Georgia football has turned the page after its first loss of the season and have begun preparing for another physical matchup when Kentucky comes to town this Saturday. Head coach Kirby Smart, defensive tackle Jordan Hall, and wide receiver London Humphreys met with the media on Monday to reflect on the Alabama game and preview what’s next.
Here are the two things that stood out from their recent media session
1. Kirby Smart and Jordan Hall emphasized physicality and accountability
Smart made it clear that his team has already moved past the 24-21 loss to Alabama and is locked in on Kentucky. He said the Wildcats always provide one of the most physical matchups Georgia sees each season, crediting Mark Stoops for building a tough program.
”It’s always the most physical game when we play these guys,” Smart h aredvia 247sports.com. “We’ve had head-to-head battles many times with these guys, and Coach Stoops teams are always physical, so we know it’ll be physical.”
Junior defensive tackle Jordan Hall echoed his coach’s sentiment, pointing to execution as the key after Georgia’s defense struggled to get Alabama off the field on third downs.
”We’ve got to get off the field on third down,” Hall said. “That’s the biggest thing we got to do, taking away from Saturday. People want to point the finger at different things, but I take accountability for what I had a part in, which is not getting off the field.”
Hall stressed that the Bulldogs are built to respond to adversity and that the team remains confident playing against Kentucky.
”We built for adversity,” Hall continued. “I feel like we can take a punch and give a punch back. That’s something that we pride ourselves on.”
2. London Humphreys says the offense is focused on execution and confidence
On the other side of the ball, junior wide receiver London Humphreys said the offense must sharpen its execution after Alabama distrupted Georgia’s rhythm. Humphreys, who transferred to Georgia last season, stressed that every receiver has to stay locked in when opportunities come.
”As receivers, we just have to stay locked in,” Humphreys said. “When our number’s called, we’ve got to make those plays. We know Kentucky’s going to be physical, but we feel like if we do our job, we can give our offense what it needs.”
Humprheys also pointed to the importance of bouncing back quickly and not letting one loss define the season.
”You can’t hang your head,” Humphreys continued. “We’ve got a lot of football left to play. Coach tells us all the time, block out the outside noise and keep getting better, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
Final snap
No. 12 Georgia will be playing Kentucky back in Sanford Stadium at noon EST on Saturday. With physicality and execution at the top of the priority list, the Bulldogs are aiming to reset their momentum in SEC play.