The Georgia Bulldogs were without star DT Trenton Thompson due to a knee injury during Saturday’s victory over Vanderbilt, and it showed.

The Bulldogs rolled to an impressive 45-14 win, but the Commodores and RB Ralph Webb did have a couple of nice runs up the middle that Thompson likely would have stopped.

Now, as the Bulldogs prepare for Mizzou this weekend, Thompson’s status is still unclear. However, on Monday, coach Kirby Smart said he wouldn’t rule Thompson out just yet:

“Trent is recovering. He will be day-to-day and week-to-week. We have not ruled him out for this game.

“We hope to be able to get him back. He is still battling back. He is moving now, running some. As far as his absence and how the guys played, they played very similar to the way they have been playing the weeks before. We probably did not strike blockers against Vanderbilt as well as we had done before. We had a couple of guys playing more snaps than they did before. We had a couple of guys playing different positions, where our zero nose is playing five technique.

“Julian (Rochester) had to go play some other positions. We had guys playing more snaps and we also did not get off the field on third down, which resulted in more snaps for the defensive line. So, the conditioning part had an effect on Saturday playing in the heat and playing guys a lot of snaps. We just did not have as many guys to play with Trenton out.”

Something for Smart to keep in mind (though he’s surely already given it much thought) is that the Bulldogs have a bye after the Mizzou game.

If Georgia’s defense can hold up against a struggling Mizzou squad without Thompson, then he could have an extra two weeks to rest up for the Florida game on Oct. 28.

At 6-0, the Bulldogs have emerged as one of the best teams in the country. If they can get Thompson back before the Florida game, they could continue to dominate all the way to an SEC East title.