Georgia RB Todd Gurley indefinitely suspended amid NCAA rules investigation
Georgia running back Todd Gurley has been indefinitely suspended from competition due to an ongoing investigation into an alleged violation of NCAA rules, the school announced Thursday afternoon.
"I’m obviously very disappointed," coach Mark Richt said. "The important thing for our team is to turn all our attention toward preparation for Missouri."
The release did not specify the violation, but Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports said sources claimed it had to do with extra benefits for memorabilia sales.
Hearing the investigation into #UGA star Todd Gurley is for possibly accepting extra benefits for his likeness w memorabilia brokers.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) October 9, 2014
Gurley, a Heisman frontrunner, has been the center of the Georgia offense. So far this season he’s rushed for 773 yards and eight touchdowns, which is sixth in the nation and first in the SEC.
If there was one player on the Bulldogs roster they absolutely could not lose, it was Gurley. He has amassed more than half of the Bulldogs rushing yards this season, which is saying something since Georgia has been a run-first squad all year. His rushing total almost equals the amount of passing yards the Bulldogs have had so far this season.
Gurley has made an otherwise mediocre offense look pretty stellar, and without him the Bulldogs will have to rely on two freshman Nick Chubb, who has 224 yards and two scores this season, to carry the load.
The loss of Gurley also will put more pressure on an already dicey quarterbacking situation. Starter Hutson Mason has thrown for 687 yards and seven touchdowns with three interceptions, but his consistency has been suspect. In fact, Richt has shuffled backup Brice Ramsey into the game more often, though he’s resisted calling the substitution a full-blown rotation. Georgia’s passing offense ranks 12th out of the 14 SEC teams.
There’s never a good time to have a top player suspended, but the Bulldogs have an important SEC matchup at Missouri this weekend. The Tigers are 1-0 in conference play with a win against South Carolina. Georgia already lost to South Carolina and a loss to Missouri would put its hopes of an SEC East division title in jeopardy.
For more Georgia news, visit UGASports.com.
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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday
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