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Nate Frazier injury update: Georgia RB leaves game after scary play late in Sugar Bowl

Byington mugby: Alex Byington01/02/26_AlexByington

Georgia sophomore running back Nate Frazier suffered a left leg injury and limped off the field with about 4 1/2 minutes remaining in Thursday night’s Sugar Bowl national quarterfinal against Ole Miss.

Frazier was the Bulldogs’ leading rusher in the game with 86 rushing yards on a team-high 15 carries when he left the field after getting rolled up on during a two-yard carry on first down with just under 4:50 left in regulation and the No. 6 Rebels nursing a 34-31 advantage.

After being tackled, Frazier remained on the turf, grabbing at his left leg as Georgia trainers attended to him on the field. He’d eventually be helped up and limp off the field under his own power, albeit gingerly.

The 5-foot-10, 205-pound Frazier entered the Sugar Bowl as the Bulldogs’ leading rusher and exited with 947 total rushing yards across 14 games this season. It’s the second straight year Frazier led Georgia on the ground after amassing a team-leading 671 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in 2024 as a true freshman. Through two seasons in Athens, Frazier had rushed for 1,618 yards and 14 touchdowns in 27 games.

Frazier signed with Georgia as a four-star prospect in the 2024 recruiting cycle, where he was a Top 50 player overall and the No. 2 running back in the class out of Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) High, according to the Rivals Industry Rankings, a weighted average that utilizes all three major recruiting media companies.

JaCorey Thomas ejected on controversial targeting call in Sugar Bowl, Georgia vs. Ole Miss

Georgia defensive back JaCorey Thomas was disqualified from the Sugar Bowl for targeting late in the first half for his hit on Ole Miss receiver Cayden Lee. The ejection came in the final 30 second of the second quarter.

Lee was being dragged to the ground by Georgia’s Daylen Everette when Thomas came in the clean up the play. Thomas appeared to hit him with his shoulder, but ESPN rules analyst Matt Austin believes Lee was defenseless.

“This is unfortunate for Georgia, because he does attack with force,” Austin told ESPN’s Sean McDonough and Greg McElroy. “He puts his shoulder right into the face mask of the of the receiver.”

After review, the targeting stood as called on the field. Because the ejection came in the first half, however, if Georgia advances to the national semifinal Thomas should be cleared for the full game.

The drive ended on the next set of downs when the Ole Miss drive stalled on the Georgia 35-yard-line as the quarter expired. Georgia entered halftime with a 21-12 lead.

— On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this report.