Smart: Ryan Puglisi dealing with non-serious knee injury, 'missing some reps' in first spring

ATHENS, Ga. — Ryan Puglisi‘s first spring practice at Georgia probably hasn’t gone the way he hoped it would. While he’s been able to participate in team meetings, walk throughs and throwing drills, the freshman is dealing with a knee injury that’s limited his action some.

Kirby Smart told reporters Tuesday it isn’t a serious injury that’s going to require surgery. In fact, it’s one that he’s dealt with before from his days at Avon Old Farms. Rest is important in overcoming the bothersome issue, but unfortunately, that comes at the expense of missing out on anything requiring mobility.

“Ryan is dealing with a little bit of a knee injury. It’s not a significant injury. He’s had it before, since high school. It has been bothering him. He’s been able to throw. He hasn’t been able to go out and be mobile and run. His knee has been bothering him,” Smart said. “We’re hopeful to get him back today, if not today than probably Thursday. He’s had to miss out on some reps. He’s been in to everything, all the walk throughs and mental stuff.”

A 6-foot-3, 210-pound four-star out of Avon Old Farms High School, Puglisi was one of the top ranked quarterbacks in the Class of 2024. He committed to Georgia during his junior season after impressing the Bulldogs’ staff that summer. He would go on to complete 133 passes for 1,904 yards and 16 touchdowns in nine starts.

Puglisi put together a strong senior season too, recording 118 completions for 1,693 yards and 14 touchdowns while adding three scores on the ground too. It came on the heels of his participation in the Elite 11 Finals and prior to being named Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Connecticut.

“Ryan came down here, I bet 5 or 6 times, and he checked the box every time for the right kind of kid, the right kind of competitor,” Smart said of Puglisi on National Signing Day. “He’s embraced the part about learning. He sees himself as a guy that needs to come in and develop under a system. He’s seen Carson’s success, so I think he understands that. He wants to grow and get better.”

“The physical traits are size, speed, intelligence. For the intangible traits, character, what the kid’s makeup is, the velocity with which he throws the ball. We have guys that throw it hard. We’ve had guys that can’t throw it hard. They’ve had different levels of success. The common denominator for us has been intelligence, ability to create and extend plays. So we look at all those things,” Smart added. “… Quarterback is the leader of the team and leader of your class. He’s a really intelligent, fun kid to be around. He’s been out here at practices, competing. He’s got a really live arm. He’s another one of these baseball guys that can catch it and get it out really fast, which I think is really important in today’s day and age.”

Good news for Georgia, the Bulldogs weren’t counting on Puglisi to be anything more than a backup in 2024. Carson Beck returns for a second season as a starter after an impressive first campaign last fall. There’s also Gunner Stockton, who’s entering his third season with the program. However, it may highlight a bigger issue of depth at the position, something that Kirby Smart and company may look at address in the upcoming spring window of the transfer portal.

Georgia attempted to add UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava, having him committed at one point before watching him flip to USC less than 24 hours later. As things stand, the Bulldogs’ depth comes from walk-on quarterbacks Collin Drake and Sam Bush.

Georgia enters its fourth week of spring drills on Tuesday, going through its 10th practice session. Two scrimmages, including the annual G-Day spring game on April 13th, remain along with four Tuesday/Thursday practices.