Can Devonte Wyatt Step Up for Jordan Davis?

Reports have indicated that Georgia will be without defensive tackle Jordan Davis in Saturday's game against Florida. Can Devonte Wyatt adequately replace him?

It's now official. Georgia will be down two of their top defensive linemen against Florida. During last week’s injury-plagued game, the Bulldogs lost several key defensive starters. Two of the six injuries were on the defensive line. Defensive tackle Julian Rochester went down with a torn ACL and fellow defensive tackle Jordan Davis banged up his elbow. 

Davis' status for Saturday's game was questionable all week until news broke this morning that the 6-foot-6, 330-pound junior will be unavailable to play against the Gators, as first reported by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. 

The loss of Davis is a big one for the Dawgs. Davis, although numbers may not reflect his production, is one of the key components on the stout Georgia defense. Davis takes up two offensive linemen every snap he’s on the field. He creates a solid push up front, which in return helps the rest of the defense, especially with his ability to free up the great linebackers Georgia possesses. 

That begs the question: What will head coach Kirby Smart and defensive coordinator Dan Lanning do against one of the nation’s most prolific offenses? A player to keep an eye out for is defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (No. 95). The 6-foot-3, 315-pound defensive lineman is a junior-college product out of Hutchinson, Kan., but has had an immediate impact for the Bulldogs defense ever since he arrived on campus. In 2018 and 2019, he played in all but two games. Last year, Wyatt was a force to be reckoned with. He finished with 30 total stops, which was among the top for interior linemen. 

Wyatt also finished the year with 1.5 sacks and 27 quarterback pressures, good for second best on the team. That was impressive for a player who wasn’t even considered a starter until the Sugar Bowl against Baylor. This season, he has started at defensive tackle in all five games. 

Wyatt has continued the good work by racking up nine quarterback hurries and 20-plus stops. He had seven tackles in last week’s game against Kentucky when he often filled in for Davis. The numbers have already been there for Wyatt, but now he will likely get double his normal playing time with both Davis and Rochester officially out. They will be missed, but there is a distinct feeling Wyatt will a big day for the Bulldogs.