S-L-O-W

It's tough being a "sports" blogger around here these days, especially when blogging is a hobby at best...there is really nothing going on of interest, so if you want blog topics you either have to go out and find them or keep mining the same old territory. Guess which path I'm going to take?

- The Braves are promising to be wickedly mediocre, unless they go through with one of the rumored Yunel Escobar trades, at which point they will just be brutal. The hot rumor right now is Escobar to Oakland for Matt Holliday and Orlando Cabrera. Bad move for the Braves, and I hope it doesn't happen. As frustrating as Yunel can be at times, he is also maybe the biggest offensive threat this team has, as well as being above average defensively (when he keeps his head on straight) and is one of two guys on the team who actually provide speed on the basepaths.

Plus, both of the guys the Braves would be getting back are A) expensive, and B) free agents after this year. So we would basically be giving away a guy who will hopefully be one of the cornerstones of our future in order to rent two players who at best will equal what we already have in Escobar.

And, before anybody calls me out on my feelings on the Francoeur deal and calls me a hypocrite, two differences: 1) Francouer is nowhere near the player that Escobar is; and 2) the money in this proposed deal just doesn't make sense. In effect, Oakland would be doing a salary dump and getting the best player in the deal.

- Dawgs picked up committment number 15 yesterday, 4-star defensive end Dexter Morant out of South Carolina. From all reports, this guy is a player, but I would be more excited if A) we already had a committment from TJ Stripling; and B) we didn't already have Jalen Fields.

Fields and Morant seem to be the same kind of player...big, strongside defensive ends, anchors against the run, etc. But Stripling is that play-like-your-hair-is-on-fire speed rusher who can get after the quarterback...we still need one of those. I'm hoping that the fact that we already have three DE in this class doesn't chase Stripling off.

Not that I have a problem with the Fields/Morant type defensive ends. I just feel like we need the other type more at this time. Anthony Dasher at Rivals.com is still saying he thinks Stripling is on the table for us...maybe Morant, at 6-7 and 240LB, gets moved to the OL at some point? Maybe Fields (who is already 250LB as a HS junior) grows into a DT?

Anyway, we now only have about 6-7 spots left, and we still need (in my opinion) 2 CB, 2DT, 1 more RB (if it's Mack Brown, if not, no more), and one more WR. If we DO get Stripling (and he is scheduled to visit next week, per Rivals), then we really can't afford any more "surprise" committments (not going to mention names) if we still expect to sign some of the big name guys we are still in on (RB Mack Brown, DT Garrison Smith, CB Cody Riggs, WR Ted Meline, etc).

You know it's slow if I'm talking this much recruiting...I'm certainly no recrootin' goo-roo, and my mantra has always been "Trust the coaches" when it comes to stuff like this. But I'm beginning to wonder if our apparent "first come, first serve" approach to accepting committments is going to hurt us this year. I don't think we're going to have a BAD class, but I'm afraid that we may miss out on some big-time players because some less highly sought after guys jumped on the UGA offer early because it was the best one they were going to get.

That's all I got...maybe be back later with a returning feature.

(Here's a hint....WHOOOOOOO!!)