Kirby Smart gives mid-week Georgia injury update ahead of Tech
ATHENS, Ga. — Injuries are always a topic of discussion when Kirby Smart speaks with media, and that was certainly the case on Tuesday. With top-ranked Georgia looking to close out a third straight undefeated regular season as it takes on rival Georgia Tech, the Bulldogs are keeping a close eye on the availability for a few key players.
Wide receiver Ladd McConkey continues to nurse an injured ankle. He “tweaked” it against Ole Miss and was limited in practice last week prior to the Tennessee game. Then, he saw the field for just six snaps versus the Volunteers.
McConkey isn’t the only receiver that’s banged up with an injury to a lower extremity either. Rara Thomas has a bone bruise that bothered him some on Saturday and eventually led to an early exit from the game. Thomas got an X-ray that came back negative, and Smart indicated that it’d be a pain tolerance type deal with him, seeing how much he’s able to practice this week.
“Not much,” Smart said when asked how much the receivers had been able to do so far this week. “Ladd’s still recovering. Trying to get him back. Hasn’t been able to do much. We’ll find out more tomorrow or the next day. Rara hasn’t either. We’ve been keeping the weight and the pressure off of it, but hoping we can get him back as well. We’ll see.”
The same goes for a pair of the Bulldogs in the trenches: offensive lineman Tate Ratledge and defensive lineman Warren Brinson. Ratledge went down with an apparent knee injury that Smart later said was a result of “banging knees” with a Tennessee player. He was limping around the building Monday but avoiding structural damage per Smart.
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Meanwhile, Brinson, who has 10 tackles in the 10 games he’s been able to play including a season-high three with a sack back in September against UAB, didn’t make the trip to Knoxville at all. He continues to deal with a calf strain that has been bothering him as of late. The injury resulted in a season-low number of snaps against Ole Miss and not much participation in practice last week.
“Warren took some reps today. I thought he did a good job pushing through. Tate’s much better, moving, running, but didn’t take reps.”
No. 1 Georgia (11-0, 8-0 SEC) makes the short trip to Atlanta this coming Saturday to take on in-state rival Georgia Tech (6-5, 5-3 ACC). Kickoff time from Bobby Dodd Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC. The Bulldogs opened as 23-point favorites in the 117th edition of “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate” according to oddsmakers at DraftKings Sportsbook.
