Kenny McIntosh playing with a purpose as senior season nears end
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia running back Kenny McIntosh likely played his last game at Sanford Stadium on Saturday, and if that’s the case, he certainly went out with a bang in the Bulldogs’ 37-14 win over Georgia Tech. Just a week after going for a career-high 143 rushing yards at Kentucky, McIntosh set a career-high for total yards this week as he led Georgia in both rushing (86 yards) and receiving (96 yards).
“He’s been good all year. When he flips the switch and really starts going, he’s got great vision and great hands. He’s a weapon,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “I hate that he’s been a little banged up and beat up. He’s missed practice with a deep thigh bruise. He had two different ones. It’s like, man, can we lessen his load and lower the burden on him to try and keep him fresh.”
McIntosh had his longest run of the season, a 45-yard scamper, on one of his 12 carries. He punched it into the end zone on another. However, neither one of those was the highlight of the day for him, nearly getting into the end zone with an 83-yard reception down the Georgia Tech sideline before being taken down inside the 5-yard-line. It was the longest play of the season so far for Georgia.
“I saw nothing but green grass. I’m kind of mad at myself for not getting in that end zone,” McIntosh said with a smile on his face. “I definitely thought I was getting in.”
The quarterback who helped make the play possible, Stetson Bennett, has also seen a difference in the way McIntosh is playing. He had a fumble against Florida earlier in the season that played a part in the Gators getting back in that game. Since then, he’s been a different kind of player.
“He’s run angry,” Bennett said. “Even after that fumble in the game, he started getting pissed off when he was running it. He’s a different back when he does that. We try to convey to him, let him know during the week, ‘Hey man, they can’t tackle you if you don’t want them to,’ and I think he’s done a really good job of that.”
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“Kenny’s special with the ball in his hands,” he added. “I saw the safety, he came down a little bit too far and I just threw it over his head. He kept going, got horse-collared. He’s a weapon out of the backfield. All of our backs, I can’t remember how many yards we had, but we ran the ball really well today.”
McIntosh, a native of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. and former four-star prospect out of University School came to Georgia behind the likes of D’Andre Swift, Zamir White and James Cook. Those guys were stars, and McIntosh played a supplemental role up until this year. He knew his time would come, and now that it’s here, he’s making sure he makes the most of it.
“This is my last year man. I know what I want, and I’ve been waiting all my life for this moment,” McIntosh said. “To be able to be here, I want to take full advantage of this opportunity by going out there and giving it my all every day.”
McIntosh and the Bulldogs take on LSU this Saturday in the SEC Championship Game. He and his senior classmates are already a part of the winningest group to come through Athens, but they’d love nothing more than to add an SEC Championship to their resume, something Georgia hasn’t done since 2017. Kickoff time from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta between the Bulldogs and Tigers is set for 4:00 p.m. ET on CBS.
