Georgia Loses RB Keith Marshall and WR Justin Scott-Wesley for Season

Oct 5, 2013; Knoxville, TN, USA; Georgia Bulldogs running back Keith Marshall (4) was injured during the game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Georgia won in overtime 34 to 31. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

On Sunday afternoon, Georgia Bulldogs head coach Mark Richt released some devastating, if not unsurprising, news on two of his offensive skill players.

It has been confirmed that both RB Keith Marshall and WR Justin Scott-Wesley suffered torn ACL’s in yesterday’s 34-31 win over Tennessee, and usually, that injury carries a 1-year recovery time.

For Marshall, this was the worst-case scenario, but also the one that most expected after he left the game with a brutal-looking injury. The young man will have two years of remaining eligibility when he returns, but his loss is a big-time blow to the 2013 version of the Bulldogs. He has 246 yards and 1 touchdown this season as a backup to Todd Gurley, but as a freshman, Marshall generated nearly 800 yards on the ground while forming the best 1-2 tandem at the running back position in college football.

Scott-Wesley isn’t quite the high-profile injury that Marshall is, but his loss could be felt just as significantly. The sophomore from Camilla, Georgia already has 311 yards and 2 touchdowns this season, and there is no Todd Gurley to take the focus off of Scott-Wesley’s absence at the wide receiver spot. Fortunately, the Bulldogs are super deep on the outside (as they displayed on Saturday), but Scott-Wesley likely presents the highest upside of any wide-out, and that’s a big loss.

Injury updates on guys like Gurley and Michael Bennett will likely surface in the coming days, but with the shoe dropping on Marshall and Scott-Wesley, it’s a somber day in Athens. Alas, the Bulldogs are still poised for a potential run toward the conference and national championships, and the cupboard is far from bare.