UGA blog finds new home
Morning all. As I’ve said a couple of times this week, we’re converting this blog over to a WordPress platform and it will be a permanent move the first of next week.
Those of you who are regulars probably know that I’m not what you’d call techno-wizard when it comes to these things. But from what I understand the technology offered in this new format should make the blogging and commenting experience better for all. Of course, I’ll be learning as we go along, too. But I’m hoping to provide more pictures and video and things like that which should bring the blog more to life.
Of course, this blog is nothing without all you guys so I want to heartily invite (read: beg) you to come over to the new site by CLICKING HERE ON THE NEW ADDRESS and save it in your browsers. As of Monday, Feb. 23rd, this will be the permanent home of the UGA blog you so love or, in the case of some of you, love to loathe. If you’d prefer to copy and paste or just memorize, the new address is: http://blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/.
See at the new place!
AJC > Sports > UGA > Blog > Archives > 2008 > October
October 2008
A glimpse inside the Gator Nation
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Welcome to this week’s installment of “Beyond The Hedges.” I say “installment” because it’s the second week in a row I’ve done this. That makes it a full-fledged feature of this blog. I even solicited a name for it and BTH is the best one y’all came up with (or at least the one I remembered as I sat down to hammer this out). Everything gets compressed during Georgia-Florida week because you’re trying to get a hundred things done and get out of town. Kind of like everybody else in Atlanta this week.
This week’s hack — that’s a term of affection and esteem inside the biz (I promise) — that covers the opposing team is Gainesville Sun columnist Pat Dooley. Dooley has covered the Gators for, well, a really long time. Put it this way: He’s one of the only guys I know that can hit Steve Spurrier on his cell and get him the first time. I know that instantly doubles your respect for him right there.
Anyway, I e-mailed Pat five carefully thought-out, meticulously crafted questions (OK, I actually banged them out off the top of my head) regarding Saturday’s game between Georgia and Florida. He, in turn, studied them thoroughly and answered them thoughtfully (or at least in as much time as it took him to finish a sandwich during lunch on Thursday).
By the way, last week’s guest, LSU beat writer Glenn Guilbeau of Gannett Newspapers, said to tell y’all, “same to you,” whatever that means.
So for those of you that haven’t already fled Atlanta for Jacksonville and the Golden Isles and others who can manage to look cool surfing the ‘Net with your laptop at the tailgate, from the heart of Gator Country, here’s Pat Dooley:
(1) The Georgia touchdown celebration last year: Brilliant motivational tool or irresponsible coaching act?
Dooley: “I’ve said all along that I understood why Mark Richt did what he did. I’ve also said it’s lazy thinking to call it brilliant because Georgia won the game. Georgia won because it was the better team and Tim Tebow was injured. The move could have backfired in a lot of ways. But it sure made things interesting.”
(2) Do you expect Florida do anything this year to retaliate? If so, what? If not, why not?
Dooley: No. I think you retaliate by winning the game. Then maybe you have some fun.
(3) Has the perception of Georgia under Richt changed in the eyes the Gator Nation?
Dooley: A little. He’s a Dog who is a former Nole and former Cane so it’s not like he was beloved anyway. If he wins two in a row, they’ll really hate him.
(4) Do you like the game being in Jacksonville and does that venue represent an advantage for the Gators?
Dooley: I’ve never believed it’s an advantage to either team. I know all about the bus ride vs. plane theory but that didn’t seem to be an issue in the 1980s. I used to be a home-and-home guy for one reason — Athens is the best town in the SEC. But I’ve come to appreciate the uniqueness and incredible environment Jacksonville gives this game. The city is cleaner and the stadium is nicer.
(5) Why will Florida win the game? Georgia?
Dooley: Florida will win if its plays good defense. Not great, just good and solid defense. Georgia will win if Florida turns the ball over more than once. No matter who wins, I’ll be doing my own celebration dance in the press box when my last word is written. It’s been a long week.
With that, I’ll leave you with some links. You’ll note that these are mostly videos geared toward the diehard Dogs’ fans on the blog. But we’re equal opportunity here. Feel free to add your own with your comments. See you down on the River… .
Here’s a song about something called Jorts… .
Georgia fans seem to think Florida fans are U-G-L-Y… .
This is why you suck, or so this guy raps… .
I thought this one may be related to that Jorts thing because of the name of the website. But it’s actually some kind of documentary on an entertainment endeavor Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer are entering into together. Well, just see for yourself… .
Former Gator Channing Crowder, now with the Dolphins, talks a better game than I ever saw him play against Georgia.
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Stafford vs. Tebow a tough call
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Who’s the better quarterback, Georgia’s Matthew Stafford or Florida’s Tim Tebow?
Our Tim Tucker is writing a story for tomorrow’s paper that will delve into that with some quantification and commentary. But I figured I’d go ahead and toss that question to the people.
In a lot of ways, it’s like comparing apples to oranges. Just start with the offenses.
The Bulldogs run about as close to a pro-style offense as you’ll ever see. Stafford plays from under the center the majority of the time with a fullback and a tailback behind him and a tight end and two wideouts outside. He audibles at the line of scrimmage according to what the defense is showing and usually passes off of play-action. There is a lot of vertical in the passing game.
This highlight video of Stafford vs. LSU illustrates how well he’s playing at this point in the season.
Florida, by contrast, lines up mostly in a spread look from the shotgun with a single back in the backfield and at least three wideouts on the field. But the Gators actually run the ball much more than they pass. They employ many of the principles of the triple-option, even though are using much less quarterback run with Tebow. Running backs Jeffrey Demps and Chris Rainey have helped make him much more of a ball distributor than he was last year when he won the Heisman Trophy on a 9-4 team. Most of his passes are short to midrange but to speedy players that get yards after the catch.
Their numbers are quite comparable:
Stafford — 141 of 229 (61.6 percent) for 1,946 yards (243.2 pg) with 12 TDs and 5 INTs. 60 yards rushing.
Tebow — 104 of 164 (63.4) for 1,415 (202.1) with 12 TDs and 2 INTs. 227 yards rushing.
They’re even similar physically. Tebow is 6-3, 240; Stafford 6-3, 237.
You can’t argue with Florida’s results. The Gators average a gaudy 42 points per game, tops in the SEC and 7th nationally. Georgia (34.2 ppg) is second and 24th, respectively. The Dogs lead the league in total offense at 431.2 ypg. Florida is third (410.3).
So there you have it. Tebow has the hardware but is he the better quarterback? What about pro prospect?
In the meantime, some morning links with your coffee:
Here’s some (shaky) video of an interview of Georgia DE Jeremy Lomax talking about the Georgia-Florida game… .
According to the Orlando Sentinel’s Jeremy Fowler, Florida’s Urban Meyer gets the edge over Mark Richt as a coach. Here is his breakdown by categories… .
This NFL draft guru writing for SI.com projects Georgia’s Knowshon Moreno as the No. 9 pick next April. In the good news/bad news department, you’ll note that he does not list quarterback Matthew Stafford among his top 20… .
Trev Alberts is one of the few national pundits picking Georgia over the Gators… .
You can tell from Meyer’s comment in this Miami Herald story he believes Georgia didn’t face the real Tebow last year. “He’s not limited now,” he said. “He’s got that Tebow look. I love that Tebow look.” …
This story is coming all the way from the Left Coast but it should resonate with Georgia fans as USC’s Pete Carroll complains about Pac-10 officials calling more penalties on the Trojans than their opponents.
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Questions: Roping Gators and blackouts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
You asked for it; you got it. Following are the FAQs (frequently asked questions) you guys submitted for this week’s game. These are the ones that, by my best estimation, were posed most often. I’ll answer or get the answers to any other ones you have as we go through the day.
Let’s get right to it:
(1) Defense, defense, defense.
I hear more complaints about the defense — and defensive coordinator Willie Martinez in particular — than anything else on this blog. Lately, I can understand it. I, too, am surprised that Georgia hasn’t played better as a defense this season, especially considering it was returning nine starters from last year’s unit that finished 14th in the national in overall D. Granted, injuries have been a problem again, especially losing DT Jeff Owens right out of the gate. But they still seem to have all the parts needed to be dominant, and they’ve been anything but that. Entering the Florida game, the Dogs are sixth in the SEC overall (298.1 ypg), eighth against the score (20.2 ppg) and 11th — and 77th nationally — against the pass (221.2 ypg). The only thing they’re good at is stuffing the run. All that is before they meet Florida, which is one of the most explosive offenses in the country.
Asked about defending the Gators, Martinez said: “You have to play good with your eyes and execute the defense and get off blocks and make plays. It’s not going to change [for Florida]. You’re just trying to defend plays and the players, too. Making plays and recognizing where there strengths are and match them up with our strengths and weakness. You’ve got to execute on defense.”
Whatever all that means…
(2) Lots of questions about whether or not the Bulldogs are planning to “blackout” the Florida game.
There certainly has been no indication of that. Of course, if they were to do it this time they’d try to keep it a secret until kickoff. Personally, I think it would be a bad idea. Never mind that they got waxed by Alabama the last time they wore them. I just don’t think it would be nearly as effective in Jacksonville where the stadium is 50-50 Georgia and Florida fans. And I don’t think it’s sending the right message either. To me it’s almost like they’re trying to derive power and strength from wearing a certain color. I’m more of the mindset of wearing traditional colors and trying to win the game on your own athletic and strategic merits.
(3) A lot of queries about the tight ends, such as “why aren’t we throwing to them as much as we have in the past?” and “are they going to play Aron White more after his big catch against LSU?”
This question just won’t go away no matter how many times it gets answered. There are three basic reasons you’re not seeing more tight ends in the passing game this season. First, Georgia is having to utilize the tight ends much more in pass protection due to the young offensive line. Secondly, injuries have ravaged the position this season, with all three players currently battling serious shoulder problems (probably from all that pass protection on D-ends). And, finally, because the Dogs have three major threats — flanker A.J. Green, slot receiver Mohamed Massaquoi and whomever is playing split end — at wide receiver, plus the backs to throw to out of the backfield, they’re just not as reliant on the tight end as a receiver this season. That said, they still have plenty of plays in the playbook and, because they haven’t gone to tight ends as often, it’s more of a surprise when they do (see White’s 48-yard catch vs. LSU).
(4) Do the Dogs kick away from Florida returner Brandon James?
CMR: “There are two ways [to handle a great returner]: Either kick it away or kick it high. And you hope it’s high enough to cover. If you keep it in play or kick it out of bounds, you hope you didn’t shank it and you hope you got it off. Because when you do have to ask a punter to angle kick, he’s basically stepping \into a place that’s not quite as safe. You hope the pocket is wide enough to be safe. It also usually takes a little bit more time to turn and angle kick which is also a protection issue. You also have a chance for shanking them but we practice it and it will be ready to go. The other problem is when you put it in play you give a great player a chance to return it for a touchdown. There’s really not an easy answer. They’re going to stress us either way.”
For the record, a talked to punter Brian Mimbs after practice Tuesday — it’ll be an item in today’s notebook — and it sounds like the Dogs are going to punt straight at James and high. It worked well last weekend against LSU’s Trindon Holliday.
(5) Any plans to move some “speed guys” to defensive end to improve pass rush?
Same answer as all season: No. The coaches like who they have there and think they’re improving weekly.
So that’s all for now. Like I said, keep ‘em coming. Meanwhile, here’s a few links:
Alleged BCS guru Jeff Sagarin currently has the SEC ranked fourth among the super conferences in his weekly power rankings… .
If you’re rooting for an eventual playoff in college football, then you should root for this BCS disaster scenario… .
Alabama is a great team and it has the league’s best shot at making it to the BCS title game unscathed. But the Tide has benefitted from an extremely weak SEC Western Division… .
Here’s a good column on Georgia’s O-line by the Athens Banner-Herald’s David Ching.
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Is ‘08 Georgia-Florida biggest ever?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So just how big is Saturday’s Georgia-Florida game? By any measure, real big.
The biggest ever, if you believe Gainesville Sun columnist Pat Dooley. That’s what he wrote on Monday, and he makes some very good arguments to that end. Pat’s a good buddy that I’ve gotten to know over our many years in this business. When you’re searching for the Gators’ perspective, Pat’s one of the best to visit. In fact, pending the approval of his paper’s management, I’ve asked him to handle the five questions with the opposing team’s writer for us this week (we need to come up with a name for that, don’t we?).
Anyway, I can’t decide whether I agree with Pat or not. As he details in his column, there are a lot of reasons to vote for this one. For starters, it’s the highest ranked the two teams have been in the modern era whether you go by The AP (Florida 5, Georgia 8) or the BCS (Georgia 6, Florida 8). With that come the obvious national implications.
Really, even more important than that is that the these two live in the same neighborhood. The game is essentially an SEC East semifinal with the loser facing virtual elimination. Add the backdrop of last year’s touchdown celebration and you’ve got some pretty combustible fuel.
But I’ve done a lot of research in this area and there have been some awfully good and extremely meaningful Georgia-Florida games. Shoot, 1980 (2 vs. 20), ‘83 (4 vs. 9) and ‘84 games (8 vs. 10) all featured excellent teams with major SEC and national implications. The ‘76 game, featuring No. 7 Florida vs. No. 10 Georgia, to me is one of the all-time classics. And Georgia people probably forget that the Dogs were pretty darn good heading to Jacksonville in ‘99 (No. 10 against UF’s 5) before Spurrier’s Gators put a 30-14 whipping on them and the season imploded.
Never minding records and rankings there have been some barn-burner games. But usually it’s been more meaningful for one than the other. Often the best games have been when the underdog won, but those are big only retrospectively.
So what do y’all think? You agree with Gainesville’s Dooley and think it’s the biggest Georgia-Florida ever? How do you fans rate in terms of anticipation?
While you’re mulling that, here’s some links for your reading pleasure:
Dave Curtis of The Sporting News was at the Georgia-LSU game and weighs in on this the Florida game and the whole “Celebrate Gate” deal… .
Knoxville News columnist John Adams has been very consistent in his criticism of Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer. In the last two editions he has written that Fulmer needs to be fired and, a day later, blames Fulmer’s demise on the departure(s) of longtime offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe… .
Remember Arizona State and the angst Georgia had going out to Tempe to play that game. Well, things have changed just a smidge for the Sun Devils since then… .
A special thanks to Jon Solomon of the Birmingham News, who has gone to the trouble of quantifying Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville’s inability — or is it unwillingness? — to retain coordinators. I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that his research concludes that Ol’ Ears has run through more than anybody.
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More dancing Dogs vs. Florida?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well it’s here. Georgia-Florida week. I remember this game coming up in this forum way back in the summer. The talk then was of it being a monumental contest between two undefeateds fighting for the right to keep their national championship hopes alive.
Drop the “undefeated” and that’s still what you have.
While both teams have one (bad) loss, the ultimate accomplishment is still possible. The Bulldogs (7-1, 4-1) are sitting sixth in the latest BCS rankings released Sunday. Florida (6-1, 4-1) is sitting at eighth. The winner most certainly will become the highest-ranked one-loss team in America. As long as only one other team remains undefeated and Florida or Georgia defeats Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, it’s doubtful the SEC champion would be passed over.
So with that as a backdrop, I’m planning to do what I said I was going to last week. That is, give me your questions for Coach Mark Richt and the players. If I get a lot of the same suggestions I’ll actually take the most relevant ones to them and try to get some answers. I won’t have access until Tuesday but I’ll repost then.
Foremost on a lot of people’s minds I’m sure is Georgia’s celebration dance from last year’s game (or unsportsmanlike act, as the Gators prefer to call it). Not going to be able to get you any commentary on that as both coaches have issued a gag order to the players on it and refuse to answer themselves. Otherwise they’re just trying to avoid the issue.
“I think it’s old news,” Florida coach Meyer said. “I’m sure that old guy (Meyer) warned our players about it. It has nothing, no bearing whatsoever on this year’s game. It’s two teams battling for the SEC East and it has no bearing whatsoever.”
Said Richt: “That’s really, really old news and I’m not going to comment on it.” Then he referred everybody to the text of his statement about it from Media Days in late July.
So that’s about all there is about it right now. But I’m sure some stuff will seep out before the end of the week. These guys are young. I’m sure somebody will say something.
But seriously, let’s hear your thoughtful questions. In the meantime, feel free to comment, er, freely as you always do. I’ll be checking in all day.
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Dogs’ performance good enough for Gators?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well, what did you think about that? Great win or much to work out before Florida?
Obviously it was big to beat LSU on its home field, as Georgia did 52-38 Saturday night here in Baton Rouge. Dogs now 28-4 on the road under coach Mark Richt. But the Tigers sure did make it scary late in that game after getting down by 21, ripping down the field for one score and getting down there deep before turning it over on downs with five minutes left. I know from comments in the in-game blog a lot of people weren’t happy with the way the defense was playing and complaining about more dumb penaIties.
So the good news: Obviously Georgia’s offense was able to move the ball against LSU, which I thought it would be able to do but not to that extent. The Bulldogs had 443 yards in the game — the third straight of 425 or more — and that’s after they kind of pulled back late trying to kill some clock. Another big game for Knowshon Moreno, who finished with 163 yards and a 68-yard touchdown. Matthew Stafford, who was 17-of-26 for 249 yards and 2 TDs, played an NFL-type game with big throws on big downs against big pressure. O-line was shockingly good against a great defensive front.
And while Georgia gave up a lot of yards on defense, it also made a lot of big plays. Three interceptions, two of them returned for touchdowns by linebacker Darryl Gamble. I’ve forgotten the name of the guy he backs up (joke there). But I’m sure Florida, which won 63-5 against Kentucky on Saturday, is looking at the 497 yards the Bulldogs allowed and getting excited about the possibilities.
Said Gamble after the game: “We aren’t Kentucky.”
Well, let’s hear it. Georgia-Florida is less than a week away!
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Patchwork lineup for LSU game
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Greetings from the press box high above the field at Tiger Stadium. It is an absolutely gorgeous day for football. Temperature is 79 degrees with a slight breeze with almost completely clear blue sky. It couldn’t be more different than the weather I left in Atlanta yesterday, cold, windy and rainy enough to delay my flight an hour and a half.
It’s about 40 minutes before No. 7 Georgia and No. 11 LSU kickoff here in what it a fairly rare matchup. As non-traditional SEC opponents, these two teams only play home-and-home every fourth year. Of course, they also have twice recently in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta (2003 and 2005). The Bulldogs will be going for their third straight win in the series.
A few observations as we get set for kickoff here:
Coach Mark Richt had said tight end Aron White (shoulder) wasn’t going to make the trip here after getting hurt during Tuesday’s practice. But sure as the world, there he is, dressed out and going through drills as if he’s going to play. Maybe he’s just insurance. Bruce Figgins is lined up with the ones and there is a white guy wearing the No. 93 lining up there as well (maybe Justin Fields?). Tripp Chandler (shoulder) obviously didn’t make the trip. Kiante Tripp is back in his 75 jersey and is working with the No. 2 O-line at right tackle,
I haven’t been able to locate linebacker Dannell Ellerbe (knee) anywhere so I’m thinking he didn’t make the trip either. I see former fullback Ben Boyd working with the No. 2 defensive unit.
Stay tuned throughout the game as I’ll be providing updates.
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LSU fans see Bulldogs as ‘whiners’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rather than my usual Friday topic, which tends to be something like, “who do you think is going to win, by what score and why,” I decided this week to call my good buddy Glenn Guilbeau over in Baton Rouge and “interview” him about Saturday’s game between Georgia and LSU.
Guilbeau is one of the foremost authorities on LSU athletics. Well, football at least. He covered the Tigers for a long time for the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate and now does for Gannett News Service, which circulates his stories throughout its newspaper network. Nobody knows LSU football better and he’s a pretty funny guy to boot. So I figured I’d just hit him with some questions and get him to tell us all what he’s thinking.
Talking to the “opposing” beat writer is something a lot of bloggers do these days but it’s new to us. But if it’s a feature you like I’ll make it a regular thing. I know somebody well on all the SEC beats. So give me your feedback.
Without further adieu, let’s hear from Guilbeau:
(1) What would you say is the perception of the Georgia Bulldogs among LSU/Louisiana folks? Contenders or pretenders? Do they think the Bulldogs are overrated or underachieving?
Guilbeau: “Many LSU fans incorrectly see Georgia as whiners from the way the BCS ended up last year with LSU luckily getting into the national title game with two losses. I covered Georgia in the Sugar Bowl and all coach Mark Richt said was that there is no rule that states a team has to win its conference to play in the BCS title game. Until there is, non-league champions could make it. And there are scenarios in which a non-league champion would be a more worthy participant. For example, if a three- or four-loss West division champ upsets a one-loss East division champ in the SEC title game, and if the East division runner-up only has one loss from early in the season then it would be much higher ranked. The fans were also legitimately aggravated by Georgia president Michael Adams call for a playoff just as LSU was winning the national title. SEC commissioner Roy Kramer was very upset at that. Adams tends to put his foot in his mouth often. Other than that, LSU fans are wary of Georgia’s offense in light of how much the Tigers’ secondary and linebackers have struggled this season. LSU fans can’t really say Georgia is overrated since LSU is likely overrated. The Tigers do not have a win over a ranked team.
(2) Is this game a big concern for LSU or just a big event? Or neither? Do the Dogs have a prayer in fabled Tiger Stadium?
Guilbeau: “The Georgia game is a major concern, and because of that and the two teams’ rankings, this is a huge event. It will be one of the highest ranked pairings in Tiger Stadium in recent years. Georgia has a very good chance of winning with a quarterback like Stafford and his wealth of receivers. LSU can’t cover well.”
(3) What are some things Georgia folks making their first trip to Baton Rouge may need to know? Got some recommendations for places to go, places to eat, things to do, tailgating?
Guilbeau: “I would say head downtown. That’s where all the bail bondsmen are in case more Bulldogs get arrested Friday night. I would also recommend some of the animal shelters so Georgia could get a mascot that doesn’t attack Auburn players during games.” [Note: Guilbeau was covering Auburn when UGA V got after receiver Robert Baker].
(4) What has been your impression of the 2008 Tigers? Any chance they could repeat as national champs? SEC champs? West champs?
Guilbeau: “If LSU wins out, it could get back in the national title game, but this year’s team just does not look that good. There are too many holes - the secondary, linebackers, quarterback. If it doesn’t reach the title game, though, LSU chancellor Michael Martin may criticize the system and call for a playoff system to begin at once.”
(5) Was Les Miles ever really headed to Michigan? Is he beloved in Baton Rouge like the guy that coached there before him, ol What’s-His-Name? Is What’s-His-Name still beloved or reviled now?
Guilbeau: “Miles looked at Michigan and looked into what his salary and the salary of his coaches might be, but he never really considered it seriously. Had Michigan been smarter in its interest in Miles and had it realized that it has to pay people to come to Michigan, Michigan would have had a better shot at Miles. But Miles wasn’t going to go to Michigan if his assistants were going to have to take a pay cut. Michigan has an extremely high and unrealistic opinion of itself. The LSU job is a better job because of the talent and elite status Nick Saban left, and Miles wasn’t going to leave for equal or less money. One reason the story lasted so long was because Miles did not want to appear to be dissing his alma mater. He has a lot of friends there. He wanted to talk to Michigan. He also milked the interest somewhat in contract negotiations before the SEC title game, but that became moot. The raise Miles got from $2.2 million to $3.75 million was all bonus money based on the fact that he won the national title. He would have received the exact same raise had Michigan not been interested.
“By the way, Miles’ people and LSU’s people were hammering out Miles new contract in the week leading up to the SEC title game and came to an agreement that Friday night. There was urgency Friday night because Miles had said in a press conference Friday afternoon that he wanted to talk Michigan. When LSU officials heard that, they got nervous. They didn’t think Miles would leave, but they did fear Miles going to Ann Arbor or somewhere on an interview, because at that point anything can happen. So they came to an agreement Friday night. This is why Herbstreit’s report the next morning on GameDay and his subsequent statment that LSU “got proactive” after his report were completely false. It was done.
“Miles is very much loved by the fans here and a lot of the media, too. Even when he messes up, the apologist fans and the apologist media come out in droves. That coach, Nick Saban, is hated because fans realize how great he is and was and can’t quite accept that he’s now at Alabama and making the Tide a threat to LSU.
Interestingly, it’s four years after Saban left and there are a still a dozen of his signees on the team - key players like Tyson Jackson, Herman Johnson, Brett Helms, Kirston Pittman, Quinn Johnson, Marlon Favorite, Curtis Taylor and Harry Coleman, Tremaine Johnson, Charles Alexander and Brady Dalfrey. The fact that about 30 of Saban’s signees were on the national title team last season also irks LSU fans.”
Some links:
Dogs are getting a lot of love in this game. A website called thenationalchampionshipissue.com picks Georgia to beat LSU by 10. And Doug Segrest of the Birmingham News picks Georgia by 12… .
Hey, by the way, Kenny “The Snake” Stabler slithered out of that DUI charge, according to several Alabama papers… .
Ousted Auburn offensive coordinator Tony Franklin broke his silence about his firing two weeks ago. He told the Mobile Press-Register he was “befuddled” by his abrupt firing at the hands of coach Tommy Tuberville… .
Here’s David Hale’s popular “deleted scenes” blog in which he dumps all his unused quotes from the week’s interviews.
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The reason behind all these injuries
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
People have been asking me since this summer what I thought Florida coach Urban Meyer and the Gators were going to do to retaliate against Georgia for that silly little end zone celebration last year.
Now we know.
It took me a while to put two-and-two together but it’s obvious now. Clearly Meyer went deep down to Fort Lauderdale this summer and hired voodoo priestess Madam Simbi M’Arue — aka “Mama” — to put an injury curse on the Bulldogs this season. Mama, in case you haven’t heard, was purported in court proceedings this year to be have been utilized by Phyllis Tobias, the wife of Wall Street hot shot Seth Tobias. Mr. Tobias ended up, well, in his swimming pool not swimming. It was all over the Florida papers.
Seeing that, Meyer must’ve contacted Mama and directed her to put a spell on Georgia that would cause it to lose at least half its starters to injuries by the time the Dogs came down to Jacksonville for the big grudge match on the river next week. At the present rate the Bulldogs have been losing players, it would appear Mama has gotten it just about right.
By my count Georgia now has had 13 part-time or full-time starters miss games with injuries. The latest two, we found out Wednesday, came during Tuesday’s practice — tight end Aron White (shoulder) and linebacker Akeem Hebron (broken ankle). White, a one-time starter, is out at least one game. Hebron, a backup and special teams mainstay, is out for the season.
Once a third-stringer, White got his first career start two weeks ago because regular-starter Tripp Chandler (shoulder) and his backup Bruce Figgins (shoulder) were both injured. Not much question where Mama is sticking her pins on the tight ends.
Add White to the list that already included incumbent starting left tackle Trinton Sturdivant (knee/season), his initial backup Kiante Tripp (ankle/two games), LT/LG Vince Vance (knee/season), DT Jeff Owens (knee/season), FB Brannan Southerland (foot/five games), LB Dannell Ellerbe (knee/three games), Figgins (shoulder/three games), DE Rod Battle (neck/four games), SE Kris Durham (two games/ankle), DE Jeremy Lomax (toe/one game) and DT Kade Weston (knee/three games). I may well have missed one or two.
The effect? On offense Georgia has started four different left tackles, three different left guards, two centers, three right guards, three right tackles, three tight ends and two fullbacks. The defense has been only slightly better: three left ends, three defensive tackles, three right ends, two middle linebackers and two strongside linebackers.
And this is before the Bulldogs venture into Tiger Stadium on Saturday. Last time I checked LSU plays pretty physical in there. So by the time the Dogs to get down to Jacksonville, well, Mama M’Arue’s — or should we say Urban Meyer’s? — work will be done.
Seriously though what’s with all the injuries?
Some cheese for your mouse:
I’m sure Bulldogs’ fans are going to love Rivals.com’s latest bowl predictions. They’ve got Florida in the BCS title game and Georgia in the Outback… . Hey, could happen… .
Stewey Mandel jumps into the debate on which conference is the best in college football this season and where Big 12 offenses are truly great or their defenses justy suck. In fairness, he explores whether SEC defenses are really good or their offenses just suck… .
Here comes LSU’s Ricky Jean-Francois… .
David Hale, who covers the Dogs for the Macon and Columbus papers, addresses on his blog the rumors swirling around [utility player Kiante Tripp].
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Offensive, defensive philosophies questioned
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
You, UGA bloggers, have spoken. And you have been heard.
Well, at least I heard your questions. OK, so I read them. But enough of that. I asked for your questions and I got them. By the hundreds. And now you get them. Answers, that is. By the ones.
Yesterday I asked what questions you would ask the Bulldogs given the opportunity. The flaw in my plan was I asked you on a Tuesday morning when we meet with coaches and players at lunchtime Tuesday. So there was not much time to actually relay your queries. But based on the tremendous response, we may make “Ask the Bulldogs” a regular feature. From now on I’ll just be sure to solicit your questions on Monday mornings.
Some qualifiers first. A lot of your questions this time were of the unanswerable variety. Things like, “Coach Richt, why don’t you fire Willie Martinez?” and “ask Mike Booboo why he’s such an idiot.” Well, of course those won’t get asked or answered. And a lot of what you wanted to know dealt directly with what gameplans and strategies the Dogs may or may not employ against LSU, or against Florida or the rest of the year. That stuff will never get answered directly for obvious reasons.
Otherwise, I lumped the most-oft-asked questions into categories. If CMR or one of his coaches or player addressed it I gave you their answer. Otherwise, I’ll gave you mine based on what I know or have heard. OK, let’s go:
(1) The number one asked question had to do with the Bulldogs’ defensive philosophy, specifically why do they play so soft.
I didn’t ask this directly Tuesday but I’ve asked it enough in the past that I know the standard reply. First of all, Georgia and CWM in particular don’t believe they play soft. The Bulldogs, like LSU and Alabama and Tennessee and others of that ilk, adhere closely to the fundamental principles of defense. Their base defense is a two-deep zone behind a 4-3 front and that protects against getting beaten deep. If you can produce pressure with a four-man front, all the better. But any SEC team has to alternate coverages regularly and switch up fronts and occasional blitzes. Georgia rarely “sells the ranch” and blitzes a lot of players at once. But it sends at least one player or sometimes two more often than you think, usually the boundary corner a safety or a middle linebacker. The problem has been they aren’t getting there as much.
(2) Numerous queries about lack of pressure from edge and what can be done about it.
I’ve asked CWM about this several times the last few weeks. Bottom line answer has been players there haven’t gotten it done. Injuries haven’t helped. Jeremy Lomax has been playing all season with real bad turf toe and Rod Battle (neck) just came back this week. Jarius Wynn has been good but not great and Demarcus Dobbs has been occasionally great but not consistently good. They like the athleticism of freshman Justin Houston but he gets out of position too much. Martinez categorically has said that they’re not interested in moving any of the linebackers there, which is mainly a depth issue there. Georgia’s strong in all aspects of defense except against the pass
(3) What’s with the playcalling, redzone woes.
Almost an equal number of you want to know why Georgia is not passing more as want to know why it is not running more. That’s probably a good sign for offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. The Dogs, more than almost any other SEC team, seek to achieve absolute balance offensively. That is the Richt philosophy and he still has way more to do with the offense than you might think. Georgia has run 458 plays; 248 have been rushes and 215 have been passes. It leads the SEC in total offense by a long shot with 429 yards per game. Bobo’s real careful not to throw his players under the bus but he said they’ve have some real ugly plays at times because of major assignment breakdowns. “As long as people are complaining and we’re winning I don’t mind,” he told me.
(4) Lot of questions about kick coverage and returns.
Richt said he’s happy with punt returns but not with kickoff returns. Said “frankly we quit blocking as well” but is going back to Remarcus Brown full time on kickoff returns. Kickoff problems have been a mixture of kick placement and personnel breakdowns. When you suffer a lot of injuries like Georgia has, that trickles down to special teams as well. Guys like Ellerbe, Chandler, Durham, Battle, Southerland have been special teams mainstays in the past but are unable to go.
(5) Lack of takeaways/interceptions.
CMR said that’s been a big point of emphasis this week. Dogs should have had at least four and probably five interceptions versus Vandy. CMR had DBs and LBs double their ball-handling work and also have worked a lot stripping the ball. The good news is Georgia has the second fewest turnovers in the league with eight all season so that’s not killing it right now.
OK, I’ll do better on this next week and try to get more direct answers from players/coaches.
Now some links for breakfast:
A report at uga.rivals.com says that quarterback Matthew Stafford has a Lloyd’s of London insurance policy against career-ending injury but that Knowshon Moreno does not… .
The Macon Telegraph reports that new leadership was born among the Bulldogs after coach Mark Richt put the onus of enforcing punishment for penalties and missed assignments on the players… .
Fanblogs.com rates the conferences this season. Here’s a shocker — it has the SEC at the top.
According to this blog in the New Orleans Times Picayune, LSU is using its loss to Georgia in the 2005 SEC Championship game as motivational fuel for this year’s game… .
A feature in the Baton Rouge Advocate concludes confidence gained from multiple fourth-quarter wins under coach Les Miles is what had made LSU so successful in recent years… .
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What would you ask the Bulldogs?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We media types will meet with coach Mark Richt and a half-dozen or so players later today for the Bulldogs’ weekly press conference. Richt will tell us everything that is great about LSU and the players will do their absolute best to answer our questions without telling us anything of substance, revealing strategy or providing the opponent anything that could be deemed bulletin-board material. It’s a delicate dance we perform each and every Tuesday.
But here’s what I want to know today: What do you want to know? What questions would you like to see Tim and I pose at today’s gathering?
I’m not promising we’ll ask it. Keep in my mind, we have our own agendas. We have stories already in the works for which we need to get specific answers. But this time of year there are so many small subplots that they start to get jumbled up without any clear hierarchy as to how important they might be to you, the reader. So if they’re legit questions, I’ll ask them.
Here’s just a few for-instances to start you thinking:
(1) At one point we thought we might see Knowshon Moreno return punts, if not all the time, at least fairly regularly. As it turns out we saw him return just one 30-yarder against South Carolina in Game Three. Since then? Nothing.
(2) Meanwhile, we’ve seen many other players return punts. There was that one by Reshad Jones, which was pretty good. There were several by Asher Allen, then he went away. Now we’re pretty much down to third-string quarterback Logan Gray, who appears to be the close-to-your-own-end-zone, decision-maker guy, and Prince Miller, who seems to be the we-need-a-big-return guy. But then it was Miller that fair-caught one at the 5 and let one go at midfield that bounced another 20 yards against Vandy. And Gray, well, all he does is fair catch. Anybody else a little puzzled by that?
(3) Not to get too far away from Moreno (are you listening Bobo?), was it only us media types that were a little perplexed by Moreno’s absence on some key downs late in the Vandy game? I mean, I understand Caleb King has ability and the need to pace and to not overtax such a special player at such a physically-demanding position. Then again, isn’t that sort of what Moreno’s here for, to make big plays at big times in big games? But maybe Georgia’s getting it just right. What do you think?
(4) Am I the only one who kind of feels bad for CB Bryan Evans? He was beaten twice for touchdowns against the Commodores and has been the victim more than a few times this season. Oddly enough, he’s one of the team’s fastest players. He just can’t seem to find the ball and get in the right place. He was requested for interviews after Saturday’s game and Monday’s practice but hasn’t come in to talk. Can’t say I blame him. Looks like sophomore Vance Cuff’s going to get more minutes at that spot. It’s a tough position.
(5) I wonder if Blair Walsh just got up on the wrong side of the bed last Saturday or what. Everybody has a bad day but I didn’t see him missing back-to-back close ones. You’d like his confidence to be sky-high going into Tiger Stadium. Billy Bennett, a very confident kicker, had a bad day last time the Dogs were there.
Meanwhile, here’s some links to click:
Tim Stephens of the Orlando Sentinel identifies an interesting trend in college basketball that differs greatly from football. Some big-time basketball prospects are starting to snub major-conference schools to make a big splash at Little U. You don’t see that at all in football… .
I didn’t even realize it was a rampant rumor but apparently it was going around that Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville was unwell. Charles Goldberg of the Birmingham News writes that Tuberville blasted any notion he was about to quit coaching… .
Want an early scare before Halloween? Just check out some of Chris DuFresne’s possible BCS scenarios. Scary stuff… .
I didn’t have time to interview young Mr. Cuff after practice Monday night but here’s a nice little story on him prepared by TotalUGA.com… .
Here’s your weekly report from Jim From Duluth on the Anti-Orange webpage summarizing Richt’s radio call-in show. Thanks kindly, Jim… .
It is quite interesting that Georgia apparently is going to travel to Baton Rouge on smaller charter planes out of Athens-Ben Epps Airport this weekend in an effort to cut down on travel time. The Bulldogs normally bus to Hartsfield-Jackson before flying out to away games.
ANSWERS TO SOME OF YOUR GREAT QUESTIONS DOWN AROUND NO. 200 IN COMMENTS!
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Dogs deal with BCS, LSU, DUI
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There’s a lot to get to regarding Georgia football this week, what with the first BCS standings coming out, that little trip to Baton Rouge on Saturday and the unexpected disciplinary news early Sunday morning. So I’m just going to kind of clear it all out at once based on our Sunday night teleconference call with Coach Mark Richt. Then we’ll have a nice clean slate with which to dive into the rest of the week.
Sound all right? OK. Here’s your Monday Morning Ten to go with your morning coffee:
(1) I would assume foremost on most Bulldogs’ minds is the DUI arrest of defensive tackle Brandon Wood in the wee hours Sunday morning. According to CMR, Wood had been parked in his car on the edge of downtown Athens waiting to pickup his girlfriend and another friend to take them home. He had his parking lights on as he waited and forgot to turn on his headlights as they drove back to East Campus Village dormitory. UGA police pulled over Wood for driving without headlights. Wood, who is 21, was determined to have alcohol in his system and was arrested for DUI. (Note: It was UGA police and the report wasn’t available Sunday. We’ll get it sometime Monday.)
Meanwhile injured offensive lineman Vince Vance also was arrested but for an incredibly minor offense. He allegedly had an expired driver’s license (his birthday was the 11th and he didn’t have it renewed, CMR said). Apparently state law recently changed where that’s an now an arresting offense. If that’s all it is I hate to even bring it up.
Anyway, for those keeping count that’s 10 football players arrested in 2008. To be fair, three had charges dropped or dismissed and one had a DUI charge reduced to reckless driving. Three players were dismissed from the team.
CMR seemed more disappointed than outraged over this latest setback. He was asked if there was anything he could do to prevent such incidents. “I don’t think I can. It’s individuals that are making decisions. When they make a mistake we discipline them and we educate them. It wasn’t like he wasn’t aware. He knew the deal and he made a bad judgment.”
Wood, a 6-1, 290-pound redshirt sophomore from Buchanan, was playing a lot as part of a four-man rotation at the two interior tackle spots. CMR said Wood will miss at least the LSU game. It didn’t sound like it’d be much beyond that. CMR reminded reporters that athletic association policy dictated an automatic one-game suspension.
(2) The good news for the Dogs is junior DT Kade Weston is back. He was available but didn’t play against Vandy due to a sore knee that forced him out of some games earlier this season. CMR said Kade is OK and will definitely be ready Saturday… .
(3) LB Dannell Ellerbe (knee), TE Tripp Chandler (shoulder) and WR Kris Durham (ankle) all have a “good chance” of playing against LSU, CMR said.
(4) Dogs are glad LSU game was set for 3:30 EST rather than 7:45. “Mainly so we could get home at a decent hour and get a decent night’s sleep,” CMR said. Never mind that you NEVER want to play the Tigers at night in Death Valley.
(5) CMR on the Dogs’ No. 7 ranking in the BCS (which was actually better than most projections I saw): “Seven games in I think it’s good that we’re ranked in the top 10. But as we all know there’s so much more to be played. And I don’t know how meaningful it is right now. We’re really just concentrating on the LSU game, period. We’re trying to go 7-1. We’re just trying to keep ourselves in good shape in the SEC East.”
(6) CMR is concerned about the matchup with LSU’s D-line, pointing out that the Tigers start three seniors and a junior and back them up with two seniors, a junior and a sophomore. “Their youngest matches our oldest,” he quipped.
(7) CMR said he’d taper down contact in practices the next few weeks because they’re so thin. “We have to make sure we get to the game without losing anybody else. This is about the time you have to be real careful.” Understandable since Georgia has had 10 different players miss games with injuries.
(8) Asked why no tight ends have caught passes in the last few weeks, CMR said it was a byproduct of pass protection and injuries. Chandler’s out and Bruce Figgins (shoulder) is playing hurt. But mainly they’re using seven-man protections by keeping in a TE and a back and just throwing to three wideouts. He noted that the OL is doing well and there have been no sacks the last two games.
(9) Asked why so many toss sweeps lately, CMR said “we block it well” and noted that Knowshon Moreno runs them well. “It allows Knowshon to really stretch things and all the sudden there’s a vertical seam. He’s just good at putting his foot in the ground and knowing when to crease it.”
(10) CMR acknowledged sophomore CB Vance Cuff played a lot in the second half for junior Bryan Evans and could play more going forward. So could freshman Brandon Boykin. “Coach Martinez has been wanting to play Cuff more and Boykin more because they are high-energy guys and have ability. Games get so tight sometimes you don’t get as many guys in as you’d like. But to say [Cuff is] going to be a mainstay would be premature.”
So there ya go, 10 quick hits. Hit back all y’all want.
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Dogs execute another blue-collar win
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wow, was that reminiscent of the Tennessee game or what?
Georgia beats Vandy 24-14. Start the griping now.
Georgia wasn’t quite as dominant as it was against the Vols but the Bulldogs were clearly the better team. They kind of messed around and left Vanderbilt in the game but you have to give the Commodores a lot of credit for that. More than anything I came away impressed with that little team from Nashville.
Once again, like Tennessee, Georgia did what it had to do to win the ballgame. I’m sure there will be a lot of grousing but, from where I sit, I think the days of blowing out Vandy are over for Georgia and pretty much everybody in the SEC.
The Bulldogs (6-1, 3-1 SEC) put together a blue-collar drive late in the game. Even though it didn’t result in points — Blair Walsh missed his second of two short field goals — it inflicted the damage Georgia needed. It took 11 plays and almost six minutes off the clock. More importantly it flipped field position for the rest of the game.
Some stats to chew on: Knowshon Moreno had his biggest game of the season, 172 yards on 23 carries, and a touchdown. Matthew Stafford was 13-of-23 passing for 194 yards with 2 TDs and 2 picks. A.J. Green had 7 catches for 132 yards. Georgia scored its first 14 points off two Vanderbilt turnovers. The Commodores managed 245 yards offense.
That’s it for now. I have to head down to the locker room. I’ll check in later with some details from there.
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Munson at stadium for Dogs-Vandy
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well, I know for a fact it’s going to be a good day. Got to be. First of all I got to spend some of the pregame meal visiting with legendary Atlanta Journal columnist Furman Bisher. Obviously I’ve known him for years but it’s always enjoyable to listen to his stories and talk about how the business has changed.
Right in the middle of our conversation, who should walk up but another legend — Larry Munson. Munson made a bee line straight to Furman.
“I’ve been trying to call you. You don’t return your phone calls,” Bisher said.
“Sorry,” Munson replied. “I’ve been on my butt.”
For the record, Munson looked like he felt much, much better, obviously well enough to come to a game he wasn’t working for the first time in 43 years. He and his son Michael visited the radio booth and then adjourned to a suite at the other end of the press box to watch the game.
So no matter what happens in the Vanderbilt game today, it’s going to be a good day for me. As I wrote here yesterday, I have a sneaking suspicion the Dogs are going to put it together today. I just think they’ve been really close to putting it all together to date and they’re about to get all the dials set where they need to be.
That said, I completely understand the Commodores are viable opponent, maybe as sharp as they’ve been for a while, and their last two teams have given Georgia fits. I think it will be close for a long time, then the Dogs will pull away.
But I’ve been wrong before. We’ll see.
Hang out with me here today and we’ll talk about it as it’s going on.
Dogs to kickoff. Here we go… .
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Bulldogs poised for breakout game
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’ve mentioned this at times this week but I get the feeling we’re about to see a breakout game from the Bulldogs.
Georgia enters Saturday’s homecoming game against Vanderbilt as a 14.5-point favorite. I’m not into gambling but I have a feeling the Dogs will win by at least that many.
I know, I know. Vandy traditionally gives Georgia fits, particularly the last two times they played. In fact, the Commodores won on their last trip to Athens, 24-22 in 2006. And I’m sure everybody remembers the Houdini act it took for the Bulldogs to pull off a 20-17 win in Nashville last year.
But all that’s part of my reasoning. Georgia is not taking this lightly. One of Vandy’s most effective tactics is the art of sneaking up on opponents who might not realize just how good they are. At 5-1 and leading the East with a 3-1 record, the ‘Dores aren’t sneaking up on anybody this year.
Never mind that Vandy is last in the league in total offense and 10th and total defense and all that. I respect what they’ve done on special teams and with timely plays in the red zone and big plays on defense. It’s really what Georgia is doing that gives me this hunch.
Based on what I saw in the Tennessee game, the Dogs look like a team getting ready to launch. The Vols came into that contest leading the SEC in total defense and Georgia went through them like wet paper with 458 yards offense and 29 first downs. Conversely, the Commodores haven’t been very diverse on offense, relying mainly on the run to get them down the field. Well, if you haven’t noticed Georgia is rated No. 4 in the nation against the run, allowing just 52.2 yards a game.
Am I completely off base here? Anybody else seeing this? Hey, I didn’t see Alabama putting 31 on them in the first half either.
Let’s hear some score predictions from you guys. Who do you expect to have a big game for the Dogs?
With that, let’s check out some links:
Hard to miss it since it was linked on the front page of ajc.com but heralded Georgia quarterback signee Aaron Murray suffered a broken leg in a game in Tampa… .
David Hale, who covers Georgia for the Macon and Columbus papers, has a regular feature in his Bulldogs Blog called Deleted Scenes. It’s basically a clearinghouse of all the quotes gathered throughout the week that he was unable to use. Great stuff for you voracious Dawg readers… .
A nice story in the Athens Banner-Herald this morning on Georgia AD Damon Evans coaching his son Cameron’s little league team. Look out Mike Bobo, Evans is the play-caller… .
Don’t know how many of you guys caught my note about a Georgia researcher discovering a long lost UGA school song called “Red and Black March.” Well it’s supposed to be played for the first time in about 100 years on Saturday during halftime of the Vanderbilt game. If you’d like a sneak preview, a gentleman named Michael Brewer, the music director of the Athens Brass Choir directed me to his website where you can hear his group playing the song Aug. 3 at the Botanical Gardens. Let us know what you think.
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Not a lot of logic to rankings
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rankings are what they are. They’re just a compilation of people’s opinions really. If you think about it, there really is no such thing as right or wrong. Just one big hypothesis.
That said, the logic is lost on me sometimes. I mean, essentially, when you rank one team ahead of another, aren’t you ultimately saying that the higher-ranked team would beat the one behind it? If so, it’s hard to make sense of this week’s AP poll.
Never mind Texas leapfrogging Alabama. I don’t think 1-2 really matters. Theoretically those are the two that’s play for the BCS title anyway. But let’s look at who’s immediately ahead of Georgia this week: No. 9 Brigham Young (6-0), No. 8 Oklahoma State (6-0) and No. 7 Texas Tech (6-0), in particular.
I don’t for a minute believe BYU could beat the Bulldogs and I’m pretty skeptical about Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, too. I’m impressed with all of their offenses but not at all with of their defenses. Georgia at least can stuff the run. I don’t think those three teams could stuff a bra.
I don’t really have a problem with the rest of the poll. You could argue that USC losing to Oregon State on the road is worse than Georgia losing to No. 2 Alabama at home. But that’s splitting hairs really. The coaches poll is a little better. But in my opinion I think the Dogs ought to be bunched in there with USC and Florida around 6th or 7th.
Whatever. We don’t vote on polls anymore and I’m comfortable with that. If the Dogs take care of business in the next three weeks (Vandy, at LSU, Florida in J-ville), theoretically, the rankings will take care of themselves.
Let me know what y’all think. Here’s the Top 10s of the writers and coaches polls for your perusal.
AP 1. Texas (39) 6-0 1,599 2. Alabama (26) 6-0 1,582 3. Penn State 7-0 1,492 4. Oklahoma 5-1 1,306 5. Florida 5-1 1,284 6. USC 4-1 1,247 7. Texas Tech 6-0 1,210 8. Oklahoma State 6-0 1,184 9. Brigham Young 6-0 1,131 10. Georgia 5-1 1,081
USA Today/Coaches 1. Texas (44) 6-0 1,505 2. Alabama (14) 6-0 1,452 3. Penn State (3) 7-0 1,416 4. USC 4-1 1,198 5. Texas Tech 6-0 1,195 6. Oklahoma 5-1 1,147 7. Florida 5-1 1,145 8. Brigham Young 6-0 1,143 9. Georgia 5-1 1,010 10. Oklahoma State 6-0 958
By the way, basketball practice starts on Friday. Any thoughts on that?
Some links:
CNN-SI’s Stewart Mandel get on Georgia fans, among others, for their constant obsession with the polls. He says every week they fill up his in-box with complaints about his “power rankings,” which currently had the Dogs 10th. “News flash, guys: You haven’t beaten anybody yet,” Mandel writes. You can go read his rant here… .
I found it interesting that among the players my colleague David Ching is considering for his Heisman Trophy ballot is Auburn quarterback Chris Todd… .
When it rains it pours on The Plains. Auburn just learned that linebacker Tray Blackmon is out for the season… .
The Nashville Tennessean’s Maurice Patton gives Georgia the edge on offense but says Vanderbilt is even with the Bulldogs on defense and special teams in his matchups breakdown. for Saturday’s game.
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Stafford: Playing great or getting by?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Me and a couple of my sports writer buddies have had some pretty good arguments lately regarding Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford, particularly right after this past Saturday’s game against Tennessee.
Obviously Stafford had two pretty bad red zone interceptions against the Vols. I say “bad” in that they were extremely hurtful to the Bulldogs’ cause. But really I thought only the fade pattern in the end zone was awfully executed. The other one I thought was more a product of a poorly-designed play called at a bad time.
After the game I remarked that I thought Stafford played extremely well and is playing very good this season. That drew some scoffs from a few of my colleagues.
So let me just throw out a few numbers for your perusal and tell me what you think.
Georgia leads the SEC in passing offense (271.2 ypg) and total offense (430.3 ypg). It is also third in scoring (33 ppg), second in pass efficiency (first before those two picks Saturday) and first in third-down conversions (48.1 percent). Individually Stafford leads the league in passing (250.5 ypg) and total offense (258.5) and second in pass efficiency (8 TDs, 3 Ints, 61.7 percent completion rate). For the season Stafford is 111 of 180 for 1,503 yards. That’s on one of the more balanced offenses you’ll ever see (203 rushes, 192 passes).
It should be pointed out that Stafford, unlike a lot of modern college quarterbacks, makes all the calls and checks at the line of scrimmage. You’ll notice most signalcallers these days pausing after seeing what the defense is doing and the whole team turn and look to the sideline to see what the new call is coming in from the coaches box up top.
For what it’s worth, Richt has raved this week about how well Stafford played this past weekend and this week in general. But, as always, I’d love to hear what y’all think.
In the meantime, some links:
Here’s a story from the Nashville Tennessean that will provide a little insight into Vanderbilt quarterback Mackenzi Adams, who will get the start against Georgia on Saturday… .
Birmingham News columnist Kevin Scarbinsky has been on a roll lately. Today he writes about how Tommy Tuberville’s commitment to quarterback Kodi Burns came about three weeks too late… .
Here’s a nice little story in the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer about the mentor-protégé relationship of Georgia receivers Mohamed Massaquoi and A.J. Green… .
If you’ve never checked it out, TheWizofOdds.com is a great one-stop shop for a lot of national college football news and tidbits. Today they have a great breakdown via cfbstats.com on the length of games and number of plays this season in the wake of the new 40-25 clock rule. In a nutshell, much shorter and fewer plays… .
I’m doing a little something on Georgia linebacker Darryl Gamble this week but here’s a profile in the Albany Herald. Gamble, of course, was the hero of the Vanderbilt game with the caused fumble that led to teh game-winning field goal and he’s filling in quite necely for injured starter Dannell Ellerbe.
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O-linemen perfect art of saying nothing
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I can tell you that Georgia offensive lineman Clint Boling is from Alpharetta, graduated from Chattahoochee High, was born on May 9, 1989, is majoring in business, is 6-5, 290, and started in 11 of 13 games as a true freshman last season. I can tell you that he was arrested for DUI this past May, eventually had those charges reduced and was suspended for the first game this season. I can tell you that, as of Saturday, he will have started at three different positions on the O-line this season.
But that’s about all I can tell you. And that’s a shame because Boling is a real good story for the Bulldogs. In the middle of last Saturday’s game against Tennessee he was abruptly moved from right guard and thrown in at left tackle when starter Vince Vance went down with a season-ending knee injury. And he apparently played great. In case you didn’t notice, Georgia ended that game pounding the ball on the left side of the line on the way to the victory.
But if you’re looking for some insight on Boling I can’t provide any. The new trend among the Georgia’s offensive linemen is, when they’re interviewed, they say only one thing no matter what they’re asked: “Vanderbilt [or whatever team the opponent is that week] is a great team. We’re looking forward to the challenge.” That’s the answer they give no matter what question is asked. Boling started it last week before the Tennessee game and teammate Tanner Strickland followed suit Monday after practice.
Of course, they’re probably just following the instructions of offensive line coach Stacey Searels. I can’t be sure, though, because Searels doesn’t speak to the media at all. But if he did I’m sure he’d say, “Vanderbilt is a great team and we look forward to the challenge.”
If you ask me it’s just silly. I’m not sure if they’re thinking that they don’t want to give the opponents any bulletin board material or they want to avoid revealing anything regarding personnel of strategy. Maybe they just loathe the media in general. But the biggest thing to me is it denies fans the opportunity to learn a little more about their favorite players.
Obviously I’m biased. I planned on giving you guys some insight this week into who this kid Boling is. I still plan to try, though this certainly doesn’t make it any easier. Do you guys want to know more about your favorite players? Do you believe what these little non-interviews the linemen are accomplishing anything for them? Do you like this approach?
Today’s links:
Chattanooga’s Darren Epps reports that Georgia’s linebackers were able to stuff the run against Tennessee because they knew what was coming… .
Vanderbilt is going to switch starting quarterbacks for the Georgia game… .
Nashville Tennessean columnist Joe Biddle gets into why Clemson will likely show some interest in Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson. But in another story, Vanderbilt chancellor Nick Zeppos vows to not let Johnson get away… .
In case you missed it, here’s is the always helpful summary of the Mark Richt call-in show from “Jim from Duluth” on The Anti-Orange Page.
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Fans letting me hear it about Bobo
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
One of the most interesting aspects of this job is finding out what people think. Used to be we reported, wrote our stories and, if we were lucky, we might catch some feedback the next Sunday through a letter to the editor.
Now we live in a world of instantaneous feedback. That’s mostly a good thing.
I’m sitting in the press box at Sanford Stadium covering the Georgia-Tennessee game and actually got several e-mail messages from fans that were sitting in the stands. This was DURING the game.
Most of what I received — and this was reinforced on both my post-game and in-game blogs — was people criticizing offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. For what it’s worth, I also got a few complaining about defensive coordinator Willie Martinez, even though his unit held Tennessee to only 208 total yards, including 1 rushing yard. But mostly people were after Bobo. The either wanted to him change his philosophies, take away his play-calling responsibilities or just plain fire him.
And this came on a day when Georgia rolled up 458 yards and 29 first downs on the team that led the SEC in total defense!
Now, I must confess, there were some things I questioned Saturday (and judging from chit-chat in the press box, some others did as well). If I never see Georgia attempt another fade pattern it’ll be a good thing. Seems to me like it’s a 50-50 play at best and gives a good defender a good shot at winning the ball. And I especially don’t like fade routes when you have a supposed Heisman Trophy candidate at tailback and you’re inside the 5 with the lead. It was after Eric Berry’s interception and return of 54 yards that I got most of the e-mails.
But you know what? Bobo spends all day and all night all week looking at video tape and developing game plans. The Bulldogs spend all week practicing those plays. I hated all the fade calls but there was at least one on which defensive holding was called that should have resulted in a first-and-goal. And I can see how Bobo likes the odds of A.J. Green or Kris Durham should coming down with those most of the time. I, too, really didn’t like the fake-screen-right-throw-back-left thing. But I do understand it was flukey that the defensive end just happened to stay at home on the line on that play.
The bottom line is this: The Dogs ran 81 offensive plays. Based on the stats and the points on the scorebard, the majority of them seemed to work pretty well. Georgia did, after all, win the game. And in case you haven’t noticed, the Dogs were first in the SEC in passing offense, first in passing efficiency, second in total offense and third in scoring offense BEFORE Saturday’s offensive onslaught.
But what do I know? Maybe I’m totally wrong about this. Let me know what you think. What is it you think Bobo should or shouldn’t be doing? What should the gameplan be moving forward? You think the Dogs would be better off if Mark Richt was still calling plays?
Speaking of feedback, here’s some from this past weekend:
Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer tells reporters neither he nor his team is thinking about quitting… .
Meanwhile, columnist Ron Higgins of the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes that Tennessee should think about quitting on Fulmer… .
Here’s a story from the Nashville Tennessean that gets into some of Vanderbilt’s shortcomingsthat were exposed in the loss to Mississippi State… .
And finally, Birmingham News columnist Kevin Scarbinsky gets after coach Tommy Tuberville pretty good in the wake of Auburn’s loss to Arkansas.
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Season-defining drive for Dogs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
That, ladies and gentlemen, was a season-defining type of drive that Georgia put together to win the game.
It may not seem like it to a lot of fans since the Bulldogs did a lot of things to keep Tennessee in Saturday’s game at Sanford Stadium. But with the Vols clinging to life in an extremely important SEC East rivalry game, Georgia ran 17 offensive football plays and consumed 10:55 off the clock in the fourth quarter before punching through a partially-blocked 28-yard field goal. It was the death blow in a 26-14 Bulldog victory.
Those of you that saw it know Georgia did way too much to keep UT in the ballgame. In reality this was a 30-something-to-single-digits game. The Bulldogs were the dominant much better team. But a the Vols turned around two Matthew Stafford interceptions, each representing at least 10-point flips because Georgia didn’t get a field goal and they scored touchdowns.
But the Bulldogs dominated both sides of the ball the rest of the day. And with Vandy’s loss to Miss. State, they’re in control in the East at 5-1 (2-1 SEC).
Stafford, by the way, had his first 300-yard passing game with 310 on 25-of-36 but with 2 picks and 1 TD. Knowshon Moreno had 101 yards on 27 carries.
But what you should remember is Georgia’s game-winning drive. 11 plays, nine of them rushing and the grand majority of those coming around left end where the Dogs earlier lost LT Vince Vance to a likely season-ending injury.
Well, that’s the quick version. Tell us what you thought about it.
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Winds a-howlin’ through Sanford Stadium
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Greetings from the press box at Sanford Stadium. As I sit here high above the 50-yard line one thing dominates my thoughts — I probably should have brought a jacket.
I checked the weather earlier today and it said temperatures in the low 70s and I thought to myself, “nice day.” What I didn’t take into account was the overcast skies and the 17- to 20-mph winds that are whipping through this open-air press box as I write. I’ve already rolled down the sleeves on my long-sleeve dress shirt and have my keys and blackberry holding down my notes and papers.
While it’s an annoyance for me, I believe it will be a factor in today’s game. I’m looking at the American flag in the northwest corner of the stadium and it’s flapping in the direction of the northwest. Earlier it was blowing dead straight toward the East. Georgia special teams guru Jon Fabris has been looking up at the sky and walking around the field ripping up grass and throwing it up air a lot so you can tell it’s on his mind.
Who win’s the coin toss and gets to pick which end zone to defend will be a major factor. Of course, special teams always are. The Bulldogs have had special teams touchdowns in each of the last three games in this series.
A couple of observations before kickoff:
(1) Whatever was wrong with Knowshon Moreno’s elbow isn’t bothering him anymore. He has nothing, no pads, no wrapping, no braces, on either elbow. Maybe that’ll change before the game starts but I wouldn’t think so… .
(2) Tennessee is in their all-white uniforms. I read a story this week that came with illustrations about how they were supposed to whip out the old-school orange pants from the Johnny Majors days. If it had anything to do with Majors coach Phillip Fulmer probably had something to do with derailing it… .
(3) Speaking of Majors, I learned today he had the sports information department moved out of the athletics complex because he didn’t like so many reporters milling around. What was it Devo said in that song about paranoia?
(4) Looks like TE Aron White and FB Shaun Chapas are starting.
That’s all for now. Stay tuned for updates below throughout the game. I’ll start up a new blog as soon as the game is over. Feel free to ask anything you wish and I’ll answer as best we can.
Enjoy the game!
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Fulmer again looks to Georgia for cure
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Phillip Fulmer is catching all kinds of heat in Knoxville. Again.
It seems like every other year at least the Tennessee nation is nipping at Fulmer’s heels. I thought it couldn’t get any worse than when I followed Georgia up there last year. Virtually every paper that covers the Vols and several dot-coms as well had columnists writing about why Fulmer ought to be fired.
To Fulmer’s credit, he and his staff used all that negative press as motivational fuel and they absolutely steamrolled the Bulldogs, 35-14. That has kind of been Fulmer’s M.O. in recent years. The Vols haven’t won an SEC championship since their national title year of 1998 but Fulmer seems to whip out a win over a higher-ranked Georgia team any time he needs one.
And boy does he need one now. The sniping has reached fever pitch as the Vols limp into Sanford Stadium with a 2-3 record. But they’ve definitely underachieved this season.
So you think Tennessee has what it takes to get well against the Dogs again this year?
One other thing: Tennessee is a class program, one of the most storied and successful in the SEC. But there is one thing I don’t like at all about the Vols. It’s those uniforms.
Saturday the Vols will be sporting their new road look which, in my opinion, is a slight improvement over the old one. But it’s all relative. They’ve reintroduced the old orange pants from the Johnny Majors days. That’s better than the old white-on-white they used to wear on the road. They looked like ice cream men in pads. And at least you can read the numbers and names now.
Onto some links:
Mark Weiszer of the Athens Banner-Herald tells us why slot receiver Michael Moore could be in for a big game against Tennessee… .
Seems like today was the day for the Tennessee papers to write about quarterback Nick Stephens. There are stories in the Knoxville News-Sentinel and the Nashville Tennessean… .
David Hale of the Macon Telegraph asks Ten Questions about the Tennessee game… .
Chris Dufresne of the L.A. Times tells us why the Big 12 is the most powerful conference this season… .
In case you’re into such things, here’s a website called Awful Announcing that tells you what broadcaster are doing what games and offers a blog forum to voice your opinion. CBS has sent Craig Bolerjack and Steve Beuerlein to Athens.
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Richt: Sad to see someone fired
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
When the question was posed to Georgia coach Mark Richt, he thought about it for a moment before choosing the most diplomatic words he could muster.
“Anytime anybody loses their job it’s sad,” he said after the Bulldogs’ practice Wednesday.
Obviously the question was regarding Auburn offensive coordinator Tony Franklin. He was fired by head coach Tommy Tuberville on Wednesday, just six games into the season.
Richt wasn’t about to get into a right or wrong discussion about it. But he didn’t really need to. Unless one of his coaches has broken some laws or rules, you can be fairly certain Richt wouldn’t fire them midseason.
That’s not to say Richt’s is the right way or even the better way. But in his eight seasons at Georgia he has initiated only one coaching change. The others have been forced upon him by coaches leaving for other jobs.
I don’t know that much about Franklin, other than he came to Auburn from Troy where he mastered the spread offense. He was at the controls when the Trojans rolled up 488 yards against Georgia last November.
But obviously Franklin was never able to get it going like that on The Plains. The Tigers were 104th in the nation in total offense this week. However, I didn’t think it all that odd that they would struggle some in a season in which they were making such a dramatic philosophical change. I’m not sure if Franklin didn’t deserve a little more time.
More than a few of you have come on this blog and lambasted Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and wide receivers coach John Eason. I’ve heard some call for all of their heads. Lest we forget, these are real people with families. You want a sobering dose of reality? Check out this video of Franklin and his family packing his car at the Auburn football complex. It’s one of the sadder things I’ve seen.
So let’s hear it. Cruel and unusual punishment from Tuberville? Just the price of doing business in the rugged SEC? That’s why they make the big bucks? Would you like to see Richt be a little more judgmental in that regard?
Meanwhile, here are some links for your perusal:
Birmingham columnist Ray Melick writes that Tommy Tuberville, the “riverboat gambler” simply knew when to fold ‘em with regard to the failed spread experiment… .
The Mobile Press-Register’s Evan Woodberry blogs that Wednesday was one of his stranger days on the always eventful Auburn beat. …
CNNSI’s Stewart Mandel lists Georgia among three teams that could crash and burn… .
Borrowing a phrase from UGA alum Pat Dye, the Orlando Sentinel’s Tim Stephens blogs that the Gators may not be man enough to beat LSU this weekend. His point is that Florida has to establish a running game, whether it’s with Tim Tebow or somebody else… .
Speaking of the Orlando Sentinel, columnist Mike Bianchi chides Florida fans for being such a whiny bunch. Of course, we wouldn’t know anything about that around here… .
Not exactly riveting stuff but here’s some video of Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis talking about what the Vols need to improve on for the Georgia game.
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Where’s the passion for Dogs, Vols?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I have to admit, I’m a little surprised at the lack of passion I’m sensing from Georgia fans for Saturday’s game against Tennessee.
Yes, I realize that the Vols come to Sanford Stadium on Saturday with very modest 2-3 record. They’ve lost to a very poor UCLA team. They’ve looked fairly anemic on offense throughout the season, especially in the last two games, a 14-12 loss at Auburn and a 13-9 win over Northern Illinois this past weekend.
But this is, after all, still Tennessee. This is the team that absolutely throttled the Bulldogs last two times they played. This is the team that jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first half last season after putting up 37 points in the second half the year before that. This is the team that effectively derailed any chance Georgia would have of playing in “the big game” last season because they bumped it out of the SEC championship game. Big Orange, Rocky Top and all that.
I think the players recognize the magnitude of this matchup. How else can you explain Georgia’s Clint Boling refusing to say anything but, “We’re excited for Tennessee and we’re ready for the challenge” in interviews this week. Other players aren’t as blatant about it but they’re clearly choosing their words carefully so as none end up on a Tennessee bulletin board.
Then there’s Tennessee tailback Arian Foster. Getting ready to become the Vols’ all-time leading rusher, he’s declining all interviews unless they are conducted in “Pterodactyl,” a made-up dinosaur language. So far no interviews have been granted.
Strange times indeed. But the reality is a loss Saturday probably knocks Georgia out of everything. No SEC title game, no BCS bowl.
As Foster told a Nashville Tennessean reporter: “Veeeeek! Veeeeek! Veeeeek!”
And how!
So where does the Tennessee rivalry rank for you? Is it somewhere behind Florida, Auburn and Georgia Tech? Does Spurrier being at South Carolina trump Phillip Fulmer on Rocky Top?
Here’s some links to go with that thought:
Here’s one of the stories about Arian Foster and his Pterodactyl speak.… .
By the way, two Tennessee players this week were suspended for the Georgia game… .
According to Joe Person in Columbia, South Carolina’s Eric Norwood got a surprising batch of brownies delivered to his car from a not so loving fan recently… .
In honor of Bobby Petrino and Tommy Tuberville meeting again in Saturday’s matchup between Auburn and Arkansas, The Birmingham News revisits “Jetgate” from five years ago.
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Kiante to TE an interesting move
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Is it just me or is there anybody else out there having a hard time getting their head around the whole Kiante Tripp move to tight end?
To review, Tripp came to Georgia as a defensive end. Buried on the depth chart and in need of offensive linemen, the Bulldogs moved him over to offense before the 2007 season. He played sparingly last season, then opened preseason camp as the starting right tackle.
Then Trinton Sturdivant goes down for the year at the all-important left tackle position early in camp. After considerable deliberation, the coaching staff concludes that Tripp is their most talented and athletic lineman and moves him to left tackle. He starts there the first three games.
Tripp suffers an ankle injury in the South Carolina game and doesn’t play against Arizona State. By the Alabama game, we learn the 6-foot-6, 290-pound Tripp has been moved to tight end because of injury issues there. Tripp plays one play against the Crimson Tide.
So let me get this straight: Tripp, who was so valuable as an offensive lineman that he’s your starter at left tackle, is suddenly so expendable that you can move him to third-string tight end? That’s where he is for the Tennessee game, behind redshirt freshman Aron White and Bruce Figgins.
A couple of conclusions can be drawn. One, Vince Vance must be getting the job done at left tackle, though it wasn’t clearly evident in the Alabama game. Two, the coaches expect starting tight end Tripp Chandler to be out a good, long while and Figgins to have season-ending surgery next week. In that scenario, Tripp becomes your No. 2 tight end.
Here’s another theory: Georgia’s getting ready to play some smash-mouth football on the edges. Think about it. The 290-pound Tripp lined up outside the 330-pound Vance with one of their 300-pound guards pulling and 240-pound fullback Brannan Southerland providing the lead block for Knowshon Moreno around left end.
One thing is clear. Georgia is keeping its options open. They’ve told Tripp, who has gained 20 pounds since last season, not to take off any of the weight. Meanwhile, I don’t think it will happen anytime soon but I would love to see big Kiante haul in a pass and have a safety between him in the goal line.
Now for some links:
In case you missed Coach Mark Richt’s call-in radio show Monday night, you can find a complete recap here on the antiorange page… .
Former Bulldog Will Muschamp continues to flourish in the coaching ranks. He’s being depicted as a savior at Texas, where he just arrived from Auburn as the new defensive coordinator… .
Unable to hook up with an NFL team and back in school, former Georgia safety Kelin Johnson offers up a new feature on Georgiadogs.com called “Kelin’s Keys to the Game.” If you can get the video to work right it’s pretty insightful stuff. And Kelin is a natural in front of a camera… .
Columnist Adam Van Brimmer of the Savannah Morning News writes that Matthew Stafford needs to put on his big-boy pants and lead the Bulldogs.
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What’s key to handling Tennessee?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Good morning Bulldog Nation. Long time no see. I’m glad to be back at it after taking off the last few days of this past week. Georgia’s bye week was good for the football team and it was certainly was good for at least one beat writer, too.
Probably the chief benefit of a weekend off was having the opportunity to kick back and watch some college football games on TV Saturday. Of course, I watch Georgia football games every Saturday they play and keep up with all the other scores and highlights of other games each week. But it’s very rare that I ever get to sit back and watch another team play a whole game or most of one.
The one I watched the most was Auburn at Vanderbilt. I had a feeling the Tigers might be in some trouble heading up to Nashville and, sure enough, the Commodores pulled off “the upset.” But now ranked No. 13, they won’t be upsetting teams much more. They’re at Mississippi State on Saturday so — barring an upset — they’ll be 6-0 and in control of the East when they come to Athens on Oct. 18. How many folks saw that coming?
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs seem to have gotten what they needed most during the off week, and that’s rest. Georgia practiced only twice last week and ran and lifted weights the other three days. The players got the whole weekend off and I suspect they watched a lot of football on TV as well. Wonder what they thought of Alabama having to fight like mad against Kentucky en route to a 17-14 win?
Now the Dogs turn their sights to Tennessee. The Vols (2-3) are struggling like crazy this season, especially on the offensive side of the ball. They started a new quarterback, Nick Stephens, against Northern Illinois this past weekend but still struggled to put points on the board in the 13-9 win. Coach Phillip Fulmer said Stephens will start against the Bulldogs. Considering the last two seasons, Georgia has to feel good that it won’t be Erik Ainge.
So what do you think is the most important thing the Bulldogs need to address between now and Saturday? Getting injured linebacker Dannell Ellerbe back on the field? Incorporating fullback Brannan Southerland back into the offense? Continued improvement of the offensive line? Shoring up the defense?
That in itself says a lot about Georgia. Heading to the midpoint of the season, it still has a lot of issues to resolve.
Here’s a couple of links to get you in an SEC frame of mind:
Not surprisingly, folks in Big Orange Country are calling Tennessee’s game at Georgia on Saturday a must-win for the Vols… .
Tennessee’s Arian Foster seems plenty tailback enough but apparently there’s some competition brewing behind him, according to the Knoxville News-Sentinel… .
Speaking of changes on offense, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville says he stands behind new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin. But there are hints the Tigers may be reverting back to their tailback-oriented philosophy… .
The Macon Telegraph’s David Hale provides an extensive update on former Georgia defensive end Michael Lemon from Georgia Military College. Find a comfortable chair because it’s long.
PRACTICE UPDATE COMING THIS AFTERNOON BELOW IN COMMENTS.
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The penalty problem
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Stats don’t tell every story, of course. But they pretty well tell the story of Georgia’s penalty problem.
With an average of 87.4 yards per game in penalties, Georgia is by far the most penalized team in the SEC and one of the three most penalized in the nation.
Georgia has been penalized about 25 yards per game more than the next most penalized SEC team: Tennessee (62.5 yards per game).
And Georgia has been penalized more than three times as much as the least penalized SEC team: unbeaten Alabama (25.4 yards per game).
In the same number of games - five - Alabama has been penalized 18 times to Georgia’s 53.
Nationally, of the 119 Division I-A teams, only Texas Tech and Florida State have been penalized more yards per game than Georgia: Texas Tech 95.25 and FSU 88.0. (Yes, Texas Tech is unbeaten and ranked in the top 10.)
Enough numbers, you say? I agree.
Penalties undoubtedly are part of what Mark Richt meant when he said he and the team earlier this week “addressed some issues - some of our glaring problems.”
It’ll be interesting and instructive to see if Georgia cuts down on the flags when its season resumes next week. It might be pivotal, too.
Meanwhile, some links for your perusal:
David Paschall, Chattanooga Times Free Press, writes about Alabama picking up its recruiting efforts in Georgia
The Coaches Hot Sheet Blog tells you what Phillip Fulmer must do to keep his job.
SI.com’s Cory McCartney says Saturday’s game might be the biggest in Vanderbilt history
And Mark Richt wants everyone to see the item in this column that re-ranked the AP top 25 by APR scores. You’ll see why.
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Vols or Vandy? Which looms largest?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So which of Georgia’s next two games concern you more?
Tennessee? Or Vanderbilt?
The politically correct answer right now, I guess, is Tennessee because, well, that’s the next game. And of course the Vols were the last team, before Alabama, to beat the Bulldogs.
But if Vanderbilt ever looked like a respite in the Alabama-Tennessee-Vanderbilt-LSU-Florida stretch of Georgia’s schedule, it no longer does.
Vanderbilt is unbeaten (Tennesee thrice-beaten). Vanderbilt is ranked No. 19 nationally (Tennesee unranked). Vanderbilt beat South Carolina by the same margin Georgia did (seven points). Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss, which beat Florida a week later.
Mark Richt had some interesting things, I thought, to say about Vandy on the SEC teleconference Wednesday.
“Your fans don’t want to hear you lost to Vanderbilt. And then they don’t want to hear Vanderbilt is a heck of a football team. But they are a heck of a football team,” Richt said. “They do have athletes; they do have speed; they do have what it takes to win.
“We played South Carolina, and South Carolina had just gotten beat by Vanderbilt, and everybody is like, ‘If Vanderbilt beat them, you guys should certainly kill them…’ I’m sure everybody was expecting Florida to kill Ole Miss because Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss…. But we got out of that South Carolina game by the skin of our teeth, and of course Ole Miss pulled the upset.
“Vanderbilt is not some kind of one-time lucky deal. These guys are legit.”
First, though, a week from Saturday, Georgia has to deal with that other team from Tennessee.
A few links for your perusal:
CBSSports.com’s Dennis Dodd finds it amazing that Vandy, Duke and Northwestern have combined for one loss, while Florida, Georgia and USC have combined for three.
SI.com’s Andy Staples on the effect of boos on Tennessee recruiting.
After Alabama’s big win in Athens, Sporting News’ Matt Hayes and Dave Curtis ask themselves if Alabama can run the table. No, they decide.
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Stafford: Dogs offense going to be fine
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Matthew Stafford insists he’s fine. He popped up and said he was all right after two Alabama players buried his head face-first in the Sanford Stadium turf in the third quarter Saturday and he said he was all right as Georgia medical staff escorted him gingerly out the tunnel after the game.
And Tuesday, Stafford said he was fine after he was held out of the Bulldogs’ first practice of the week. He dressed out in full pads for the workout but spent the entire session holding his helmet and standing behind the huddle as the offense ran through plays.
“I’m fine,” he told me following the practice. “They just didn’t want me running around. I’m good.”
No, he said, it wasn’t a concussion. He was just left with a pounding headache following the 41-30 defeat in which he was sacked twice and hit at least three times that. Physically, yes, Stafford is hanging in there. Nothing’s broken, sprained or strained. But heading to the midpoint of the season, Stafford has been beaten up nearly as much as he was when he was going through his public trial-by-fire as a true freshman.
Georgia’s offensive line remains a work in progress — seems it has been Stafford’s entire career — and Stafford stands as a walking litmus test as to how they’re doing so far. The fact that he could barely stand after Saturday’s game tells you all you need to know.
I’ve theorized here that the Bulldogs’ offensive line is simply not strong enough and mature enough to line up and run the football against SEC defenses. I’ve suggested they just scrap it and take a pass-first mentality. It seemed to work in the second half Saturday when Georgia put 30 on the board. Stafford disagrees.
“I don’t think so at all,” he said. “I think the guys are just going to have to keep working and growing. Last year we weren’t world beaters at this point. We probably didn’t run the ball as well as we wanted to or throw the ball as well as we wanted. We’ve just got to keep working hard and getting better. That’s the biggest thing, just showing some progress. They played a very good defensive line and set of linebackers in this last game and really didn’t play that bad.”
Stafford said no conclusions should be drawn from the startling first half of the Alabama game, in which Georgia fell behind 31-0.
“I think we realize we shot ourselves in the foot in the first half really,” he said. “We came out and the second half and played pretty good football. We really kind of dominated that second half. The first half just killed us. Nothing was really clicking. Offense, defense, special teams, nobody was playing well enough to keep us in it. That’s what killed us and we understand that. We just have to iron some things out.”
So there you go. Stafford says everything’s going to be fine and they don’t need to change there offensive philosophy, per se. You agree?
Some links:
The Tennessee Volunteers have opened up the quarterback competition between Jonathan Crompton and Nick Stephens. Don’t be surprised to see the new guy this weekend against Northern Illinois… .
A Gainesville preacher says he’s praying for Tim Tebow. See why… .
One more on Tebow, Gainesville Sun columnist Pat Dooley writes that the Gators need to “Free Tebow” and let him go back to being a run-first quarterback… .
And finally, Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt is named Coach of the Week by the Coaches Hot Seat Blog for the win over Florida. USC’s Pete Carroll is named Goat of the Week… .
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