Are fans expecting too much from Nick Chubb too soon?
We spoke with former Georgia offensive lineman Matt Stinchcomb, currently an analyst with ESPNU and the SEC Network, about whether it’s wise for fans to count on Nick Chubb being his old self.
The sight of Nick Chubb dressed out in full pads and moving around without a brace certainly has Bulldog fans hopeful that the star running back will be as good as new when Georgia opens its season against North Carolina.
With good reason.
When healthy, Chubb has been one of the best, with 2,294 career yards on just 311 carries (7.4 yards per rush) and 21 touchdowns.
Of course, that was before his knee injury at Tennessee last October which knocked him out for the rest of the year.
However, as Bulldog fans have come to realize, Chubb is a different animal, and from all indications he appears to be well on his way to playing in the first game. Granted, head coach Kirby Smart has yet to say when the rising junior might be cleared to play.
Chubb said himself in February that he would be back for the season opener.
But was that wishful thinking? Maybe not considering how Chubb seems to have progressed. A more fitting question is: were he actually suit up and play, would he resemble the Chubb of old? Are fans expecting too much, too soon?
Former Bulldog and current SEC Network analyst Matt Stinchcomb is worried that they might be.
“I think that the false setting for all fan bases is to get out ahead of themselves,” Stinchcomb said. “The typical fan thinks all kinds of different things, and I’m included in that statement - it’s always better than it is, it’s always worse than it is, it always happens faster than it did, it’s moving slower than it should, all that stuff. The beauty of that is you get to be extreme in all our position.”
In other words, Stinchcomb is too polite to say it but yes, fans are expecting too much. Suchg is the nature of fandom and the belief that Chubb is special.
So, does Stinchcomb believe Chubb will be ready? Well, the former Heisman Trophy contender won't get to make that call no matter how hard he pushes himself in his rehab.
“He’s either ready or he isn’t,” he said. “But I’ll tell you this, those guys over there, those guys in that sports medicine staff, that training staff and Ron Courson, they’re second to none in that regard. So if they think he’s ready to go, they’ll play him. If they don’t then they won’t.”
As for those convinced that Chubb will in fact be good as new, Stinchcomb said he’s got no problem with that.
“I think it’s perfectly fine for folks around the program, fans, to get excited and think that hey, he’s going to be chomping at the bit to get out there and try to night train a bunch of North Carolina Tar Heels,” Stinchcomb said. “Go ahead and believe that, just don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t happen.”
But even if Chubb isn’t back to what fans remember, Stinchcomb said to take heart.
“They’ve (Georgia) got plenty of talent where they’re going to have their hands full,” Stinchcomb said. “Nick Chubb is a tremendous football player, but at the end of the day, he’s just one guy.”