Moreno, King take part in contact drills

Athens — For the first time in weeks, tailbacks Knowshon Moreno and Caleb King on Monday were both out of the green jerseys that signify non-contact, injury status.

That was especially good for King, who had been falling behind true freshman Richard Samuel for the role of Moreno’s understudy.

“With him being out there and me not, of course I felt like I was losing ground,” King said of Samuel. “But [running backs] Coach [Tony] Ball told me not to rush back and try to play before I was ready.”

King said he believes he’s 100 percent now. He hasn’t competed in a game since midway through his senior season in high school, when he broke his leg, so he’s eager to play.

“Been a long time,” he said. “I’m ready.”

‘Practice was pretty bad’

Georgia’s Mark Richt sounded Monday like a coach who could desperately use more time.

In fact, Richt sounded fairly discouraged as the Bulldogs’ completed their 24th of 27 practices in advance of Saturday’s season opener against Georgia Southern.

“Practice was pretty bad, considering we’re five days away and it was the last day in pads,” Richt said. “We did move up practice to try to beat the weather forecast. We got out there and it rained pretty hard for 10 or 15 minutes. . … I can only hope that’s the reason they lost their edge. But they lost their edge, which is sad to say. It was not a very good day.”

Richt said it was a particularly bad outing for the offense, which was dominated by the defense in virtually every phase.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford concurred with Richt’s assessment.

“It was a bad day, but you’re going to have those sometimes,” he said. “The good thing was we got in some good work.”

But Richt indicated he was not very pleased with the overall preparations to date.

“Right now, because of the weather we’ve had and the injuries we’ve had, I can’t honestly say I feel like we’re as prepared to play Game One as we have been,” Richt said. “There have been a lot of guys that couldn’t get reps, we couldn’t get evaluations on them… . We just haven’t gotten enough reps for the guys that need them. We’re probably going to be counting on some guys that didn’t get enough work.”

Where’s the heat?

Richt said one of his main concerns has been the mild weather that August has offered. The Bulldogs have had very few practices in the 90s.

“We spend most of our practices on cool afternoons, certainly not hot,” he said. “Those things help condition a team be able to handle the heat. That concerns me if it gets really hot.

“We had a day or two of hot weather early but since then it’s been like playing under an umbrella out there. I don’t know what’s going to happen if it gets hot. I think it’s going to affect us.”

A reporter asked if that was of particular concern with games in Columbia, S.C., and Tempe, Ariz.

“I’m actually concerned about Athens, Georgia, on Saturday. If it’s 92, sunny and humid, I’m worried.”

Durham gets praise

Richt was very complimentary of junior Kris Durham, who has earned the starting nod at inside slot receiver.

“Kris has done a really good job,” he said. “Kris is one of those guys that has really matured, as a football play, as a man. He’s one of those guys you can really count on in every area of his life.

“Kenneth Harris, same way. Mohamed Massaquoi, same way. That’s what gives you confidence with our receivers. They’ve matured as players and as men. They’re just very, very dependable. If I’m looking to hire one day, I’d hire any one of those guys in a heartbeat.”

Etc. …

Richt was happy to hear about the SEC’s new multi-billion-dollar deal with ESPN that will televise every league game starting next season. “Good for the Southeastern Conference,” he said before breaking into an impromptu imitation of the ESPN jingle. “Da-na-na, da-na-na.” … Defensive end Jeremy Longo and wideout Walter Hill, each of whom has a broken hand, practiced in club casts. … Fullback Brannan Southerland (foot) dressed out in full pads but only worked out on the side of the field. … Richt said he will definitely participate in the new Thursday night bowling league he founded for UGA students and suspects several of the players will. “I think so but registration is not until Thursday,” he said.