Live Updates: Kirby Smart at Georgia vs. Alabama media day
ATHENS, Ga. — The 2023 regular season is over and for the third straight season, Georgia is back in the SEC Championship. The Bulldogs will square off with a familiar foe inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, Alabama. The Crimson Tide are 11-1 on the year and 8-0 in the league. The Bulldogs are 12-0 and winners of an SEC-record 29 straight games.
UGA is currently a 5.5 favorite over Bama and this will be the sixth time these two teams have played since Kirby Smart took over as the head coach in Athens. It’ll be the fourth time they’ve played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the fifth neutral-site matchup.
Before it all goes down, Smart is meeting with reporters on Monday to preview the contest. DawgsHQ has boots on the ground and we’ll be providing updates from what the eighth-year head coach has to say in the space below. Just use the refresh button on your browser to see those updates as they role in.
*** Kirby Smart opens his press conference by saying that the team and staff got started on Alabama yesterday and put the Georgia Tech game to bed. He didn’t specify what they did but did say that the Bulldogs got a “head start on these guys (Alabama).”
*** Smart is explaining the difference between a quarterback who runs and a runner who plays quarterback. He talks about the conflict that having that extra runner creates for a defense. He also mentions that it’s important that you stop the entire package and you don’t overcommit to stopping on specific thing. Compliments Alabama on its talent, toughness, and soundness. Says Jalen Milroe is more than a runner.
*** Smart says that Alabama’s depth along the defensive line stands out. He says the Crimson Tide rolls guys in and all of them do a good job of striking blockers. Also compliments the secondary, saying both cornerbacks are going to be drafted and that they are dynamic at the STAR position and safety.
*** When asked about Julian Humphrey and Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Smart says that both are still “week to week” and that Georgia is hopeful to get those guys back.
*** Smart says that one of the things his team leared from Navy SEALs this summer when they met and studied them is that you can’t be overly sensitive to criticism. In the SEALs’ world, the reaction to criticism could mean the difference between life and death. Also says it’s not that serious for Georgia each Saturday but it’s a great philosophy.
*** Smart says that he values the SEC Championship game because he grew up in the footprint. It’s some of the greatest environments he has been a part of. Says that he thinks that kids at places like Alabama and Georgia probably take it for granted at times and maybe look at it as a right of passage when it isn’t.
*** One of the most potent elements of Alabama’s offense, per Smart, is how they’re able to turn busted or well-defended plays into big ones for the offense. Milroe extends plays and the guys around him do such a tremendous job of making plays off-schedule that it makes it tough on a defense.
*** “When you look at the tape, you’re never as bad as you think, you’re never as good as you think,” Smart says when asked about his assessment of UGA’s run defense vs. Georgia Tech. Smart says he feels like the defensive line struck blockers and did a better job than he thought in real time. He also mentions how some guys misfit some runs and, at other times, maybe keyed on the wrong things.
