This morning, Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken addressed the media for what likely will be the only time until December. The following is the video and transcript from the coach's presser.

Offensive line and the best five with Warren Ericson injured...

"We have (Justin) Shaffer who comes back as a returning starter and Jamaree (Salyer). Then you've got Warren McClendon and yet you've got a good number of talented young guys who are pushing those guys. So really, in terms of the depth chart, it's a work in progress. I do anticipate a good number of guys working with the ones and the twos. You're talking about on the left side, we're looking at Amarius (Mims) and Xavier Truss as well. On the right side, we've had Tate (Ratledge) and Devin Willock, who's a talented young guy, Owen Condon, who has been here. Then you've got Broderick (Jones), who continues to grow. The good news is that we practice all of them and we continue to rotate them so I'm excited to get to Saturday and see where we're at. You go through spring and you spend five weeks in pads and installing and guys get to the point they keep developing. Then you get a break. It's really an interesting dynamic and all of a sudden you have May, June, and July then you pop back up again. You've got to get back into working the physical part of it. It's one thing to get the mental but then the physical part."

The difference that a year makes...

"We're just so further ahead. Forget even, let's just start with the staff. Being together for a year when we do game-planning and guys make suggestions and we start talking through things. They get to know me a little bit better and it makes for a much easier working relationship in terms of those things. Then you go with the players and the terminology and I think that part of it, missing spring (in 2020) and then the fall, as I've said many times, the core of what you do football-wise is the same in the NFL -- blocking, tackling, doing it better than they do it. But systematically, the way you go about attacking people is a little bit different. That took time. Obviously, the quarterback situation adds to that. I feel like a year later I'm doing it better and that's what you're paid to do, to do it better than you did it last year with the staff in terms of what we're doing offensively, in terms of how we're coaching our players and then honing in on who we want to be."

Unique talents at tight end...

Well, without doubt. You've got John FitzPatrick, who played a lot of football for us last year. I wouldn't say the most versatile but in terms of trust -- is probably the biggest word with him. With Fitz, you can put him at Y, you can put him at F tight end, you can flex him out. He's going to be diligent in the way he approaches it and you can count on him. He's a true Bulldog. "Then you take Darnell Washington, who got here last year and some of those things we saw later in the year we hadn't seen earlier in the year. We don't go live and when we did, we didn't get him the ball to be able to see some of that ability, I wouldn't say down the field but run-after-catch and some of those things. We knew he'd be able to cover people up and develop that way but he's a unique player. I don't really know other than to say that he's unique in terms of his size and athleticism. At 6-foot-7 280 (pounds) and ball skills and can run and he's only going to continue to get better. He's only really scratched the surface. "Then you've got Brock Bowers, who is the consummate F. You could hand the ball to him if you wanted to. In his high school film, he played some fullback and in terms of route running... Another guy who is a diligent worker. He'll work himself into the ground how hard he works and runs and competes. We're really, really fortunate to have those three guys in the mix and then you've got Ryland Goede and Brett Seither who are competing for playing time. But those three guys, that's a pretty special group that we have. With the ability to utilize them and their skill set."

Finding that balance between leaning into what you do well, but also not being predictable?

“Well, a great question. You do spend the offseason, when the season ends, you go through our cut-ups, and you say what can I do better, what can the players do better, where can we put them in a better situation to have success? Because the majority of our players here have a skill-set, especially the skill guys, that you can utilize doing something. We just have to figure out what that is and where we can get them in those positions. Then you spend the offseason, heading into spring, of evaluating what other people are doing, trying to stay on the cutting edge of what people are doing offensively, and trying to utilize our personnel, which I thought we did a really good job of. But at the end of the day, the teams that are really good on offense do the same things, and do them better than they do it. And they tweak some, but they constantly are looking for ways to improve. But they have a philosophy of what they do and they try to do it better than they do it. So you’re right, them having the film of what we do and how we do it, it’s up to us to mirror our plays up so they can look the same but appear different to the defense, and put them in run-pass conflicts with different ways that you’re able to do that. I’m excited about the direction we’re headed, and what we carried over from last season.”

How quickly has Arik Gilbert adapted to WR and as an OC how exciting is it the ways you can use him?

“Well, I think he’s adapted well. He’s a special talent because he’s in the Brock Bowers mode in that he’s athletic enough to play receiver but big enough to do some things on the interior. He’s a size match-up, he’s a run-after-catch guy. He loves to play the game. So we’re excited that he’s part of our program.”

Reporting that Warren Ericson has missed time. Can you confirm that and any significant players that have missed time?

“You guys are going to have to, I appreciate the question, but all of those questions are going to go to Coach Smart in terms of injuries.

Who’s your No. 2 quarterback right now?

“Well, we’re working through that right now. We left spring with Carson as our No. 2 quarterback, but we’re working through that now. With Brock, it’s hard to assess a freshman player that comes in the spring and we put a lot on those guys. Right away, they’re not really able to show their ability because they’re processing so much. It slows down their feet, it slows down some of those things. There’s been tremendous improvement there. Obviously, Stetson, Stetson has greatly improved. So we’re still in the process of evaluating that and the next two scrimmages will have a lot to say with that in terms of how we end up going in the first game. I’ve been pleased with all four of them. Especially the other guys. Stetson’s to be commended because it hasn’t been easy. It hasn’t been easy. You go from being a starter to hey you’re competing for other guys for even just the backup spot or the third spot. He’s worked awfully hard. He’s really intelligent. He has improved a ton. We’re fired up about the group.”

On the fall off in explosive plays from the running backs. What can you do to get those long, game-changing plays? How are the RBs doing?

“First off, we’ve got an excellent group of running backs and all five can play here. Dell does a great job of keeping those guys fresh. They’ve been pretty selfless in terms of understanding that it probably benefits them to not have the wear and tear on them. Obviously, we have to become more explosive in the run game. I think we were consistent for the most part. Obviously, we had a couple of games with Mississippi State and the bowl game where we didn’t nearly run it as well as you would like to be able to control the game because you can’t control the game if you can’t run it. Obviously, we’ve got to do a better job of getting the ball to the perimeter because there is more space out there. That will help us. Obviously, formationally we can do some things differently. Then there were some games that obviously, the Kentucky game we ran the ball well but it’s more in terms of 5, 6, 7 or 10 here but we definitely have to be more explosive and you know that Vance that’s how you win the game is to be explosive and not turn it over. So there’s a balance. You’re exactly right. We’ve got to become more explosive in the run game and we have to do it without having a dual-threat quarterback. That will add to that as well. At times, you may not get the QB draw or the scramble run or the zone read. That’s no excuse. We’ve got good enough running backs. We’ve definitely got to be more explosive.”

On JT’s biggest area(s) of growth...

“Obviously, it’s different when you come into the year as the starter. Obviously, the first is he’s more comfortable with our players. The second part is he’s very, very comfortable with the offense and change things at the line of scrimmage, do things that is player control, which he likes to be involved. He’s got greater command of what we want done, which is normal. He came in, he was injured, we were repping a lot of guys, he didn’t play to the end and we kept evolving what we do offensively. He really appeared to be in control on what we wanted to have done.”

Is it easier due to protocols or similar to last year?

“No chance in hell it’s the same as last year. Just because of no spring, a pandemic and not really knowing. Maybe at this point, we don’t know with the Delta Variant, but we didn’t have the vaccine and we didn’t have some of the ways to curb this. We didn’t know if we were going to play. As a team and as a society we were going through some social injustice and unrest. We had a lot of things that were thrown our way, not just the pandemic that our players did a great job of handling and it was hard with all the distractions. We weren’t the only ones, but I really like where our team is now and how they’re working.”

On the wide receivers...

“Jermaine Burton returns as a starter and you’ve got Kearis Jackson, Marcus Rosemy who is coming off an injury. Those are the three guys coming back that have probably played the most football. Adonai Mitchell, we think is going to be a tremendous player here. Arian Smith has a unique skill set, he can really run and is developing other aspects of his game, he’s really quick and twitchy and not really someone who is a straight-line track guy, but there are days that he flashes. "Justin Robinson has improved, Jaylen Johnson is going to add to that group, Ladd McConkey has made some plays. You lose one guy (Pickens) and it is what it is. The other guys get a chance to step up. That’s why you recruit players that have talent and you’re moving guys around. You’ve just got to find the right combination of guys, which includes Arik and the tight ends. We also have the running backs. We can’t forget the fact that we’ve got multiple guys that we can get on the field at once.”

Relationship with JT Daniels...

"I think it's time. With any relationship, it takes time, as much as anything. Over time, you get to know each other and, you know, figure out how to get somebody to be at his best as a player or just a human being. So it just takes time to get him to understand what we want to do offensively, what we need him to do with the team in terms of leading, in terms of being a coach on the field. So, I think the biggest thing is just time. "And then obviously, having success. I mean, that relationship is tied to success. We're tied together. Let's not kid ourselves. That relationship, the more success we have, the more fun it will be; the less success we have, it's not that much fun. So, the better he gets and the better I do, the better relationship will. And that's anywhere I've ever been.

Daniels' mental improvements...

"You see it, I think. I refer back back to time. It's hard to just jump in there. Really wasn't here in the summer; he's not the starter; he's taking reps; he wasn't fully healthy yet. I think that's much easier when you become the starter. You're in front of them all the time, you're the one gathering the guys to throw. That's a big part of it. You're gathering guys to watch film, gathering guys to go out to California. You don't do that when you're one of five. You know, that's probably as much as anything, is it's hard, you know, to do that when you're not really the guy that stands in front of them. So that's just involved over time with his position with the team."

Only one ball to distribute ...

"Well, the thing is, I don't solve that; the defense solves that. I don't control where it goes. Now we can moves guys around and give them opportunities and touches. And, believe me, I been around skill guys my whole life, that's who I coach. And I get it: when you install plays and you go over the game plan, your skill guys look at that, they look at the plays and want to know 'where am I going to get my opportunities?' And I enjoy that. I would hope that we have skill guys that are selfish. I really do. What skill guy would you not want to be selfish about touching the ball? That's everything to them to showcase their skillset. But they do have to understand that my ultimate job is to score as many points as we can and not turn it over and win the game. And I'd love for every guy to touch it a bunch and I want you to be selfish, but ultimately I can't worry about that as we're game-planning. I have to do what I think is best for our team and gives us the best chance to win. And, yet, I get it. I think it stinks, you know. But that's the way it is. It's never changed. What's changed is people throw it more. The game's more opened up, so you can give yourselves a chance to get other guys the ball, but at the end of the day, the biggest thing is developing your skillset. "If you'll develop your skillset, and you put on film what that want to see -- Tre McKitty didn't have double-digit catches but the son-of-a-gun went in the third round -- so, at the end of the day, I want you to touch it. I want you to score touchdowns. I want you to be a big part of it. But let's focus on developing your skillset and that's going to translate to the next level. And then we'll do everything in our power to create the best version of the offense we can for the University of Georgia."

On the Clemson opener and the defense he'll face...

"They've got a tremendous coaching staff. Brent Venables is one of the best in the country. When I was at Oklahoma State we went against him when he was at Oklahoma. They do a tremendous job of creating some conflict, some issues with you offensively. They've done a really good job of recruiting and then they've got some real good glue guys that are tough, outstanding football players. They're returning a good number of players. "With that being said, we go up against a pretty good defense every day ourselves. So it's not as if we aren't going up against good players. It may not be the same schematically, but they're going to pose some problems. Just like we will for them because we don't do it the exact same. They'll have gone up against good personnel, we'll have gone up against good personnel. The reality is, eight of the last 14 years I've been in the NFL and there every week you're going up against good personnel. You better strap it up and be ready to go because they've got good players and we've got good players. "So let's go. I'm fired up to see where we're at. It's why you come to Georgia, to play games like this. That's why you come here to play good people. Let's figure out where we're out and how far we've come offensively."

On James Cook and Zamir White and their leadership styles...

"Well neither of them are vocal. At least not around me, but maybe that's because I'm 55 and they feel they don't have anything to say to me. The reality is they're not vocal players but man those two dudes work their rear ends off. You ever get a chance to come watch our workouts in the offseason, those two guys go against each other. Man, I'm telling you they challenge each and the whole running back room does. But those two guys, If you asked our players to the core and Jermaine Burton said it the other day while we were doing some gassers and all he did was try and run with James because it forced him to match his work ethic and how he competed. You challenge yourself against the best players in the room to find out where you're at. And that's not easy. It's much easier to find someone in the room that you know you can beat every time, that you look better than. Ultimately, those guys do it every single day. I rarely walk on the field without seeing those guys have a smile on their face. Without an unbelievable disposition of loving football, their teammates and the University of Georgia. It's so much fun being around those guys and I'm excited to see them play this year as much as I was last year."