FOOTBALL
Coach Mark Richt
On using the South Carolina and Florida losses last week to motivate Georgia’s players…
The fact that South Carolina and Florida lost is definitely a motivating factor for everybody. That’s why we have the plaques on the wall. We’re shooting for the Eastern Division title. That’s our goal. It helps us and gives us a better chance of doing that if we continue to win. I haven’t talked about it a lot other than mentioning and reminding everybody what happened. They know it. As it was happening, guys are texting each other, coaches are texting each other. Everybody certainly got excited about how the standings are sitting right now compared to how it was a week ago. We all know it’s so crucial to take care of our business, because if we don’t it’s not going to be that much fun anymore. We just need to keep winning.
Tennessee in next and every SEC opponent is almost equal. Us losing head-to-head to South Carolina hurts us compared to them losing to a Western Division foe, so they are still in better shape than we are. It does go by the overall record and the tiebreakers are what can get you if you end up in a tie. Right now we still don’t control our own destiny, but we feel like if we keep playing hard there is a lot of football to be played. We’re definitely in the race.
On updating Brandon Boykin's practice status…
Boykin will not get any contact this week because of the teeth but he will play.
On a definitive decision on Cornelius Washington's suspension…
It's going to be a solid two games.
On who might replace Cornelius Washington…
It will probably be a little bit by committee to decide how we are going to handle the loss of Cornelius this week and next week. It is definitely going to provide more opportunities for Ray Drew, and there are other things we might move around to help us in that area, but we’ll know better after we practice a little bit.
On the defense being improved and not allowing a lot of big plays…
We've played very good defense and part of that is not giving up the big plays. I guess we've given up one touchdown the last three games – that's pretty impressive. I like what's going on in that regard. A lot of it has to do with maturity of our defensive backfield. A lot of it has to do with how the defensive line has been playing and not letting anybody really get anything started. Not very many runs have spit right threw the line where a guy has a chance to make a safety miss in space and make a big run. They've had to earn everything they get. Very few times has someone come through there clean, and when they have the 'DBs' have been there to corral it and get them on the ground. We've been tackling pretty well out in space.
On Georgia’s defensive line…
The D-line is doing extremely well. All defensive coaches want to stop the run. They know if you can get a team to be one-dimensional or as one-dimensional as possible it could play in your favor. We’ve done a good job of holding the point and penetrating and forcing doubles teams and allowing linebackers to get free hits. All those things have been very important, and especially when we had the injuries at linebacker. It was good for a guy like Amarlo Herrera and Michael Gilliard to have guys playing up front real stout. We’re beginning to get more pressure from our pass rush without some type of a blitz. We’re starting to get more sacks, starting to get more pressure, and getting more balls thrown where they can be intercepted. We’ve intercepted a few of them and dropped a few. There were probably two pick sixes in the last two games that really could have changed the game, but the D-line is doing great right now.
On Tennessee’s Da’Rick Rogers…
I think wherever Da’Rick decided to go play football he’d be playing, no doubt about that. By the time he did decommit we were pretty sure that he was going to do that. It didn’t come as a shock at that point. We think he’s a good player. We wanted him, we recruited him, we thought we had him for a while, then it changed. It happens in recruiting. It doesn’t happen a lot with us historically. But there were some things that made him feel like Tennessee was the best place for him, so that’s where he is and now we have to defend him.
Linebacker Mike Gillard
On Tennessee’s quarterback Tyler Bray…
Tennessee’s quarterback is a really good player. Against a guy like him, we really have to go out there and make plays. He’s a tall, rangy guy who can get the ball into really tight places. We have to be able to put some pressure on the quarterback. This game is going to be a test for us. We have to go out there and make plays on him and his wide receivers.
On the success of the defense…
It feels good, especially to hear the stats that we have put up. It’s amazing. Coach Grantham really emphasizes running to the ball and playing lights out. We made up our mind to go out there and be one of the best defenses in the country. It’s a credit to our coaches. They really work hard, day in and day out, to put the players in the best position to win the game.
On getting healthy on the defensive side…
Getting some of the guys back creates a lot of depth on the defense. To be a good defense, you need to have depth and have good players to back up the starters.
On the pass defense…
Our coaches have kept emphasizing the importance of getting sacks and putting pressure on the quarterback. I feel like the outside linebackers and defensive lineman have been going out there and have wanted to get sacks.
Defensive End Abry Jones
On the improvement of the defense the last few weeks…
I think we have realized the goals that we set out for the season. Great teams always have a great defense. I think we are recognizing the amount of talent that we have. The players all want to make our mark on Georgia history.
On getting sacks…
It brings a totally different feeling to the defense. Once you have linemen getting sacks and getting into the groove of things, they start getting more and more. It also creates competition among the linemen about who can get the most sacks.
On if the importance of this week’s game…
Every game we play is a bigger test than the last one. This is a rivalry, so we want to go out and play well. We have some momentum going into the game and no one wants to see that momentum stopped. Tennessee is going to come out, play hard and try to get a win on us.
On how the team is preparing…
Now that we have won a few games in a row, people are ready to go out there and practice and work hard. People are thinking about what they need to do after practice, during practice and what they need to do to get ready for practice.
