Another Zoom press conference with Kirby Smart meant more questions about the Bulldogs’ situation at quarterback ahead of Saturday’s game at Kentucky (Noon, SEC Network).

Unfortunately for reporters quizzing the Bulldogs’ head coach on Monday, his answers were not unlike others he has recently answered about the topic.

“We're always evaluating guys. It doesn’t change,” Smart said. “You guys can keep asking the questions, but we're always evaluating guys at quarterback, and they are always trying to get better, grow their game.”

If it seems Smart is growing weary with constant questions about his quarterbacks, you would be right.

After Stetson Bennett’s three interception performance at Alabama and the fact the junior completed just 45 percent of his passes against the Crimson Tide, many have wondered if JT Daniels might get his shot sooner rather than later.

News that Daniels had ditched his knee brace against Alabama and received second-team reps last week has only added to the speculation that offensive coordinator Todd Monken might be considering a change.

However, Smart attempted to put an end to that, at least for now.

“Stetson is still repping with the ones, taking reps. We got other guys reps, and that's what you try to do in an off week. You try to grow your team and get them better,” he said. "But at the same time, we're trying to create continuity and get better as a team and a unit. You don't base your season on one game; you base your season on what gives you the best chance to get better. And that’s what we’re trying to do.”

The rest, he said, will ultimately take care of itself.

“We’re trying to look at it as, ‘What are we trying to do to get our team from point A to point B?’ That's growth. That's competition,” he said. “Every position has that. It does not change at quarterback. It’s what you need to get better and what we're going to continue to do this week.”

Last week, Smart said he did not think a minor knee injury for running back Kenny McIntosh would be that big of a deal.

Monday, Smart revealed the sophomore was not able to practice at all last week.

“I won’t know much on Kenny until I get back out there today,” Smart said. “He wasn't able to practice last week in terms of rehab, but we are hopeful he we will be able to go today. We'll find out more.”

…Outside linebacker Jermaine Johnson confirmed that it was indeed a shoulder injury suffered in the opener at Arkansas that forced him to miss games against Auburn and Tennessee.

“I hurt my shoulder against Arkansas, but I stayed in, finished the game, and played through it, realizing the severity of the injury,” said Johnson, who returned to played against Alabama. “Against Alabama, it was just good to be back out there, be useful for the team, and be available any way I can.”

Georgia may have lost to Alabama, but that does not mean the Bulldogs don't want another shot at the Crimson Tide.

“Of course, that’s in the back of our mind, and that’s why we want to play them again when we get to that place,” sophomore safety Lewis Cine said. “It’s a very bitter taste, but from here on out, we’re going to play our best.”

Obviously, if that happens, there’s work to be done on both sides of the ball.

“Kirby stresses the fact that we control our destiny, and I believe that” Cine said. “We’ve been getting everyone’s best, and of course everyone is going to get our best. But we have a goal ahead of us, and we’re going to work toward that goal. Day in and day out we’re going to keep progressing until we get to our goal.”

“We've had injuries in recent weeks, and we have some young guys that are growing. I think Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint is a guy that has really come along and done some nice things, that we're hoping to grow his role and get him developed. Some of those guys have been injured. Matt (Landers) was banged up with an injury, dealing with his shoulder, so hopefully he's back. D-Rob [Demetris Robertson] has played some and Kearis [Jackson] has played some, being able to rotate in there. We're always going to play the guys that give us the best chance to win. If that's six guys, then that's six guys. If that's three guys, then that’s three guys.” Smart on his wide receiver rotation.

“I think at the beginning of the season there was a big worry as far as we need to have these conversations, we need to keep everyone together to be educated on what to do after practice, on the weekends and what-not. But as the season has gone on, our team is smart, we have one goal in mind where we’re not going to have any people get in our way, and if you don’t want to be part of this train, just leave.” Tight end John FitzPatrick on players adhering to Covid protocols.

“They both have a running element. They really fit the style of offense that Eddie [Gran] has been using for a while—really well in terms of what they want to do and how they dictate the run-game to you. When you look across the last couple of years, if you ask anybody across our league, not statistically, not looking in terms of what you guys would at in terms of numbers, their physicality up front has been very evident. When you go back and watch our last couple of games against them, just us individually, their offensive line is extremely physical, and we haven't tackled well. I don’t know if you give them credit for that, the athletes they’ve had, whether it was Lynn Bowden or Terry [Wilson Jr.] the year before, or just the fact they block you and get a lot of one-on-one tackles. They've done a really good job in terms of being physical at the line of scrimmage. Both of those quarterbacks present issues in terms of contain, how you play people outside when you're playing against them. They’ve always done a good job of that.” Smart on Kentucky quarterbacks Joey Gatewood and Terry Wilson Jr.

…Broadcasters for Saturday’s game on the SEC Network will be Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers, and Cole Cubelic.

…Georgia leads the Kentucky series 59-12-2 and is on a 10-game winning streak.

… Junior punter Jake Camarda is taking aim not just at the Bulldog single season record, but a possible SEC and NCAA record. The Bulldogs rank third in the NCAA in Net Punting at 47.9, while Kentucky stands 10th nationally at 44.3. The NCAA/SEC record (min. of 50 punts) belongs to Braden Mann who averaged 51.0 on 50 punts for Texas A&M in 2018 and won the Ray Guy Award.