ATHENS — Nick Chubb apparently ratcheted up his running enough on Tuesday that he said something to Sony Michel, his friend and fellow tailback.
“He was moving pretty fast, faster than people might think. And he was like, ‘Man I can’t slow down,'” Michel recalled on Thursday. “That’s the type of person he is.”
The sight of Chubb in full uniform, albeit in a black non-contact jersey, remains remarkable to see this spring. Just over six months ago, the star tailback suffered what the team termed “a significant” knee injury. He was still on crutches in December. No one will yet commit to Chubb being able to play in the season opener, which is now less than five months away.
And yet there is Chubb at practice, carrying the football in simple drills, and seeming to do a little more each day to test the knee.
“He knows it’s a process, so he’s being patient with it,” Michel said. “He’s ready to be back on the field, but at the same time he knows the process, he’s going to work hard every day, he knows every day is another chance to get that leg ready to get him back on the field.”
At one point, when talking about how eager he is to get him back, Michel referred to Chubb as “another body” for a backfield that has been thin, depth-wise.
Chubb isn’t just another body, it was pointed out, and Michel laughed.
“Of course, since he’s Nick Chubb, it’s going to be a special body coming back,” he said.