A year ago, we delivered our “Counting the Days” series (an example with 12 days remaining until the season kicks off). This summer, we explore a topic that has been debated on The Dawgvent for years and years. Twice a week leading up to the season opener, we will post the UGA’s Mount Rushmore of… series, whereby we each present our opinion of the top four Bulldogs representing each positional unit. Whether statistics, big plays, championships won, and/or something else, we have our reasons why these quartets of Bulldogs have been chosen.
Do you agree with our Mount Rushmore of UGA Running Backs? Who would you put on your list?
Dave McMahon—Twitter @dave_mc_stats
(In my opinion, Georgia is one of the five or six schools that has a right to claim itself as “Tailback U” or “Running Back U.” Therefore, in my opinion, to pick the top four Bulldog running backs of all time is very difficult.)
Todd Gurley (2012-14): I went back-and-forth between Todd Gurley and Nick Chubb, and decided on the former. But, ask me again in a few months and I may think differently. Averaging 6.2, 6.0, and 7.4 yards per rush, respectively, in his three seasons, Gurley is Georgia’s all-time leader in most rushing yards per attempt (6.44). Notably, he had just two career games in which he averaged less than four yards per rush. Gurley’s 36 rushing touchdowns in 30 career games are tied for second-most in school history behind you-know-who. His 3,285 career rushing yards are third all time in school history, 109.5 career rushing yards per game rank second to you-know-who, and he also averaged 119 rushing yards in 11 career games against AP-ranked opponents. Making 65 career receptions, including six for touchdowns, one of the main things which set Gurley apart from some other backs is that he was a great receiver, as well. His collegiate career ended early with a torn ACL and, a few months later, he was a first round draft pick.
Garrison Hearst (1990-92): Garrison Hearst was a big-time recruit when he came to Georgia in 1990, and was one of the major factors in “Operation Turnaround” of 1991. After splitting time in the backfield with Larry Ware, Hearst finally took the reins in 1992. For his junior season, he totaled 1,547 yards rushing (tied for the fourth most in UGA history behind three owned by you-know-who), excluding 163 yards gained against Ohio State in the Citrus Bowl. Hearst also scored 19 rushing touchdowns in 1992, and that is a school record. The 33 he scored for a career are fourth most, and he also ranks fourth at Georgia in career rushing yards with 3,232. Hearst was an All-American, a Doak Walker winner, as well as a winner in the inaugural ESPY Awards. He finished in third place in the 1992 Heisman Trophy balloting behind Gino Torretta and Marshall Faulk (hmmm?).
Charley Trippi (1942, 1945-46): I do 100 percent agree with my Charley Trippi selection, yet also really wanted to include his teammate and Heisman Trophy winner Frank Sinkwich. Nonetheless, not only was Trippi one of the best college football players of all time, he might be one of the greatest college baseball players ever, as well (batted .464 in a season). On the gridiron, he played both sides of the ball, but excelled on offense. While splitting time with Sinkwich in 1942, Trippi averaged 6.9 yards per rush and totaled eight rushing touchdowns en route to being selected the Rose Bowl MVP against UCLA. After serving our country during World War II, he returned to Georgia in 1945 and, playing for a limited time that season, scored 10 touchdowns while passing for 10 more. As a senior in 1946, Trippi led the SEC in scoring with 84 points and totaled 1,366 yards of total offense. That season, he won the Maxwell Award as the National Player of the Year and was second in the Heisman Trophy voting. Trippi was the number-one overall pick in the NFL Draft, and he would eventually become members of both the College Football and Pro Football Hall of Fames. Notably, he is also one of only four Georgia football players to have his number retired.
Herschel Walker (1980-82): If I didn’t put Herschel Walker on this list, I might be looking for a new job tomorrow. I think a good portion of Bulldog enthusiasts know most of what there is to know about the three-time All-American and 1982 Heisman Trophy winner. I believe if Herschel would have played during a similar college football landscape as today’s, he would have won multiple Heisman Trophies. Instead, he finished third, second, and first, respectively. When Walker left Georgia, he had set 41 school records, 16 SEC records and 11 NCAA records (many of which are still records today). His 5,259 career rushing yards are still an SEC record, which is crazy since he is credited for only 33 career games. Can you imagine if you added a 12th game, an SEC Championship game, and one or two additional postseason games? Herschel’s 159.4 rushing yards per game is almost 50 yards higher than the second-place Bulldog (rather impressive considering the school has been labeled “Tailback U” or “Running Back U”). He has seven of Georgia’s top 12 rushing outings, and his nine games with over 200 rushing yards equal the amount of all other Bulldogs combined. Before he was a bobsledder, ballet dancer, or MMA fighter, Herschel also won the Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Award. In 1999, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Patrick Garbin—Twitter @PatrickGarbin
(As difficult it was for Dave, it was actually kind of easy for me to select my opinion of Georgia’s top four running backs of all time, as the quartet would probably be my “Mount Rushmore” of all Bulldog players, as well. Still, a couple of these are likely rather debatable…)
Bob McWhorter (1910-1913): I went on and on roughly a few months ago why Bob McWhorter’s—UGA’s first All-American—not only should’ve had his jersey retired by Georgia when the program had its opportunity, but why I think the legendary halfback is my opinion of the Bulldogs’ most valuable player of all time. Perhaps the best example of why Georgia’s only four-time first-team all-conference selection deserves recognition for this top four: From 1899 through 1909, the Red and Black won only about one-third of their games (26 of 76). As horrifying, during the same 11-season span, they averaged just 7.2 points per game. However, with McWhorter lining up at right halfback from 1910 through 1913, Georgia achieved a remarkable 25-6-3 combined record while averaging 24.2 points per game. In 1914, with McWhorter having departed, the Red and Black relapsed, recording just a 3-5-1 mark while being shutout in four of nine games.
Frank Sinkwich (1940-1942): Over the years, I’ve conducted some rather extensive research on UGA football—researching every single game played, in fact—and no Bulldog player, except maybe Herschel Walker, was more publicized comparatively speaking to his own teammates than “Flatfoot” Frankie Sinkwhich. In merely his first varsity season, Sinkwich was essentially considered “the team,” as he was responsible for 11 touchdowns on an offensive-deficient, 5-4-1 Georgia squad. In 1941, he led the nation in rushing while leading the Bulldogs to their first-ever postseason appearance. As a senior in 1942, Sinkwich capped off a brilliant collegiate career by becoming the first in NCAA history to gain 2,000 yards of total offense in a single season and, for his efforts, took home the coveted Heisman Trophy. Rushing for 30 touchdowns and passing for 30 more scores during his 33-game Georgia career including the postseason, Sinkwich is not only the school’s lone member of its “30-30” club (rushing-passing touchdowns), but there isn’t even another Bulldog who has achieved 30-20 or 20-30 status.
Charley Trippi (1942, 1945-1946): Whereas McWhorter is Georgia’s most valuable player, and Sinkwich the school’s first Heisman winner, Charley Trippi is my opinion of the Bulldogs’ most versatile player in history. As a star rusher, passer, receiver, punter, and returner—the entire package—Trippi was once compared by his quarterback, John Rauch (1945-1948), to Michael Jordan, as they are the only players Rauch had seen in his life that could dominate a sport as they did. His statistics are staggering. In just 27 regular-season games in his career, Trippi rushed and passed for more than 1,700 yards, made 12 receptions, averaged 14 yards per punt return, around 23 yards per kickoff return, punted 66 times and, defensively, made 14 interceptions. These statistics do not include likely Georgia’s greatest career bowl performer. In three postseason outings—all victories—Trippi rushed for 115 yards on 27 carries, completed 6 of 13 passes for 88 yards, intercepted a pass, and had a 49.0 avg. on two punts in the 1943 Rose Bowl. In the 1945 Oil Bowl, he threw a 65-yard TD pass and returned a punt 68 yards for a TD. And, in Trippi’s final game as a Bulldog—the 1947 Sugar Bowl—he set a Sugar Bowl record with a 67-yard TD pass.
Herschel Walker (1980-1982): And, although perhaps not the program’s most valuable or versatile, Herschel Walker is Georgia’s most outstanding or greatest of all time—the “GOAT” for the Bulldogs. Wow, where to begin regarding who I believe, and maybe I’m a little bias (but I know I could back my argument up), is the greatest college football player during the modern era of the sport (or since the start of World War II)? First and perhaps foremost, Herschel’s 3rd-2nd-1st finishes for the Heisman Trophy are unparalleled, and I’m guessing might never be equaled. Thirty-five years since his final season at Georgia, his 159.4 rushing yards per game remains an NCAA record of those who appeared in at least 30 games, three seasons rushing for 1,500+ yards are tied for an NCAA record, and 174.2 all-purpose yards per game ranks second all time of all Power Five players (behind Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, 183.9). What’s more, the rate at which Walker scored touchdowns, comparatively speaking to his teammates, was uncanny. There was a reason why he was nicknamed, “The Goal-line Stalker.”
The dozen Georgia players who scored 30+ touchdowns during their careers, including bowl games, are ranked according to the percentage of their teams’ touchdowns each scored (including any games the player might have missed because of injury/suspension):
In a couple of days, we will reveal our next in the UGA’s Mount Rushmore of… series. Until then, again, do you agree with UGASports.com’s list? Who would you put on your Mount Rushmore of UGA Running Backs?
UGASports.com's Previous UGA Mount Rushmores:
