Georgia’s Todd Gurley, right, runs the ball in their game against Clemson, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2014, in Athens, Ga. Georgia won 45-21.ATHENS, Ga. – A bemused smile forming on his bearded face Saturday night following Georgia’s 45-21 rout of Clemson, Bulldogs center David Andrews scanned running back Todd Gurley’s stats: 298 all-purpose yards, a 100-yard kickoff return, four touchdowns.
A reporter asked Andrews what he thought made Gurley so special. Said the senior: “I think God gave him a little something extra.”
There have been glimpses since the day he arrived on Georgia’s campus three years ago, moments when it was clear to all that Gurley had the potential to do grand things with the greatest of ease, both for his Bulldogs teammates and himself.
But injuries seemed to find him as often as the end zone did. Nor did UGA’s offense often build itself around him in the same way it embraced Herschel Walker’s similar skills 34 years ago. Gurley was important, certainly, but not quite Plan A, at least not on a weekly basis.
But then came Saturday evening between the hedges, the Dawgs up against it, as the late, great Larry Munson might have groaned, Clemson having taken a 21-14 lead midway through the second period.