Georgia’s policy all year has been not to comment on Covid-related specifics in regard to its athletic teams.

However, head coach Kirby Smart acknowledged for the second time in as many weeks Monday that the pandemic is indeed taking a toll on his Bulldog football team.

“It’s a thrill a minute. We've had good information, bad information, information that changed (laughter),” Smart said during Monday’s Zoom session with reporters to preview Friday’s Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (Noon, ESPN). “It's been a struggle. That's really all I can say about it. I'm not going to get into details. We've had our issues.”

Not surprisingly, Smart didn't budge when pressed for additional details, including whether or not false positives were part the problem.

“I mean, you take it for what it's worth. It just changes every day,” Smart said. “I'm not saying that's the case. I'm just saying we've dealt with a lot of things, a lot more things here recently, than we have in the past.”

Georgia has been one of the nation’s more fortunate teams in terms of dodging the bullets related to the on-going pandemic. Although the Bulldogs have had three games postponed or cancelled (Kentucky, Vanderbilt twice), it was no fault of Georgia’s.

Smart said he didn't have any disappointment that there have recently been issues. Nor did he agree with a reporter who suggested additional players may have to miss Friday’s game.

‘I didn't say anybody wouldn't be able to play. I don't want to say that; I'm not saying that. I'm saying there have always been issues and problems,” Smart said. “It doesn't matter whether it's contact tracing or other guys having a test and being affected in the organization. Everybody, not just the players—I want to lead with that. Certainly, we'd be disappointed if we lost guys and they were not able to play in the game—but they were able to play all year. You know what I mean?”

There's been a ton of talk regarding how much motivation the Bulldogs will bring to Friday’s Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. But Smart says he doesn't believe that will be an issue at all.

“I think our guys are in a great place. The time away, I noticed that for the Missouri week,” Smart said. “The best practices we had were [after] the time away they had the weekend before the Missouri week. It's been kind of the same way.”

No doubt he hopes for a similar outcome.

Georgia throttled Missouri 49-14 back on Dec. 12, and enters Friday’s Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl as a seven-point favorite over the AAC champion Bearcats, according to Las Vegas oddsmakers.

“Since they've come back, not even 48 hours, they've been tremendous in terms of focus, attention to detail, guys being places on time. You don't have school going on, so you have a little more time with your players,” Smart said. “What you don't want to do is bog them down with being over here all day. There's a fine balance between too much and not enough. Balancing that as a coach is tough. We've had morning sessions, everything like that, to help out.”

Georgia posted a photo of Richard LeCounte practicing without the customary black jersey signifying no contact. But Smart said he still cannot say for sure if the senior safety will be able to play on Friday.

“I can't put odds on it. It all boils down to the health and safety of that young man,” Smart said. “If he is capable of playing winning football, he'll go out there and play. He's never been shy about it; he wants to play. He's a football player.”

The next few days will tell the tale.

Safety Christopher Smith, who has started in place of LeCounte since the injury, is hoping for the best.

“We miss his energy. His leadership is second to none. Definitely his play-making,” Smith said. “He always finds a way to stay around the ball, make plays, things like that. That's definitely something we've been missing and will need back.”

LeCounte suffered a concussion and injuries to his ribs as a result of his motorcycle accident on Halloween night after the team returned from Lexington and its game against Kentucky.

“He's pushing really hard. He's taking a lot of reps for the twos. He's working hard to get out there and play. It's going to be conditioning, it's going to be physicality, it's going to be how comfortable he is,” Smart said. “When you go that long without playing, it's not always just straight-line speed. It's throwing on the brakes, understanding angles, feeling confident in contact, because it's a physical sport.”

Defensive coordinator Dan Lanning said freshman defensive back Kelee Ringo is definitely getting better following his shoulder surgery, but the former five-star is still not ready to get on the field.

“Kelee has been able to actually practice with us more and more as the season has gone on. He's not ready for competition yet,” Lanning said. “But I'm really excited. Sometimes you worry about a guy who has an injury—how mentally engaged are they going to be able to be throughout the season. It's tough when you know you're not going to play a game. I've been impressed with Kelee's attention to detail—really picking up some schematic pieces of our defense.”

Ringo is expected to be 100 percent for the start of fall practice in 2021.

Junior nose tackle Jordan Davis predictably told reporters he won't think about the prospect of leaving Georgia early for the NFL Draft.

But during his Zoom session with reporters, he acknowledged having one regret already .

With players unable to take part in any bowl activities due to Covid, Davis was under the impression that the bowl gifts would also be history.

With his mom soon to celebrate a birthday, this was not going to be good news.

“I'll say I'm going to miss the bowl gifts, because I wanted to get my mom an air fryer this year. I'll probably have to get her something for her birthday,” Davis said. “Bowl gifts were really going to cover me if they had an air fryer. Unfortunately, we're probably not going to have that. I wanted to get her one of those.”

Fortunately for Davis, he will.

The Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl does indeed have gifts, including a $390 Mastercard gift card. Players also receive a commemorative football.

Tyson Campbell on whether this will be his last game at Georgia: “I'm still a Georgia Bulldog. My task is to finish out the season. I'm still part of this team. We have one game left, so I want to finish this season with my teammates.”