Kirby Smart Postgame after Georgia Tech: Talks Swift Injury and Pickens Ejection
The Georgia Bulldogs have beaten the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for the third straight season, but not without a bit of turmoil along the way.
Junior, D'Andre Swift suffered a left-shoulder injury and freshman wideout George Pickens was ejected for his role in an altercation following a Dominick Blaylock Touchdown.
Kirby Smart addressed both issues and more in his postgame press conference following the win and he didn't waste any time getting to the Pickens' saga.
"He was suspended the first half for a violation of team rules, and that's all I'm going to say about that. Unfortunately, he made an undisciplined decision and when you do that, you pay the penalty for that." -Kirby Smart
As far as Swift's injury, coach Smart feels optimistic,
"We think he's going to be fine. He's got a shoulder contusion and he should be back. - Kirby Smart
Kirby Smart felt that Jake Fromm did a good job in today's game,
"Geoff's (Collins) defense has always done a good job of disguising what they are doing and there were a couple of times where it was like 'Oh, they got us'. Jake made some good decisions, he threw the ball away a couple of times which was a good decision. Jake gets us out of bad situations, and look he will be the first to tell you he can play better, but I felt he played well." - Kirby Smart
On having Georgia Graduate and Governor Brian Kemp in the locker room following the win
"Yea, having the Governor in your locker room only means one thing and we were fired up about that, but this was just the next step. We expected to win this game, we expected to dominate and it's on to the next one." - Kirby Smart
On the message at halftime
"There was no big message from us, it was players challenging players. And that's what it's about. When you have leaders on your football team and they don't think that you're playing to your capabilities we've got leaders willing to challenge guys." - Kirby Smart
On Lawrence Cager's ankle injury
"He's got an ankle injury and he had successful surgery on it yesterday and he should make a full recovery." - Kirby Smart
He was asked later if he felt Cager would make a return in during a bowl game and Smart said it's unlikely.
On the SEC Championship Game
"The SEC Championship Game is the greatest environment maybe in all of football. You can say the Super Bowl, but when it comes to passion there's nothing like it. It's the greatest atmosphere, and that's what you come to Georgia to play in." - Kirby Smart
