Georgia Football: 2 outstanding starters return as health keeps improving

Georgia football hasn’t had a complete roster through the first four weeks of the season as the injured Dawg list has been quite long.

The Dawgs are back home for another noon game against the No. 8 Arkansas Razorbacks, who are coming into the Classic City with a ton of confidence. ESPN College GameDay will be in town, and well, the hype surrounding this game has far surpassed what anyone thought it would.

I’m sure if you’ve been on the Twitter machine or social media in general, but the Hog fans are out in full force, confident they will find a way to upset the No. 2 team in the country.

However, head coach Kirby Smart released some excellent news that Darnell Washington and Tykee Smith would return this week after they suffered foot injuries in fall camp.

The return of these two guys gives the Dawgs another weapon on offense, a 6-foot-7 265-pound target that the Razorbacks know all about from last year.

Even though the Dawgs still have some crucial guys out this week, getting those two guys back will be huge.

Smart gave the media insight into their return, and a few updates on other players as the Dawgs look to stay undefeated on the season and in conference play.

Injury Report

WR George Pickens (Out)

OL Tate Ratledge (Out)

CB Jalen Kimber (Out)

WR Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint (Doubtful)

WR Dominick Blaylock (Doubtful/Probable)

WR Arian Smith (Probable)

WR Kearis Jackson (Probable)

TE Darnell Washington (Probable)

CB Tykee Smith (Probable)

Of course, Arik Gilbert is still not with the team, but at this point, we just hope he can return to school on his own time and feel comfortable doing so. Of course, he is a Dawg, and we as a fan base should support him and stop speculating whether or not he will be back or where he will be in the lineup if he returns. Gilbert just needs our support.

Georgia football players OUT for Week 5 game against Arkansas

Of course, the guys out for the Arkansas game are George Pickens and Tate Ratledge, who are both rehabbing injuries. Pickens has been practicing recently, but I don’t expect him to be back just yet. He has a long way to go, and Pickens must do this rehab right to make sure he can have the long NFL career he wants. Ratledge had surgery on his foot and will return hopefully in the spring.

Missing him on the interior offensive line has been a bigger issue than I thought it would be, but that group keeps working hard to improve their rush blocking.

Another name that gets added to the out portion of this injury report is Jalen Kimber, who hurt his shoulder and had surgery on it. So he will not be back on the field for the Dawgs this season, but hopefully, this time away will allow him to get healthy and be a contributor next year.

Georgia football players DOUBTFUL for Week 5 game against Arkansas

As soon as Dominick Blaylock gets his knee rehab where he wants it, his hamstring decides to cause issues. Out of everyone on this list, I  may end up being wrong about whether or not he will play on Saturday against Arkansas. He seemed to be improving then had this hamstring issue, so I’m not sure if the Dawgs will use him or not.

Would it be nice to get him some reps so Blaylock can get used to playing in a live game? Absolutely, but it also wouldn’t surprise me if Smart waits for him to be 100% before throwing him back out to the wolves.

Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint is someone who got a little banged up against Vanderbilt and was in a boot over the weekend. Whether or not he will play is up in the air. I  put him in the doubtful position because if he isn’t 100% and the Dawgs don’t need him, they shouldn’t use him. Let these guys get healthy so that they can be actual contributors.

Georgia football players PROBABLE for Week 5 game against Arkansas

Kearis Jackson is still nursing his knee, but he is getting more and more playing time as the season progresses. He will likely get some playing time on Saturday, but I’m keeping him on my injury report because he isn’t 100% yet.

However, it won’t be long until they let him loose, whether it’s running or catching the ball. Jackson is hungry to return and be a contributor again, so I’m excited to see how he does against a tough Arkansas defense.

I’m keeping Washington and Smith on the probable list for now. Even though Smart said, they are back, getting in shape after an injury like they had is difficult. Hopefully, they won’t miss a beat, but for now, they’re staying on this list.

Georgia may have more names on the injury report than they would like, but so many other guys are stepping up in their places. It makes me feel like this team has something special. Even though that list is long, most of it consists of guys getting healthy, but in the right way. So the remainder of the season is bright for the Dawgs. We just got to stay as healthy as possible.