Georgia's King, Ealey back together

ATHENS, Ga. - Georgia would have a pretty good tailback tandem if Washaun Ealey and Caleb King actually were a tandem.

Ealey and King have played just eight times together in the 16 games since last season's opener, and they've yet to play in the same game this year. Ealey was suspended for the opening win over Louisiana-Lafayette, when King suffered a sprained ankle late that caused him to miss ensuing losses to South Carolina and Arkansas.

Barring a last-minute setback, King is expected to team with Ealey again Saturday when the Bulldogs visit Mississippi State.

"I'm excited to be back out there to see what both of us can bring to the table," King said. "I'm going to try and hype him up, and I think he's going to hype me up, too."

The two tailbacks entered this season hoping to produce similar results to what Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson consistently provide for top-ranked Alabama. They combined for at least 150 rushing yards in each of Georgia's final five regular-season games a year ago, including an eye-popping 349 yards on 38 carries in the 30-24 upset win at Georgia Tech.

King rushed for 47 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries in this year's opener before getting injured, and Ealey has rushed for 162 yards and a touchdown on 37 carries the past two weeks. Carlton Thomas has been the top backup through the first three games and has 92 yards on 20 carries.

"Caleb, of the three, is the most solid pass-protecting back we have," coach Mark Richt said. "He's an outstanding runner, too, so I think he will definitely help us. He's been a starter and has played a lot, and the more guys you miss who have that kind of experience, the tougher it is."

The sprained ankle is the latest in a line of recent setbacks for King, a 5-foot-11, 212-pound redshirt junior from Greater Atlanta Christian. A sore hamstring kept him out of the first two games a year ago, and he broke his jaw against LSU that caused him to sit out the loss at Tennessee.

A knee injury kept him out of the G-Day game this past April.

King had his helmet on and stood by coaches hoping to get in last Saturday, but the coaches didn't cave. The absence of King and freshman Ken Malcome, who isn't practicing because of a concussion, had left Ealey and Thomas taking all the reps until this week.

"That's a wear on those guys," offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said. "So for starters, just having another back in practice has been good."

King admits his ankle is a little sore until he gets it loose, and then he feels like he has at least 95 percent of the cutting ability he had before the injury.

Georgia ranks 11th in the SEC and 85th nationally with 128 rushing yards per game. The Bulldogs will welcome back junior receiver A.J. Green from a four-game NCAA suspension next week when they visit Colorado.

"The bottom line is that we've got what we've got and we've got to find a way to win a football game," Bobo said. "We've taken it as a challenge. We haven't been able to do that, and it's disappointing."

Said King: "In the summertime, when we had everybody out there, we looked amazing. I can't wait until we all come out to see how far we can go."

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

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