The postponement of last Saturday’s scheduled game against Vanderbilt gave wide receiver Kearis Jackson the opportunity to do something he's rarely had the opportunity to do since becoming a member of the Georgia football team.
“I was able to do some Christmas shopping, get my parents and little sister something,” Jackson said during a Zoom session with reporters Monday.
But don't get the redshirt sophomore wrong. He'd much rather have been on the field with his teammates. Instead, the Bulldogs will prepare for this weekend’s makeup game at Missouri (Noon, SEC Network) and hope that Vanderbilt will be able to go on the 19th.
The Commodores are scheduled to play Tennessee this weekend.
“It was a huge disappointment, knowing we weren’t going to be able to play last weekend—especially after we'd prepared all week for Vanderbilt, knowing it was going to be our last regular season game at Sanford, and knowing it was taken away from us,” Jackson said. “But we get another opportunity to go to Missouri this week and showcase what the seniors want, and that is a win.”
Head coach Kirby Smart didn't have much to say when asked about the situation.
As expected, Smart said he'd moved on to the game with the Tigers. But he did have something interesting to say when asked if he thought the makeup game against the Commodores would still be played.
“I don’t want to dwell on that. That's kind of in the past. It was Friday when we found out; I hated it. It is what it is. There's not a lot anyone can control in that situation. It’s out of our control really completely, and some of it's out of their control,” he said. “So, there’s just not a lot that you can do about it. I think obviously, our players wanted to play and wanted to play at home.
“As to the 19th, you'd have to ask Vanderbilt that. I don’t know that.”
Cornerback Tyson Campbell echoed what Jackson had to say.
“Everybody was disappointed,” he said. “It was just one more day to play the game, but everybody had to move on. Hopefully, next week, we'll be able to send the seniors off in Sanford; right now, we’re focused on Missouri.”
Jackson said the team learned the news late Friday morning, via a team text.
“It was around 11:30 or 12. The whole team was getting ready to report for meetings and whatever, and it was a text saying the game had been postponed,” Jackson said. “We were literally like, what’s going on? We'd taken our Covid tests, and things like that. Things happen. Got to take it and live with it.”
According to Smart, his players handled the disappointment well. He's also convinced whatever sadness they may have been feeling will disappear come time for Saturday’s game at Missouri.
“You do the best you can. You just tell them honestly, the information you've been given. It is pretty simple. We cannot control everything that happens. We try to be honest with them. We have to take advantage of the opportunities we get and take nothing for granted. We told them that against Mississippi State,” he said. “We can’t take anything for granted, because you don’t know what lies ahead. The only thing you know is, the minute it's in front of you. That was evidence last week, right up to the last minute, we didn't know it was going to get canceled until really late. Our guys have handled it well—they've bounced back, and I'm sure they'll be awesome today. We get to be around them. I’m looking forward to playing a really good Missouri team.”
