ATLANTA -- Georgia's still alive in the Southeastern
Conference race, though Kregg Lumpkin may have taken his final
handoff for the Bulldogs.
The injury plagued senior sustained a serious knee injury in
Georgia's 20-17 victory over Vanderbilt, coach Mark Richt said
Sunday.
"He may or may not finish the season," Richt said. "He's got
a significant injury to the knee. He's not going to play anytime
soon."
The No. 21 Bulldogs, who moved up three spots in the latest
Associated Press poll, already lost Thomas Brown for at least four
weeks, leaving redshirt freshman Knowshon Moreno as the main option
at running back.
Moreno rushed for 157 yards in his first career start, 123 of
those coming in the second half against the Commodores.
Lumpkin, who went out in the third quarter, may need
arthroscopic surgery to clean out some damaged cartilage, but the
medical staff won't be sure until the inflammation settles down a
bit. He also sustained a high ankle sprain on the same play,
further damaging any hopes of a speedier comeback.
This is nothing new for Lumpkin. After a promising freshman
year, he tore up a knee on the first day of fall practice in 2004,
forcing him to take a redshirt. He returned to lead the Bulldogs in
rushing last season with 798 yards and six touchdowns, but
sustained another setback in this year's opener against Oklahoma
State.
Just three carries into the season, Lumpkin went out with a
broken thumb. He missed two games and had to wear a special pad on
his hand when he returned. His carries figured to increase in the
coming weeks as Brown recovered from a broken collarbone, but
another knee injury thwarted those plans.
Having already played in five games, Lumpkin has no chance of
gaining a sixth year of eligibility. He's only got nine carries for
37 yards, hardly the way he wanted to end his college career.
The Bulldogs are off this week, providing a glimmer of hope that
Brown might be available to take a few carries in the next game, a
must-win contest against rival Florida on Oct. 27. Otherwise,
Moreno would likely have to carry the load, as he did in the second
half against the Commodores.
"I'm sure he's tired. I'm sure he's beat up," Richt said.
"The time off will be a blessing for him, as it will for rest of
the team."
Moreno leads Georgia with 619 yards, averaging 5.2 a carry, but
the team will spend the next two weeks trying to get someone ready
to back him up. Jason Johnson is a senior but has only three career
carries. Redshirt freshman Shaun Chapas has rushed eight times for
24 yards. Freshman Kalvin Daniels will move over from the scout
team to prepare for possible duty.
"Kalvin will probably come over with the offensive first and
second units, work with them to make sure he's ready when the time
comes," Richt said.
The Bulldogs (5-2, 3-2 SEC) preserved their hopes in the East
Division, though they face a brutally tough stretch run: No. 14
Florida, No. 8 Kentucky and No. 18 Auburn. Georgia was 10 points
down to Vanderbilt at halftime, but rallied to win on Brandon
Coutu's last-second field goal.
Afterward, the Bulldogs celebrated on Vanderbilt's logo in the
center of the field. Richt apologized to Commodores coach Bobby
Johnson afterward and admonished his players in the locker room to
refrain from those sort of displays in the future.
"I don't think that's the right thing to do at the end of a
ballgame," Richt said. "Should we have been celebrating?
Absolutely. But not in a way that incites people's emotions like
that."
He also disputed reports that said had him getting into an
argument with Johnson after the game.
"There was nothing like that at all," Richt said. "I just
said, 'Coach, I'm sorry my guys did that.' He said, 'Coach, don't
worry about it."