Georgia’s Todd Gurley suspended 4 games by NCAA

FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2013, file photo, Georgia head coach Mark Richt gives a thumbs up to the fans after their 23-20 win over Florida in an NCAA football game in Jacksonville, Fla. On Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, the Bulldogs will be going for their fourth straight victory in the series for the first time since the 1980s. (AP Photo/Athens Banner-Herald, AJ Reynolds, File) MAGS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2013, file photo, Georgia head coach Mark Richt gives a thumbs up to the fans after their 23-20 win over Florida in an NCAA football game in Jacksonville, Fla. On Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, the Bulldogs will be going for their fourth straight victory in the series for the first time since the 1980s. (AP Photo/Athens Banner-Herald, AJ Reynolds, File) MAGS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

By Associated Press October 29, 2014 5 min read

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) – Georgia was hoping to get Todd Gurley back on the field.

Looks like the No. 9 Bulldogs will have to wait two more games.

The NCAA announced Wednesday that Gurley, once a leading Heisman Trophy contender, must sit out until Nov. 15 for accepting more than $3,000 for autographed memorabilia and other items over a two-year period.

Gurley already missed the Bulldogs’ last two games, and the school had petitioned for him to be reinstated in time for Saturday’s Cocktail Party rivalry against Florida.

But the NCAA ruled that Gurley must serve a four-game suspension – about 30 percent of the regular season – and said it “strongly considered” a harsher punishment given the extent of the violations. The junior running back was found to have taken cash from multiple individuals, even though he received “extensive rules education about the prohibition of receiving payment for autographs.”