Kirby Smart provides update on Bulldogs quarterback JT Daniels
A timetable for Georgia quarterback JT Daniels has still not been established. The former USC quarterback was held out the Bulldogs game Saturday against UAB after straining his oblique last week. After initially being ruled out last Thursday, Daniels made a push to start on Saturday.
Ultimately Georgia coach Kirby Smart held him out, starting redshirt senior Stetson Bennett completed 10 of his 12 passes for 288 yards and five touchdowns. He also had a 20-yard rush.
“I don’t know anymore than I knew (Saturday night),” Smart said Monday in his weekly press conference. “He’s been in treatment twice and Ron (Courson) says he’s certainly improved. He threw the ball (in pregame warmups) Saturday more than he threw the ball all last week. So, he was better then than he was the previous days.
“I’ll know a little more after practice (Monday) in terms of his ability and his ability to move around and throw the ball. I know he’s been in treatment twice and the update from Ron is he has definitely improved.”
If there’s one thing for certain, it is that Bennett will start this weekend if Daniels can’t play. The Gamecocks are in a rebuild in the first year under Shane Beamer. Even if Daniels is a no-go, there’s little doubt Bennett won’t be able to run the show.
The main focus for Smart and Georgia moving forward is not to have Daniels’ injury worsen. While missing the UAB and South Carolina game is not ideal, it is a far cry from sitting out against Florida or Kentucky.
Smart revealed Monday the strain was an injury that occurred before this last week and it was reaggravated in Georgia’s 10-3 win in Charlotte in the season opener.
“The biggest thing with that we’ve been told is you just don’t want to aggravate it (again),” Smart said. “Something happened in the Clemson game to fire it back up. We don’t know. We went back and watched the tape and he didn’t take a lot of shots. But there was one on the first play of the game that he took that may have made it worse than it was going into the game.
“For whatever reason, he woke up Sunday and that’s when he really felt it,” Smart said. “It’s a really, really painful injury that is hard to heal. It takes time. But, again, he’s improved with each and every game.”
Georgia started Bennett due to his experience at quarterback
With Georgia dealing with some injuries and an overall young offensive unit, Smart wanted to have an experienced quarterback running the offense. Bennett is in his third year at Georgia. Last season, he completed 86 of his 155 pass attempts for 1,179 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions.
Smart was happy with how Bennett performed despite the suddenness of the decision to start him.
“I’m really proud of the way Stetson’s handled himself. Nobody’s been better to the University of Georgia than Stetson Bennett in terms of his work,” Smart said. “He doesn’t get as many reps as a lot of other guys, so I was proud of him and his success today.”