AJC > Sports > Blog > Archives > 2008 > August > 18
Monday, August 18, 2008
Georgia’s consensus No. 1. So now what?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Earlier this year I told Georgia coach Mark Richt that there was a bright side to his 2008 schedule. He was all ears to hear what the smarty pants media guy had to say about that.
The bright side is this: If Georgia goes 13-0 against what I believe is the toughest schedule in school history, the Bulldogs WILL be in the BCS championship game at Dolphins Stadium on Jan. 8. Remember that Auburn started the 2004 season at No. 17 when it got squeezed out at 12-0.
Now that Georgia is No. 1 in both major polls (AP, Coaches), the Bulldogs know they are a lock for South Florida if they run the table. Frankly, if Georgia is 12-1 with an SEC championship on Dec. 6, it should STILL be in the big game. But that is another discussion for another day.
Once the consensus No. 1 target is placed squarely on a team’s back, there are all kinds of unexpected obstacles that pop up. If you’re a Georgia fan, here are five potential hurdles you may not have considered:
1. History is not on Georgia’s side: Since the Associated Press starting doing preseason polls in 1950, only two teams that started No. 1 have stayed in that spot for an entire season and won the national championship.
Florida State’s 1999 team, led by Chris Weinke, started No. 1 and won them all, beating Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl for the BCS championship. This was the only undefeated team that Bobby Bowden has ever had. The Seminoles also had to survive three close games with Georgia Tech (41-35), Clemson (17-14), and Florida (30-23) just to get to the BCS championship game.
Southern Cal, which had won the AP national championship in 2003, started at No. 1 in 2004. And as good as that team was with QB Matt Leinart (2004 Hesiman winner) and RB Reggie Bush (2005 Heisman winner), it had to survive several close calls just to get to the BCS championship against Oklahoma. The Trojans beat Stanford by three (31-28), California by six (23-17), and UCLA by five (29-24). They fell behind 13-0 at Oregon State but rallied to win 28-20.
The point is that for even the great teams, going wire-to-wire is incredibly difficult. You have be good AND a little lucky.
2. Dan LeFevour: Georgia fans are talking about the opener with Georgia Southern on Aug. 30. Then they are talking about the all-important trip to South Carolina on Sept. 13. But waiting in the middle on Sept. 6 is a game with Central Michigan, the two-time defending MAC champions.
About right now a bunch of you are snickering and saying: “Barnhart, please! Get a grip! It’s just the MAC!”
But consider this: Remember how Troy and QB Omar Haugabook came to Sanford Stadium and rolled up 488 total yards last season? Haugabook had 310 yards passing against a very good Georgia defense. Georgia needed four turnovers to pull away and win 44-34.
LeFevour is better than Haugabook. Last season he became only the second player in Division I-A history to pass for over 3,000 yards and rush for over 1,000 yards. He had 4,774 yards of total offense. By contrast Tim Tebow, the Heisman Trophy winner, had 4,184 yards of total offense (3,286 passing, 895 running).
I know. The competition level is much different. But a hot quarterback can be a great equalizer (see Armanti Edwards, Appalachian State vs. Michigan).
3. Arizona’s “dry” heat: I talked to Arizona State quarterback Rudy Carpenter the other day. My first question was about the weather.
“Oh, we got a little cool snap today,” he said. “It only got to 107.”
Southern teams assume they can handle all kinds of heat because hey, they practice in some of the steamiest conditions around. And Arizona does not have the humidity of the deep South. It’s a “dry” heat.
But it’s one thing to play at home in the heat and yet another to fly across the country and play in hostile conditions like the kind Georgia will face at Arizona State on Sept. 20.
The long-range forecast calls for a high of 98 degrees in Phoenix on Sept. 20 and with a kickoff of 5 p.m. (local time), the temperature at game time won’t be far from that. It could be hotter. The projected high for Sept. 6 is 102 degrees. The projected high for Sept. 13, the week before the game, is right at 100.
If Georgia falls behind early the temperature will go up several degrees in Sun Devil Stadium. It’s just something to think about.
4. Tony Franklin’s spread: When Troy came to Sanford Stadium and rolled up those 488 yards of total offense, Franklin was the offensive coordinator calling the plays. When Auburn hosts Georgia on Nov. 15, Franklin will again be calling the plays as the Tigers’ new OC.
Troy turned the ball over four times in that game, including an interception by Haugabook at the Georgia 11-yard line. Georgia led 27-20 in the third quarter when Marcus Howard knocked the ball from Haugabook’s grasp and ran it down to the one-yard line.
“We are right there until that play,” Franklin told me. “We proved we can move the ball but you just can’t turn it over.”
The Georgia game will be Auburn’s 11th in the new spread offense this season and 12th dating back to the Chick-fil-A Bowl against Clemson. The Tigers should have it down pat by then.
5. Kirston Pittman, Tyson Jackson: Both of these guys should be in the NFL right now. Instead they will give LSU the best pair of defensive ends in college football. Pittman missed two complete seasons (2005, 2006) due to injuries. He was a freshman on LSU’s 2003 national championship team and a senior on the 2007 national championship team. He applied for a sixth-year of eligibility and he got it. Last season he led the Tigers in sacks (8.0) and tackles for loss (13.0).
Jackson is a fifth-year senior with 26 starts and probably has the best speed off the edge of any player in the SEC.
With DT Ricky Jean-Francois clogging up the middle, LSU will send these guys after Georgia QB Matt Stafford early and often on Oct. 25. Stafford will be without his security blanket in left tackle Trinton Sturdivant.
Even if Georgia wins in Baton Rouge, if Stafford gets beat up in this game it could effect his play the following week against Florida in Jacksonville.
A final personal note: Some good news this morning. A number of you have written very kind notes about the upcoming change in my working relationship with the AJC. That change will still take place in late September. But I want you to know that we’ve come to an agreement to continue the Mr. College Football blog through the 2008 season. That’s a tribute to you. Together we have built this blog into something that is really fun and (hopefully) very readable. I’m excited about this new development and appreciative for the opportunity to continue Mr. CFB for one more season. Thanks again for all your support.
