ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart didn’t waste any time amping up the competition on Tuesday with the No. 3-ranked Bulldogs returning to the practice field.
It was “good on good” very early on in drill work, with starting tight ends facing off with starting linebackers in open field blocking/shedding competition.
Georgia kept its perfect record intact on Saturday with a hard-fought 23-17 win over Notre Dame in a contest that left a handful of Bulldogs sidelined.
RELATED: Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly outlines physicality
“You could hear it out there, the physicality was real,” Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said Saturday night. “It was probably one of the most physical games that I have coached, against any team that I have competed against, and that’s a lot of games that I’ve coached.”
Left guard Solomon Kindley (ankle) was not back at practice after getting knocked out of last Saturday’s game in the second quarter, nor was defensive end David Marshall (lower leg/ankle).
Starting cornerbacks Eric Stokes (knee) and Tyson Campbell were also missing from the media viewing portion of the Tuesday practice.
Senior Tyrique McGhee, who came in when Stokes went out on the Irish’s second play of the game, continued to work with the cornerbacks, as did Divaad Wilson.
Freshman cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who received a great deal of praise in spring drills, appeared to be healthy in practice even though he saw very little action in the game.
Receiver Kearis Jackson, who suffered a broken hand in the Aug. 31 opener at Vanderbilt, continues to work with his hand wrapped in a small club.
The defensive line was pushing through drills with Julian Rochester (knee) running with the second group. Rochester has yet to play this season after undergoing knee surgery last January, but he could be back for the Oct. 5 game at Tennessee.
Smart said two weeks ago that Rochester was medically cleared, and it’s just a matter of him playing his way back in the rotation.
That could happen sooner than later depending on the severity of Marshall’s injury.
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