdowns scored by any Georgia running back through the air in 2020. His 14.06 yards per catch were second on the team from the running back position. His 14.29 explosive rate was also second on the team for running backs.

Kenny McIntosh

Behind Cook and White, Kenny McIntosh touched the ball third most out of Georgia football’s entire offense. He broke at least one tackle on 55.32 percent of his touches which was the best among Georgia’s group of running backs. Another thing he led all running backs in was his first down percentage with 29.79 percent of his runs going for first downs.

Kendall Milton

Freshman Kendall Milton was Georgia’s only running back to not lose a single yard in 2020. While carrying the ball 35 times Milton wasn’t tackled behind the line of scrimmage one time. He was also the most explosive running back on Georgia’s roster, busting an explosive run on 22.86 percent of his carries. Expect his role to expand in 2021.

Daijun Edwards

Another freshman in 2020, Daijun Edwards didn’t get many carries in 2020, but he made the most of them when he did. He carried the ball 37 times totaling 218 yards while averaging 5.89 yards per rush. His 4.16 yards after catch average led the team.

Previous position reviews:

Quarterbacks