Kirby Smart revealed Tuesday that the Bulldogs will be without a number of players for spring practice due to off-season surgery.

That includes a pair of defensive linemen: backup Michail Carter (shoulder) and nose guard Julian Rochester (knee), along with walk-on running back Prather Hudson (shoulder) and redshirt freshman Zamir White (knee). Freshmen linebacker Rian Davis (ACL), freshman tight end Ryland Goede, and linebacker Trezman Marshall (shoulder) also will be unable to take part in spring workouts.

There was some good news.

Smart said that running back James Cook (foot) has been fully cleared to take part in drills after suffering his injury prior to the Sugar Bowl.

“He had an ankle injury similar to the one Tua (Tagovailoa) had, maybe a little bit worse than Tua's,” Smart said. “They did a great job over in Birmingham, a special surgery that they put together for him. It was really a bad version of a high-ankle sprain. He’s cleared, he’s done seven-on-sevens, and he’ll be out there ready to go today, so we’re pleased with where he’s at.”

Nose guard Jordan Davis and offensive guard Ben Cleveland, who battled injuries at the end of last year, are expected to be fine for spring drills.

As for defensive lineman David Marshall, Smart said the senior will be limited after undergoing surgery to repair a lisfranc injury in his left knee.

For those wondering, the lisfranc ligament is the band of tissues that connects the metatarsal bones (the long bones that led up to the toe and the tarsal bones (bones in the foot).

“He will be cleared, but not completely cleared,” Smart said. “You won’t see him out there today. He just had his screws taken out, but he will be back before the end of spring. We’re just not sure exactly which day.”

Replacing center Lamont Gaillard is Job 1 on the offensive line, and Smart feels he has some good candidates from which to choose.

Leading the way is sophomore Trey Hill, along with Jamaree Salyer and freshman early enrollee Clay Webb.

“Trey Hill played better against Kentucky. I mean that's the first thing that comes to mind is, here's a guy who played in a go-win-the-SEC-East type game, against a really tough defense, and he was thrown and thrust right into the limelight,” Smart said. “So, we'll have a group. We'll be working three guys there a lot of times. Clay will get some reps there. Jamaree will get reps there. Trey will get reps there. We'll have a lot of guys working through, but Trey is the guy who's kind of been walking through and taking the most reps, and he's got some experience already, which is valuable.”

On tight end Charlie Woerner:

“I think Charlie is ready to step up. He's been a great leader. Charlie does an unbelievable job on our special teams—really athletic, and I think John Fitzpatrick had a good off-season. So, we're going to find out what he can do. We have some guys working at that position we're going to look at, and we have guys coming in who we think are going to help us at that position as well. The same thing is always there for the tight ends. Jake (Fromm) has a comfortable relationship with Charlie. He feels good with him. We have to find the best 11 players to put on the field, whether that's two tight ends, one tight end, or no tight ends. That's going to be dictated off the help of other players, as well as the growth of the tight ends on offense.” — Smart.

On whether his relationship with Nick Saban has been damaged:

“Absolutely not. I don't have any issue or any problem with my relationship with Nick. As a matter of fact, I don't think it's done anything but grown far more respect since we've played them twice. Every time I see Coach Saban, we have a great relationship. We're not texting and calling each other 'buddy-buddy', but I'm not doing that with anybody. So that's not to be of mention. I have a lot of respect for him. I wouldn't be where I am today without him, and there's no problem with our relationship.” — Smart.