To say that Georgia will be at less than 100 percent for the Sugar Bowl would be a significant understatement.
Monday, it was confirmed that offensive lineman D’Marcus Hayes and linebacker Quay Walker will not play Wednesday against Baylor. The reason for the players’ unavailability is unknown.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, there are now a baker’s dozen UGA players who have been confirmed will be sidelined for the postseason game. Of those 13, a dozen are on the two-deep depth chart. Six of them, three on each side of the ball, are starters.
The list from the Journal-Constitution, which noted that those 13 players have appeared in a total of 149 games this season, appears below, including the number of appearances this season:
- OL Ben Cleveland (academics), 13 games
- OL Andrew Thomas (NFL training), 13
- OL Isaiah Wilson (NFL training), 11
- OL D’Marcus Hayes (undisclosed), 6
- RB Brian Herrien (undisclosed), 12
- WR Lawrence Cager (ankle injury), 9
- WR Dominick Blaylock (knee injury), 12
- DB J.R. Reed (foot injury), 13
- DB Divaad Wilson (undisclosed), 13
- DL Tyler Clark (undisclosed), 13
- OLB Walter Grant (concussion), 12
- ILB Quay Walker (undisclosed), 13
- DB Tyrique McGhee (undisclosed), 9
That list could actually grow by one before kickoff. D’Andre Swift, who suffered a shoulder injury late in the regular season that helped severely limit him in the SEC championship game earlier this month, is still uncertain as to his availability.
The Bulldogs’ leading rusher, Swift has put up back-to-back 1,000-yard season in 2018 and 2019 after totaling 618 yards as a true freshman in 2017, and is averaging 6.6 yards per carry for his career thus far. He’s also a threat out of the backfield, totaling 666 yards and five touchdowns on 73 receptions.
It’s widely expected that Swift will leave UGA early shortly after the Sugar Bowl.