Star Georgia running back Todd Gurley has been suspended indefinitely, the school announced on Thursday, sending shock waves through the college football community.
Gurley is suspended while an investigation into an alleged violation of NCAA rules is investigated, the school announced. The NCAA announced Friday that it's working with Georgia as the school gathers information and UGA director of athletics Greg McGarity released a statement Friday railing against "misinformation" in the matter.
McGarity said in the statement that the school "recommended -- and Todd retained -- counsel with vast experience with eligibility matters; and the University continues to pay for Todd's counsel, as permitted by NCAA rules."
"We have made clear to Todd that regardless of what happens with this case, he is still a member of the Bulldog family, and we will support him in every way we can," McGarity's statement read.
A source told FOX Sports that Gurley is expected to miss 2-3 games while serving the suspension. However, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported a source familiar with the investigation said it's possible that Gurley will not be cleared to return this season and that a decision regarding any further discipline should be made by early next week.
SI.com reported a person confirmed to Georgia's compliance office this week that he paid Gurley $400 to sign 80 items on campus this spring. The person claimed to have a photo and video of Gurley signing the items, but neither the photo nor the video showed money being exchanged, per the report.
An investigation into Johnny Manziel last season stemmed from similar allegations.
Gurley leads Georgia in rushing with 773 yards and has nine total touchdowns this season. He put on a particularly impressive showing in his last outing, throwing for a 50-yard touchdown pass on his way to racking up 237 all-purpose yards against Vanderbilt.
The junior running back is considered one of the top NFL prospects in the country and an NFC general manager told NFL Media's Albert Breer that Gurley should end the draft's first-round RB drought.
Gurley made headlines for an off-the-field incident less than two weeks ago, when police said he was falsely accused of assault.
True freshman Nick Chubb is expected to take Gurley's place in the starting lineup against SEC East rival Missouri on Saturday. Backups Keith Marshall and Sony Michel are injured and not expected back in time for the game, so there should be plenty of added pressure on Chubb and quarterback Hutson Mason this week in light of the allegations surrounding the team's star player.
Needless to say, the shocking news out of Athens will be tracked very closely as the issues surrounding Gurley raise many more questions than answers.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
