Wednesday Practice Report

FOOTBALL

The 13th-ranked Dawgs made a slight change in their midweek practice Wednesday as they moved indoors.

Georgia (8-2, 6-1 SEC) went through a 90-minute split squad workout. After a special teams meeting, the offense worked in the multi-purpose room indoors while the defense conducted meetings, film study and a weightlifting session. Then, the two groups switched places.

“After watching practice yesterday, they guys were fighting hard but they looked tired,” said Georgia coach Mark Richt. “I looked at the forecast and it was 100 percent chance for rain, and I decided it was a good day to practice inside. I did it for a few reasons. I want them to have fresh legs on Saturday, and we got a good lifting cycle in today. If we did more 11-on-11 work today, the guys would be banging in to each other and somebody could get hurt and we are thin in some spots.”

Also, Richt said the team has been working hard, and he felt like this would be the best way to work on the game plan and then on Thursday, the team will head back outside and time everything up.

Georgia ranks third in the Southeastern Conference in scoring offense (35.8 points per game) while Kentucky is last at 17.0 In scoring defense, Georgia is third at 18.6 while the Wildcats are 10th at 27.0. In turnover margin, Georgia is second in the SEC at +9 while Kentucky is 10th at -2. Still, the Georgia-Kentucky series has been a battle in recent years including the Wildcats posting a 34-27 win in their last visit to Athens in 2009.

“We’ve had our struggles with them, and a lot of our games have gone down to the wire,” said Richt. “We know every time we play them, they’re good enough to beat us.”

The Dawgs play host to Kentucky (4-6, 1-5 SEC) on Saturday, and kickoff is set for 12:21 p.m. The SEC Network will televise the game.

It will the final home game for Georgia’s seniors and that’s always an emotional time for the players and families, according to Richt.

“I know the seniors are excited about playing for a shot at going to the SEC Championship game, and it’s always a special game when you realize it’s your last time playing Between the Hedges,” said Richt.