As I've said before, I got really burned out on sports in general the last few months, with the one lone bright spot being the play of the Falcons. This general sports malaise even affected my obsession with the Dawgs...more than anything else, I'm just ready for this season to be over.
I'm sure that by the time next summer rolls around I will be back to my normal, rabid self.
In the meantime, and while I am working on my MASSIVE mid-season television report, let's dole out some grades, shall we?
Quarterback: A-
Comments: Aaron Murray surpassed ALL expectations this season, both in terms of statistics and intangibles like toughness and leadership. The only thing that keeps this grade from an A or even an A+ is the Florida game, the only time all year where Aaron really looked like a freshman. We've got a great one, Dawg fans.
Running Backs: C+
Comments: I was really surprised to find out that both Ealy and King averaged over 5 yards a carry...I only seem to have memories of them running directly into a wall of defenders over and over again, looking desparately for a hole that wasn't there (we'll get to that in a minute). Either way, the running game wasn't nearly as effective as we all thought it would be going into the season, and while the running backs don't share all the blame for that, there was still a noticable lack of big plays out of the running game. And the fumbles, my God, the fumbles...
As for the fullbacks, I don't think we got the same level of effectiveness out of them as we have become accustomed to. They were adequate, but I can't give them much more than that.
Wide Receiver: B-
Comments: A.J. Green is the best receiver in college football, but we only had him for eight games. Kris Durham had a fantastic season, and probably earned a spot on an NFL team somewhere. Tavarres King showed some flashes that he may be living up to his potential. Other than those three? Everybody else was virtually invisible. Only Marlon Brown had double digit catches, and he only had one touchdown. Rantavious Wootentheballcarrier only had seven catches for a measly 41 yards.
And, the most disturbing part? Durham is definitely gone next season, and A.J. almost certainly is. Ugh.
Tight End: B-
Comments: This grade would be lower, except that I don't fully blame the players for their lack of production. This staff has to find a way to get these guys involved...we heard all kinds of talk before the season started about how much we were going to incorporate all three of the Charles/White/Figgins trio into the game plan. The result? 36 total catches between the three of them, for only four touchdowns. Those numbers should have been double that.
Offensive line: D
Comments: By far the most disappointing position group on the team, as well as the most frustrating. There were individual plays, sometimes even whole drives, where we were imposing our will on the defense and the line looked like we all thought they would look with 6 starters returning and one of the most respected assistant coaches in the country overseeing them. But by and large, we struggled to open holes for the running game, and Aaron Murray had to make far too many plays while running for his life.
This lack of production is inexplicable, and it makes me sad, so I'm going to move on...
Defensive Line: C
Comments: Adequate. Seriously, that's the best I can come up with for what this group was. Considering you had Tyson playing out of position all year, I guess that's the best you could have hoped for out of this group. We were gashed several times this year by the running game, but I think that is partially due to not having the right players for the scheme yet...we'll see, I guess.
Linebackers: B+
Comments: Probably the most effective position group on the defense. Justin Houston was an absolute monster all year, but we never got the production out of the other OLB that I was hoping for. Akeem Dent had an all-SEC caliber season. Overall, this was a HUGE step up from last season...big kudos to Coaches Belin and Grantham.
Cornerback/Safety: C-
Comments: I'm grouping these two together, because I'm probably going to say the same things about both of them. Our secondary is who we thought they were....like I and a lot of others thought may be the case, we made a lot more plays but we also gave up a bunch of plays due to folks being out of position.
If you want to see a Dawgs fan have an aneurysm, just walk up to them and shout "WHEEL ROUTE"!
This is another position, especially at corner, where we have to wait and see what happens when we get the right personnel in there...Lakatos and Grantham appear to prefer larger cornerbacks rather than the really fast midgets that Willie liked to use.
Kicker/Punter: A-
Comments: Blair continues to be as close to automatic as you can get, and although Drew didn't have the monster season he had last year he was still very effective.
Kick Return/Coverage: B
Comments: Not as many big plays out of the return game this season, but wow...what a difference on kick coverage. Just like the linebacker position, I think this area benefitted greatly from the change in coaching philosophy.
Overall:
If you add all of those components together and take an average, you end up with around a C+. The fact that we still ended up with a horrible 6-6 record is a testament to how frustrating this season was. I don't feel like we were really bad at anything, but we weren't really good at anything either, and we showed a remarkable knack for making our penalties and turnovers count...in a bad way. The mistakes always seemed to come at the most inopportune times. I guess that's what happens when you're just not a very good team.
Ugh. I'm ready for this season to be over.
As always...GO DAWGS.
Showing posts with label Coach Grantham is here to save us all. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Coach Grantham is here to save us all. Show all posts
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
I guess I should say SOMETHING about the Dawgs...
Since several Dawg blogs and the geniuses over at Dawgbone continue to link to this blog, I guess I owe it to the blogosphere to say SOMETHING about the state of the Dawgs right now...
The problem is that I just don't know what to say.
After the South Carolina loss, I was frustrated, because I thought it was a winnable game that we let slip away, but I also knew that South Carolina was a pretty good team, it was the first road game, blah, blah, blah.
After the Arkansas loss, I was angry, because I thought that for the most part our players played well enough to win, only to be hampered in their efforts by poor game planning, especially on the offensive side of the ball (and this is coming from somebody who has been a Bobo apologist most of the time).
After last week, well...I'm just confused. I don't really understand how we got to this point. Taking a step back and really looking at the way we've played, I don't think this is a BAD team, per se...and I don't think I'm the only one. These posts at Dawgsports.com by Macon Dawg and T Kyle King say a lot of what I'm thinking about the quality of this team. It's not that we are terrible at anything, we just don't seem to be really good at anything. There just seems to be something "off", and I don't really know what it is.
I don't know...this post is threatening to go off the rails, since I'm really at a loss as to what to say about this team at this point (obviously), so let's see if we can work it out stream-of-consciousness style, mmm-kay?
- Aaron Murray has definitely been the brightest spot of the season so far. There's not a throw he can't make, as far as I can tell, he really hasn't made the kind of freshman mistakes we were expecting, and he has proven to have maybe been underrated as an athlete. And the heart he has shown, well...he makes me proud to be a Dawg. There is no quit in this guy.
- Kris Durham has been a revelation in the time he's gotten to play due to the absence of A.J., and Tavarres King has stepped up, as well. But we haven't gotten any real production out of any of our other WR, and the tight ends, inexplicably, have been a non-factor. Yeah, not having A.J. has hurt, but I think it was Blutarsky who pointed out that there are many teams in the past who have managed to get the ball to All-American level tight ends without the benefit of an All-American wide receiver.
Plus, if A.J. being gone screws up our offensive philosophy and game plan that much, what does that say about our chances next year when A.J. is in the NFL?
The passing game is one of the areas that you look at and just wonder why we haven't seen more production...nobody is playing poorly, and even the o-line has been fairly effective in pass protection (don't worry...we're coming back to that group in a second), and yet we're really not putting points on the board.
Part of that issue, of course, is that we seem to shoot ourselves in the foot so often when we have the chance to put the ball in the end zone. We have had at least 4-5 situations this year where we have either touchdowns called back or had the ball in obvious scoring situations only to blunder it away, either by turning the ball over (Washaun's two back breaking fumbles) or just putting it in reverse (the sequence last week when we went from 1st down at their 29 to 4th and 22 and a punt come to mind).
Moving on...told you this was stream-of-consciousness.
- The lack of running game has been by FAR the biggest disappointment to me. Our O-line is getting manhandled at the point of attack on a consistent basis....how is that possible? Our most respected and experienced coach coaching our most experienced and accomplished position grouping...and they have been horrendous. I have NO idea what is going on here. Maybe all of the people screaming about our strength and conditioning program are on to something? That doesn't seem right, either, though, because this exact same group was pretty dominant in the last half of 2009. If it was a S&C problem, wouldn't that actually get WORSE over the course of a season? I don't know...I'm stumped.
All of the running backs have been disappointments for various reasons...Ealy can't hold on to the ball and really hasn't shown any kind of big-play potential, King can't stay healthy (again), and poor Carlton Thomas keeps being asked to try and run the ball up the middle. Apparently Bobo hates him and wants to see him maimed. I may be mis-remembering, but have we even tried to throw a screen pass to Thomas, or a swing pass, or even a toss sweep to get him to the corner? It seems like every time we are running one of those plays it is to Ealy, when I think Thomas's skill set is more conducive to that than what we are asking him to do, which is take on defenders that outweigh him by anywhere from 50 to 150 pounds.
I'm sure this stupefying lack of success in the run game probably has something to do with why the passing game isn't working, either.
And although we have cut down on penalties and turnovers, it seems like every time we DO make a mistake, it is at the most crucial and costly times. It's not "We had 2nd and 2 at the 40, now it's 2nd and 7 at the 45". Instead, it's "We had a touchdown, and now we don't", or "We picked up big yardage on 3rd and 4 to convert, but instead now it's 3rd and 14".
One more thing on the offense...Bobo is SO predictable in 2nd and long situations. EVERY time it's 2nd and long, we run the ball up the middle. Now teams are expecting it, and it inevitably puts in 3rd and medium to long situations, and that's not where you want to be (duh).
- As for the defense, well...it's been about what I expected. We don't quite have the personnel we want, especially at CB and nose tackle. Not that Boykin, Cuff, Tyson, etc. aren't quality football players...they just aren't the body type you look for when you run this kind of scheme.
I've seen a lot of people complaining about lack of effort, or guys "not wanting to be there", but I don't think that's the case...I think it's that they are still thinking rather than reacting, which slows everybody down.
Bottom line, the defense has played well enough to win all three of these games, in my opinion....they are being hampered by the offense's absolute lack of consistent success.
- Special teams have been fine, but not the overwhelming advantage many of us thought they would be. There have been several times when we really needed a game-changing play in the return game, like we got several times last year, but those plays just haven't come yet.
Drew Butler has been solid, but he hasn't seemed himself at times for some reason. Blair Walsh continues to be money when given the opportunity, we just haven't given him many.
The kickoff coverage seems to be much improved...guess that's what happens when the guys on the coverage team don't look so much like me.
- I love Coach Richt. I want so badly for him to get this ship righted and pointed in the right direction, because I don't think you can find a better person and role model to run your program. I am sincerely dreading the day when he is no longer our head coach.
But...I'm running out of ammunition to support him when it comes to on-field results, and let's face it: those results are ultimately what he is being paid for and what drives everything else.
Here's how "hot" I think his seat is:
If we lose three more games or more, I actually think he may be in trouble this year.
If we lose two more games, and those games are Florida and Georgia Tech, I think he keeps his job but is on VERY thin ice.
If we lose two more games, but beat Florida or Tech (and lose the other one), I think this is categorized as a rebuilding year and we go into next year hearing more hot seat talk, but he is still relatively safe.
Beat Florida and Georgia Tech, and I think he's safe even if we lose one or two others.
I do think the Vandy and Kentucky games may be must-wins, as well...we've lost to perennial bottom feeders WAY too often the last few years, and the Miss. St. game is another example.
OK, enough rambling....
Bottom line...we are in a precarious situation, no doubt about it, and one that Coach Richt has never faced, as a player or a coach. Now is the time for the Dawg Nation to rally TOGETHER and support this team harder than we ever have, not turn on the team and each other and devour ourselves. We still have a chance to salvage pride out of this season, if nothing else.
It starts Saturday in Boulder. Go win the game, and on top of that, go make a statement.
GO DAWGS.
The problem is that I just don't know what to say.
After the South Carolina loss, I was frustrated, because I thought it was a winnable game that we let slip away, but I also knew that South Carolina was a pretty good team, it was the first road game, blah, blah, blah.
After the Arkansas loss, I was angry, because I thought that for the most part our players played well enough to win, only to be hampered in their efforts by poor game planning, especially on the offensive side of the ball (and this is coming from somebody who has been a Bobo apologist most of the time).
After last week, well...I'm just confused. I don't really understand how we got to this point. Taking a step back and really looking at the way we've played, I don't think this is a BAD team, per se...and I don't think I'm the only one. These posts at Dawgsports.com by Macon Dawg and T Kyle King say a lot of what I'm thinking about the quality of this team. It's not that we are terrible at anything, we just don't seem to be really good at anything. There just seems to be something "off", and I don't really know what it is.
I don't know...this post is threatening to go off the rails, since I'm really at a loss as to what to say about this team at this point (obviously), so let's see if we can work it out stream-of-consciousness style, mmm-kay?
- Aaron Murray has definitely been the brightest spot of the season so far. There's not a throw he can't make, as far as I can tell, he really hasn't made the kind of freshman mistakes we were expecting, and he has proven to have maybe been underrated as an athlete. And the heart he has shown, well...he makes me proud to be a Dawg. There is no quit in this guy.
- Kris Durham has been a revelation in the time he's gotten to play due to the absence of A.J., and Tavarres King has stepped up, as well. But we haven't gotten any real production out of any of our other WR, and the tight ends, inexplicably, have been a non-factor. Yeah, not having A.J. has hurt, but I think it was Blutarsky who pointed out that there are many teams in the past who have managed to get the ball to All-American level tight ends without the benefit of an All-American wide receiver.
Plus, if A.J. being gone screws up our offensive philosophy and game plan that much, what does that say about our chances next year when A.J. is in the NFL?
The passing game is one of the areas that you look at and just wonder why we haven't seen more production...nobody is playing poorly, and even the o-line has been fairly effective in pass protection (don't worry...we're coming back to that group in a second), and yet we're really not putting points on the board.
Part of that issue, of course, is that we seem to shoot ourselves in the foot so often when we have the chance to put the ball in the end zone. We have had at least 4-5 situations this year where we have either touchdowns called back or had the ball in obvious scoring situations only to blunder it away, either by turning the ball over (Washaun's two back breaking fumbles) or just putting it in reverse (the sequence last week when we went from 1st down at their 29 to 4th and 22 and a punt come to mind).
Moving on...told you this was stream-of-consciousness.
- The lack of running game has been by FAR the biggest disappointment to me. Our O-line is getting manhandled at the point of attack on a consistent basis....how is that possible? Our most respected and experienced coach coaching our most experienced and accomplished position grouping...and they have been horrendous. I have NO idea what is going on here. Maybe all of the people screaming about our strength and conditioning program are on to something? That doesn't seem right, either, though, because this exact same group was pretty dominant in the last half of 2009. If it was a S&C problem, wouldn't that actually get WORSE over the course of a season? I don't know...I'm stumped.
All of the running backs have been disappointments for various reasons...Ealy can't hold on to the ball and really hasn't shown any kind of big-play potential, King can't stay healthy (again), and poor Carlton Thomas keeps being asked to try and run the ball up the middle. Apparently Bobo hates him and wants to see him maimed. I may be mis-remembering, but have we even tried to throw a screen pass to Thomas, or a swing pass, or even a toss sweep to get him to the corner? It seems like every time we are running one of those plays it is to Ealy, when I think Thomas's skill set is more conducive to that than what we are asking him to do, which is take on defenders that outweigh him by anywhere from 50 to 150 pounds.
I'm sure this stupefying lack of success in the run game probably has something to do with why the passing game isn't working, either.
And although we have cut down on penalties and turnovers, it seems like every time we DO make a mistake, it is at the most crucial and costly times. It's not "We had 2nd and 2 at the 40, now it's 2nd and 7 at the 45". Instead, it's "We had a touchdown, and now we don't", or "We picked up big yardage on 3rd and 4 to convert, but instead now it's 3rd and 14".
One more thing on the offense...Bobo is SO predictable in 2nd and long situations. EVERY time it's 2nd and long, we run the ball up the middle. Now teams are expecting it, and it inevitably puts in 3rd and medium to long situations, and that's not where you want to be (duh).
- As for the defense, well...it's been about what I expected. We don't quite have the personnel we want, especially at CB and nose tackle. Not that Boykin, Cuff, Tyson, etc. aren't quality football players...they just aren't the body type you look for when you run this kind of scheme.
I've seen a lot of people complaining about lack of effort, or guys "not wanting to be there", but I don't think that's the case...I think it's that they are still thinking rather than reacting, which slows everybody down.
Bottom line, the defense has played well enough to win all three of these games, in my opinion....they are being hampered by the offense's absolute lack of consistent success.
- Special teams have been fine, but not the overwhelming advantage many of us thought they would be. There have been several times when we really needed a game-changing play in the return game, like we got several times last year, but those plays just haven't come yet.
Drew Butler has been solid, but he hasn't seemed himself at times for some reason. Blair Walsh continues to be money when given the opportunity, we just haven't given him many.
The kickoff coverage seems to be much improved...guess that's what happens when the guys on the coverage team don't look so much like me.
- I love Coach Richt. I want so badly for him to get this ship righted and pointed in the right direction, because I don't think you can find a better person and role model to run your program. I am sincerely dreading the day when he is no longer our head coach.
But...I'm running out of ammunition to support him when it comes to on-field results, and let's face it: those results are ultimately what he is being paid for and what drives everything else.
Here's how "hot" I think his seat is:
If we lose three more games or more, I actually think he may be in trouble this year.
If we lose two more games, and those games are Florida and Georgia Tech, I think he keeps his job but is on VERY thin ice.
If we lose two more games, but beat Florida or Tech (and lose the other one), I think this is categorized as a rebuilding year and we go into next year hearing more hot seat talk, but he is still relatively safe.
Beat Florida and Georgia Tech, and I think he's safe even if we lose one or two others.
I do think the Vandy and Kentucky games may be must-wins, as well...we've lost to perennial bottom feeders WAY too often the last few years, and the Miss. St. game is another example.
OK, enough rambling....
Bottom line...we are in a precarious situation, no doubt about it, and one that Coach Richt has never faced, as a player or a coach. Now is the time for the Dawg Nation to rally TOGETHER and support this team harder than we ever have, not turn on the team and each other and devour ourselves. We still have a chance to salvage pride out of this season, if nothing else.
It starts Saturday in Boulder. Go win the game, and on top of that, go make a statement.
GO DAWGS.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Recap - Louisiana Lafayette
That was everything we wanted to see out of an opener, other than A.J. Green. So, seeing as how I'm already a day or so late with this (combination of the holiday, a summer cold, and a couple of Comcast meltdowns), let's make it short and sweet, huh?
OFFENSE:
- Aaron Murray had about as well a day as could be expected. I think he put to rest a lot of the questions surrounding his arm strength, especially on the early incompletion to Logan in the end zone...that one went about 45-50 yards in the air, and he threw it on the run off his back foot, and it really should have been a touchdown.
He also showed off his running ability, which I think a lot of people were discounting. Watching his high school highlights, you could tell that he is extremely athletic, able to avoid the rush and "run to pass" as well as pick up yards on the ground, and he showed that ability Saturday. Now if he could just learn to slide rather than dive headfirst...
Couple of freshman mistakes, of course...that horrible throw into the endzone where he was trying to throw it away, and the much talked about decision to risk getting no points at all at the end of the first half by running the ball in with no time left. Both very correctable, and I'm not going to give him too much grief about the second one anyway...if it's a senior doing that, then we would probably just say he was a playmaker making a play, but since he's a freshman we chalk it up to bad decision making.
Great to see Hutson Mason get in and throw a touchdown pass to Logan (a truly great moment, and I was especially happy for Logan there)...but from then on out, Hutson showed why we REALLY need Aaron to stay healthy this season. I still say that (God forbid) Aaron goes out for any multiple-game type injuries I would rather see Logan get the call at QB, but that is appearing less and less likely. Let's hope it's not a decision that has to be made.
- I thought the wide receivers did a pretty nice job stepping up in the absence of A.J. and Tavarres King, especially Kris Durham. Man, it was great to see him back out on the field after a 707 day absence, and he made the most of it.
And we finally have signs of life from Marlon Brown...he had one egregious drop, but otherwise played well, and probably would have his first touchdown as a Dawg had he not slipped after catching a little curl on the five yard line.
Bottom line is that when A.J. and TK come back, this should be a very deep and dangerous group of receivers, especially when you factor in the tight ends.
Speaking of which...
- I think Orson Charles had a better day than the box score gives him credit for. Aaron missed him at least twice that I can remember when he was WIDE open, and I also think that if Aaron had waited about another second or so on that scramble at the end of the half, Orson was about to break open on the corner route into the end zone.
In general, we didn't use the tight ends as much as I thought we would, but I think that may have to do with how little of the playbook we chose to show against such an overmatched opponent.
- I was a little concerned that we weren't able to just line up and run whenever we wanted to. It's true that the O-line didn't get to practice together much during fall camp due to some injuries, but it's not like they've never played together before.
I'm going to chalk it up to those injuries, missing Washaun (although I though Carlton Thomas acquitted himself nicely, and most importantly did not fumble), and maybe an intentional lack of imagination with regards to playcalling....and hope and pray it gets better starting this week.
I know this...ULL was stacking 8-9 guys in the box consistently. That will be a much dicier situation for opposing defenses to put themselves into once we get Green and TK back.
Overall, I would give the offense a solid B+, and that is without three of our primary weapons. This offense has a chance to be REALLY good.
DEFENSE:
- Wow. That was TONS better than even I expected, and I am known to be overly optimistic most of the time.
NINE tackles for loss, three sacks, numerous QB pressures (all three of the INTs were due to the QB under duress), NO PENALTIES....really, everything we could have hoped for.
There was the one blown coverage, but we've been saying for months now that those are going to happen occasionally, especially early on. The hope is that the new scheme and attitude balance those blown plays out by MAKING some big plays of our own. One game in, the prognosis for that looks pretty good.
Yes, I know...it was Louisiana Lafayette. Things are going to get MUCH tougher starting this week. But I get the feeling that our players are having a blast running this defense, and I think that enthusiasm and intelligently aggressive attitude is going to be a refreshing change over what we've seen the last couple of years.
- Did you see my man T.J. Stripling out there in the second half? Not sure how much help he's going to be in run support until he puts on about 25 more pounds, but line him up outside and say, "See that QB? GO GET HIM!", and he is going to wreak havoc.
- Loved Coach Grantham holding the players accountable after the touchdown play. Not sure how many of you heard the postgame show, and I don't remember the exact quote, but when he was asked about the tirade he basically said that when you are dominating a team the way we were dominating, he doesn't want to give them ANYTHING...just step on their necks and finish them. He felt like we let up, and that was why he was angry.
Love it.
- It was also nice to see that we were able to maintain the intensity and the execution even though we played a ton of people, especially on the defensive line.
- Great interception by Sanders Commings...maybe a sign of the new "play the ball, not the man" mentality we have heard about in practice? In years past, I don't know if that interception happens, or if instead we either get an interference call or the pass is completed because our defensive back never turns around and finds the ball.
Overall, I would give the defense an A...the only thing that kept it from an A+ is the one blown coverage.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
- We have the best special teams unit in the nation...I defy you to come up with a better one. Blair Walsh kicked 100 yds worth of FG (on only two kicks) and continues to be perfect on PATs, Drew Butler is a true weapon at punter, Smith and Boykin both showed out, and there were some MASSIVE blocks thrown on punt return.
- What little punt coverage was needed was just fine...when you have a weapon at punter like Drew Butler, they don't often have to do much, and that was the case on Saturday.
- I do admit to one of my earliest hat-throwing incidents ever...when the Cajuns returned the first kickoff to midfield. But after that, the kickoff coverage was much better, and I expect the kicks to be deeper once Walsh is back in on every kick (he had some leg fatigue in the week leading up to the game, so Bogotay was in on about half the kickoffs).
Overall, a typical A performance out of the special teams.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Again, everything you could want out of an opener. Beautiful weather, great crowd (and LOUD, especially for a noon game against a lesser opponent), a very dominating win, and most importantly...NO INJURIES.
This week, we get Ealy, TK, A.J. (yep, I'm going to stick with it another week), Ogletree, and Sturdivant all back...time to go up to Columbia for a STATEMENT game!
GO DAWGS!!!
OFFENSE:
- Aaron Murray had about as well a day as could be expected. I think he put to rest a lot of the questions surrounding his arm strength, especially on the early incompletion to Logan in the end zone...that one went about 45-50 yards in the air, and he threw it on the run off his back foot, and it really should have been a touchdown.
He also showed off his running ability, which I think a lot of people were discounting. Watching his high school highlights, you could tell that he is extremely athletic, able to avoid the rush and "run to pass" as well as pick up yards on the ground, and he showed that ability Saturday. Now if he could just learn to slide rather than dive headfirst...
Couple of freshman mistakes, of course...that horrible throw into the endzone where he was trying to throw it away, and the much talked about decision to risk getting no points at all at the end of the first half by running the ball in with no time left. Both very correctable, and I'm not going to give him too much grief about the second one anyway...if it's a senior doing that, then we would probably just say he was a playmaker making a play, but since he's a freshman we chalk it up to bad decision making.
Great to see Hutson Mason get in and throw a touchdown pass to Logan (a truly great moment, and I was especially happy for Logan there)...but from then on out, Hutson showed why we REALLY need Aaron to stay healthy this season. I still say that (God forbid) Aaron goes out for any multiple-game type injuries I would rather see Logan get the call at QB, but that is appearing less and less likely. Let's hope it's not a decision that has to be made.
- I thought the wide receivers did a pretty nice job stepping up in the absence of A.J. and Tavarres King, especially Kris Durham. Man, it was great to see him back out on the field after a 707 day absence, and he made the most of it.
And we finally have signs of life from Marlon Brown...he had one egregious drop, but otherwise played well, and probably would have his first touchdown as a Dawg had he not slipped after catching a little curl on the five yard line.
Bottom line is that when A.J. and TK come back, this should be a very deep and dangerous group of receivers, especially when you factor in the tight ends.
Speaking of which...
- I think Orson Charles had a better day than the box score gives him credit for. Aaron missed him at least twice that I can remember when he was WIDE open, and I also think that if Aaron had waited about another second or so on that scramble at the end of the half, Orson was about to break open on the corner route into the end zone.
In general, we didn't use the tight ends as much as I thought we would, but I think that may have to do with how little of the playbook we chose to show against such an overmatched opponent.
- I was a little concerned that we weren't able to just line up and run whenever we wanted to. It's true that the O-line didn't get to practice together much during fall camp due to some injuries, but it's not like they've never played together before.
I'm going to chalk it up to those injuries, missing Washaun (although I though Carlton Thomas acquitted himself nicely, and most importantly did not fumble), and maybe an intentional lack of imagination with regards to playcalling....and hope and pray it gets better starting this week.
I know this...ULL was stacking 8-9 guys in the box consistently. That will be a much dicier situation for opposing defenses to put themselves into once we get Green and TK back.
Overall, I would give the offense a solid B+, and that is without three of our primary weapons. This offense has a chance to be REALLY good.
DEFENSE:
- Wow. That was TONS better than even I expected, and I am known to be overly optimistic most of the time.
NINE tackles for loss, three sacks, numerous QB pressures (all three of the INTs were due to the QB under duress), NO PENALTIES....really, everything we could have hoped for.
There was the one blown coverage, but we've been saying for months now that those are going to happen occasionally, especially early on. The hope is that the new scheme and attitude balance those blown plays out by MAKING some big plays of our own. One game in, the prognosis for that looks pretty good.
Yes, I know...it was Louisiana Lafayette. Things are going to get MUCH tougher starting this week. But I get the feeling that our players are having a blast running this defense, and I think that enthusiasm and intelligently aggressive attitude is going to be a refreshing change over what we've seen the last couple of years.
- Did you see my man T.J. Stripling out there in the second half? Not sure how much help he's going to be in run support until he puts on about 25 more pounds, but line him up outside and say, "See that QB? GO GET HIM!", and he is going to wreak havoc.
- Loved Coach Grantham holding the players accountable after the touchdown play. Not sure how many of you heard the postgame show, and I don't remember the exact quote, but when he was asked about the tirade he basically said that when you are dominating a team the way we were dominating, he doesn't want to give them ANYTHING...just step on their necks and finish them. He felt like we let up, and that was why he was angry.
Love it.
- It was also nice to see that we were able to maintain the intensity and the execution even though we played a ton of people, especially on the defensive line.
- Great interception by Sanders Commings...maybe a sign of the new "play the ball, not the man" mentality we have heard about in practice? In years past, I don't know if that interception happens, or if instead we either get an interference call or the pass is completed because our defensive back never turns around and finds the ball.
Overall, I would give the defense an A...the only thing that kept it from an A+ is the one blown coverage.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
- We have the best special teams unit in the nation...I defy you to come up with a better one. Blair Walsh kicked 100 yds worth of FG (on only two kicks) and continues to be perfect on PATs, Drew Butler is a true weapon at punter, Smith and Boykin both showed out, and there were some MASSIVE blocks thrown on punt return.
- What little punt coverage was needed was just fine...when you have a weapon at punter like Drew Butler, they don't often have to do much, and that was the case on Saturday.
- I do admit to one of my earliest hat-throwing incidents ever...when the Cajuns returned the first kickoff to midfield. But after that, the kickoff coverage was much better, and I expect the kicks to be deeper once Walsh is back in on every kick (he had some leg fatigue in the week leading up to the game, so Bogotay was in on about half the kickoffs).
Overall, a typical A performance out of the special teams.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Again, everything you could want out of an opener. Beautiful weather, great crowd (and LOUD, especially for a noon game against a lesser opponent), a very dominating win, and most importantly...NO INJURIES.
This week, we get Ealy, TK, A.J. (yep, I'm going to stick with it another week), Ogletree, and Sturdivant all back...time to go up to Columbia for a STATEMENT game!
GO DAWGS!!!
Friday, September 3, 2010
A (sort of) preview for the opener, and some other random thoughts
I gotta be honest, I know next to nothing about Louisiana-Lafayette...I can't even keep up with whether or not we're supposed to drop the Lafayette from their name or not.
Here are the two things that stood out for me in my very limited "research" (research=reading Jody's writeup at View from 336):
- Holy crap, they have an offensive lineman who is 6'7, 350 lb? He has to be a fat tub of goo, right? You would think that if he had ANY athletic ability at all, he would be in Baton Rouge instead of Lafayette? I mean, even if he's too dumb to get into LSU (a stretch, I know), then at least Mississippi State would be on the table. I'm going with my first instinct...he has to be a fat tub of goo.
- I think this is a perfect opponent for us to play the first week:
1) Their offense is not all that impressive, but one thing they DO have is a play-making tight end who they like to get the ball to over the middle. This is an area that the Dawgs defense has struggled MIGHTILY in for the last few seasons, so this may be a good indication of some of the strides we are making under Coach Grantham.
2) On defense, they are very small up front, so we should be able to run at will (Jody points out that the DL lining up from Cordy Glenn is 5'11, 287 lb. Cordy may eat him by accident on the first play and poop him out sometime in the 3rd quarter). At the same time, they have a very opportunistic secondary that picked off 16 passes last year, so we may get a good idea of how well Murray is doing at this point of valuing the football.
I never know how these games are going to go, other than that we will win handily, but not as handily as a lot of our fan base would like. I'm going with a 34-13 prediction, but I would not be at all surprised to see us beat them worse than that.
Couple of other random thoughts...
- Those of you who follow me on Twitter have seen several variations of this rant from me over the last few days, but it's driving me crazy that the media keeps making it seem that A.J. Green's status for the opener (or any other game) is somehow in question. They keep bringing up the point that we haven't heard anything from the NCAA, and that Coach Richt and A.J. are not allowed to comment. Well, what exactly are you expecting to "hear" from the NCAA? They have not ONCE mentioned A.J. to the press...the only reason we know that the inquiry was centered around him was that the UGA SID office and A.J. himself told us so. So, if they are not the ones who put his name out there in the first place, why is it up to them to "clear" him?
Every reputable source I have read says that the inquiry was specifically related to the infamous agent party in Miami, and whether or not A.J. knew anything about it, not even whether or not he went (since that hasn't been in question a single time since the story broke). Richt, A.J., and everybody else has been instructed not to say anything to the media because there is an ongoing investigation into that incident that is still happening. Why is that so hard for certain media members to understand?
I honestly don't expect to EVER hear anything from the NCAA that says A.J. is "clear". The fact that he is going to suit up and play every week will be the only evidence we get, and it's the only evidence we need.
- The other "story" that is going around this week that is driving me crazy is this notion that Coach Richt and Coach Bobo are still undecided as to how they are going to handle Hutson Mason, specifically whether or not he is going to play this weekend.
Let me make it simple: Yes. Hutson will play on Saturday.
Bobo and Coach Richt both explicitly said that Hutson is our #2 QB, and in any situation where the #2 QB will play, it will be Hutson. How much more definitive do they need to be? The only thing they didn't say was that we are going to put Hutson in WHEN we are up by four touchdowns on Saturday...but they're not going to say that, because those type words really come back to bite you if someone manages to pull an Appalachian State on you.
Again...Mason is going to play on Saturday. Does it give me heartburn to know that this true freshman is one twisted knee away from being our starting quarterback? Yep...but that doesn't mean it's not true.
- Yeah, I watched South Carolina last night. No, I ain't scared. We're not Southern Miss. It was the home opener, night game, against a mediocre C-USA team. The 'Cocks did exactly what I would expect them to do.
I also saw an SC offensive line that had a real problem keeping pressure off of their quarterback, and a secondary that actually appeared overmatched at times.
Let them go into next week all "cocky"...I'd rather that than the opposite.
~~~~~UPDATE~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yes, I saw the Alec Ogletree news, and I'm going to continue my tradition of not commenting too much on these matters (especially since we know so few details right now), other than to say this...people who say that UGA is becoming "Thug U" are either disingenuous or have a much different definition of the word "thug" than I do.
All right, I'm out...going to spend the rest of the day jamming to my Redcoat Band CD and counting the minutes until I am sitting in the best place on earth...Sanford Stadium for another Saturday Between the Hedges!
GO DAWGS!!!
Here are the two things that stood out for me in my very limited "research" (research=reading Jody's writeup at View from 336):
- Holy crap, they have an offensive lineman who is 6'7, 350 lb? He has to be a fat tub of goo, right? You would think that if he had ANY athletic ability at all, he would be in Baton Rouge instead of Lafayette? I mean, even if he's too dumb to get into LSU (a stretch, I know), then at least Mississippi State would be on the table. I'm going with my first instinct...he has to be a fat tub of goo.
- I think this is a perfect opponent for us to play the first week:
1) Their offense is not all that impressive, but one thing they DO have is a play-making tight end who they like to get the ball to over the middle. This is an area that the Dawgs defense has struggled MIGHTILY in for the last few seasons, so this may be a good indication of some of the strides we are making under Coach Grantham.
2) On defense, they are very small up front, so we should be able to run at will (Jody points out that the DL lining up from Cordy Glenn is 5'11, 287 lb. Cordy may eat him by accident on the first play and poop him out sometime in the 3rd quarter). At the same time, they have a very opportunistic secondary that picked off 16 passes last year, so we may get a good idea of how well Murray is doing at this point of valuing the football.
I never know how these games are going to go, other than that we will win handily, but not as handily as a lot of our fan base would like. I'm going with a 34-13 prediction, but I would not be at all surprised to see us beat them worse than that.
Couple of other random thoughts...
- Those of you who follow me on Twitter have seen several variations of this rant from me over the last few days, but it's driving me crazy that the media keeps making it seem that A.J. Green's status for the opener (or any other game) is somehow in question. They keep bringing up the point that we haven't heard anything from the NCAA, and that Coach Richt and A.J. are not allowed to comment. Well, what exactly are you expecting to "hear" from the NCAA? They have not ONCE mentioned A.J. to the press...the only reason we know that the inquiry was centered around him was that the UGA SID office and A.J. himself told us so. So, if they are not the ones who put his name out there in the first place, why is it up to them to "clear" him?
Every reputable source I have read says that the inquiry was specifically related to the infamous agent party in Miami, and whether or not A.J. knew anything about it, not even whether or not he went (since that hasn't been in question a single time since the story broke). Richt, A.J., and everybody else has been instructed not to say anything to the media because there is an ongoing investigation into that incident that is still happening. Why is that so hard for certain media members to understand?
I honestly don't expect to EVER hear anything from the NCAA that says A.J. is "clear". The fact that he is going to suit up and play every week will be the only evidence we get, and it's the only evidence we need.
- The other "story" that is going around this week that is driving me crazy is this notion that Coach Richt and Coach Bobo are still undecided as to how they are going to handle Hutson Mason, specifically whether or not he is going to play this weekend.
Let me make it simple: Yes. Hutson will play on Saturday.
Bobo and Coach Richt both explicitly said that Hutson is our #2 QB, and in any situation where the #2 QB will play, it will be Hutson. How much more definitive do they need to be? The only thing they didn't say was that we are going to put Hutson in WHEN we are up by four touchdowns on Saturday...but they're not going to say that, because those type words really come back to bite you if someone manages to pull an Appalachian State on you.
Again...Mason is going to play on Saturday. Does it give me heartburn to know that this true freshman is one twisted knee away from being our starting quarterback? Yep...but that doesn't mean it's not true.
- Yeah, I watched South Carolina last night. No, I ain't scared. We're not Southern Miss. It was the home opener, night game, against a mediocre C-USA team. The 'Cocks did exactly what I would expect them to do.
I also saw an SC offensive line that had a real problem keeping pressure off of their quarterback, and a secondary that actually appeared overmatched at times.
Let them go into next week all "cocky"...I'd rather that than the opposite.
~~~~~UPDATE~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yes, I saw the Alec Ogletree news, and I'm going to continue my tradition of not commenting too much on these matters (especially since we know so few details right now), other than to say this...people who say that UGA is becoming "Thug U" are either disingenuous or have a much different definition of the word "thug" than I do.
All right, I'm out...going to spend the rest of the day jamming to my Redcoat Band CD and counting the minutes until I am sitting in the best place on earth...Sanford Stadium for another Saturday Between the Hedges!
GO DAWGS!!!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
I'm ready
I have two people that I talk to on the phone almost every day (my brother and Brent). Even in the dead periods like March or early June, those conversations inevitably turn to UGA football at some point.
Lately, my part of the conversation consists primarily of two words: I'm ready.
I'm ready to put the window flags up.
I'm ready to wear the same shirt to work every Friday for the next three months.
I'm ready to get little to no work done on Fridays and Mondays, as office conversation invariably centers on what's gonna happen this weekend, or what just happened over the weekend.
I'm ready for the tailgate.
I'm ready to be at the Dawgwalk a week from Saturday, letting these young men know how much we love, appreciate, and support them.
I'm ready to take my daughter to see Russ during the pregame festivities.
I'm ready to hear the Redcoats live, not just on the CD that I've started listening to every day.
I'm ready to hear the opening solo of "Glory, Glory" from the South end zone, with my Georgia hat upraised and tears in my eyes...every single time.
I'm ready to see if Coach Grantham can coach football as well as he can talk it.
I'm ready to appreciate the last season Between the Hedges of the best wide receiver in the country, and the best one the Dawgs have ever had.
I'm ready for Justin Houston to become a household name.
I'm ready to watch the quarterback that all of Dawg Nation was beside ourselves with excitement over when he committed to the Dawgs over his hometown gators.
I'm ready to stop reading message board posts about how Aaron Murray is apparently a dwarf who can't throw the ball more than five yards downfield.
I'm ready to hear Scott Howard, and I'm ready to imagine I can still hear Munson telling me to "Get the picture".
I'm ready, believe it or not, to get irrationally angry at ESPN and their idiot "analysts".
I'm ready, believe it or not, to have weekly heated discussions over whether SEC refs are crooked or too stupid to be crooked.
I'm ready to tell Paul Finebaum where he can stick his hot seat.
I'm ready to watch an offense with more weapons than I can ever remember the Dawgs having at one time.
I'm ready to watch Marlon Brown blossom into the player we all know he can be.
I'm ready for Brown to join AJ, King, Durham, Wootentheballcarrier, Charles, and White to form the best group of receivers and tight ends in the SEC.
I'm ready for Caleb King and Washaun Ealy to RUN THE SEC the way we RUN THIS STATE.
I'm ready to watch a big and nasty offensive line be big and nasty.
I'm ready to watch the Dawgs go to Columbia and put the "sleeper team in the SEC East" to sleep.
I'm ready to send Bobby Petrino scurrying out of the state of Georgia with his little rat tail stuck between his legs...again.
I'm ready for the Dawgs to avenge their embarassing loss to the Evil Hillbillies from Knoxville, and I'm ready for the staff to show no mercy while doing so.
I'm ready to hear the Chapel Bell ringing.
I'm ready to watch the deepest and most athletic group of safeties ever compiled on one team unleash their collective fury. Rambo. Williams. Ogletree. Hamilton. I'm ready to hear those names a LOT.
I'm ready to celebrate a win in Jacksonville (Please, Lord, make it so).
I'm ready to get one for the thumb against the War Tiger Eagle Plainsmen.
I'm ready to show the gnats from North Avenue that they are still the little sister, and always will be.
I'm ready for an epic showdown in the Dome between the Dawgs and the Sabanites.
I. AM. READY.
GO DAWGS!!
Lately, my part of the conversation consists primarily of two words: I'm ready.
I'm ready to put the window flags up.
I'm ready to wear the same shirt to work every Friday for the next three months.
I'm ready to get little to no work done on Fridays and Mondays, as office conversation invariably centers on what's gonna happen this weekend, or what just happened over the weekend.
I'm ready for the tailgate.
I'm ready to be at the Dawgwalk a week from Saturday, letting these young men know how much we love, appreciate, and support them.
I'm ready to take my daughter to see Russ during the pregame festivities.
I'm ready to hear the Redcoats live, not just on the CD that I've started listening to every day.
I'm ready to hear the opening solo of "Glory, Glory" from the South end zone, with my Georgia hat upraised and tears in my eyes...every single time.
I'm ready to see if Coach Grantham can coach football as well as he can talk it.
I'm ready to appreciate the last season Between the Hedges of the best wide receiver in the country, and the best one the Dawgs have ever had.
I'm ready for Justin Houston to become a household name.
I'm ready to watch the quarterback that all of Dawg Nation was beside ourselves with excitement over when he committed to the Dawgs over his hometown gators.
I'm ready to stop reading message board posts about how Aaron Murray is apparently a dwarf who can't throw the ball more than five yards downfield.
I'm ready to hear Scott Howard, and I'm ready to imagine I can still hear Munson telling me to "Get the picture".
I'm ready, believe it or not, to get irrationally angry at ESPN and their idiot "analysts".
I'm ready, believe it or not, to have weekly heated discussions over whether SEC refs are crooked or too stupid to be crooked.
I'm ready to tell Paul Finebaum where he can stick his hot seat.
I'm ready to watch an offense with more weapons than I can ever remember the Dawgs having at one time.
I'm ready to watch Marlon Brown blossom into the player we all know he can be.
I'm ready for Brown to join AJ, King, Durham, Wootentheballcarrier, Charles, and White to form the best group of receivers and tight ends in the SEC.
I'm ready for Caleb King and Washaun Ealy to RUN THE SEC the way we RUN THIS STATE.
I'm ready to watch a big and nasty offensive line be big and nasty.
I'm ready to watch the Dawgs go to Columbia and put the "sleeper team in the SEC East" to sleep.
I'm ready to send Bobby Petrino scurrying out of the state of Georgia with his little rat tail stuck between his legs...again.
I'm ready for the Dawgs to avenge their embarassing loss to the Evil Hillbillies from Knoxville, and I'm ready for the staff to show no mercy while doing so.
I'm ready to go through a season without having to use fancy uniform tricks to fire the team up for a rivalry game (fingers crossed for this one).
I'm ready to hear the Chapel Bell ringing.
I'm ready to watch the deepest and most athletic group of safeties ever compiled on one team unleash their collective fury. Rambo. Williams. Ogletree. Hamilton. I'm ready to hear those names a LOT.
I'm ready to celebrate a win in Jacksonville (Please, Lord, make it so).
I'm ready to get one for the thumb against the War Tiger Eagle Plainsmen.
I'm ready to show the gnats from North Avenue that they are still the little sister, and always will be.
I'm ready for an epic showdown in the Dome between the Dawgs and the Sabanites.
I. AM. READY.
GO DAWGS!!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Preseason coaches polls are stupid...and other random musings
- The first USA Today Coaches Poll was published last Friday...four weeks before any actual games have been played.
Long time readers of this blog (all four of you) know that I have made my feelings about preseason polls clear in the past. I understand Lindy's, Athlon, Phil Steele, etc. publishing them...they drive conversation and (presumably) increase magazine sales. The difference with this one is that this poll actually makes up 1/3 of the BCS formula. That is absurd.
Look, the Coaches poll is stupid in its own right. Coaches know their own team, and maybe the ones on their schedule. There is no way they are familiarizing themselves with the rest of the teams in the country, at least not enough to be ranking them intelligently. And, yes, I know that head coaches aren't actually filling out the ballots (which raises a whole other argument)...but I don't think assistants are really paying that much more attention. They're just voting for whomever Herbstreit, Corso, and May tell them to (I don't think anybody is paying attention to who Dr. Lou wants them to vote for...if they were, Notre Dame and South Carolina would play for the MNC every year).
But...a PRESEASON poll? Seriously? And not only a pre-SEASON poll...in many cases, it's a pre-PRACTICE poll! As of the time this poll was published, the Dawgs had not had a full-contact practice yet, and we were one of the first teams to start practicing. How in the world is ANYBODY supposed to rank teams at that point, especially coaches who obviously have their own team as their focus? Who knows which freshmen are going to step up, or how teams are going to adjust to new coaches and schemes, or how badly outgoing players are going to be missed?
Again, if the poll was just for fun then I don't care...but this is ONE THIRD OF THE FORMULA THAT DECIDES THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. And, unfortunately, where you start can have a lot of bearing on where you finish. Take Boise State, for instance...they start this year ranked 5th. They start the season with Virginia Tech at a neutral site, and then for the rest of the year they play NOBODY. Because they are starting the season ranked so high, they only have to win their one real game, and they are virtually guaranteed of a spot in the championship game. For that matter, since they are ranked so high, they could conceivably LOSE that game (the only one on their schedule), run the table the rest of the way, and be sitting at 12-1 at the end of the year with the idiots at ESPN touting them as real contenders for the national championship.
I'm not a BCS-hater...I'm not a playoff proponent (the only way I want a playoff is if it's GUARANTEED to be no more than 4 teams). But something has to be done about this 33.3% of the formula.
Two suggestions:
1) Start the poll later. Wait 4-6 weeks before the first poll. By that time, we at least have SOME idea of what the landscape is. I would even support waiting later, but I know that would never happen.
2) Take the coaches poll out of the equation, for all of the reasons I stated before. I would support replacing it with the Legends Poll, which is voted on by a group of former coaches. Every week, they send DVDs to all of their members of all of the games played by teams who are likely to be ranked. After they watch the games (supposedly...hey, no system is perfect), the voters get together on a weekly call and rank the teams. They also publish how they voted every week, a bit of transparency that you only get in the final week of the USA Today poll.
Some other quick musings...
- I was originally going to talk about how it's been almost exclusively good news out of fall camp. Then...today happened. So never mind.
Smith and Samuel being out for any length of time is especially worrisome...as we are installing Coach Grantham's new defense, every possible contributor on defense needs to be getting as many reps as possible.
I hate fall practice.
- It was great to have LIVE football on my television last night, even if it was a crappy NFL preseason game. Congrats to Geno Atkins...former Dawg picked up 6 tackles and a sack. That's how you make an impact!
- If you are looking for a great Braves website, check out TalkingChop.com. Superb content, updated several times a day...and rather than the idiotic commenters you get on AJC blogs (First!!), you get stuff like this, from "Lennox" in celebration of J-Hey's 21st birthday:
Speaking of the Braves, they seem to have righted the ship in the last week or so. They are really reminding me of the early 90's Braves...ridiculously good pitching, and just enough timely hitting to get by. I still wish we would have gotten one more big bat at the trade deadline...I think we're one bat away from being a real World Series contender.
But, these days, all I really ask from the Braves is that they keep it interesting until fall practice starts, and they have certainly done that. Anything more than that is just gravy.
- If you were wondering why so many (myself included) started turning on Brett FaRve even before he started waffling like John Kerry every summer...look no further than this post.
- Summer TV continues to be TONS better than it was when I was growing up. Now that LOST is gone, Friday Night Lights and Mad Men are the best two shows on television, in my opinion (coming from someone who, for some reason, has never watched Breaking Bad).
Speaking of LOST...as a fan of both that show and Weezer, well...this pretty much made my day.
Long time readers of this blog (all four of you) know that I have made my feelings about preseason polls clear in the past. I understand Lindy's, Athlon, Phil Steele, etc. publishing them...they drive conversation and (presumably) increase magazine sales. The difference with this one is that this poll actually makes up 1/3 of the BCS formula. That is absurd.
Look, the Coaches poll is stupid in its own right. Coaches know their own team, and maybe the ones on their schedule. There is no way they are familiarizing themselves with the rest of the teams in the country, at least not enough to be ranking them intelligently. And, yes, I know that head coaches aren't actually filling out the ballots (which raises a whole other argument)...but I don't think assistants are really paying that much more attention. They're just voting for whomever Herbstreit, Corso, and May tell them to (I don't think anybody is paying attention to who Dr. Lou wants them to vote for...if they were, Notre Dame and South Carolina would play for the MNC every year).
But...a PRESEASON poll? Seriously? And not only a pre-SEASON poll...in many cases, it's a pre-PRACTICE poll! As of the time this poll was published, the Dawgs had not had a full-contact practice yet, and we were one of the first teams to start practicing. How in the world is ANYBODY supposed to rank teams at that point, especially coaches who obviously have their own team as their focus? Who knows which freshmen are going to step up, or how teams are going to adjust to new coaches and schemes, or how badly outgoing players are going to be missed?
Again, if the poll was just for fun then I don't care...but this is ONE THIRD OF THE FORMULA THAT DECIDES THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. And, unfortunately, where you start can have a lot of bearing on where you finish. Take Boise State, for instance...they start this year ranked 5th. They start the season with Virginia Tech at a neutral site, and then for the rest of the year they play NOBODY. Because they are starting the season ranked so high, they only have to win their one real game, and they are virtually guaranteed of a spot in the championship game. For that matter, since they are ranked so high, they could conceivably LOSE that game (the only one on their schedule), run the table the rest of the way, and be sitting at 12-1 at the end of the year with the idiots at ESPN touting them as real contenders for the national championship.
I'm not a BCS-hater...I'm not a playoff proponent (the only way I want a playoff is if it's GUARANTEED to be no more than 4 teams). But something has to be done about this 33.3% of the formula.
Two suggestions:
1) Start the poll later. Wait 4-6 weeks before the first poll. By that time, we at least have SOME idea of what the landscape is. I would even support waiting later, but I know that would never happen.
2) Take the coaches poll out of the equation, for all of the reasons I stated before. I would support replacing it with the Legends Poll, which is voted on by a group of former coaches. Every week, they send DVDs to all of their members of all of the games played by teams who are likely to be ranked. After they watch the games (supposedly...hey, no system is perfect), the voters get together on a weekly call and rank the teams. They also publish how they voted every week, a bit of transparency that you only get in the final week of the USA Today poll.
Some other quick musings...
- I was originally going to talk about how it's been almost exclusively good news out of fall camp. Then...today happened. So never mind.
Smith and Samuel being out for any length of time is especially worrisome...as we are installing Coach Grantham's new defense, every possible contributor on defense needs to be getting as many reps as possible.
I hate fall practice.
- It was great to have LIVE football on my television last night, even if it was a crappy NFL preseason game. Congrats to Geno Atkins...former Dawg picked up 6 tackles and a sack. That's how you make an impact!
- If you are looking for a great Braves website, check out TalkingChop.com. Superb content, updated several times a day...and rather than the idiotic commenters you get on AJC blogs (First!!), you get stuff like this, from "Lennox" in celebration of J-Hey's 21st birthday:
Did I ever tell you about the time Jason Heyward took me out to go get a drink with him? We go off looking for a bar and we can’t find one. Finally Heyward takes me to a vacant lot and says, “Here we are.” We sat there for a year and a half and sure enough someone constructs a bar around us. The day they opened we ordered a shot, drank it, and then burned the place to the ground. Heyward yelled over the roar of the flames, “Always leave things the way you found ’em!”Something about the image of that last sentence had me cracking up all day...
Speaking of the Braves, they seem to have righted the ship in the last week or so. They are really reminding me of the early 90's Braves...ridiculously good pitching, and just enough timely hitting to get by. I still wish we would have gotten one more big bat at the trade deadline...I think we're one bat away from being a real World Series contender.
But, these days, all I really ask from the Braves is that they keep it interesting until fall practice starts, and they have certainly done that. Anything more than that is just gravy.
- If you were wondering why so many (myself included) started turning on Brett FaRve even before he started waffling like John Kerry every summer...look no further than this post.
- Summer TV continues to be TONS better than it was when I was growing up. Now that LOST is gone, Friday Night Lights and Mad Men are the best two shows on television, in my opinion (coming from someone who, for some reason, has never watched Breaking Bad).
Speaking of LOST...as a fan of both that show and Weezer, well...this pretty much made my day.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
I'm trying, really I am...
I'm just trying to make it through the next thirty days. I mean, seriously...I have work to do. I have a family to take care of. My daughters start school next week. I'm trying to stay focused...really, I am.
I'm trying not to project David Greene circa 2001 stats on Aaron Murray, even though that was the last time a RFr QB started the season for us after spending two full offseasons with the team, and Aaron Murray is coming in with a much better pedigree and grasp of the offense than Greene had (remember - Aaron has spent two seasons learning Bobo's offense, while Greene's first year was also Richt's).
I'm trying to remember that TJ Stripling is a true freshman, and therefore not a realistic candidate for the All-American team...even though if Coach Grantham was tasked with creating the perfect OLB for his system, he would probably create something exactly like TJ Stripling.
I'm trying to temper expectations for the offense, since we have a first-time starter at QB...but I keep looking at the depth chart and seeing weapons everywhere I look. A.J. Green, Orson Charles, Aron White, Rantavious Wootentheballcarrier, Tavarres King...
I keep trying not to think about the potential that our running game has with two elite running backs and a veteran and extremely talented offensive line, but...I keep remembering WE RUN THIS STATE. And that Ealy was just a true freshman last year who didn't really know what he was doing until around late October.
I'm trying to keep in mind that we're running a brand new defense, and some growing pains are expected....but I keep thinking about how bad we would have to be for it to be an actual downgrade over the last couple of seasons, and how much more confidence I already have in this defensive coaching staff. And how much it sounds like our players on defense are embracing and quickly picking up the new scheme, and how when they talk about the new defense they sound like a man who has been starving to death describing the first few bites of a perfectly aged filet.
I'm trying not to think about all of the coaches who have reminded us that special teams is just as important as offense/defense...and how our special teams has the opportunity to be the best in the country, now that we are no longer hampered by the Czar of Directional Kicking. Groza Award finalist Blair Walsh. Ray Guy Award winner Drew Butler. Brandon Boykin. Branden Smith. Seriously...I'm trying.
I'm trying to pace myself, knowing that there are still 30 days to kickoff and if I don't calm down I'm going to be a wreck by the time kickoff actually arrives.
I'm trying.
And failing.
Miserably.
GO DAWGS!!!
I'm trying not to project David Greene circa 2001 stats on Aaron Murray, even though that was the last time a RFr QB started the season for us after spending two full offseasons with the team, and Aaron Murray is coming in with a much better pedigree and grasp of the offense than Greene had (remember - Aaron has spent two seasons learning Bobo's offense, while Greene's first year was also Richt's).
I'm trying to remember that TJ Stripling is a true freshman, and therefore not a realistic candidate for the All-American team...even though if Coach Grantham was tasked with creating the perfect OLB for his system, he would probably create something exactly like TJ Stripling.
I'm trying to temper expectations for the offense, since we have a first-time starter at QB...but I keep looking at the depth chart and seeing weapons everywhere I look. A.J. Green, Orson Charles, Aron White, Rantavious Wootentheballcarrier, Tavarres King...
I keep trying not to think about the potential that our running game has with two elite running backs and a veteran and extremely talented offensive line, but...I keep remembering WE RUN THIS STATE. And that Ealy was just a true freshman last year who didn't really know what he was doing until around late October.
I'm trying to keep in mind that we're running a brand new defense, and some growing pains are expected....but I keep thinking about how bad we would have to be for it to be an actual downgrade over the last couple of seasons, and how much more confidence I already have in this defensive coaching staff. And how much it sounds like our players on defense are embracing and quickly picking up the new scheme, and how when they talk about the new defense they sound like a man who has been starving to death describing the first few bites of a perfectly aged filet.
I'm trying not to think about all of the coaches who have reminded us that special teams is just as important as offense/defense...and how our special teams has the opportunity to be the best in the country, now that we are no longer hampered by the Czar of Directional Kicking. Groza Award finalist Blair Walsh. Ray Guy Award winner Drew Butler. Brandon Boykin. Branden Smith. Seriously...I'm trying.
I'm trying to pace myself, knowing that there are still 30 days to kickoff and if I don't calm down I'm going to be a wreck by the time kickoff actually arrives.
I'm trying.
And failing.
Miserably.
GO DAWGS!!!
Monday, August 2, 2010
A little Coach Grantham to get you ready for practice..
I seriously need to find out if our shared last name is a coincidence...because if it turns out I am actually related to this guy I'll probably turn into a full fledged stalker.
These are my favorite parts of the interview Coach Grantham did with ESPN's Chris Lowe last week...
Georgia was tied for next to last nationally last season with 12 forced turnovers. How do you turn that around?
TG: It starts with the quarterback. In pro football, we did a study, and the guy who
fumbles the ball the most is the quarterback. He’s also the guy throwing the ball, so the more you can do to disrupt him, the more you’re going to create turnovers. You can do that a lot of ways -- disguising what you do, by bringing pressure, four-man and six-man rush, and the biggest thing is the disruption of routes. You can’t allow free access. [emphasis added] If you disrupt them and jam them, they’re not always going to be in the spot they’re supposed to be. There’s no question that we need to create more turnovers. Again, going back to the NFL, the teams that were plus-1 in turnover margin over the last 11 years won 80 percent of their games.
What do you hope the Georgia fans see in this defense?
TG: What I want them to see is improvement and that we’re aggressive, fundamentally sound and relentless in our pursuit of the ball. I want them to see a defense that doesn’t give up explosive plays, a defense that plays with a swagger. I know this, that the Georgia fans have a passion for defense, the “Junkyard Dawg” defense that is so famous around here. I anticipate working toward giving them the things they have a passion for.
I was talking with my brother this morning...if this guy can coach anywhere close to as good as he can talk, then I am TREMENDOUSLY optimistic about our championship prospects in the very near future. As I have said before, I do anticipate some growing pains to manifest themselves this year in the form of blown coverages, guys out of position, etc...but, hey, it's not like we weren't seeing those problems on a regular basis anyway. What I am hoping for is that the new mentality goes a long way in this first year toward reversing our horrible turnover ratio from last season. Anything above that is just icing.
GATA, Dawgs! Time to put your game faces on...only FOUR weeks until game week!!
GO DAWGS!!!
These are my favorite parts of the interview Coach Grantham did with ESPN's Chris Lowe last week...
Georgia was tied for next to last nationally last season with 12 forced turnovers. How do you turn that around?
TG: It starts with the quarterback. In pro football, we did a study, and the guy who
fumbles the ball the most is the quarterback. He’s also the guy throwing the ball, so the more you can do to disrupt him, the more you’re going to create turnovers. You can do that a lot of ways -- disguising what you do, by bringing pressure, four-man and six-man rush, and the biggest thing is the disruption of routes. You can’t allow free access. [emphasis added] If you disrupt them and jam them, they’re not always going to be in the spot they’re supposed to be. There’s no question that we need to create more turnovers. Again, going back to the NFL, the teams that were plus-1 in turnover margin over the last 11 years won 80 percent of their games.
What do you hope the Georgia fans see in this defense?
TG: What I want them to see is improvement and that we’re aggressive, fundamentally sound and relentless in our pursuit of the ball. I want them to see a defense that doesn’t give up explosive plays, a defense that plays with a swagger. I know this, that the Georgia fans have a passion for defense, the “Junkyard Dawg” defense that is so famous around here. I anticipate working toward giving them the things they have a passion for.
I was talking with my brother this morning...if this guy can coach anywhere close to as good as he can talk, then I am TREMENDOUSLY optimistic about our championship prospects in the very near future. As I have said before, I do anticipate some growing pains to manifest themselves this year in the form of blown coverages, guys out of position, etc...but, hey, it's not like we weren't seeing those problems on a regular basis anyway. What I am hoping for is that the new mentality goes a long way in this first year toward reversing our horrible turnover ratio from last season. Anything above that is just icing.
GATA, Dawgs! Time to put your game faces on...only FOUR weeks until game week!!
GO DAWGS!!!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Catchin' up
Well, I'm back from Florida...which, of course, means that posting will actually be MORE sporadic, not less.
Go figure.
So...what's been going on?
- First of all, my long ago promised (and even longer overdue) apology to Troy Glaus. I was as hard on him as anybody early in the season, hitting him hard both on the blog and on my Twitter feed.
All he's done since then is win the NL Player of the Month for May and take over the NL lead in RBI.
So, maybe instead of apologizing, I should just say....you're WELCOME!
Just kidding...I was wrong, so I'll gladly admit it.
Troy Glaus for MVP!!
- While I was in Destin, the mighty Trojans of USC got as close to the death penalty as any program is going to get post-SMU.
To which I say, simply:
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! ::gasp, gasp::.....BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, man, that's AWESOME.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!
My favorite part was when Kiffykins said that the sanctions (loss of 30 scholarships over three years, two-year bowl ban, and most interestingly, the release of juniors and seniors to transfer to another school without sitting out) will have "no impact" on recruiting.
He followed that up with "DERP DERP DERPITTY DERP".
- Also, the Big 12 threatened to explode, only to be saved at the last minute thanks to Texas graciously accepting an additional $15 MILLION DOLLARS or so to stay put. Such a charitable gesture.
I was pretty out of the loop while all of the conversations were going on last week, so I will leave it to others to go through all the ins and outs and backroom politics. I just know that I was extremely glad that the rumored Texas A&M move to the SEC didn't happen. I really don't want to see the SEC expand at all, and I especially don't want them to make a move just because everybody else is and water down the conference by bringing in inferior teams.
I also don't like what SEC expansion would do to the schedule. I don't really want to see more than 8 SEC games on the schedule, so even if the conference was to only expand to two seven-team divisions, in order to keep from going to 9 SEC games you would have to drop one of the "rotating" games. So we would have 6 division games, the game against Auburn, and then only one rotating SEC game, which would mean we would go 10 years or more between games against LSU, Alabama, and the other teams in the SEC West. I don't like that.
Surprisingly enough, Mike Slive didn't ask my opinion, and I don't expect that to change when this comes up again in a couple of years. Expansion is inevitable, I'm afraid...I was just glad the SEC dodged the bullet this time around.
So...is the Big 12 (or whatever they will be called now) really going to go with just ten teams and no championship game? If so, can we take their automatic BCS bid away? Otherwise, won't the winner of the Texas-Oklahoma game just cakewalk to the BCS every year?
- Remember when I was so excited about the fact that the Hawks let Mike Woodson go, and maybe the team was going to go in a different direction other that stagnant mess we've seen over the last two years?
Yeah...never mind.
- Couple of key additions to the Dawgs over the last couple of weeks.
First of all, we got a big commitment from Nick Marshall. I absolutely love this story...this guy grew up a Dawg fan and Georgia was his dream school. We were recruiting him as a quarterback, as were most of the other schools pursuing him, but then we received the commitment from Christian Lemay and Coach Richt said we probably wouldn't take another quarterback in the 2011 class. The gnats were his second choice, so he came very close to committing to them...and then Coach Richt called and offered him as a defensive back. Nick JUMPED at the second chance to be a Dawg...my kind of guy.
On top of that, he is also one of the top basketball recruits in the state, and he will be playing for Coach Fox's Hoop Dawgs as well. The basketball program is making HUGE strides in the right direction under Coach Fox...with the talent we have coming back plus a couple of big recruits, I think we could really make some noise in 2010-2011.
Here are some highlights of Nick playing DB (h/t to Bubba 'n Earl):
Then, today the Dawgs got some more big news when Jarvis Jones decided to transfer to UGA from USC. Jarvis was very highly recruited in 2009, when Rivals had him rated as the 3rd best prospect in Georgia. He had a neck injury last season, after which USC released him from his scholarship, but all reports from both the USC and UGA medical staff seem to indicate that he is ready to play.
I think Jarvis fits in EXTREMELY well as an inside linebacker in Todd Grantham's 3-4 defense. If he does step in there and live up to his vast potential, we could be looking at a possible 2012 linebacking corps of Cornelius Washington (assuming he doesn't have a big enough year to jump to the NFL in '10), Jarvis Jones, Richard Samuel, and T.J. Stripling.
I'll take it.
Here are some Jarvis Jones highlights from when he was being recruited:
Getting fired up yet? Only 81 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!!
To celebrate, here is a very well done highlight video of the Dawgs win over TAMU in the Independence Bowl...our #81, Aron White, has a couple of big plays (at the 2:35 and 4:36 marks):
And, while I'm at it, since I missed yesterday, here is one of my favorite highlights from the career of #82, Fred Gibson...a fingertip TD catch against the gators:
Good to be back...
GO DAWGS!!!
Go figure.
So...what's been going on?
- First of all, my long ago promised (and even longer overdue) apology to Troy Glaus. I was as hard on him as anybody early in the season, hitting him hard both on the blog and on my Twitter feed.
All he's done since then is win the NL Player of the Month for May and take over the NL lead in RBI.
So, maybe instead of apologizing, I should just say....you're WELCOME!
Just kidding...I was wrong, so I'll gladly admit it.
Troy Glaus for MVP!!
- While I was in Destin, the mighty Trojans of USC got as close to the death penalty as any program is going to get post-SMU.
To which I say, simply:
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! ::gasp, gasp::.....BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, man, that's AWESOME.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!My favorite part was when Kiffykins said that the sanctions (loss of 30 scholarships over three years, two-year bowl ban, and most interestingly, the release of juniors and seniors to transfer to another school without sitting out) will have "no impact" on recruiting.
He followed that up with "DERP DERP DERPITTY DERP".
- Also, the Big 12 threatened to explode, only to be saved at the last minute thanks to Texas graciously accepting an additional $15 MILLION DOLLARS or so to stay put. Such a charitable gesture.
I was pretty out of the loop while all of the conversations were going on last week, so I will leave it to others to go through all the ins and outs and backroom politics. I just know that I was extremely glad that the rumored Texas A&M move to the SEC didn't happen. I really don't want to see the SEC expand at all, and I especially don't want them to make a move just because everybody else is and water down the conference by bringing in inferior teams.
I also don't like what SEC expansion would do to the schedule. I don't really want to see more than 8 SEC games on the schedule, so even if the conference was to only expand to two seven-team divisions, in order to keep from going to 9 SEC games you would have to drop one of the "rotating" games. So we would have 6 division games, the game against Auburn, and then only one rotating SEC game, which would mean we would go 10 years or more between games against LSU, Alabama, and the other teams in the SEC West. I don't like that.
Surprisingly enough, Mike Slive didn't ask my opinion, and I don't expect that to change when this comes up again in a couple of years. Expansion is inevitable, I'm afraid...I was just glad the SEC dodged the bullet this time around.
So...is the Big 12 (or whatever they will be called now) really going to go with just ten teams and no championship game? If so, can we take their automatic BCS bid away? Otherwise, won't the winner of the Texas-Oklahoma game just cakewalk to the BCS every year?
- Remember when I was so excited about the fact that the Hawks let Mike Woodson go, and maybe the team was going to go in a different direction other that stagnant mess we've seen over the last two years?
Yeah...never mind.
- Couple of key additions to the Dawgs over the last couple of weeks.
First of all, we got a big commitment from Nick Marshall. I absolutely love this story...this guy grew up a Dawg fan and Georgia was his dream school. We were recruiting him as a quarterback, as were most of the other schools pursuing him, but then we received the commitment from Christian Lemay and Coach Richt said we probably wouldn't take another quarterback in the 2011 class. The gnats were his second choice, so he came very close to committing to them...and then Coach Richt called and offered him as a defensive back. Nick JUMPED at the second chance to be a Dawg...my kind of guy.
On top of that, he is also one of the top basketball recruits in the state, and he will be playing for Coach Fox's Hoop Dawgs as well. The basketball program is making HUGE strides in the right direction under Coach Fox...with the talent we have coming back plus a couple of big recruits, I think we could really make some noise in 2010-2011.
Here are some highlights of Nick playing DB (h/t to Bubba 'n Earl):
Then, today the Dawgs got some more big news when Jarvis Jones decided to transfer to UGA from USC. Jarvis was very highly recruited in 2009, when Rivals had him rated as the 3rd best prospect in Georgia. He had a neck injury last season, after which USC released him from his scholarship, but all reports from both the USC and UGA medical staff seem to indicate that he is ready to play.
I think Jarvis fits in EXTREMELY well as an inside linebacker in Todd Grantham's 3-4 defense. If he does step in there and live up to his vast potential, we could be looking at a possible 2012 linebacking corps of Cornelius Washington (assuming he doesn't have a big enough year to jump to the NFL in '10), Jarvis Jones, Richard Samuel, and T.J. Stripling.
I'll take it.
Here are some Jarvis Jones highlights from when he was being recruited:
Getting fired up yet? Only 81 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!!
To celebrate, here is a very well done highlight video of the Dawgs win over TAMU in the Independence Bowl...our #81, Aron White, has a couple of big plays (at the 2:35 and 4:36 marks):
And, while I'm at it, since I missed yesterday, here is one of my favorite highlights from the career of #82, Fred Gibson...a fingertip TD catch against the gators:
Good to be back...
GO DAWGS!!!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
86 days to kickoff!!
With all apologies to Derek Rich, our current #86, I couldn't really find any cool videos related specifically to this number...so could I interest you in the highlights of some of our 2010 defensive signees, starting with the guy I am probably MOST excited about?
These are the four guys who I feel have the best shot at seeing early playing time, based mainly on the need at their positions.
By the way...I would watch these with the sound down. Why do people insist on setting these highlights to awful so-called music? Unfortunately, YouTube is about the only place you can get videos that you can embed, so you take what you can get.
Enjoy...be back tomorrow with some offensive highlights!
THE PREDATOR:
Don't know why they called him Allan Stripling, rather than T.J. Anybody know if that is his real name?
Alec Ogletree:
Garrison Smith:
Mike Thornton:
These are the four guys who I feel have the best shot at seeing early playing time, based mainly on the need at their positions.
By the way...I would watch these with the sound down. Why do people insist on setting these highlights to awful so-called music? Unfortunately, YouTube is about the only place you can get videos that you can embed, so you take what you can get.
Enjoy...be back tomorrow with some offensive highlights!
THE PREDATOR:
Don't know why they called him Allan Stripling, rather than T.J. Anybody know if that is his real name?
Alec Ogletree:
Garrison Smith:
Mike Thornton:
Friday, June 4, 2010
Why I am at least cautiously optimistic about the Dawgs in 2010
Can you believe it's only three months to kickoff? I don't know if it's because I'm getting old or what, but time really seems to be flying...seems like it was just yesterday we were beating up on the Aggies of Texas A&M, and now it's already Athlon/Lindy's/Phil Steele season.
I am definitely optimistic about this upcoming season. I define success for the Dawgs as winning 10 games and at least competing for the SEC title...we won 8 games last year, and I think we have an EXCELLENT chance of picking up at least one or two more wins.
Here's why...
- I think we easily pick up at least one more win just based on the schedule.
Looking at out-of-conference scheduling first...Let's say the Tennessee Tech - Idaho State tradeoff is a wash. Outside of that, we lose an away game at Oklahoma State and a home game against Arizona State from our OOC schedule and replace them with a home game against La.-Lafayette and an away game at a bad Colorado team. So, basically the away game at Oklahoma State is replaced by an away game at Colorado (MUCH easier opponent, and also not the first game of the season), and the home game against Arizona State is replaced by a home game against La-Lafayette.
On top of that, the game against the gnats will be in Athens this year. Not that we are intimidated by playing at The Joke by the Coke at all, but it's still a plus.
Let's turn our attention to the SEC schedule...for our SEC west opponents, we lose LSU and pick up Mississippi State. Even having to travel to Starkville (we played LSU at home last season), I think that's definitely an easier road.
Last year, we played Arkansas and UT on the road...they both come to Athens this season.
Now the bad news...Auburn and South Carolina were both home games last year, so we will be on the road for both of those this season. The Auburn game, especially, makes me nervous...I think Cam Newton may end up a star in Gus Malzahn's offense, and we've beaten them 4 times in a row now in a series that's usually a lot more back-and-forth than that.
To sum up...our OOC schedule is TONS easier, we trade LSU for Mississippi State, and we trade a couple of really tough road opponents for another couple of really tough road opponents. In my opinion, one of the extra wins we are going to need to reach 10 is already baked in to the schedule.
So..what do we keep hearing from pundits who think that the Dawgs might NOT be as good this season as last? "Freshman QB and brand new defense", right?
Well, allow me to retort....
- First, let's look at the quarterback position. Now, I have no idea what Aaron Murray is going to be, and you don't either...he's never taken a snap in a game. I've seen his high school tape, which was very impressive, and I've seen him play really well in one meaningless spring practice and just so-so in another meaningless spring practice.
So, let's look at a couple of comparison points.
The last time we went into a season with a RS freshman as our game 1 starter was 2001, with a young man by the name of David Greene (maybe you've heard of him). Here are his 2001 stats (bowl game included):
362 passes, 214 completions (60%), 3,077 yds (256 ypg), 18 TD, 11 INT
I have a feeling that Dawg fans would be pretty happy with those numbers, right?
Yes, David Greene was a special case...mature beyond his years, incredibly smart, understood the offense perfectly, etc. But...can anybody watch Aaron Murray play and not say that, at least PHYSICALLY, he is more gifted than Greene was? I think those physical gifts (stronger arm, TONS more mobility) wipe out at least some of Greene's perceived "mental" edge. For that matter, all we've heard about Aaron from the coaching staff seems to indicate that he is another guy who understands the offense, is a great leader, and is also extremely mature for someone his age.
Another factor in Aaron's favor...his supporting cast is going to be better than what Greene had in his freshman year. Not only did David not have an A.J. Green to throw to, I don't think he even had a Tavarres King or Kris Durham. Terrence Edwards, Damien Gary, freshman Fred Gibson...all nice pieces, sure, but I think we are in much better shape now at the WR position, and that doesn't even include the tight ends. Randy McMichael was very good and made tons of big plays for us, but I don't think he was as good as Orson Charles is right now...and then behind him we have 3 other All SEC caliber tight ends in Aron White, Arthur Lynch, and Bruce Figgins.
The running back position is not even close...David had nothing approaching the two-headed monster of Ealy and King in the backfield his freshman year. Verron Haynes (besides doing THIS) came in at the end of the year and played very well, but it was a position in flux all season long.
I think the offensive lines are comparable, though this one is more seasoned than that one was...Greene's offensive line didn't really come into their own until the 2002 SEC championship season.
So I think I can make the case that Aaron Murray has a very good chance to be as successful as David Greene was in his freshman year. But, if you think that may not be the best comparison, let's look at some more recent numbers...Joe Cox's stats in 2009:
331 passes, 185 completions (56%), 2,584 yards (199 ypg), 24 TD, 15 INT
Wouldn't you think Aaron Murray could maybe land somewhere in the middle of those two, adjusting for the fact that he will probably have fewer attempts because of the running game? Let's say something like:
290 passes, 165 completions (57%), 2,310 yards (178 ypg), 20 TD, 12 INT
If he is able to pull that off (and honestly, I think I am being pretty conservative there), then I say the "Freshman QB" excuse for the Dawgs this year turns out to be basically a wash. I mean, I love the Ginger Assassin, but he was basically a freshman at the position last year, as well...it was his first meaningful experience as a college QB, and you could often tell it.
- Now for the defense...I'm just going to put it like this: brand new scheme or not, is it reasonable to expect this defense to be WORSE next year than it was in 2009? 37 points vs. South Carolina...41 points vs. Arkansas...45 points to a mediocre Tennessee team...41 points vs. Florida...34 points vs. Kentucky, for crying out loud...
If the 2010 produces results that are the same as last season I'm going to be bitterly disappointed...which means that at worst, the "brand new defense" excuse should be considered a wash as well.
That's a whole lot of words, just to say this...I think the schedule sets up for the Dawgs to get from 8 wins to 10 pretty easily, and I think that what are considered to be our biggest "question marks" are at worst a wash vs. last season, and at best they may even turn out to be upgrades.
Now the real question...if we win 10 and lose three, who are the three losses going to be against? Because, although I will most likely be happy with 10-3, who those three losses come from will go a long way in determing the ultimate success level of this team.
My WAY too early prediction? We lose to South Carolina (first true test of the season for Murray, on the road, noon start, early enough in the season that the 'Cocks still think they may actually be good), Auburn (for reasons already specified), and Florida (out of habit).
Win the bowl game, and we are 10-3, 5-3 in the SEC, probably playing in the Capital One or Outback bowl.
What say you, Dawg fans? Would that be a good enough year for you to qualify as a "success"?
GO DAWGS!!!
P.S. - to the Anonymous poster who has been trolling every Dawg blog and spewing your nonsense after every similar post to this one...just prepare to have your comments deleted if you show up here again.
I am definitely optimistic about this upcoming season. I define success for the Dawgs as winning 10 games and at least competing for the SEC title...we won 8 games last year, and I think we have an EXCELLENT chance of picking up at least one or two more wins.
Here's why...
- I think we easily pick up at least one more win just based on the schedule.
Looking at out-of-conference scheduling first...Let's say the Tennessee Tech - Idaho State tradeoff is a wash. Outside of that, we lose an away game at Oklahoma State and a home game against Arizona State from our OOC schedule and replace them with a home game against La.-Lafayette and an away game at a bad Colorado team. So, basically the away game at Oklahoma State is replaced by an away game at Colorado (MUCH easier opponent, and also not the first game of the season), and the home game against Arizona State is replaced by a home game against La-Lafayette.
On top of that, the game against the gnats will be in Athens this year. Not that we are intimidated by playing at The Joke by the Coke at all, but it's still a plus.
Let's turn our attention to the SEC schedule...for our SEC west opponents, we lose LSU and pick up Mississippi State. Even having to travel to Starkville (we played LSU at home last season), I think that's definitely an easier road.
Last year, we played Arkansas and UT on the road...they both come to Athens this season.
Now the bad news...Auburn and South Carolina were both home games last year, so we will be on the road for both of those this season. The Auburn game, especially, makes me nervous...I think Cam Newton may end up a star in Gus Malzahn's offense, and we've beaten them 4 times in a row now in a series that's usually a lot more back-and-forth than that.
To sum up...our OOC schedule is TONS easier, we trade LSU for Mississippi State, and we trade a couple of really tough road opponents for another couple of really tough road opponents. In my opinion, one of the extra wins we are going to need to reach 10 is already baked in to the schedule.
So..what do we keep hearing from pundits who think that the Dawgs might NOT be as good this season as last? "Freshman QB and brand new defense", right?
Well, allow me to retort....
- First, let's look at the quarterback position. Now, I have no idea what Aaron Murray is going to be, and you don't either...he's never taken a snap in a game. I've seen his high school tape, which was very impressive, and I've seen him play really well in one meaningless spring practice and just so-so in another meaningless spring practice.
So, let's look at a couple of comparison points.
The last time we went into a season with a RS freshman as our game 1 starter was 2001, with a young man by the name of David Greene (maybe you've heard of him). Here are his 2001 stats (bowl game included):
362 passes, 214 completions (60%), 3,077 yds (256 ypg), 18 TD, 11 INT
I have a feeling that Dawg fans would be pretty happy with those numbers, right?
Yes, David Greene was a special case...mature beyond his years, incredibly smart, understood the offense perfectly, etc. But...can anybody watch Aaron Murray play and not say that, at least PHYSICALLY, he is more gifted than Greene was? I think those physical gifts (stronger arm, TONS more mobility) wipe out at least some of Greene's perceived "mental" edge. For that matter, all we've heard about Aaron from the coaching staff seems to indicate that he is another guy who understands the offense, is a great leader, and is also extremely mature for someone his age.
Another factor in Aaron's favor...his supporting cast is going to be better than what Greene had in his freshman year. Not only did David not have an A.J. Green to throw to, I don't think he even had a Tavarres King or Kris Durham. Terrence Edwards, Damien Gary, freshman Fred Gibson...all nice pieces, sure, but I think we are in much better shape now at the WR position, and that doesn't even include the tight ends. Randy McMichael was very good and made tons of big plays for us, but I don't think he was as good as Orson Charles is right now...and then behind him we have 3 other All SEC caliber tight ends in Aron White, Arthur Lynch, and Bruce Figgins.
The running back position is not even close...David had nothing approaching the two-headed monster of Ealy and King in the backfield his freshman year. Verron Haynes (besides doing THIS) came in at the end of the year and played very well, but it was a position in flux all season long.
I think the offensive lines are comparable, though this one is more seasoned than that one was...Greene's offensive line didn't really come into their own until the 2002 SEC championship season.
So I think I can make the case that Aaron Murray has a very good chance to be as successful as David Greene was in his freshman year. But, if you think that may not be the best comparison, let's look at some more recent numbers...Joe Cox's stats in 2009:
331 passes, 185 completions (56%), 2,584 yards (199 ypg), 24 TD, 15 INT
Wouldn't you think Aaron Murray could maybe land somewhere in the middle of those two, adjusting for the fact that he will probably have fewer attempts because of the running game? Let's say something like:
290 passes, 165 completions (57%), 2,310 yards (178 ypg), 20 TD, 12 INT
If he is able to pull that off (and honestly, I think I am being pretty conservative there), then I say the "Freshman QB" excuse for the Dawgs this year turns out to be basically a wash. I mean, I love the Ginger Assassin, but he was basically a freshman at the position last year, as well...it was his first meaningful experience as a college QB, and you could often tell it.
- Now for the defense...I'm just going to put it like this: brand new scheme or not, is it reasonable to expect this defense to be WORSE next year than it was in 2009? 37 points vs. South Carolina...41 points vs. Arkansas...45 points to a mediocre Tennessee team...41 points vs. Florida...34 points vs. Kentucky, for crying out loud...
If the 2010 produces results that are the same as last season I'm going to be bitterly disappointed...which means that at worst, the "brand new defense" excuse should be considered a wash as well.
That's a whole lot of words, just to say this...I think the schedule sets up for the Dawgs to get from 8 wins to 10 pretty easily, and I think that what are considered to be our biggest "question marks" are at worst a wash vs. last season, and at best they may even turn out to be upgrades.
Now the real question...if we win 10 and lose three, who are the three losses going to be against? Because, although I will most likely be happy with 10-3, who those three losses come from will go a long way in determing the ultimate success level of this team.
My WAY too early prediction? We lose to South Carolina (first true test of the season for Murray, on the road, noon start, early enough in the season that the 'Cocks still think they may actually be good), Auburn (for reasons already specified), and Florida (out of habit).
Win the bowl game, and we are 10-3, 5-3 in the SEC, probably playing in the Capital One or Outback bowl.
What say you, Dawg fans? Would that be a good enough year for you to qualify as a "success"?
GO DAWGS!!!
P.S. - to the Anonymous poster who has been trolling every Dawg blog and spewing your nonsense after every similar post to this one...just prepare to have your comments deleted if you show up here again.
Friday, April 23, 2010
An actual sports post?!?!
Yeah, I think it's about time...
Despite what regular readers of this blog (hi, Mom!) might think, I am actually interested in things other than LOST and American Idol. This blog actually started as more of a sports blog, and believe me....when football season cranks up, it will be again.
So...what's been going on?
Springtime in DawgNation:
- I am cautiously optimistic about the defense based on the reports out of spring practice. I love the change in mindset, and the energy that seemed to have been pumped into the program and the fanbase by our new coaches. And, Lord knows, I love hearing the word "fundamentals" being preached every single day, especially by our new LB Coach Belin.
As I have mentioned before, I think our personnel may actually be better suited to the 3-4 than a 4-3. Looking at the depth chart released yesterday, there are TONS of athletes across the board, and I think they are going to be much better utilized than they have been the last few years.
Having said that, it's very difficult to completely revamp an entire defensive philosophy in just one season...there are going to be some growing pains this year. So while I expect to see more plays being made by a more aggressive and fundamentally sound defense (more turnovers, more plays made in the backfield), I also fully expect there to be times when receivers are running around uncovered because somebody didn't know where they were supposed to be.
Hopefully, it will sort of balance out this year...but, worst case scenario, we may have some games where we give up 35-40 points. Which is what we were doing already, but at least now I have hope for the future.
- I take absolutely nothing from G-Day even in a "normal" year, but this year especially. We didn't run anything close to what our actual defensive scheme is going to look like, and we did absolutely nothing on offense other than run some basic plays.
G-Day is just a practice, and for that matter it's the least relevant practice of the entire spring from a scheme standpoint. Yeah, it's nice to see what they do in front of a "crowd", but is there really any comparison between 25-30K very quiet fans on G-Day and 92K going crazy on a game day? Or 108K inbred hillbillies who want to kill you in Neyland?
Fans should treat it for what it is...a nice little taste of some live football before the long dark days of summer.
Which is why I didn't get all that worked up over Zach Mettenberger outplaying Aaron Murray on G-Day, which leads me to my next point...
- Aaron Murray was ALWAYS going to be the starter at QB for 2010. ALWAYS. Losing Mettenberger certainly hurts from a depth standpoint, as we are now one injury away from a QB 2-deep of Logan Gray and Hutson Mason (::shudder::). But Mett was not going to be the starter on this team, despite having a really good day of practice on April 10.
As for the Mettenberger situation itself...what a maroon. If the accounts that most of us have read by now are true, this guy took jackass to a whole new level (pardon the language, but there is no better word for it), and was still probably going to get away from it relatively unscathed if he had just SHUT UP to the police...but he was having none of that, choosing instead to keep arguing with the police even after the young ladies and restaurant employees had declined to press charges. Then, apparently, when he met with the coaches he lied to them about it and showed little to no remorse. So, basically, he threw away a scholarship to play QB at the University of Georgia by being a gigantic buffoon. Stupid is as stupid does, I guess.
I think that Coach Richt has proven over the years that if you do show contrition and true remorse over your dumb decisions, you will get another chance...that's why I think that his attitude about the situation probably played as much into the ultimate decision as anything else.
(the previous paragraph is strictly my own opinion, and are not based on any inside knowledge of the situation AT ALL...just knowledge of human behavior and how we have seen Coach Richt handle these situations in the past)
- On offense, no matter who the quarterback is, I think the philosophy has to be a HEAVY dose of King/Ealy, with the passing game being predicated on play-action, bootleg type plays to the playmakers (Green, Charles, Wootentheballcarrier, etc). I think that fits our personnel and, fortunately, I think it fits what Bobo wants to do anyway.
I love our offensive line, I love our playmakers...if we can just get adequate QB play and, most importantly, CUT DOWN ON TURNOVERS AND STUPID PENALTIES, I think our offense has a chance to be even better than it was last year...and last year's offense was pretty darn good, for the most part.
The biggest problem with this team right now, based on the last couple of seasons, is that they play dumb football. Hopefully, the changes that have been made will result in a fresh energy and renewed focus on fundamentals, as well as increased accountability on both sides of the ball, and this team will start playing up their talent level.
Oh, and....NO MORE DIRECTIONAL KICKOFFS!!! WOOHOO!!!
Will the Braves be good enough to hold my interest until fall camp starts?
I don't ask much from the Braves anymore...just be good enough so that I have something to pay attention to until early August, when the beginning of fall camp effectively ends the baseball season for me.
So far, results are mixed....
- The starting pitching is very good...it would be great if Derek Lowe could start earning that $15M salary. The way things are going right now, I think this rotation would be better with Kawakami as the number 4, with Lowe as the number 5 starter/long relief guy. Not that this could ever happen, because of the monetary investment the team has in Lowe.
Jurrjens has been sharp other than one horrid outing, Hanson continues to develop, and Hudson seems to be fully recovered. Lowe is just the fly in the punch bowl.
- Bullpen has been excellent so far...I just hope that Wagner and Saito (combined age: 378) can make it through an entire season.
- I consider myself lucky to be able to watch Jason Heyward. So much has been said about him that I can't add much...he's a superstar, he's going to be a Hall of Famer, and we're getting to watch the first green shoots of his career on a nightly basis.
- TERRIBLE offseason for Frank Wren. We traded Vasquez (arguably our best pitcher last year) for Melky Cabrera, who is just atrocious. Yes, I am aware that either Vasquez or Lowe were going to be moved, and teams were understandably reluctant to take on Lowe and his $15M salary (see above)...but the best we could get was Melky Cabrera, for one of the best pitchers in the NL?
(SIDE NOTE: You know how some trades just work out perfectly, in that both teams are getting exactly what they need even though they are both giving up something of value? The Smoltz - Doyle Alexander trade comes to mind...this was like the exact opposite of that. Vasquez had already proven that A) he is much better suited to the National League; and B) he can't pitch in New York. So the Yankees give up what had been a pretty good 4th outfielder for them for someone who is predestined to be a disaster, and we give up our best starter for a guy who is at best a 4th outfielder, but expect him to be an everyday outfielder and leadoff hitter. Both sides lose.)
"Oh, but wait!" says Frank Wren. "We're not done yet! I know we need a big bat for this lineup, a guy you can count on for HR and run production! Don't judge this move until you see what ELSE we have planned!".
I say, "OK....awesome! Maybe this means we are getting in on the Matt Holliday/Jason Bay discussions? Somebody like that?"
Um...no. Instead we sign Troy Glaus. The same Troy Glaus who missed all of 2009 with an elbow injury, and hasn't been nearly the same player ever since the Mitchell Report was published.
I don't think I have ever yelled at my radio with as much fury as I did the day that Frank Wren was interviewed during spring training and he went on and on about how tall the middle of our lineup had the potential to be. "Man, look at us...Chipper is 6'4, Glaus is 6'6, Heyward is 6'5. That's got to be intimidating for a pitcher!"
Look, if you are in any way intimidated by the sight of Troy Glaus coming to the plate, you have no business being a major league pitcher. Any pitcher worth his salt has to be SALIVATING at watching this automatic rally killer come up in a key spot. His line so far? .170 Avg, .524 OPS, 16 strikeouts and 8 RBI in 53 AB. Yeah....twice as many strikeouts as RBI. That's not good for a #5 hitter, right?
I say we put Eric Hinske in the lineup every single day, and let Troy Glaus do what he does best. Be really tall.
Anyway...this team would fit in really well in the mid-80's National League. Great pitching, solid defense, and an offense that is going to put up maybe 3-4 runs a game. In today's baseball, that's just not enough.
Hey, did you know the Hawks are in the playoffs?
The Hawks are currently manhandling the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Without Andrew Bogut, the Bucks have absolutely no answer for Al Horford and Josh Smith inside, and they are wreaking havoc.
Josh, in particular, has been a joy to watch this season. He seems to have finally come to grips with the fact that he is never going to be a three-point shooter and is instead doing...everything else. He fills the box score up like Scottie Pippen, and also includes the whining to officials like Pippen, but without the bad hair (seriously...what was UP with that guy's scalp? It looked like it had been PLOWED or something). A typical night from him is like 16 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, and 4 thunderous dunks that fire the whole team up and keeps them involved in the game.
Here's the down side...this team isn't getting out of the 2nd round, and it's all because of their head coach. The Hawks have two glaring weaknesses...inconsistent effort on defense and an utter lack of a halfcourt offense. These are the two things that kill a team in the playoffs, especially once they get out of the first round and start facing really good teams, and they can both be attributed to poor coaching, in my opinion.
Mike Woodson has been very lucky in that he has been the coach during a time when a very young team has grown up together, so he gets credit for the win totals increasing every year. And I don't think Woodson is a TERRIBLE head coach...I just think his specific deficiencies are the ones most likely to be exploited in the postseason.
Hopefully, I'm wrong...Atlanta certainly has the talent to match up with the Magic in the second round. If we can get past them, maybe we can win one or two games against Lebron and the Cavs. That's probably the absolute ceiling for this team.
OK...that was fun! Turns out I had more to say than I thought I did...maybe I should do this more often?
Despite what regular readers of this blog (hi, Mom!) might think, I am actually interested in things other than LOST and American Idol. This blog actually started as more of a sports blog, and believe me....when football season cranks up, it will be again.
So...what's been going on?
Springtime in DawgNation:
- I am cautiously optimistic about the defense based on the reports out of spring practice. I love the change in mindset, and the energy that seemed to have been pumped into the program and the fanbase by our new coaches. And, Lord knows, I love hearing the word "fundamentals" being preached every single day, especially by our new LB Coach Belin.
As I have mentioned before, I think our personnel may actually be better suited to the 3-4 than a 4-3. Looking at the depth chart released yesterday, there are TONS of athletes across the board, and I think they are going to be much better utilized than they have been the last few years.
Having said that, it's very difficult to completely revamp an entire defensive philosophy in just one season...there are going to be some growing pains this year. So while I expect to see more plays being made by a more aggressive and fundamentally sound defense (more turnovers, more plays made in the backfield), I also fully expect there to be times when receivers are running around uncovered because somebody didn't know where they were supposed to be.
Hopefully, it will sort of balance out this year...but, worst case scenario, we may have some games where we give up 35-40 points. Which is what we were doing already, but at least now I have hope for the future.
- I take absolutely nothing from G-Day even in a "normal" year, but this year especially. We didn't run anything close to what our actual defensive scheme is going to look like, and we did absolutely nothing on offense other than run some basic plays.
G-Day is just a practice, and for that matter it's the least relevant practice of the entire spring from a scheme standpoint. Yeah, it's nice to see what they do in front of a "crowd", but is there really any comparison between 25-30K very quiet fans on G-Day and 92K going crazy on a game day? Or 108K inbred hillbillies who want to kill you in Neyland?
Fans should treat it for what it is...a nice little taste of some live football before the long dark days of summer.
Which is why I didn't get all that worked up over Zach Mettenberger outplaying Aaron Murray on G-Day, which leads me to my next point...
- Aaron Murray was ALWAYS going to be the starter at QB for 2010. ALWAYS. Losing Mettenberger certainly hurts from a depth standpoint, as we are now one injury away from a QB 2-deep of Logan Gray and Hutson Mason (::shudder::). But Mett was not going to be the starter on this team, despite having a really good day of practice on April 10.
As for the Mettenberger situation itself...what a maroon. If the accounts that most of us have read by now are true, this guy took jackass to a whole new level (pardon the language, but there is no better word for it), and was still probably going to get away from it relatively unscathed if he had just SHUT UP to the police...but he was having none of that, choosing instead to keep arguing with the police even after the young ladies and restaurant employees had declined to press charges. Then, apparently, when he met with the coaches he lied to them about it and showed little to no remorse. So, basically, he threw away a scholarship to play QB at the University of Georgia by being a gigantic buffoon. Stupid is as stupid does, I guess.
I think that Coach Richt has proven over the years that if you do show contrition and true remorse over your dumb decisions, you will get another chance...that's why I think that his attitude about the situation probably played as much into the ultimate decision as anything else.
(the previous paragraph is strictly my own opinion, and are not based on any inside knowledge of the situation AT ALL...just knowledge of human behavior and how we have seen Coach Richt handle these situations in the past)
- On offense, no matter who the quarterback is, I think the philosophy has to be a HEAVY dose of King/Ealy, with the passing game being predicated on play-action, bootleg type plays to the playmakers (Green, Charles, Wootentheballcarrier, etc). I think that fits our personnel and, fortunately, I think it fits what Bobo wants to do anyway.
I love our offensive line, I love our playmakers...if we can just get adequate QB play and, most importantly, CUT DOWN ON TURNOVERS AND STUPID PENALTIES, I think our offense has a chance to be even better than it was last year...and last year's offense was pretty darn good, for the most part.
The biggest problem with this team right now, based on the last couple of seasons, is that they play dumb football. Hopefully, the changes that have been made will result in a fresh energy and renewed focus on fundamentals, as well as increased accountability on both sides of the ball, and this team will start playing up their talent level.
Oh, and....NO MORE DIRECTIONAL KICKOFFS!!! WOOHOO!!!
Will the Braves be good enough to hold my interest until fall camp starts?
I don't ask much from the Braves anymore...just be good enough so that I have something to pay attention to until early August, when the beginning of fall camp effectively ends the baseball season for me.
So far, results are mixed....
- The starting pitching is very good...it would be great if Derek Lowe could start earning that $15M salary. The way things are going right now, I think this rotation would be better with Kawakami as the number 4, with Lowe as the number 5 starter/long relief guy. Not that this could ever happen, because of the monetary investment the team has in Lowe.
Jurrjens has been sharp other than one horrid outing, Hanson continues to develop, and Hudson seems to be fully recovered. Lowe is just the fly in the punch bowl.
- Bullpen has been excellent so far...I just hope that Wagner and Saito (combined age: 378) can make it through an entire season.
- I consider myself lucky to be able to watch Jason Heyward. So much has been said about him that I can't add much...he's a superstar, he's going to be a Hall of Famer, and we're getting to watch the first green shoots of his career on a nightly basis.
- TERRIBLE offseason for Frank Wren. We traded Vasquez (arguably our best pitcher last year) for Melky Cabrera, who is just atrocious. Yes, I am aware that either Vasquez or Lowe were going to be moved, and teams were understandably reluctant to take on Lowe and his $15M salary (see above)...but the best we could get was Melky Cabrera, for one of the best pitchers in the NL?
(SIDE NOTE: You know how some trades just work out perfectly, in that both teams are getting exactly what they need even though they are both giving up something of value? The Smoltz - Doyle Alexander trade comes to mind...this was like the exact opposite of that. Vasquez had already proven that A) he is much better suited to the National League; and B) he can't pitch in New York. So the Yankees give up what had been a pretty good 4th outfielder for them for someone who is predestined to be a disaster, and we give up our best starter for a guy who is at best a 4th outfielder, but expect him to be an everyday outfielder and leadoff hitter. Both sides lose.)
"Oh, but wait!" says Frank Wren. "We're not done yet! I know we need a big bat for this lineup, a guy you can count on for HR and run production! Don't judge this move until you see what ELSE we have planned!".
I say, "OK....awesome! Maybe this means we are getting in on the Matt Holliday/Jason Bay discussions? Somebody like that?"
Um...no. Instead we sign Troy Glaus. The same Troy Glaus who missed all of 2009 with an elbow injury, and hasn't been nearly the same player ever since the Mitchell Report was published.
I don't think I have ever yelled at my radio with as much fury as I did the day that Frank Wren was interviewed during spring training and he went on and on about how tall the middle of our lineup had the potential to be. "Man, look at us...Chipper is 6'4, Glaus is 6'6, Heyward is 6'5. That's got to be intimidating for a pitcher!"
Look, if you are in any way intimidated by the sight of Troy Glaus coming to the plate, you have no business being a major league pitcher. Any pitcher worth his salt has to be SALIVATING at watching this automatic rally killer come up in a key spot. His line so far? .170 Avg, .524 OPS, 16 strikeouts and 8 RBI in 53 AB. Yeah....twice as many strikeouts as RBI. That's not good for a #5 hitter, right?
I say we put Eric Hinske in the lineup every single day, and let Troy Glaus do what he does best. Be really tall.
Anyway...this team would fit in really well in the mid-80's National League. Great pitching, solid defense, and an offense that is going to put up maybe 3-4 runs a game. In today's baseball, that's just not enough.
Hey, did you know the Hawks are in the playoffs?
The Hawks are currently manhandling the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Without Andrew Bogut, the Bucks have absolutely no answer for Al Horford and Josh Smith inside, and they are wreaking havoc.
Josh, in particular, has been a joy to watch this season. He seems to have finally come to grips with the fact that he is never going to be a three-point shooter and is instead doing...everything else. He fills the box score up like Scottie Pippen, and also includes the whining to officials like Pippen, but without the bad hair (seriously...what was UP with that guy's scalp? It looked like it had been PLOWED or something). A typical night from him is like 16 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, and 4 thunderous dunks that fire the whole team up and keeps them involved in the game.
Here's the down side...this team isn't getting out of the 2nd round, and it's all because of their head coach. The Hawks have two glaring weaknesses...inconsistent effort on defense and an utter lack of a halfcourt offense. These are the two things that kill a team in the playoffs, especially once they get out of the first round and start facing really good teams, and they can both be attributed to poor coaching, in my opinion.
Mike Woodson has been very lucky in that he has been the coach during a time when a very young team has grown up together, so he gets credit for the win totals increasing every year. And I don't think Woodson is a TERRIBLE head coach...I just think his specific deficiencies are the ones most likely to be exploited in the postseason.
Hopefully, I'm wrong...Atlanta certainly has the talent to match up with the Magic in the second round. If we can get past them, maybe we can win one or two games against Lebron and the Cavs. That's probably the absolute ceiling for this team.
OK...that was fun! Turns out I had more to say than I thought I did...maybe I should do this more often?
Friday, February 26, 2010
Getting fired up!
Spring practice is only a week away…that fact really hit home with me yesterday as I was on the way home from work and got to hear yet another great interview with Coach Grantham on 790.
I love everything that I have heard from Coach Grantham about the aggressive intensity and mental toughness that he plans on being the trademark of his defense. Seriously, he must have said the words “aggressive, physical, relentless” about a dozen times. Plus, he continues to reiterate his goal that every team who plays us will be glad when the game is over so they don’t have to deal with us anymore. I LOVE that. For too long, I feel like we have been in such a "reactionary" position, and it's about time that WE become the ones dictating the pace and style of the game rather than always being on our heels.
Between that interview, this BEASTLY post, and then this and this from the great David Hale….I am getting seriously fired up about what the Dawgs defense is going to be in 2010 and beyond.
I feel like our personnel is actually much better suited to an aggressive, attacking 3-4 than what we have run in the past. Houston and Washington are natural OLB’s in a 3-4. Our linebackers are MUCH better at read/react and fly to the football then they are in a “softer” coverage-based defense. The one position where I was worried about depth next year, defensive tackle, all of a sudden looks much more sturdy when you only have to fill one position instead of two.
One other guy to look out for at OLB that doesn’t really get talked up in those posts is incoming freshman TJ Stripling. This seems to be a guy who was created specifically to either play the OLB position in a 3-4 scheme or hunt down commandos in the jungles of Central America, and I can't wait to see him get on the field.
I expect that the combination of the agressive style and the early unfamiliarity with assignments may lead to some blown coverages and big plays early on, but I think if Dawg Nation is patient and understands that going in, then the longterm rewards will be measured in championships!
GO DAWGS!!!
I love everything that I have heard from Coach Grantham about the aggressive intensity and mental toughness that he plans on being the trademark of his defense. Seriously, he must have said the words “aggressive, physical, relentless” about a dozen times. Plus, he continues to reiterate his goal that every team who plays us will be glad when the game is over so they don’t have to deal with us anymore. I LOVE that. For too long, I feel like we have been in such a "reactionary" position, and it's about time that WE become the ones dictating the pace and style of the game rather than always being on our heels.
Between that interview, this BEASTLY post, and then this and this from the great David Hale….I am getting seriously fired up about what the Dawgs defense is going to be in 2010 and beyond.
I feel like our personnel is actually much better suited to an aggressive, attacking 3-4 than what we have run in the past. Houston and Washington are natural OLB’s in a 3-4. Our linebackers are MUCH better at read/react and fly to the football then they are in a “softer” coverage-based defense. The one position where I was worried about depth next year, defensive tackle, all of a sudden looks much more sturdy when you only have to fill one position instead of two.
One other guy to look out for at OLB that doesn’t really get talked up in those posts is incoming freshman TJ Stripling. This seems to be a guy who was created specifically to either play the OLB position in a 3-4 scheme or hunt down commandos in the jungles of Central America, and I can't wait to see him get on the field.
I expect that the combination of the agressive style and the early unfamiliarity with assignments may lead to some blown coverages and big plays early on, but I think if Dawg Nation is patient and understands that going in, then the longterm rewards will be measured in championships!
GO DAWGS!!!
Monday, January 18, 2010
My thoughts on the Grantham hire
Sorry for the delayed response...busy weekend
Big picture, I was just happy to finally see the DC search come to an end…between the muckrakers at the AJC and the rapidly plummeting IQ level of the average message board fan, I basically had to force myself away from some websites. I could just feel myself getting stoopider
I honestly believe that Coach Richt had a plan, and we saw it materialize at the only time that it could…after the national championship game. Kirby was always the first choice, and Grantham was the fallback position. Obviously, there were conversations with Bud Foster and John Chavis, but I don’t believe they ever progressed to the point of an offer being made. If either of them really wanted to leave their current position, then maybe the talks would have been escalated, but I don’t think it ever got past a “feeling-out” situation.
I’ve made my thoughts on the Kirby Smart situation pretty clear…bottom line, I never expected him to leave Alabama, but I also never expected him to use his alma mater as leverage. Guess “Once a Dawg, Always a Dawg” can be applied selectively. He’s dead to me.
My thoughts on the Grantham hire:
Big picture, I was just happy to finally see the DC search come to an end…between the muckrakers at the AJC and the rapidly plummeting IQ level of the average message board fan, I basically had to force myself away from some websites. I could just feel myself getting stoopider
I honestly believe that Coach Richt had a plan, and we saw it materialize at the only time that it could…after the national championship game. Kirby was always the first choice, and Grantham was the fallback position. Obviously, there were conversations with Bud Foster and John Chavis, but I don’t believe they ever progressed to the point of an offer being made. If either of them really wanted to leave their current position, then maybe the talks would have been escalated, but I don’t think it ever got past a “feeling-out” situation.
I’ve made my thoughts on the Kirby Smart situation pretty clear…bottom line, I never expected him to leave Alabama, but I also never expected him to use his alma mater as leverage. Guess “Once a Dawg, Always a Dawg” can be applied selectively. He’s dead to me.
My thoughts on the Grantham hire:
- With a name like that, you just know he’s gonna be successful. :-)
- If you haven't had the chance to check out Coach Grantham's teleconference quotes, do yourself a favor here.
My favorite quote? “I think what you want as a defense is, after the game is over, the team you just played, they're happy they don't have to play you anymore.”
Awesome. That is the mentality that I believe we have been missing over the last few years…our defense was not instilling fear into anybody. We were never dictating to the opposing offense, we were always instead reacting to what they were dictating to us.
Sounds to me like Coach Grantham is looking to install a swarming, aggressive, eleven hats to the ball, Junkyard Dawg mentality. We’ll probably give up some big plays, especially early on, but in the long run I think this will be the style of defense Dawg fans have been hoping to see for YEARS.
- Like a lot of people, I was initially concerned about the switch to a 3-4 because we have run a 4-3 for so long that I was afraid there would be a rebuilding phase as we switch over. But the more I look at the roster, the better I feel about it.
One of my biggest concerns from a personnel perspective has been how thin we were getting at defensive tackle, with the top three in our rotation all graduating this year. Well, in a 3-4 you only need one DT. So between Tyson, Wood, Jones, Geathers, and Lott returning, Garrison Smith already committed, and hopefully at least one more (either Thornton or Whitaker, preferably), I think we should be able to put together a pretty good 2-3 man rotation.
There has been some concern that we don’t have the prototypical space-eater nose tackle, and that concern probably has some merit. But Coach Grantham’s current nose tackle, Jay Ratliffe, is in the 290-300 pound range and he’s playing in the Pro Bowl this year. The important thing is that the NT be able to occupy two blockers, and you can do that with technique and quickness off the ball if you don’t have the size.
T.J. Stripling was born to play outside linebacker in a 3-4. Wouldn’t be surprised to see Justin Houston and/or Cornelius
In other words, I think a lot of people are going to be surprised at how well are personnel translates to the type of defense that Coach Grantham is probably going to run.
- I love that we got a coach with NFL experience…I think that will be a great recruiting tool. I will love it even more if he brings former Dawg and current Saints assistant Travis Jones into the fold as well.
If that means we lose Rodney Garner, so be it. I have tons of respect for Coach Garner, and I think he may be underrated as a position coach, but whatever we lose from a recruiting perspective in Coach Garner I think can be made up. John Lilly is also one of the most respected recruiters in the South, and he is already on the staff. Coach Bobo and Coach Searles are establishing their own reputations as solid recruiters. And I think that Coach Grantham has the potential to be a strong recruiter as well, with the combination of his attitude and NFL pedigree.
If you can’t tell, I am excited about the hire. I think Coach Richt and Damon Evans deserve a lot of credit, both for how the process was handled and for the result.
So…honeymoon’s over, Coach G. Time to get to work.
GO DAWGS!!
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