Chauncey Bowens was a bright spot for Georgia in a 24-21 loss to Alabama last Saturday night.
Bowens, a redshirt freshman running back for the Bulldogs, had a breakout performance against the Crimson Tide. He received most of the offensive snaps after starter Nate Frazier coughed up a fumble, his second of the season. Bowens seized the opportunity and shined on the biggest stage.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said he used Bowens more than Frazier because he was the “hot” running back.
“Yeah, just that I love him and want him to get better. It’s not his first one. There’s nothing he’s doing technically wrong. He’s just got to hang onto the ball,” Smart said of Frazier. “That comes with confidence. It comes with confidence in how you practice. You’ve got to practice it, and you’ve got to have confidence and show it.
“[The substitution] was more about Chauncey being the hot back more than it was anything Nate was doing.”
Bowens, a 5-foot-11, 225-pound running back, carried the ball 12 times for a career-high 119 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 9.9 yards per carry, with his longest run being 43 yards, both new personal bests for him.
Bowens pushed through Alabama’s defense with four powerful runs of at least 10 yards. Along with his longest run of 43 yards, he posted rushes of 29, 10, and 14 yards against a tough Crimson Tide front seven.
“Man, he ran hard,” Smart said of Bowens. “He ran physical, got yards after contact, and protected the ball. He was tough. Chauncey is getting better with his pass (protection), catching the ball.”
Bowens was the spark Georgia needed following Frazier’s fumble. The Bulldog defense held the Crimson Tide to a field goal, and Bowens took over. His 43-yard rush put the offense inside Alabama’s 10-yard line.
Facing a 4th-and-short situation a few plays later, the former four-star prospect from Florida caught a pass out of the backfield from quarterback Gunner Stockton for a first down, which then set up his touchdown run.
“He played his heart out,” Stockton said of Bowens.
Bowens now leads Georgia in rushing, totaling 240 yards on 41 attempts (5.9 yards per carry) with three touchdowns.
As a team against Alabama, the Bulldogs rushed for a season-high 227 yards on 33 rushes and two scores.
Frazier totaled 30 yards on four carries. Stockton had five carries for 22 yards, while running back Josh McCray scored the other rushing touchdown among six rushes for 15 yards. Wideout Dillon Bell had a 43-yard rush.
“I was proud of the way [Bowens] ran, but it’s not all him,” Smart said. “There was a lot of good run scheme in that game that helped us run the ball.”
Moving forward, it looks like Georgia’s running back rotation will remain by committee, but Bowens proved he can handle the load when needed.