Kirby Smart assesses the play of Jalen Carter since returning

Georgia‘s 27-13 victory over Tennessee featured a stout performance by the Bulldog’s defense against an offense that entered the matchup as the nation’s top unit in yards and points per game in the country. One of the many bright spots of the Georgia defense Saturday was the play of defensive lineman Jalen Carter, who returned to their starting lineup coming off of an injury. Head coach Kirby Smart was asked about the play of Carter and how he made the most of his limited snaps in his return.

“I don’t know how many snaps he played, I didn’t check it. We count them, we do production, we have how many points he made, he certainly was productive in terms of tackles caused, fumbles,” Smart said.

Carter has suffered from various injuries this season that have limited his playing time and even caused him to miss two games this season for Georgia. But on Saturday he looked more than healthy recording four stops, a sack, two tackles for loss, and forcing two fumbles earning himself SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors.

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“The first time this year, I wouldn’t even say he’s at 100% health, I would say first time this year he was above 90-95, because on the very first play of the game against Oregon he took a tough ankle injury and has not really been 100% since,” Smart revealed. “And he’s committed to getting back and he’s worked really hard, so I don’t know how many snaps he played.”

If Carter’s dominant performance Saturday was not even him at full health, the remainder of Georgia’s opponents should definitely be on notice, as he continues to work himself back into game shape in game-wrecking fashion.

“He didn’t play perfect and he needs to get in better shape to be able to play more snaps, but he has taken ownership in working on that. That was the big thing coming into the season is how good of shape can you be in to play a larger volume of snaps,” Smart said.

Smart also revealed how Carter’s injuries have allowed other players to step up, meaning that they’ll be able to double down on production up front once he reaches his full form.

“Well we’ve had this great fortune of getting a lot of dudes ready around him because he hasn’t been there, so it’s like a luxury to have him back and have him playing well,” Smart said. “He still has a few things he’s got to work on in terms of playing the right way within the plan, but he played really well the other day and we need him to continue that.”

The Bulldogs already boasted the SEC’s best defense, but the addition of a healthy Carter can elevate them to even greater heights as they enter the final stretch of the season.