With senior defensive end Rod Battle going down with a season-ending ACL tear Saturday, Justin Houston’s return couldn’t come at a better time.

Houston, a redshirt sophomore, was listed as one of the Bulldogs’ No. 1 defensive ends following spring practice. He was then suspended for Georgia’s first two games of the season for violating team rules.

He’ll be back in the lineup for Georgia’s date at Arkansas Saturday, a 7:45 kickoff on ESPN.

“I think he tried very hard to stay in game shape so he could be out there [Saturday],” said head coach Mark Richt. “He’s just practiced hard and had a great attitude throughout it all, knowing that his time was going to come, and it’s here.”

Battle’s knee injury occurred in the second quarter of Saturday’s 41-37 win over South Carolina. The Atlanta native did take a redshirt in 2005, but it was not of the medical variety, meaning he could likely get another year of eligibility.

Georgia’s defensive ends got consistent pressure on South Carolina’s Stephen Garcia Saturday, sacking him twice.

“We were coming off the ends pretty good, we deserved to get a lot of pressure,” said redshirt freshman Cornelius Washington, who accounted for 1.5 of those sacks. “But there’s always room for improvement, there’s always ways to get better as a position and as a defense. Thirty-seven points is too many for any defense. We still have a lot of growing to do.”

Boykin, Boling take Player of the Week awards

Junior right tackle Clint Boling and sophomore corner back Brandon Boykin took home SEC weekly honors Monday.

Boling, who played mostly left tackle in 2008, was named Offensive Lineman of the Week, the second such honor in his career.

Boykin, who also had an interception and a career-high four tackles Saturday, was named Special Teams Player of the Week. His 100-yard kickoff return was the longest scoring play ever at Sanford Stadium, and he became just the 36th player in SEC history to chart a 100-yard return.

With Boykin and help from freshman Branden Smith, Georgia’s 252 total kickoff return yards were the fourth-best in conference history.

Arizona State game a 7 p.m. kickoff on ESPNU

Georgia’s Sept. 26 home contest with Arizona State will be another ESPN networks night game for the Bulldogs, as they kickoff at 7 p.m. on ESPNU.

The Bulldogs are 23-8 in night games under Richt, and topped Arizona State 27-10 in Tempe last season.