Surprise! Georgia didn't release depth chart for Oregon game. Kirby Smart's Ducks QB hunch

It’s Georgia-Oregon game week.

New Ducks coach Dan Lanning has learned from his time at Kirby Smart at Georgia.

The former Bulldogs defensive coordinator was asked by reporters as Saturday's 3:30 p.m. game drew closer about who his starting quarterback would be.

“I’m not telling you,” Lanning said. “If I felt like it was an advantage, I would tell you guys. I don’t.”

Bo Nix, the former three-year Auburn quarterback, is the presumed guy over redshirt freshman Ty Thompson for the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.

Smart on Monday said the caginess coming out of the Ducks camp wasn’t a concern.

“That doesn’t really impact anything for us,” Smart said. “I know who the quarterback’s going to be. I’m not worried about that. I’m worried a lot more about how our guys play and what our guys do and how our guys execute. You guys use that to write about and talk about. Let’s be honest, regardless of which quarterback is in there, they’re going to do what they do. …At the end of the day, they may play both of them.”

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Depth charts were released on the Monday of game week at other SEC schools including Alabama, Kentucky and Mississippi State, but not at Georgia. Florida is releasing its after a Wednesday practice, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Top 10 teams Oklahoma and Notre Dame also put out depth charts.

During the season, Georgia doesn’t put out a depth chart per se, but simply lists the starters from the previous week’s games.

The Bulldogs like to limit information they view could benefit their opponent.

Media members can’t take photos or videos at practice. Georgia provides an in-house photo site for practice images, but it hadn't been updated since Aug. 18 entering this week.

Programs like Georgia have an army of support staffers to learn as much about an opponent as possible.

“We as coaches certainly like to know about personnel, matchups, the game within the game is to try and get a good matchup somewhere out there,” Smart said. “Matchups are easier to find when you know the team inside and out like an SEC team we play every year. …It’s probably tougher in this situation, not knowing your opponent and even the tape you have on an opponent may not be exactly what they’re doing.”

Smart did provide some clarity on the handful of position battles that have gone on this preseason.

He said Aussie punter Brett Thorson “probably is the leader,” to replace Tampa Bay Buccaneers draft pick Jake Camarda. Walk-on Noah Jones also is competing.

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Right guard Tate Ratledge is “back, doing a great job,” after missing time with a tur toe injury and a season-ending foot injury last season.

Xaiver Truss, Devin Willock and Jared Wilson are also candidates to start at guard. Smart said multiple players got first-team work in the previous practices on Friday and Saturday.

“I have supreme confidence in all those guys,” starting center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger said of the guards.

The line also includes left tackle Broderick Jones and right tackle Warren McClendon but Smart said settling on the starting five is still a few days away.

“I don’t think we’ll know until this week gets up,” Smart said. “I know that’s all you want to know, who is going to start? There’s a group of guys there between Devin, Jared, Tate and Truss that all roll through there. Micah (Morris), gets reps, Dylan (Fairchild) gets reps and (former starter) Warren Ericson has repped some at guard. …Right now we haven’t made the decision on who’s going to play the first snap.”

Javon Bullard, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound sophomore from Milledgeville, could unseat William Poole as the starter at the nickel “Star” position where West Virginia transfer Tykee Smith is also working.

“Javon is one of the toughest football players I’ve ever seen in my life,” safety Christopher Smith said. “He brings it day in and day out. He’s kind of like me, a little undersized We both play bigger than our size. …I love Javon. He’s very smart. He understands the defense, well, too.”

Kamari Lassiter seems the have the inside track to start opposite Kelee Ringo at cornerback.

“I call him lockdown,” Van Pran-Granger said of Lassiter.

Sophomore Smael Mondon or redshirt sophomore Trezman Marshall could start at inside linebacker alongside Jamon Dumas-Johnson.

Smith called Mondon “very tough, very athletic, a sideline-sideline game who understands the game plan well.”

Georgia’s depth has been thinned this preseason with injuries to Arian Smith who needed ankle surgery and running back Andrew Paul who is set to undergo surgery for a torn ACL.

“There’s never enough depth,” Smart said. “I’ve been here for seven fall camps and I can’t say I’ve ever had enough.”

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Georgia football readies for Oregon and quarterback Bo Nix