ATHENS — Georgia has been searching for answers at the cornerback position opposite Daylen Everette.

Daniel Harris started the first two games of the season. He has not logged a defensive snap in the last two games.

Ellis Robinson has started the last three games for the Bulldogs. He was pulled during the Tennessee game and had a pretty rough showing against Alabama.

Those struggles have opened the door for sophomore Demello Jones, who appears ready to walk right through.

“Just seeing the way he’s been practicing the past couple of weeks,” Everette said of Jones. “He’s been working his butt off, and he got the opportunity to get on the field. He handled it pretty well.”

Georgia coach Kirby Smart has indicated practice influences the rotation he plays at cornerback. While Harris has been dealing with groin and hamstring injuries, he’s still participating on special teams for the Bulldogs.

It’s one thing for Jones to practice well. Given Robinson has continued to start, it’s fair to say he’s doing the same.

Which makes how Robinson and Jones perform in games all the more important to watch.

“I think both those kids are growing up,” Smart said of Robinson and Jones. “They’re getting more reps. They’re getting confidence while they’re on the field. The understanding of the defense, the leverages, the looks, playing snaps. You get that through practices, but you get that through the confidence in the games.”

Robinson had a nice response in the win over Kentucky, as he grabbed his second interception of the season. While the Wildcats don’t have the vaunted passing attack of Alabama or Tennessee, it is still a step in the right direction for the highly touted cornerback.

Robinson was the No. 1-ranked defensive player in his recruiting class. That ranking carries with it great hope and expectations.

“Really just telling him to stay locked in, don’t really let one play affect the other,” Everette said of Robinson. “He had a little adversity when we played Tennessee, and that’s kind of the first thing I told him. I was like, look, stuff like that’s going to happen. You just can’t let it drag the whole game.”

Jones was a highly-touted recruit in his own right, as he was the No. 50 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class.

While some thought he might be a safety at the collegiate level, Georgia viewed him as a cornerback.

It may have taken him a little longer to see the field but Jones has shown he’s more than capable of playing at a high level.

“I’m just proud of how he handled all that stuff,” Everette said of Jones. “He was a little stressed, he wasn’t really playing or whatever, but we kind of talked about it. Just like you’ve got stay locked in bro, just keep working. Like you’re time will come and it came, and he took advantage of it.”

Jones and Robinson will have their hands full this weekend against Auburn’s wide receivers. Cam Coleman is one of the best receivers in the country and Eric Singleton Jr. is a problem Georgia knows all about.

Georgia is going to need both of them to play well, along with Everette, if the Bulldogs are to come out of Auburn with a victory and continued confidence in their young defensive backs.

“If you wanna cover somebody, you’ve gotta put your hands on them,” Smart said. “You’ve gotta affect the timing of a route. If you’re going to be up on somebody, there’s not a lot of purpose of being there if you aren’t using your hands.”