Davis Wins National Award

Georgia senior defensive tackle Jordan Davis bolstered a defensive wall against a usually-prolific Clemson offense, drawing consistent double- and sometimes triple-teams. That attention allowed other Dawgs to become playmakers as Georgia registered seven sacks and a defensive touchdown while holding Clemson to two yards rushing and keeping the Tigers out of the end zone in a 10-3 win in a battle of top five teams. For anchoring the nation's top defensive effort in the season's first week, Davis earned the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week honor for games of the weekend of Sept. 4, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America.

 
Playing in his hometown of Charlotte, N.C., the 6-6, 340-pound Davis pushed through for three tackles in the game and one sack, the sixth of his career, and was one of six Georgia players to record a sack. Georgia held Clemson to 90 yards in the first half (1 rushing, 89 passing), and held Clemson scoreless at halftime for the first time in its last 143 games. The blanking continued through three quarters and the Dawgs also snapped Clemson's 400-yard total-offense streak at 12 games, yielding only 180 total yards.

"Two on me means somebody's free," Davis told ESPN's Holly Rowe in a postgame on-field interview. "I know that's going to free up a linebacker or another defensive lineman. It's amazing they have that type of respect for me. We came out here and played the game we were supposed to play."

Georgia is well represented in Bronko Nagurski Trophy history. The Dawgs have had a finalist in two of the last four seasons (safety J.R. Reed in 2019 and linebacker Roquan Smith in 2017), six finalists overall and one former winner (Champ Bailey in 1998). Davis, however, is the first Dawg to earn this weekly honor since 2012 when linebacker Jarvis Jones won his third weekly award (twice in 2012, once in 2011). Davis is on the Bronko Nagurski Trophy preseason watch list.

Each Tuesday during the regular season, the FWAA has selected a Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week since 2001. The FWAA and the Charlotte Touchdown Club will announce three finalists for the 2021 Bronko Nagurski Trophy on Nov. 17. The national defensive player of the year will be chosen from those finalists who are part of the 2021 FWAA All-America Team and presented with the trophy at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet presented by LendingTree on Dec. 6 at the Charlotte Convention Center

The FWAA has chosen a National Defensive Player of the Year since 1993. In 1995, the FWAA named the award in honor of the legendary two-way player from the University of Minnesota. Nagurski dominated college football then became a star for professional football's Chicago Bears in the 1930s. Bronislaw "Bronko" Nagurski is a charter member of both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.

Monday Press Conference

UGA Sports Communications

Coach Kirby Smart and select players offered the following comments during Monday's press conference. The Dawgs will open up the 2021 home season on Saturday against UAB at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Coach Kirby Smart    

Opening Statement…

"I was really proud of our players and the way they competed. We talked about composure and attention to detail, I thought we kicked butt in the composure department. We lost the attention to detail battle because we lost a couple of things. A big piece of communication for our guys moving forward is discipline. We talked about it today whether it is a noun or a verb, some of our players see it as what they do when they're in trouble, others see it as doing what they're supposed to do when they do it. We didn't do that at a high enough level, we had a lot of bad disciplined eyes, decisions, blocks, really all over. You'd think it was just offense, that wasn't the case. We had a lot of busts that we didn't see that happened during the game. Defensively, that could have cost us or haunted us if we would have been exposed on it. Moving forward, we're really concerned about that. Today is about UAB, we've got a lot of respect for their program. I was over there for years right by them, Bill Clark is a great coach and a close friend. He coached high school football and I recruited his school for a long time. He got into college coaching and has been very successful. They've done a tremendous job coaching and recruiting talent and winning football games. They've got a really good team, if you watch them on tape you'll see it. When teams block punts and are good on special teams, you know they're well coached. Our guys are really excited because it's at home and it'll be the first time we have a home atmosphere like we expect. So I'm looking forward to get ready for these guys."

On Tate Ratledge and filling the guard position…

"We've had the luxury of having some depth. That's one of our deepest positions on the team in terms of sheer scholarship numbers. Not necessarily talent, but sheer scholarship numbers we can use to move around. It's very unfortunate for Tate, he's done everything we've asked and he's such a competitor. It's going to be a tough four-to-five months for him, he's going to work through it. Injuries happen in our game, it's not the same injury as Darnell Washington or Tykee Smith, but it's still a tough injury. I'm hoping he gets back by spring ball to get back to work. As far as where we go from there, we have a couple of options. Jamaree Salyer has played at guard, we've got Owen Condon, Warren Ericson stepped in and did a tremendous job. Xavier Truss got up to play guard, we feel like Broderick Jones is at tackle ready to go and play. So we'll have to wait and see. Jamaree took an extended amount of time and worked at guard and center while Warren was out. He did double duty tackle-center and we really wanted to do double duty tackle-guard. Now we'll look at it if it's Jamaree at guard, Broderick, Xavier at tackle or vice versa. We must do that, because if one guy goes down again it might be a different move. There's no definitive answer, it's this is what we're looking at. We'll look at Jamaree, Xavier both at guard-some, Warren and Owen will continue to play guard. The fear of having Warren and Sedrick in there, is they're the two best centers. You've got a higher likelihood of losing one if they're both playing, You can't function without a center."

On foot injuries…

"Foot injuries are pretty common in football. It happens a lot, there's actually been four. We've been dealing with John FitzPatrick. Very different injuries, completely different. There's been a big study done and we've worked hard in the off season. We had someone come in and tell the guys to wear the right kind of cleats because athletes all want to be fast and shoes have gotten lighter. It has nothing to do with Tate's, John's, or anyone else's. Making sure our guys wear the right shoes because every company makes a speed cleat and a bigger cleat, but you've got to fit in your weight category. They all did that, but they've all been under different circumstances. A lot of them have been non-contact, so it isn't a matter of contact."

On the performance of the offense…

 
"Well, I think, you've got to be careful, because with the receptions, you've got to score touchdowns, and we didn't. So, we're a very matter of fact judgement and it's like 'okay so we didn't score but, why? Why did we not?' You go through the reasons why and you go through each play. A lot of it was attention to detail, not converting on third down, missing a couple of explosives. They played us very different than what you would normally say a Clemson team would play. They prepared for speed breaks and shots and fast balls because that's what they had given up. They did a good job of defending that. But, to say that we didn't function or didn't run the ball well – I mean, we ran the ball well at times. Any time you can run the ball down someone's throat in four minutes, it's pretty obvious that they knew we had to run the ball there and we were still able to, so we did some really good things offensively. Hey, I'm excited to see what our guys can do moving forward. The greatest jump you make is from Game One to Game Two, so we got to find a way to be more explosive. You can see on tape that it's there, so I'm glad we got the attention of those guys."

On the expectations for the young players…

 
"No, there's a standard that's always set here and we didn't play to that standard on offense or defense in terms of execution. Now, results, you could say the defense did, but in terms of execution, we didn't play to our standard. In terms of guys doing their job, I do think, in my years of coaching, there is a certain number of times something has to happen for a guy to be able to function and do it right. So we have a play, Brock Bowers misses a block and Arian Smith lines up wrong, Adonai Mitchell is in the wrong spot and doesn't block the right guy, and the play is unsuccessful. Well, those three players – and you guys probably think of Arian has an experienced vet, well, I look at him as really a freshman, because this time last year he was in rehab – so, there's three players on one key play that all do the wrong thing, and now, we have to make sure that doesn't happen again, because it happens once, nervous energy, different things, you miss things, you know these guys are going to grow and get better and we're going to develop from it, but my expectation is they do it from day one all the way through."

On Brock Bowers and the tight ends…

 
"Well, several of those were right targets just for Brock, he was the open guy. Some of that was get the ball out quick against a really good pass rush, and not being able to see… how long are we going to be able to protect? Are we going to be able to get vertical down the field? What's the easiest way to throw a short pass to the tight end? Who do they probably least expect? Brock Bowers. So, a lot of that is happenstance, but he's certainly a good player, and not every play that he got the other night was designed for him. It just ended up that way because some of those RPO's, some of those were boots, and there's two or three options."

On Jermaine Burton…

"We've had roughly 45 practices. Out of the 45 practices he's practiced 10-15 times. He missed a lot of time, and he was already a young player last year who grew. For him, he knows the upside. His best football is in front of him, and he has done everything we asked in terms of getting well. Rehab and pushing himself, but he's not in game shape. He's not in game speed. We've got to improve that and work on it. He's certainly a very talented football player that were excited about. And he will help us be explosive. He's just got to practice more.

On the similarities between the 2017 Notre Dame win and the Clemson win…

"It means a lot for confidence, okay. Confidence can help. Can overconfidence hurt? Yes, but there's a line there. The experience of the environment is what I value. Win, lose, or draw the experience of that environment was going to make us better, and that is what I gain from it. Does it give some of the players more confidence? Yes, it gives them more confidence. It does, but it better not give them overconfidence because humility is one week away.

We're playing a good football team, and I know none of y'all believe me when I say that. I know a good football team, I know a good conference, and I know a well-coached football team when I see one. Watching them (UAB) on tape, they are very well coached. I'm not ready to compare Clemson and Notre Dame as games of the past because there are a lot of different scenarios about that. I don't see the link as much as previous players do, no disrespect to them. I see it as it is one game. It's over with. Now we are worried about UAB.

On what J.T. Daniels was up against with Clemson…

"All the talk about the weapons that he does and doesn't have is a moot point. That's what everyone wants to talk about and you can make excuses for me, for JT, for coach Todd Monken, but we've got good football players. We have to take the football players we have and be explosive. It doesn't matter who is out there. That's just pity or something. We have to be explosive. We have to get better at it. The way they played us and what our game plan was… Protect JT and get the ball out, have some different protections, and some different things. The game plan was to not get in third and longs. We didn't get in many third and longs. How many sacks did we give up guys, one. Check Clemson's average (sacks) per game. The game plan was to be efficient and be in manageable down and distances. Get the ball out of JT's hands. I feel like we did a good job of doing that. We didn't do it consistently enough to score points.

On the distribution of carries and performance of the running backs..

.

"I do not even know what the distribution was. I did not look at it and say, 'He got this, this and this.' I looked at it as, 'How did each guy do with each carry? Were we efficient when we had to run the ball?' When we had to run the ball, we were very efficient. When we had a chance for 50-50, we had some poor ones. Some of that had to do with uncharacteristic busts on run plays, as in, 'Why in the world would you block in that direction on that play?' Some of that was youth. Some of that was anxiety. Some of it was inexperience, and some of it was what Clemson did. We can play much better up front and then be better in the run game. I am not really concerned with the best players getting the touches or the hot hand to get the touches. Our backs are all capable, and they are also incapable if we do not block the right people.

On the first full-capacity home game in two seasons...

"I think it is awesome. I think that it will play a little more into our favor, because last week was much tougher due to the split environment and a tremendous atmosphere. I expect it to be the same way this week, but I think that they will have more confidence, being in a familiar place with more of our fans in there. I am hoping that it cuts down on these unknown errors that a kid does 100 times, and then he messes up in the game. In my experience, it happens. It happens to first-round picks. They just do it until they do not do it anymore."

On the little things holding back the offense...

"It frustrates me, because we did that, and we practiced that. We showed that look. How can you see yourself doing it here and then not do it here. It also excites me, because it is not a lack of ability. Some coaches have to go out, and they could not do any better than they did. That is not the case with us, because we have the ability."

On Dominick Blaylock and Kearis Jackson's injuries...

 
"I think, in those kinds of games, it is great to have guys that have played in big games. To have guys that have that kind of experience is great. Dom is really close. He is going against our defense with the scout offense. He is getting closer. It is a confidence factor for him. It is about feeling comfortable, going out there and knowing what to do, and Kearis is the same way. It is not as simple as 'We are getting him back next Wednesday.' It is a feel. With Kearis's injury, it is not a straight-line injury. It is a plant-and-cut injury. There is nowhere else, position wise, that you have to accelerate, plant and cut than defensive back and wide receiver. I want to get him back as much as anybody, but he is not yet, and we are going to be patient to make sure that they are ready to go."

On the difference between Clemson in the first and the second and third quarters…

 
"They really didn't do anything different. We always say it's about what we do, not what they do. Everybody wants to say, "Ooh they had a good second or third quarter, they must have had some new calls." No, they did the exact same defense, just changing them up and mixing it up, it's like pitching. So, if you pitch well and you change it up, you're going to strike somebody out every now and then on a pitch that you weren't expecting. They hit some good calls against things and we did things to self-inflict wounds during both of those. So, there's nothing I can say they did great. They played soft zone, they sat back and didn't give us a lot of shot opportunities and made us execute down the field, which we didn't do at a high enough level.

On the two Adonai Mitchell pass interference calls…

 
Some of that's dictated, I mean people misunderstand, some of that is dictated by a look, by favorable matchup, by RPO, so you say, well 'we got two PI's, target him more'. There were a couple targets where we didn't find the ball or we were off through it too, they were incompletions. So, there was one that was not a PI, that I know was on our sideline, that sailed over his head that we didn't find. So, we got to be sure we're targeting the right guys the right amount. I do think he's going be an explosive player, he's going to be a really good player. I compare that game to Jermaine Burton's Arkansas game, where it was his first game out there and I thought he did a good job of drawing the PI's he got, but he could a lot of other things better."

On Jake Camarda's Performance…

"He had an elite kick of 50 something yards with a five something hang time. That's something… people don't do that. 53-55 and hang time or something crazy. He had some really big punts, and the ones that got downed he actually missed his field zone on a couple of those. Arian Smith made phenomenal plays, so I want to give Arian some credit. We come in this room and sit here and say okay Camarda what is your percentage downed inside the 20 and our goal is for his to hit around 70 percent. Since he's been here in his career he's batting about 75-80 percent. He doesn't do that alone. That ball doesn't not roll in itself. He has gunners and people out there. We practice that really hard, and I think coach Hartley does a great job and we were able to down I think two or three in there.

On Kelee Ringo…

"I think Kelee is a really good player that works really hard. I'm excited to see his future. His performance could've been better.

On Ron Courson…

"Ron's doing well. He's had a tough run. He's the hardest worker I've ever met in my life. He's never not been in this building on any day. He's never not been here two days in a row, including spring break and off time. It's killing him to not be here. His health seems good. I'll be honest with you guys. I'm as concerned as I've ever been and because we have three or four guys out with covid and we have a couple staff members that have been out with covid here recently. For us, were at our highest spike. People are talking about vaccination. These are people who are vaccinated. We're talking about break throughs. So that concerns you not only for the players on your team that are unvaccinated that are playing and not playing cause we want everybody to be safe but it concerns me for the players that are vaccinated. That we could lose them. It's at the highest it's been since fall camp right now. Think there is this relief that everyone feel like everything is back to normal. Just not for us right now.

On fifth year players making a statement in the game…

"I don't know the answer to that. I mean I can't control what other people do. I'd love for y'all to promote that message and tell every young player on our team, 'look at these guys, look what they've done.' But it is a what can you do for me now society. What can you do for me right now? You guys, you want something now right? Everybody is like what can you do for me now? We are trying to sell a team sport and a team game and there is no greater example than Chris Smith running down the field with the ball and Latavious Brini right beside him. Both didn't play great, they played good, they didn't play great. But, they played like they played because they got the experience last year. You know Brini played in the Cincinnati game so he had more confidence because of it. Chris Smith played his first week out and he had more confidence because of it. They also have confidence because they each have done those things a certain number of times. To everybody's loving of rankings and loving of recruiting out there, I get it, I understand it. I love recruiting too. You can't just walk in here and be immediately perfect and do everything right, you have to gain experience. Those guys have done that and they have been behind some good football players and they did wait their turn, fight and battle. You know what they had been contributors on special teams…That really is the model to me but in the world we live in now it is, 'show me playing time or show me the door.' We try to recruit to kids that want to be at Georgia for a long time cause it gives you a chance to be successful when they are older."

Latavious Brini, Senior, Defensive Back

On the patience and reward of him, Christopher Smith, and Ameer Speed staying back an additional year to get their opportunity…

 
"I believe, when you believe in yourself and believe in all the hard work you put it, everything will come to you."

On his experiences against Missouri and Cincinnati last year preparing him for this game…

 
"Those games last year prepared me to just slow down the game and not be as nervous. The game comes slow, so just going through those games really helped me for sure."

On the transition to playing safety…

 
"The transition has actually been amazing. Just knowing and learning different positions, like Coach says, adds to your bank. It makes you more valuable, just being around the ball, just knowing more stuff."

Jake Camarda, Senior, Kicker/Punter

On the team effort and improving…

"Back to freshman year, just working hard at everything. I'd like to think that since freshman year we've gotten better. It's a lot more of a team effort than me just punting. I definitely think we've improved since freshman year."

On the key for improving…

"Just working on it in practice. Working on the side, making sure I can keep the same drop every time. Trying to have a clean hit on the ball."

On how much focus goes into a big game…

"I don't know if there's something on how to play in those moments, we have really tough practices. One of the things we try to remind ourselves of is that practice is going to be harder than the game. I think with how Coach Smart runs practices, it really prepares us for the games"

Warren Ericson, Junior, Offensive Lineman

On his start in the Clemson game…

"We have a motto, stay ready so we don't have to get ready. That was kind of what my mindset was. I knew that if any guard were to go down that I would go in. So as soon as I saw Tate Ratledge going like this (tapping the top of his head) I just had to run right back in."

On Tate Ratledge…

"It is tough, as an offensive line we pride ourselves on being a brotherhood. So it is tough to see someone go down, especially on an injury like that, just a freak accident. We are going to be there for him, no matter what he needs we will always be there for him."

On last weekend's environment…

"I mean the environment was electric. Whether you were playing or you were in the stands or whether you were watching on TV it was electric. It was just fun. It was just good to see guys who hadn't had as much playing time be able to play. It was just a good time."

Dawgs D Smothers Tigers

UGA Sports Communications

The fifth-ranked Dawgs opened their 2021 season with a 10-3 victory over the second-ranked Clemson Tigers in front of 74,187 fans at Bank of America Stadium and an ABC nationally televised audience on Saturday evening.

With the victory, Georgia improved to 98-27-3 in season openers, including 6-0 under head coach Kirby Smart. The Dawgs increased their series advantage over the Tigers to a 43-18-4 margin. The win marked the end of Clemson’s 10-game win streak against SEC opponents in the regular season dating back to 2014.

“These kids man… You have to understand, they go for so long. 20-30 hours a week grinding for this 15 minutes of joy,” said Smart. “That joy in the locker room right now is so pure. They love it and they love each other. This is a special team, and they fought their tail off.”

Redshirt junior quarterback J.T. Daniels began his second season under center for the Dawgs (1-0) with a 22-of-30 passing performance for 135 yards. As a team, the Dawgs ran for 121 yards on 31 attempts. Junior tailback Zamir White led the Dawgs with 74 yards rushing. True freshman tight end Brock Bowers led the team in receiving yards with six catches for 43 yards.

The Georgia defense proved their worth, allowing 180 total yards of Clemson offense and only four plays of over 10 yards. The Dawgs were especially impressive on third down, with the Tigers (0-1) only converting on 5-of-16 opportunities.

Junior defensive back Lewis Cine led the team with nine tackles and two pass breakups, while senior outside linebacker Adam Anderson and junior inside linebacker Nakobe Dean each tallied five tackles. Dean led the team with two sacks and two tackles for loss. Anderson, senior defensive lineman Jordan Davis, and juniors Trayvon Walker and Nolan Smith each had one sack. The seven sack performance by the Dawgs defense marked one shy of the school record for sacks in a game.

“I can’t say enough about coach Dan Lanning and his staff,” said Smart. “I have so much confidence in them. You know in the past I’ve always been so involved, jumping on the defense and he just does it right. The kids play so hard for him and they played so hard tonight. They played with energy and enthusiasm. The defense was phenomenal.”

The Dawgs opened the contest with excellent special teams play as senior punter Jake Camarda pinned the Tigers deep in their own territory twice. The Georgia defense forced Clemson to back-to-back three-and-outs to open the game in partial to sacks by Dean and Smith. The ensuing Georgia drive led to a 35-yard field goal attempt by junior placekicker Jack Podlesny. The kick missed wide left.

After holding the Tigers to another three-and-out, Will Spiers's punt deflected off of sophomore running back Kendall Milton. The Tigers recovered the ball at midfield, giving them the first turnover of the game. Five plays later Dawgs defensive back Christopher Smith broke on a slant route and took the interception 74-yards to the house, marking the game’s only touchdown. It was the first pick-six by a Dawg since Eric Stokes versus Florida last season.

Georgia held Clemson to 90 yards (1 rushing yard, 89 passing) in the first half. The shutout marked the first time in 143 games that the Tigers failed to score in the opening half.

In the Dawgs opening drive of the third quarter, Daniels was picked off by Braylon Spector at the UGA 33-yard line. This marked Clemson’s best starting field position of the game, however, back-to-back sacks on second and third down forced the Tigers out of field goal range.

The next Georgia drive was sparked by an explosive 22-yard run by Zamir White. 10-plays and 59-yards later a 22-yard chip-shot by Podlesny, gave UGA a 10-0 lead. The Tigers answered with their own 10-play 82-yard drive to get on the scoreboard, thanks to a 22-yard field goal by B.T. Potter.

After going three-and-out, Georgia’s defensive stepped up to the plate and held Clemson to fourth down and five on the UGA 45 yard line. The Dawgs sent the house and forced Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei to throw under distress. After a turnover on downs, the Georgia Offensive found its legs and ran out the last 4:49 tics on the clock behind the stable of running backs.

Post Game Notes

UGA Sports Communications

Top 10 Matchups: With the 10-3 win over No. 2 Clemson, Georgia is now 11-6 in top 10 matchups under Kirby Smart. This matches Georgia’s highest ranked win under Smart as the Dawgs defeated No. 2 Oklahoma (54-48 in 2OT) in a CFP semifinal at the 2018 Rose Bowl Game. Before tonight, Georgia’s last win over a top 10 team came to end the 2020 season when the Dawgs posted a 24- 21 win over previously undefeated No. 8 Cincinnati in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. The last time Georgia posted back-to-back wins over top 10 teams came during the 2018 season, beating No. 9 Florida 36-7 in Jacksonville and then No. 9 Kentucky 34-17 in Lexington to clinch an SEC Eastern Division title. Also of note, the Tigers had won 10 straight regular season games against SEC opponents until tonight dating back to 2014. 

Season Openers: Georgia improves to 98-27-3 in season openers including winning its last eight dating back to a 45-21 over Clemson in Athens in 2014, which marked the last time they squared off until tonight. In the Smart era, Georgia is 6-0 in season openers. 

Impressive Defensive: No. 2 Clemson finished the night with three points on 60 plays and 180 yards as the Dawgs tallied 7 sacks. The Tigers had a streak of 400 yards of total offense in their past 12 games. Georgia carried a shutout through three quarters. In the first half, Georgia held the Tigers to 90 yards (1 rushing yard, 89 passing) on 30 plays. The Tigers longest play of the night was a 44- yard completion in the fourth quarter. The Tigers scored with 9:08 left in the game on a 22-yard field goal to cut Georgia’s lead to 10-3. Georgia’s leading tackler was safeties Lewis Cine with nine and six different players registered a sack. 

7 Sacks Tonight (One Shy Of School Record): Georgia got sacks from Nolan Smith and Nakobe Dean in the first half and Dean added another in the 2nd half. Smith now has six for his career while Dean has 3.5. Sophomore Jalen Carter notched his first career sack midway through the 3rd quarter and senior Adam Anderson followed with his first and 10th for his career. Travon Walker collected his fist sack of year and now has 4.5 for his career while Jordan Davis picked up one too for six now in his career. The seven sacks were the most since a school record eight in it last game, the 2021 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl win over No. 8 Cincinnati. Georgia also had eight sacks in 2008 Sugar Bowl win over Hawaii. Georgia blanked the Tigers in the first half, and the last time Georgia did that in a game was in the 2020 Sugar Bowl against Baylor when the Dawgs led 19-0 and went on to win 26-14. Tonight, Georgia registered its 19th score on defense or special teams in the Kirby Smart era that began in 2016. It was the fifth pick-six and the longest return under Smart. There have been 16 TDs and three safeties. With a non-offensive score, Georgia is now 16-1 under Smart. 

Series History: The Clemson series dates back to 1897, and with tonight’s 10-7 victory, the Dawgs hold a 43-18-4 advantage including 7-1-1 at neutral sites. The previous neutral site games came in Augusta (Ga.) and Anderson (S.C.) back in the early 1900s. Tonight’s game was the first meeting when both teams were ranked in the top five. The previous best was in 2013 when No. 8 Clemson beat No. 5 Georgia 38-35 in Clemson. In top 25 matchups, Georgia is now 3-2 against the Tigers. 

Offensive Leaders: Georgia QB JT Daniels finished 22-for-30 for 135 yards with one INT and improved to 5-0 as the Dawg starter. The leading receiver was freshman tight end Brock Bowers (6-for-43 yards). Junior Zamir White had a 22-yard run in the 3rd quarter and finished with a team-high 74 yards on 13 attempts. 

Points Off Turnovers: Georgia got 7 points off one interception while the Tigers got no points off one Dawg interception. Although it’s not a turnover, Clemson recovered a muffed punt return at the 50-yard line with 5:32 left in the first half. It led to a pick-six by senior DB Christopher Smith, a 74-yarder and following the PAT gave Georgia a 7-0 lead with 2:58 left in the first half. It was the first pick-six by a Dawg since Eric Stokes versus Florida last year that covered 37 yards. Clemson got an INT at the Georgia 33 with 9:39 left in the 3rd quarter and failed to score as the Dawgs forced a three-and-out for minus 9 yards including a pair of sacks. 

Special Teams Summary: Senior punter Jake Camarda finished with a 43.4 average on five punts, placing four inside the 20 plus had a long of 51 yards. Also, he had two kickoffs with one touchback and one returned for 17 yards. Junior Jack Podlesny went 1-for-2 in field goals, missing a 36-yarder and making a 22-yarder to make him 14-for-18 in his career. He was 1-for-1 in PATs for a total of four points. Kenny McIntosh had one kickoff return for 25 yards. 

For Starters & Game Captains: Georgia had seven first-time starters tonight: true freshman Ladd McConkey (WR), true freshman Brock Bowers (TE), redshirt freshman Tate Ratledge (RG), redshirt freshman Sedrick Van Prann (C), junior Travon Walker (DE), senior Ameer Speed (LCB) plus his first at Georgia for senior transfer Derion Kendrick (RCB). Clemson won the toss and elected to defer the ball until the second half. Senior James Cook (RB), junior JT Daniels (QB) and junior Nakobe Dean (ILB) were the captains. 

Up Next: No. 5 Georgia (1-0) returns to action Saturday in Athens when it plays host to UAB (1-0) at 3:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Wednesday Press Conference

Coach Kirby Smart, along with two players, offered the following comments to preview Saturday’s season opener against Clemson. The Dawgs and Tigers kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET in Charlotte, N.C.

Coach Kirby Smart

Opening Statement…

“Yeah, we are excited to open up with a big-time game, a top-5 opponent, just excited to go to Charlotte. It is a great home base for our fanbase, we have a lot of Georgia alum that live in Charlotte, it is a place that we have not gotten to travel to very often. Playing Clemson is a traditional rivalry in the history of Georgia-Clemson games and I know everyone is excited about it, we certainly are. We will find out a lot about our team, we have been able to play ourselves for 20-something practices and now it is time to go play someone else and find out a lot about ourselves.”

On rotating centers impact on the quarterback…

“I don’t think it puts a big burden on the quarterback, most people’s centers make those calls and the quarterback has the ability to override or change things. Regardless of which center has been in there in fall camp that is his id, his decisions and the quarterback can override it. It would be tough if you had a completely new center or a center, or a guard that did not make those calls and you made him the center. That can be tough if he is not making the calls and all of a sudden he has to go make them. We have two guys and that is what they have done for an entire year. They both worked a lot at center last year so they have done it for a quality amount of time. There is no greater pressure on JT Daniels regardless of which center is in there because he trusts both of those guys.”

On the difficulties of judging your tackling progress…

“It is impossible. You tackle live and everybody does it differently and in different amounts. You are only allowed to do it a certain amount per the NCAA but some people don’t even maximize that because of the safety issues involved with it. I think pretty much everyone in the country would tackle live at a scrimmage but you’re allowed to do it in some practices as long as it is not 50 percent or greater of that practice. But you get better at tackling by tackling. We tell our guys all the time that it is harder to thud someone the proper way in practice than it is to tackle somebody. Because thud, we don’t want them grabbing jerseys and slinging guys down or doing that. We want them to step on their toes and get chest-to-chest and thud them. A quality thud is harder than a tackle to get a guy to the ground where you can grab a body part, sometimes that can make it tougher if kids do it right. Obviously, in a game, the speed of a game and the quality of athletes you are going against sometimes is better than the look squad. So it shows up a lot, it shows up a lot, it shows up a lot in space. I think it is one of the most critical parts to this game is who is going to tackle well in space and who prepared the best to tackle in preparation for the game.”

On the potential of the wide receiver position…

“Well, we are young, we have a lot of guys that are just gaining experience. Then we have some guys with experience that are bouncing back from camp time, they weren’t available or were injured. So we are kind of in a different spot in receiver, more different than we have been in the past. But I am excited to see them go play. There are a lot of young players that have played well in camp and we are excited to go see them go play.

The way Clemson plays you, they are aggressive. There will be opportunities and you have to take advantage of those opportunities. They do a great job with their pressure packages and their disguise packages of attacking your protections. So you have to do a good job at quarterback knowing when and where to take your chances and take your shots.”

On Clemson’s offensive pressure…

“I think any good offense keeps the pressure on you. We have faced a lot of good offenses in the SEC and we have faced Clemson in the past as well in my history of seeing those guys. They do a great job of number one they have great skill players and when you have good skill players the pressure is always on. I mean they have had incredible wideouts as they do this year. They’ve got elite backs that can catch the ball in the backfield. And they have really good tight ends especially this year because they have a veteran group. The pressure comes from the players, it is not just the schemes. They’re an attacking offensive group that knows how to get the ball in the perimeter in the run game. They know how to run the quarterback. They build plays so that if you are stopping one thing, they have a compliment off of that same thing. They build their play-action game each week to where their play-action game is married up with their run. So if they have a really good successful run you better believe they are getting ready to come back with a play-action to come off of it to get you to bite on it. We talk about eye control, eye violators; everyone in college football right now is attacking defenses' eyes. If you take your eyes off of the right thing for a second it can be an explosive play. So they do a good job of attacking your eyes.”

On the middle linebackers…

“Well that is a hard question to answer, it is a good group because they have some depth. We have been able to rotate some guys in through that core. I mean we have a MACK and MONEY position and a MIKE and WILL position. They all marry up. So you say ‘what's the difference?’ They are really interchangeable. We have gotten to the point in our defense where you can’t really have guys that just play one because of injury or a guy that has to go play the other one. So, the two are really interchangeable really to the point where we don't even take them and line them up anymore like we used to. We tell them ‘you’re left and right, you have to be able to play both.” So whether a team has trips to the field or two-by-two, we let our linebackers play. They have to understand the coverage multiples based on where they line up. As you’re talking specifically about those players, Nakobe Dean is an alpha guy, the leader of the group, communicator, and does a really good job. Quay Walker has come so far since getting here. I mean his development from the time he got here to now and just the way he has changed in terms of ‘man I am not playing, I am frustrated,’ to being an alpha leader. He went through some injuries in camp and missed some time but he is getting back now where he is comfortable, healthy and we have been really pleased with him. Channing Tindall is a veteran guy that has played really well for us. Channing is really fast, athletic, and can run. Those three guys kind of head up the group. Then Rian Davis, Trezmen Marshall had a good camp. Then the two young kids are going to be good players; I am excited about Jamon Dumas-Johnson and Smael Mondon. They are both going to have very big roles on special teams and have bright futures. Smael is very intelligent and has been a surprise this camp. Whether or not he gets snaps at inside backer is yet to be seen based on the other guys. But he is certainly talented enough and he is a very good special teams player.”

Jaylen Johnson, Junior, Wide Receiver

On the confidence level of the wide receivers despite injuries…

“Injuries are a part of the sport, and we know that. That’s the thing that’s so cool about this team and so good about this team, we’re so deep at the receivers position, really at all positions. It’s a next man up mentality, so when one goes down, it’s just time for the other to step up.”

On his transition from being a walk-on to a scholarship player…

“First, you can never be too satisfied. You have to come out and prove yourself every day. It kind of clicked last season. I really felt like I was confident in my ability, confident in my athletic ability, and I really felt like the game slowed down for me because I had a complete understanding of the offense and everything around me.”

On Ladd McConkey…

“Ladd McConkey is a guy who’s going to come to work every day just like the rest of the receivers. He’s a great guy off the field, and on the field, he’s a great teammate. He’s going to give it 100 percent every play and every rep. I’m just excited for him.”

Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, Sophomore, Wide Receiver

On chemistry with JT Daniels…

“Chemistry has been great. I believe we’ve really clicked on a great level. We’ve been working all off-season on our chemistry. Not only myself but other receivers, we’ve all been working together. We really feel like we have a chance to be able to perform. Go out there and do what we do and play Georgia Football.”

On his recovery and his return…

“During the time of the injury, I was told I would be out for at least four-to-six months. At the time it didn’t really hit me that it would be that long but after surgery it really hit me. The process has been long, a very tedious process, having to wake up every morning and getting treatment. Just working the little things trying to get it back right. I feel like that process really helped me get into the right state of mind to prepare myself, not only prepare myself but my teammates.”

On the mindset of the wide receiving core given the injuries….

“I don’t think we have anything to prove. We just want to go in there and do what we were training this whole offseason for – just to go out there and do our jobs. Compete at a high level, be physical out there, and the most important thing is to be together while we do it.”