Georgia

Georgia News and Notes for Tuesday

Published

1 year ago

November 26, 2024

Georgia News and Notes for Tuesday

Running backs Branson and Roderick Robinson continue to make progress ahead of Friday night’s game with Georgia Tech, head coach Kirby Smart said after practice on Tuesday.

Branson Robinson (meniscus) has not played since Georgia’s win over Mississippi State, while Roderick Robinson has not played at all after undergoing preseason surgery to repair a turf toe injury.

“Rod [Robinson II] has done practice, contact. Has done taking reps. He’s looked good out there. Branson [Robinson] has too. Branson is taking some. I didn’t get to see the last part of practice to know how much Branson and Rod did early in practice,” Smart said. “They did take some reps in with the twos and rolled through there, just seeing where they are confidence level and where they are mentally, you know. They’ve been kind of out of contact for a while, but both of them did practice and did some good things.”

Meanwhile, Trevor Etienne – who has missed the past two games with a rib injury – remains unable to go, although he can get some running in.

“Trevor has been able to run. He’s running well. He hit 20-21 miles an hour yesterday, which is really good for him,” Smart said. “He looks good, but he hasn’t gotten to do anything with us.”

… Regarding defensive lineman Christen Miller (shoulder) and wide receiver Dillon Bell (ankle) Smart had this to say: “Christen Miller has not practiced much. He’s been banged up,” Smart said. “He’s recovering, running, doing some treatment stuff. Dillon Bell, he’s done a little bit. He’s done some walkthroughs with us and taking some reps. We’re just trying to get those guys healthy and ready.”

…Smart said he’s still unsure of the status of offensive lineman Earnest Greene III, who has missed the past two games. “He’s done more this week. He’s actually worked at right and left (tackle), Smart said. “I’m very pleased with the play at our left tackle. Outside of a probably two-quarter performance there at Ole Miss) where we had to throw the ball a lot. I think we played well at that position.”

Should Greene not be able to go, Monroe Freeling will start his third straight game at left tackle.

Tray Scott up for Broyles Award

Defensive line coach Tray Scott was tabbed Georgia’s nominee for the Frank Broyles Award, given annually to the nation’s top assistant coach.

“Yeah, he’s a rock. He’s a pillar at this place and he’s one of the guys that’s been here the longest, which I have a lot of respect for because we don’t do it easy around here. You know, we work a tough schedule, work a hard schedule, I’m very demanding of our coaches and I have high expectations and he meets those,” Smart said. “He is tremendous with his group. He’s tremendous with other groups. He inspires people with his story, but you know, he cares about these kids. He’s a tremendous father and husband. He’s really what college coaching is all about.”

Two more Bulldogs up for national awards

Two more Bulldogs are finalists for a pair of national awards, it was announced Tuesday.

The list includes:

…Malaki Starks: Starks is one of three finalists for the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award given to the nation’s top defensive back, according to an announcement from the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame and the Jim Thorpe Association Tuesday.

Starks, a native of Jefferson joins Texas’ Jahdae Barron and Ohio State’s Caleb Downs as the three finalists. While former Bulldog All-American Deandre Baker won the 2018 Thorpe Award, Starks was also a finalist in 2023.

He is tied for the team lead with 55 tackles, including four tackles for loss, and has an interception. Lining up at the Star position as well this season, he has started 39 consecutive games and has helped hold four opponents scoreless in the fourth quarter in 2024, including No. 1 Texas in Austin. In addition, Starks has had to fill in at punt returner and has four returns for 39 yards (9.8 avg.).

…Brett Thorson: Thorson is one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award given to the country’s best punter, according to an announcement from the Augusta Sports Council Tuesday.

A native of Melbourne, Australia, Thorson joins Florida State’s Alex Mastromanno and USC’s Eddie Czaplicki as the three finalists. Jake Camarda was the last Bulldog finalist in 2020. Former Georgia All-American Drew Butler won the 2009 honor.

He stands fifth nationally with a 46.3 average and has forced 12 fair catches and dropped 19 within the 20-yard line. Bombing 13 at least 50 yards this season, Thorson has a season-long of 58 and has helped put the Bulldogs fifth nationally in Net Punting at 43.5. Opponents have had six returns for 18 yards, which also stands fifth nationally.

…Monday, linebacker Jalon Walker was named one of five finalists for the Butkus Award, which goes annually to the nation’s top linebacker.

…Long-snapper Beau Gardner is one of three finalists for the Patrick Mannelly Award given to the top snapper in the FBS, according to a recent announcement.

Gardner, a UCLA graduate transfer from San Francisco, Calif., joins Florida’s Rocco Underwood and Michigan’s William Wagner in the final group. Gardner is now the Bulldogs’ first semifinalist and finalist for the accolade in the award’s six-year existence.

More from Kirby Smart

… With Signing Day and the new Transfer Portal window getting set to hit, roster sizes shrinking to 105, the next 30 days are going to be crazy for college football coaches. That includes Smart, who said he has no idea how everything will unfold. “I can’t answer that question. I wish I could, we haven’t been told anything on the walk-ons in terms of if you guys don’t know,” Smart said. “I ask daily, and a lot of it is conference to conference. A lot of it is the legal case in California, how it resolves itself, and the timing of that. So, I don’t really know, I mean, it’s going to be a strange 30 days.”

… Smart said wide receiver London Humphreys is capable of getting more snaps than he is now. “He’s in good shape. He plays hard. He’s smart,” Smart said. “He plays multiple positions. He does a really good job.”

… Smart thinks Friday night’s game will resemble a heavyweight fight. “We have to have a seeking contact attitude and enjoyment of a street fight. Not everybody loves that,” he said. “So, it’s one of those things that you find out a lot about yourself when you get to play a really physical football team like these guys.”

… With the game on Friday, Smart said the team will have a Thanksgiving meal together on Thursday.

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Georgia

Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?

Published

7 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?

NORCROSS, GEORGIA — Geoff Duncan, former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia, won’t stop apologizing.

He’s sorry for supporting the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which bans abortion at around six weeks, after a fetal heartbeat is detected. He’s sorry for facilitating the passage of a “constitutional carry” bill in 2022, which allows most people to carry a concealed handgun with no license or background check. He’s also sorry for opposing Medicaid expansion, arguing at the time that it was not fiscally responsible.

“I’m sorry for those positions and any harm that they may have done,” Duncan told me.

Duncan first rose to prominence as one of the Republicans who resisted President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow 2020 win in Georgia. Duncan has been speaking out against what he calls Trump’s “toxic” and “dangerous” Republican Party since leaving office in 2023, and even endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2024. After being excommunicated from the Georgia Republican Party in January 2025, Duncan switched parties in August. He is now running for governor as a Democrat in what will be one of the most closely watched races in the midterms.

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Georgia

Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup

Published

19 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup

Georgia Tech didn’t let the weekend get away.

The No. 2 Yellow Jackets were flying high with a 13-game win streak heading into the weekend showdown against No. 3 North Carolina. The Tar Heels took the first two games, but Tech salvaged the finale 5-2 on Sunday.

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Georgia

Gaudette & Patel Pitch Past No. 3 UNC, 5-2

Published

1 day ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Gaudette & Patel Pitch Past No. 3 UNC, 5-2

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 2 Georgia Tech got back to its winning ways, defeating No. 3 North Carolina (33-7-1, 15-6 ACC) by a final score of 5-2 from Boshamer Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Yellow Jackets (32-7, 16-5 ACC) held UNC in check from the third inning on, using 6.1 scoreless innings from Caden Gaudette and Mason Patel to salvage the series and collect its 10th Top 15 victory of the season for this first time this century.

After both teams traded runs in the first inning, the Jackets struck for three runs on three hits in the third. The inning started with a leadoff double from Drew Burress who was quickly brought to the plate by a single from Jarren Advincula. Vahn Lackey drew a walk off a full count before Kent Schmidt connected for an RBI double, bringing in Advincula for what would become the game-winning run. Lackey made it a three-run inning when he scored on an RBI groundout by Ryan Zuckerman. UNC would work the bases loaded and score a run in the bottom of the inning before Gaudette entered the game and induced an inning ending groundout. UNC wouldn’t get another runner into scoring position until the eight inning as Gaudette and Patel slammed the door on any potential comeback.

QUICK HITS: TEAM

The Jackets improve to 32-7, the best start to a season since 2010. Tech is 16-5 in ACC play, the best start since 2011.
Tech has won 32 of its first 39 games for only the 6th time in the program’s 131 seasons: 2010, 2003 2002, 1997, 1993 and now 2026.
James Ramsey owns the best record by any GT head coach in his first season through 39 games (32-7).
The Jackets improve to 8-1 in nationally televised games this season.
Tech has now won 10 games over Top 15 opponents for the first time this century.
Tech has scored 417 runs through their first 39 games. It’s the most runs Georgia Tech has recorded after 39 games in the program’s 131-year history and the most runs any Power 4 team has scored through 39 games in the BBCOR era (since 2011).
The Jackets scoring average now stands at 10.7 runs/game this season. The program record is 10.3, set back in 1984.
GT is outscoring its opponents 417-174, that +243 margin is the highest through 39 games in program history.
The bullpen delivered 6.1 scoreless innings, marking the 15th scoreless outing of the season and second of the weekend.

QUICK HITS: THE BATS

Junior Drew Burress produced his 17th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored.
He has scored 51 runs this season, one shy of Vahn Lackey for the most on the team. Burress has scored 201 runs over his career, tied with Danny Payne (2005-07) for the 11th most in Georgia Tech history.
He becomes the first Yellow Jacket in the BBCOR era to record 200+ runs over a career.
Junior Kent Schmidt went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead RBI double and a shift-beating bunt.
He leads the team with 26 RBI in ACC play and has delivered 35 for the season.
Schmidt has now collected extra base hits in three straight games for the first time this season and third time in his GT career.
He finishes the series with a .500 average, going 4-for-8 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI, two runs scored and three walks
Junior Jarren Advincula recorded his 24th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
He leads the ACC with 68 hits this season, averaging 1.7 hits per game and putting him on pace for 94 hits over the course of the regular season. With potential postseason games, that would put him in striking distance of being the first 100-hit player at GT since 2005 (Wes Hodges & Tyler Greene).
He drove in his 45th RBI of the season, the third most on the team behind Vahn Lackey and Ryan Zuckerman.
Junior Ryan Zuckerman became the first Jacket to reach 50 RBI when he drove in Lackey for the fourth run of the game.
Sophomore Caleb Daniel came off the bench in the 5th inning and blooped an RBI double, it was his 24th RBI of the season and his 5th as a pinch hitter.

QUICK HITS: THE ARMS

Sophomore Jackson Blakely made his sixth consecutive weekend start, pitching 2.2 innings with two earned runs allowed and three strikeouts.
He has only allowed runs in only three of his eight appearances this season (37.1 innings) this season.
His ERA stands at 2.65, the lowest among all starting pitchers on the roster.
R-junior Caden Gaudette made his team-leading 16^th appearance of the season and 2^nd of the weekend, pitching 2.1 scoreless innings.
He entered the game with a two-run lead (4-2) and the bases loaded with two outs before inducing an inning ending groundout to short.
Gaudette lowers his ERA to 2.86 in 22.0 innings of work.
The man they call “Rock” pitched a total of 3.1 innings this weekend, allowing only one hit with four strikeouts.
He has now pitched as many innings this season as he had in his previous two years combined (22.0) while allowing less than half as many earned runs (7 in 2026, 15 in 2024-25) and exactly half as many hits (12 in 2026, 24 in 2024-25).
Mason Patel got the ball to start the 6th inning, keeping the score at 5-2 for the final four frames and collecting his fourth save of the season.
Since recovering from an injury that saw him miss 20 days, Patel has made six appearances out of the bullpen, pitching 13.2 scoreless innings with a victory and four saves.
Over the last two seasons, Patel has made 29 appearances out of the bullpen, posting 12 wins and nine saves.
This was his longest relief appearance of the season (4.0 innings) after pitching at least 3.0 innings in 15 of his 23 appearances during his All-American season last year.

Up Next

Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. Tuesday at 7 pm at Truist Park. Tickets are available HERE with all proceeds benefiting the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Full Steam Ahead

Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.

For the latest information on the Georgia Tech baseball team, follow us on X (@GTBaseball), Facebook, Instagram (@gt_baseball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.

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