University of Georgia Athletics
Phillips Getting Bigger And Better
October 11, 2026 | Football, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Dwight Phillips, Jr. didn't arrive at Georgia with the nickname Peanut. Former defensive coach/analyst Will Muschamp gave him the name a couple of years ago, and it stuck.
"I can't really remember how it came up, but it was in a meeting," Phillips said last month. "Once everybody started calling me it, it was like, OK, I'm fine with it."
It's hard not to smile when you call someone Peanut. It's also hard not to smile when you see Phillips take off running with the football, unless you're a defender, of course.
On Saturday night, in No. 2-ranked Georgia's 20-17 win over No. 6 Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Phillips helped the Bulldogs leave Bryant-Denny Stadium with huge smiles after rushing for 120 yards on 17 carries — both career highs. The Bulldogs were without top backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens due to injuries, and Phillips, in his first career start, made the most of his opportunity to shine.
Phillips ran for 9 yards on his first carry, followed by 7 on the next play. It looked like he'd scored a 17-yard touchdown later in Georgia's opening drive, but it was called back due to holding. Still, he helped the Bulldogs take a 3-0 lead on a Peyton Woodring field goal.
In the second quarter, Phillips had runs of 5, 7 and 9 yards on a drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass from Gunner Stockton to London Humphreys, putting the Bulldogs ahead 10-0. He also had a 28-yard run in the third quarter called back due to holding, but his 31-yarder in the third quarter counted.
On the fourth-quarter drive that resulted in a 23-yard Woodring field goal and a 20-17 lead, Phillips ran four times for 38 yards, including a 22-yarder up the middle to the Tide 45-yard line.
"What a great kid, man," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart told reporters after the win. "This Dwight Phillips, man, y'all don't know how special this kid is. He hasn't complained one time since being here, and he's so tough for his size."
Phillips' size may be why Muschamp called him Peanut. While his 5-foot-10 height hasn't changed since he came to Georgia, his weight definitely has. Phillips said he arrived in Athens at about 150 pounds, and he's worked hard in the Bulldogs' strength and conditioning program to add 35 pounds of muscle to his lean frame.
"I was 150, pretty light to be a running back, when I first got here," he said. "The conditioning staff, Coach (Scott) Sinclair and those guys, they just kept harping on me, saying I have to get bigger. I still have some improvements to go, but I'm working on it. ... It's been hard, but I'm willing to do it."
That strength has allowed him to handle the physical demands of being an SEC running back, and it has made an already speedy running back even faster.
"Oh, yeah. It's adding more muscle to my legs and my arms, and I'm not having as much hamstring issues as I was in high school," Phillips said.
As a freshman in 2024, Phillips played in six games, carrying the ball six times for 33 yards and catching two passes for 24. One of those runs stood apart from the rest, a 4-yard rush for a touchdown against Florida. It was his first career TD and the only one that season.
Earlier this season, fifth-year senior left tackle Earnest Greene, III was asked to name his favorite moments so far during his career. One he chose was that Phillips touchdown.
"Besides the national championship my freshman year, I would say my favorite moment, one that always just pops up, is that Florida game in '24, when Peanut got in and scored on the little sweep play on the goal line," he said. "You saw this whole sea of red and the whole offense just kind of swarmed the end zone, and from the sideline, too.
"I just feel like that embodies what we do. We put in all this hard work every day, and to see guys get to succeed, it really exemplifies what our program's all about."
When told about that, Phillips smiled.
"It means a lot," he said. "Our brotherhood is really tight here, and as long as we've got that, we're going to win a lot of games."
Phillips had 22 carries for 125 yards and a touchdown as a sophomore backup last season. He's blown past all of those numbers through just six games this fall. After Saturday's stellar performance, he has 280 yards and a touchdown on 37 carries this season.
In the Bulldogs' 41-13 win over Oklahoma last month, Phillips broke free on the right side for a 54-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. He finished with a game-high 84 yards on eight carries and one reception for 7 yards.
A week later, in Georgia's 38-14 win over Vanderbilt, Phillips had more than 100 scrimmage yards for the first time in his career, rushing five times for 27 yards and catching five passes for 75, including a 12-yard touchdown.
As fellow running backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens have battled some injuries this season, Phillips has gotten more touches and made the most of them.
"That's what part of being a good player is. You take advantage of the opportunity you're presented with, and he's done that," Smart said of Phillips after the Vandy win.
That proved even more true against Alabama. And Phillips wasn't the only running back to rise to the occasion in Georgia's toughest game of the season so far.
Sophomore Bo Walker, who had 22 carries for 100 yards and three scores last season, came into Saturday's game with 20 carries for 134 yards. Against the Tide's stout defense, he finished with 10 rushes for 69 yards, both career highs. Walker had a 17-yard run to the Tide 48 in the third quarter, and a 37-yarder to the Tide 8 to help set up Woodring's game-winner.
Staff Writer
Dwight Phillips, Jr. didn't arrive at Georgia with the nickname Peanut. Former defensive coach/analyst Will Muschamp gave him the name a couple of years ago, and it stuck.
"I can't really remember how it came up, but it was in a meeting," Phillips said last month. "Once everybody started calling me it, it was like, OK, I'm fine with it."
It's hard not to smile when you call someone Peanut. It's also hard not to smile when you see Phillips take off running with the football, unless you're a defender, of course.
On Saturday night, in No. 2-ranked Georgia's 20-17 win over No. 6 Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Phillips helped the Bulldogs leave Bryant-Denny Stadium with huge smiles after rushing for 120 yards on 17 carries — both career highs. The Bulldogs were without top backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens due to injuries, and Phillips, in his first career start, made the most of his opportunity to shine.
Phillips ran for 9 yards on his first carry, followed by 7 on the next play. It looked like he'd scored a 17-yard touchdown later in Georgia's opening drive, but it was called back due to holding. Still, he helped the Bulldogs take a 3-0 lead on a Peyton Woodring field goal.
In the second quarter, Phillips had runs of 5, 7 and 9 yards on a drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass from Gunner Stockton to London Humphreys, putting the Bulldogs ahead 10-0. He also had a 28-yard run in the third quarter called back due to holding, but his 31-yarder in the third quarter counted.
On the fourth-quarter drive that resulted in a 23-yard Woodring field goal and a 20-17 lead, Phillips ran four times for 38 yards, including a 22-yarder up the middle to the Tide 45-yard line.
"What a great kid, man," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart told reporters after the win. "This Dwight Phillips, man, y'all don't know how special this kid is. He hasn't complained one time since being here, and he's so tough for his size."
Phillips' size may be why Muschamp called him Peanut. While his 5-foot-10 height hasn't changed since he came to Georgia, his weight definitely has. Phillips said he arrived in Athens at about 150 pounds, and he's worked hard in the Bulldogs' strength and conditioning program to add 35 pounds of muscle to his lean frame.
"I was 150, pretty light to be a running back, when I first got here," he said. "The conditioning staff, Coach (Scott) Sinclair and those guys, they just kept harping on me, saying I have to get bigger. I still have some improvements to go, but I'm working on it. ... It's been hard, but I'm willing to do it."
That strength has allowed him to handle the physical demands of being an SEC running back, and it has made an already speedy running back even faster.
"Oh, yeah. It's adding more muscle to my legs and my arms, and I'm not having as much hamstring issues as I was in high school," Phillips said.
As a freshman in 2024, Phillips played in six games, carrying the ball six times for 33 yards and catching two passes for 24. One of those runs stood apart from the rest, a 4-yard rush for a touchdown against Florida. It was his first career TD and the only one that season.
Earlier this season, fifth-year senior left tackle Earnest Greene, III was asked to name his favorite moments so far during his career. One he chose was that Phillips touchdown.
"Besides the national championship my freshman year, I would say my favorite moment, one that always just pops up, is that Florida game in '24, when Peanut got in and scored on the little sweep play on the goal line," he said. "You saw this whole sea of red and the whole offense just kind of swarmed the end zone, and from the sideline, too.
"I just feel like that embodies what we do. We put in all this hard work every day, and to see guys get to succeed, it really exemplifies what our program's all about."
When told about that, Phillips smiled.
"It means a lot," he said. "Our brotherhood is really tight here, and as long as we've got that, we're going to win a lot of games."
Phillips had 22 carries for 125 yards and a touchdown as a sophomore backup last season. He's blown past all of those numbers through just six games this fall. After Saturday's stellar performance, he has 280 yards and a touchdown on 37 carries this season.
In the Bulldogs' 41-13 win over Oklahoma last month, Phillips broke free on the right side for a 54-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. He finished with a game-high 84 yards on eight carries and one reception for 7 yards.
A week later, in Georgia's 38-14 win over Vanderbilt, Phillips had more than 100 scrimmage yards for the first time in his career, rushing five times for 27 yards and catching five passes for 75, including a 12-yard touchdown.
As fellow running backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens have battled some injuries this season, Phillips has gotten more touches and made the most of them.
"That's what part of being a good player is. You take advantage of the opportunity you're presented with, and he's done that," Smart said of Phillips after the Vandy win.
That proved even more true against Alabama. And Phillips wasn't the only running back to rise to the occasion in Georgia's toughest game of the season so far.
Sophomore Bo Walker, who had 22 carries for 100 yards and three scores last season, came into Saturday's game with 20 carries for 134 yards. Against the Tide's stout defense, he finished with 10 rushes for 69 yards, both career highs. Walker had a 17-yard run to the Tide 48 in the third quarter, and a 37-yarder to the Tide 8 to help set up Woodring's game-winner.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
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