Kirby Smart Praises Several UGA Football Defensive Linemen During Off Week

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ATHENS - With Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs having an off week, many Bulldog fans are hoping the defense can take strides forward before heading to Jacksonville to take on the Gators.

The Dawgs are coming of a rough game defensively where they gave up five consecutive touchdowns to the Ole Miss offense. They made three big stops at the end, but it’s clear improvements need to be made.

While many are focused on Georgia’s secondary, Kirby Smart made a point this week to highlight the play of several defensive linemen.

Joshua Horton and Xavier McCloud.

They aren’t flashy defenders, but they’re more active and have made more plays than the average fan realized. Smart said that he was “proud” of their effort during last weekend’s win over the Rebels.

“I was proud of both those guys”, Smart told reporters. “They had huge plays in the game, momentum plays where any one of those plays earlier in the game would’ve resulted in a stop. You get a third down batted ball, it's as good as a sack in terms of momentum. Both those guys have had a lot of success in our camp early batting balls, getting hands up, pushing the pocket, stopping the run. Josh gives us a little more quickness element, and he continues to grow and develop in our system. He's worked really hard to contribute, and Zay [Xzavier McLeod] the same way.”

It was Horton’s batted ball at the line of scrimmage that secured Georgia’s victory against the Rebels. He may not have got to the quarterback, but he made the big play when Georgia desperately needed a stop. They’re doing the dirty work out there and their impact has been noticed.

Another defensive lineman Smart says is coming along is freshman Elijah Griffin. A fan favorite already due to his high ranking out of high school, Griffin has game-changing potential and could be one of the league’s best sooner than later if he continues to improve. And according to Kirby Smart, the improvement is coming.

“Elijah particularly is getting better. I don’t necessarily know what PFF response you’re talking about or what grade they’re talking about. In terms of disruptive nature, he is really powerful. He is one of our strongest guys as a freshman. He is really quick. He can be disruptive. We’re trying to utilize his skillset. He’s playing more and more snaps. He is probably our second or third leading snap-getter in the front as a freshman. I don’t know that that’s ever happened. He’s getting snaps, and he’s getting better each and every week. I love the kid’s work ethic. He still has some plays that he may not execute the right way, but I love the way he plays. I love the kind of energy he brings to that group, and he’s so humble. I expect him to have a big back half of the season. A lot of those freshmen are coming along. I don’t know who in particular you are talking about. All those guys are getting better and that’s their job. Find a way to put themselves into a position to help this team, and we don’t know which guy is up next.”