With quarterback Stetson Bennett questionable due to an AC-Joint sprain, head coach Kirby Smart confirmed Monday that the competition to see who starts Saturday’s game at Missouri (Noon, ESPN) will be a whole lot more intense.
Although Bennett, who will not practice today, has not been ruled out, Smart said that redshirt freshman D’Wan Mathis, Southern Cal transfer JT Daniels, and freshman Carson Beck would each receive ample opportunity to prove they're ready to take the helm.
“Stetson is day-to-day with a right shoulder AC sprain. So, we do not know. He's going to find out today if he's going to be able to go out there and throw. It’s one of those deals that we don’t know how effective he’s going to be—whether he’s going to require another shot to do it,” Smart said. “We're going to get all three of those guys ready. And the one who does the best job will be ready to play. And if Stetson's ready to play and he does the best job.”
It appears the job is truly wide open.
When asked if a healthy Bennett would start Saturday’s game, Smart did not commit.
“That is a great question—great question—only to be answered by the end of the week,” Smart said. “Great question.”
It has certainly been a struggle of late by the junior from Blackshear, who Saturday completed just 5 of 16 passes for 78 yards and threw his seventh interception over his last three games.
“(The injury) complicates him getting better at the position, because I don’t know how much work he gets. If he's able to go, he will get some reps. If he's not able to throw, then his reps will be cut down,” Smart said. “Accuracy is probably the defining factor of that position, and we haven’t been very accurate in terms of completion percentage, at least not consistently. We’ve been there in spurts, but we weren’t Saturday.”
Mathis did not do much better.
The redshirt freshman was just 4 of 13 for 34 yards with two picks of his own. Smart was asked what Mathis needed to improve.
“The number one thing would be starting with accuracy. He has got to improve that. The number two thing is the management of the offense, in terms of play-call, communication, motion-shifts, snap-count—a lot of things in that nature—which he has improved on,” Smart said. “He’s gotten an opportunity to go with the twos for three or four weeks and grown and gotten better. He got an opportunity the other night, in the game, to see where he is. I think he understands that he has to improve and work, and he's willing to do that."
However, Smart's going to need and see some results.
"He's committed to try and get better to help the team. He's an extremely passionate competitor. You see it when he runs, right? He tries to run guys over, whether he can or cannot—that part is a great, redeeming quality about him," Smart said. "But he has to grow up in other areas and improve. He wants to do that. He wants to become a complete player.”
For fans pining for either Daniels or Beck to see their first playing time, this may be their best shot.
According to Smart, both players will have the opportunity to show what they can do. And if they impress, they could find themselves on the field.
“When JT is down on the scout team, like Stetson (Bennett) when he was down there before, sometimes you get to do things without risk and reward, because your job down there is to get the ball in the air and throw the ball, service the team, get a look. He's not down there all the time. We have (Nathan) Priestley and Jackson Muschamp that do a good job as well,” Smart said. “JT likes to go down there and compete and throw some—so he spends time with our offense. He's in all the meetings with our offense. He goes down there and throws every now and then. JT’s got a good arm, there's no doubt about that. It's one of the deals that he's getting better and better every day with mobility. You feel good that he's able to move around and do some things down there with us. Again, he's going to get some reps with Stetson out, and we’ll find out where he is.”
