WATCH: Kirby Smart, Georgia players prepare for Florida

Kirby Smart and Georgia players met with the media Tuesday after practice. The Bulldogs are two days into this week’s preparation for Florida and share on what to expect come Saturday in Jacksonville.

Kirby Smart

Jordan Davis and his impact:
“I’d describe it as very impactful. I guess that doesn’t help the description. I mean his value and I think when you talk about running the ball, and the league we’re in you have to have some sort of run game. You don’t have to be dominant in the run game but you’ve got to be able to run the ball. He makes us have more third-and-7 to 12’s than we have third-and-2 to 4s. And just statistically when you have third-and-2 to 4, which we had an inordinate amount against Kentucky and struggled some because they did a nice job on second-and-long, it affects the game. And when you have third-and-7 to 10, it helps you. And Jordan is a heavy impact on that because it’s tough to run the ball when he’s in there. I think what he’s done is he’s made himself quicker, more agile, and his weight fluctuates from time to time, but he’s much more effective when he’s under 350. He’s taken it upon himself here lately to really work to be under 350. I noticeably can tell a difference in him when he’s 350 or less. I know that seems like a lot but he’s been a lot higher than that.”

Heisman talk for Jordan Davis: Crazy or not?
“I think it’s unfortunate that defensive players don’t get mentioned for it. I’m not necessarily advocating Jordan, I’m advocating defensive players. Because I feel like the NFL values that. And if you look over time, outside of the quarterback position, which they have to draft, they get drafted every year, four to five guys on average at quarterback, outside of that you have defensive players taken in the top 10 every year because they can change the game. Whether it’s pass rush or corner or somebody locking somebody down, whatever the position may be. It is what it is. It’s an award that has become quarterback-receiver-running back heavy. And I have nothing but respect for the award. But certainly some defensive players across the country deserve some kind of recognition. It’s almost like you wish you could take one every year to New York because it’s such a great event.”

What has been progression with JT and the next step you were talking about? Can you get two QBs enough reps to be able to start and carry the load each week?
“I think you can get between the 1 and 2 reps, you can get plenty of reps for two quarterbacks. Our 1s get a little more than our 2s. You can go 50-50, you can go 70-30, 60-40. We prescribe that as the week goes on. Carson Beck is taking less reps this week because JT is making more reps. The combination of Stetson and JT to get them both prepared because they’re our two quarterbacks right now.

“He’s looked good. He’s done a good job. I would be remiss if I could tell you everything he did today. That’s why when I hang up this call, I go in and watch it and see it visually with my eyes because a lot of times in practice I’m watching it from a defensive perspective. Then at night, I watch it from a quarterback perspective. I also talk to Coach Monken and the offensive staff about it. He’s done a good job. I wouldn’t say that there’s been a lot of limitations. It doesn’t seem like there’s been limitations in terms of what he can and can’t do.”

What has the secondary done well this season and in particular at the cornerback and Star positions with turnover there in personnel?
“Well, they’ve done their job. They’ve been effective in keeping our edges in run support. A lot of people have tried to get out on the edge on us to avoid interior run game. We’ve given up some explosives, we’ve given up some 50-50 balls but they’ve been the beneficiary of good rush and they’ve made some plays when they’ve gotten the opportunity. Those guys have made some picks. Chris, Lewis, Kelee and DK have all made them. You punish people when they make mistakes and you’ve got to capitalize on those when they happen. We have not played our best game in the secondary. We have not played perfect. We are not where we need to be, but we’re a work in progress there and the front has helped us buy some time to do the work.”

Drops by other teams the last couple of weeks. Any credit to defense in being position and staying on the man until the play is complete and not giving up on play if behind?
“However you see it. I don’t like them to be a step or two behind and I certainly don’t feel good about drops because those are just things for other people to see in the future.”

Key to success vs. Florida’s use of the wheel route…
“You’d have to define the term. I know the layman’s term is a wheel route but there a lot of different ways to describe that wheel route. They really did a great job and we really did a poor job of covering that. Ninety percent of that is eye control. If you look at the right thing, then you tend to cover the thing. There’s also the eye but there is also making the play. Sometimes the guy is just better than you and he goes up and gets it or you’re not even covering him which is a lack of discipline or we’re not doing a good job of coaches as far as what we’re playing. I can’t tell you it won’t happen again because they run the same plays this year as they did last year.  

“We’re not changing our entire defense because of that. We’ve got answers for it, but there are things that can hurt you when you just play for the wheel that can hurt you other ways. I certainly don’t want to give up explosive plays, whether that’s a back out of the backfield, a tight end, a receiver, whatever it is so we’re going to do all we can to make sure that doesn’t happen. They also lead the country in rushing yards per attempt, so you can only protect the wheel so much when they’re running for six and seven yards per clip.”

On the linebackers, is Nakobe Dean playing as well as Roquan Smith and will Adam Anderson play more STAR against Florida…
“I don’t like comparisons. I never have. I don’t think they’re always fair. We think Nakobe has done a great job. He’s the commander-in-chief of making our calls, he’s very physical, he sees things really well and is a very instinctive football player, which Roquan was as well.  

“Adam gives us the luxury of having a really fast, athletic guy, but the best thing Adam does is rush. The best thing Coach Lanning has done is allow him to rush. There were some times early in his career when we asked Adam to spy, run down the quarterback and chase him down but that is not a lot of sack production when he does that. So, (Lanning) has freed Adam up to do what he does best, which is rush against the other team’s offensive tackle. I can assure you there are a lot of team that would rather see Adam spy than rush their tackle. He’s done a good job of doing that. He’s also become a more complete player where he can play first and second down and do some more things.”

On the health of the receivers, mainly Arian Smith…
“Yeah, we’re hoping to get Arian back. He’s been closer each week and it is, it’s a lower leg contusion that’s really bothering him when he plants and runs. He’s much closer this week. He’s been on about a 50 percent pitch count. He’s been repping with the twos. He’s getting reps and I think he’s looked better this week than he has in the past. We’ve got to hope that continues the rest of the week.

“Jermaine (Burton) has been bothered by the groin. He’s fought through that. He’s not 100 percent. Justin Robinson has got a little bit of a hamstring now, so he’s banged up. (Dominick Blaylock) is still out, so I feel like we’re better off than we were going into the Auburn game, but I don’t feel like we’re near where we need to be in terms of wide receivers. But I do think Arian will be back and (Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint) has done a good job this week and Jermaine has been out there practicing. Just those three alone is a huge boost.”

Challenges of facing a Dan Mullen offense and favorite Halloween candy…
“Sour Patch Kids. The best thing about Dan Mullen is that he has packages of plays to accentuate his playmakers. So whether it was Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney, whoever it might be, he’s always had the ability, even at Mississippi State where he may not have as many playmakers as he’s had at Florida, he knows how to get them the ball. He does it in ways that he creates confusion, moves people around. I think he’s gotten better. There were times at Mississippi State where I thought he had done the same thing for a long time. Now he’s got more presentation to what he does and he did a good job of that last year. I mean, we all learn from other people so it’s like a copycat element to what we all do defensively and offensively but he’s taken what NFL teams and other college teams do well and added it to his offense to get his players the ball.”

On what the Florida QBs do schematically that helps them in the run game vs. UGA’s previous opponents…
“Well, they’re probably faster than KJ (Jefferson). They have an offensive line that’s really big. They have a run game scheme that’s built to allow the quarterback to run. Dan (Mullen) doesn’t abort the run. He uses the run game to set up his play actions, and when you least expect it, he runs the quarterback. Those guys are really good runners. It’s just a different dynamic than KJ. KJ’s a big, physical guy. These guys are elusive and powerful. And they throw the ball well too. They’ve got a good supporting cast around them as a whole, talking about the wide outs.”

On how they’ve used last year’s loss as motivation this week…
“Outside of the tape, using the tapes of plays repeated or the looks we may get because a lot of the coaches are the same, not a lot. I don’t try to use those extrinsic things. I’ve never had great experiences with that when you count on emotion to do that. I don’t want the players emotional the whole time. That’s what the fan wants, but I want them thinking about what they’ve got to do to win this game, and last year’s game has nothing to do with this year’s game.”

On what makes a good STAR, what that allows them to do defensively…
“It’s a position that’s morphed. There’s so many perimeter screens, and every play has three plays on it which is why you see scoring going up. The offense can be right more often. The STAR is in the cross hairs of all those plays. He’s the guy they’re reading, he’s the guy they’re blocking, he’s the guy they’re blitzing, he’s the guy they’re throwing off of, he’s the guy they box count. So, having a tough, physical guy who’s 205 pounds that can run, that can cover – they just don’t grow anywhere. You don’t find them anywhere. That position’s critical. It keeps your edges, it sends everything back to the big guys. It does so many things for the defense. No. 1 you better have two guys that can play it. It’s like playing linebacker nowadays in terms of the contact that’s created with that position. You’ve got to be able to take on guards, take on tackles. You’ve got to be tough and physical. It’s a tough position, and Brini’s done a good job. Losing Tykee hurt because he was going to be able to help some at STAR. Javon’s done a good job of embracing that. He’s still growing and getting better.”

On Travon Walker and how he has improved…
“He’s an extreme part (of the defense). He’s a freak of nature when it comes to athletic ability when it comes to that size. I don’t know how many years it’ll be before I coach a guy that is that big that can run like that. He has really good stamina, great toughness and effort. His stats may not be the best in the world or may not be what Azeez’s are, but he’s playing really well, he’s playing really physical. He’s playing a lot of snaps and I’m really proud of what he’s doing for leadership with our team.”

On the ability for QB runs in the Georgia offense: You want to have that?
“Yeah I’d love to have that, I’d love to have the perfect quarterback that runs 4.5, he’s 6’4, he reads things, he’s great in the pocket, I would love to have that. But I’m not saying that’s going to happen. I have to have that gives us the best chance to win. Within our system, does it require the quarterback to run? I think all quarterbacks have to have some mobility. There’s not a really good quarterback that you see playing in the NFL doesn’t have a form of mobility. All quarterbacks have different levels of that. As long as you don’t sacrifice decision-making and accuracy, which are the two greatest components in a quarterback, yeah I want a runner. But for every ounce of accuracy and decision-making that I lose, I’m willing to give up some running ability.”

How JT Daniels is adjusting to the speed of the game…
“Watching Monday’s practice I thought he handled that well. As far asToday’s, I want to reserve judgment till I see it from the actual tape, but there’s nothing there that I noticed as a problem for him. He moved around in the pocket, made some throws. I did see all the periods because I’m not in both locations, so I’m getting ready to watch that now and see how he does tomorrow too.”

Latavious Brini

Travon Walker