ATHENS, Ga. () — Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart mentioned Calvary Day alum Thomas Blackshear in his most recent press conference.

In head coach Kirby Smart’s Aug. 12 media availability, Brooks Austin, who is the lead editor for Georgia Bulldogs on SI, specifically asked the head coach about Thomas Blackshear and Rasean Dinkins on their performance in the first days of fall camp.

“They worked out hard all summer,” Smart said. “It’s like in the olden days, those guys would have shown up in August. So they show up in the summer, but they’re late. But they show up in the summer, which is really not late, because we’re doing more in the summer than we’ve ever done to get these young guys ready. Because they’ve done so much in the summer, they’re allowed to walk, they’re allowed to eat, they’re allowed to condition, they’re allowed to do all these things. They’re probably like our mid-years were in the spring, where it’s a little bit of a shock to them, the tempo of practice, the volume of practice.

“Thomas [Blackshear] has been with a groin injury that’s been nagging, so he’s not able to take his rep load. He’s fighting to stay healthy, and camp’s not a good time to be fighting that fight. There are no days off, and it’s like, okay, I’m back out there every day. So he’s flashed and done some things on special teams, and [Rasean] Dinkins is a good football player. He’s young, and he’s still learning, but he’s instinctive, and he understands football.”

The University of Georgia football team recently completed its first scrimmage as the Bulldogs continue fall camp.

Georgia opens the season Aug. 30 at home against Marshall at 3:30 p.m.