UGA’s Crowell And Samuel Could Be Out Til Next Week

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If you’re Mark Richt, the last thing you needed were injuries at the tailback position.  After a wave of departures this offseason, the Bulldogs’ coach found himself with a tailback-turned-linebacker-turned-tailback and a true freshman as his 1-2 options heading into the fall.  Now both are on the shelf for a few more days.

First-team tailback Richard Samuel has already missed two practices with a left quad injury.  “I don’t know how long he’ll be, but he definitely isn’t ready yet,” Richt told The Macon Telegraph.  “My guess is it’ll be early next week before we even start thinking about it.”

Isaiah Crowell — the all-everything freshman who some are expecting to be this year’s version of Marcus Lattimore — is still limited with a groin injury.

“He still can’t really move quick enough to be safe and be competitive,” Richt said.  “I mean he gave it a go today, but it’s not ready yet.  He thought he was ready and he wasn’t.  He’s farther along than I’d say Richard right now.”

Richt said he expects both players to be back for the opener against Boise State.  But in Crowell’s case especially, any missed practice time — true learning time — has to be a concern.

No one is worried about the rookie’s ability to run the football.  And so far, he’s gotten good grades for picking up the offense.  But if he’s going to be a complete player right from the get-go, Crowell will also have to master blitz pick-ups and quarterback protections.  The more reps he misses in practice, the more likely it is that Samuel will get the bulk of the work against the Broncos in the Georgia Dome.