It’s been a tough year to be a member of Georgia’s defensive line.

Staying healthy has not been easy.

From Mykel Williams to Christen Miller, Jordan Hall to Warren Brinson; the Bulldogs have yet to play a game this year where they’ve had their full complement of defensive linemen.

Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins has managed to stay healthy after being limited in each of the previous two seasons.

But through it all, one Georgia defensive lineman has been able to stay on the field – nose guard and Super Senior Nazir Stackhouse.

Now in his fifth year, Stackhouse has yet to miss a game due to injury, including 35 starts over the past two-plus seasons.

“He's been really durable. Of all the players we've ever had, I can't remember if this is his fifth year, right?” head coach Kirby Smart said. “I can't remember the guy missing practice. He has tremendous flexibility, which keeps you from getting injured. He has what we call contact balance which means he can strike and not get knocked off when another person hits him on a double team. He can anchor. He's been very durable, and we would be in trouble without him.”

One quick look at the stats indicates how valuable Stackhouse has been.

In Georgia’s six games, the Stone Mountain native is averaging 35.67 reps per contest, second-most on the team behind Ingram-Dawkins (40.5).

“Just regardless of my circumstances, I try to do whatever it takes,” Stackhouse said. “I try to get into practice, even if it's like I’m hurt. My ability has always been something important to me, so even if it is a couple of reps or more reps in practice, I always try to fight to stay in practice with the guys.”

After all, his teammates are all doing the same.

“It's always been a next man up mentality and Trey Scott always preaches availability and any guy that is in that defensive line room and is practicing,” Stackhouse added. “Coach T is going to work his butt off to make sure they know their technique in and out because his goal is to use everyone in that room. Unfortunately, we have a couple of guys that are gone, but that doesn't really phase us too much because we know that our technique is always going to help us on the field.”

A second-team All-SEC selection, Stackhouse may not have the statistics that immediately catch your eye.

With just nine tackles, his numbers may seem pedestrian. But as Smart explains, with nose guard, it’s not about the statistics that make him such a valuable part of the defensive line.

“I thought he had a really, really good year two years ago. He had a pretty good year last year, and then this year he's played better to me than last year. He continues to grow and get better, but he's just been a workload,” Smart said. “He's an invaluable leader because he sets an example by the way he practices and his toughness. He carries more reps than anybody, and we've tried to take some of that off of him, too, in practice because he's played so long.”