ATHENS, Ga. -- The waiting is often the hardest part, whether it involves an epic Tom Petty song, or a Heisman Trophy frontrunner biding his time in the early stages of a crucial conference tilt.
In the latter's case, patience was a virtue for Georgia tailback Todd Gurley -- the SEC's most heralded active ballcarrier and alpha dog to one of the country's most explosive rushing attacks.
On a warm, breezy Saturday at Sanford Stadium, Gurley submitted to a secondary role in the first quarter of Georgia's thrilling 35-32 victory over Tennessee, before erupting for a boatload of open-space yardage and two touchdowns in the final three frames, thus fueling the No. 12 Bulldogs' first SEC win of the young conference season.
(It was Tennessee' first bit of SEC action.)
To say that Gurley (208 rushing yards) was UGA's showcase performer on this day would be a massive understatement.
When the dust settled, Bulldogs QB Huston Mason didn't clear 180 total yards ... and no other playmaker accounted for 60-plus yards against the upset-minded Vols.
Gurley might also be single-handedly responsible for helping Georgia jump into next week's Top 10 (Associated Press poll) -- similar to his stellar leaping run of 26 yards with seven-plus minutes left in the fourth quarter just moments after the Vols had whittled their deficit to three points.
"Running down the sideline, (Gurley) jumped right by my face," marveled Georgia head coach Mark Richt in the post-game media session.
As the Bulldogs' leader of 14 seasons, Richt has steathily learned the art of diplomacy when asked to compare past and present players. But on this day, he admitted that Gurley's leaping run might have been "more spectacular" than Knowshon Moreno's astounding vertical carry from a 2008 game.
Richt then joked that perhaps somebody could pair the two acrobatic plays against one another and "scientifically" determine which one exerted more physical grace.
"It's cool to look at those plays," said Gurley, a champion hurdler in high school. "But I like to look at the stuff that I didn't do right. I had several plays that maybe could've been touchdowns. I need to get better on that."
In Gurley's selfless world, the leaping sideline dash was a pleasant highlight-reel memory. But in terms of Georgia securing a much-needed victory, the junior tailback's 51-yard touchdown run (9:31 left in the game) gave the Dawgs some breathing room in the fourth quarter, extending their lead to 28-17.
And then with Georgia (3-1 overall) holding on to a three-point lead with under two minutes left, it was Gurley who garnered carry after carry after carry to earn the vital first downs that clinched the victory.
In fact, after the game, Richt said his team had zero interest in kicking a field goal in the final minute, which would have increased the lead to six but also allotting the Vols enough time to produce a possible game-winning TD.
The simple plan was All Gurley, ll the time, in hopes of draining the clock with two precious first downs.
* * *
When perusing the box score, there were more similarities than differences between the neighboring rivals. The final tallies for first downs, total yardage, time of possession, penalties and turnovers (two apiece) were essentially negligible.
Richt, without much pressing, admitted his passing game "isn't clicking right now" -- a reference to Mason accounting for only 147 yards passing, one TD and two interceptions.
But then again, his Bulldogs are also about playing to their strengths, in terms of milking a wildly successful running game (289 yards on Saturday).
In short, Gurley (238 total yards) was simply more dominant than his Vols counterpart, freshman Jalen Hurd, who rolled for 138 total yards and one touchdown.
And this wasn't some one-time occurrence, either. In three games against Clemson, South Carolina and now Tennessee, Gurley has notched 537 total yards and seven overall TDs (including one kick-return score against Clemson).
Which brings us back to Gurley's ongoing Heisman campaign:
Sure, there are many hurdles to clear before capturing college football's most prestigious award, but the criteria for determining that recipient usually involves four factors:
1. Is Player A the key cog on a consistent winner?
2. Is Player A demonstrating incremental progress from week to week -- in terms of handling the Heisman hype?
3. Is Player A coming up big in marquee games -- a.k.a. ones with national implications?
4. Would the Bulldogs be an SEC- and national-title contender without Gurley carrying the freight?
So far, so good on all four fronts.
* * *
The day will come when Tennessee experiences a breakthrough victory -- on the road -- that deserves national attention.
"Obviously, this (loss) was very disappointing. It's about this football team understanding it's a game of inches," said Tennessee head coach Butch Jones, in his second year with the Volunteers.
"It's a play here, a play there, and it's a (cumulative) factor," said Jones, whose Vols now stand at 2-2 for the season. "(Our team) really fought and every individual in this organization believed that we were going to win. ... I am proud of them, but we have to continue to learn from this and move on."
For starters, Jones has been field on the recruiting trail, perpetually selling his message from Memphis to Bristol -- plus the seven other states bordering Tennessee -- while harvesting multiple crops of blue-chip players.
There's also the proverbial blind squirrel dictum, a popular principle that suggests even he finds a nut every now and then.
Humor aside, it's been a long time since the Vols have heavily impacted the SEC race on a road-trip Saturday.
Tennessee hasn't enjoyed a quality road victory since 2009, knocking off a decent Kentucky squad; and in terms of slaying a big-name dragon away from Knoxville ... that triumph level dates back to 2006 when the Volunteers toppled Georgia (51-33) and South Carolina (31-24) in a three-week span.
Putting that into greater context: Of the last nine seasons (2006-14), Vanderbilt has upended Ole Miss (thrice), Florida, South Carolina and Georgia on the road.
And in the last five years alone, North Dakota State -- a three-time FCS national champion -- has humbled Iowa State, Kansas State, Minnesota, Kansas, and Colorado State on the road.
This begs the question: When will UT finally collect a road win worthy of a humblebrag?
With major trips to Ole Miss and South Carolina left on the schedule ... Tennessee's next shining moment away from Knoxville might not occur until 2015 -- against Florida or Missouri.
But almost certainly not against Alabama.
"It's very early in the season," says Jones of Saturday's narrow setback. "We are going to stay together and maintain focus, discipline and composure. Losses should hurt."
* * *
It's weird to say, but the SEC may be stronger than ever this season -- even with a 'down' East division.
That's the byproduct of six teams from the West currently occupying space in the Associated Press Top 25 (#3 Alabama, #5 Auburn, #6 Texas A&M, #10 Ole Miss, #14 Mississippi State, #17 LSU) ... and a so-called bottom feeder, like Arkansas, possessing the run-heavy chops to beat Georgia (Oct. 18) and/or Missouri (Nov. 28) in the coming weeks.
As such, wouldn't it be fun to theoretically pester Vegas for an over/under of West-over-East crossover victories in 2014?
One could make the reasonable argument of the West claiming at least 11 matchups against the inferior East -- beginning with Texas A&M's road rout of South Carolina on Aug. 28 (52-28) and possibly ending with Arkansas toppling Mizzou on Thanksgiving Friday (both road games for the West).
In fact, the only high-profile crossover game that seems like a lock for the East involves Georgia and Auburn (Nov. 15 in Athens).
In case you forgot about last year's miracle TD catch, in favor of the Tigers, the Bulldogs are owed a sizable chunk of positive mojo from the football gods -- so much that Auburn might need to greatly outplay UGA that day to ensure victory.
Karmic presumptions aside, though, the West has already proven itself to be bigger, stronger, faster and more balanced than their East counterparts.
The level of quarterback play is substantially higher, as well, with Blake Sims (Alabama), Kenny Hill (Texas A&M), Bo Wallace (Ole Miss) and Dak Prescott (Mississippi State) commanding top billing at the vital position.
* * *
So, how does Georgia's harrowing victory -- a triumph that Richt characterized as "awesome" and "awful" in a single declarative sentence -- influence the ever-changing standings in the SEC East?
Well, it's quite simple: Georgia needs South Carolina (2-1 in SEC play and hosting Missouri on Saturday night) to drop another conference game at some point.
However, the Bulldogs have one major feather in their cap:
UGA hosts Auburn ... whereas South Carolina heads to The Plains on Oct. 25.
