ATHENS — “Peaking, we’re peaking!” shouted one Georgia football assistant during an open portion of the Bulldogs’ fast-paced Monday practice.
Coach Kirby Smart can only hope that’s the case on Saturday, when his No. 7-ranked Georgia program (6-1, 4-1 SEC) takes on No. 9-ranked Florida (6-1, 4-1) in a pivotal SEC East Division game at 3:30 p.m. in Jacksonville.
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Smart said crisp workouts are key leading up to the so-called “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.”
The Bulldogs certainly need a sharper effort than their four-turnover performance in the 36-16 loss at LSU.
“It’s not waving a magic wand or some guy giving a speech in the locker room,” Smart said. “It’s really just work, and we tried to get that done last week being really physical, doing a lot of thud and a lot of tackle where our guys could get better, and that’s what we have to do.
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“We have to work on us, and we were able to work on a lot of that. Now it goes to working on Florida specifically, who has a really good football team.”
Georgia tailback D’Andre Swift looked full speed after missing most of last week’s work on account of a sprained ankle, and inside linebacker Monty Rice showed no ill-effects of the sprained knee that has slowed him since the week leading up to the Sept. 22 game at Missouri.
Sophomore nose guard Devonte Wyatt was at practice, but senior nose guard DaQuan Hawkins-Muckle was not on the field.
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