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Keith Marshall: A Senior Season Renaissance?

By John Buhler

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Keith Marshall entered 2015 as the forgotten man in the Georgia Bulldogs’ running back group. A myriad of injuries derailed a promising collegiate career for the former 5-star tailback out of Raleigh, North Carolina.

We fondly remember his strong freshman season in 2012 as part of the “Gurshall” tailback tandem with RB Todd Gurley, now with the St. Louis Rams.  Keith ran for 759 yards and 8 scores as a true freshman, en route to an SEC Championship Game appearance for the Dawgs and a 12-2 season.  Entering 2013, we didn’t know who was the better sophomore running back for the Georgia Bulldogs: Todd Gurley or Keith Marshall?

-= Related: Georgia Bulldogs Take Care of ULM 51-14 =-

Sep 5, 2015; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs running back Keith Marshall (4) runs with the ball against the Louisiana Monroe Warhawks during the second half at Sanford Stadium. Georgia defeated Louisiana Monroe 51-14 in a game shortened by thunder storms. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

However, a torn ACL suffered in Knoxville in 2013 brought the insanely fast tailback to a screeching halt, rushing just 12 times for 24 yards in 2014.  After only 270 yards on the ground and 1 touchdown in the last two seasons combined, will Keith Marshall have a senior season of renaissance?

Though Keith Marshall didn’t lead the Dawgs in rushing in their home opener, perhaps he had the most memorable performance on the team.  Marshall rushed for 73 yards on 10 carries for 2 scores, yielding an impressive 7.3 average and a long of 20 yards.

While all four of the Georgia Bulldogs appearing in this shortened game had a YPC of at least 5.7, Keith Marshall made it look like it was no big deal.  For the amount of adversity he has had to endure the last year and a half, you have to believe that the entirety of Dawg Nation erupted with both of Marshall’s touchdown runs.

For a game that was largely a warmup for the #9 team in the nation, seeing Keith Marshall back to his old self only makes the Georgia Bulldogs more lethal on offense.  I feel like the way that Keith Marshall was running yesterday afternoon, he would have likely eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the 4th time in his collegiate career had the game continued past the 9:54 mark in the 4th Quarter.  Apparently lightning could only stop UGA’s lightning tailback yesterday afternoon.

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It’s way too early to know if Keith Marshall will stay healthy for the Georgia Bulldogs this season, but you have to like the results in a limited sample size with his Week 1 performance.  Keith will have his next opportunity to showcase his talents against the Vanderbilt Commodores on September 12th when the Georgia Bulldogs venture to Nashville for their SEC opener.

For the rest of Dawg Nation, Keith Marshall, you played a great game and we’re looking forward to many more strong performances from you.  We’re glad you’re healthy and we hope you continue to help get us back to an SEC Championship Game.  Go Dawgs!

Next: John Theus: Can He Finish First Team All-SEC?

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