The biggest news to come out of fall camp was hearing that sophomore running back Branson Robinson, AKA Nick Chubb Jr., is out for the 2023 season with a ruptured patellar tendon from a non-contact injury during practice. This brings about two reactions: 1. Disappointment because of the potential that this man had and the momentum he had coming in from his productive season last year, and 2. What is going to happen to RBU?

Robinson’s appearance on campus has almost overshadowed the already established presence of now veteran backs like Kendall Milton and Daijun Edwards, but those guys are also enduring their fair share of injuries. According to Coach Smart, they’re confident in them, but would be even more confident if the both of them were at 100%. 

Looking at the younger guys, names like Cash Jones and Andrew Paul have gotten their fair share of hype this offseason, more so than the aforementioned Milton and Edwards at least. Cash Jones, while literally only having 2 carries in 2022, has managed to build a pretty passionate base of people rooting for him. On those 2 carries, he gained 44 yards and a touchdown, so the averages are there if you want to be mathematical about it. His G-Day performance wasn’t too shabby though: 4 rushes for 22 yards and 4 catches for 32. In a similar light, redshirt freshman Andrew Paul has had ZERO touches but does have a couple scrimmage highlights displayed in various preseason hype videos that have convinced Georgia fans that he’s the next guy up. 

I’m not saying these young bucks aren’t going to contribute, but I’d bet that we’re probably going to see a lot of Milton and Edwards this season. 

Without Robinson though, there may be a little less flash in the running game this year. He ran angry and was good enough to see real time as a true freshman, so the potential season he could have this year could have been crazy. But there’s no time like the now, and right now we know that’s not going to happen. 

Something to take into account when thinking about the running game this season is the quality of the offensive line. Yes, the Dawgs basically lost two offensive lineman in Broderick Jones and Darnell Washington (tight end), but the guys on the team are absolutely raving about this year’s offensive line. 

This all serves as a reminder that this team wasn’t built to succeed off of one guy. This team was built to succeed as just that: a team.