Georgia scrimmage news and notes; injury updates

Tight end Arik Gilbert’s progression this fall camp has been one of the bigger individual storylines for Georgia. According to head coach Kirby Smart, he likes what he’s seen.

“Arik has done a really good job. He’s tough, he’s understood his assignments. In spring, he got thrust into things a whole lot more in terms of number of reps and volume of reps,” Smart said. “With the other guys being healthy and (Oscar) Delp further along, he hasn’t taken as much.”

Because Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington did not take part in spring practice due to injuries, Gilbert received some much-needed additional reps, important considering he did not play last fall.

“He needs to be able to sustain. He’s developing as a special teams player, which also is something he has not done as much before,” Smart said. “But I’m always more concerned with Arik’s well-being, mentally, than I am with him knowing assignments and knowing what to do. That’s the most important thing, that he feels comfortable around our team and can help us.”

Smart offered injury updates on the following players:

…Running back Kendall Milton (hamstring) did not practice for the second straight scrimmage, but is closer to full speed. …Offensive lineman Earnest Greene missed the scrimmage while still struggling with an upper-leg injury. …Defensive end Tramel Walthour is dealing with minor back issue.

…Wide receiver Kearis Jackson sat out the second half of the scrimmage for precautionary reasons after feeling soreness in his foot/Achilles.

…Wide receiver DeNylon Morrissette (hyperextended knee) is expected back next week.

…Smart did not mention offensive lineman Tate Ratledge (foot), but sources tell UGASports that he was at the scrimmage.

…Tight end Brett Seither continues to be in and out with a back injury.

Smart said cooler conditions Saturday made a nice difference for his players.

“We needed it to be not as hot as last week. I thought the temperature allowed us to play through and push. I didn't think we started with as much energy as we did last week, but we did sustain better and had good ebbs and flows. The offense made some plays in some situational stuff, and the defense made some plays,” Smart said. “I was pleased with the overall effort, and I’ve been very pleased with the toughness we’ve kind of had at camp.

"At this point, we will be moving forward to getting prepared for some future opponents and start on Oregon.”

… Smart said he saw improvement as pertains to the kind of pressure he wants to see from his defensive line, but said it’s still not where it needs to be. “We got a little more pressure than we did last time,” he said. “But it's not where it needs to be in terms of affecting quarterbacks in our league.”

…Although Smart acknowledged some of his freshman have hit the “freshman wall,” it does appear at least half of this year’s class will be expected to play somewhat significant roles. “Probably half of them will have to play a role, whether that’s special teams, a backup, a substitution role where they go in and play, or some of them may even start,” Smart said. “But if you talk about guys who didn’t play last year that are going to have to play this year, there’s certainly even a larger number. Forty or 45 percent of our roster is either freshmen or sophomores that are playing or will have to go play. Anytime you have that, you’re susceptible to lack of experience mistakes, anxiety mistakes, composure mistakes.”

…When asked about who is stepping up as defensive leaders besides Nolan and Christopher Smith, Smart cited Jalen Carter, Kelee Ringo, Trezman Marshall, and Kamari Lassiter. Defensive end Robert Beal was another.

"He’s not a guy of many words, but he's certainly been around here for a long time. Will Poole is a guy,” Smart said. “We've got some guys, they know how to do it, they've seen it done, they know how to do it right. They haven't been the featured players, but they understand how to lead, and they've seen it done the right way."

…Smart offered more praise for running back Kenny McIntosh. "He's always been a worker, but he was in the shadow of those other guys. And now, he steps up, he leads, he pushes guys. He's gotten better stamina,” Smart said. “You know, there were times where he'd get tired in practice in the past. He might be, you know, gassed and taking reps. Now, he's the fresh guy. He can go cover a punt, he can run routes out of the backfield, he's elusive. He has to work really hard on his weight to maintain his weight. I think it's really important he can stay above that 205-210 mark for bulk and protecting himself, but he's had the best camp he's ever had by far in terms of no mental lapses, picking up pressures. He's done a tremendous job."

…Smart said punter Brett Thorson had a good day. “I thought (Brett) Thorson hit some punts. We didn't necessarily—we punted situationally today where we were trying to pin some kicks inside the 10 and worked on some different things,” Smart said. “So, it wasn't about the distance, if you know what I mean. It was more about directional and trying to work on some different things. But I thought all those guys continue to get better."

Click here for our insider notes from the scrimmage.