The “Longest” Injury List in the Smart Era is for Georgia
Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart disclosed on Monday that during his time in Athens, the state’s injury list had grown to previously unheard-of proportions.
Amarius Mims, the starting right tackle for Georgia, suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of the Bulldogs’ 24-14 victory over South Carolina. This was only the most recent in a string of severe early-season injuries that the team has had to endure through the first three weeks of play. A long list of key players have missed time this season: starting running back Daijun Edwards, who made his debut against South Carolina; former five-star running back Branson Robinson; preseason All-SEC safety Javon Bullard; and leading returning wide receiver Ladd McConkey, who is still out due to a lingering back injury.
The problem has become so bad that, during his opening remarks at Georgia’s news conference on Monday, head coach Kirby Smart addressed the team’s ever-growing injury list. He revealed that this is the worst it has gotten in his tenure as head coach.
Next, Ron (Courson) told me that our injury list is the longest it has ever been since we arrived. therefore keeps expanding, and I believe that’s a pattern in college football.”
The intense physicality of Georgia’s workouts has aided Smart in establishing a competitive and difficult culture within his team, which he has long held responsible for his program’s rise to the pinnacle of college football. But although if Georgia’s culture of toughness on the field has contributed to the program’s historically high levels of success, it also inevitably raises the possibility of player injury. Nevertheless, Smart hinted that his squad won’t be making any significant changes to their practice routine going ahead, despite the hazards.
You hardly ever hear me lamenting about our guys’ injuries or saying, “You know, poor me.” It’s not something you can control, in my opinion. We train the way we train, and for the past few years, we’ve been extremely lucky to have few injuries. I constantly hear about other teams, and this year it seems to be a recurring theme.”
However, despite the extraordinary string of injuries his team has faced thus far in the 2023 season, Smart was quick to note that his team is not the only one dealing with early-season injuries and that Georgia’s players and coaching staff need to be resilient in order to overcome the challenges the team has faced.
I am aware that Shane Beamer had a busy time at South Carolina. We have more of them than ever before, but the SEC opponents have a lot of them. That then becomes a barrier. In order to overcome it, we must perform well and use extreme resourcefulness as coaches in our utilization of the talent we do have.”
Before starting a run of seven SEC games in eight weeks leading up to the yearly rivalry game with Georgia Tech to cap out the regular season, Georgia will welcome UAB in Sanford Stadium on Saturday night at 7:30 PM.
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