McKenzie getting the Bulldogs going

photo Georgia freshman receiver Isaiah McKenzie

ATHENS, Ga. - While junior tailback Todd Gurley has been the player who finishes games for the Georgia Bulldogs, it's been freshman receiver Isaiah McKenzie who gets them started.

The Bulldogs were trailing Tennessee 10-0 last Saturday when McKenzie ignited the team with a 29-yard punt return to the Volunteers' 32-yard line. The Bulldogs scored four plays later and went on to a 35-32 triumph.

Georgia quickly trailed South Carolina 7-0 in its eventual 38-35 loss on Sept. 13, but McKenzie helped the Bulldogs pull into a 7-7 tie with a 36-yard reception on their first play from scrimmage.

"When I got here, I told myself that I wanted to be that weapon that changed the game," McKenzie said. "I feel like I've been helping this team these last few weeks in many ways."

McKenzie, a 5-foot-8, 175-pounder from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has been quite the Swiss Army knife for the No. 13 Bulldogs entering Saturday's game against Vanderbilt. He has three catches for 47 yards, four rushes for 71 yards and six punt returns for 117 yards, leading the team in average in all three categories among players with multiple touches.

There have been occasions in which Bulldogs offensive coordinator Mike Bobo has McKenzie in the backfield with former American Heritage High teammate and fellow freshman Sony Michel, who takes the direct snap. Yet there is no doubting McKenzie's favorite role on the team.

"Coach Bobo has been putting me in a lot of different packages on offense, which has been a lot of fun, but I still like punt returns more than anything," he said. "I've been very happy just to be on the field and playing as a true freshman. A lot of kids don't get to do that, but I've had the talent to do it and I'm trying to take advantage of it."

McKenzie's impact on special teams has given Georgia hidden yardage that didn't exist a season ago, when the Bulldogs amassed a woeful 73 punt-return yards. Sophomore receiver Reggie Davis has added 89 yards on 10 returns, giving Georgia nearly triple the punt-return yardage compared to a year ago after only four games.

"It's been big, no doubt," Georgia coach Mark Richt said Wednesday. "We've worked so hard on the technique of blocking for these return men, because we knew they had ability. I like what we've done with some of our twin-safety looks and allowing those guys to block for each other depending on where the ball gets kicked."

In the 66-0 rout of Troy, McKenzie had a 52-yard return for a touchdown, and his 29-yarder against Tennessee occurred after Georgia's defense had registered its first three-and-out after a sluggish start.

"He's been great," senior inside linebacker Ramik Wilson said. "He brings so much energy and momentum after we make big plays, and that's what we need."

McKenzie was among the final pieces to Georgia's 2014 signing class after a recruitment that had as many changes of direction as some of his returns. The Rivals.com four-star prospect committed to Notre Dame last October but was considering Florida, Ole Miss, Oregon and Virginia Tech down the stretch.

In early February, Georgia offered an 11th-hour scholarship that Richt has not regretted since.

"He is a very good football player, and he loves the game," Richt said. "He's a guy who obviously can return kicks, but I think he'll give us more production at receiver than I probably thought in the beginning. I was really expecting a guy who might be able to make a difference for us returning punts and kicks throughout his career, but I think he's going to actually settle into being a pretty good every-down receiver once he learns how to run the routes and learns the system a little better."

After one month with the Bulldogs, McKenzie has loved everything about the experience. Well, almost everything.

"I'm not a fan of the fair catch at all," he said. "Everything I get I try to return."

Odds and ends

Gurley and Nick Chubb are healthy but wore noncontact jerseys Wednesday. "We're running out of those dudes," Richt told reporters afterward. ... Redshirt junior receivers Malcolm Mitchell and Justin Scott-Wesley will play Saturday, but how much is unknown. "By no means are they perfectly polished," Richt said. ... Richt on quarterback Hutson Mason: "He really just needs to enjoy the moment. He's waited long enough for it."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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