Tuesday News and Notes

Wide receiver George Pickens is running and doing some non-contact football activities for the No. 2 Bulldogs.

Georgia beat writers saw this for themselves during a brief practice viewing Monday afternoon.

On Tuesday, head coach Kirby Smart acknowledged that his junior wide receiver is making good progress. However, there is still no timetable for his return.

“I guess it was two weeks ago he had a meeting with Dr. (James) Andrews,” Smart said after practice on Tuesday. “He visited with him, and of course he’s the foremost authority. Ron (Courson) went, his mother went with him, and he (Andrews) felt he was in a really good spot and (Dr. Andrews) cleared him to do some football activity in terms of route running and things on air, not contact.”

So far, so good.

According to Smart, if one did not know better, it would be difficult to tell that the former five star is injured at all.

However, the Bulldogs won’t be taking any chances by bringing him back too soon, despite the fact Pickens’ ACL injury was not as serious as those suffered by former Bulldogs Nick Chubb and Todd Gurley.

“Ron has a protocol, and he’s following that exactly. George has done a tremendous job of doing what he's supposed to do in rehab, being where he’s supposed to be, and working out during practice,” Smart said. “He only spends a little bit of time with us. He’s prescribed, like, 15 or 20 minutes at the beginning of practice, and then he goes and does his rehab program, his lifting program, and he’s done a very good job of doing that.”

So, when could Pickens possibly return? Smart doesn't have an answer for that.

“What's the prognosis? I don’t know, I don’t know the timeline on that. I do know he’s working very hard,” Smart said. “We haven't made it about George’s return; that’s not what we’ve made it about. We’ve made it about George getting healthy, and that’s what we’ve consistently sold to him.”

A season opener against Oregon in Atlanta, eight Southeastern Conference games and the annual tilt against Georgia Tech highlight the 2022 Georgia football schedule announced Tuesday by the SEC.

The Bulldogs will open the season against Oregon on Sept. 3, 2022 in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. This will mark only the second time the two football programs have met. The one previous meeting resulted in a 27-16 home win for the Bulldogs in 1977.

Georgia will host SEC contests against Auburn, Vanderbilt, and Tennessee, and will travel for league matchups against South Carolina, Missouri, Mississippi State, and Kentucky. The Georgia-Florida game will take place Oct. 29 in Jacksonville.

Smart was asked a couple of questions Tuesday regarding his feelings for Vanderbilt after last year’s game was twice cancelled due to the Commodores’ issues with Covid-19.

“Frustrated would be a better adjective,” Smart said. “I was disappointed because the players were prepared. I think we were already prepared once. I can’t even remember that season, but I know there was an expectation we were going to play them.

“It was our last home game, and for the seniors, I wanted it because they'd meant so much to our program, and so many of them had been through the turnaround. I just wanted the game for them. When their coach called me, I said, ‘Golly.’ It hurt, but I understood. It was beyond their control.”

Smart did acknowledge in the hours that followed, he and members of Georgia’s athletic administration attempted to find a replacement game. But there just wasn't enough time.

“I know some of the people upstairs, and Josh (Brooks) tried to work some things out, but there was no realistic shot. It was never like it was close to anything.”

There’s been a lot of speculation since the beginning of the year that redshirt freshman Broderick Jones might ultimately move to left tackle, pushing Jamaree Salyer inside.

However, that’s not quite ready to occur.

“I know he played the last two games. He played in the rotation, No. 1. I think it helps Jamaree’s conditioning. No 2, he’s a good football player, and he’s earned the right to play, based on how he’s practiced in spring ball and through camp,” Smart said. “But we’re not ready to say he’s a starter right now. He still has some mental hiccups and mental busts. He’ll be the first to tell you. He went in during the UAB game, and Stetson threw a touchdown pass, and he completely botched it, didn’t even block a guy. Stetson got the ball off before the guy could get there.

“He blocked the wrong guy on Kendall Milton’s fumble. The guy was unblocked; didn’t block his guy. He’s got to clean those things up and get better. One thing I like about Broderick is he’s always trying to get better. He’ll come ask you, what can I do better? What can I do here, what can I do there? He’s competing. We’re going to put the best five out there.”

There’s also the fact that Smart says Salyer is playing left tackle at a high level.

“We feel like right now he's playing better at tackle than he is at guard. There's a lot more to it than what everybody thinks,” Smart said. “I think everybody thinks you just plug and play, but we’re trying to get the best combination of guys out there. That’s the work in progress.”

Tight end Darnell Washington and defensive back Tykee Smith continue to ramp up their activities, although it remains unclear if they will make their 2021 debut Saturday at Vanderbilt (noon, SEC Network).

“They both were running and doing cardio yesterday, did a good job. They ran today,” Smart said. “They didn't do their position work, meaning they didn’t go and take reps. But I was just walking off the field and they both ran really good today. They both hit really good speeds.”

Smart feels both are getting close

“I talked to both of them coming off the field. They both felt really good about where they were, they were comfortable. They aren’t in cleats yet. Cleats aren’t the best thing to run in for that foot injury,” Smart said. “But they were in rubber turf shoes, and they were running really well, and they built up their volume. So, we’ll increase that tomorrow and see where they are. They’re in a much better place, and I was really pleased when I saw them running in black shirts today, and I was like, ‘Who is that, that guy is fast.’ But it was those guys, Tykee and Darnell.”

…JT Daniels is 6-0 as a starter for the Bulldogs.

…With 14 catches for 203 yards, freshman Brock Bowers has the most receiving yards for a tight end since Isaac Nauta (430) in 2018. The Georgia record for a tight end is Orson Charles with 574 in 2011.

…Georgia ranks fifth nationally in third-down conversions (22 for 38) at 57.8 percent.

…The Bulldogs are tied for fourth nationally with 13 sacks.