Prior to a recent team run, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart asked those players who'd not yet taken part in spring practice to rise.

Almost three-quarters of the team stood.

“I’m going to venture to say it was 65-70 percent of the team that stood up. That’s a scary thing,” Smart said. “It just shows you the youth you have, the lack of practices and experiences your team has. Sixteen midyears, a lot of new walk-ons—nobody that was here last year for the first year has gone through that.”

A little more perspective: Wide receiver George Pickens is one of a handful of juniors who will be taking part in their first spring practice, which gets underway Tuesday, culminating with G-Day on April 17.

The Bulldogs have already been hard at work, having just wrapped up the annual winter conditioning program with strength coach Scott Sinclair and his staff. This year, Smart has also put his team through what he describes as “team programming.” That includes small group sessions to help prepare players mentally for what lies ahead.

“We’ve started some skull sessions that are really 15–20-minute sessions—small, incremental things we’ve been doing with our players in small groups,” Smart said. “Small groups work a lot better. You don't get to be in a huge room—obviously COVID and the pandemic help with the small groups—but the guys have felt a greater connection of trying to find what our DNA is as a team. We've been really intentional about that.”

According to Smart, it’s all about making everyone more accountable for their actions.

It’s his hope that the Bulldogs will be a player-driven team—one where team leaders will bear the responsibility of making sure everyone is adhering to the standard it will take to win a championship this fall.

“Our focus really hasn't been on what position each guy is going to play, but more about how we get the best out of each person,” Smart said. “A couple of those guys are leaders on the team, so it’s not just getting the best out of them; it’s them getting the best out of everybody else. Can they hold guys accountable? Can they set the standard and demand the standard? That’s kind of our approach to the offseason.”

Once spring practice officially gets underway Tuesday, the focus will shift to the field. If you've been following our pre-spring position previews, there will be plenty of material for focus.

Defensively, the Bulldogs’ young secondary will bear watching as Smart and new defensive back coach Jahmile Addai start the process of piecing together who will play where, after losing five key players from last year due to graduation and the NFL Draft.

Determining a pecking order at inside linebacker will also be part of the agenda, as well as seeing what defensive line options will figure into the rotation. There will be plenty of options to choose from.

Offensively, left tackle will be a key position competition to watch. Will Jamaree Salyer once again man the key line spot, or will he slide inside to guard, his natural decision? Whether that happens will depend on players such as youngsters Broderick Jones and Amarious Mims, along with Xavier Truss, who started at left tackle in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.

The Bulldogs also need to settle on a starting center. Right guard is open, too, although competition will be keen for all five offensive line spots.

“Those things will play out based on what other guys can do or can’t do. Warren McClendon’s development has to be at tackle, because he plays tackle, right? But he played guard 10-15 percent of his extra snaps, because you have to be able to play two positions,” Smart said. “We’re not really concerned about where they’re starting at. Jamaree obviously worked in at guard. He has the ability to play guard, and he’s proven he can play tackle in the SEC at a high level. If we need him to do that, he can do it. If we need him to play inside, he’ll be able to do that.”

After missing out on spring altogether last year, Smart is just happy to be taking it to the field.

“You can imagine this time last year it was a whirlwind in terms of trying to figure out (Todd) Monken is here, this guy is here, he's here, this guy's here, and trying to install different things,” Smart said. “The pace at which we're doing walkthroughs and being able to do things offensively has been much better. If anything, we're trying to adjust more to what they're doing on defense now, because they're ahead of us. We (defense) were a little ahead of them last year. So that's good.”