Kirby Smart updates injury situation on Drew Bobo, Chauncey Bowens
ATLANTA — Georgia center Drew Bobo missed the Charlotte game because of a hand injury, but in the second half of the Bulldogs’ 16-9 win over Georgia Tech, he was on the sidelines in street clothes with a boot on his left leg.
After the game, Kirby Smart provided an update on the starting center.
“Not sure. He’s got an ankle, foot. Not sure,” Smart said.
Smart elected to reserve judgment on how the offense played without Bobo until he reviewed the tape. Bobo started the first 10 games of the season and did so again on Friday.
Malachi Tolliver, who started against Charlotte, replaced Bobo at center.
The Bulldogs saw linebacker CJ Allen return to the field after missing last week. ESPN’s Katie George reported before the game that Allen had a procedure to repair his meniscus after the Texas game.
Allen recorded two tackles, while limiting the Yellow Jackets to just rushing 69 yards on the afternoon. Georgia Tech had 260 rushing yards last season.
“Pretty amazing. I mean, the sacrifice he made,” Smart said. “First of all, he chose to get the surgery done immediately, as fast as possible. He knew that would give him a chance at coming back for this game. He really wanted this game, a kid from just south of Atlanta. I didn’t think he would be able to, but he’s wired different.”
Georgia did not play Chauncey Bowens at running back, who missed his second straight game. Nate Frazier led the Georgia rushing attack with 108 yards, while Josh McCray got the second-string running back duties. McCray added 43 rushing yards on 13 carries.
Smart said Bowens could have played.
“He was banged up and was limited during the week,” Smart said. “It was one of those deals that he didn’t get a lot of reps during the week. We felt like the other guys had more reps. Josh had a really good week and those are the guys we went with. But he was hobbled some during the week.”
Defensive back Kyron Jones and wide receiver Talyn Taylor once again did not play. Jones has been dealing with a foot injury, while Taylor is recovering from a collarbone injury.
Georgia could have some time to heal from its injuries, as this was the final game of the regular season. It could also have to return to the field next week if either Texas A&M or Alabama were to lose this week.
For Georgia to make the SEC championship, either Texas must beat Texas A&M or Auburn must knock off Alabama.
Smart made it very clear how he feels on possibly playing in the SEC championship game.
“If you worry about injury risk, we won’t practice next week,” Smart said. “So you live your life scared of injuries, you know what you get? A very scared team.”
Georgia football injury report
- Drew Bobo — left ankle — left the game
- DB Kyron Jones — foot — did not play
- Chauncey Bowens — leg — did not play
- WR Talyn Taylor — collarbone — did not play
- DL Jordan Hall — leg — out
- WR Colbie Young — leg — out
- TE Ethan Barbour — ankle — out
- DB Ondre Evans — knee — out
About the Author
Connor Riley has been covering the University of Georgia since 2014 before moving to DawgNation full-time before the 2018 season. He helps in all areas of the site such as team coverage, recruiting, video production, social media and podcasting. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 2016.
