Kirby Smart addresses Brock Bowers not playing against Georgia Tech
Brock Bowers never wants to miss a game. On Saturday, he didn’t have a choice. After Georgia’s 31-23 win over Georgia Tech, UGA head coach Kirby Smart revealed why the standout tight end was unavailable.
“He was more sore this week than he’s been,” Smart said. “He was not able to do much during the week. He tried to go, he wanted to go, but it just, I mean, he’s sore. He’s got to be honest with us and tell us.”
Fans can’t fault Bowers. Just 26 days after undergoing tight rope surgery on his left ankle, Bowers returned in the team’s statement 52-17 win over Ole Miss. He did more than play, he contributed. In the win, the 6-foot-4 tight end tallied three receptions for 34 yards and a touchdown.
Bowers followed up the comeback performance with seven receptions for 60 yards and a touchdown in Georgia’s Week 12 win over Tennessee. Bowers wasn’t the only Bulldog unavailable on Saturday.
Wideouts Ladd McConkey and Rara Thomas did not dress the game. Starting right guard Tate Ratledge was also out. After the win, Smart reaffirmed his players’ desire to be on the field.
“If they could have played, they would have played,” Smart said. “They wanted to play, all of them wanted to play. But guys, we’re beat up. We’ve got two freshman linebackers out there playing, I don’t know, 50% of the snaps.
“Smael’s out there fighting his tail off, he’s hurt and beat up. Everybody does, we’re not going to whine and cry about it. We’ve just got to get the next man up and got to continue to make plays with the other guys.”
Kendall Milton takes over with Brock Bowers out
On Saturday, running back Kendall Milton was Georgia’s next man. The 6-foot-1 senior exploded for a career-high 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Following the win, Smart sounded like a proud father, boasting his team’s resiliency.
“[Milton] is getting his pads down, running through contact,” Smart said. “He breaks a lot of arm tackles. I saw two or three of their guys have to go out from having to tackle him ’cause he’s really physical and downhill. But make no mistake about it: it’s not just him.
“It’s a lot of them dudes up there in front of him. It’s quarterback run-checking, front o-line moving people, tight ends and receivers blocking downfield. It’s a team effort, and he was a big, big part of that tonight.”
Georgia will need a full roster next weekend. On Saturday, the Bulldogs will square off against Alabama in the SEC Championship at 4 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on CBS.