Ladd McConkey acknowledged Monday that a series of recent drops and muffed punts had started to grate on his nerves.

But he also knew it was just a blip on his radar.

Lately, McConkey is back to his old reliable self. So, what changed?

“Just staying locked in and not letting one play affect another one,” McConkey said. “That’s something I’ve tried to work on, just staying level-headed throughout the game, not getting too up and not getting too down.”

That certainly was the case against Tennessee.

McConkey was targeted five times on Saturday and responded with five catches for a team-high 94 yards, including a touchdown of 42 yards.

“I just took it back to the basics a little bit and just lock in on the ball. You can’t do anything without the ball, so kind of lock in on that,” McConkey said. “I don’t think it was an indication of any mental thing with me—I just locked in and tried to focus more.”

For the year, McConkey leads the Bulldogs with 38 catches for 507 yards and three touchdowns.

…McConkey was also asked about Stetson Bennett and the approximately 600-700 prank calls he received from Tennessee after his cell phone number was leaked last Saturday.

“I knew that his number got leaked and whatever, but I didn’t know he was getting that many texts and calls until after the game. After the game, I was talking to him and he said yeah, it was kind of crazy,” McConkey said. “But he doesn’t let that stuff bother him. He’s had so much since he started playing, media attention, and all that stuff. He’s just Stet. He just does his thing, and I feel like he does a good job of just blocking it out and playing the game.”

Defensive tackle Jalen Carter is feeling closer to 100 percent, and that’s bad news for the rest of the SEC.

After missing part of the season with an ankle injury and later a knee, Carter played a career-high 48 snaps in Saturday’s win over Tennessee. The results were impressive.

Carter made four tackles, but also forced a pair of fumbles and recorded half a sack, creating absolute havoc for Tennessee and quarterback Hendon Hooker.

“He certainly was productive in terms of tackles, calls, and fumbles. But I won't even say he was 100 percent healthy. I would say the first time this year he was above 90/95 percent,” Smart said. “He was hurt on the first play of the game against Oregon. He took a tough ankle injury and has not been 100 percent since.”

Now that he’s approaching that level, his impact has been noticeable. Even in limited appearances, his 13 quarterback pressures are good enough for third on the entire team.

“He’s been committed to getting back, and he's worked hard. So, I don't know how many snaps he played. He didn't play perfectly,” Smart said. “He needs to get in better shape to be able to play more snaps. But he has taken ownership in working on that. The big thing for him coming into the season is, ‘How good of shape can you be in to play a larger volume of snaps?’ He still has a few things he's got to work on in terms of playing the right way within the plan. But he played well the other day, and we need him to continue that.”

Smart is expecting another raucous atmosphere Saturday night in Starkville and Davis Wade Stadium, a building he knows well from his days as an assistant at Alabama.

Famous for its cowbells, Smart said his team is preparing for as much noise as he saw last Saturday in Athens.

“It's a huge competitive advantage. That's why there's a home and away. And that's why I always say in the SEC, it's greater than NFL, other than playoffs because the environment is not the same in any conference, division, or level of football as it is in the SEC when you play on the road,” Smart said. “I've been in this conference for 20-something years. I've seen it.”

This time, however, it will be Georgia’s offense that will need to contend with the bulk of the noise.

“I know what it does in terms of the effect it has on the pass rush, the effect it has on momentum,” Smart said. “It’s something you really can't measure. So, you have to prepare the right way. It's a firm reason why I believe in practicing with crowd noise throughout the year, because both sides of the ball need it.”

... As first reported by UGASports, next week's game at Kentucky will kick off at 3:30 p.m. and be televised on CBS.

… Smart acknowledged that he took a day off during Georgia’s bye week before Florida to work on Mississippi State.

… Saturday’s announcers on ESPN will be Sean McDonough and Todd Blackledge.

… Smart did not sound too concerned with moving forward after Saturday’s big win over Tennessee. “No matter whom you play, you have a process, and we're not going to go do anything different today than when we played Vandy, Auburn, Kent State, Missouri, or anybody else,” Smart said. “Because when you treat it differently, you make it different. So that's not what this program was built on. We do it week-to-week and we worry about the opponent that week. It’s not what you want me to say, not what you want to write, but it's true.”

… Three Bulldogs were honored by the SEC on Monday. Quarterback Stetson Bennett was named Co-Offensive Player of the Week along with LSU’s Jayden Daniels, Jalen Carter the Defensive Lineman of the Week, and Malaki Starks the co-freshman of the week with LSU tight end Mason Taylor.