Georgia Bulldogs begin preseason camp with eyes on growth amid high expectations

ATHENS — The Georgia Bulldogs football team opened preseason training camp Thursday, with Head Coach Kirby Smart emphasizing the team’s focus on development rather than preseason expectations.

“I don’t feel like we’re familiar with it because we just don’t pay attention to it,” said Smart. “You guys (media reporters) are probably more familiar with it than we are in terms of, well, that’s the expectation. They’re going to start the season top five, or they’re going to be predicted to win the East or West when it was there, or they’re going to be predicted to win the SEC. I’ve never honestly paid any attention to it, and we don’t talk about it as a team. The expectation is we’re going to develop and worry about today’s day, and we don’t think about that,” the coach added.

Georgia will be missing wide receiver Rara Thomas, who was dismissed from the team Wednesday after being arrested on felony charges of cruelty to children.

“I had a chance to sit down and meet with him face-to-face Tuesday, which I think was really important, and let him know that he can no longer be a part of the football team,” Smart said. “He understands that, and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward.”

Despite Thomas’s absence, Smart believes the team is well-prepared at the wide receiver position.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that are pass catchers back. We’ve got a lot of guys who have played — Dillon Bell, Arian [Smith], and Colbie [Young] for another team. Dom [Lovett] has been very successful and got a lot of catches. We have depth at the top,” Smart continued. “I think we’ve got to find more guys that can contribute in that room. Maybe they haven’t had their opportunity. Maybe they’re talented and pick things up quickly. We have several guys that came in from the portal with Mike Jackson and London [Humphreys], so I’m looking forward to see the opportunity that each one gets to grow and get better, and it really starts today. I’m fired up about that group because we got a good group of protectors around them, a good quarterback to get them the ball, and a good group of tight ends,” Smart said.

The tight end position might be a question mark since Brock Bowers was drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. Smart is counting on Oscar Delp to help fill that role.

“He’s (Delp) a leader by action. He’s a kid who’s taken a lot of reps here, so everybody will want to compare him and say he’s filling Brock Bowers’ shoes,” Smart said. “That’s not happening. We’re not asking anybody to fill Brock Bowers’ shoes. We’re asking Oscar to be Oscar, which is extremely physical, extremely tough, extremely dependable. You talk about a guy that — I don’t know that he’s missed a practice since being here. And there’s a lot of times that Darnell (Washington) was out, or Brock was out that Oscar took double the load, so his durability has been incredible. He doesn’t necessarily have to lead by what he says, although he does speak up. He leads by his actions, and I appreciate his work ethic.”

The Bulldogs are working toward the season opener on August 31 against the Clemson Tigers in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The game will be broadcast at noon on ABC.