Georgia has not lacked for tailback tandems this decade, whether they were Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall, Nick Chubb and Sony Michel or last season's duo of Elijah Holyfield and D'Andre Swift.
Whether the Bulldogs produce another 1-2 punch this year could be up to Swift, who has averaged 6.8 yards per carry through his first two seasons and is prepared to shoulder as much of the burden as necessary under new offensive coordinator James Coley.
"Whatever workload he gives me, it's my job to be ready," Swift said this week in a news conference. "Whatever that workload is, I'm just trying to do the best I can. I'll be able to show everybody in the country what I can do."
The 5-foot-9, 215-pound junior from Philadelphia has shown plenty to this point, rushing for 618 yards and 7.6 yards per carry as a freshman in 2017, when he backed up Chubb and Michel. A lingering groin injury at the start of last season limited Swift's rushing output to 119 yards through the first three games, but the former five-star signee wound up leading the Bulldogs with team highs of 1,049 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns.
Swift also battled foot and hip injuries last season, but he feels healthier than ever as Georgia seeks a third straight Southeastern Conference Eastern Division crown.
"He's ready," junior quarterback Jake Fromm said this week. "He's had a great offseason getting back healthy, and this spring has been huge for him. I can't wait to see what he does this fall. I definitely think he's capable of carrying as much of the load as he wants to carry.
"I can't wait to see him make a lot of plays."
The Bulldogs held their 11th spring practice Thursday and are scheduled to conduct their second scrimmage Saturday inside Sanford Stadium.
Georgia's running back room this spring also contains senior Brian Herrien, who has rushed for 923 yards and 5.3 yards a carry in 40 career games, sophomore James Cook and redshirt freshman Zamir White. Neither Cook nor White has been at full strength, with Cook recovering from offseason ankle surgery and White from the torn ACL he sustained last August.
The Bulldogs signed four-star running back Kenny McIntosh in January, with the 6-1, 210-pounder from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, set to arrive this summer.
"Brian has been here for a long time," Swift said. "I think it's his time to shine."
Swift's career to this point has been punctuated by breakaway touchdown runs, clinching the 2017 win over Auburn in the SEC title game with a 64-yarder and putting the Tigers away last November with a 77-yarder. He also had an 83-yard touchdown run last November at Kentucky, which resulted in him being the SEC offensive player of the week back to back.
Yet the long scoring scampers have overshadowed the fact Swift has caught 49 passes for 450 yards (9.2 per catch) and four touchdowns, which is an aspect of his game he expects will continue.
"Coach Coley is doing a great job of getting the running backs involved more in the passing game," Swift said. "I think everybody will see that in our offense this coming-up year."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.