Kirby Smart reveals message to Trevor Etienne before facing former team vs. Florida

In two career games against Georgia, Trevor Etienne ran for 95 yards and a touchdown while at Florida. Now in his third year of college football, he’ll be at the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party from the other sideline – but Kirby Smart knows where Etienne’s focus should be.

Etienne spent two years under Billy Napier before entering the transfer portal this offseason. During that time, he ran for 1,472 yards and 14 touchdowns, but opted for a change of scenery and committed to Georgia. When he did, the Cocktail Party rivalry game got another storyline.

But Smart doesn’t want Etienne worrying too much about playing his former team for the first time. It’s not the first time Georgia’s had a player in this spot – Dominic Lovett faced Missouri last year – and he just wants his star running back to focus on winning the game.

“Focus on the task. … You don’t want to be caught up in the emotions and be emotional,” Smart said. “I don’t think that helps any. Dom’s gone through it with Missouri a couple times, different players. That’s part of college football now. We’ve had kids go down there.

“We don’t get caught up in it a bunch. At the end of the day, what’s gonna make you play well? It ain’t worrying about that.”

Trevor Etienne has become the focal point of the Georgia running game this year after missing the season opener. He’s taken a team-high 82 carries for 422 yards and seven touchdowns to give the Bulldogs a strong option in the backfield alongside freshman Nate Frazier.

Georgia will look to continue its dominant run against Florida in the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party rivalry. The Bulldogs have won six of the last seven matchups in Jacksonville, including the last three.

They’ll also be looking to get healthy. Smart had updates on both Tate Ratledge and Jordan Hall, who have been dealing with injuries. Ratledge suffered a high ankle sprain against Kentucky and underwent tightrope ankle surgery while Hall has yet to play this year. While Smart didn’t say if they’d play Saturday, he had a positive outlook on both players.

“Both have ramped up in terms of reps,” Smart said. “Tate took quite a bit yesterday. I don’t know how many he took today, but I know it was more than yesterday because we had more available. But we’re trying to be smart in terms of his volume.”