Due to various injuries, Georgia was forced to start without tight end Brock Bowers, receivers Ladd McConkey and Rara Thomas, and linebacker Tate Ratledge. During a conference call for the SEC Championship Game on Sunday, Smart discussed their situation.
According to Smart, Brock was the one who was most likely to be able to leave out of those guys last night. Simply put, it didn’t feel as good as it had. He hurt a little bit. We didn’t think he could go because we wanted to be able to use him situationally or see what he could do if he felt comfortable doing so. Nothing regarding our opponent or anything else. He must be able to compete at a high level and have confidence in his abilities. We didn’t sense that he did that the previous evening.
And Tate wasn’t quite well, so he might not have been able to play. And our goal is to win him back. For the other guys, it will be on a day-to-day basis, in my opinion. We really don’t know anything. Since we haven’t taken any action, we most definitely don’t know anymore.
Bowers is coping with the aftermath of ankle surgery that he underwent earlier this year. Ratledge hurt his knee against the Vols, McConkey sprained his ankle against Ole Miss, and Thomas hurt his foot against Tennessee.
With a 4-point advantage going into the SEC Championship game, the Georgia Bulldogs are hoping to create history by becoming the first team to win three consecutive national titles.
