Star Georgia running back Trevor Etienne is out for Saturday night’s matchup between the Bulldogs and Tennessee at Sanford Stadium in Athens.
Georgia listed Etienne as questionable on its Wednesday night availability report before officially listing him as out on the Thursday night availability report.
Etienne is Georgia’s top running back and perhaps the Bulldogs’ top skill position player. He’s rushed for 477 yards and seven touchdowns on 95 carries this season. Georgia suspended Etienne for its season opener against Clemson but he’s played every game since.
His 88-yard, two-touchdown performance against Auburn and his 87-yard three touchdown performance against Texas are the two best performances of Etienne’s season. Etienne is part a two-headed backfield along with freshman running back Nate Frazier.
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Frazier’s rushed for 333 yards and three touchdowns this season on 72 carries. The one significant difference in Etienne and Frazier is their pass catching abilities. Etienne’s caught 23 passes this season while Frazier has just caught five.
The duo have been by far Georgia’s top backs this season but the Bulldogs will also be down reserve running backs Roderick Robinson and Branson Robinson against Tennessee. Cash Jones will likely be Georgia’s second running back behind Frazier against the Vols.
Etienne transferred to Georgia from Florida last offseason after playing his first two seasons in Gainesville. Last season, Etienne ran for 172 yards and a touchdown against Tennessee.
Kickoff between Tennessee and Georgia is at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday night in Athens. Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Holly Rowe are on the call for ABC.
