ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart declined to say whether cornerback Julian Humphrey was still with the team on Sunday and what his status would be for the upcoming SEC Championship.
Humphrey, who didn’t play against Georgia Tech, announced that he would be entering the transfer portal with two years remaining. He is the first Georgia player to publicly announce his intent to enter the transfer portal.
The transfer portal officially opens on Dec. 9. Humphrey previously said he would enter the transfer portal after last season but ultimately elected to remain at Georgia.
“No status that I’m aware of. I saw the same thing you saw,” Smart said on a conference call with reporters. “We’re worried about the guys we’re going to go play Texas with. I’m worried about the guys that are here.”
Smart added that he had not spoken to Humphrey since he announced the news.
“I’m worried about my team,” Smart said. “I mean, I’ve learned in this thing that you worry about the players that are with you, not the ones that aren’t. And you focus on the guys that are out there on that field playing it and in trying to win games and eight overtimes and like they love the University of Georgia and want to compete and be part of it. And you don’t really try to focus on the guys that aren’t, because they’ll be looking for the next stop. We got guys all over the place that aren’t here now that wish they could come back. So it’s a decision each kid has to make.”
Humphrey started the first 10 games of the season but had seen playing time dwindle in recent games. Daniel Harris started the previous two games for Georgia, playing every snap in the win over Georgia Tech.
Humphrey played every snap in Georgia’s win over Texas, while Harris did not see the field. But after that game, Smart began to notice improved practice habits from Harris, which led to him earning more playing time.
“You know, we had a long meeting, and I don’t remember what game it was,” Smart said earlier in November. “I can’t remember the order of those games. But we had a long meeting with him and told him that we needed to see him practice better. It was the off week where he really, like, stepped up. He had really good practices. He competed. He gave great effort. He tackled better. He earned it, is what he did. So, he’s played more because of the way he’s practiced.”
Daylen Everette has started every game at cornerback for Georgia so far this season. Behind Everette and Harris are freshmen Ellis Robinson and DeMello Jones.
