UGA

By NC

August 10, 2007 2:50 PM | Link to this

dogs seem to be NC every year…just ask one!

By mdbatl

August 10, 2007 2:57 PM | Link to this

The weird thing was that before Mandel did this, me and my friends (in a day of sheer boredom) sat in my dorm room and attempted to rank all-time college football programs. Georgia ended up somewhere just outside the top 10.

I agree with Mandel that Georgia doesn’t have the large national fan following that ND, USC, or even Penn State have. Our fan base has always seemed to be nearby, with the majority of fans outside the South being transplanted grads or Georgians, people with some connection to the team or the school.

I agree with you Chip though, on the fact that our team has been one of the alltime best programs. All the reasons mentioned above are the reasons why Georgia is one of the elite in college football, even if if the national media fails to see that.

One more thing- Mandel claimed that 100 “average” college football fans from Montana wouldn’t be able to immediately recognized the Georgia “G.” What’s up with that? We’re on national TV 4 or 5 times even during an average season, like last year’s. Unless the fans in question don’t have basic cable, its pretty much impossible that an interested college football fan wouldn’t see Georgia at least once. I don’t know what Mandel was thinking there.

By Spike

August 10, 2007 3:00 PM | Link to this

Chip… Good points. I honestly don’t think most of us really care what that knucklehead thinks. Didn’tt he pick Penn State over us? With their record the last few years? That is a joke right?

By JB

August 10, 2007 3:07 PM | Link to this

NC, I’ll assume you are a TECHIE. At least our AD didn’t tell the world that 7 or 8 wins is damn good and Tech people really shouldn’t expect much more than that. I know , he is now gone, But Georgia has a good football program ( and a young one ) and I think in the next couple of years you’ll see how good they are, and you will find some place else to Blog.

By animaldr

August 10, 2007 3:08 PM | Link to this

Chip- good job! I was thinking along the same lines:

UGA at the TOP

National Champions (1942,1980) 11th in All Time Victories (702) 13th in Winning Percentage 6th All time with 42 bowl appearances 3rd in SEC Championships SI’s #2 College Sports Town

16 10-Win seasons (10th nationally)tied with Ohio State, one more than Notre Dame, 6 more than Florida.

5th in attendance nationally (2nd in the SEC)

This guy does not have a clue.

GT is getting hit with injuries- where do the dogs stand?

By Scott

August 10, 2007 3:16 PM | Link to this

HEY CHIP, GOOD LOOKING OUT FOR THE DAWGS. THANKS FROM THE ENTIRE DAWG NATION.

By Buck in the NW

August 10, 2007 3:18 PM | Link to this

CHIP, I SENT MANDELL A QUESTION AND I’LL BET HE DOESN’T ANSWER IT OR FIND A WAY TO WALK AROUND IT.

By Scott

August 10, 2007 3:19 PM | Link to this

GOOD J0B CHIP. THANKS FOR STANDING UP FOR THE DAWGS……..

By YANKEEAWG

August 10, 2007 3:33 PM | Link to this

CFN HAS POSTED UGA HAS THREE REDSHIRT FRESHMAN WHO WILL MAKE AN IMPACT THIS YEAR, KNOWSHON MORENO,CHRIS DAVIS,RESHAD JONES,

By braveswin

August 10, 2007 3:35 PM | Link to this

don’t know what the CNNSI(SSY) was basing his rant on but there are easily 6 SEC teams that are elite by any measure UGA,FLA,TN,LSU,Ala and AUB.There is not a team in the country that would see these teams as a win when their schedule came out.Most of the “national” media types love to suck up to the Notre Dame-Mich and penn state-ohio state types- None of which have winning records against SEC teams.

By RT

August 10, 2007 3:36 PM | Link to this

Mandel is wrong UGA is a top tier program and I’m a Tech fan. Can’t argue with the facts

By gator the dog catcher

August 10, 2007 3:37 PM | Link to this

I tell you what Chip. If you argue loud enough they might change their minds about UGAY being a top tier program. Every school could argue that their program is better than the next, but it is more about how the unbiased outsiders view your program.

Also Alabama, Georgia Tech, Miami etc. all claim split national championships, not 1/5 National Championships like some UGAY fans do. When there were 4 or 5 polls back in the old days, and one poll votes you National Champion it does not, and did not count as a National Championship. 1/4 or 1/5 does not equal 1/2. 1/2 has long been considered a national championship…….but its better when you can just outright win the BCS title game.

By Jamal

August 10, 2007 3:39 PM | Link to this

Who cares what this guy thinks? That’s like taking to heart what Athlon Sports rankings. It doesn’t matter!! Go Dawgs

By Stephen M

August 10, 2007 3:39 PM | Link to this

By Mandel’s own standards I don’t see how he rates Florida as a “King” because they were irrelevant before Spurrier.

By Franklin

August 10, 2007 3:48 PM | Link to this

And UGA touts the highest same sex “spooning” rates in the nation.

I’m sure that Stafford says go dogs to his backup (J. Cox) frequently…

Can’t wait until the beatdown in J’ville!!!

UF…Defending NCAA Div 1 Football & Basketball Champions!

By rdbdawg

August 10, 2007 3:49 PM | Link to this

you can’t tell me that if you were to hold up a UGA football helmet anywhere in this country that most people couldn’t tell you which team it belonged to….that’s BS

By Franklin

August 10, 2007 3:51 PM | Link to this

Are you not a homer Chip? Did you not used to live in Athens?

Not that it matters. No one could possibly blame you for being a “homer”

By cw

August 10, 2007 3:53 PM | Link to this

As the Bear would say, “When you get into the endzone, don’t act like it is your first time.” So dog fans, as you continue to build your program around a great young coach, hopefully you don’t need an article (from a uga homer)to support your case. Support your case on the field.

By shane

August 10, 2007 3:55 PM | Link to this

chip,i agree with you,but good luck convincing the national media. just look at the usa today coaches poll. uf won it all last year,going 13 and 1,michigan goes ten and two,yet uf comes in at no 3 in the poll,mich at no 5. notre dame hasn’t won squat in years,plays an easy schedule,gets killed by lsu in their bowl game,yet is considered one of the “elite”. what a joke! usc is loaded,getting the best talent in the west,they don’t have to compete for recruits the way the sec teams do,so they probably deserve the no 1 ranking,but the big “11” should be called the big “2”. team per team,there is no doubt the sec is the best conference in the country.

By georgiagirl

August 10, 2007 4:02 PM | Link to this

Gator the dog catcher, since you are always calling us UGAY on a UGA blog, I guess you are really telling us that you are GAYGATOR. There really is a GATOR BLOG out there, be our guess and go there. Because there’s nothing wrong with the DAWGS NATION AND US LOVING OUR GREAT TEAM. GO DAWGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE WILL SEE WHO WINS WHEN THE CLOCK RUN DOWN IN OCTOBER.

By Steeledawg

August 10, 2007 4:03 PM | Link to this

I say this as a UGA alum, season ticket holder, and life long fan. I don’t think that if you asked the random guy on the street in Montana, Manhattan, or Alaska off the top of his head what teams immediately come to mind when he thinks of college football that UGA would come to mind. I think the knowledgeable football fan knows what’s up, but not the average joe.

I attribute this to lack of a national scheduling, lack of championships until recently, and lack of major superstars a la Reggie Bush, Vince Young, etc. However, we may have one in Stafford before it is all over. I do think that UGA’s profile is on the rise and in 10 years if this survey was revisited we may see different results.

By godawg

August 10, 2007 4:05 PM | Link to this

Question: What does a maggot and an Alabama fan have in common?

Answer: They can both live for years off a dead bear.

By lawdawg

August 10, 2007 4:07 PM | Link to this

All of these statistics are good points when considering whether or not UGA is a national power, and they obviously answer that question in the affirmtive. To me, the icing on the cake is that Stewie’s own magazine, SI, chose Uga as the country’s #1 mascot a few years ago and put a huge picture of him on the front of that issue. If that’s not national prominence, I don’t know what is.

By TampaDawg

August 10, 2007 4:13 PM | Link to this

Maybe Stewert Mandel should have had Wheaties for breakfast. They thought enough of Mark Richt to put his face on the cereal box last year. Two other schools got wheaties boxes - ND and Michigan - but neither coach (or mascot) got on the box.

By shane

August 10, 2007 4:14 PM | Link to this

hey dogcatcher,why do you fla. guys come to the uga site everyday to brag about beating a “second tier” team? do you go on the kentucky or ole miss sites and talk smack to them? your attitude tells me more than the words you use. on second thought,you probably do,a guy with your lack of sportsmanship and lack of class probably goes on ucf’s site and makes fun of them.

By JD

August 10, 2007 4:19 PM | Link to this

Like dude said…Who cares what this guy thinks!!

By UGA=Regional Power

August 10, 2007 4:20 PM | Link to this

Do you bulldog fans ever get tired of saying stuff like “WE WILL SEE WHO WINS WHEN THE CLOCK RUN DOWN IN OCTOBER.” and being wrong?

Seriously its said EVERY year. You dont even realize when you say things like that people laugh at you the same way you laugh at the nerds when they say something similar to you.

I would think you would have learned better by now. No wonder outsiders in the National Media thinks your fanbase is nuts and have a higher opinion of where you really stand on college football map.

And if you held up your helmet to some guy in Montana he would ask when the Packers chnaged their colors to red and black.

By lawdawg

August 10, 2007 4:24 PM | Link to this

And I forgot about the Wheaties box. The faces of your program on Wheaties boxes and Sports Illustrated = top tier.

By Carlton Powell

August 10, 2007 4:30 PM | Link to this

Please remember that the majority of these “national” writers come from the east and midwest, complete with all their prejudices concerning college football. A perfect season for them is a NC game with Army vs. Notre Dame. Got news for them; it ain’t gonna happen. NO ONE should pay any attention to Stewie Mandel or ESPN for that matter. Trut me, MANY teams and programs would cut off their collective right arms to have the history UGA has.

By 2N4YEARS

August 10, 2007 4:35 PM | Link to this

gator the dog catcher : After a NC last year one would think that UGA having MORE SEC Victories than the FLA Crocodiles and owning the WIN/LOSS record over the FLA Crocodiles wouldn’t bother a Croc so much. Guess not.

CHIP, interesting FACTS there. Truth is, WE DAWGS love our program and what it stands for. I’m with the one that says ‘who cares’ what someone else thinks??

By ConyersDawg

August 10, 2007 4:37 PM | Link to this

That report got under my skin a little bit.

mdbatl there are ugaclubs and Ga fans all across the country. I have friends in Calf. and he gets with dawg fans all the time.

You can go anywhere in the country and feel like your going to see someone wearing dawg gear even if they don’t know who they are.

By ActuaryDawg

August 10, 2007 4:41 PM | Link to this

Chip, if you ARE ever in a bar arguing this with Mandel, please don’t take any of UGA players in there with you.

By Tracy

August 10, 2007 4:48 PM | Link to this

I would bet good money 50% (conservative) of ND fan’s have no idea what town that college is in. I bet the % for Michigan and USC are not that far behind….

Are those really considered fans?

By TampaDawg

August 10, 2007 4:51 PM | Link to this

This is lifted directly from the General Mills press release (9/15/06) Tradition is defined as “the handing down of beliefs, legends, and customs from generation to generation,” and over the past century, all three celebrated schools have built a profound legacy around college football, putting their stake in the ground for generations to come. University of Georgia teams have been recognized as national champions five times (1927, 1942, 1946, 1968 and 1980) throughout history. In addition, the Bulldogs have earned the sixth-most bowl invitations in the history of college football and boasted two Heisman Trophy winners. The University of Georgia package features Head Coach Mark Richt on the front of the box and famed Bulldog mascot UGA on the back bottom right corner, while both the Wolverines and the Fighting Irish packages feature an image of the football stadium on front and the pep band on the back bottom right corner of the box.

“This is a tremendous tribute to an esteemed program that has been successfully built over generations.” said Mark Richt, the famed Georgia Bulldogs Head Coach who led Georgia to three SEC Eastern Division titles in the last five years. “We are thrilled to be featured on the Wheaties box, and I personally am proud as Head Coach to share this honor with my family, the school and program supporters.”

By JMDawg

August 10, 2007 5:04 PM | Link to this

Mandel’s column was bizarre to say the least. It almost seemed like he was trying to bait Georgia fans. There is no logical explanation for Georgia not being considered a top-tier program. Even Mandel didn’t have one, instead giving some long-winded, tortured drivel of how Georgia just doesn’t have “it”. I felt a lot dumber for reading the article.

By Carter Strickland

August 10, 2007 5:13 PM | Link to this

Quick hits from practice. Chester Adams was on one crutch and just watched the tail end of the first part of practice. Tight end Tripp Chandler, wide receiver Mikey Henderson, cornerback Bryan Evans and defensive tackle Brandon Wood were a few of the other players in green. All four were in full pads and went through limited drills at the start of practice. The players seemed slightly refreshed after having the evening off yesterday. First Richt allowed them to go swimming and then he showed them his first big screen debut, Facing the Giants.’’ Apparently Brandon Coutu found time to get a Mohawk haircut. He claimed he did it for the aerodynamics.I feel faster,’’ he joked. Most of the work on the upper field was on forming and busting the wedge on kickoff returns. John Knox was not out at practice. But he cannot be in pads anyway. Knox has a NCAA required waiting period before he puts the pads on.

By joe

August 10, 2007 5:20 PM | Link to this

All Stewie was saying was UGA is not among the top 13 based on history and tradition. Had he expanded to 15 or so, they’d probably be in it. No slight to UGA, the fact that they are as close as can be to that group should be viewed as a good thing, not p** ya’ll off as it has…lighten up, kickoff is only 3 weeks away and all this stupid talk will be history. Woof…

By SeattleDawg

August 10, 2007 5:26 PM | Link to this

Top Tier? It would be hard to get a national consensus for Georgia to be ranked as top 10 among all football college programs. But Mandel had 13 in his top, and Chip’s stats definitely put us there. Mandel’s top tier had AL, FL, TN, Miami, and Penn State—not UGA. Even worse, our “2nd tier” peers include Clemson, CO, WA, WI, and Texas A&M.

By Jeff D

August 10, 2007 5:26 PM | Link to this

Great points Chip, I think Stewart got what he wanted, firing up a fan base and getting on sports talk radio as well as hits on the cnnsi website. Any college football fan would recognize a Georgia helmet with so many tv games in additon to the coverage on college football gameday regarding UGA football…..he specified fan, not joe schmo in Reno or Sioux Falls. I lived in southern California from 2001-2005 and was a member of the socaldawgs, we had up to 150 plus folks meeting at a bar in the morning to watch the Dawgs, we are everywhere. Great Job again Chip, see you in St Simon’s.

By Ed

August 10, 2007 5:27 PM | Link to this

My favorite part about the Mandel article is when he named Florida as one of the top programs. Granted, what the Gators have done since 1990 is very impressive, but is this the same Florida program that went 58 years without even winning a CONFERENCE title? Prior to 1990, only Vandy had that in common with Florida.

It will take quite a bit little longer than 17 years to erase that history and make UF a program worthy of mention with the USC, Notre Dames and Alabamas of the college football world. Or even Georgia or Tennessee within the conference for that matter.

Mandel must be about 25 years old to have that perspective. I remember well the year Florida went 0-10-1 (1979 - they tied Tech that year).

By jecorey901

August 10, 2007 5:28 PM | Link to this

Why do the florida people continue to come to our blog? Get a life. I just come to this site to read about the Dawgs and I keep seeing florida people on here. Yes, You did win 2 NC in the same year whop-de-damn-do. Get on your own damn site. GO DAWGS

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 10, 2007 5:40 PM | Link to this

No biggy about mandel…might be good for the bulletin board.

He orginally responded to some deranged(claiming to be a dawg) fan who asked him if he thought we should get rid of Richt because he/we hadn’t won a NC yet. This ? was in his previos weeks mailbag. His response to that ? was what started the whole thing. Mandel is a big ten graduate and he doesn’t feel we have the same cache as others. He might be right in that the explosion of coverage and televised games really got going in the late 80’s and 90’s when quite frankly we goff-awful stunk. I think mandel’s points are clearly subjective and off-base about the average football fan recognizing our team logo, mascot, and big-time names. However, if you did ask those 100 Montana folks to list the top programs of all time, most probably wouldn’t list UGA. Just my opinion. I’m a Homer.

Living in OU country, the natives do know about and can name famous Dawgs, UGA, and even recognize our helmet. However, my feeling in talking football with many of of the Okies is that most would agree with mandel. I’m of the opinion that this is a good year to show the Okies and others what football is about…say Sept 1.

Go Dawgs!!!

By dc dawg

August 10, 2007 5:43 PM | Link to this

i agree with a few of the previous posts. i do believe that if you look at the past 30 years you would have to rank us somewhere 8-12 top programs which would fall in that range, but i think the reason we havent is because of coach richt. its not bad though, he believes in the team and not individual accolades. its why we have running back by committee, freshman quarterbacks, we dont run up the score, etc. we just care about wins and it doesnt matter who does it. if we were to have had 1 or 2 serious heisman candidates over the past five years we would have been on that list. look at the number of dawgs in the nfl though!!! right up there with the best of the best.

By Dorsey Hill

August 10, 2007 6:04 PM | Link to this

FU UF!

By sobedawg

August 10, 2007 6:09 PM | Link to this

Florida better not be in the 1st tier…they didn’t do SQUAT before Spurrier got there…just decades of “average teams” and 1 glorious Emmitt Smith…SobeDawg

By Buck in the NW

August 10, 2007 6:10 PM | Link to this

Don’t let the Reptiles worry us. What year did the Reptiles lose to us and still win the SEC? Lett’un keep on blabbering. They can’t win with class so keep talking. The Reptiles on this blog are right about one thing and that is they have beat us on the field. They have completely missed what’s happened in Athens over the last year so keep on yapping and we’ll see Oct. 27th.

By Kevin T., Valdosta, GA

August 10, 2007 6:24 PM | Link to this

You are right on the money Chip. You do not put up numbers like UGA has and be considered a Second levl program. Here is one more fact, UGA has played in more diffirent bowl games than any college football team. In the last decade we have been to a bowl game every year, and have posted the best record over that span, 8-2, then any team in the country. If you were to check I believe the only teams with more wins then the DAWGS over the last 10 years are Ohio St.(97), Texas(98), and Boise St. (97)., UGA is at 96 and 30. Thats not too bad. The mighty Trojans have only won 90 in that time. SO that old boy at CNN can put that in his pipe and smoke it. Good thing I only watch FOX news! GO DAWGS, Only 22 days.

By JStett33GT

August 10, 2007 6:28 PM | Link to this

Is Chip Towers implying Alabama and Georgia Tech lie about their history and the amount of Championships? Sounds to me like Chip is jealous because Georgia is lacking in the national championship department. Jealousy and Slander, yet Chip Towers still has a job with the AJC(Athens Journal Constitution)writing staff. STAY CLASSY CHIP TOWERS!

By AltamahaDawg

August 10, 2007 6:30 PM | Link to this

Its not a matter of insulted or bragging. Who cares. I dont even argue with most of the schools , just that its possible to even rank such things? Its just not a logical argument. The average fan in Monatana must not watch much NFL either if he wouldn’t be familar with UGA. I think they DO know what the “G” stand for. Frankly its not that big of a deal to know that. Not even really anything to brag about. The thing that caught my attention is that he claims they WOULD know rockytop and the checkered endzone? really? really? based on what? Not picking on TN, I think the average fan in anywhere should know about them, as well as most SEC teams. To say the many players and history of UGA, not to mention mascot, are not recognizable just doesnt really hold up. Then recognizing Alabama (from waaaaaaaay back) and Uf from recent years in the same explaination? But we dont get to count either past OR present?

By UGA_SEC_CHAMPS

August 10, 2007 6:30 PM | Link to this

Great non biased report. I like it when the facts speak for them self, and even better when its good news about my DAWGS!!

By Ft Worth Dawg

August 10, 2007 6:35 PM | Link to this

Don’t forget 2 Heisman trophies, and the #1 all-time best college running back in Herschel Walker. If your standard is recognition of the “G” on the helmet fo you factor in that most people outside of the South are going to say Green Bay Packers?

By Matt

August 10, 2007 6:53 PM | Link to this

Oh god who cares what pencil neck media geeks like Mandel think. Even if we win 4 national titles in a row the only way to go would be down. The haters would have plenty to jaw about if we lost 2 games. Haters will be haters. Pencil neck media geeks will be pencil neck media geeks. No amount of wins and national titles will change it. I swear college football fans are the most insecure fans in sports. Always worried about their image and prestige. I give a rat’s *. Just win the damn games.

By jrmdvm1

August 10, 2007 7:03 PM | Link to this

I wish someone would ( could ) give me the authority to moderate this blog. How many days since the ” let’s keep it about football ” message from Chip? If it were up to me, any post containing references to “spooning” and “Gay”, and any with personal attacks would be deleted as soon as possible.

By Goodoledawg

August 10, 2007 7:07 PM | Link to this

Hey Stewie, what conference has the most national titles since 1950?

By Georgia=Regional power

August 10, 2007 7:58 PM | Link to this

2N4Years It doesnt bother UF about UGA having MORE SEC Victories than the FLA and owning the WIN/LOSS record over the FLA . In fact UGA fans are the only ones who ever bring it up to make your crybabies feel better about being owned by Florida.

Besides that series record you talk about…you have to be a Dawg over 50 to have a winning record vs. UF in your lifetime. BEsides UT owns the “series record” vs. UGA but for some reason you morons still try and talk smack to them even in the year they laid a whipping on you

Whats even funnier is the crying here by you people about UF being a National Power because by your definition you guys qualify as a “national power” the same way Army and Princeton and Yale do since they have as much “history” and “tradition as UGA does.

You people are such babies about Florida owning you its hilarious. Your post here reek of such jealousy and is one of the reasons an outsider like Mandel was driven to put you people in your place.

By TDone

August 10, 2007 8:02 PM | Link to this

The reason why the Mutters are not a top tier program is that they don’t play a national schedule. Schedule home and home again Southern Cal, Michigan, Penn State, etc… like the rest of the SEC does. Until they do, no one will respect you.

By NASCARfan

August 10, 2007 8:17 PM | Link to this

Umm, retard, we WANT to play Michigan. But the big babies won’t play us Home and Home. They want to play us twice at their house. They don’t want to come down to the big, bad SEC.

By AltamahaDawg

August 10, 2007 8:25 PM | Link to this

And yet, for some reason you are so facinated with us, you cant help but waste your time posting in our blog. Go figure. “morons” huh? Boy you never can get enough of that, it just so damn clever.

By hjjh

August 10, 2007 8:50 PM | Link to this

Well said Chip.

By John Bales

August 10, 2007 8:51 PM | Link to this

In Montana, I bet more people think that G is for Grambling than UGAG.

By cdawg

August 10, 2007 9:08 PM | Link to this

Hey Georgia=Regioanl power let me explain how history works BOY!!!! 50 yrs from now no one is going to judge Florida or anyone elses run in the last 5,10,15,20,etc etc yrs.The only thing that will matter is history, and when history shows that Gerogia has a winning record against Florida or Usc has a winning record against Notre Dame or any other major match up they wil simply go on stats…THATS THE WAY THE WORLD WORKS ITS BASED ON HISTORY….So when we still own that record in 50 yrs from now just remember one thing we will always… AND I MEAN ALWAYS OWN YOU….Look up Vince Dooleys all time record against the Jean shorts and you will see his success….What gos around comes around we still own you always have and always will…Finally to qoute Vince Dooley when asked why he had graet success aginst the reptiles he said”Florida always had more talent than us,but are players wanted it more and they were better coached…So enjoy Tim Teblow this year ill be watching everygame cant wait see that little rah rah punk get his head ripped off…SIGNED DAWG NATION

By Hunk Erdown

August 10, 2007 9:19 PM | Link to this

It is amusing that Mandel doesn’t want to be bothered with things like facts, statistics, etc. but insists on the “Montana test”… Montana, you know, where if sheep could talk it would wreck homes all over the state, and “civil unions” would take on a whole new genre.

I also love when morons who think UGA is so insignificant just can’t help but spend so much of their time on our blog, saying things about our lack of scheduling top teams when it is a fact that we have tried over and over but the other teams decline.

Out of the top 2 tiers, there are 23 teams, 3 of them we play every year- Fla, Tenn, and Auburn. Three others we have rich history of very regular match ups- Ala, Clemson, and LSU. Six of twenty three are either now or in the past have been rivals. how many other teams in those tiers can say that?

Montana???

Ask Texas if they know us? Matt Stafford.

Ask Missouri if they know us? Logan Grey.

Ask New Jersey? Knowshon Moreno.

But those are only facts, and that doesn’t matter in Montana, where the men are men and the livestock are co-eds.

By Hunk Erdown

August 10, 2007 9:34 PM | Link to this

Carter-

Nice report. One of the things that, imo, is going to be really important are the kick offs… both sides. With the new rule on backing up the yardage on kick offs, coverage will be crucial. I am very glad that UGA has always made sure that coverage and returns are practiced so heavily. I have a feeling that we will score on a few runbacks this year and it may be that the new rule leads to a lot of high scoring games, with the difference it could and will make in field position. We just have to cover well and keep our opponents to only one kick off per game.

By Boots

August 10, 2007 10:04 PM | Link to this

Other points: size of football stadiums has GA the #6 sized stadium and is almost always ranked in top 10 for atmosphere. (ESPN has Sanford Stadium 9.) UGA is the BEST mascot in college football. Everyone on this blog knows why. For number of NFL players, Wall Street Journal has UGA number 3, including three Super Bowl MVPs, the most in NFL history from same school. Finally, prettiest women - UGA hands down!!!

Hunk Erdown & animaldr - what did you guys think of my suggestion that Coach Richt thrown Carter Strickland off the dive platform next time to get the players fired up? Having worked in the Poultry business for a long time and majoring in Poultry Sciences back in the 80s, I use Carter’s articles in my chicken houses to cover up the droppings.

By Boots

August 10, 2007 10:05 PM | Link to this

Oh, how many people in Georgia know what the Montana football helmet looks like?

By Hunk Erdown

August 10, 2007 10:31 PM | Link to this

Boots

It is my opinion that Carter Strickland is at least partially playing an antagonistic role on behalf of the AJC in some twisted scheme of trying to increase readership and internet hits. I hate it. I think there are much better ways of marketing that the AJC could employ.

What I hate about it the most is that Mr. Strickland is very talented. Do a search on something called “Season of Reflection”. Absolutely fantastic work, even won a pretty prestigious award from the Associated Press Sports Editors organization.

He was beloved at Washington State for his coverage. I certainly wish he would embrace our Dawgs and The Nation with the same fervor that he had up there, even if the coverage is “non-homeristic”. He has proven that he is capable of much better than we normally get, and sometimes we get a glimpse of how good he could be.

Besides all that, the man did me a solid and I owe him a cold beer that I hope to buy this fall.

By AltamahaDawg

August 10, 2007 10:50 PM | Link to this

HunkErdown, didnt realize that deal got so serious. Water under the bridge I hope.

I agree, he is definetely the designated bad cop at times. Some of those snide remarks are so calculated, so obvious, they are unquestionable made for the purpose of drawing fire, and not so much (IMO) his personal views.

By RedDawg

August 10, 2007 11:09 PM | Link to this

From Baghdad to Mr Mandel Mandel is 100% wrong, Tennessee and Florida are national powers while Georgia is not!!! how ridiculous!! Florida needs 10 more wins over Georgia to tie the series!!! take the spurrier era from Florida and they are not much different from mississippi state. The red helmet with a G on it is as famous as the statue of liberty Mandel have Georgia, Clemson, Wisconsin and Texas A&M in the same category! I wonder what type of cracks you are smoking Mr Mandel, look at history and present, look at total wins and post season games! Georgia is definitely a top program that doesn’t get the love it deserves from the media

By DawgFAN

August 10, 2007 11:29 PM | Link to this

how saw the clip on channel 46 news of the 2 tech players in the ice bath together it doesnt get gayer than that Go Dawgs! Woof Woof Woof!

By yellowblood

August 10, 2007 11:39 PM | Link to this

What a crock ! Why don’t you move to Athens and start your own paper. These gasbags don’t need you. They manufacture their own B.S. In 23 days, reality sets in for “Bulldog Imagination”. By Sept 15 we will see the usual half-baked results.

By Hunk Erdown

August 10, 2007 11:43 PM | Link to this

AltamahaDawg

Definately water under the bridge. He welcomes me to be as critical as I feel like, but there are lines that we need not cross. I just had to be reminded of that.

By Mike

August 10, 2007 11:53 PM | Link to this

In order to be considered top-tier you should, well, win it all. Considering UGA hasn’t won it all in any of its undergrad’s lifetimes, it is not surprising they are considered second-tier.

By Gen Neyland

August 10, 2007 11:53 PM | Link to this

gtdc

Lawdy ol’ son, you done POed a COed…

godawg

You love Red Elephants, too..?

History (from above)

Where is UF in article B and article D..? History is a great teacher which bears no fruit on our tomorrow’s, especially in football…See Alabama. Those of us who type slants on football history are not reading it well. Just the parts that have a feel good component.

# 39

Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio..?

By Boots

August 11, 2007 12:03 AM | Link to this

Ok, I will lay off Carter. Whatever. Sounds to me like he is a good reporter, but I am just left wondering what he has to gain by hyping up silly college goofs by 18 year old athletes.

By shane

August 11, 2007 12:04 AM | Link to this

atlantagator,please excuse me,this remark is not directed at you or most uf fans. it is directed at the idiots on this blog. you gators that come on this blog and run us down have no class. you are right up there with the punks that threw trash and bottles at our tour bus leaving the gator bowl a few years ago. that was after you WON. i for one will never buy a ticket for a home and home with uf in the swamp,and as a booster i will use all the resources at hand to see that never happens. i would have my ladyfriend and or one of my daughters with me and i would NEVER subject them to the language and possible violence that would occur with the uf fans. uf fans are widely known as the rudest in the sec and judging from this blog,your reputation for boorish behavior is well earned. it’s a shame that you moms and dads were too low class to teach you how to act.

By Boots

August 11, 2007 12:07 AM | Link to this

Mike, considering you have not been with a woman in your lifetime, what does that make you? Idiot. The argument is not over who has won the most national championships in the last 20 years, it is over the top tier programs in the country. I think your reliance upon one catagory is fairly shallow and reflects a poor perspective on college football. Check out the Living Section of the paper - probably more your thing.

By Gen Neyland

August 11, 2007 12:17 AM | Link to this

shane

Hope ya’ll that got together over a draft or two rehashed some fond memories of times gone by and of your buddy…I’ll be off to beddybye now, for as Scarlett said, ” Tomorrow’s another day .”

By NASCARfan

August 11, 2007 12:21 AM | Link to this

If Carter is some little pawn in the neferious AJC’s try to pi$$ people off to get more readers, then I still have no pity on him for letting himself get used this way.

As it is, I think he likes being a pr!ck, and that’s what I don’t like.

I don’t care if his snideness and terrible attitude is calculated to make me angry. It makes me angry because it is unprofessional, and straight up unethical if it’s all an act.

The fact is, he’s a terrible beat writer for THIS team. Let him go back to Wazzoo. I’m tired of reading about him tearing down Caleb King, or him reporting incidents involving players without presenting all of the facts or inserting a little common sense into the situation.

He deserves no quarter from those of us whom he thinks so little of, Hunk. I know you and me screwed up. I know I screwed up by jumping on the him stealing thing. I was overrun by a gleeful joy in hoping for his immediate removal. My fault.

But the fact still remains that Chip respects us (maybe not me, but he respects Bulldog Nation). Chip respects the team. Chip is a professional. Carter hasn’t been while he’s been here.

I don’t care what he did at Wazzoo. I don’t care that Andruw Jones used to be a feared hitter. He’s hitting .215 and is a rally killing, automatic out today.

That’s where I’m coming from. And Hunk, I really respect you and Altamaha and the guys I know are older than me and have been apart of the Nation longer than I’ve been alive. But I have no respect for Strickland, and that’s something he brought on himself.

But it’s amazing how Chip can be real nice and ask the trolls to stop flaming on our board, yet we still get guys like joe and the like on here with nothing better to do than tell us how much we suck.

Seriously, what kind of pitiful, miserable lives these guys must live.

By A--ville Ranger

August 11, 2007 12:23 AM | Link to this

UGA has 2 of the last 6 league titles in the toughest league in college football.We have the 3rd best record in division 1A over the past 10 years.This is a top 10 program with an opportunity to move into the top 5….Kudos to Danny Ware he had a good night running the ball for the Jets.If you see this Danny you’re a Dawg for life and I think you have a real chance to make it in the pros,hang in there.

By Hunk Erdown

August 11, 2007 12:48 AM | Link to this

Nascarfan

Please don’t get me wrong— I absolutely hate the way Carter handles his blogging and you have every right to feel how you want to. For me, personally, I just needed to tone things down for my own health’s sake and the fact that I went too far. My point was that he is capable of doing a whole lot better, proven by his past work. If he comes on here with some crap that demeans some student athelete, undeservedly, or any of the other indiscretions I’ll state my feelings on it. I’m just so sick of the whole thing that I want to spend my time on blogs and sites that actually talk football and not the childish crap that was continually being published here. The AJC don’t care if you, me, and everybody else quits tuning in to their site or they would have changed things long ago. This thing had gotten to the point that it was not worth slugging through all the manure to try and find a pony. Then Chip comes back and we get some actual news about the football team and not some lame National Enquirer wannabe crap. I have no apologies for how I felt, just the manner in which I expressed it.

By NASCARfan

August 11, 2007 12:59 AM | Link to this

Me and you both, Hunk. For your health, don’t worry about Carter’s unprofessionalism, or don’t let it get to you.

I can do enough mucking with that lowlife for the both us.

By shane

August 11, 2007 1:24 AM | Link to this

thanks general,i was so angry when i got home that i let some of it out at the uf fans on this blog. i can’t think of a better target,can you? it was such a waste. he was one of a rare breed,an expert with a shotgun,either on a dove field or a skeet range,a quiet man,an honest man,and he will surely be missed. it is sad that some casualties of war go unreported,because they happen 40 years later. we did indeed lift a toast to our friend and all others who gave so much in our service. i am going to let all this go and will be back to talking football,for as you quoted,tomorrow IS another day.

By falcon80

August 11, 2007 2:23 AM | Link to this

Huge UGA fan, but I really don’t have a problem with the Mandel column. Can’t really understand why he has UT that much ahead of UGA or AU though. My guess is the mass media orgasmation over Peyton Manning. College football has a finite number of teams that can realistically compete for the National Championship consistently. Georgia is one of those, as are at least five other SEC teams, some would even say seven. Big Ten has four, ACC three, Big Twelve maybe four, PAC 10 one. Throw in a random Lousville or WV and there you have the pool.

By A--ville Ranger

August 11, 2007 3:00 AM | Link to this

I would be interested in testing Mandle’s lame assertions.Why doesn’t the ajc send Chip to Montana with flash cards and a list of questions, recruit 100 casual fans and test them.I love college football and girls but had never heard of the USC song girls before reading the article.It’s hard to argue with most of the so called kings,it is all subjective though.All the Florida schools have much shorter histories at the top than Ga,Tenn or Aub.So what about it chip ? why not pitch the idea ? May I recommend Bozeman, it’s beautiful this time of year.

By overblown

August 11, 2007 5:03 AM | Link to this

The proudest, loudest, rudess, unrealistic, poormouthing, disrespecting, fan base will always buy the most of the same.The dawgs are the greatest in ga., but because they have such low respect for everyone else, that is what they get in return. when you lose 4 games this year, everyone will cry, but most give up after 1 loss.

By Big Dawg

August 11, 2007 7:27 AM | Link to this

Shane,

As an Air Force and Vietnam Era Vieteran myself with a lot of brothers in arms who were in Nam I feel your loss. May our Almighty Father God and our Lord and Savior Jesus bless your friend and keep him in their loving arms forevermore.

Go Dawgs

By warhorse

August 11, 2007 7:42 AM | Link to this

Really surprised that UGA would claim its “championship” won by a bunch of draft dodgers in WWII when players for other schools were off fighting to free the world of despots. Sort of like the pups claiming a huge victory over a bunch of intramural guys from UF. Strange conduct indeed from a school that claims to be patriotic.

By heeldawg

August 11, 2007 8:11 AM | Link to this

Opinions, opinions….

Okay, here’s mine:

1. Mandel grouped the college football powers into tiers. He rightfully put USC (the one in California, not the other one), Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio State and Florida into the top tier (“Kings”). Can’t really argue with that—Florida’s success has been recent, but they’ve won two national titles in the last fifteen years, and that program’s not going away. He did put Tennessee in that top tier, as well, which I disagree with. The Vols have won that one Tee Martin national title in the last few years, but they are not at that top level right now (and I would stress the “right now” aspect of this)if Georgia is not. Mandel compares Georgia to Penn State, who he had in the first tier, and says that Penn State had more national cachet, despite the fact that Georgia has had a better program than Penn State “for some time now” (his words). He also grouped Alabama into the “Kings” group, a selection that has more to do with Bear Bryant than Nick Saban.

My major problem has to do with the fact that Mandel lumped Georgia into the second (“Barons”) tier, together with such schools as UCLA, Clemson, Colorado and Washington. While I mean no offense to the rabid Tiger fans out there, Georgia has a far better football legacy than any of these schools, both over the historical context and in recent years. I have no problem being in the same category as LSU (also in the “Barons” tier), but a little more respect is accorded the Bulldogs when comparing them to some of this bunch. I mean, when was the last time UCLA won even a conference title? Or he last time a Clemson team won the ACC, or even ten games in a season? The Tigers have only beaten Georgia 17 times EVER, out of 62 tries over 110 years. And Washington has not been as competitive in the PAC-10 as its in-state rival Washington State of late. By contrast, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Michigan, Nebraska, Alabama and Penn State—all listed in the top (“Kings”) tier—are largely living off of past glories. They are all solid programs, and will continue to win ball games, but I would not put them in the same breath as Southern Cal, Ohio State, Florida, Oklahoma or Texas right now, all of whom are programs with a solid legacy which could compete for a national title in virtually any given year.

I’d propose top tier of solid programs that are currently very successful—the schools I mentioned at the top of this post—and which also have a storied football history, and would place this group in a more-limited “Kings” category of schools who are currently a consideration for national honors year in and year out. I would then put Georgia, LSU, Miami, FSU, Penn State, Auburn, Tennessee, Alabama, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Michigan and Nebraska in the second-tier “Barons” category—schools with a solid winning tradition who are competitive for conference championships year in and year out and who intermittently compete for national honors. Schools like Washington, Colorado, Clemson, UCLA, Arkansas, and others belong in the third-tier “Knights” category of schools that are intermittently competitive but which don’t win 10 or more games or win conference championships on a fairly regular basis (Arkansas won 10 games and played in the SEC title game last year, for example, but they had a losing record the season before and have never won the SEC title). Georgia clearly is at a different level than these latter schools.

1. I will go out on a limb here—at the risk of sounding like a typically overly optimistic Dawg fan(yes,I’ll admit we do that. We do.)—and say that if Mandel re-does this listing exercise in 10 years, or maybe even in 5 years, Georgia will be on that “Kings” list. Mark Richt is in the process of taking the Georgia program to unprecedented heights. He is a quality individual who cares about his players and who wins ball games. He recruits coaches his players well. And he will continue to average about 10 wins a season as long as he is at Georgia—which, I predict, will be a long, long time. He’ll win a few more SEC titles. And he’s not going anywhere. He is the true heir apparent to Vince Dooley; in fact, he may even surpass Vince in the pantheon of Georgia coaches before it is all said and done. Coach Richt will get the respect that he’s been missing when he wins his first national title. That, my friends, is closer than Mandel thinks. I think it will happen before Matt Stafford graduates.

So much for opinions. That’s mine.

By Jim

August 11, 2007 8:14 AM | Link to this

I read this article and really glad someone came back with some facts. When they are put together it seems obvious that UGA is definitely top-tier. Where was Florida prior to Spurrier?

By jim

August 11, 2007 8:22 AM | Link to this

Another factor is the relatively high number of players making it to the NFL.

By JoeDawg

August 11, 2007 8:39 AM | Link to this

Look it’s simple. This is the media and the media knows which fans have the loudest voices. UGA has one if not the busiest messageboards on the intire internet(Dawgvent-one of the first messageboards period on the internet). This Mandork guy is probably a pretty smart guy. Don’t let him fool you he knows we are in the top tier.

As for anyone trying to prove that we don’t belong….give me your numbers and your reasoning.

Who really give a s**t about this anyway. Let any team play UGA and they are gonna fight for a W in any case. In the past 6 seasons UGA has been in all but 3 games. Even those games we can say the DAWGS never gave up. UF had us 21-0 last season and we fought tooth and nail to comeback. We should not have been in that game. If we were 80% of the teams out there we would have ended up losing by 40.

GOOOOO DAWGS!

By JoeDawg

August 11, 2007 8:46 AM | Link to this

Hey WARHORSE????????????????????????

Draft dodger? Have you ever seen a picture of Frank Sinkwich Holding the Hiesman trophy in his Army fatiuges? He served as well as several others from that team. I believe in 1943 UGA sent 8 players to fight and this is one reason UGA does not count games that season.

By Matt

August 11, 2007 9:15 AM | Link to this

If you look at the top 10 winningest programs of the decade, Georgia is the only one with out a national title, save Boise State perhaps. That is remarkable. The 2002 season was close, but close doesn’t count. If it doesn’t happen in the next 5 years I will be disappointed.

By Uncle Dave

August 11, 2007 9:24 AM | Link to this

Chip: Thanks for the boost, but I think Steeledog is right on the money. If you look at the teams that are in Mandel’s elite group,( with several exceptions, but I will not go into that again)they have history and accomplishments that UGA simply does not. Oklahoma is a good example. People my age think of Barry Switzer and his championships ( 3 or was it 4?). But they had a run with Bud Wilkerson in which they lost 1 game in a stretch of 4 years ( or was it 4). That is unreal.

The fact is that the only SEC team with that kind of history is Alabama. Bear Bryant took them to the top and kept them there. He also was not afraid of the big boys. Those games with Notre Dame and USC were amazing. That is why they belong. That is why 92,000 people show up for a scrimmage when they haven’t had so much as whiff of respectability in years. Bobby Dodd did it on a smaller scale when Tech was in the SEC, but then they bolted the conference and time left the poor slide rulers behind.

The rest of the really good programs: Georgia, Tennessee, Auburn, Florida, and LSU… all were regionally terrific and occasionally as good or better than the Bear. The Junkyard Dogs of 76 come to mind.

If Georgia could have kept the momentum of the 80’s…remember howling at the moon with Lewis Grizzard on Bourbon Street? If Coach Dooley’s blind spot for Ray Goff(his loyalty was admirable, but unfortunate) had somehow mysteriously disappeared, then we would have perhaps made a run that would put us in in that class. (“Barbara and I were on the road by the tree that owns itself and the scales fell from my eyes…”)

But none of that happened… we had to beg three candidates to take the job after coach Goff. Thank God Gary Barnett changed his mind! Jim Donnan turned the corner for us and I thought he was a pretty good coach… at least until Mark Richt brought a sense of honor and real pride back. We may not belong on the list, but we have a pretty good chance in the next few years of EARNING the national respect that all us in the obsessed red and black world of Dawg Nation desire. Keep the faith baby!

By shane

August 11, 2007 9:25 AM | Link to this

we are beating a dead horse here guys,the sec will never get the gredit it deserves,because most of our schools are in small markets. remember when ole tubby was hanged,drawn,and quartered by the media for speaking out publicly about the media,especially espn,after auburn was robbed of a chance to play for the nc? uf would not have had a chance to play for the nc last year if usc hadn’t been upset by a less talented team. all the pundits had crowned osu before the game,only to have egg on their faces after uf steamrollered osu. we sec teams continue to eat away at each other,on the field,in recruiting,even on blogs like this one,while teams from less competetive conferences waltz right to the nc game. uf fans,you could go undefeated this fall,but if usc and texas,or michigan,or osu go undefeated,you will be left out of the nc game. the sec is a powerful league,and if we work together off the field we could get all the member schools the respect they deserve,if we continue to eat away at each other we have done the media naysayers job for them. we don’t need uf fans posting on si saying that uga is not a top tier team,and we don’t need uga fans going on blogs saying uf isn’t a national power. how can we expect the media to respect us when we don’t even show respect for each other? as far as i am concerned,any team that goes through the sec with a winning record and does it consistantly is a national power.

By duingtime

August 11, 2007 9:36 AM | Link to this

WHO ARE YOU KIDDING. UGA plays a bunch of stiffs and is in one the weeker conferences in the country. You can’t get respect by playing Div. 2 schools or schools like Alabama A & M.

When UGA starts playing Big 10, Pac 10 Big 12 schools in their non-conference schedule and drops all the Div.2’s and week conference teams out of their schedule - THEN and only then will they be a top tier school.

By Lowcountry Bulldawg

August 11, 2007 9:36 AM | Link to this

UGA over the last deacade has been more relevant than Penn State,Alabama and Tennessee. The whole if a guy in Monatana thing is crazy. UGA has had more primetime Saturday night games on ESPN/ESPN2 this century. If that joker has ESPN he knows UGA. Why? Because on a Saturday night in November when UGA/Auburn kickoffs off at 7:30, the AVERAGE NIGHT TIME LOW IS 15 DEGREES. Common. It ain’t like he’s got a lot of other things going on!

By duingtime

August 11, 2007 9:37 AM | Link to this

WHO ARE YOU KIDDING. UGA plays a bunch of stiffs and is in one the weeker conferences in the country. You can’t get respect by playing Div. 2 schools or schools like Alabama A & M.

When UGA starts playing Big 10, Pac 10 Big 12 schools in their non-conference schedule and drops all the Div.2’s and week conference teams out of their schedule - THEN and only then will they be a top tier school.

By old timer

August 11, 2007 10:11 AM | Link to this

ALL YOU GOTTA DO TO UNDERSTAND ANYTHING C N N HAS TO SAY IS TO SAY C N N .IT ALL STARTED WITH YOU KNOW WHO. NEED I SAY MORE?

By yellowblood

August 11, 2007 10:15 AM | Link to this

Forget ancient history. Based on last years results, Mandel should have a category labeled ” NOT READY FOR PRIME TIME” which would include Vandy, Kentucky, Georgia, and Colorado.

By shane

August 11, 2007 10:26 AM | Link to this

duing?time,your handel is like your post son,it makes no sense. first of all,by week teams in the conference,i presume you mean weak,as week is a measure of time consisting of seven days. now that we have that out of the way,uga,or any sec team,cannot “drop” any other sec team from their schedule. each team in the east division is required to play the other five teams in the east,as each team in the west is required to play the other five teams in the west. then the teams with the best records in each division play for the sec title. other games,excluding traditional rivalries,such as uga-auburn,or alabama-tenn,are set up on a regular rotating basis. so uga,nor any other sec school cannot change their schedules at the drop of a hat,even if it would mean a nc. as far as the non-conference schedule,many sec teams have traditional games that are played every year,such as uf-fsu,clemson-s.carolina,uga-gt. the sec is widely known as one of the stronger ncaa conferences,while,other than usc the pac-10 is known as one of the weakest. so not just uga,but all sec teams have very litle wiggle room in their schedules,we would all love to play big 10 or pac-10 schools,but it takes two to tango,and these teams have shown little intrest in playing us. as for the big 12,okst is our first game this year. nuff said?

By NC

August 11, 2007 10:56 AM | Link to this

like stated first…UGa is top tier… in their own minds! LOL!!!

By Airheadmotorcycle

August 11, 2007 11:00 AM | Link to this

I’m a Gator, but I have no trouble saying UGA is top tier in football, just like LSU, UT, AU, UA, and UF. The SEC is top tier and so are its best teams.

By shane

August 11, 2007 11:03 AM | Link to this

yellowblood,if uga is not ready for prime time where is tech? do you think it wise to knock a team that beats you every year,and to do this after you lost to wake,of all people in the acc championship,and lost your last two bowl games? i would think it better to see to my own problems before casting stones at someone else. as for myself,i would not care if uga droped tech completely. beating tech does not help us at all in the national rankings,and losing,which is always possible,would knock us out of any possible bcs bid. in other words,uga has a lot to lose by playing tech,and nothing to gain. besides,your stadium is too small,it is almost impossible for us to get tickets when the game is at grant field. i wish you guys the best, i hope you get something going in your program soon,after all,the g in gt does stand for georgia. i think chan is a fine man and a good coach and i would like to see him have some success.

By shane

August 11, 2007 11:07 AM | Link to this

chip.i think it is time to post a new blog,hopefully something about football,your little talk to these guys did no good whatsoever. i am signing off now,it does no good to try to reason with fools.

By Dave In Tampa

August 11, 2007 11:15 AM | Link to this

I’m a little surprised, but who really cares where we stack up on this guys list. We Dawg People know better. College Football is a Southern tradition anyway. Trust me; people living in the South recognize that Georgia has a top tier team. For instance, look at all the “hate blogs” on our own blog. If we were not good fans from other schools would not get on our blog.

Now, if we can pull off a NC within the next couple years and yes I believe we can do it, our recognition would soar. Example, look at Florida. Before Spurrier got there they were a joke. (ok, so the fan base is still lagging behind on the proper dress and etiquette code)So UF has only been playing good football for about 25 years while Georgia has been playing good football for over 100.

Can wait for the season to begin! GO DAWGS!!!!

By Red92s

August 11, 2007 11:53 AM | Link to this

As someone who recently moved from GA to a state over a thousand miles away … I can tell you that 85% or more of people here would not recognize the Georgia “G”. I’ve lived here a few months now and have not spotted a single UGA plate or bumper sticker. How many people touting UGA’s national recognizability have lived outside the geographic area in which they play?

By Buck in the NW

August 11, 2007 12:08 PM | Link to this

Chip, you’re not a homer but thanks for unloading. All of our emails, letters or phone calls wouldn’t have mattered a bit but the POWER OF THE AJC is something he’ll hear about. All of us are nothing but a big joke to SI but the AJC plays in their league and I wouldn’t be suprised to hear about this in other media outlets…. Thank You.

By John

August 11, 2007 12:33 PM | Link to this

Tech DOES NOT claim 5 NC…only 4. By the way, where were most MEN in 1942? Let’s see, my Grand Paw was in Europe, and my Paw Paw was in the Pacific.

By Lowcountry Bulldawg

August 11, 2007 12:33 PM | Link to this

If UGA is not a top tier team why did SI put UGA on the COVER?

By Born Football

August 11, 2007 12:55 PM | Link to this

Where is it documented that UGA won a national championship in 42. Wikipedia shows Ohio St. as the champions by the majority of polls of the day. Maybe one pollster maybe but that wouldn’t constitute the majority vote. SI did an indebt study on all of the winners and they gave it to Ohio St. also. Tech has never claimed winning 5 national championships. They only claim 4, just like in wikipedia and just like they show inside the stadium. I’m not trying to put UGA down but don’t state wrong facts about Tech while trying to boost your point for your team.

By Cuz

August 11, 2007 1:15 PM | Link to this

Yeah and my Dad can whip your Dad. So there.

By nathan

August 11, 2007 1:35 PM | Link to this

Just amazingly comical. UGAY could claim 5 national championships? Never heard anything so absurd in my life. CNN is DEAD ON in this article. Just get over it DAWG FANS!!

By jbirdawg

August 11, 2007 1:38 PM | Link to this

Hard to figure out his parameters for elite. Alabama? Is he going historically? It sounds like he is looking for the past ten or so years yet he throws Bama in there. Granted UGA has not won a bunch of national titles over their history like Bama has, but like it was said, they could claim 5 and did win 2 consensus. They had one of the best four year runs in college history in the early eighties winning an NC and playing for another one. 12 SEC titles in the toughest conference in football. In the past four years four top tens. People look at Meyer and Saban and want to put them on a higher pedastal than Richt, but maybe few realize that Richt accomplished the exact same thing Saban and Meyer did on their way to the BCS NC, WINNING the SEC with ONE loss. As fate would have it, UGA was relagated to third due to having 2 unbeaten teams in front of them and had no shot to get into the game. UF had to rely on UCLA beating USC to get in. I am glad they did get in and glad they won convincingly. That will only help every SEC team that has a shot at the game in the near future. Mandel can think whatever he wants. Right now Richt has built this program into ELITE football status in my opinion and it will play out over the rest of his career. Everything is rolling. The recruiting the coaching, and the academic attraction. There may be a few bumps in the road like last year with QB rebuilding but I think the consistency will continue.

By Buck in the NW

August 11, 2007 1:42 PM | Link to this

Quick change: we’re gonna lose the Allen kid from N.C., based on his comments and it won’t be to Butch Davis at N.C.! Take guess. the “U” is where he’s looking and the way it sounds going……Back to subject.

By youwish

August 11, 2007 1:42 PM | Link to this

You Dawgs are delusional. Maybe your recruiting is near the elite every year. Unfortunately they always fall short of your expectations. Compare your annual recruiting rankings with your final rankings and then come tell me how great your coaching is. You’re lost in your small world of regional interest. Want to be considered among the national elite?…..try scheduling some out of conference “elite” teams every once in a while. .. That’ll never happen.

By jbirdawg

August 11, 2007 1:53 PM | Link to this

Want documentation? Here ya go…..

http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/divia/sec/georgia/nationalchamps.php

The first link will show the championships. The second will show you the polling of the day that went to UGA. Ohio St got the AP poll, which at that time carried very little weight. Don’t believe me? Do the research. UGA has the national championship banner flying over their stadium. And for the record, UGA got ripped off of the title in ‘46.

http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/divia/sec/georgia/allnational_champs.php

By jbirdawg

August 11, 2007 2:05 PM | Link to this

How many National Powers do you think would sign up for a home and home with UGA? For the record, UGA was struggling this year to get a first game on Sept 1 due to Oregon or Oregon St pulling out. I forget which one. UGA pursued teams with an open date that were still looking to fill it, like UTex, Penn St, Notre Dame……..guess what? They all said they would pass. Thanks to ESPN we were able to schedule Okla ST. No patsy. Last year we played Colorado, who when the game was scheduled were Division champs. Why does UGA need to schedule big name teams from outside of the conference anyway when we play 4 or 5 teams from the SEC who are top 15 or 20 every year. USC doesn’t come close to that. This year OKSt, SC, UF, UT, Bama(elite), Aub, GT……..throw in a tough KY and Vandy. In ‘08 UGA faces Ariz St, Bama, LSU, UT, UF, Aub, SC, GT, and the regulars KY & Vandy. Nobody else in the country will have a schedule that tough. So are you from the tough ACC? or where?

By BarrelORum

August 11, 2007 2:35 PM | Link to this

Chip, thank you for this article. First off, don’t short yourself. You are a UGA homer. Second, its pretty funny watching the AJC’s dumbest beat writer arguing with the nation’s dumbest sports writer.

Also, you may need to get your facts staight on UGA’s National Championships. They were only recognized for 2. They recognize themselves as having 5. Of course no one else does. GT only claims 4. And those 4 were because the major poll, or one of the major polls of that era, that determined National Champions gave it to Tech.

Gt was also undefeated in a couple of years that they didn’t win a National Championship. They don’t claim a NC in those years. While I believe UGA does, even though they were never crowned by anyone else other than themselves.

Don’t let the facts get in the way of your fine beat writing skills.

By reality check

August 11, 2007 2:40 PM | Link to this

I can’t help but wonder if any of those 100 people from Montana could identify Stewart mandel. I couldn’t. In fact I’ve never heard of him.

Is he a top tier sportswriter?

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 11, 2007 2:51 PM | Link to this

Different subject

Here is a little snapshot about the Pokes preperation for UGA.

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 11, 2007 3:12 PM | Link to this

Here is another excellent article about our O-line.

I want to add that I think the AJC’s coverage since fall practice began is outstanding. Special thanks to Towers for an unbeleivably good blog and to Strickland for a string of exceptional player and position articles. Thank you both.

By A--ville Ranger

August 11, 2007 3:47 PM | Link to this

Red92 I’ve lived in NC for 6 years I don’t recall gaving spotted 1 ND,USC,MICH or MIAMI auto plate, get the point ?By the way we have the most recognizable mascot in all football.I’ll repeat from my post last night I’d never heard of USC song girls and will take our chubby pup over yet another group of pimply bimbos anytime……..Change of subject,I hope Michial Lemon is treated like a son by the program as much as rules will allow.That’s the kind of homey stuff we should stand for.

By A--ville Ranger

August 11, 2007 4:07 PM | Link to this

HeelDawg well thought out arguments.I don’t agree completely with your elite kings though.My elite class is small and is all about the history (long veiw)of the game,here goes. Notre Dame,Alabama,USC and Oklahoma.This is the Mount Rushmore group.

By Buck in the NW

August 11, 2007 4:18 PM | Link to this

cuz and all members of the Dawg nation. TRUE STORY THAT JUST HAPPENED ABOUT 1.5 HRS. AGO I was walking across the parking lot of B of A going to take care of bitness. I heard somebody say “we just can’t get away from you guys”! Looked around not knowing he was talking to me. I had my Red Dawg hat that says SEC on the side on and sure enough it was a Trade School Grad, named Oliver. He was a nice guy. We had a great FB talk for 15-20 min. I had to explain the FOC club to him and the fact that I’m President of the Left Coast Branch. He was unaware of the club but thought he had better pass the info along to his buddies….I’ll never forget it…..”we just can’t get away from you guys”!

By John

August 11, 2007 4:54 PM | Link to this

First, Chip you are a homer. Second, TECH doesn’t claim five NC. It is only four. Also, I believe that Bama has eleven. Speaking of NC’s…In 1942, where were most MEN? Well, my Grand Paw was in Europe, and my Paw Paw was in the Pacific…

By Chip Towers

August 11, 2007 4:55 PM | Link to this

FWIW, I got a nice e-mail from Stewart Mandel in which he was sarcastically thanking for the more than 500 people that e-mailed him thanks to this blog… . I’m sure it’s not really that many but it’s interesting and fun to see how information and debate moves at warp speed up and down the Internet Super Highway. Thanks for participating.

I won’t start a new blog until Monday. Until then …

By Cuz

August 11, 2007 5:03 PM | Link to this

Hey Buck did you sign him up?

Every year I walk the streets of Rochester Minnesotta wearing my red Georgia hat with only the G on it. I always have people stop and talk to me about Georgia football and the SEC. Minnesotta had a decent team a few years ago with the two RB tandem. I remember watching on TV a Minnesotta game played in the dome in Minneappolis and noticing that it was not even 1/2 full. I then watched us play Arkansas to a full stadium. Face it if you are in the SEC and not Kentucky, Vandy or Mississippi State, you are an elite program. And even Kentucky and Vandy have their years now and then.

I bet you could take Uga to Caribou Maine and they would recognize that dawg.

If the SEC did not beat up on ourselves so much, we would have more chances to play for the BCS NC. I am glad that an SEC team last year got to show how we have been shafted in playing for the NC in recent years.

By Jaime Gaverts

August 11, 2007 5:11 PM | Link to this

Trust me Chip, you are a huge homer. And are you guys really trying to substantiate yourselves based on what General Mills says? What a riot. No one gives a rip about Uga outside of Athens. No one. Except for you transplanted ‘necks down at Reidsville. Hail, hail what Wheaties says! You guys crack the rest of the nation up!

By heeldawg

August 11, 2007 5:31 PM | Link to this

For the individual with the unique moniker “Duingtime:”

I suppose your handle is accurate. Which prison are you in? Because you’d have to be in prison to think that the SEC is one of the “weeker” (I presume you meant “weaker”) conferences. That’s lunacy. And Georgia hasn’t played a Division II school in my lifetime.

Get your facts straight or you’ll be sent to solitary.

By NASCARfan

August 11, 2007 5:37 PM | Link to this

Jaime, why are you wasting your time telling us these things, man? Who’s the dumb one in that situation? Who’s the pathetic waste of life in that situation?

Dude, you troll around the blog of a team you hate just to flame on it.

How pathetic are you! What kind of GIGANTIC loser you are!

Bulldgo Nation, I call on you all (who read this blog) to pass on to other blogs (dawgvent, etc) that Stew Mandel’s email address is stewart_mandel@simail.com. I want him to actually HAVE 500 emails to sort through.

I want him to have 1000 emails to sort through! I want every member of Bulldog Nation to email his inbox and deluge the SI email server with so much mail, they can’t take it.

I want him to feel our combined fury and indignation.

Just think, Bulldog Nation is millions strong. But if we could get just about half of Sanford Stadium (about 46,000 strong) to email this idiot, that would send enough of a message.

So I ask you all to pass along this idiot’s email address. Voice your displeasure at this popularity contest dictated to us from someone who grew up a Big 11 apologist with an obvious bias towards that overrated conference.

Go forth and spread the Gospel of Dawg!!!

By NASCARfan

August 11, 2007 5:45 PM | Link to this

Oh, and Chip, you’re WRONG about something:

Mark Richt has the THIRD best winning percentage amongst active coaches. He surpassed Bob Stoops when it was found out that Stoops didn’t have institutional control over some of his players.

So 8 of Stoop’s wins became 8 losses. Meaning that Mark Richt as the THIRD best winnning percentage amongst active coaches.

Kind of like the karma of the NCAA saw fit to remove those three losses to Bugland in the late 1990’s. Why is it karma? Well, because everyone and their mama knows Jasper didn’t fumble, so now UGA hasn’t lost to Tech since 1990. What goes around, comes around, Bugs.

By Born Football

August 11, 2007 5:54 PM | Link to this

jbirdawg, just like your link, your facts don’t work either.Any legitimate site will show the majority of the pollsters picked Ohio St. as the champs of 42. The AP,the National Championship Foundation,Football Research, Billingsley,Boand and Dunkel all had Ohio St. Just because you found a site that might reward you a championship, what about the consensus? What does Wikipedia show. Their not bias. Look at their site. What do they have to gain?

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 11, 2007 6:05 PM | Link to this

Born Football

I looked up the wikipedia Nat championship for the sec. They check us as being the officially recognized champs in 42.

By jbirdawg

August 11, 2007 6:10 PM | Link to this

Maybe you need to check the facts. UGA got ripped off of the title during an undefeated season in ‘46. Nobody anywhere within UGA counts more than 2 NCs. If you are going to say something like that then back it up with links or something. You won’t be able to find anything related to more than 2. Today was the first I have ever heard of what Chip spoke.

By cooter11

August 11, 2007 6:11 PM | Link to this

I hear you dogs talk about playing a western team to improve your national press and “tier”, but Western Carolina…come on!

By jbirdawg

August 11, 2007 6:17 PM | Link to this

Legitimate site? College Football Data Warehouse. Here is your consensus. Ohio St had votes too. Remember, we are talking 1942. Not exactly cyber info highway.

UGA National Champions 1942 11-1-0 Bill Libby Billingsley Report Century Football Index Cliff Morgan Clyde Berryman Edward Litkenhous Harry DeVold Houlgate System James Howell Loren Maxwell Mel Smith Montgomery Full Season Championship Nutshell Sports Football Ratings Poling System Sagarin Ratings Williamson System

By NASCARfan

August 11, 2007 6:19 PM | Link to this

Once again, cooter11, which direction school from Michigan is Ohio State playing this year? Because I know they play one or two EVERY year. And which Div-1AA school is Michigan playing this year? Does not USC get to play Stanford every year?

Dude, if you are going to act like we’re the only ones that schedule a patsy, you just make yourself like a complete idiot.

Idiot.

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 11, 2007 6:49 PM | Link to this

Just because it is kinda funny, the official NCAA site lists official champions for just about every sport except football. Here is how the NCAA list the football champions. You will notice that just about every year has multiple teams listed as Nat Champs. It’s quite funny.

By Big Dawg

August 11, 2007 7:19 PM | Link to this

Born football,

According to NCAA.org/champadmin/iafootballpast_champs.html

Which is the official site of the NCAA lists the Mythical National Championship back to 1869. The University of Georgia Officially only claims the 1980 and 1942 Teams won NC but lists the 3 other teams from 1927, 1946 and 1968 as having been named NC on at least one poll. As for 1942- Georgia was named National Champions in 6 polls i.e. Berryman, DeVold, Houlgate, Litkenhous, Poling and Williamson. Ohio State was named on 6 polls as well i.e. AP, Billingsley, Boand, Dunkel, Football Research, and National Championship Foundation and Wisconsin on 1 poll- Helms. BTW Ohio State lost to Wisconsin and finished 9-1 and did not play in a bowl game. GA finished 11-1 and beat UCLA 9-0 in the Rose Bowl. It is unfortunant that they didn’t play each other in a bowl game that way there wouldn’t be any question as to who was the true NC that year. As for 1946 Georgia was the only unbeaten and untied team that year but Norte Dame and Army won the popularity contest that year as they tied when they played each other.

The system has always been a popularity contest and for all SEC teams except Alabama have been at a big disadvantage when it came to this.

Go Dawgs

By cooter11

August 11, 2007 7:44 PM | Link to this

NASDOG, it is way too early for you to get so worked-up about a little fun-n-game joke (I thought it was funny) but some of your buddies seem to brag that no big name school will play with you guys just because your are in the SEC. I doubt that is the case. Hope you win all except the last one-then I will call you.

By P-Dawg in Tulsa

August 11, 2007 8:05 PM | Link to this

You know, I’ve been a Dawg enthusiast since I can remember. I never get mad bust’in chops or getting busted when it comes to sports. For me, thats a big part of what it is about. Looking at college football specifically, you better have a dang good sense of humor or you might find youself argueing with yourself. I don’t really want a playoff as such. I kinda like all the gray, as it makes conversation and chop bust’in and fact/record talk’in a hoot. Gotta love it.

Go Dawgs!!!

By Cuz

August 11, 2007 9:46 PM | Link to this

Chip give us another topic. This one is staler than the bread in my cupboard. And somehow we cannot do better than my old man can beat up your old man. If we are gonna stay in kindergarten, can we get cookies, juice and a story.

By Andy Brandon

August 11, 2007 9:54 PM | Link to this

I am a Dawg lover and 33 yr season ticket holder. even so,I have the Dogs just outside the Top Tier. My top Tier has 8 teams: ( in no order)SoCal,TexasOklahoma,Nebraska,Michigan, Ohio State,Notre Dame,Alabama. Second tier in no order Georgia,Tennessee, LSU, Florida, Florida St., Miami, Va. Tech, Auburn,Texas AM,Penn State Maybe West Va, maybe UCLA

By Buck in the NW

August 11, 2007 10:44 PM | Link to this

Wonder if Carter will post anything about the scrimmage tonight or tomorrow? Anybody know?

By Hunk Erdown

August 11, 2007 11:02 PM | Link to this

Cuz

Does dove season start on 9/1 this year? I don’t have my regs book yet.

By Buck in the NW

August 11, 2007 11:22 PM | Link to this

Thank you ajc.com and Carter for posting a column about the scrimmage tonight. “O” struggled but so what with all those freshman playing after the injuries I’m not suprised. Average passing numbers but no int’s. interesting that Moreno had 35 yds. in 6 carries and the other 3 combined only had 22yds.

By A--ville Ranger

August 11, 2007 11:43 PM | Link to this

I worry a bit more about the O-line after today’s scrimage.I’m more convenced than ever that Moreno is the top back.If he can get the blocking he’ll be a star real soon…..Chip I’ve been meaning to ask about Jarius Wynn.Coach Richt is high on him and I’m struck by his body type.He is the only D-lineman I can think of who is build like the great Deacon Jones.I’m not implying he will play like him but it does interest me.

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 12:02 AM | Link to this

It appears that T. Browns knee is OK and for his sake I’m glad; however, I still don’t now nor have I ever felt that he should be our #1 TB. I’ll duck so I won’t get hit by flying plates but that’s the way I see it.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 12:31 AM | Link to this

NASCARfan If you understand what a guy like Mandel is about you know he’d be happy if 100’000 E mails came in calling him stupid.These little made up controversies are what pays his bills. Buck —-It’ll be clear to all that Moreno is the top back by mid-season

By SamoanDawg

August 12, 2007 12:36 AM | Link to this

I’m with you on that Buck. Lump should get most of the carries and Brown should get the lump some.

Of course the O is going to struggle after some of the first teamers went down. Could be the same story tomorrow night. I’m glad to hear Clint is stepping up on the RT. We need two dependable guys on all 5 spots.

Hmmmm… I thought it was interesting about our LBs getting shuffling around. Miller cross trained at the sam, Ellerbe at the mike and Dewberry on both outside spots. Good stuff Carter.

Competition at the BC is heating up between Flowers/Allen. Good news there. I feel good about these twos there. Prince is getting heaps of work at the FC. Chip will Evans claim his spot when he’s healthy? What about **Ramarcus Brown? Sounds like he’s buried 3 deep.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 1:35 AM | Link to this

SamoanDawg I know there’s sentiment for Lumpkin.Moreno is the better player by a wide margin though and you have to go with what’s best for the team.I know this is just my opinion now but it’ll be clear to all soon enough.

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 1:47 AM | Link to this

I too agree that Thomas Brown has never shown the ability to be the No. 1 guy. No one seems to remember from last year when he was bestowed with No. 1 status, he didn’t look too good before the injury.

I have a feeling, that much like Hearst did, but about week 3 or 4, Moreno will begin to stand out from the pack and take his place as the next great Georgia RB.

When I see the guy run, I’m reminded of Hearst a little. I know I was young when Garrison was here, and I know Moreno is a little smaller, but he has that blend of speed and power. Brown is all speed. Lump is all power. Moreno can hit the homerun like Brown can, but Brown usually doesn’t get the chance because he doesn’t break many tackles. Lump can break tackles, but is not fast enough to break off a 60 yeard TD.

Moreno can do it all.

I think our defense is going to be a-OK. I just wish that Willie can make up his damn mind about who’s playing what LB position.

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 1:51 AM | Link to this

Ranger, do you ever get the sense that Coach Richt has a little too much of Bobby Cox in him? Meaning that sometimes he gives too much credence to seniority over talent? I mean, Andruw Jones should have been benched or hitting 8th two months ago. Moreno is obviously the best talent this team has had at RB since Edwards. But I don’t think Coach is willing to let the best talent win out. He’s too damn loyal to the guys with seniority sometimes. It’s how we ended up with the debacle with JTIII, and now, it may hold back the running game.

It can be frustrating sometimes.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 3:04 AM | Link to this

NASCARfan I think Richt is a naturally loyal guy.He can hardly contain his enthusiasm where Moreno’s concerned though.I agree Knowshon will win the job on the field by the 3rd or 4th game,maybe sooner.I don’t think Moreno is smaller than Hearst,could be wrong but he’s a stout built back.I just hope the blocking’s up to the task.

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 3:09 AM | Link to this

Ranger, I know, which explains Coach Eason’s continued employment. I think Moreno may be an inch or two shorter and about 10 lbs lighter than Hearst, but that’s off of eyesight, and I don’t know where you could find out how much Garrison wieghed as a Sophomore. But he’s built much the same way. And he runs much the same way. I just hope that Coach lets talent win out.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 3:26 AM | Link to this

I’m with you on that NASCAR,three weeks and counting,let’s hope they’re ready OK ST looks like a real test.Time to call it a night,catch you later….GO DAWGS.

By BuLLdawg

August 12, 2007 3:42 AM | Link to this

.

.

Just list the criteria you are going to use to compare One Football Program with another, and let’s agree on the weight each will be given ?

History :?

Recent History ?

Give more weight to Recent History ?

What weight ?

Brand Name ?

Perception ?

Number of Wins Number of National Championships by Polls Subtract for Number of Years since Last National Championship Subtract for Finding an Opponent the Program simply cannot Beat Number of Top 10 Rankings in Final Polls Winning Percentage Strength of Schedules Wins in the Last Decade of Football Number of Bowl Games Number of Bowl Wins Bowl Winning Percentage BCS Bowl Games BCS Bowl Games Won Number of former players in the NFL Licensing Rights Royalties Sold and Paid For Where Mascot Ranks with other Programs’ Mascots How Recognized The Mascot is Conference Championships Conference Championships over the Last Decade Number of Times on National Television Wins in National Televised Games Wins over teams who actually are Top 25 Teams Final Polls that Season Attendance Rankings of How much Money does The Program Make Rankings of Recruits to the Program Subtract for Probations Subtract for Felony Arrests Academic Progress Rate (APR) Directors’ Cup Rankings NFL Draft Picks U.S. News and World Report Ranking of Colleges Number of Student body College Football Hall of Fame members Pro Football Hall of Fame members NCAA Rankings of The Defense NCAA Rankings of The Offense Major Awards Won such as Heisman Trophy, Lombardi Award, Outland Trophy Won/Loss Record against Teams ranked ahead of you by This Ranking System Won/Loss Record against Teams ranked behind you by This Ranking System Number of blogs devoted to your Program How your Band is Ranked with other Programs’ Bands Number of Graduates your alma mater has Where your Graduates of your alma mater live How your Stadium Ranks for Playing Football How your Football Facilities otherwise measure up with other Programs Famous Grads of your alma mater Famous Celebrities of your alma mater NCAA Honors Program Number of Rivals your Program claims All-Conference Players All-America Players Famous Coaches your Program has had Strength and Conditioning in Your Program Non-Conference Record Conference Record Record against the Spread Number of Signees Recruited who did not play for you

.

.

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 5:25 AM | Link to this

final put down of the day using Larry Munson. Go to si on campus.com. UGA t0ok a hit and fell all the way to 8th ranked Mascot. They uased Munson’s words that “it’s really scarey and we’re going to lose a lot of ball games”. Good night.

By Cuz

August 12, 2007 9:13 AM | Link to this

Hunk great new blog topic. Dove season does start on Sept 1 at 12:00 noon. The doves will start flying at 3:00 pm which is when I have my hunt scheduled. I always miss the first game because of opening day of dove season and taking care of the friends that take care of me during the year. I will finish before the game and will be listening to the pre-game during my hunt.

By Hunk Erdown

August 12, 2007 9:48 AM | Link to this

lol @ cuz

Sorry to have gone off topic on such a great blog…lol. Man, I can’t wait to get some jalapeno fried/grilled dove cooking. The Benneli is all clean and ready to shoot up a case. Thanks for the info brother, I hope your feeling well these days.

You guys always forget me when you talk about the FOC. Ya’ll gonna mess around and hurt my feelings, I don’t know what I’d do without the FOC, that and pain pills is all I have to look forward to these days…. lol

By mike

August 12, 2007 10:27 AM | Link to this

I would agree with Mandel on the football program being outside the top 10. Our last National Championship was more about Hershel than Georgia. I agree the football program being somewhere between 11 and 25. I would however rank our entire athletic program in the top ten.

By Sautee Dawg

August 12, 2007 11:22 AM | Link to this

Thanks for the updates on the scrimmage saturday night. Saw Moreno run the ball during spring game, wouldn’t suprise me if by mid-season he’s running the ball 50% of the carries. Same with Rennie Curran at LB this kid will play also. As far as being one of the nations elite programs, how many programs can boast about having 3 Super Bowl MVP’S? UGA is the only one.

By SamoanDawg

August 12, 2007 11:27 AM | Link to this

A—ville Ranger, yes, Moreno is an exceptional athlete. I’m sure Moreno will get plenty of touches, no doubt. But I rather go with experience right now… I’m thinking protection… I know, I know, Lump has some struggle with it last season. Especially against Tenn. Most pure tailbacks don’t block too well coming out of high school. Coach Bo will prolly implement the one back set w/3 or 4 WR look a lot more than we’re used to. I want my best tailback who can and know who to block. We saw Southerland used occasionally in the same formation. No doubt Moreno is a physical kid.

Chip how is Moreno’s blocking coming along? That’s the only part of his game that I’m concerned about right now.

mahalo.

By joe

August 12, 2007 11:29 AM | Link to this

With the O-line in such bad shape, things are not looking too good in Athens right now. One senior and 4 freshman, are you kidding me? SOS will have a field day in week 2…and with Okey St. having a really good offense, the Dawgs might have to win a shoot out in order to win the game. If they can’t run, no way to hold up their end of the bargain…could it be 0-2??

By S.E. Dawg

August 12, 2007 11:50 AM | Link to this

NASCARfan thank for Mandel’s e-mail address. I sent mine now how ‘Bout everyone else.

By SamoanDawg

August 12, 2007 11:59 AM | Link to this

joe, c’mon bra… relax, those injury dawgs will be back b4 kickoff. They’re licking their wounds right now. 0-2?… nah, I hardly think so. 2-0 more likely. It’s good to give some of those young o-line guys some experience. We’ll be alright.

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 12:25 PM | Link to this

Good morning, has anybody listen to the audio tapes after the scrimmage? He didn’t sound as down as I thought he would. We have a long way to go but there were no int’s., a long drive(70yds)for a TD. plus a long drive for the field goal. That’s with 1 Sr., 4 freshmen with 3 of them being true freshmen. We’ll recover and be very good. Cross training the LBs? Little disturbing when Miller says they didn’t always know what they were doing but they were running after the ball. That gives me pause for concern.

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 12:55 PM | Link to this

nascarfan, I forgot, thanks for Mandel’s email address and I sent mine last night. I think he’s changing some but CMR doesn’t want a player to lose his position because of injury. That’s a big part of what cause the QB problem last season. As of now T.Brown is running with the 3rd unit. Hard to say based on last night but King will move up the depth chart over the next 7 days. Lumpkin hasn’t blocked since the 1st day he set foot on the playing field in Athens but he has improved some. Can King block?

By Sautee Dawg

August 12, 2007 1:53 PM | Link to this

Hey Buck, hope your doing well, your exactly right about Lumpkin not blocking very well, from what i’ve heard Caleb King hasn’t learned how to yet either. He never had to in high school. Most of these younger players were 90% of the offence when they played in high school, so blocking wasn’t required. Hershel Walker didn’t block his first couple of years in Athens so maybe these freshman Moreno and King have enough talent they can overcome the lack of blocking skills until they learn how.

By Big Dawg

August 12, 2007 1:59 PM | Link to this

Fellow Dawgs don’t worry about the O-Line because these minor annoying injuries occured very early in our preparations for the season. Both Adams and Havercamp will be fine and this gives Anderson, Boling, Davis and Vance an opportunity to get more comfortable with each other which will pay dividends during the season. Also Perez who is on the small side was impressive last night and showed he could play as the # 2 center. This scrimmage went slightly better than expected by the coaches except for the injury to Havercamp. As for the RB position I believe (IMO) you will see Moreno as the # 1 back before the opener with OSU, because as has become evident he not only has break away speed but has power, vision and elusiveness which sets him apart from Brown and Lumpkin. As for King he is cut from the same mold as Moreno except he is a little faster so I would look for him to start being put into the mix more as the season goes along, of course that’s dependent on him not being redshirted.

Now as for the defense they played pretty good as a whole but there were some break downs that will need addressing. As for Rennie Curran and Charles White I expect these two to be starters by the end of the year as it is obvious to the coaches these guys not only instinctively know how to play the LB position but they have tremendous drive and desire. Brandon Miller is steadily making progress but he’s still not reacting instinctively which is what is required for the MLB position.

Go Dawgs

By Marcelle

August 12, 2007 2:16 PM | Link to this

Looks like the dogs will be sitting on the sidelines liking their gonads while Ga Tech will be buzzing in the Top rated teams. Then again they may go to one of the many local watering holes and get plastered. They’re rated in the top in that catagory. Guzzle, guzzle, lick, lick.

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 2:50 PM | Link to this

Big Dawg, I wish I could believe that Moreno is going to be the guy, but that’s just not Coach Richt’s style. He never goes with talent over seniority. Never. I’m not saying Lump is crap. I love Lump, he’s a very good back. But Moreno is a talent like Edwards and Hearst. He combines the strengths of Lump (power) and Brown (break away speed). He’s the back who SHOULD be leading the way. Then again, Matthew Stafford, fresman though he was, was the QB with the most talent who gave us the best chance to win game in and game out over the legacy, JTIII. I mean, the most games we were going to win with JTIII was 8 or 9 and the most games we were going to win with Matt was 8 or 9, so why not go with the young guy with the better upside?

Coach Richt doesn’t think like that. It cost us the Vanderbilt game. Remember it was the legacy who started that game and did nothing and Matt who came in late without getting the majority of the practice time. We could have had double digit wins again if Coach Richt wasn’t so stubborn in his loyalty to seniority over talent.

I’m sorry if I’m harping, but it’s frustrating. Ask Arkansas if McFadden was a good blocker as a freshman (he wasn’t). But they still featured him. You have to trust your talent and let talent win out. That’s life in the real world. If the coaches are so concerned with blocking, then play more I-Formation, you know? That was Southerland is in there, and you can get Moreno out on the flat with space to go with thre reciever running routes. What’s wrong with that? I’d rather see more I-Formation just because Southerland is probably our second or thrid best offensive player anyway. I definately would rather see more I-Formation than the shotgun that’s for sure.

So what do y’all think? Isn’t it better to go with talent over seniority, and if blocking is such an issue, just have more I-Formation with our big boy fullback back there to gobble up LBs, leaving Moreno free to work in space. Doesn’t that make more sense than running a guy who can’t break off the big runs and has suspect hands in the passing game (Lump) or a guy who can’t break arm tackles (Brown). You know, being the strongest guy, “pound for pound” is the most worthless statistic there is. Because if you weigh 200lbs and are strong, that’s great, if the d-lineman, linebackers, and safeties who are gunning for you are 200lbs. They’re not.

So please, people, stop talking about Brown being so strong. If he can’t break arm tackles, which he wasn’t doing last year before he go hurt, then he’s NOT very strong, is he?

It’s like saying that some feather weight boxer is the best boxer, “pound for pound.” That’s total bullcrap. He’d get his butt kicked by a heavyweight, so he’s not really the best, is he?

Stop the insanity, people.

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 3:06 PM | Link to this

Hey, Marcelle, you french SOB, you sang that song last year. How did that go for you? I believe, you cheese-eating-surrender-monkey, that in the Bugs BEST year in almost 20 years, the Dawgs were still BETTER, in what was our second worst year under Richt.

So tell me again, how’s that working for you, you stupid little Bug?

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 3:07 PM | Link to this

Big Dawg-Buck-Sautee-SamoanDawg-NASCAR-ETC Good day all ! I’ll worry about the O-line till they prove they are ready,By that I mean somewhere around game four. If it was a group of vets it’d be different but these kids need every minute they can get together.I wish I could have confidence in Brandon Miller,still can’t see a reason to yet.The guy has looked lost in a fog for three years,let’s hope it’s lifted…..PS—-Samoan I’ll bet Moreno proves to be the better blocker as well.

By Big Dawg

August 12, 2007 5:09 PM | Link to this

A-ville and Nascar,

Moreno gives us the best chance of being an explosive and unpredictable team on offense. Coach Richt realizes this and IMO he will go with the best. Going into last year Brown had the best spring and fall camps and that is why he was the starter. As for the O-line these minor injuries are preventing these guys from jelling which is very, very important for our offense to click on all cylinders. In the spring the OL was doing very good until Vance and Josh Davis hurt their knees, but then the coaches moved Adams and Sturdivant to the tackles and Havercamp and Chris Davis to guards and they were able to get comfortable and gelled and you saw what happened in the G-Day game. These guys have 3 weeks to get to know each other and to gell which they did in the spring in 2 weeks. So don’t worry because Coach Searels and Coach Johnson will have these guys ready and the back-ups will be ready as well.

Go Dawgs

By AltamahaDawg

August 12, 2007 5:52 PM | Link to this

Nascarfan, maybe UI’m not up on the latest burns, but cheese-eating-surrender-monkey has got to be the best one I’ve seen in a while.

By Jaime Gaverts

August 12, 2007 6:00 PM | Link to this

NASCARfan = world’s fattest redneck

By Jeff

August 12, 2007 6:11 PM | Link to this

DELUSIONAL + COMICAL= Dawg Nation

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 6:15 PM | Link to this

AltamahaDawg I just finished off a big slice of Amish farmers cheese with by supper.I also have a taste for French toast and German beer.Make no mistake however I will fight on the beaches,I will fight in the hills,I will fight in the bars,I shall never surrender….my monkey.

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 6:39 PM | Link to this

EXCUSE ME BUT I’M BITING NAILS AT THE MOMENT. mY bOY, #24, JEFF GORDAN JUST HAD THE RACE AT WATKINS GLYNN IN HIS HANE AND MADE A STUPID ROOKIE MISTAKE AND LOST……I DO BELIEVE THAT MY PREDIDTION OF 10 TRUE FRESHMEN PLAYING IN ‘07 WILL COME TRUE. I’LL REMINE CHIP TOMORROW. I AGREE WITH BIG DAWG, OUR “OL” WILL WORK ITSELF OUT.

By shane

August 12, 2007 7:06 PM | Link to this

i would think lump should know how to block by now,lord knows he has been there long enough. if i were richt i would work on some two back sets and have the guys block for each other, i would tell them the best pair of blockers would get the most carries. you line two of these guys up and the d will not be able to key on one of them. these kids may not have been taught how to block in hs,but they should know the pros will certainly look at that part of their game. besides,blocking is not that hard,anyone that is willing to work and to stick their nose in there and hit somebody can block. every one the offense should block,except the qb. wr’s blocking downfield will result in big gainers,and a tb picking up a blitzing man will not only give the qb time to complete a pass,but may save him from injury. richt did not start lump for a game last year because of his poor blocking. it’simple,if they don’t block they don’t start. im not saying they have to block like sutherland does,but at least they can get in someones way.

By shane

August 12, 2007 7:10 PM | Link to this

buck,what did you say gordan had in his hanes? did mike know?

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 7:33 PM | Link to this

shane……you got me!….good job

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 7:43 PM | Link to this

Buck… remember, points are points. NASCAR is so different than anything else, man. Just remember that points are points. His lead going into the Chase is secure. It’s in the Chase where it all matters, and even then, points are points, you know.

I’m gald Jaime knows me so well. I could say that Jaime Gaverts = world’s smelliest what ever he is, but I won’t sully myself with someone named Jaime. The fact of the matter is, I’m about as far from a redneck as you can get. See, ignorant people like Jaime rely on stereotypes to inform their world view. Jaime probably thinks all hispanics have families with 10 kids. Jaime probably thinks all black people like chicken and watermelon. Just because I love NASCAR and Georgia football doesn’t make me a redneck, you simpleton idiot. Most rednecks would probably be insulted that you included me in their ranks. How about you don’t be a stereotyping SOB, okay Jaime?

Altamaha, I wish I could take credit for that wonderful put down of all things French and the cowardly French people as a whole (wow, a stereotype, huh, how ironic), but I can’t. Actually, the very funny (former) writers of the Simpsons (they’re not there anymore, therefore the show isn’t nearly as funny or subtle in it’s social satire as it once was) are to be given tribute. On an episode where it shows that Springfield Elementary is having to cut corners on its budget, and Groundskeeper Willy, perhaps the funniest auxillery character after Sideshow Bob (the single best character on the show) the Scottish groundskeeper / janitor / handyman of the school, is the substitute French teacher. He begins class by saying in his heavy Scottish brogue (think how Sean Connery would sound after a bottle of scotch), “Bonjouuuuuuuuur, you bunch of cheese-eating-surrender-monkeys!”

And thus, the greatest put down of anybody who’s french was invented.

Big Dawg, I wish I could believe you, and I hope you’re right, but Coach has a history, expecially recently, with favoring less talented legacies / players with seniority over more talented younger players.

I guess we’ll see, huh?

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 7:58 PM | Link to this

Buck, also, it’s nice to see No. 20’s late season resurgence. Isn’t it better to have Stewart in the top-5? Also, remember, Gordon has 4 wins and 20… 20 top-10 finishes! I mean, that’s amazing. Golfers would kill for numbers like that. I think with Junior heading to the No. 5 car (hopefully, a deal can be made with his wicked step-b!tch for No. 8, but I doubt it… a lot of my Junior loving friends are going to have to have their tatoos redone!), I think that gives Jeff an in-house ally against the immature driver of the 48 car (since he doesn’t want to play nicely with his teammates), and also sets up quite nicely for possibly a long time, a nice rivalry with Gordon, Stewart, and Junior finally behind the wheel of top-notch technology. I mean, with those three guys, and adding to that the aforementioned immature Johnson, with Kenseth and the rest of the young guns, NASCAR will have a true loaded field, much like they had when DW was dueling with the Intimidator who was dueling with Awesome Bill, back when Rusty Wallace was a rookie and Mark Martin and Dale Jarrett and Terry and Bobby Labonte were up and comers.

I can feel it Buck, it’s huge, but NASCAR is really going to explode when Junior gets behind the wheel of a car that can win him a Championship. His evil, wicked step-b!tch should be ashamed of herself for running her team on the cheap.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 9:01 PM | Link to this

Points are points in NASCAR but Gordon wanted to win today.It was a bad mistake to spin with two laps to go.I guess he felt Stewart coming.One thing about Jeff,he doesn’t make excuses.He said he made a dumb mistake,such is life.

By Big Dawg

August 12, 2007 9:14 PM | Link to this

Nascar,

As you said we will see and just like you I hope I am right but even if I am not and Lumpkin is the starter we will be fine. Moreno will get his touches and as explosive as he is they won’t be able to keep him off of the field. Anyway the key to our success is predicated on the OL and DL’s being able to control the line of scrimmage.

Go Dawgs

By AltamahaDawg

August 12, 2007 9:20 PM | Link to this

Ohh, that episode, of cource!

By NASCARfan

August 12, 2007 9:23 PM | Link to this

It always comes down to the mudders, doesn’t it, Big Dawg?

If your team has two nasty lines, you are going to have a chance to win every game.

I think out o-line is going to be good, and by the end of the year, Coach Searls is going to turn them nasty. I mean, just some mean guys who want to blow the D off the line every time.

I think our d-line, while being a bit undersized (this will hurt against the run), will actually be very good at getting to the QB. They have so much speed, they’ll be able to blow by the tackles at the ends and create some havoc. I think Miller is going to have 100 tackles this year because he’s going to be the guy stopping the run. But our Ends… man, I really think they’ll be some tazmanian devils getting after the QB.

Speed kills. Just ask the overrated Big 11 teams that got blown out in the Rose Bowl and Mythical Nat’l Championship Bowl.

By A--ville Ranger

August 12, 2007 9:40 PM | Link to this

NASCARfAN The D-line has good size inside where it’s needed most against the run.Outside is really interesting they could be better than last year.Add the speed and hitting at safty and lb and the pass rush might be outstanding.

By shane

August 12, 2007 10:30 PM | Link to this

you guys are right about line play. a pretty simple game really,for all the gimick defenses and gadget offense and trick plays. you win by blocking and tackling better than the other team. any div1 qb will beat you with plenty of time to throw just as no rb on this level is going to be stopped by arm tackles. osu had a good coach and a heisman winning qb,but the way uf beat their o line made them both look bad. thanks also for pointing out that we are not rednecks i live in south ga,like the nascar,and love the dogs,but that don’t make me a redneck,do it? gotta go,i think my possums burning and i got a new velvet elvis to hang.

By Gen Neyland

August 12, 2007 10:52 PM | Link to this

NASCARfan

Good retort on Jamiethefool. Beats the heck outta asking him ( HER ) to end it all for the benefit of all mankind…Good work…

To Whom It May Concern Around The SEC and Callefornya

We atop Rocky will surprise you. Our freshman will play or they will sit. Same goes for upperclassmen. We are getting on our game faces now…Our OL is nearly set…Our Senior TE’s are readying up for the run game and some pitch and catch. Hef will rock somebody’s world and the youngsters along with him in the secondary want to play. LB’s…need I say more ? Remember, we ain’t called WRU for nothing…A healthy Ainge will make a difference, and Matt, I’ve kept your predicions from earlier this year. I’ll post them, win, lose or vomit trying, as the year goes by… The Countdown To Green is drawing near…Good Luck to you Dawgs, except when we retake Neyland North from you in OCT…GO VOLS

By Buck in the NW

August 12, 2007 10:59 PM | Link to this

We all know that we’ll have those sprained ankles back before the 1st game and CMR, Stafford or anybody else connected to the “O” weren’t real happy after last night. As Stafford said .they’re young and just have to learn but remember, we RS to many people last year,IMO , so I’m not overly upset. What caught my attention was Miller’s statement. Gordan needed the bonus points for the chase but he’s always owned up to his mistakes and hasn’t tried to pass anything off on others. I’ve followed his nascar career since he started and he’s one of the all time greats….back to the subject…FB

By Hunk Erdown

August 12, 2007 11:54 PM | Link to this

Buck

I think that if a team, let’s say, averages red shirting 12 freshmen per year, that will drop by 3-4. The reason? New rule dropping back the line of scrimmage on kick offs. Teams will need the freshest and most talented legs out there for field position. I’ve been thinking about it and believe it will have a lot more impact than folks may think. Field position will change dramatically, thus leading to a lot of higher scoring games. This will make teams start offering more scholarships to kickers and punters in the future. CMR seems to know this and is ahead of the curve. I hope Butler is all that he’s supposed to be. We know that if Coutu is healthy how important he is for success. UGA wasn’t great on kick off coverage last year, but have been traditionally. Glad to hear we’ve been spending lot’s of extra time practicing special teams, they will be more important than ever. Giving Mikey and whoever else returns an extra 10 yds or so on kick off returns should be very interesting. I’ll bet we set a record for returns and returns for yardage… anyone care to bet?

I’m a Gordon fan also, it is remarkable what he has done this year staying in the top 5-10. He and Johnson are friggin unreal.

By Hunk Erdown

August 13, 2007 12:05 AM | Link to this

Hey General

I hope ya’ll strike gold in Californication. Win em all til ya’ll pay us a visit. I hope we can score a little pay back on that butt whoopin’ we got last year. Good Luck!

Go Silver Britches!

By Buck in the NW

August 13, 2007 1:09 AM | Link to this

Anybody want to talk about pulling for the Vols they better fall in line behind me. Living out here, believe me I’ll here about a CAl win for as long as I live!

By Buck in the NW

August 13, 2007 1:28 AM | Link to this

hear

By Stan

August 13, 2007 3:53 AM | Link to this

**CHIP, NOT A UGA HOMER, YOU BETTER DO YOUR RESEARCH PAL : YOhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAADivisionI-Anationalfootballchampionship#Byyear…

UGA IS ONLY LISTED IN 1980, OHIO STATE WAS THE AP AND CONSENSUS NATIONAL CHAMPION IN 1942…YOU ARE FULL OF IT !**

By nate

August 13, 2007 7:36 AM | Link to this

THANK YOU STAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is very funny to me to hear the idiotic dawg nation talk about other progams and their mythical national championships they claim but the dawgies are NO DIFFERENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By UGA Class of '89

August 13, 2007 7:40 AM | Link to this

Sorry Dawg Nation, but Georgia CANNOT be considered a top-tier program. Georgia is a very high, second-tier program.

Georgia is not a Notre Dame, Michigan, Penn State, USC, Texas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, or even Alabama or Tennessee.

Georgia won 65% of it’s games in the 70’s, 74% in the 80’s, 62% in the 90’s and has won 76% since 2000 —69% in the last four decades. These are very good numbers, but not top-notch —certainly not top-tier.

By jack

August 13, 2007 8:12 AM | Link to this

It is FINALY good to have people in here to know what they are talking about. Indeed the pups were # 2 1n 1942 and ohio st # 1. The reason? Ohio States only loss was to a VERY GOOD Wisconsin team who eneded up # 3 and what about UGA? They got killed by an AVERAGE AT BEST Auburn team that ended the season .500. NO contest indeed.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 8:42 AM | Link to this

You guys need to call Ohio State immediately and correct them as they do not even recognize 1942 as CONSENSES NC. (they were AP that year, so just like our other 3, some claim, but not the consensus) I’ll save the lesson on what that term means. UGA ranked #1 and beat undefeated UCLA in the Rose Bowl. You are right, no contest.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 9:07 AM | Link to this

Yea, .69955 is not even close to .70413 WP.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 9:12 AM | Link to this

Oh wait, I see you are rounding to 2 decimal places, which means UGA .70 (which is actually the case since 1970) is identical to half the teams on your list.

By Apaul404

August 13, 2007 9:21 AM | Link to this

Who cares what Stewart Mandel says? Truth be told I had never heard of the guy until this article came out, and I’m willing to say I’m not alone. He is entitled to his opinion. The truth is the national media brown noses a number of schools, ND, USC, OU, Ohio State, Michigan. If your school is not on that list forget about it.

By Jack

August 13, 2007 9:24 AM | Link to this

Altamah if you are going to argue at least have your facts somewhat close to being accurate. For the record UCLA was 7-4-0 in 1942. If you dont know what that means I will break it down for you. 7 wins, 4 losses and 0 ties. Real close to being undefeated though huh. You and the rest of the idiotic Dawg nation are becoming so desperate yall are becoming almost as bad as Bama fans when it comes to claiming national championships.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 9:42 AM | Link to this

I stand corrected, somehow the idea of scoreless UCLA, came out as undefeated. Obviously that’s not what I meant to say. I do appreciate the adult manner in which you pointed that out though. Nevertheless, 6 shoutouts, giving up 53 points all year and beating the favored hometown team at thier place, in the national spotlight, would be pretty significant and really not obviously “no contest” as you say.

By shane

August 13, 2007 10:03 AM | Link to this

general,i’ll be pulling for you guys when cal comes to call,tho’ it is hard to root for anything orange! as for what happened in 1942,i don’t care, i am an old dude,and i wasn’t even born then!ditto for the national media,as al davis used to say,”just win babby!” i want to play in the sec championship and the sugar bowl,i could care less about any so-called “national championship”,at least until we have some kind of playoff system. i don’t think we should be begging osu,or penn state,or michigan to play us either,we are a legitimate power now,we don’t need them. if they want to play us,they know where we are. just get your money right boys,and come on down.

By Dave

August 13, 2007 10:38 AM | Link to this

The truth is the national media brown noses a number of schools, ND, USC, OU, Ohio State, Michigan. If your school is not on that list forget about it.

Truer words have never been spoken! Mandel is the biggest Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Michigan pusher I’ve ever seen. How he got enough recognition to do articles in Sports Illustrated is beyond me.

By Jaime Gaverts

August 13, 2007 10:42 AM | Link to this

NASCARfan, because you love NASCAR and the Georgia Bulldogs DOES make you a redneck. Apply some Kleenex to the bloody nose of yours.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 10:47 AM | Link to this

I’ve always been a UT sympathiser, except on obvious occations. Especially out of conference. Somehow that orange (must be the white accent) doesnt seem as horrendous as others.

By idahodawg

August 13, 2007 11:07 AM | Link to this

I moved out to football hell last year (boise freakin idaho, where local folks honestly think the PAC 10 is a real conference) Anyhow, with regards to the recognizability of the G on our helmets, occasionaly I get the random subaru driving treehugger who thinks my G plate stands for Greenbay, but for the most part folks up here know what it stands for. Even out here I ususally dont go a week without seeing another fan or someone wearing something with a red and black georgia G on it. (uga alum office tells me there are 84 UGA grads in the boise metro area…) Of course the fact that so many people do recognize the G could be partly due to the 48-13 dismantling of the “mighty” broncs in 2005. I mean if youre a bronco fan, the G is something youll never forget! We made a very big impression on these guys, and when I get into football discussions with them, the respect MOST of them have for our program is apparent. Once someone realizes Im from Georgia, the first thing they want to talk about is our program and its tradition. For the folks who made the trip down to athens, the respect for dawgnation is even deeper. The local fan base here still points to the Georgia game as a wake up call for them. Last year before their fiesta bowl, the front page of the local paper hade a full color picture of Danny Ware outruning some bsu linebacker, with the headline that said. “CAN BSU REALLY HANG WITH THE BIGBOYS?” They will not soon forget the Dawgs up here thats for sure. —one last note…we have our nerds up here too. Last week I pulled up next to a blue minivan with a personalized plate that read: RMBLNRK. What are the odds???? I pulled infront of them so that they could see my personalized plate: GODAWGZ, and gave them a goodnatured honk..the driver looked at my plate with a blank look on his face with absolutely no trace of awarness. Here we are, a georgia fan and a tech fan at a stop light in idaho and the dude is oblivious. See; trying to reach out to a state of georgia brotha and I get nothing!….nerds!! GO DAWGS! IM CoMIN HOME SOON!!!!

By shane

August 13, 2007 11:08 AM | Link to this

i was thinking about richt saying that he might have red-shirted too many plould have used some of them last yesrayers last year. i think thats like overstating how much money you can put aside in your budget. it will be difficult for awhile trying to pay bills,and you have to struggle,but all the while the money you have put aside is drawing intrest,then one day you realize that you are wealthy. so it is with these players. yes we could have used some of them last year and maybe won another game,but they have had a year to grow,get stronger,and learn the system. i think the dividens will be tremendous.

By I-DOG

August 13, 2007 11:25 AM | Link to this

Chip,

I need more cowbell!

By Buck in the NW

August 13, 2007 11:31 AM | Link to this

shane, I agree with the coach but please remember that before he did that I predicted the RS, the way we have known it in the past is changing. Chip and I had a disagreement about that but IMO we can see that playing true freshmen that can earn it pays off. If you look around, I think you’ll see that a recruit doesn’t have to know the WHOLE play book to be effective. All of these RS freshmen now have to learn how to play the game. In ‘07, we’ll play about 40% of the true freshmen class and you’ll see a lot of other teams doing the same.

By Lowcountry Bulldawg

August 13, 2007 11:31 AM | Link to this

Has anyone seen that little email about the guy typing at his computer so hard that blood comes out? If so this is almost as funny. You are not a top tier program, you suck. Hell, for feeling the need to type this up. No, we are a top tier team. We won this and that back in the 40’s. Come on! Let the guys like Jack who know how good teams where in 1-9-4-2 enjoy himself. Just think of that dorky little guy typing so fast while bleeding. Must have been guys like Jack who enjoy bashing Dawg Nation.

By shane

August 13, 2007 12:01 PM | Link to this

i agree with you buck,but just think about it. we have 18 players coming into the system this year,just like freshmen,except they have had a year to mature,to work out and get stronger,and they know the coaches and what is expected of them. just as important,the coaches know them,they have seen these guys playing against the first string as scout team players and know what they can do. playing on the scout team gets the guys used to the speed of the college game. yes we may have red-shirted too many,the lack of “real game” experence could even hurt us this year,but i am telling you,we will benefit for years to come! i agree also that the red-shirt program will not be as widely used in the future,except in cases of injury,but in this case,in the long run,it will pay off.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 12:04 PM | Link to this

good point shane, that was such an offhanded remark by coach. “Hey coach do you think you might have redshirted too many players last year?” “Yea I might have?” I’ve noticed he nor anyone else has been able to put an actual name out there as , here is a guy that we should not have redshirted. UF coach Meyers (who plyed a lot of freshman last year)says he wished he could have redshirted a lot more than he did and he thinks they will not be a great program until they get to the point of being able to redshirt more. (not 3 or 4 exceptional players). So somewhere in between. I think its just a matter of particular players and particular needs in particular years. Personally, I can’t see where needing half your freshman class in order to win, is a avery good indication of how the program is going.

By Gen Neyland

August 13, 2007 12:07 PM | Link to this

shane

The aging process is a genetic quagmire. Our biological roadmap is preordained, barring unforseen circumstances. As with many Dawg Blawggwers here, we were young enough to have enjoyed our last NC, independent of each other….May we both celebrate another before the Rocking Chair stage of life…Time for a nap…

By NASCARfan

August 13, 2007 12:19 PM | Link to this

Wow, Nate, so, you’d rather believe Wikipedia (which YOU probably went in and CHANGED yourself, because three days ago, Wikipedia said WE were the 1942 Champions) or the VALID NCAA website which lists Georgia AND Ohio State as co-Champions in 1942.

Seriously, people, Nate went into Wikipedia and CHANGED the 1942 National Champion.

Nate is a cheater, just like Barroid Bonds!!!

Also, Jaime, call me a redneck if you want to continue to be wrong. You know what, Jaime? I’m going to assume that you’re a guy, and I’m going to assume that we say your name with a soft “J.” That way, I can assume you’re a lazy wetback.

Oh yeah… I just went to your world of stereotypes and bit your ear off. So you may want to watch out, because now I want to eat your 12 children who are on welfare.

Moron.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 12:21 PM | Link to this

I also do not understand how playing redshirt freshman (who doesn’t have game experience) is worse than playing true freshman (who doesn’t have game experience). Arent they both in the same cycle, only one is far better prepared?

Obviously “need” and exceptional talents are different. I’d be be just as happy, if neither one of those were critical on any given year.

By shane

August 13, 2007 12:34 PM | Link to this

how right you are general,i will go out on a limb and say that at least one of us will enjoy the nc label in a few years. i would hope that one day the ncaa will have a playoff system so that we can enjoy a real “national title”. had a playoff system been in place,the southern teams would have had several more titles and there would not be the so called “top tier” of teams that the national sports media loves so much now. auburn,georgia,and ga tech to name a few,have had undeafeted teams that SHOULD have been champs.

By Buck in the NW

August 13, 2007 1:01 PM | Link to this

shane, one of the things that’s a new trend is trying as hard as you can to get players to enter school early. I think we had 7-8, may be off by one. Kid starts school in Jan., goes through winter drills, Spring practice, fall drills and then tell him he’s got to sit another year? That means he would have been on campus for 18 months before he gets his chance. Happy, not. I disagree with Altahama about CMR remark. I don’t think it was just a one time off the cuff comment. After that he changed his out look and now tells new recruits that if they came in ready to play they’ll get a shot as a true freshmen. It’s not just the Dawgs or the Reptiles it across the country. Don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying that every freshman will play his 1st year. What I am saying is that a higher % of true freshmen will play more than ever before. It’s a guess at this point but I think we’ll see an average of 30-35 % of true freshman play and the rest will shirt.

By Gen Neyland

August 13, 2007 1:24 PM | Link to this

NASCARfan

By Jamies’ standards, I too am a redneck. (Exception is I like UT )…I grew older in Nashville going the the old Fairgrounds Speedway on Saturday nights with my Dad. Saw Coo Coo Marlin race his guts out against Red Farmer on the 1/4 mile inside track, and also saw the big boys race there a time or two…The likes of Fireball Roberts, Fred Lorensen, Tiny Lund, Rex White, etc were a part of my childhood idols…Also, saw the last sanctioned Cup race there in 1985 I believe it was…Neil Bonnett and Darrell Waldrip banging door to door at the line on a green/white/checker finish driving Junior Johnsons’ Budweiser Chevy’s. The late great Dale Earnhart drove the Wrangler car at that time…So, I too, am a redneck…and a proud southerner…DW won the race in a photo finish…

By J Brooks

August 13, 2007 1:25 PM | Link to this

Chip!

Where are you?

By BuckeyeDownSouth

August 13, 2007 1:34 PM | Link to this

This quote from Mandel pretty much sums up the Georgia program and its fans: Not that Jeff represents the average Georgia fan (I hope), but I lived in Atlanta for five years, and it always baffled me just how inflated a perception people have there of that program’s place in the national landscape. Keep in mind, because of my age, I didn’t start following college football until about the mid-’80s, so I missed the Herschel Walker glory years. To me, Georgia was just an average, top-20 type program for most of my life. But to listen to their fans, you’d think Georgia was a USC or Notre Dame. They’ve won two national titles in their entire history, the last one coming 27 years ago. BYU won one more recently.

All Hype. Get over yourselves.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 1:37 PM | Link to this

Buck, RS isnt a punishment, its an opportunity to better use your years of eligibility. I agree with everything you say. Early entry, better HS, all make it easier for a freshman IF, IF you needed to, But none of those positives go away for the “freshman” class a year more practised. Just even more so. I think you are reaching a bit to know what Coach Richts is telling somebody this year vs last year. He’s been handling high profile recruits and talented freshman for a couple of decades, Im pretty sure he’s had the verbage down before that interview suddenly changed his mind. I think most recruits are capable of doing the math and applying the logic.

Just to pick on you a bit, you’ve gone from 50% to 40% to 30%. We are getting closer.

By shane

August 13, 2007 1:50 PM | Link to this

a-dawg,you answered you own question,yes they are better prepared,plus [hopefully},more mature emotionally,bigger,and stronger. add too this the fact that they know their teammates and are faniliar with the coaches and the playbook. they have been competing with college level talent for a year,remember that college is a different world than high school. these guys may have been high school stars,but everyone that they play against is a high school star. i think we will see more freshman starting,most four and five star players THINK that they are ready for div1 football. unfortunately many are not. yes,we will see more freshmen playing,for many years we have seen high school players go directly into the nba.almost all bballers with real talent leave college in their sophmore or jr year. do you believe the level of play in the nba has gotten better because of this? i think not! we cannot stockpile players with the scholarship limits that we have today,and we are poorer for it.

By dawgfacedboy

August 13, 2007 2:56 PM | Link to this

Good to be back boys! Summer break is over and as a teacher/coach I don’t get on here much in the summer!

Altamaha- I think I agree with both you and Buck. I think the decision to redshirt v.s. not comes down to a couple of things. Need at that certain position and how much of an impact can they have by getting either redshirted or playing immediately.

What I mean is Percy Harvin was just to good to redshirt. He needed to play because he could make a difference early and will only get better. Stafford and Tebow couldn’t really redshirt because of UGA’s and UF’s QB situation. A RB with 2-3 quality guys in front of them (who will graduate at the end of the season) will probably redshirt (Caleb King).

By shane

August 13, 2007 3:15 PM | Link to this

buckeyedownsouth,did you not see your team get taken to the woodshed by uf last year? espn and most of the “experts” picked osu to win. one of the gators said after the game,and i believe this is an exact quote,”we played at least five teams this year tougher than these guys”. did you see nd get stomped by lsu? now talk about hype,nd hasn’t won anything important in years,yet they have their own national tv contract. one thing to consider,for years coaches in the south were not allowed to recruit black players. they had to play with what the bear called his “skinny white boys”. things have changed over the past thirty to forty years,and most of these kids stay home,instead of going to osu,notre dame,michigan and the like. the sunbelt has boomed in population for the past few decades also,giving the sec a much larger pool of talent to draw from. so watch out,the times they are a-changing.

By AltamahaDawg

August 13, 2007 3:22 PM | Link to this

dawgface, nice way to put it, plus a good way to move on. I really just think Buck and I are debating different thing and correct in each aspect. as far as King,I have no idea. id say I would prefer he RS, as I think that is general the way to go. But he may be the exception. I’ve asked seeral times in here and not sure I ever got and answer. What skill sets does he possess that we do not have any better option. I’m all for plays he can run this year in limited action, BUT only if he is the best person for that play. I understand he is going to be a formitable RB in time, But Ive yet to hear what the rush to get him out there, taking PT from somebody else is. (I simply discount any talk of grades, or NFL, or injuries, which are all actually reasons TO RS). Seriously somebody help me with that. Where can he contribute to the point of one less quality year in his college career?

By shane

August 13, 2007 3:52 PM | Link to this

the intresting positons as far as who to redshirt or not are at wr and rb. we have two players that i believe can contribute now,in troupe and king. but, we have quality players ahead of them,moreno and wilson,that have paid their dues and deserve playing time. we have a stable of highly recruited wr’s anyway. so what to do,do we waste a year of eligability so one of these guys can return kickoffs and get in on a few plays? we need the o lineman,but coach richt will earn some of his money deciding about king and troupe. lets just hope everyone stays healthy and we can play a guy because he is ready,not out of need.

By hometeamdawg

August 13, 2007 4:00 PM | Link to this

I don’t have the time or inclination to look up past scores, but it seems that a lot of people view a “national power” as a team that 1)was ranked in the top ten for an extended period, 2)won multiple national championships during that period, 3) destroyed the doormats on the schedule, 4) won more than their fare share of the “big” games. I’m a Georgia fan, but UGA has never had that type of extended period. I believe(with the possible exception of Tennessee) that all the others mentioned as national powers have.

By J-Dawg

August 13, 2007 5:12 PM | Link to this

Franklin and gayterd catcher sounds like you need to get beat up. What did the five fingers say to the face!

By Jaime Gaverts

August 13, 2007 5:53 PM | Link to this

An impression of NASCARfan: “BLAH, BLAH, BLAH…….BLAH, BLAH, BUH BLAH BLAH….BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BU BLAH BLAH BLAH.” Shut up and get back to scrubbing pots and pans.

By dawgdiva

August 15, 2007 3:39 PM | Link to this

Well of course the average football fan in Montana doesn’t recognize the “G”. They have never seen real football in Montana! I mean really…..

By Nate

August 15, 2007 3:45 PM | Link to this

The number of bowl games reference is a little weak. Im not sure about other conferences, but from 1918-1945, the Big Ten did not allow its teams to play in bowls, and from 1946-1974, only the conference champion couple play, in the rose bowl of course, and you couldnt play more than 2 years in a row. Other conferences may have had similar rules(I know the SEC didnt though) so this is a slightly skewed statistic. Additionally, since bowl expansion has gotten so ridiculous that 6-6 teams get into bowl games, I think that has lost some of its luster

By BigHouse

August 15, 2007 4:47 PM | Link to this

Alright playa haters you reach the elite status with records like this: 17-4-1 — Michigan’s all-time record against SEC schools, including 7-2 in bowl games.

By SK

August 15, 2007 5:00 PM | Link to this

A person recognizes the “G” in Montana. Just in their world, it was from the Green Bay Packers, its true home.

Georgia’s tradition is overcome by its recent perception, and that’s what the mailbag talks about. Florida has been “around” the national title chase (save for the Zook years) very consistently since the early 1990s. Their record against Georgia helps to create the perception that Georgia is a nice program that is not one of the “big boys” because they face a big boy every year and lose.

By Wolf

August 15, 2007 6:08 PM | Link to this

“B: Richt is No. 4 on the list of winningest active D-I coaches. 1, 2 and 3 are Pete Carroll, Urban Meyer (which includes stints at Bowling Green and Utah) and Bob Stoops.”

Ummmm what about Bowden, Paterno, and Beamer?

By Glenn

August 16, 2007 12:36 AM | Link to this

For Sale, Gator Tail .02 cents a lb. yes that is over priced. The #1 Bulldawg fan in Alaska.

By Scott

August 16, 2007 9:06 AM | Link to this

One thing people fail to mention is the schools “band-wagon” fans, of which Notre Dame picked up a lot when Charlie Weis was hired, Southern Cal has about a million and Florida is starting to gather a crowd too. That’s one of the reasons these team are so “popular” and thus DO influence the perception of their stature. But look at the schedules too - the Dawgs consistently have to play a tougher schedule than almost all PAC-10, Big 10 or Big 12 teams. Florida, LSU, Tennessee and Georgia’s schedules are ALWAYS harder than teams outside the SEC…just look at Ohio State’s schedule this season.

By John in DC

August 16, 2007 10:08 AM | Link to this

C’mon folks - it’s okay to be happy with UGA’s recent success (last 5 years or so), but the Dawgs simply aren’t up there with the others. If somebody wants to highlight SEC championships, winnings, and a couple Nat’l championships 3 decades ago, then there will be a dozen other programs trying to argue the same thing. Let’s just be happy with where the program is now.

By Unbiased

August 16, 2007 10:40 AM | Link to this

I’ve never seen such pandering as the AJC. What a joke.

By RN

August 16, 2007 11:24 AM | Link to this

Georgia has a history of underachieving. If they could win the big games they would become a top tier program, period. Otherwise they are a good team in a tough conference, but their out of conference schedule is a joke. Play tougher teams and beat them and Georgia could be a top tier program. I agree with Mandel. I would also agree with “SK” above, in Montana “G” would be recognized as Green Bay.

By Observer

August 16, 2007 11:34 AM | Link to this

There are only five teams in the nation that have been to more bowls than the Bulldogs: Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, Southern Cal and Nebraska.”

Does any rational person wonder why Michigan and Ohio State aren’t on that list of all-time bowls, given their history?

This argument from the SEC should always include the asterisk explaining this oddity: Until 1976, the BigTen only allowed the champion to play in the Rose Bowl. Many 11-1 teams sat home and didn’t go to bowls until 1977.

So what would those all-time bowls lists look like if Ohio State and Michigan would have been allowed to go to another bowl in the years they didn’t go to the Rose Bowl?

While the SEC all time bowl records are admirable, to use it as a measure against a BigTen team as to all time achievement is a bogus claim.

By Russell

August 16, 2007 3:14 PM | Link to this

Chip, I believe Mr. Mandel’s column is about football so lets limit it to just football thus your points of recognizability are mute. Second, we are talking country wide thus your points that reference to the SEC only are not valid.

I agree that Georgia is a class act but to say it is in the top 10, answer this, who would you remove? and remember we are only talking football.

By Rob

August 16, 2007 4:31 PM | Link to this

Russell, Mandel’s column is not just about football, if you would have read it. He mentions that his definition of a “powerhouse” has to do with perception as well, hence the whole deal about the Georgia G being unrecognizable in Montana. So Chip bringing up the recognizability is very valid and legitimate.

By mark

August 16, 2007 6:41 PM | Link to this

Did any of you, including Chip, actually read the article? If you did read it, then your reading comprehension skills are horrible. The whole tier system was based on the public’s perception of the team, not pure numbers. Please also keep in mind that there are a quite a few people in this country that you don’t personally know.

By brian

August 16, 2007 6:48 PM | Link to this

Good lord you UGA fans are A) touchy and B) lack reading comprehension skills - all the way up to Chip, who has failed at reading on teh internets.

I wish Stewart Mandell had made another catagory - Football programs with a Napoleon complex. UGA would fit right in.

By Bobak

August 16, 2007 8:10 PM | Link to this

Just a side-note: Please read the USC Trojans media guide (your copy or online) and note that USC requests the media not call them “Southern Cal”. I know its an old habit, so this is a friendly reminder.

By joejoejoe

August 17, 2007 3:44 PM | Link to this

please stop. ga does not have 2 natinoal championships, just 1. please, for the love of god, stop. I and any other college football fan with half a brain can’t take it anymore