Todd Gurley vs. Auburn: Stats, Highlights and Twitter Reaction to RB's Return

For almost 55 of the 60 minutes, Todd Gurley's awaited return went as seamless as any Georgia fan could have hoped. Then, it turned sour in a heartbeat.

Gurley had 29 carries for 138 yards and a touchdown in Georgia's 34-7 win over  Auburn Saturday night, but suffered a non-contact knee injury with five minutes to go and left with a cloud of uncertainty surrounding the severity of the injury.

He was able to walk off the field, but the nature of the injury had plenty on the scene worried, as 247 Sports' Gentry Estes reported:

Freshman Nick Chubb, Gurley's backfield partner, outshone Gurley for the most part with 19 carries for 144 yards and two scores. With both of their workhorses firing on all cylinders, Georgia rushed for 289 yards and that was more than enough to get the win.

Stat	Att	Yards	Average	TD
Stat	Catches	Yards	-	-
Rushing	29	138	4.8	1
Receiving	1	4

The anticipation was huge entering Gurley's return after missing the last four games for accepting illegal benefits stemming from autographed memorabilia. Georgia's football Twitter account captured a nice sight for Bulldog fans as their star walked out of the tunnel:

The junior running back, who also impacts games in special teams, Gurley took the opening kickoff of the game back for a would-be touchdown. His return looked to start in perfect fashion, but it was called back for holding. 

Either way, ESPN SportsCenter called what everybody saw—Gurley is still on top of his game:

But he didn't immediately make that same impact in the backfield for the Bulldogs. Actually, Chubb got the call on the first series and Gurley's first two carries on the second series weren't pretty, as ESPN's Edward Aschoff noted:

After a sluggish start that saw Auburn lead 7-0, Georgia's special teams recovered a punt and Gurley pounded it into the Tigers' red zone with a signature 11-yard run—you know, those ones where there isn't much of an opening, but he still slices through and falls forward for an extra three yards.

Chubb had the better first half with 67 rushing yards, but a lot of that had to do with Gurley seeming to sport an injured elbow as David Pollack of ESPN and many others noticed:

Coming out for the second half, Gurley continued to split carries with Chubb and kept wearing down a weary Auburn defense. Their dual rushing ability was never on better display than on a seven-play drive (all runs) started by Chubb and capped off by two Gurley runs to extend Georgia's lead to 24-7.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Georgia's defense started to close things out, but Gurley entered the fourth quarter with no carries past 13 yards. That eventually changed, as he scampered free for a 31-yard gain on a late fourth-quarter drive. 

Gurley surpassed the 100-yard mark with that carry, as Georgia athletics noted:

The former Heisman Trophy contender's impact on Georgia's win was huge, but it could end up being costly.

Gurley's 29th and final carry put a hush over the Sanford Stadium crowd, and any resulting celebration from the win was tempered due to the lack of knowledge about Gurley's injury status.

As The Macon Telegraph's Seth Emerson noted, Gurley headed straight to the hospital:

Bleacher Report's David Siebert worried of a serious ligament problem, although official word will soon come out:

The late injury undeniably puts a damper on Georgia's big day, but it doesn't change the fact that the Bulldogs are now back in position to possibly win the SEC East. With their conference slate done, they need a Missouri loss to get to Atlanta.

Georgia has Chubb to take over the backfield again if Gurley's injury is indeed serious, but it undeniably takes the Bulldog offense from borderline unstoppable to a one-trick pony. The Bulldogs need both Gurley and Chubb to be firing, if they're going to contend in a potential SEC title game.

None of that seems to matter at all, however, in comparison to what a serious injury might mean for Gurley's career. He's the best rusher to hit college football in some time, and his running style has already generated a wealth of NFL talk. 

It's safe to say Georgia fans, along with the millions who just enjoy watching Gurley run people over, will be hoping for a quick return to health for the star back.