Georgia Football: Mark Richt Dismisses the Importance of Isaiah Crowell

Georgia head coach Mark Richt made the rounds at the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Ala. on Day 3 of SEC Media Days.

The question at the top of everyone's mind was the future of Georgia football without the services of reigning SEC Freshman of the Year Isaiah Crowell.

Crowell was dismissed from the team last month after an early-morning arrest on felony weapons charges.

"I think this team was coming together no matter what happened with Isaiah [Crowell]," Richt said.

It's the diplomatic answer since Crowell is no longer part of the team, but it's accurate as well.

The running back position was already going to be a question mark anyway thanks to Crowell's propensity for injuries and general flakiness. With him now out the door to Alabama State, Georgia may be scrambling for answers at the running back position, but Richt seemed relieved to be over the headaches associated with Crowell.

Those headaches were partly Richt's fault to begin with.

Crowell was the centerpiece of the 2011 "Dream Team" recruiting class that Richt fought so hard to bring to Athens, and that attention clearly created a sense of entitlement in the former 5-star running back from Columbus, Ga.

Losing a talented running back like Crowell hurts the Bulldogs on paper, but games aren't played on paper. In 2012, it could be more "addition by subtraction."

Barrett Sallee is a lead writer for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained firsthand.

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