Georgia Bulldogs' Davin Bellamy eager to shed awkward club cast

Georgia senior outside linebacker Davin Bellamy has been playing with a club cast on his left hand since breaking a bone early in the game at Tennessee on Sept. 30. (Photo courtesy of Radi Nabulsi/UGAsports.com)
Georgia senior outside linebacker Davin Bellamy has been playing with a club cast on his left hand since breaking a bone early in the game at Tennessee on Sept. 30. (Photo courtesy of Radi Nabulsi/UGAsports.com)

It's not his look of choice, but it beats standing on the sideline.

Georgia outside linebacker Davin Bellamy broke a bone in his left hand during the first half of the Sept. 30 contest at Tennessee. He was fitted at halftime with a bulky "club" cast that he wore for the rest of the 41-0 victory over the Volunteers as well as last week's 45-14 win at Vanderbilt.

This week, Bellamy told reporters the club weighs two or three pounds, adding, "It's like I've got a dumbbell on my arm the whole time."

The 6-foot-5, 240-pound senior from the Atlanta suburb of Chamblee had three tackles in last week's defeat of the Commodores, combining on a tackle for loss with junior inside linebacker Roquan Smith. It was by no means Bellamy's best game, but, again, it beats sitting out.

photo Georgia's Jonathan Ledbetter (13) and Davin Bellamy (17) celebrate a sack during the University of Tennessee vs. University of Georgia football game at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017.

"I think it frustrates him at times," second-year Georgia coach Kirby Smart said in a news conference after Tuesday's practice. "He can't rip off and tear off like he wants to. I think he's gotten better with it this week. It was more frustrating for him last week, and I think it's something you've got to get used to.

"He's shown a lot of toughness to go out there and play with it and not really concern himself with how he looks. He's trying to help the team."

Bellamy practices with the club and is expected to have it again Saturday night when the No. 4 Bulldogs (6-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) host Missouri (1-4, 0-3) in an SEC East matchup. Georgia has an open date next week, so the hope around Athens is for him to be club-free by the Oct. 28 showdown against Florida in Jacksonville.

With each passing day, Bellamy does get slightly better at dealing with the awkwardness of the contraption that protects his hand, which has to be balled up in a fist.

"When you think about it, it's very uncomfortable," he said, "but when you're practicing or in the game and you're doing stuff and your mind is off of it, you don't even think about it. As soon as you start thinking about it, you're like, 'I can't move my fingers.'

"I'm a hand combat person when it comes to shedding blocks and pass rushing, and with an added two or three pounds, it kind of slows your hands down. I've just got to be more physical."

Bellamy, who this season has 17 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and the huge forced fumble that preserved the 20-19 win at Notre Dame, estimated it takes seven minutes to assemble the club. Perhaps most important of all, he gets a new one every other day.

"I can't have a stinky hand," he said.

Odds and ends

Georgia conducted a two-hour workout in full pads Wednesday in its indoor facility. ... The Bulldogs continue to work without junior defensive tackle Trenton Thompson (MCL sprain) and senior inside linebacker Reggie Carter (undisclosed injury).

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

Upcoming Events