Ready for Battle

When he was on the field last year, Rod Battle usually made an impact. The problem was, he couldn't stay on the field.

A neck injury sidelined him for three games and then lingered even after he returned to action. That was followed by a shoulder injury that required surgery in January. He missed all of spring practice. To call last season frustrating for Battle would be an understatement.

"That was the first time I had really gone through something like that," Battle said. "But you live and you learn that whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and you can never be too in condition and you can always work a little bit harder."

With virtually everyone on the depth chart at defensive end recovering from injury and Justin Houston suspended for the first two games of the season, the Bulldogs' desperately need Battle to stay healthy this season. So far, so good.

"I'm feeling pretty good, doing pretty much everything," Battle said.

But whether he can stay that way remains to be seen, which makes simply being on the field priority No. 1 for the senior. Beyond that, he has a few other goals, but he's keeping those to himself.

"I have some goals that are kind of personal, but there's definitely some things I want to accomplish," he said.

While he's not talking specifics, it's safe to say the goals have been set pretty high. It's Battle's last season in Athens, and he wants it to be a memorable one.

"It's my senior year, my last time around, and I want to make it special," Battle said. "When we have reunions, I want to come back around and say this team accomplished something big."

Samuel Hopes to be Bigger, Better

Caleb King is atop Georgia's depth chart at running back at the moment, head coach Mark Richt said, but Richard Samuel hasn't exactly had a fair shot to change that mix yet thanks to a wrist injury that kept him out of spring practice.

That should change by the time fall practice starts, Samuel said.

“I feel like I'm getting close," Samuel said. "I've started doing lifting and everything. The only lift I haven't done is power clean, and I'm getting there."

Samuel said he lost about eight pounds following his surgery because of his reduced workout routine, but he has gained most of that back already. As important as getting physically prepared for the spring, however, Samuel said the time off gave him some time to study the fundamentals of his position.

"I feel like it cost me my strength, and I lost a little bit of strength in that time," Samuel said. "But I was able to sit down in the film room and in my room and study the playbook more."

Getting bigger isn't exactly what many fans were worried about, however. At 220 pounds -- and he said he wouldn't mind adding a few more -- Samuel has always looked more the part of a linebacker than a tailback, and throughout his freshman campaign, he seemed to play the part, too.

While Samuel said he learned a lot from his first season on the field, shying away from contact wasn't one of them. He said that's his style, and people should probably get used to it.

"I've been working on blocking a little bit better and catching the ball a little bit better," Samuel said. "Size, that doesn't matter to me. That's the style I like to play. I like playing aggressive, so taking on hits and giving hits is not a problem for me."

Samuel said he'll meet with doctors again in late July or early August before being given the final go-ahead to resume all football activities.

"I'm eager to get back into the swing of things and start playing again, to show what I can do."