At Friday’s practice, there were a lot of good plays made from what I saw during the media viewing period. Jake Fromm (11) was very accurate, and backup freshman D’Wan Mathis (2) continues to impress his teammates and coaches. The team now appears to have fully switched from fall camp mode into preparing for Vanderbilt. They were practicing in shoulder pads, helmets, and shorts. The media was only allowed about 7 minutes to view practice, but here the notes and observations…

DEFENSE

The cornerbacks and safeties were on the opposite side of the field. Coach Charlton Warren looked to be working with the safeties and head coach Kirby Smart with the rest of the defensive backs. From what I saw, Tyrique McGhee (26) broke up a pass, and senior safety J.R. Reed (20) had several good reps but was told he needed to stay low during the drill.

The linebackers were working with coach Dan Lanning on hitting the sleds. Outside linebackers Azeez Olujari (13) and Jermaine Johnson (11) were praised by Coach Warren on their explosiveness off the ball. Johnson seems to have had a good past couple of days because he was rotating with the ones today. Coach Lanning told freshman Nolan Smith (4) that he needed more “pop” when he was hitting the dummy.

Of note, we saw freshman Nakobe Dean (17) at practice again today. He was back at practice on Thursday with a trainer, but today he was going through all the drills with the team with no apparent limitation.

OFFENSE

On the offensive line, Cade Mays (77) was seen at first-string right guard, and Ben Cleveland (74) was right behind him in the drill. Sophomore Jamaree Salyer (69) was absent again at practice today, but he is expected to return soon.

Watching the quarterbacks today, I noticed that Jake Fromm (11) was on the money with his throws. He hit Tyler Simmons (87), Demetris Robertson (16), and Lawrence Cager (15) on some really nicely thrown balls. On the other hand, Stetson Bennett (13) really seemed to be struggling today. He overthrew several receivers. Meanwhile, freshman D’Wan Mathis (2) continues to improve. Mathis delivers a nicely thrown ball that is very catchable.

For the wide receivers, junior Demetris Robertson (16) was first in the slot followed by Kearis Jackson (10) and then the freshman Dominick Blaylock (8). At the outside receiver, it was Tyler Simmons (87) and Matt Landers (5)were up first followed by Lawrence Cager (15) and the freshman George Pickens (1)

The tight ends were participating in the drill as well. John Fitzpatrick (86) and Eli Wolf (17) caught balls from Fromm and Mathis. Coach Hartley gave Wolf a loud shoutout when he caught the pass from Mathis. Wolf seems to be developing into a player that you might see get a lot of snaps. Charlie Woerner (89) dropped one pass and caught another. Hartley commented on his route running, saying he needed to make quicker cuts.

Running back Kenny McIntosh (6) was not seen at the media viewing period, but it’s possible we overlooked him. Some of the players are wearing different scout team numbers in preparation for Vanderbilt. Zamir White (3) and D’Andre Swift (7) were running with the first team, and Brian Herrien (35) and James Cook (4) were working with the second team interchangeably. All four running backs looked healthy today.

UP NEXT

With Georgia in full preparation mode for Vanderbilt, the team will hold another practice tomorrow (Saturday) but it will be closed to the media. The Bulldogs will take a day off on Sunday and then be back at it again on Monday after classes.