ATHENS, Ga. – Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham offered regret Tuesday night for directing a choke sign at Florida kicker Chas Henry during the overtime period last Saturday.
Grantham could be seen making the gesture during Georgia’s 30-second timeout before Henry drillied a 37-yard field goal, giving the Gators a 34-31 victory in the first overtime game in the rivalry’s history. Florida has won 18 of the last 21 meetings against Georgia.
“As a competitor, sometimes you get caught up in the heat of the moment,” Grantham said after practice. “I wish the situation had not have happened. It was a tough, hard-fought game. They won it, and I’m ready to move forward and finish out the year strong.”
Asked if he felt the need to apologize to Henry, Grantham said, “I’ve kind of basically said what I’m going to say.”
Georgia sports information director Claude Felton said Bulldogs athletic director Greg McGarity has discussed the incident with Southeastern Conference commissioner Mike Slive. The SEC is not expected to take action or even comment on the matter.
Florida coach Urban Meyer was asked about the incident Monday but had not seen it, and Georgia head coach Mark Richt was asked about it Tuesday.
“I’ll just say that emotions run high and people do things that they probably wish they didn’t do,” Richt said. “I don’t think he’s necessarily proud of it, and we’re just going to learn from it and move on.”
Durham has hope
Richt doesn’t believe fifth-year senior receiver Kris Durham will play this week. The 6-foot-5, 212-pounder from Calhoun suffered a bruised lung on a hit by Gators safety Will Hill in the second quarter and was taken to the locker room, but he returned to collect three receptions for 41 yards.
Durham, who leads the Bulldogs with 492 receiving yards, isn’t giving up on this week. He said breathing wasn’t a problem after Hill’s hit but that he did cough up blood.
“I have an optimistic view, and I believe I’m going to play, to be honest with you,” Durham said. “I look at the glass pretty much full.”
Missing the scoop
Watching video of the Florida game didn’t make Georgia sophomore cornerback Sanders Commings feel any better. Commings tried to scoop up a Trey Burton fumble at the Florida 14-yard line late in the first quarter but was unsuccessful.
Gators guard Maurice Hurt fell on the ball, which resulted in a 5-yard gain and wound up being the first of an 11-play, 91-yard touchdown drive that put Florida up 7-0.
“All I can do is learn from it,” Commings said. “I was in a crowd, and I should have just fallen on the ball. Open field is when you can scoop and score. When it’s close to the line of scrimmage like that, that’s when you’re supposed to fall on the ball.”
Odds and ends
Georgia has never played a team before from the Big Sky Conference, while Idaho State is 0-1 against the SEC, losing at Kentucky 41-29 in 2005. … ISU punter David Harrington, who leads the Big Sky with a 44.5-yard average, is in his first season with the Bengals after redshirting at Tennessee last year. … Florida’s Meyer on Bulldogs receiver A.J. Green: “That cat is a great one. We’ve got to get him out of this league.” … Richt said that three injured offensive linemen, redshirt freshman Austin Long (back) and freshmen Brent Benedict (knee) and Kolton Houston (foot), should be able to participate in spring practice.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.