Smart Believes He's Filled Holes at Wide Receiver Position
Georgia football head coach, Kirby Smart, held a press conference Monday prior to the season opener against Arkansas, and the head ball coach had a lot to say. Coach Smart covered topics anywhere from crowd noise to the ongoing quarterback battle. Another topic Coach Smart discussed was the impact the preseason has had on the wide receivers.
Coach Smart started off by saying, "Any time you lose the juniors out early that we lost the previous year with Riley [Ridley] and Mecole [Hardman], you end up with a little bit of a hole. We have tried to fill that with recruiting." In their most recent recruiting class, Georgia brought in Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, Arian Smith, Jermaine Burton, Justin Robinson, and Ladd McConkey. And with Burton and Rosemy-Jacksaint expected to play a major role as freshman, it's safe to say that Smart has filled those holes.
Kirby also mentioned he has felt that players who were still in the developing stage prior to this season have developed and gotten better. More specifically he noted that Kearis Jackson and Matt Landers have really improved during the preseason.
Another player that has developed his game quite a bit during the offseason is George Pickens. Kirby mentioned in his press conference that he thought Pickens had a great freshman season, and Pickens is looking to build off of that. In an interview a couple of days ago, Pickens talked about how he has a better understanding of the game now and how offensive coordinator, Todd Monken, has helped him do that.
"Last year I just ran the routes they told me to, to the best of my ability. Now I know little things from [Monken] that he's seen from the teams he's been with like the Browns with Odell and Landry. Tools he took from those guys and he's showing me to help me be better every day"
Pickens stepped up big for the Georgia offense last year, as he led the team in receiving yards and touchdown receptions. Now with a year under his belt and a better understanding of the game, Pickens could be set for a huge 2020 season and become even more impactful than he was a year ago for Georgia. As a freshman, all he had to worry about was running the right routes and catching the ball. Now as a sophomore, Pickens is expected to be a leader and do a lot more than just show out on the field. By the looks of it, it seems Pickens is really starting to figure things out in his second year with the team.
Kirby closed his statements about the wide receivers by saying "We are getting better at the position and we continue to get better at each and every position. That’s one that we need to grow at and prepare for.” As mentioned before, Georgia helped fill the hole at wide receiver with last year's recruiting class, and now with preseason football nearly over they are prepared to help fill the gap on gameday. It may still be the George Pickens show this season but don't be surprised to see some of these freshmen really open some eyes throughout this season.
The rest of Coach Smart's press conference topics can be viewed over here on Dawgs Daily at the following link. "Everything Kirby Smart Sain in Press Conference Before Arkansas"
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