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 > 2007 > February > 22 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USShaking off the dust
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I apologize, guys, but it’s well after 3 p.m. and I just got home from my trip to Oxford and Memphis to cover Georgia-Ole Miss. It was a “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” kind of day, with delays getting out of Memphis and into Atlanta and — imagine this — heavy traffic in Atlanta.
My point is not to solicit empathy (that’d be a wasted effort in here!). Just letting you know that I haven’t had much of a chance to contemplate topics or certainly to do any kind of research. So with respects to my buddy Mike Bianchi in Orlando, I’m just going to kind of run off at the keyboard.
First, on the basketball team: As anybody knows who has read my reports or blogs in the last 24 hours, Georgia pretty much stunk up the place last night, especially in the second half. The defeat has me re-think the Bulldogs’ postseason chances a bit.
It wasn’t that they lost. I expected that. It was the way they lost. I thought I detected a little bit of give up in Georgia last night and that’s something I haven’t said often about Dennis Felton’s teams.
Now let me qualify that by saying I don’t think the Dogs are a bunch of quitters. Far from it. I believe fatigue might be starting to set in. That’s probably the result of a few factors. One is we forget Takais Brown is a first-year player in the SEC. He has become the number one focus of all of Georgia’s opponents and he’s taking a beating. Also, Yata Gaines and Levi Stukes and Billy Humphrey are now having to log big minutes every game with Mike Mercer now out of the lineup. Mercer was probably the number one energy producer for this team before he went down with a knee injury. And remember, this team is down a bunch of guys, with Kevin Brophy, Channing Toney, Kendrick Johnson and Younes Idrissi all out of the mix. Not offering excuses. Just a recent revelation.
On the football team: It’s combine week up in Indianapolis and some Bulldogs are up there trying to make some money. In case you missed it, Mel Kiper is projecting DE Charles Johnson as a middle first-round pick while he expects DE Quentin Moses to go “second round at best.”
You know who else is up there? Former tailback Danny Ware. His agent tells me Danny’s made some significant physical strides in training and is expecting to make a big bang in Indy. He’ll need to to improve his status.
On the SEC race: Kentucky’s probably in regardless but the ‘Cats have probably the toughest row to hoe the rest of the season. After barely beating LSU — without Glen Davis — at home, they have to play Vanderbilt and Florida on the road with a home game against Georgia in between. Don’t laugh about the Dogs; Felton’s teams have played Kentucky tougher than just about every team other than Florida.
Hopefully we can generate some conversation out of that. Help me out guys. I’m exhausted.
Comments
By ballgame
February 22, 2007 04:15 PM | Link to this
It’s not over for the Dawgs , but It will be tough. Must win 2of next 3 and that might do it. If they do that and win 1 in the sect, then they will be a lock. Lets hope so. GO DAWGS …..TO HECK WITH TECH.
By Dawg4life
February 22, 2007 04:36 PM | Link to this
I agree with you about the basketball team, Chip. Fatigue has started to set in and it’s gonna get harder now that Mercer, who was the energy booster for this team, is gone. I also think that UGA, in recent years, has shown a tendency to fade down the home stretch of the basketball season, and I think that’ll certainly be the case this year, even though there’s a tournament bid on the line. But, as I’ve said before, I like the way Felton is building the program the right way and, before long, maybe even next year, we’ll take care of business before this crucial point in the season so that come this time, we’ll KNOW we’re in the tournament, instead of having to speculate. On another note, I was wondering if you (or any of your colleagues) can update us readers on the A.J. Green situation. I’ve seen numerous Internet rumors being posted saying that A.J. Green’s commitment to UGA for next year is in jeopardy and that he’s no longer strong in that commitment. Is that true? Can someone get him on the phone, or someone close to him (maybe his coach) to verify that? I posted a request on Jeff D’Allessio’s blog, but haven’t seen a response. Thanks for any help you can provide, and keep up the good work with the blog.
By colascdawg
February 22, 2007 04:37 PM | Link to this
Agree with your assessment ballgame except I am not sure if the Dawgs would be a lock, but winning the two at home, losing to uk and then winning the SEC opener (perhaps LSU) would certainly keep them in the discussion. It all depends on how some of the other “bubble” teams do as well.
I wish Danny Ware the best in the NFL. He never had a problem running the ball at UGA, his problem was holding onto it in traffic. That said you can’t argue with his effort and heart. I for one will be pulling for him to make it.
Go Dawgs beat the lesser Bulldogs!
By Sic 'em
February 22, 2007 04:38 PM | Link to this
Best of luck to all the Dawgs at the combine. Even though Danny Ware didn’t live up to his potential in college, I hope he has better success at the next level (ala Patrick Pass).
By Rutledge84
February 22, 2007 04:40 PM | Link to this
Hey, Chip. Regarding your comment about UGA playing Kentucky tougher than anyone but Florida…Hasn’t Vandy beaten Kentucky like four times in a row?
By Bryan G.
February 22, 2007 04:43 PM | Link to this
Last night really was atrocious. The radio broadcast sounded awful. They have to beat Miss State Saturday…HAVE to. It might come down to the last game of the year against UT as to whether or not we can get in. We really need to finish 2-1 and then win a game in the SEC tournament.
By baloney
February 22, 2007 05:14 PM | Link to this
Well, you almost apologized to me.Thanks, Chip.
By matt
February 22, 2007 05:30 PM | Link to this
Danny ware was the kind of back who needed to get the ball every other play. He never got that chance and I feel bad for him. As far as we know he is a good person and the Dawgs will be pulling for him. Pull a Terell Davis Danny!
By Kendall
February 22, 2007 05:36 PM | Link to this
If you have recruiting questions, like the one about AJ Green, just bone up, pay the 9 bucks, and get on the DawgVent. Its that simple. I know about AJ because I pay the money. He is going to look great in Red and Black.
By SamoanDawg
February 22, 2007 07:40 PM | Link to this
It’ll be tough for our guys to make it to the NCAA. But, anything is possible.
I too, hope D.Ware will pull a Terrell Davis. He’ll have to tear it up on special teams like TD did in his rookie season.
By jc_dawg
February 22, 2007 09:09 PM | Link to this
Ga will most likley be favored over Miss St and Ten becuase they are home games. At Ky, Ga will not be favored.
If Ga wins the games they should…they will finish 9-7 and most likley 4th in the East.
They would then play the #5 team in the west in the opening round of the sec tourney(Auburn or LSU) They could be favored in that game as well given that the tournament is in Atlanta.
They just need to make sure that…at a minimum…they win the games they are favored in.
By Gen Neyland
February 22, 2007 11:18 PM | Link to this
Terrell Davis and William Andrews. Two that rose above. UGA turned out a few good RB’s to the NFL. I’m somewhat partial to the ’ Who’s that guy ?? ‘, No Name Steak variety RB out of college. Depends on the maturity—peak thing, but it’s rewarding to see when the big bucks are on the line, players play…Good luck to Ware…
By Gen Neyland
February 22, 2007 11:24 PM | Link to this
Yes, I know William Andrews came out of AU. My point is the No Name guys hitting their stride in the Big Show, no matter where they come from…
By BuLLdawg
February 23, 2007 05:55 AM | Link to this
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I said that we had to Win 4 of these 5 games. We have Won 3 of the 4 and now play the game that I said we had to Win, Mississippi State at Home, not Ole Miss on the Road against the SEC West Leading Team coming in and now afterwards as well. We remain a game up, and have 3 to play. We must Win ONLY ONE (1) to have an SEC Season Record that is NOT a Losing Record before the SEC Tournament.
Sure, the SEC is getting a lot of respect. We are in fact the league-leading RPI Conference. Ole Miss, I never said we would win or had to win. I gave us that loss. Not happy about the manner in which we lost, but…it is what it is, and it was that weeks ago, and remains so today.
Kentucky, as you say, and Tennessee can be beat. Not that we need those. Not yet, we don’t need those.
As for the BuLLDawgs’ Football Season Mark Schlabach has written his best piece ever. In case you have been lost, he was THIS BEAT WRITER before Cater Strickland. He left to the Washington Post and has followed The BuLLDawgs closely, as you are fixin’ to see here; and, he has been a beat writer for the ESPN as well, which is the CREDIT here. :
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=schlabach_mark&id=2773497
You want some help ? Try this ?
Schlabach covers College Sports for ESPN Men’s Basketball and FOOTBALL. Note, if you will what he is talking about today please Chipper ?
QUOTE :
Updated: Feb. 21, 2007, 1:39 PM ET
Bulldogs expect to see improved Stafford in 2007
By Mark Schlabach
ESPN.com
A year ago, when quarterback Matthew Stafford should have been preparing for his senior prom at Highland Park High School in Dallas, he was trying to navigate his way through Georgia’s playbook and mat drills, the team’s rigorous offseason conditioning program.
“It was tough coming in here within a month and a half of leaving high school,” Stafford, who graduated high school early, said. “It was hard going right out and competing on the field.”
It was much more difficult for Stafford when the Bulldogs actually started playing games last season. The former prep All-American, who as a senior led Highland Park to its first Texas state football championship in 48 years, couldn’t lead Georgia to victories over Vanderbilt and Kentucky in 2006.
Kevin C. Cox/WireImage.com
Matthew Stafford led Georgia to wins in four of its final six games in 2006. After replacing injured starter Joe Tereshinski III in the Bulldogs’ second game, Stafford won his first two college starts. But when Georgia faced the meat of its schedule in the rugged SEC, Stafford struggled mightily.
The Bulldogs lost four times in a five-game stretch after their 5-0 start, including humbling losses to the Commodores and Wildcats. Stafford twice lost his starting job — first to redshirt freshman Joe Cox, who came off the bench to lead the Bulldogs to a 14-13 win over Colorado and started the following week at Ole Miss, and then to Tereshinski, who returned to start in losses to Tennessee and Vanderbilt.
“I learned you can’t take any team for granted,” Stafford said. “I learned you’ve got to prepare like you’re the starter, whether you’re the backup or not. You’ve got to get your team ready to play every week.”
The Bulldogs hope Stafford’s baptism under fire in 2006 will pay big dividends this season. After winning the starting job for good after the 24-22 loss to Vanderbilt, a team the Bulldogs had beaten 11 straight times, Stafford led Georgia to victories in four of its last six games. That winning stretch included a hat trick against ranked opponents to finish the season: 37-15 at then-No. 5 Auburn, 15-12 over No. 16 Georgia Tech and 31-24 over No. 19 Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
Against the Yellow Jackets, Stafford threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Mohamed Massaquoi with 1:45 left to give the Bulldogs their sixth consecutive victory over their in-state rivals. In the Chick-fil-A Bowl, Stafford rallied Georgia to 28 consecutive points in the second half to wipe out a 21-3 deficit against the Hokies.
“It was huge for us, especially with the way we won those games,” Stafford said. “We went into Auburn and dominated, had the game-winning drive and stop against Georgia Tech and then had a full-fledged comeback against Virginia Tech. It’s definitely something that helped our confidence and gets us excited about next year.”
The Bulldogs are excited about this season because Stafford grew up a lot as a freshman. The strong-armed Texan finished 2006 with modest production — he completed 52.7 percent of his passes and threw nearly twice as many interceptions (13) as touchdowns (seven) — but his decision-making and knowledge of the offense were markedly better at the end of the season.
“I think it’s something a lot of young quarterbacks go through,” Stafford said. “It was a tough run for a while, but you’ve got to show you can bounce back and stay confident. I was able to keep my confidence.”
Stafford will have to be confident this season, as Georgia tries to keep pace with defending national champion Florida, Tennessee and improving South Carolina in the SEC East. The Bulldogs must replace three starting offensive linemen and tight end Martrez Milner, the team’s leading receiver. Seven signees enrolled early, including a pair of juco offensive linemen.
With even bigger losses on defense, including ends Charles Johnson and Quentin Moses and linebacker Tony Taylor, Georgia’s offense has to improve. The Bulldogs ranked 79th in Division I-A in passing last season with 184.4 yards per game and 90th in total offense with 311.8 yards per game.
Stafford wasn’t the only one to blame for Georgia’s struggles last season. Bulldogs receivers dropped far too many passes, and their quarterbacks were sacked 33 times. Worse, Georgia ranked 68th nationally in turnover margin, losing 15 fumbles and throwing 16 interceptions.
Massaquoi, who caught 30 passes and two touchdowns last season, said the team’s receivers struggled adjusting to the velocity of Stafford’s passes early in the season.
“It’s not an excuse,” Massaquoi said. “When it comes down to it, if a guy is putting the ball where it needs to be, you’ve got to catch it. He has a very strong arm, but he’s not one of those guys that just tries to impress people with his arm strength. He tries to put touch on the ball, too.”
Stafford’s improved play late in the season came after Bulldogs coach Mark Richt relinquished play calling. A longtime offensive coordinator at Florida State, where he coached Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke, Richt called offensive plays during his first five seasons as Georgia’s coach. But before the Georgia Tech game, Richt gave those duties to quarterbacks coach Mike Bobo. Richt named Bobo the team’s permanent offensive coordinator before the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
“I’m really confident with him,” Stafford said of Bobo. “I think he’s got a great mind and I’m just looking forward to the years to come. I’m excited about working with him and bouncing ideas off each other.”
Massaquoi said the Bulldogs are excited to see what their quarterback will do in his second season, too.
“As last year progressed, he was getting more and more confident,” Massaquoi said. “He’s just one of those guys that’s a natural born leader and he commands everyone’s respect. His talent shows on the field. He hasn’t reached the surface yet; I think he’s barely scratched it.”
Mark Schlabach covers college football and men’s college basketball for ESPN.com. You can contact him at schlabachma@yahoo.com.
END QUOTE
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By Hunk Erdown
February 23, 2007 08:18 AM | Link to this
Two words tell the story of why Danny Ware is no longer a Georgia Bulldog. You would have to be a insider to know. You would have to have been at practices last year to hear the ooohs and aaaahs and to see the evidence of why Ware knows he has a better chance of making an NFL squad than returning as a starter at his own home University. Those two words are Knowshun Moreno. A lot of people know that Moreno is a talented running back but nobody knew he would be as good as he is going to be. The secret will be out of the bag soon enough, but it was truly told when Danny Ware saw the young stud making incredible runs last year during scrimmages… so incredible that Ware knew that he has seen his 15 minutes of fame in College ball and the spotlight will soon shift. Good Luck Danny, make way for a true star, and the star is not Caleb King… not yet.
By JERSEY DAWG
February 23, 2007 08:39 AM | Link to this
HUNK ERDOWN RIGHT ON THATS WHAT I HAVE BEEN SAYING SINCE HE SIGHNED LAST YEAR, THE HS TEAMS HE PLAYED AGAINST AND AMASSED GREAT NUMBERS WERE ALMOST LIKE PLAYING AGAINST JCOS! IF HE DOES AS GREAT AS I KNOW HE WILL WE SHOULD TAKE LONG LOOKS AT NJ PLAYERS A GREAT STATE FOR HS SPORTS. THAT WAS THE PROBLEM WITH MY ALMA MATER RUTGERS EVERYONE WAS STEALING THE GREAT PLAYERS FROM JERSEY NOT NO MORE!
By Chip Towers
February 23, 2007 10:38 AM | Link to this
BuLLDawg, as always, thanks for your suggestions. But in the future, if there’s a story you want everyone to read, please list only a link to it and not the whole story… . And, for what it’s worth, it was a nice little feature but not Mark Schlabach’s “best piece ever.” Mark is a real good friend of mine and I can promise you he would disagree that it was his best piece ever… . We’ve written many pieces on Stafford and will write many more between now and the end of his career.
By Chip Towers
February 23, 2007 10:50 AM | Link to this
Rutledge 84,
Vanderbilt has beaten Kentucky three times in a row and gets the Cats Saturday in Nashville. That’s a recent phenomenon, though. The Commodores had never beaten UK in Rupp until last season and had lost all but two games since 1956 before that… . Actually Vandy and Georgia both have won five against UK from 2002 through this season. The Dogs won four of six from 2002-2004, then the one this year.
By Chip Towers
February 23, 2007 10:50 AM | Link to this
Rutledge 84,
Vanderbilt has beaten Kentucky three times in a row and gets the Cats Saturday in Nashville. That’s a recent phenomenon, though. The Commodores had never beaten UK in Rupp until last season and had lost all but two games since 1956 before that… . Actually Vandy and Georgia both have won five against UK from 2002 through this season. The Dogs won four of six from 2002-2004, then the one this year.
By pj
February 23, 2007 10:51 AM | Link to this
yeah, how was that a “best ever” story? It was a factual based article with alot of stats and quotes. I could have done that. YOU could have done that. I like him as a writer, but that was just a summary/look forward.
I hate cliches, but this Saturday is a MUST WIN. I think they can do it with the lift from the crowd. I’ve been to alot of home games this year, and the young guys seem to feed off support and the noise at Steg seems to help them with their on the ball defense.
Go Dawgs!
By AltamahaDawg
February 23, 2007 12:26 PM | Link to this
Congrats BullDawg, Cutting and pasting somebody else was YOUR best article ever.
By AltamahaDawg
February 23, 2007 12:39 PM | Link to this
Not to pick, but there were at least blatent misrepresentations in that article. Did anyone else see them?
By ConyersDawg
February 23, 2007 02:00 PM | Link to this
Always altmaha! Mr. know it all BuLLDawg who is still upset he predicted Stafford red-shirt still loves to come in here and post links most of us have read.
Billy and Woodburry are going to have to play better defense and help offensively.
By matt
February 23, 2007 02:08 PM | Link to this
Just beat UF. For the love of God, just beat UF!