Post-practice notes

First off, I know what’s out there regarding A.J. Green, and what’s being reported elsewhere. But as of (looking at watch) 9:03 p.m. eastern time, there isn’t enough for me to write anything other than he has not been cleared to play.

Georgia officials had not heard anything as of late this evening, and there was no reason to believe they would until Wednesday morning, if then.

Bulldogs receivers coach Tony Ball practically threw up his hands when the matter was raised Tuesday evening.

“We’re at the mercy,” Ball said. “We’re just continuing to work and continuing to get better. We know at some point something’s gonna happen. We’ve just gotta make sure we’re prepared. That’s all we can do.”

Georgia associate athletics director Claude Felton and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said they hadn't heard anything yet on Green.

"We're just practicing, and getting ready to play, and if he's there he's there, and if he's not he's not," Bobo said. "It's out of my control so there's nothing we can do. I wish there was, but there's not."

Dean Legge over at Dawgpost.com has posted a story saying Green will play Saturday against South Carolina. (Then again, Georgia officials probably thought that last week too. Remember Bobo casually ticking off Green's name when asked which receivers he would use?)

I’m also aware that the jersey-selling part of the story is being reported. Yes, after speaking with some people at or near Summerville, S.C., the belief is that the NCAA was looking into that. But I’ve heard wildly divergent dollar figures on that supposed jersey sale.

Hopefully, we get a resolution to this quickly.

More notes from after practice:

- Bobo wasn’t as down on the Bulldogs’ running game in Saturday’s win over Louisiana-Lafayette. He was just “disappointed” with how the backup offensive linemen blocked.

“I thought consistently, for two quarters and a half, we played well,” Bobo said.
“It wasn’t that explosive, run out of there. We had that one long (touchdown) run on third-and-one with Caleb King. But I thought we blocked well. There were a couple times we missed a couple runs and left some out there.”

- Tailback Carlton Thomas will not have his one late fumble (which wasn’t ruled one) held against him when playing time is considered.

“We’re not gonna penalize him for that right there because he’s fundamentally better in the way he’s running the football in practice and carrying in games,” Bobo said.

“He gave us a change of direction out there Saturday.”

- As for the play quarterback Aaron Murray, Bobo said he was “definitely encouraged.” You may recall that Bobo was critical of Murray after one scrimmage, because of some “bonehead” decisions. But other than a little too much scrambling – which Bobo said they knew they’d have to deal with from the freshman – Bobo was pleased.

“(Without) our top two wideouts and one of our top running backs, I was encouraged with the guys that stepped up and made plays, and I was encouraged with him making plays,” Bobo said. “His playmaking ability enabled us to move the ball and score points.”

- Grantham still wants to use linebacker Richard Samuel, who has been hurt. A redshirt has been discussed, but the Bulldogs are still a bit thin at the inside spots.

“Right now, because it’s so early, you still want him to come back and see what he can do,” Grantham said. “There’s a lot of things that could happen. He could be a role player in something, he could be on special teams. There’s a lot of factors that go into it.”

- Finally, Grantham – a Virginia Tech grad – did not see the game against Boise State on Monday night.

“I know the result. I was told – I’ve been reminded of that,” Grantham said, grinning. “And then I was told they had new uniforms too.”

Oh yeah, and how.