Kirby Smart calls legendary Georgia football RB Nick Chubb 'incredible ambassador'

The tributes to Nick Chubb after the legendary Georgia football running back announced his retirement from the NFL following eight seasons have poured in the last few days.

From Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, to the Georgia High School Association to his Bulldog backfield mate Sony Michel. All posted about Chubb on their social media accounts.

Georgia’s second leading all-time rusher was the Bulldogs top rusher in coach Kirby Smart’s first two seasons.

Chubb rushed for 1,130 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2016 and 1,345 yards and 15 touchdown in 2017 when the Bulldogs won the Rose Bowl and lost on a walk-off touchdown 26-23 to Alabama in overtime in the national championship game.

“He’s just an incredible person, leader,” Smart said on Tuesday Aug. 25. “I got two years with him and his demeanor and the way he went about things and bought into what we were demanding, it was two very tough years for him.”

Smart said Chubb was bouncing back from a season-ending injury sustained in October, 2015 in which he tore three ligaments at Tennessee when he arrived the next season.

“We made things really, really hard and tough in the program,” Smart said. “He never questioned any of those things. I don’t know that without he and Sony (Michel), we’d get the same buy-in that they had.”

Chubb led the state of Georgia with 2,271 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns as a junior and had 2,690 yards and 41 touchdowns as a senior.

"From Cedartown, to the University of Georgia, to an outstanding NFL career, Nick Chubb represented the Peach State with toughness, humility and class," the GHSA wrote in a post on X.

Chubb and Michel joined outside linebackers Lorenzo Carter and Davin Bellamy after a Georgia bowl practice in December of 2016 to announce they were returning instead of declaring for the NFL Draft.

Michel ended as Georgia's third-leading rusher with 3,638 career yards.

"When I got to college, you helped me become a better player because, honestly, I wanted to outdo everything you did," Michel wrote on his Instagram post about Chubb. "I measured my success by whether or not I outworked you, and most of the time, especially in the weight room, I felt like I came up short. But that’s exactly what kept me coming back, and ultimately, what helped make me a better player and a better person."

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