ATHENS — Chauncey Bowens has no problem acknowledging that Saturday’s game is a big deal.
Georgia’s leading rusher is a Florida native, hailing from Port St. Lucie, Florida, and a one-time Florida commit. He knows there’s a world where he could’ve been suiting up for the rival program this weekend.
But in June of 2023, Bowens flipped his commitment to Georgia.
“Just the legacy that Georgia running backs have,” Bowens said.“Obviously we have a great lineage of running backs that came through and played here. So I just wanted to be a part of that. You look at the guys that we’ve had come through and it’s like, it’s a great line and I want to be one of them.”
Sony Michel and James Cook are other recent Florida running backs who went on to have strong careers at Georgia before moving on up to the NFL.
Bowens still has some time to go before he gets there, as he’s entering his sophomore season. Bowens was with the team in Jacksonville, Florida, last year for Georgia’s 34-20 win over the Gators but he did not record a carry in the win.
He figures to be a much bigger piece of the offense this time around.
“The biggest thing for me is, obviously, I think about my history and being committed to Florida,” Bowens said. “I think about Trevor (Etienne) last year, him playing in this game, and how much it meant for him. So for me, I mean, it’s something I’ve been thinking about for sure. Something that, obviously, you dream as a kid to be able to go and play in a game like this. So I’m just honored to be able to play in it, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Through the first seven games of this season, Bowens has 376 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns. He leads the team in both categories while averaging a robust 5.37 yards per carry.
Those numbers are somewhat hindered by a calf injury Bowens dealt with the week of the Auburn game. He had a season-low 4 carries for 5 rushing yards in the 20-10 win, though he did find a way to score Georgia’s first touchdown.
Bowens bounced back with a 61-yard rushing performance against Ole Miss and got the off week to further heal and recover.
“It’s good, and obviously, we had the bye week last week, so I’ve been able to heal up more and kind of just rest my body a little bit over the few days we got off,” Bowens said. “So I feel good, and yeah, I’m just looking forward to getting back out there.”
Bowens and the Georgia rushing offense also get the benefit of rushing behind a rested offensive line. Injuries have been a major problem for the group, as the Bulldogs have started six different offensive line combinations.
If that group can get healthy, Bowens could have a path to having a very special day.
“Guys have had great energy in terms of health status and guys practicing hard. You pick up a little speed, a little juice in the leg,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “You gotta be careful that you don’t run that out of them in a bye week. And you gotta be smart the way you go about practicing. And historically, we’ve tried to do a good job of that with our guys coming off a bye week.”
Bowens wants to win on Saturday first and foremost on Saturday. The Bulldogs have won four straight in the series and will look to push that to five. The team with the better rushing offense has usually won this game.
After the game, Bowens can’t wait to find his family and hopefully jump up into the stands to celebrate with the throngs of Georgia fans.
“I’m just looking forward to it,” Bowens said. “It’s an honor to be able to play in this game. I know the history, and I know how long this rivalry’s been going on for, so looking forward to it.”
