The fallout continued Monday from the skirmish at the end of the Georgia-Vanderbilt game with the SEC launching a review and UGA athletic director Greg McGarity meeting privately with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham.
The SEC asked both schools to submit reports on the heated, finger-pointing exchange between Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin and Grantham. The league indicated a decision on disciplinary action, if any, could come as soon as Tuesday.
Video of the moments following Georgia's 33-28 win in Nashville on Saturday night show Franklin point toward Georgia safety Shawn Williams, Grantham react angrily and the situation escalate to the point that other coaches and police had to separate the teams.
Early Monday morning, before most UGA Athletic Association employees arrived for work, McGarity went to Grantham's office in Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall to discuss the incident.
"Those discussions will remain private, but I've addressed it with coach [Mark] Richt and coach Grantham," McGarity told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "There were lessons to be learned there. Obviously the conduct that was displayed was not representative of how we want to conduct ourselves after a hard-fought game."
Later Monday, at a speaking engagement in Atlanta, McGarity said: "I think that's not the way you want to represent your institution on either side. At the end of the day, I think you'll see that."
Several hours after meeting with McGarity, Grantham said he regretted the incident.
"First of all, I love my players and appreciate their hard work and investment in our program," Grantham said. "I feel a responsibility and loyalty to protect and stand up for them. However, I feel it's important to educate them in all areas of life. While my intentions were genuine, I feel it was unfortunate that things escalated to a confrontation.
"I'll use it as a learning experience for myself, as well as my players, so that we all become better men."
McGarity said he also spoke early Monday with SEC commissioner Mike Slive.
"[League officials] are in a sort of fact-finding process now," McGarity said. "We'll submit a report, either verbal or in writing. I'm sure Vandy will do the same. And then, basically, we'll see what happens at that point in time."
The league could impose penalties ranging from a reprimand to a fine to a suspension, or it could leave the matter to the schools to handle.
In an email, SEC associate commissioner Charles Bloom said the conference was gathering information from all parties involved. “Too early to comment on it," Bloom wrote.
The SEC also is expected to review the personal-foul penalties assessed during the game, including one for Georgia nose tackle Kwame Geathers, who appeared to punch a Vanderbilt player on the ground, and decide whether to levy suspensions.
"That's just basic standard operating procedure [for the league to review] things that happen during the game," McGarity said. "I'm sure they'll review the clips, and I'm sure they'll review the personal fouls."
At his weekly news conference in Nashville, shown on Vanderbilt's website, Franklin said he had talked by phone with Richt, "man to man," on Sunday morning.
"We have a very, very talented [SEC] commissioner, and they'll do their job and they'll do what they think is right and we're going to move forward," Franklin said. "Some things got a little bit out of hand, and I know myself and ... Coach Richt, both of us would have liked for the game to have ended a little differently and been able to just walk off the field."
Asked if he had any regrets about his conduct at the end of the game, Franklin said: "I'm not a guy that really has a whole lot of regrets. I'm pretty calculated, and I'm pretty well thought out with the things I do for the most part. I am an emotional guy, as you guys know."
The confrontation was the first topic McGarity was asked about at a luncheon meeting for the Touchdown Club of Atlanta. He declined to discuss specifics, but made it clear the incident was unacceptable.
"If you ask [Grantham], if he had to do it over again, I think he definitely would do some things differently," McGarity told the group. "There probably are a lot of things people would like to take back. ... We need to talk about the student-athletes and what they did that day -- and not reduce it to where things off the field are the topic of discussion.
"So it's something we're really not proud of, and we'll deal with it and learn from it."
