Demello Jones injury update: Wednesday availability report reveals latest on UGA defender vs. Mississippi State

The SEC’s battle of the Bulldogs returns Saturday in Starkville as No. 5 Georgia hits the road in Week 11 to take on Mississippi State at 12 noon ET inside the always-raucous Davis Wade Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN.

No. 5 Georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC) enters Saturday’s game as an 8.5-point road favorite, up a point from its opening -7.5 figure earlier this week, with an over-under score total of 57.5 points, according to BetMGM.

The longtime SEC foes have played each other just 27 times since 1914, though the SEC’s Battle of the Bulldogs can hardly be considered much of a rivalry, with Georgia holding a 21-6 all-time advantage, including winning the last five straight and 14 of the last 15 in the series dating back to 1975.

Georgia Bulldogs

• DL Jordan Hall – OUT
• CB Demello Jones – QUESTIONABLE
• WR Colbie Young – OUT
• TE Ethan Barbour – OUT
• WR Talyn Taylor – OUT
• DB Kyron Jones – OUT

Mississippi State Bulldogs

• CB Jett Jefferson – OUT
• OL Albert Reese IV – DOUBTFUL
• OL Brennan Smith – OUT
• OL Blake Steen – OUT
• DL Will Whitson – OUT
• S Jahron Manning – PROBABLE

Georgia is expected to be without junior defensive tackle Jordan Hall, a former five-star recruit out of Jacksonville who suffered a devastating knee injury in last weekend’s 24-20 win over rival Florida.

“Jordan will be out for some time,” Smart said Monday. “Not sure how long, but he’ll be out for some time. … Jordan is a tough one because that kid’s been through a lot injury-wise. He fought to get back last year by the end of the year and he wasn’t even 100% healthy then. Then he had a good offseason and was really leading and competing and playing well for us. Just a tough injury for him to sustain and we’ll see what the timeline is once we know more later today and tomorrow.”

Smart was a lot more hopeful about two other Georgia defenders — linebacker Chris Cole and cornerback Demello Jones — though seemed moreso about one than the other.

“Chris Cole we have a chance to get back this week,” Smart added Monday. “We think he’s gonna be able to play and be able to go. He might be a little limited today but he’ll be able to practice tomorrow. Demello surprisingly is better than we originally thought. He’s got some soreness in the elbow, but he may be able to play. So we’re excited that wasn’t as significant as we thought.”

Meanwhile, Mississippi State is expected to once again be thin in the trenches with a trio of offensive linemen — Albert Reese IV, Brennan Smith and Blake Steen — expected to miss another week along with defensive lineman Will Whitson, who was ruled out for the season in early September.