Sam Brown

sdbrown@tennessean.com

Vanderbilt knows Georgia's Todd Gurley is a worthy Heisman Trophy candidate, but the Commodores will try to treat him like any other running back.

"Todd Gurley is just another running back in the SEC we're going to have to tackle," Vanderbilt linebacker Caleb Azubike said. "I feel like given the strength and given the size of our defense we are going to be able to handle that quite properly."

Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason said containing Gurley will be the primary focus for Vanderbilt (1-4, 0-3 SEC) at No. 13 Georgia (3-1, 1-1) on Saturday, but he understands it will be a tough challenge.

"He's averaging (152) yards a game, arguably the best running back in college football, and he does it as good as anybody," Mason said. "He's a downhill runner, great vision, he's strong. He reminds me of Adrian Peterson. I had a chance to see him (Peterson) up close, and when you watch Gurley on film he's physical, he breaks tackles. He's facing nine-, 10-man boxes every week and he's productive, so it starts and ends with him."

Despite having only six carries in a blowout win over Troy, Gurley still ranks eighth nationally in rushing yards per game (152.5), and his 8.84 yards-per-carry average is second-best. In last Saturday's 35-32 win over Tennessee, Gurley rushed for a career-high 208 yards — the most by a Georgia player since Garrison Hearst rushed for 246 yards against Vanderbilt in 1992.

Gurley can also hurt opponents on special teams, as he ranks second nationally in all-purpose yards and has a 100-yard kick return for a touchdown this season.

Mason said one of the keys to containing Gurley is limiting his big-play ability. Along with a bruising 6-foot-1, 232-pound frame, Gurley has shown enough speed to reel off at least one run of 40 or more yards in every game this season.

"We just have to be aware of what they are trying to do to us," Mason said. "I'm not going to say that we're going to give up 4-, 6-yard runs all night, but we want to minimize those long runs as best we can. Anytime you can stop a running back from breaking long runs or having explosive runs, that's what you want to do."

Gurley sat out Georgia's 31-27 loss to Vanderbilt last season due to injury, but he had 130 yards (then a career high) and two touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 48-3 win over the Commodores in 2012.

With fellow Bulldogs running back Sony Michel out with a shoulder injury, Gurley will look to improve his Heisman Trophy résumé. Mason said he expects to see Gurley get a large workload.

"It starts and ends with Gurley," he said, "so that's where we have to start defensively."

Reach Sam Brown at 615-259-8010 or on Twitter @Bearded_Sports.

NEXT GAME

VANDERBILT (1-4, 0-3 SEC) at NO. 13 GEORGIA (3-1, 1-1)

When: 3 p.m. Saturday

TV/radio: SEC Network/1510-AM, 560-AM, 95.9-FM