Georgia practice habits catch eye of coach respected around the country
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia players consider their practices to be some of the toughest in the country – tougher many times than the games because of the situations they’re put in – and word seems to have spread. On Monday, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule told his contingent of media that NFL scouts report to him that the Cornhuskers are the “second hardest practicing team in College Football.” He felt pretty confident that it was the Bulldogs who would be No. 1 on that list.
“I knew who the first team is, and we’ll catch ’em. It’s the University of Georgia,” Rhule said. “And that doesn’t mean Alabama — that’s gonna go viral, I’m gonna have all these fan bases yelling at me. I’m just saying what another person said of the teams he’s seen. But I know how Georgia practices.”
Rhule, who took a trio of Georgia transfers in the portal over the offseason, said that it’s been nice to have the Bulldogs in Lincoln this year – his first – to set an example. Linebacker MJ Sherman in particular stood out to him.
“It’s been great to have MJ here to tell our guys, you know on Thursdays when we come out guys in baseball caps and we walk through, they’re in shoulder pads and helmets.”
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart wouldn’t say whether or not he agreed with the assessment of his program as the hardest practicing in the country but did explain that there’s a standard for how things are supposed to look. It’s different on a daily basis too. We hear about “Going to the Doctor” and “Bloody Tuesday” often, but Smart explained that there’s a certain look that’s expected no matter what day it is.
“It depends on the practice. Not all practices are the same,” he said when asked what the defining characteristic of a Georgia football practice would be. “We have a routine and a method to our madness, and there’s expectations every practice – it doesn’t matter if it’s a walk through, helmets, shorts, pads, there’s an expectation and a standard, and the players have to uphold that standard. It would probably depend on which kind of practice you’re talking about in terms of how it would look.”
Ask one of Smart’s players, and they’ll have an answer for you though. To offensive lineman Tate Ratledge who has been in the program for four years now, it’s the physicality that sets Georgia apart.
“It’s going out there every day knowing that if you don’t have the right mindset you’re going to get embarrassed,” Ratledge said. “That’s against scouts, good on good, it doesn’t matter. Everybody out here knows what it takes and knows the standard around here, and that’s a really physical practice Monday through Thursday.”
This week’s practice efforts have been focused on arch rival Florida. The Bulldogs hit the road to Jacksonville for the annual neutral site showdown against the Gators this Saturday. Kickoff time from EverBank Stadium along the St. Johns River is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
