When players aren’t living up to their capabilities, fans often demand change.

For Georgia, middle linebacker has been one of those positions where those calls have been loud and clear.

The Bulldogs’ middle backers have been inconsistent at best, a fact Kirby Smart has acknowledged on several occasions throughout the year.

An MCL injury hampering Monty Rice for much of the season hasn’t helped matters, but uneven play by Natrez Patrick, Tae Crowder, and Juwan Taylor have been hot topic for fans.

Although many have queried why not give freshmen like Channing Tindall or Quay Walker an opportunity, that’s a route Smart is apparently not ready to take.

“You know, it's tough in the midst of a season to just magically get better. We try to do it through fundamentals, technique, individual block destruction, demeanor, and attitude. But you can't go out and replace players. We have what we have,” Smart said. “We'd love to have some more depth at those positions, but we don't.”

So, what can the Bulldogs do?

Saturday’s game against Kentucky features arguably the best back in the SEC in Benny Snell, Jr., and it’s going to be imperative for Georgia’s middle linebackers to have a strong game.

“We have to do a better of job of helping the guys we have to be successful, whether by scheme or by effort or fundamentals,” Smart said. “At the end of the day, you have to block-protect and you have to tackle. It's hard to say, well, we're going to just change all that in one week and get better.”

It sounds simple, but Smart says players just need to be physical.

“We're just going to keep working at it. That's all we know how to do, and there are no magical defenses that we can call that say, this defense stops every run.” Smart said. “You have to physically whip a man in front of you, get off a block, and go make the tackle.”

Ultimately, the job Georgia does or not do will ultimately determine the outcome of Saturday’s game (3:30, CBS).

“They do a really good job of blocking you, and they have one of the premier guys (Snell) in the country toting the ball. He's probably the best I've ever seen with his vision,” Smart said. “I mean, he never misses a hole. He sets his blockers up, and he does not want to be tackled. You have to go in with a willingness to be more physical than him. To answer your question, it's not going to be easy. We have to do a good job of playing with a little better demeanor.”