UGA blog finds new home
Morning all. As I’ve said a couple of times this week, we’re converting this blog over to a WordPress platform and it will be a permanent move the first of next week.
Those of you who are regulars probably know that I’m not what you’d call techno-wizard when it comes to these things. But from what I understand the technology offered in this new format should make the blogging and commenting experience better for all. Of course, I’ll be learning as we go along, too. But I’m hoping to provide more pictures and video and things like that which should bring the blog more to life.
Of course, this blog is nothing without all you guys so I want to heartily invite (read: beg) you to come over to the new site by CLICKING HERE ON THE NEW ADDRESS and save it in your browsers. As of Monday, Feb. 23rd, this will be the permanent home of the UGA blog you so love or, in the case of some of you, love to loathe. If you’d prefer to copy and paste or just memorize, the new address is: http://blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/.
See at the new place!
AJC > Sports > UGA > Blog > Archives > 2006 > November
November 2006
Do all Dogs say “Go Hogs?”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The SEC Championship Game is being played in Atlanta this weekend and, for just the second time in the last five years, Georgia’s not in it.
So where does that put the game on the radar screen of the Bulldog Nation?
I tend to gauge such things off my younger brother, a UGA graduate and big-time football fan (he doesn’t really get into basketball or baseball much). Anyway, he’s fired up about watching the SEC title game on television and there is no uncertainty whatsoever with him in terms of whom he wants to win.
He’s Arkansas all the way!
For him it’s pretty simple: Florida is Florida and Arkansas is not Florida. The way he explains it, if you’re Georgia, you can’t root for Florida in anything. Ever.
So is that how all you Dawgs feel about it? Is there no Eastern Division pride at play here?
It is a really intriguing matchup. Can the Gators contain Darren McFadden (they’re ranked No. 10 in the nation in total defense, you know)? I can’t wait to see McFadden on the fast track that is the Georgia Dome’s Field Turf.
Meanwhile, you’ve got a pretty good Florida team that has been anything but dominant but just continuously does what it takes to win. Can the Hogs stop Chris Leak, Percy Harvin, Dallas Baker and company? If Florida wins, does that make it the SEC team to beat –- instead of Georgia -– the next few years?
Let’s hear your analyses and score predictions for the game.
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How about a Dogs-Hokies matchup?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bowl bids don’t go out until Sunday, but let’s get real. The SEC is going to have two teams in the BCS. LSU is ranked No. 5. The winner of Arkansas-Florida goes to the Sugar Bowl.
So what? That means Georgia will in all likelihood play Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. I’ve heard from many of you who are hopeful of this.
Be careful what you wish for.
In the Hokies, Georgia will be facing the ACC’s hottest team. They’ve won six in a row. In that span, they knocked off then-No. 10 Clemson 24-7 and won at then-No. 14 Wake Forest 27-6.
Virginia Tech (10-2) has a 1,000-yard rusher in Brandon Ore (1,095 to be exact), who also scored 15 touchdowns. Its kicker has made 17 of 18 field goals. And we haven’t even talked about the defense yet.
Now we will: The Hokies are ranked No. 1 in the nation in total defense (221.1 ypg), No. 1 in scoring defense (9.3 ppg) and No. 1 passing defense (128.2 ypg).
Still want to play them?
Seriously, the Bulldogs would probably be decided underdogs in such a matchup. Would you like to see Georgia play Virginia Tech? Can the Dogs take them? If so, how and why? Do you like the idea of Georgia playing in the Georgia Dome for the third time since last December? Will you go?
Or am I just missing the boat all together and the Dogs will fall to the Music City Bowl in Nashville?
Hey, it’s never too soon to speculate!
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Your take on the season
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Amazing what a difference a couple of games can make, huh?
Just a few weeks ago, Georgia fans were jumping off proverbial buildings and bridges. Four losses in five games. Defeats to Vanderbilt AND Kentucky. “Almost losses” to Colorado and Mississippi State and Ole Miss.
People, even some that blog in other areas on this site, were calling for heads. Fire Martinez, they said. Fire Callaway. Fire Eason. Fire Jancek. There were even a few hysterical “Fire Richt” cries.
As they say, you can’t spell FANATIC without FAN.
But we’re not here today to say, “I told you so.” Oh no. I certainly would not have predicted an Auburn-Tech sweep for the Bulldogs, not after what I’d witnessed covering every minute of every game this season. But I would like to offer a brief sprinkle of reality to today’s proceedings.
As close as this season was to being a total disaster, it might have been even closer to being a near miracle. The truth is, this was a major, major rebuilding year for the Dogs. Not only were they having to replace the quarterback –- the last two being two of the best of all time -– but they were having to do it behind a revamped offensive line. They were having to replace seven offensive starters, six defensive starters, 75 percent of the secondary and 49 percent of the receiving yards.
Georgia loses its best deep threat receiver (Sean Bailey) before the season ever started. Then what happens? It loses its starting quarterback in Game 2, its All-American placekicker in Week 5, its starting tailback in Week 6 and offensive linemen off and on all season.
All those people clamoring for Richt to start freshman Matthew Stafford got their wish, then watched in horror as he threw 12 interceptions in nine games. In retrospect, having to start Stafford will be good for Georgia’s future but, I don’t care what you say, it was not good for the present.
That said, think about this: Georgia played absolutely horribly -– particularly in the final minutes –- to lose to Vanderbilt and Kentucky teams by a total of six points. If the Bulldogs don’t make bonehead mistakes (see above paragraph) in those contests, they win ‘em both and they’re sitting here with 10 wins again.
And lest we forget, it’s not like probable SEC champion Florida blew Georgia off the field in winning 21-14 in Jacksonville. In fact, if not for an egregious fumble returned for a touchdown, the Dogs possibly could have pulled that one out, too. Who knows?
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not delusional and certainly not a homer. I know some of those games could have gone the other way, too. The reality is this: Georgia remains a top-notch program that had a lot go wrong for it one season after having a lot go right the previous few years.
So what happened to the Dogs this year? I don’t know, but if 8-4 is a disappointing year, they must be doing something right. Your thoughts?
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Rating Bobo’s work
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I don’t know how many of you guys logged on to read my blog at the end of the Georgia Tech game, but you can imagine how surprised I was to find out Sunday that it was Mike Bobo who was actually calling plays Saturday night.
For those that didn’t -– there must be one or two -– I wrote about whether you were happy with Georgia’s play-calling against Tech, especially given the game-winning drive at the end. But I was also pointing out the Bulldogs’ lack of big-play production this season (keep in mind, my assignment was to file a blog as soon as the final buzzer sounded and, for a while there, it looked like Georgia might lose that game).
But I digress.
I wasn’t surprised that Mark Richt was willing to let Bobo call plays. It was just a matter of time before that torch was passed. I was surprised that Richt did it a week after calling a gem of a game at Auburn and then turning it over for the final and most important game of the season.
Could you imagine if this had been a major bust? What if Bobo had suffered a meltdown? That’s the main reason this was such a tightly guarded secret by Richt and his staff. As we’ve seen, Richt is fiercely loyal when it comes to his assistants. He didn’t want to see one of his brightest young coaches embarrassed. Fortunately for both of them, it turned out the way it did and Richt was able to unveil it for what it was.
It wasn’t hard to foresee Bobo assuming more responsibility of the offense. Like his buddies Will Muschamp and Kirby Smart, Bobo is the son of a coach and has been groomed his entire life for such a gig. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him become a head coach some day, maybe even at Georgia whenever Richt decides to hang up the whistle.
But while Richt sought to protect Bobo, he won’t be able to going forward. The reality is this: Like it or not, the fickle finger of blame will be pointed toward Bobo when things don’t go well on offense. As much success as Richt had at Florida State, he’ll be the first to tell you he wasn’t always Mr. Beloved. There was many a time when he became the target of criticism.
So Bobo might as well get used to it now.
What did you really think of the job he did Saturday? Georgia did, after all, manage only 15 points and 255 yards? Should Bobo get the job permanently? Is Bobo destined for greatness? Is he the next great head coach to come out of the SEC?
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Dogs get plays when they need them
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Athens — What an exciting game … well, at least the second half (they ran out of coffee in the press box, if that tells you anything).
The sudden boost of offense by Georgia in the fourth quarter for the game-winning drive — 12 plays, 64 yards, TD pass from Matthew Stafford to Mahomed Massaquoi — got me to wondering about all the questions surrounding Georgia’s offense.
Up until that last drive, it hadn’t played very well at all. The Bulldogs were in danger of not scoring an offensive touchdown at Sanford Stadium for the first time since 2001, when they lost to South Carolina 14-9.
Now Georgia was well-matched by John Tenuta’s Tech defense. They moved the ball moderately well, but occasionally were knocked backward on one of the Yellow Jackets’ patented blitzes. But that’s what happens against a high risk-defense such as Tenuta’s.
What didn’t happen is what good teams are supposed do, especially teams with supposedly high-octane offenses such as Georgia’s. They’re supposed to hit back with an occasional big play against these kinds of defenses. Other than the Auburn game, that’s been a problem for the Bulldogs this season: They don’t hit back hard enough.
Amazingly, Georgia’s long run from scrimmage this season was 41 yards by Danny Ware against Western Kentucky in the first game. The longest pass play was Matt Stafford to A.J. Bryant for 53 yards against Auburn in Game 11.
Like me, Georgia fans are probably more accustomed to seeing the Dogs go the distance more often. Heck, you saw few trick plays.
But Georgia’s winning streak against Tech moves to six games, which is truly remarkable. Say this for Bulldogs coach Mark Richt — he certainly gets the job done.
So question is this: Does this prove Georgia doesn’t need a dedicated play-caller, as is so often maintained by so many Georgia fans? Is there merit to the argument that head coach Mark Richt should not also be calling plays? If not him, who?
Or is it fine like it is?
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Can basketball work at UGA?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I know you guys are all wound up about turkey and football this week, especially with the Battle for the Governor’s Cup — hey, that’s what they play for — just days away. But a recent conversation with Georgia’s men’s basketball publicist, Tim Hix, got me to thinking about hoops.
Hix had stumbled upon a Furman Bisher column from 1962. In it, Mr. Bisher was wondering when, if ever, the Bulldogs were going to get serious about their basketball team. At the time, Harbin “Red” Lawson was the basketball coach, though he didn’t receive any pay for it. His money came from being a physical education instructor.
Of course, Stegeman Coliseum was built a couple of years later. But the Bulldogs didn’t become routinely competitive in basketball until Hugh Durham arrived in 1978, reaching the Final Four in 1983.
Since then, Georgia basketball has existed in a series of fits and starts. Every time the Dogs would get it going, something would seem to happen. With Durham it was the Cedric Henderson mess, then a contract fiasco. Tubby Smith came, conquered and quickly left for Kentucky. Ron Jirsa wasn’t ready, Jim Harrick broke the rules and Dennis Felton has been in a perpetual rebuilding mode.
It’s often argued that Georgia, being the football school, will never be wildly successful in basketball. But I don’t believe that. Look at Texas, at Michigan and Ohio State. Look at Florida and LSU right here in the SEC.
I cover Georgia’s basketball team and, from what I’ve seen, they’ve got a chance to be pretty good this year. Felton is relentless in his mission to get big-time players to come to Athens and to turn around the program. With a little momentum, I think he could make it happen.
My question is, does the Bulldog Nation really care? If not, why not? How about on Dec. 22 when Georgia plays Tech in Atlanta? Will you care then? Don’t you want the Dogs to be great in both?
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Analyzing the positions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OK, there’s no sense in delaying the inevitable. The Tech-Georgia game is just days away and, at this point, it’s on the mind of everybody associated with both schools.
Today, I’m going to ask you all to be objective (yeah, right). I’m going to make a quick, two-minute position-by-position analysis, giving one team or the other an advantage in each area unless it’s absolutely indistinguishable, then adding them up to determine which team SHOULD win (doesn’t mean they will, of course).
Feel free to bash my determinations (as if you needed my permission). In fact, I’m looking forward to your feedback on this. This is one of those exercises in which there will be a lot of gray area. Remember, this is quick, off the top of my head:
Quarterback: Advantage Tech
Reggie Ball has had his share of problems over the years but you’re talking about a four-year starter versus a first-year freshman.
Offensive line: Advantage Georgia
This is a really tough call but I’m going to go with Georgia because it utilizes four seniors and a junior and has given up 13 sacks to Tech’s 15.
Tight end: Advantage Georgia
Martrez Milner has had his drop issues but is actually very productive and a good blocker. Tech at times has had to use a converted tackle out there.
Wide receiver: Advantage Tech
Are you kidding? There’s only one Calvin Johnson, and James Johnson is pretty darn good, too. Georgia has potential but that means only you haven’t done much yet.
Running back: Advantage Tech
Tashard Choice is a 1,000-yard rusher. Georgia hasn’t had a thousand-yarder since Musa Smith in 2002.
Place-kicker: Advantage Tech
If Brandon Coutu wasn’t injured, this would be different. But Georgia’s using its punter at the moment and Travis Bell has been solid if unspectacular.
Defensive line: Advantage Georgia
When healthy, the Dogs have one of the better front fours in the South. Tech gets most of its pressure from its linebackers. Georgia relies on its front four.
Linebackers: Advantage Georgia
Again, I’m leaning pretty hard on seniority and familiarity here, but the Dogs all-senior trio of Tony Taylor, Jarvis Jackson and Danny Verdun Wheeler have played a lot of football and have never lost to the Jackets. KaMichael Hall is a warrior for Tech and Philip Wheeler is a big-play waiting to happen. Very slight advantage.
Secondary: No advantage
I can’t find one at least. Both units are pretty good but neither is dominant. Giving up 237 against Duke doesn’t help Tech’s cause. But the way the Dogs looked against Vanderbilt and Kentucky and the second half against Tennessee doesn’t say much for them, either.
Punter: Advantage Tech
Another real close one but Durant Brook’s numbers are stellar –- 45.2-yard average, long of 63, 29 punts inside the 20 -– and the Yellow Jackets are No. 1 in the nation in net punting.
Returns: Advantage Georgia
The Dogs have gone the distance for touchdowns with three punts and a kickoff while Tech has none.
So that gives Tech the advantage in five areas and Georgia five. So that means the game will end in a tie and be decided in overtime, right? I’m not going to touch things like intangibles and coaching. I’ll let y’all handle that.
Suffice it to say, this ought to be a good one
Jake Scott’s homecoming
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There is an absolutely fantastic story about Jake Scott, one of Georgia’s all-time greats, in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/football/pro/dolphins/sfl-spjakescott19nov19,0,3570478.story).
If you haven’t read it, do. It’s long, but worth your while.
Scott, a safety who was a Georgia All-American in 1968 and a Super Bowl MVP with the Miami Dolphins, has lived most of his post-football life in relative obscurity. But Sun-Sentinel writer Dave Hyde tracked down the “reckless recluse” in Hanalei, Hawaii, and got the first extensive interview with him since 1979.
This is particularly timely considering Scott will be making a rare return to Athens this week. He is serving as honorary captain for the Bulldogs for the coin toss before Saturday’s game against Georgia Tech. This is noteworthy considering Scott has turned down invitations to Dolphins’ Super Bowl team reunions and Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. Carter Strickland’s trying to find out how and when Georgia tracked down Scott, and how it talked him into coming back for this huge game.
Reading about Scott got me to thinking about Georgia’s great players over the years. Vince Dooley once said Scott was the best overall athlete who ever played for him, the incomparable Herschel Walker included. That’s a pretty strong statement considering some of the incredible athletes that have come through Athens.
I could see a good argument being made for Champ Bailey, from more recent years, being Georgia’s greatest all-time athlete, or perhaps Hines Ward. From days gone by, maybe it’d be Billy Henderson or Charley Trippi or Zippy Morrocco. I’m talking about guys who were obviously good in football but would be good at any sport they focused on.
So what do you think? Is Jake the greatest of them all? Do you expect him to get a warm reception despite the relative cool with which he left Georgia for the Canadian Football League after his junior season? And, of course, will his presence catapult the Dogs to victory over Tech?
The King factor
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So Caleb King is coming to Georgia, now the backfield will have five people fighting for the ball and history has proven Mark Richt is not going to just stick with one guy and let him work for 100-yard games. I would expect Kregg Lumpkin to be the starter, Knowshon Moreno to start the season as the backup, Thomas Brown as third string, Caleb King as a hybrid runner/pass catcher and Danny Ware as a utility guy. Brown may challenge for more playing time as the year goes on and probably should be the No. 2 guy. But that knee injury may not be 100 percent healed so I think Richt will ease him back into things.
Now King – and this is all contingent on if he signs and if he doesn’t goto prep school and doesn’t redshirt - could give Richt his most multifaceted back since Warrick Dunn. Dunn was a shiftier runner. But if all the reviews are true King can be trusted to make plays all over the field.
Then again, this is recruiting and you never know. Remember, Lumpkin was rated ahead of Reggie Bush. And D.J. Shockley was rated ahead of Matt Leinart.
Now what Georgia needs is another running back. One who will redshirt and give the position some depth. Think about 2008. Brown, Lumpkin and Ware will be gone. King and Moreno will be sophomores. It would be nice if Georgia had one running back coming off a redshirt year that year and then were bringing in another true freshman. That would give them four in the stable and enough if anything were to happen to one of the top two.
Return to sender
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mikey Henderson has been picked as one of the semifinalist for the return man of the year award. The award’s namesake is Randy Moss. And in the release that brought the news of Henderson’s inclusion in the award process, it actually stated, “The individual should also represent their team and university with the highest standard of character.”
Henderson fits the bill. Moss? Who are we kidding here?
Here’s a brief history for those who don’t remember Moss’s past:
He accepted a scholarship to Notre Dame in 1995. He was involved in a fight in high school, got charged with two counts of simple battery and lost his scholarship.
But Florida State, who had Mark Richt on staff, gave him another chance. He tested positive for dope and was kicked off the team.
He then wound up in a West Virginia jail for three months for violating his probation. Finally Moss wound up at Marshall, a tiny school, where nobody watched too closely or cared too much about what athletes did.
Moss was busted once again as a pro in Minnesota when he bumped a traffic cop and a small amount of pot was found in the ashtray of his car.
So, knowing all this, should Henderson really accept an award named after Randy Moss? Henderson is a good student, one of the more genuine players on the team, a consummate teammate who was willing to switch from defense to offense, and an all-around well-rounded person. In short, Henderson is too good for this award.
Does Tech-UGA matter?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just wondering where the Georgia-Georgia Tech rivalry ranks with you in terms of national significance. I wouldn’t consider it up there with the Michigan-Ohio State game or Texas-Oklahoma or Southern Cal-Notre Dame or even Georgia-Florida or Georgia-Auburn. All of those games — in the past 10 years, at least — have held national significance.
While Georgia-Georgia Tech has had national implications in the past, year in and year out it lacks the punch on both sides of the ball that the more serious games across the country always seem to have. Quite frankly, even within each respective team’s conferences there are more intriguing and important games to be played and won.
There should be more intrigue this year just because of the year each team is having. Those who follow the Bulldogs have now had their hopes raised. And Tech’s hopes have been sky-high all season. Plus, there is the extra added bonus for Tech that it knows it can knock Georgia to Nashville and the Music City Bowl.
Let the Tech-UGA debate begin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OK, one down and one to go. Without getting profane or insulting, how about thinking of logical, based-in-facts reasons why Georgia can beat Georgia Tech.
I’ll get you started: Confidence. Georgia now has what it has lacked all season. The players actually believe now they can get it done. Two, three weeks ago there is no way Kenneth Harris makes that 40-yard grab from Matthew Stafford. But now that he has there is no way he drops another one.
The offensive line is also feeling good about itself. And when it gives protection it is pretty startling how good Stafford can be.
OK, now let’s flip over to the other side of things: For those Tech fans out there — again, without getting profane or insulting — how about thinking of logical, based-in-facts reasons why Georgia Tech can beat Georgia.
Again, I’ll get you started: Jon Tenuta. This is the kind of game where Tenuta can bring out all kinds of blitzes and confuse the heck out of Stafford. Remember what he did last year, and D.J. Shockley and his offensive line both had experience. Georgia had little or no offense, and managed very few big plays (one just so happened to win the game for them late in the fourth quarter).
But I expect Tenuta to bring all kinds of heat on Stafford, and if the Georgia run game is not healthy (currently it is not) Stafford will be at the mercy of the pass rush.
OK, now it is your turn. Rant on.
Auburn or Tech a tougher game?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Let’s get a little crazy and say Georgia is going to win one of the last two games.
OK, that’s a lot crazy. But what the heck, it’s been 10 straight games and everyone is a little punch drunk.
So, in which of these two games -– at Auburn and vs. Georgia Tech -– does Georgia have the best chance?
The immediate thought is Georgia Tech because it is in Athens and Tech has one more loss than Auburn. But this Auburn series is a tough one to figure out. The home team never seems to have a huge advantage, and the best team doesn’t always win.
The real questions are, which one is more important to you guys? Which one is more important when it comes to the bowl selection? And in which one does Georgia have the best shot?
Lassoing the Cowboys
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Grabbing Oklahoma State as the opener is a strong move by Georgia. The Cowboys are decent this year but will have their best year in several years next season. Most of the talent is young and they will have experience in big games on the road.
The last time OSU went on a big nonconference road trip was in 2004 when it beat UCLA in the opener. The quarterback in that game, Donovan Woods, will be the starting safety against Georgia. But year in and year out, OSU has to travel to either Texas or Oklahoma, so it knows what it is like to play in a serious venue and probably will not come in intimidated.
But props to Georgia for stepping up in scheduling. With this game Georgia will have OSU, Arizona State, Colorado and Louisville, in addition to Georgia Tech, as nonconference opponents in the next four seasons. That’s pretty decent.
Then there is the always the away game at Florida. But next year there is a bye before Florida. There is not one before Florida in 2008. Georgia cannot do much about that. The SEC sets the conference schedule.
Exploring bowl options
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The bowl picture has become very cloudy for Georgia. Mark Richt has emphatically said he will go to any bowl that will have him. Now it is time to try and figure out what bowl will have Georgia.
The SEC has eight spots in bowls. Nine teams might go to bowls if two get into the BCS. Here is what it looks like right now:
Sugar: Florida or SEC West team (I’m hedging my bets and saying this would be Auburn.)
Orange: Florida or SEC West team (see above.)
Capital One: LSU.
Outback: Tennessee.
Cotton: Arkansas.
Chick-fil-A: Kentucky or Georgia.
Music City: Kentucky or Georgia.
Liberty: South Carolina.
Shreveport: Alabama.
But what happens if Tennessee beats Arkansas, Alabama beats Auburn, LSU beats Arkansas and then Florida beats the SEC West opponent in the Georgia Dome? Well, for starters, that means only one SEC team will to a BCS bowl. Meaning everybody slides down a peg.
And there are most likely going to be three teams with 6-6 records— South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. So what it is going to come down to is which team’s fans are going to travel.
Alabama will travel to Shreveport if only to hold up “Fire Mike Shula” signs. And because it is a 400-mile trip from Tuscaloosa to Shreveport, hotel stays are a given (getting a room is another thing. I’ve tried to get one in Shreveport, it is getting full already).
So who is more likely to take fans to Memphis — Georgia or South Carolina?
That is what bowl organizers are going to be trying to figure out. Past bowls will be scrutinized by organizers. Attendance at the Independence Bowl last year, when South Carolina went, was just 41,000. There were more than 49,000 there a couple of years earlier when Nebraska played Ole Miss.
Plus, South Carolina fans may not want to travel to Memphis after watching their team drop two of its last three games.
Now on to Georgia. The Bulldog fans may have been interested in going to Nashville in Richt’s first year — promise on the horizon and all that. But Georgia could lose its last two games and that is not exactly going to make Ma and Pa Bulldog want to gas up the SUV and head to Memphis in December.
There is one other bowl to keep an eye on. The San Diego County bowl has an at-large selection. If the above scenario plays out, Georgia or South Carolina might be a big get for that game. A big-name program from a power conference could lend some legitimacy to an upstart bowl.
Expect new blitzes from Auburn
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here is some fodder for those screaming for Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp to come back to Georgia. Way back in August Muschamp installed multiple blitz packages.
“I thought this was what the NFL must be like because we are putting something in new every single day,” said linebacker Karibi Dede. “I thought, ‘How are we going to figure this out?’ ”
But what Dede came to learn was that Muschamp was overloading the players on the front end so they would have the knowledge in the latter parts of the season.
“Multiple,” said Dede. “He wants to be multiple.”
That means come week eight or nine or 10, Muschamp, a former NFL assistant, will install a package that Auburn has not run all year. The players are able to pick up on it because they ran it in two-a-days. The other teams don’t know what is coming because Auburn has yet to show that blitz package yet.
Auburn is third in the conference in overall defense (276 yards allowed) and third in sacks (25). Georgia coach Mark Richt said it has become evident that Muschamp is using his NFL knowledge at this level. Georgia has only one coach with NFL coaching experience on its roster: Jon Fabris, defensive ends coach, spent time with the Cleveland Browns.
Offensive options limited
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With the news that Demiko Goodman is gone for the year with an ACL injury, maybe now Mark Richt has no choice but to run Kregg Lumpkin more than 13 times. And it won’t matter if the opposing defense is playing straight man and rolling someone into the box (Richt’s explanation why Lumpkin didn’t get more carries in the second half against Kentucky) or in cover 2 (Richt’s explanation for why he did get 10 carries in the first half).
Regardless of the carries he gets against Auburn, Lumpkin probably won’t be as effective as he was against Kentucky. (Eighty-three of his 85 yards came in the first half.) Auburn is solid defensively. Kentucky is a sieve.
Goodman’s injury comes at a time when the sophomore was finally figuring out being a wide receiver is more than just running fast. In a receiving corps that has been mediocre, Goodman had become the one possible threat other teams had to guard against. Without his speed to stretch the field, you can guarantee Auburn will play man-to-man on the receivers, leave an extra guy in the box and blitz like banshees.
Georgia will try to counteract things with short screens, and the middle of the field could be open on some hot routes. But the screens are only effective every once in a while. As for the over-the-middle route, no one has stepped up and proven they can make a tough catch over the middle. Wait, Mario Raley did; the senior grabbed the ball on a very difficult catch. But he was hurt on the tackle. His teammates saw that and now may even be more hesitant to go over the middle.
Too bad, because if Auburn sends everybody and is in man coverage, that is what will be open.
Georgia has had a staggering amount of injuries this year. Nine starters have been injured and missed at least one game at some time this season. And Sean Bailey was hurt before the season began.
It is hard to say which of those was the most critical injury. But one could make an argument that losing Joe Tereshinski in the second game threw everything into a tailspin.
Really, think about it. Would Georgia’s record be any worse with Tereshinski? Doubtful. In fact, Tereshinski probably would not have had three interceptions at Kentucky.
Still, it’s been clear Matthew Stafford was thrown in before he was ready. (If anyone wants to argue that point, before you do, just remember Stafford has four touchdown passes and 12 interceptions.)
There is good and bad with playing early. Stafford will be more than ready next season because he played this season. But in playing this season, he is getting beat up physically and emotionally. How long will the effects of this season linger with him?
He seems like the type who can shake things off easily and won’t become a timid quarterback because of past failings. Whatever you think, it is clear Stafford is going to be very good if he ever gets some help around him.
Now to the most critical injury. That would have to be Brandon Coutu’s hamstring tear suffered while experimenting with a new onsides kick. With Coutu, it could be argued Georgia would be 8-2 with just one blowout loss to Tennessee and a close loss to Florida. Fans wouldn’t be happy — they rarely are — but they wouldn’t be out on a ledge, either.
Now, instead of Coutu, Georgia is on its third kicker, who just happens to be the punter, Gordon Ely-Kelso. And he hasn’t kicked in a game since high school.
Scheduling scuttlebutt
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After not getting embarrassed at Georgia, Western Kentucky is so confident it can hang with Division I-A that it decided to make the move.
The Hilltoppers will try and reclassify as soon as the 2007-08 season, so maybe the Bulldogs’ scheduling problems are over. Just grab WKU. Hey, go even one step further and get that home and home done now before the ’Toppers become a hot commodity. Maybe they won’t back out like Oregon State did.
Actually, the best scheduling rumor out there was floated by another Northwest team. Idaho is trying to get out of its opener with Southern Cal and supposedly was trying to get Georgia to take its place. Unfortunately for all those who wanted to see West Coast football, Georgia assistant athletic director for scheduling, Arthur Johnson, said a recently there was no truth to the rumor and that Southern Cal hasn’t come up in any conversations.
Southern Cal already has Notre Dame and Nebraska as non-conference opponents next season. And the Pac-10 plays all other teams in the conference so it isn’t very likely it would schedule Georgia. Arkansas again? Given USC’s success against the Hogs, maybe.
Georgia? Doubt it.
Daring not to defer
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This whole imploding at the start of the third quarter thing has become a habit for Georgia. And there is an easy way to fix it – when you win the coin toss at the start of the game, which Georgia has done for the last eight games, don’t defer. Take the ball right then. Let the defense set the tone in the third quarter.
I know it goes against conventional wisdom, but the wisdom Georgia has employed to this point has not worked. The Bulldogs have given up 21 points off turnovers on their opening third quarter drives in three of the last four games. So why not switch things up?
Anybody remember what Tommy Bowden did after his kicking game sucked fish against Boston College and Florida State? Against Georgia Tech he decided to heck with it and when the Tigers won the toss he received the ball. Didn’t seem to hurt Clemson a bit in that game.
Georgia coach Mark Richt was informed of Clemson’s move and said that might not be a bad idea, Quarterback Matthew Stafford said maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if Georgia lost the toss this week and go the ball first.
It may just be reaching at straws, but nothing else Georgia has tried in the third quarter has helped, so why not go this route once? It shows the defense, a psychologically wounded unit, that you have faith in it to set the tone for the second half of the game and gives the offense a chance to go out and prove itself to start the game.
Is the defense legit?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia coach Mark Richt and everyone else have praised the defense for its inspired play against Florida. That’s great and all, but why did it take the this long to play inspired?
Yeah, the Bulldogs were good on that side of the ball in the first three games — wins over Western Kentucky, South Carolina, UAB. But this was supposed to be a team dominated by defensive play throughout the season. Nurture the offense,depend on the defense … that was the theory to start the season.
So what are the theories out there? Coaching? If so, why? Where do improvements need to be made? Personnel? Who should have been demoted or promoted?
And, most importantly, will this new-found inspirational play last for the defense? If you think it will, why? What leads you to believe it wasn’t just a one-game wonder against a team Georgia has little trouble getting up for?
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