ATHENS — Georgia’s cornerback rotation got thinner on Saturday when Julian Humphrey went down with an injury in the first quarter.
While Humphrey didn’t start for the Bulldogs, the Missouri game showed he was primed for a big role in the closing stages of the season. He actually ended up outsnapping Daylen Everette in the win over Missouri.
“I don’t know how long it’s going to be. He’s got a dinged up injury, it’s an upper-body injury that hopefully we’re able to get him back from, but don’t know how long it’s gonna be,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said on Monday. “There’s a chance, you never know, but he’s dinged up. I’m hoping we get back soon as possible.”
With Humphrey out, a bigger spotlight will be put back on Everette. With Kamari Lassiter playing as well as he has this season, opposing teams are going to try to target Everette in coverage.
Smart still believes in what Everette can do for the Bulldogs. He’ll have to as Georgia’s cornerback room is thinner at the moment.
“Daylen is very confident. He plays against really good wideouts every day in practice,” Smart said. “He takes one-on-ones, we do reps every day. I have a lot of confidence in Daylen to make plays on the ball. And he’s made plays on the ball. He made an incredible play against Auburn. Those are plays that, sometimes you make it, sometimes you don’t. They’re 50-50 balls. We want to win more than we lose. There’s a lot that he has won and some that he’s lost.”
Everette has started every game for Georgia this season. He’s got 18 tackles and 5 pass breakups on the season. The sophomore is in his first season getting significant playing time and Smart still has a belief that Everette is getting better.
In the closing games against Tennessee and Georgia Tech, the sophomore cornerback is going to need to show that.
“I’m really proud of where Daylen is. He’s a really good tackler. He’s physical, he’s heavy-handed, he’s intelligent, he understands things,” Smart said. “He’s a guy that is going to keep getting better with playing time.”
Behind Everette, Georgia does still have some cornerback options it could turn to. There’s redshirt sophomore Nyland Green and freshman AJ Harris. There are also freshmen Chris Peal and Daniel Harris as well at the position.
Georgia has gotten strong play out of safeties Javon Bullard and Malaki Starks, with the former picking up an interception in the win over Missouri.
Tennessee’s passing offense isn’t what was a season ago and the Volunteers are battling injury at the wide receiver position. But leading receiver Squirrel White will still be out there and the unique nature of Tennessee’s offense is going to leave Georgia’s cornerbacks in one-on-one situations.
“It takes great prep for all their wide outs. The thing that makes it hard with their wide outs is their run game,” Smart said. “The run game is just incredible what they’re able to do, and off of that comes the pass game. He’s a great player. We recruited him. He’s really fast, he’s dynamic, he’s gotten better with his age. He’s played a major role for them in terms of run after catch and vertical speed.”
Everette is going to need to win those battles. He doesn’t need to be perfect for Georgia. But the Bulldogs do need him for the rest of the season.
