Here's a tough thing to accept and admit. We got beat fair and square on the field of play. Hats off to South Carolina. I don't really have any major complaints. Aside from the crazy phantom first down call that was reviewed and confirmed...I believe it was a well officiated game.
The Dogs looked a little sluggish, our defense was vulnerable in the middle but tightened up in the second half. Murray looked good. He made good decisions and didn't lose the game for us. The fumble was a back breaker but I am choosing to blame something else.
The hat.
I knew it when I bought it. It's the hat that cursed us. I had a beautiful, traditional straight up red Georgia hat in my hand at Dick's Sporting good last weekend. It was a few minutes before kick off and I needed a new good luck hat for the season. Inexplicably, I stopped, turned around and started eyeing the black one. Why would I do that? I've been down this road before. I actually threw away my black one at halftime of a game because it was such bad luck. Why on earth would I purchase the same hat!? I've never had a traditional red one. This could have been the year. Suffice it to say that I ignored my gut, put down the red one, picked up the black one and proceeded to curse the Dogs for another year.
I apologize to players and fans alike. While I love the look of the all black Dogs hat, I must retire it for good and just get the damn red one like the rest of the loyal fans. Ugh.
Go Dogs!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
AJ Green
If I'm being "holier than thou", I would submit that AJ Green should make better decisions, not let down the team and be accepting of his punishment. If I'm being cynical I say, "here we go again". I have chosen, rather, to be what I feel is realistic.
We've got a game to play...once again we're missing key personnel. It's frustrating as a fan. I can think of no other sports organization in recent history that has suffered more setbacks for crazy reasons involving critical players. Whatever.
If we believe what we preach, then this is the time for CMR to talk to his team about adversity. How do we respond? I don't care that it's self-inflicted...the rest of the team has to go out there and make up the slack. It's not moments spent sailing in calm waters that define a team. It's what you do after you get slapped in the face or kicked in the dirt that reveals team character.
We're in a tough stretch of early make-or-break conference games. We're allowed to put 11 guys on the field at a time. Let's do that and make sure that each knows the other 10 are counting on them.
AJ will be back soon enough. He did something silly and got an excessively punitive punishment considering the "crime". No time for that. Let's play ball.
Go Dogs.
We've got a game to play...once again we're missing key personnel. It's frustrating as a fan. I can think of no other sports organization in recent history that has suffered more setbacks for crazy reasons involving critical players. Whatever.
If we believe what we preach, then this is the time for CMR to talk to his team about adversity. How do we respond? I don't care that it's self-inflicted...the rest of the team has to go out there and make up the slack. It's not moments spent sailing in calm waters that define a team. It's what you do after you get slapped in the face or kicked in the dirt that reveals team character.
We're in a tough stretch of early make-or-break conference games. We're allowed to put 11 guys on the field at a time. Let's do that and make sure that each knows the other 10 are counting on them.
AJ will be back soon enough. He did something silly and got an excessively punitive punishment considering the "crime". No time for that. Let's play ball.
Go Dogs.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Bring on Garcia
Last year we managed to make Stephen Garcia look like Joe Montana. He tore us a new one and I thought it was the beginning of a new era in South Carolina. I now believe it was a bit of a fluke. I think he's a solid, tough kid with a lot of upside. I also think Spurrier is too big of an egotistical turd masher to allow the kid to relax long enough to succeed. Spurrier is a college football classic but his achilles heel is the belief that somehow scaring the shit (and confidence) out of a kid is actually good for the team. "I won the Heisman ya know...I won the SEC and National Title multiple times ya know...?" Good job Steve...but I'm starting to think that it may have been miraculously in spite of you.
Look, It's tough to work (or play) for someone who used to do what you now do. It should be great because the supposition is that they'll understand the nuance of what you deal with and will have the insight to understand and encourage you through those tough spots. Instead, they tend to revise history, forget how hard it can be, and tell war stories about how they did it with one arm tied behind their back. In other words...it's actually worse to deal with because of this very fact.
Spurrier was a great QB but he should calm down and give these dudes a break. He never had to remember the number of plays...get hit as hard...deal with the amazing athletes...or deal with the popularity of the game. Since broadcast TV and the internet have exploded, the hyper-awareness of the average fan is out of control. Spurrier thrived in the time of relatively low expectations.
I respect Spurrier and South Carolina and wish them well on other days...but on this particular Saturday I want to see someone lay a mullet flapping, chest hit on Garcia-douche that plunks the ball on the ground 2 seconds before the visor on the sideline skips onto the field.
Look, It's tough to work (or play) for someone who used to do what you now do. It should be great because the supposition is that they'll understand the nuance of what you deal with and will have the insight to understand and encourage you through those tough spots. Instead, they tend to revise history, forget how hard it can be, and tell war stories about how they did it with one arm tied behind their back. In other words...it's actually worse to deal with because of this very fact.
Spurrier was a great QB but he should calm down and give these dudes a break. He never had to remember the number of plays...get hit as hard...deal with the amazing athletes...or deal with the popularity of the game. Since broadcast TV and the internet have exploded, the hyper-awareness of the average fan is out of control. Spurrier thrived in the time of relatively low expectations.
I respect Spurrier and South Carolina and wish them well on other days...but on this particular Saturday I want to see someone lay a mullet flapping, chest hit on Garcia-douche that plunks the ball on the ground 2 seconds before the visor on the sideline skips onto the field.
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| Creed Lead Singer To QB Cocks |
Saturday, September 4, 2010
LA-Lafayette Game
A beautiful Saturday in Athens. A new QB takes the reins and has a great outing.
CMR got pissed at Murray for running in the TD before the half. Murray had a half-assed quote that indicated he is willing to pretend he understands.
Only bad moment was the deep TD pass for the Ragin Cajuns. We got burned. Oh well.
Sorta bummed that AJ Green had to sit because somebody somewhere said someone did something...
Huh?
Why make the kid sit? If we aren't careful...he sits the SC game next week too. Bullshit.
Anyhow...the point I'm here to make is this...The Georgia Bulldogs took the ball away, scored when they should score, didn't kill themselves with penalties, and played hard for 4 quarters.
See you next week. Go Dogs.
CMR got pissed at Murray for running in the TD before the half. Murray had a half-assed quote that indicated he is willing to pretend he understands.
Only bad moment was the deep TD pass for the Ragin Cajuns. We got burned. Oh well.
Sorta bummed that AJ Green had to sit because somebody somewhere said someone did something...
Huh?
Why make the kid sit? If we aren't careful...he sits the SC game next week too. Bullshit.
Anyhow...the point I'm here to make is this...The Georgia Bulldogs took the ball away, scored when they should score, didn't kill themselves with penalties, and played hard for 4 quarters.
See you next week. Go Dogs.
Number 9
I'm not going to dwell on it too long. Just wanted to mention that the 9th Bulldog this year was arrested. Alec Ogletree. Let's hope he didn't do whatever it is they said he did. I have no new thoughts or feeling on the subject. Go Dogs.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
The Richt era
So...where to begin?
With the exception of last year, Mark Richt's tenure at UGA has been an incredible success - no matter who's measuring & how they measure.
Wins? check.
here are some stats taken straight from http://www.markricht.com/....
* 90-27 in 9 seasons (not a math major, but I believe that comes to precisely 10-3)
This is the 6th best winning % (.769) among active coaches
* 2 SEC titles, & 4 SEC East crowns
* 2 time SEC COY (02, 05)
* 3 Sugar Bowl appearances & 2 wins
* 7-2 in bowl games
* 33-6 record in opponent's home stadiums - that is amazing.
* 39-4 vs non conf opponents - also amazing.
* finished the 2007 season ranked #2 (11-2)
Enough stats - we know the man can coach & he wins games with regularity.
Now the hard part - how much longer will he be the head coach in Athens?
Looking at the above, the logical answer would be "for as long as he wants to be there". Big time schools in Big conferences are all about the W's, & we all know it.
Then why bother asking the question?
Because of the continued trend of arrests, transgressions, mistakes, etc by his players - that's why.
As most of us know, Richt is a passionate, dedicated Christian man. In fact you could almost say he's 50% coach & 50% minister. Few coaches preach the word of God more & thump the bible harder than MR.
He's open about it & proud of it & good for him.
If I was a regular church-going kind of guy - I am not - he is precisely the kind of man I would want looking after my son for 4 yrs.
But take away his Christian beliefs for just a second. By all accounts he & his wife are wonderful, generous people regardless of their faith. They spend good chunks of the off-season volunteering in impoverished countries (most of which are not Christian countries), helping bring medicine, clean water, educational materials, etc to kids in desperate need of these things.
They are not trying to convert these kids, or show them "the path to Heaven". They are helping those in need & those less fortunate than they are. Plain & simple.
Richt is basically an older, wiser, much less annoying version of Tim Tebow.
This is where it gets tricky.
For all of his amazing on & off-field traits, accomplishments, etc, why do his charges continue to drive drunk, get in bar fights, brandish weapons, get charged w/sexual assault, etc. etc?
As Mr. Emerson has pointed out previously, we are all guilty of jack-ass, knuckle-headed deeds - especially in college.
I cringe when I look back & think of some of the things I did/said while in Athens. It's not pretty.
A friend & I once spent an entire evening pretending to be bouncers, sitting in chairs outside of a bar, checking (and confiscating) ID's & only letting in hot girls. I did not work there, I did not even know anyone who worked there.
We were just really drunk & thought it would be fun - which it was.
(For the record, I never brandished a weapon or assaulted any women. As for the rest, I plead the 5th).
See: houses, glass.
Certainly we see this behavior at dozens of other schools - large & small.
Despite the reputation of Athens being "a drinking town with a college problem", it is not just a UGA thing or an SEC thing...it's pervasive across the sport & across the country.
See: University of Southern California, University of North Carolina.
The hard part is figuring out "why"? Why so many UGA players? Why every year? Why are the same mistakes made over, & over & over?
Well some would say that if the former AD, Mr. Damon "I don't know how those panties wound up in my lap" Evans exhibited this behavior, how can we expect 18 to 20 yr old kids (and yes they are kids. Do not think otherwise for even a second) to be any different?
Too easy, I say.
Getting back to Richt, if he leaves or is asked to leave anytime soon, it will be a huge step backwards for our program. I don't care if he's replaced by Nick Saban, Bob Stoops, Urban Meyer, Mack Brown - whomever.
He cannot be replaced. Perhaps his win/loss record can be replaced & even surpassed. But it is near impossible to find someone with his combination of coaching prowess & character.
Lou Holtz maybe? Mack Brown?
But why, Mark? Why do your kids keep screwing up?
It's sad to think about but could it be that you are too nice? Too forgiving? Too willing to give a 2nd chance? Maybe but I think it goes deeper.
Yes I know you booted Zach Mettenberger (great call), suspended Washaun Ealey (good call), & have generally dealt w/these transgressions well. That is not the point.
The point is why? Why do the same problems arise year after year? Why does it seem like the new crop of recruits have goldfish-like memories & cannot recall what happened to their peers 6-9 months earlier?
Why do these kinds of kids "slip through the cracks" & make it to Athens?
Now w/the LeMay situation, is it even worth bringing the kid to Athens when he will have gone a year w/out playing in a game?
I say no. Pull his scholarship & give it to another kid who, while he may not be as talented, is also not as stupid.
At some point, if this trend continues, the only common denominator is you - Coach Mark Richt.
We want you to stay, we know you're a good coach & a better father/husband/man.
But coach - come on. Do something before the decision is made for you. It won't be this year or even next unless things get even worse. But despite your consistent 10 win seasons, & BCS bowls, & top NFL draft picks, the scrutiny will only intensify unless things get better soon.
Please do not misunderstand me people. By no means am I advocating for a coaching change, even if we could get Saban.
The last thing we need is some Woody Hayes-like prick, or a slimy Barry Switzer type, or just a plain old asshole like Kiffin.
No sir. We need Mark Richt.
But we also need more accountability. We need you & your staff to do a better job of recognizing & identifying potential problem kids before they are "in the pipeline".
We don't expect perfection or anything close - we just expect improvement. There will always be kids who say & do all the right things, have great GPA's & all kinds of accolades. Then they arrive at UGA & discover that they are placed on a pedestal - or at least on a step stool - because they wear shoulder pads on Saturdays.
Hell it happened to Stafford....remember the keg hoist pics at Talladega? (Frankly I think the more egregious error in his case was not the fact that he was half in the bag, lifting 40 lbs of beer over his head while under-age, but that he was at a NASCAR race...in Alabama).
At least his obligatory "bonehead move" was off campus, off-season, & did not result in an arrest.
The fear here is that unless you reverse this behavioral pattern in your players & recruits, that the unthinkable may happen.
That a giant of a program like UGA, in the most difficult conference - bar none, will replace their coach, & not because he didn't win games.
This coach will have an avg of at least 10 wins per season, multiple conf crowns, & multiple BCS bowl wins.
That he will be shown the door despite winning more than 3/4 of his games.
That he will be forced out because he was not willing or able to handle the problem kids before they became "UGA problem kids".
Don't let it come to that.
With the exception of last year, Mark Richt's tenure at UGA has been an incredible success - no matter who's measuring & how they measure.
Wins? check.
here are some stats taken straight from http://www.markricht.com/....
* 90-27 in 9 seasons (not a math major, but I believe that comes to precisely 10-3)
This is the 6th best winning % (.769) among active coaches
* 2 SEC titles, & 4 SEC East crowns
* 2 time SEC COY (02, 05)
* 3 Sugar Bowl appearances & 2 wins
* 7-2 in bowl games
* 33-6 record in opponent's home stadiums - that is amazing.
* 39-4 vs non conf opponents - also amazing.
* finished the 2007 season ranked #2 (11-2)
Enough stats - we know the man can coach & he wins games with regularity.
Now the hard part - how much longer will he be the head coach in Athens?
Looking at the above, the logical answer would be "for as long as he wants to be there". Big time schools in Big conferences are all about the W's, & we all know it.
Then why bother asking the question?
Because of the continued trend of arrests, transgressions, mistakes, etc by his players - that's why.
As most of us know, Richt is a passionate, dedicated Christian man. In fact you could almost say he's 50% coach & 50% minister. Few coaches preach the word of God more & thump the bible harder than MR.
He's open about it & proud of it & good for him.
If I was a regular church-going kind of guy - I am not - he is precisely the kind of man I would want looking after my son for 4 yrs.
But take away his Christian beliefs for just a second. By all accounts he & his wife are wonderful, generous people regardless of their faith. They spend good chunks of the off-season volunteering in impoverished countries (most of which are not Christian countries), helping bring medicine, clean water, educational materials, etc to kids in desperate need of these things.
They are not trying to convert these kids, or show them "the path to Heaven". They are helping those in need & those less fortunate than they are. Plain & simple.
Richt is basically an older, wiser, much less annoying version of Tim Tebow.
This is where it gets tricky.
For all of his amazing on & off-field traits, accomplishments, etc, why do his charges continue to drive drunk, get in bar fights, brandish weapons, get charged w/sexual assault, etc. etc?
As Mr. Emerson has pointed out previously, we are all guilty of jack-ass, knuckle-headed deeds - especially in college.
I cringe when I look back & think of some of the things I did/said while in Athens. It's not pretty.
A friend & I once spent an entire evening pretending to be bouncers, sitting in chairs outside of a bar, checking (and confiscating) ID's & only letting in hot girls. I did not work there, I did not even know anyone who worked there.
We were just really drunk & thought it would be fun - which it was.
(For the record, I never brandished a weapon or assaulted any women. As for the rest, I plead the 5th).
See: houses, glass.
Certainly we see this behavior at dozens of other schools - large & small.
Despite the reputation of Athens being "a drinking town with a college problem", it is not just a UGA thing or an SEC thing...it's pervasive across the sport & across the country.
See: University of Southern California, University of North Carolina.
The hard part is figuring out "why"? Why so many UGA players? Why every year? Why are the same mistakes made over, & over & over?
Well some would say that if the former AD, Mr. Damon "I don't know how those panties wound up in my lap" Evans exhibited this behavior, how can we expect 18 to 20 yr old kids (and yes they are kids. Do not think otherwise for even a second) to be any different?
Too easy, I say.
Getting back to Richt, if he leaves or is asked to leave anytime soon, it will be a huge step backwards for our program. I don't care if he's replaced by Nick Saban, Bob Stoops, Urban Meyer, Mack Brown - whomever.
He cannot be replaced. Perhaps his win/loss record can be replaced & even surpassed. But it is near impossible to find someone with his combination of coaching prowess & character.
Lou Holtz maybe? Mack Brown?
But why, Mark? Why do your kids keep screwing up?
It's sad to think about but could it be that you are too nice? Too forgiving? Too willing to give a 2nd chance? Maybe but I think it goes deeper.
Yes I know you booted Zach Mettenberger (great call), suspended Washaun Ealey (good call), & have generally dealt w/these transgressions well. That is not the point.
The point is why? Why do the same problems arise year after year? Why does it seem like the new crop of recruits have goldfish-like memories & cannot recall what happened to their peers 6-9 months earlier?
Why do these kinds of kids "slip through the cracks" & make it to Athens?
Now w/the LeMay situation, is it even worth bringing the kid to Athens when he will have gone a year w/out playing in a game?
I say no. Pull his scholarship & give it to another kid who, while he may not be as talented, is also not as stupid.
At some point, if this trend continues, the only common denominator is you - Coach Mark Richt.
We want you to stay, we know you're a good coach & a better father/husband/man.
But coach - come on. Do something before the decision is made for you. It won't be this year or even next unless things get even worse. But despite your consistent 10 win seasons, & BCS bowls, & top NFL draft picks, the scrutiny will only intensify unless things get better soon.
Please do not misunderstand me people. By no means am I advocating for a coaching change, even if we could get Saban.
The last thing we need is some Woody Hayes-like prick, or a slimy Barry Switzer type, or just a plain old asshole like Kiffin.
No sir. We need Mark Richt.
But we also need more accountability. We need you & your staff to do a better job of recognizing & identifying potential problem kids before they are "in the pipeline".
We don't expect perfection or anything close - we just expect improvement. There will always be kids who say & do all the right things, have great GPA's & all kinds of accolades. Then they arrive at UGA & discover that they are placed on a pedestal - or at least on a step stool - because they wear shoulder pads on Saturdays.
Hell it happened to Stafford....remember the keg hoist pics at Talladega? (Frankly I think the more egregious error in his case was not the fact that he was half in the bag, lifting 40 lbs of beer over his head while under-age, but that he was at a NASCAR race...in Alabama).
At least his obligatory "bonehead move" was off campus, off-season, & did not result in an arrest.
The fear here is that unless you reverse this behavioral pattern in your players & recruits, that the unthinkable may happen.
That a giant of a program like UGA, in the most difficult conference - bar none, will replace their coach, & not because he didn't win games.
This coach will have an avg of at least 10 wins per season, multiple conf crowns, & multiple BCS bowl wins.
That he will be shown the door despite winning more than 3/4 of his games.
That he will be forced out because he was not willing or able to handle the problem kids before they became "UGA problem kids".
Don't let it come to that.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Christian LeMay
Alright...so the next big name at UGA is Christian LeMay. He is the next big QB recruit for the Dogs.
Come to find out he will not be allowed to play his senior season at his high school. Why? Hmmm...strange. He has been suspended for misconduct. Rumors allege (and all but confirm) it's because of a sexual act witnessed by school officials, yadda yadda yadda.
Now...we're all superior when it comes to what we did in the past. We brag about our misconduct back in our youth. We dismiss our own shitty behavior when it comes to the mythical, "good ol' days". Right? It was OK when we did dumb stuff, but we're judge, jury, and executioner when it comes to "kids these days".
The answer is yes. Sorry. But it is yes. The stakes are higher in this day and age. So is the scrutiny. If you are a major recruit at a major sport for a major college and you've been deemed such a shithead that you can't even play your senior season at your high school...then perhaps the college that recruited you should pull the offer.
Not Georgia. We are standing behind the kid.
Wow. Really?
We can find great athletes elsewhere. Seriously...let this one get picked up by Florida or Alabama. Leave it alone. We've got tons of recruits fighting for top arrest headlines next summer. Why pursue one?
I wish LeMay the best of luck in getting his life together. I'm just confused at our willingness to stand behind a recruit that is in trouble a year before he gets to Athens.
Come to find out he will not be allowed to play his senior season at his high school. Why? Hmmm...strange. He has been suspended for misconduct. Rumors allege (and all but confirm) it's because of a sexual act witnessed by school officials, yadda yadda yadda.
Now...we're all superior when it comes to what we did in the past. We brag about our misconduct back in our youth. We dismiss our own shitty behavior when it comes to the mythical, "good ol' days". Right? It was OK when we did dumb stuff, but we're judge, jury, and executioner when it comes to "kids these days".
The answer is yes. Sorry. But it is yes. The stakes are higher in this day and age. So is the scrutiny. If you are a major recruit at a major sport for a major college and you've been deemed such a shithead that you can't even play your senior season at your high school...then perhaps the college that recruited you should pull the offer.
Not Georgia. We are standing behind the kid.
Wow. Really?
We can find great athletes elsewhere. Seriously...let this one get picked up by Florida or Alabama. Leave it alone. We've got tons of recruits fighting for top arrest headlines next summer. Why pursue one?
I wish LeMay the best of luck in getting his life together. I'm just confused at our willingness to stand behind a recruit that is in trouble a year before he gets to Athens.
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