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AJC > Sports > UGA > Blog > Archives > 2008 > August
August 2008
Not bad for August
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OK, so after going up 38-0 on a day so hot and muggy that even some of the Coke boys and girls were probably cramping, and with the coaching staff throwing lots of second- and third-stringers into the game, the Dawgs relaxed a bit, got a little tired and sloppy, and let the boys from Statesboro score three second-half touchdowns.
Georgia’s debut might not have made quite the statement that 45-0 or 45-7 would have, but it’s not the cause for alarm it would have been if the game’s outcome ever had been in question or if those scores had been made early against the starters. And part of the problem was that the Georgia offense’s quick-strike capability tended to leave the defense on the field for an awful long time.
Still, I can’t imagine any Dawg fans leaving Sanford Stadium Saturday who weren’t impressed and encouraged by the talent and flashes of brilliance shown on offense (from both veterans and first-time players) and the lights-out play of the defense for most of the first three quarters. Yes, there were too many penalties, particularly offsides calls (especially on defense). But it was the first game. If that continues over the next couple of games, then it’ll be a problem. And yes, a few passes were overthrown, underthrown or dropped. But with Matt Stafford completing 62 percent for a career-high 275 yards, it seems a bit churlish to make much of that complaint.
Actually, the only thing the Bulldog Nation really had cause to gripe about Saturday was the bad luck that saw another of our strongest players lost for the season to injury. And there’s not much Mark Richt and his staff can do about that.
No, Georgia didn’t play a perfect game. But considering the Dawgs weren’t playing one of those much-touted openers like Boise State or Oklahoma State, they looked pretty much where you’d expect them to be in the first game. Next week should be a bit more of a challenge; I get the feeling the Dawgs will rise to it.
AMONG THE GOOD THINGS WE SAW SATURDAY: Word had leaked out of practice last week that freshman kicker Blair Walsh was having a little groin problem, but you couldn’t tell it from the way he kicked Saturday. I loved that he put his first kickoff in the end zone, though after that he bent to his coaches’ will and went for those directional kicks into the corner. … Good feeling having that depth at tailback. Richard Samuel may have fumbled on his first play, but he turned in some slashing good runs in the first half. And how about that Caleb King weaving in and out of the Eagles defense as he racked up 95 yards in the second half. … Giving Joe Cox planned playing time in the first half is a wise move on Richt’s part. The more experience he has, the better off we’ll be in the long run. Cox had a nice run negated by a flag. And third-stringer Logan Gray got a couple of chances to show the added running dimension he’ll bring to QB. … Stafford to A.J. Green. Get used to the sound of it, because we’re going to hear that a lot. But some of the old hands also looked good, with Kris Durham pulling in that 61-yarder for a score and one of Mo Mass’ three catches being one of his patented acrobatic snags. And what a weapon Georgia has in throwing to Knowshon out of the backfield!
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: The Dawgs’ kickoff coverage continues to be spotty, with Southern getting a 45-yard return one time when they hit the seam. … Tackling was a bit ragged at times. … Need to cut out the offsides penalties. … Not enough pressure on the Southern QBs. That definitely needs to change this next week.
More on the Sanford fan scene later in the week.
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Between the Hedges!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Finally, it’s time, as Sanford Stadium announcer Brook Whitmire says, to tee it up betweeeeen the hedges!
After the summer’s silly season of speculation over whether Georgia would top the pre-season rankings and spending August lamenting a rash of injuries (including a key loss for the season), debating who’ll be the backup tailback, salivating over teammates’ estimations of freshman receiver A.J. Green, fretting about whether Knowshon Moreno should receive punts, and worrying how Matthew Stafford will be able to operate behind a revamped and mostly green offensive line, I’m more than ready to head over to Athens early Saturday morning. There’s nothing like hearing that trumpet solo in the Battle Hymn of the Bulldog Nation for the first time each season! I get goosebumps just thinking about it.
It’s a shame, in a way, that the first home game is one of those 12:30 affairs since that forces fans to condense their pre-game tailgating into more or less a rushed brunch, but if the Dawgs take care of business the way they’re expected to, there should be plenty of time to sit back and reflect on the day afterward before hitting the road back home.
Heading into the game, most UGA fans are confident of the outcome but concerned over whether the Bulldogs will take Georgia Southern seriously enough. Thanks to Appalachian State and Michigan last year, I don’t think there’s much danger of Georgia getting caught napping. But what I would like to see, as I alluded to recently, is the Dawgs dispatching one of their lesser opponents in the manner befitting a Top 5 team. I know the coaches want to let a lot of players get some game experience, but let’s face it, winning by anything less than three touchdowns is going to be considered an off-day for Stafford, Moreno and Co.
I’m not saying we should run up the score to ridiculous levels the way the Gators and Sooners and some other schools do (I doubt you’ll ever see Mark Richt do that), but Georgia needs to make a statement Saturday that it intends to tear through this landmine of a schedule with determination and, yes, a bit of a swagger. The benefits of the mindset after last year’s celebration penalty against the Gators should be obvious to all.
So, go Dawgs … win it BIG!
BULLDOG BITES: Speaking of Brook Whitmire, he ought to get a royalty off sales of this season’s new black rally towel, which features his famous phrase along with the Georgia “G.” As a longtime proponent of using both Georgia’s team colors, I like the continued emphasis on black. By the way, if you choose to buy those towels through Georgiadogs.com, you’ll pay $7.95 apiece (!) compared with the $5 price at retail outlets in Athens. And the first 20,000 fans into the stadium Saturday will get a smaller version for free. … Breakfast With the Dawgs will take place at the Melting Point in Athens the Friday morning before each Georgia home football game. Doors will open at 7:30 a.m. and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. A buffet breakfast will be served and the guest speaker will begin around 8:30 a.m. and end around 9, just in time to get to work. Parking is free and available on site. Coach Richt is the speaker for this week’s breakfast. Tickets can be purchased online via www.georgiadogs.com or www.meltingpointathens.com. Tickets for this first kick-off breakfast are $15 and admission for all others will be $12. … WGCL, Atlanta’s CBS affiliate (and home of Dagmar Midcap), is going red and black Friday, including a special hourlong “Dawg Pep Rally Show” at 8 p.m.
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Back to dear old Athenstown
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I always enjoy visits to my hometown, but especially this time of year when football season is so close you can practically smell the bourbon and barbecue on Lumpkin Street.
I spent a few days over in the Classic City this past week visiting with the folks and helping get my son moved into his new place for his last year as a UGA grad student. And while over there, my daughter and I hit a number of favorite Athens spots, including the UGA Book Store for Bulldog regalia and school supplies (the No. 7 black jerseys are back in stock, though outnumbered about 3-1 by the No. 24s); Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall, where we picked up the 2008 football poster, which features both the red and black jerseys (and we saw some of the players, including freshmen who’d gotten on the bad side of an upperclassman’s razor); and the soda fountain at Hodgson’s Pharmacy in Five Points, where I got to chat with my lifelong friend Hal Hodgson. We missed our old downtown haunt Barnett’s Newsstand (now a dress shop) but had lunch with my brother Jon at the reconstituted Allen’s, now on Hawthorne across from the Athens YMCA. And we got caught in the usual Milledge traffic jams that accompany students moving in before classes start on Monday and sorority rush.
While we were having lunch at The Grill downtown, one of the waitresses noticed my red UGA shirt and my daughter’s red dress and asked if something special was going on at the university. Nope, just another mid-August day in Athens!
OUT ON THAT LIMB: While in Athens, the No. 1 topic of conversation usually was about our consensus No. 1 Dawgs. Confidence is high, as they say, despite the killer schedule, the big hit to the offensive line in the loss for the season of Trinton Sturdivant and how that, combined with Brannon Southerland still being out at fullback, makes Matthew Stafford’s protection a little iffy. Few fans I’ve talked with are willing to predict an undefeated season, but many feel pretty comfortable envisioning nothing worse than a one-loss season … which nowadays probably would still have Georgia in the national championship game. As my brother Tim said, if the Dawgs take care of Georgia Southern convincingly in the manner in which they should (instead of playing down to their opponent’s level and just getting by as UGA has tended to do in the past), he’ll feel a lot better out on that limb predicting no losses.
As for me, I’m like my other brother, Jon, who hates to ever pick the Dawgs to lose, but I’m realistic enough to know that most years that’s not reasonable. Last year, I predicted Georgia would go 9-3 before the bowl and they bettered that by a game. I was happy to have them prove me wrong. So I hope they do it again this year, as I’m joining those who see an 11-1 regular season record.
BULLDOG BITES: I can see the arguments for and against using star tailback Knowshon Moreno and third-string QB Logan Gray to return punts and kickoffs. In Moreno’s case, how much sense it makes might depend on how quickly his backup (whether it’s Caleb King or Richard Samuel) develops. But in the case of Gray, I think it’s a great idea, having seen him show off his impressive speed and moves during the G-Day Game. And it’s good to know the redshirt freshman is anxious to get on the field, even if he’s not taking the snap. Special teams coach Jon Fabris reportedly has other unnamed uses in mind for Gray as well, which brings to mind maybe some fake kicks. … Work continues on the garden plaza at the corner of Lumpkin and Pinecrest honoring Vince Dooley, though it’s hard to see how even the garden part is going to be finished in time for the Georgia Southern game (the statue won’t be in place until later in the season). I’d still prefer adding his name to the stadium or field, but considering Dooley’s horticultural bent, this should wind up being a nice tribute. … In addition to the First Friday festivities in Athens kicking off the football season, Aug. 29 is the fourth annual College Colors Day, on which everyone (even those misguided souls who went to other schools) is encouraged to wear their college colors throughout the day, wherever they are. Just another day for me, since I do that most of the time anyway.
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View from the top
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So this is how it feels.
All the off-season speculation is over now and the coaches have made it official. Georgia is the pre-season No. 1 in the USA Today Coaches Poll.
It’s a new experience for the Bulldog Nation. This is the first time the Dawgs have been ranked on top in a major pre-season poll and the first time they’ve been ranked No. 1 since the end of the 1982 season in the Herschel era. UGA’s sports publicity folks say the Dawgs’ previous highest pre-season rankings by major polls were in 1942 (2nd by AP), 2004 (3rd by AP, 4th by the coaches) and 1967 (6th, AP).
Of course, the AP writers’ poll is still to come, but it isn’t part of the BCS formula like the USA Today poll is.
Holding on to the top spot will be tough, probably the toughest challenge any Georgia football team has ever faced. They’ll have to overcome a tough schedule, some question marks in the offensive line and kicking game, and the mind games that big expectations can play with college kids, as well as avoiding major injuries. Luck always plays a part in it, too.
What counts, of course, is who ends up No. 1 and No. 2 at the end of the season and playing in the championship game. But a high pre-season ranking is a major advantage and gives the Dawgs some wiggle room as the season unfolds. Ask LSU about that.
Bottom line: The nation’s coaches think that, at this point before the first game is played, Georgia is the best team in the country.
Damn, that feels good.
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