D’Andre Swift doesn’t know if he’s going to play Wednesday against Baylor in the Sugar Bowl, so there’s no way anybody else could know whether he is or not.
That was the word from Georgia’s star running back Sunday, as he accompanied four offensive teammates and coordinator James Coley to the Marriott Convention Center for a news conference.
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Swift, a junior from Philadelphia, said he’s still dealing with a shoulder injury that limited him to only five touches in the SEC Championship game against No. 1 LSU 22 days ago. He has been practicing with the Bulldogs every day in preparation for the matchup against No. 7 Bears.
But Swift also is having to factor his pro prospects into his injury situation, and that’s where his decision becomes murky. And, to be clear, it his decision.
“I’m trying to do everything I can to play in the game this week, so I can’t really say what the odds are,” Swift said. “I’m taking it day-to-day, getting treatment every day. Can’t call it right now.”
Meanwhile, Swift said he hasn’t made a decision about whether he’ll turn pro after Georgia’s bowl game. Several Bulldogs who are considered early-round NFL draft prospects have already made the decision to skip the bowl to prepare for the draft.
Swift insists he’s “still evaluating” his NFL future, as well as his overall healthiness for this game.
“If I could be out there I would,” Swift said. “I’m not the type of person that’s going to sit out for anything. But if it’s my decision and it’s going to hurt me more if I’m out there, I think it’s best for me to sit. I’m trying to do my best to be out there, but there’s a couple of things wrong with my shoulder.”
Swift apparently injured his left shoulder sometime before the regular-season finale against Georgia Tech. Swift aggravated the injury in the third quarter of that game on a play in which he fumbled for a second time. He sat out the rest of the game and finished with 73 yards on 10 carries.
Swift had two rushes and three pass receptions — all outside the tackles — in the loss to LSU in the SEC Championship. He has been practicing in the weeks since but without contact.
“It’s real frustrating. I love the game of football, I love being around my brothers, around the team,” Swift said. “Just not being able to put my best foot forward is definitely frustrating. But I’m doing everything I can to do that. So, I’m definitely trying to play in this game.”
In the meantime, the No. 5-ranked Bulldogs have to move on to get ready to play a Baylor team that led the Big 12 in total defense. Offensive coordinator James Coley is having to prepare for the possibility he'll be without his best back. The Bulldogs already are down two of their top three receivers.
“He’s working really hard to get healthy,” Coley said. “… If he is unable to go, we've got a good stable running backs there. James Cook and Zamir White and Kenny McIntosh have all practiced really hard and embraced the role of ‘next guy in.’ Those guys are embracing bigger roles.”
No matter who's in the game, there's going to be some dropoff from Swift. The junior is only the fifth back in UGA history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons, with 1,216 yards and 7 touchdowns this year. His career yards-per-carry average of 6.6 is better than Herschel Walker (5.29), Todd Gurley(6.44), Nick Chubb (6.29) and Sony Michel (6.16), though with considerably fewer carries (439).
Will Swift get a few more at the Superdome this week? Swift claims he’s not even sure with three days to go.
“I’m practicing, doing everything they ask me to, getting treatment, going to play it by ear the next couple of days,” he said. “It’s a day-by-day thing.”
