ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart is keeping his focus on the Alabama game — not the weather — as Saturday’s showdown in Tuscaloosa approaches.

Tropical Storm Isaias is heading toward the gulf coast, and WALA-Mobile is reporting it is forecast to strengthen to a hurricane on Thursday.

The National Hurricane Center is forecasting the system to turn toward the north on Friday and has projections indicating the path of the storm might reach Tuscaloosa.

Georgia is scheduled to play at Alabama in Bryant-Denny Stadium at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.

“It’s certainly beyond my control, so we as coaches game plan for multiple situations for weather conditions when they’re there,” Smart said. “We had the same prep last week with the threat of those things, so (it) doesn’t change a lot about practice.”

Heavy rains and wind were originally forecast for Georgia’s home game with Vanderbilt last Saturday, but the storms did not come to pass.

Smart said the same staples apply to each practice week.

“You still have good on good, you’ve got to practice for the long term of the season, not just one week,” Smart said. “You can’t really practice conditions, you can’t simulate them, so you’re much better to educate (and) learn from the past of other people that have played in them and prepare your team to play and not make it about that.”

Smart said he has and will continue to get updates on the projected weather.

“I’m focused on trying to prepare our team, and game plan, and scheme, and all of those things,” Smart said. “I have an update, and they keep m updated with what’s going on (with) meetings, decisions, the way things are leaning and things like that.”

Smart said he does not have any input on any decisions that might be made about the scheduling of the game, and he is not aware of any timeline associated with possible changes.