The Junkyard Blawg has moved!
Along with the other ajc.com blogs, the Junkyard Blawg has moved over to WordPress, where the blogging and commenting experience promises to be better. Join us over at the new WordPress version of the Junkyard Blawg by clicking on the link below.
AJC > Sports > UGA > Blog > Archives > 2008 > October > 12
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Half empty or half full?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I understand why a lot of UGA fans are calling the Dawgs’ victory over the Vols Saturday an “ugly” or “unsatisfying” win.
Georgia had an opportunity to run up a big score against an SEC opponent in a blowout, and didn’t.
The Dawgs moved the ball up and down the field against Tennessee but sputtered in the red zone, leaving enough points on the field to have more than doubled Georgia’s score, thanks to a dropped pass in the end zone, two red-zone interceptions (one in the end zone and both leading to UT scores), and three other badly botched fade routes. And while at least two of Georgia’s 11 penalties Saturday were strategic calls by the coaches, the Dawgs again kept a drive alive for their opponent with an infraction. (Of course, on one Bulldog drive there also was the matter of Georgia’s least favorite SEC officiating crew blowing a defensive holding call in the end zone that should have given the Dawgs an automatic first down at the 3.)
Granted, barring the defense pitching a shutout, Georgia can’t do things like that against Florida or LSU and expect to win. And despite the Red and Black’s total domination of the game, a 26-14 score doesn’t have the style points that today’s pollsters reward. The old-school days when all that mattered was that it was a win have fallen to the ESPN-ization of college football.
No, it wasn’t the kind of victory that had many Georgia fans buying those instantly printed scorecards after the game. But while I’ve been accused from time to time of harping on what the Dawgs need to improve, I left Sanford Stadium Saturday feeling like the souvenir cup was half full, rather than half empty.
I mean, look at the other side of the coin: The Vols came into the game ranking first in the SEC in total defense, allowing 244 yards a game, but Georgia racked up 458 yards of offense, with Matthew Stafford throwing his first 300-plus yard game despite those two picks and Knowshon Moreno topping a hundred yards rushing. The Dawgs had 29 first downs to Tennessee’s 10 and an amazing 42 minutes of possession time. On defense, Georgia held the admittedly anemic Vols to 1 yard on the ground and 208 yards in the air, the bulk of that on a couple of long completions.
And then there was The Drive: Looking to eat up clock and secure the win in the fourth quarter after letting Tennessee get its second score when the secondary left the receiver uncovered, Georgia ground out 76 yards on 17 plays, holding the ball just short of 11 minutes. Dooleyball had returned to Sanford! And that was despite losing another key offensive lineman to injury earlier in the game. It may have only produced another of Blair Walsh’s four field goals, but it iced the game and was the kind of drive that wins championships.
So, yes, Georgia has a lot it still needs to work on to fine-tune its performance. But those are all things that can be fixed.
THIS AND THAT: How about a game ball for freshman kicker Blair Walsh, who not only responded in pressure situations Saturday, but did so after suffering a migraine headache and having to go on an IV earlier in the day. … It was great to see Brannan Southerland back in the game and punching in another short-yardage score, but Shaun “I Can Play Fullback, Too” Chapas came up large, particularly with his running after the catch on a couple of long pass plays. With the current weakness at tight end, it’s good to see Stafford dumping the ball off to the fullbacks and getting big results. … A.J. Green at times looked unfortunately like the freshman he is Saturday, but senior receiver Mohamed Massaquoi was magnificent, even after he got his bell rung on an illegal helmet-to-helmet hit. And Demiko Goodman had a couple of really nice snags, too. … Let’s hope Willie Martinez makes this point with his secondary: When you get your hands on the ball, catch it. If you can’t, knock it to the ground, don’t tip it up in the air where the receiver gets a second shot at it, which nearly happened a couple of times Saturday. … The fade definitely isn’t working for Georgia right now. Saturday, the receivers didn’t seem to understand that Stafford intended to put the ball in the far corner of the end zone. … While Georgia’s offensive line responded well when challenged by Stafford to step up on that fourth-quarter drive (particularly Clint Boling, who took Vince Vance’s place), the injuries and constant flux in positions continued to make the Dawgs’ blocking and protection spotty, with Tennessee defenders harassing Stafford and Moreno in the backfield on way too many plays. Whether the young line matures and gels fast (and avoids any further injuries) is going to play in big part in how the Dawgs’ season finishes. … On that screen-play interception, you could clearly see that the Vols defense had read the play before Stafford even threw the ball. … Georgia’s kickoffs, aided by a bit of breeze at times, were the best they’ve been this season. … Moreno has obviously become the team’s spirit leader, racing around congratulating and revving up his teammates even on plays that don’t involve him. … There was nearly a real dog fight before the game when UT’s hound Smokey and Uga VII got within a few yards of each other. Smokey started yapping and straining at his leash. Uga tensed into what looked almost like a defensive lineman’s position and then lunged toward Smokey before their respective handlers decided to head in opposite directions.
Services »
