Kirby Smart shares insight into live tackling, updates receiving corps ahead of Clemson
By Keith Farner
Published:
The last 2 years have been difficult on teams trying to work on tackling as practices and physical contact have been limited. Last season, it was blamed for a host of defensive deficiencies around the country.
It will come into focus this week when Georgia takes on Clemson in Charlotte.
On the SEC coaches teleconference, Georgia coach Kirby Smart discussed how to incorporate the drills into practice.
“It’s impossible,” he said. “You tackle live and everybody does different amounts. You’re only allowed to do it a certain amount due to NCAA rules, but some people don’t even maximize that … You get better at tackling by tackling. … It’s harder to thud people the proper way in practice than it is to tackle in games. … A quality thud is harder than tackling a guy to the ground. … Obviously in a game, the speed of the game and the quality of the athletes is a lot better than the ‘look’ game.”
The receiver position is one that is a bit of a concern at Georgia because of several injuries and other absences.
“We’re young,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who are just gaining experience and we’ve got guys with experience who are just bouncing back. … I’m excited to see them go play. The way Clemson plays you, they’re aggressive. There are going to be opportunities, but you’ve got to take advantage of those opportunities.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
