Going forward, this place is probably going to be a lot more stream-of-consciousness...if some repeatable patterns start popping up, I may do some more structured posting, but for now it's going to be just the stuff that I am thinking about, or talking my coworkers' ears off about.
- Still can't get over how dominant Alabama was in the national title game Monday night. They were one late penalty away from basically pitching a perfect game...no points allowed, no turnovers, and no penalties. And not against Coastal Carolina, either...this was against the undisputed number one team in the country, who had beaten three top 5 teams already this year, and was basically ripping their way through everybody. Add that to the fact that they really outplayed LSU the first time they played them (they just couldn't hit a field goal), and there is no doubt in my mind who deserves to be the national champion.
Which brings me to a subject that I am likely only to post on once (or at least not more than once a year)...the BCS vs. playoffs debate. I am almost 100% anti-playoff. I feel like that puts me in an increasingly small minority, but I do have my reasons...
First of all, I love that the college football regular season is the most meaningful in all of sports. EVERY week really does matter. People dispute that, because teams lose and still get in almost every year, but I look at it this way...at least with the current setup, if you are serious about playing for a national title you better at least APPROACH every week as if it is a must win, because you never know what game is going to be the one that costs you. When Alabama lost to LSU on November 5, for all they knew their hopes at a national title were over. And they would have been, too, if Oklahoma State, Stanford, Oregon, and Boise State had not all lost games that they should have won. If we go to a playoff, then that sense of urgency is lessened....we can argue about how MUCH it's lessened, but I don't want it lessened at ALL.
Because of that, the only playoff system that I can get behind is one that includes NO MORE than four teams....if you're not in the top 4, there's a reason, and you are not elite. And the playoff system that will most likely be implemented at some point probably will be only four (or even a plus one)...but I've watched the NCAA long enough to know that mission creep is not a possibility...it's an inevitability. One thing the NCAA can't resist is the siren song of cash, and if four teams makes them a gazillion dollars, they are just going to want to make TWO gazillion, so why not go to EIGHT teams, etc..
The other reason I like the BCS is that it is a system that rewards an entire body of work...too often, playoffs and tournaments are won by teams that just got hot at the right time. I like to see excellence rewarded, and I think that almost 100% of the time the two teams that are matched up in the BCS championship are the two teams that most deserve to be there based on their entire body of work. The teams that don't make it are USUALLY not there for a very good reason...either they lost to somebody they shouldn't have, or they didn't beat anybody of note. I don't like the idea of one of those teams sneaking in to the playoffs and then riding a late season hot streak to a championship.
So that's just one man's opinion...we can debate in the comments, but this is a subject that I think gets beat to death in the blogosphere, so I doubt I will post on it too often.
- Good news out of the Georgia Bulldog front yesterday...Orson is leaving (as expected), but virtually the entire defense is returning, as well as our defensive coordinator (after a pretty silly report that he may be flirting with the Falcons). That defense should be an absolute blast to watch next year...let's just hope the offensive line gels, a running back steps up, Aaron Murray continues to develop, etc...next year could be special.
(note: "special" = running through a fairly weak regular season schedule, inching our way in to the Top 5, losing to the Alabama juggernaut in the SECCG, and then winning a Sugar Bowl, setting ourselves up for a similar season in 2013. VERY early predictions there.)
- There are MANY times that I wish I was a TV critic, and seeing reports from the 2 Broke Girls panel at press tour yesterday was certainly one of those times. Jut deliciously awkward and hostile. Excellent writeups are HERE and HERE, from Alan Sepinwall and Todd VanderWerff, respectively. The VanderWerff writeup is particularly interesting, because Todd has been one of the more outspoken defenders of the show online...don't think that's going to be the case anymore.
Todd's opinion of the show has been much like mine: that there is a really good show in there, particularly in the performances of Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs....but that show is being buried under an avalanche of bad puns, racial stereotypes, and raunchiness for raunchiness sake. There is a way to do racial stereotypes and off color humor WELL (see Happy Endings "rotary dial" joke last night for an example of the second thing), but Michael Patrick King is WAY too arrogant and tone deaf to ever be able to pull that off successfully.
It's a shame...I will probably keep watching the show, because I do enjoy the two leads, but I no longer hold out hope that it will turn in to the show that I had hoped it would be.
- The winner of the ABC comedy block last night...Happy Endings. I laughed so much I missed some of the jokes...I'm going to have to start keeping the show on my DVR so that I can go back and rewatch, to get the full experience. They just throw 50 jokes a minute at you...they might not all hit, but there are so many of them that I'm usually laughing nonstop. Favorite part last night? Anything involving the racist, slightly homophobic, parrot that Alex bought on Craigslist from Aryan420. "You trippin, bird..."
Pretty solid outings from Suburgatory and Modern Family, as well....but Happy Endings is the big winner from last night.
- As for tonight...Community may not be back (::sob::), but the rest of the NBC Thursday lineup is, including the return of Parks and Rec (my #3 show of 2011), and 30 Rock.
Also, if you have HBO and have never seen the Paradise Lost documentaries that detail the case of the West Memphis 3, I highly recommend checking your listings for tonight and the next couple days...they are replaying the first two parts and then premiering part 3...if you want to be really furious, and then sad, and then sort of happy but still sad/mad at the same time, you should check it out.
OK! Glad to be back in the blogsosphere...please excuse my rust as I try to get back in the swing of this thing!
Showing posts with label S-E-C SPEEEED. Show all posts
Showing posts with label S-E-C SPEEEED. Show all posts
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Thursday, October 22, 2009
SEC suspends officiating crew - now what?
So, the SEC suspended the Marc Curles crew that has been the talk of the blogosphere (for all the wrong reasons) for the last couple of weeks. Obviously, I applaud the move...anything intended to hold these officials accountable is a definite plus.
Then I got to thinking...what kind of slippery slope is the SEC headed down? If they start suspending crews every time they make ridiculous calls, they may be out of zebras by mid-November.
I'm only half-kidding.
Consider this hypothetical...Would you agree that there is at least a 50% chance that some boneheaded official (let's call him Wynn Pagers) makes a typical stupid call this week in the Alabama-Tennessee game that affects the game? OK, let's say that next week, Wynn is assigned the Cocktail Party, and he calls unsportsmanlike conduct on Caleb King for daring to cross the goal line against the Gator defense. Will not all of us Dawg fans be all over the interwebs and call-in shows calling for...nay, DEMANDING that Mr. Pagers and the rest of his crew face similar disciplinary action? I know I would...in fact, I may take the week off work solely for that purpose.
You see, now that Commish Slive has made a public effort to hold his officials accountable, it is now HIS office that will be held accountable. If he thinks that making this one move will quell the increasing public outcry regarding the repetitive incompetence of his officials, well...that's a sweet notion, but I don't see it happening.
By the way, I thought this particular quote from Slive was just a real side-splitter:
Anyway...what I hope happens is something similar to what I outlined above (except for the penalty against the Dawgs, of course). I hope there is an outpouring of criticism and demands for suspensions every week, and the storm gets so intense that the conference is FORCED to do something about their embarrassing tradition of inept officiating. Make the refs full-time, hold them more publicly accountable, just do SOMETHING.
And, while you're at it, petition the NCAA to stop making rules up that are impossible to enforce, like "excessive celebration". Leave it to the NCAA to outlaw happiness.
Then I got to thinking...what kind of slippery slope is the SEC headed down? If they start suspending crews every time they make ridiculous calls, they may be out of zebras by mid-November.
I'm only half-kidding.
Consider this hypothetical...Would you agree that there is at least a 50% chance that some boneheaded official (let's call him Wynn Pagers) makes a typical stupid call this week in the Alabama-Tennessee game that affects the game? OK, let's say that next week, Wynn is assigned the Cocktail Party, and he calls unsportsmanlike conduct on Caleb King for daring to cross the goal line against the Gator defense. Will not all of us Dawg fans be all over the interwebs and call-in shows calling for...nay, DEMANDING that Mr. Pagers and the rest of his crew face similar disciplinary action? I know I would...in fact, I may take the week off work solely for that purpose.
You see, now that Commish Slive has made a public effort to hold his officials accountable, it is now HIS office that will be held accountable. If he thinks that making this one move will quell the increasing public outcry regarding the repetitive incompetence of his officials, well...that's a sweet notion, but I don't see it happening.
By the way, I thought this particular quote from Slive was just a real side-splitter:
"A series of calls that have occurred during the last several weeks have not been to the standard that we expect from our officiating crews...I believe our officiating program is the best in the country."So, from that I gather that the commish is busy doing other things on Saturday rather than watch the football being played in his conference, because...that is just RICH. Those calls were EXACTLY the standard that I expect from SEC crews, so I don't really know what he's talking about.
Anyway...what I hope happens is something similar to what I outlined above (except for the penalty against the Dawgs, of course). I hope there is an outpouring of criticism and demands for suspensions every week, and the storm gets so intense that the conference is FORCED to do something about their embarrassing tradition of inept officiating. Make the refs full-time, hold them more publicly accountable, just do SOMETHING.
And, while you're at it, petition the NCAA to stop making rules up that are impossible to enforce, like "excessive celebration". Leave it to the NCAA to outlaw happiness.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Recap - Vanderbilt
I’ve decided I like a more free-flowing, stream-of-consciousness approach to my recaps rather than the “Great-Good-Bad-Ugly” thing I was doing earlier…unfortunately for you, that probably means I’ll be even more long-winded and rambling than normal.
My assorted thoughts from Saturday…
- I’m as guilty of the “it’s just Vandy” meme as anybody else, but regardless…that was a solid effort on both sides of the ball, and maybe the most complete game that the Dawgs have played in over a year. No matter the competition, it was exactly the kind of performance we HAD to have at this point in the season.
Can you imagine if, God forbid, we had lost that game, or even pulled out an ugly win a la ASU or South Carolina? This would have been a LONG two weeks leading up to Jacksonville. Instead, both the team and the fanbase get to feel a little better about things, which I think will help in the ramp-up to the Cocktail Party.
- Speaking of Jacksonville…the Gators sure looked beatable on Saturday, at least until the officiating crew decided to make it 11 on 16. They have not been able to establish any kind of consistent running game, and the only reliable receivers they have are Cooper and Hernandez. Call me crazy, but I ain’t skeered…more on that game coming in the next couple of weeks.
As for the officiating in that Gators-Hawgs game… I almost said “unbelievable” to describe that debacle, but the sad part is that it is all too believable. It’s like I have said for a while now...I’ve been watching SEC football in particular and football in general for most of my life. I don’t think SEC refs are crooked. I think they are too stupid to be crooked. I think that at least one or two times in every game they are going to COMPLETELY screw something up. You just hope that it doesn’t affect the outcome of the game, like it did to us against LSU or against the Hawgs on Saturday. The personal foul call against Arkansas during Florida’s last drive was just egregiously putrid. Basically, the Arky lineman was penalized 15 yards for being blocked, 25 yards away from the play.
The problem with incompetent officials is not that they are intentionally biased…it is that they are far too easily swayed by influences such as homefield advantage and which team is “supposed” to win.
One more point on the officials, and then I’ll move on...something has to be done about the “unsportsmanlike conduct/excessive celebration” rule before next year. If they are not going to take it out completely, then they have to find a way to make the rule less open for interpretation. Apparently, the Dawgs can’t even fart after a play without being called for unsportsmanlike conduct, but the Dores defensive lineman can rip Joe C’s towel off his waist and throw it in the air after a sack with no call. And don’t even get me started on Saint Timmy…if the rule is supposed to prevent players from calling attention to themselves after a play, why is Tebow allowed to stalk 8-10 yards away from everybody else and practically do a rain dance every time he runs the ball for a first down?
Moving on…
- It’s blatantly obvious what all of us have been saying for the past couple of years…a dominating defensive end is absolutely essential for a Willie Martinez defense to be effective. Justin Houston has been a difference maker ever since he came back from suspension, and he continued his great play on Saturday.
Tennessee was able to lessen his impact by rolling Crompton away from him, and we (of course) were either unable or uninterested in making any adjustments.
Other obvious observations (the only kind I’m really good at) about our defense:
- A.J. Green. Good grief. What is left to say? That 65 yard TD was a thing of beauty, and the amazing thing about was it didn’t even look like he was trying all that hard.
I’ve said it before…I think he is well on his way to becoming the 2nd greatest football player we have ever had. Feel free to give your own nominations in the comments, and maybe I’ll pull together a list we can go over during the bye week.
- Add me to the list of people who loved seeing Coach Bobo on the sideline. Even when I first heard about it, before we were able to see what effect, if any, it would have on the gameplan or playcalling, I loved the move for one simple reason: It was an acknowledgement that SOMETHING needed to change, that what had happened to this point was not acceptable and something needed to be done about it. Very comforting to see that the coaching staff is willing to change things up.
I have no idea if it helped the playcalling or not, but I do know that I loved seeing the energy that Bobo brought to the sidelines that we never get to see from him in the booth. I also think that it helped to be able to speak one-on-one with Joe and the other players when things weren’t going so well in the first half. Plus, I think it may have helped him get more of a “feel” for what was working and what wasn’t, being down there with the guys.
Whatever…I enjoyed seeing it, and the results seemed to follow, so I would definitely expect to see it again in Jacksonville.
- On the flip side, when it comes to coaching…the fake punt. Ugh. The reasons that was so disgusting:
Ugh.
- Blair Walsh is MONEY. Drew Butler is a MACHINE. Never thought I would say this, but thank God for our kickers.
- Prince Miller is a very good punt returner. Logan Gray is not. You would think that would factor into our personnel decisions on punt return. You would be incorrect.
- Brandon Boykin is a true weapon on kick return, and he continues to improve in pass coverage as well.
- Washaun Ealy and Caleb King should be our primary running backs, and we should continue to try and get the ball to Carlton Thomas IN SPACE (NOT BETWEEN THE TACKLES…HE IS BUILT LIKE A SMALL CHILD, FOR GOD’S SAKE! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL HIM?)
- Welcome back to the linebacker position, Richard Samuel.
I don’t honestly think that’s going to happen, but it’s what I would do. Yet another inexcusable fumble in this game, even though we did recover it. He wasn’t even hit that hard…the ball just came out.
Overall, this was exactly the kind of game we needed at exactly the right time.
My schedule is lightening up a little, so I may be posting a little more often. Try to contain your excitement.
Since it’s a bye week, I may even throw in a few thoughts on the fall TV season to date.
GO DAWGS!!
My assorted thoughts from Saturday…
- I’m as guilty of the “it’s just Vandy” meme as anybody else, but regardless…that was a solid effort on both sides of the ball, and maybe the most complete game that the Dawgs have played in over a year. No matter the competition, it was exactly the kind of performance we HAD to have at this point in the season.
Can you imagine if, God forbid, we had lost that game, or even pulled out an ugly win a la ASU or South Carolina? This would have been a LONG two weeks leading up to Jacksonville. Instead, both the team and the fanbase get to feel a little better about things, which I think will help in the ramp-up to the Cocktail Party.
- Speaking of Jacksonville…the Gators sure looked beatable on Saturday, at least until the officiating crew decided to make it 11 on 16. They have not been able to establish any kind of consistent running game, and the only reliable receivers they have are Cooper and Hernandez. Call me crazy, but I ain’t skeered…more on that game coming in the next couple of weeks.
As for the officiating in that Gators-Hawgs game… I almost said “unbelievable” to describe that debacle, but the sad part is that it is all too believable. It’s like I have said for a while now...I’ve been watching SEC football in particular and football in general for most of my life. I don’t think SEC refs are crooked. I think they are too stupid to be crooked. I think that at least one or two times in every game they are going to COMPLETELY screw something up. You just hope that it doesn’t affect the outcome of the game, like it did to us against LSU or against the Hawgs on Saturday. The personal foul call against Arkansas during Florida’s last drive was just egregiously putrid. Basically, the Arky lineman was penalized 15 yards for being blocked, 25 yards away from the play.
The problem with incompetent officials is not that they are intentionally biased…it is that they are far too easily swayed by influences such as homefield advantage and which team is “supposed” to win.
One more point on the officials, and then I’ll move on...something has to be done about the “unsportsmanlike conduct/excessive celebration” rule before next year. If they are not going to take it out completely, then they have to find a way to make the rule less open for interpretation. Apparently, the Dawgs can’t even fart after a play without being called for unsportsmanlike conduct, but the Dores defensive lineman can rip Joe C’s towel off his waist and throw it in the air after a sack with no call. And don’t even get me started on Saint Timmy…if the rule is supposed to prevent players from calling attention to themselves after a play, why is Tebow allowed to stalk 8-10 yards away from everybody else and practically do a rain dance every time he runs the ball for a first down?
Moving on…
- It’s blatantly obvious what all of us have been saying for the past couple of years…a dominating defensive end is absolutely essential for a Willie Martinez defense to be effective. Justin Houston has been a difference maker ever since he came back from suspension, and he continued his great play on Saturday.
Tennessee was able to lessen his impact by rolling Crompton away from him, and we (of course) were either unable or uninterested in making any adjustments.
Other obvious observations (the only kind I’m really good at) about our defense:
- Bryan Evans, God love him, should not be taking ANY playing time away from Bacarri Rambo. Rambo continues to make plays every time he is on the field, while Evans continues to show up on my television screen trying to chase somebody down from behind who has just burned him in pass coverage.
- For everything great about Rennie Curran (and there are TONS of great things), there is also this…his weakness is in pass coverage. Way too many of the open tight ends we have seen this year have been his responsibility, at least as best as I can tell…some of them have been so wide open that it is impossible to tell who had responsibility, if anybody.
- A.J. Green. Good grief. What is left to say? That 65 yard TD was a thing of beauty, and the amazing thing about was it didn’t even look like he was trying all that hard.
I’ve said it before…I think he is well on his way to becoming the 2nd greatest football player we have ever had. Feel free to give your own nominations in the comments, and maybe I’ll pull together a list we can go over during the bye week.
- Add me to the list of people who loved seeing Coach Bobo on the sideline. Even when I first heard about it, before we were able to see what effect, if any, it would have on the gameplan or playcalling, I loved the move for one simple reason: It was an acknowledgement that SOMETHING needed to change, that what had happened to this point was not acceptable and something needed to be done about it. Very comforting to see that the coaching staff is willing to change things up.
I have no idea if it helped the playcalling or not, but I do know that I loved seeing the energy that Bobo brought to the sidelines that we never get to see from him in the booth. I also think that it helped to be able to speak one-on-one with Joe and the other players when things weren’t going so well in the first half. Plus, I think it may have helped him get more of a “feel” for what was working and what wasn’t, being down there with the guys.
Whatever…I enjoyed seeing it, and the results seemed to follow, so I would definitely expect to see it again in Jacksonville.
- On the flip side, when it comes to coaching…the fake punt. Ugh. The reasons that was so disgusting:
- Down-and-distance and field position dictated that it was the perfect opportunity for the Dores to call the fake, and yet we were totally unprepared…AGAIN. I know it’s “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me”…what about “Fool me a dozen times”? Is there a folksy little saying to describe that? How about “I’m so stupid I’m surprised I manage to walk upright”?
- Even worse…we called a timeout right before it happened. What exactly did our staff and players discuss during that timeout, if not the possibility of a fake?
Ugh.
- Blair Walsh is MONEY. Drew Butler is a MACHINE. Never thought I would say this, but thank God for our kickers.
- Prince Miller is a very good punt returner. Logan Gray is not. You would think that would factor into our personnel decisions on punt return. You would be incorrect.
- Brandon Boykin is a true weapon on kick return, and he continues to improve in pass coverage as well.
- Washaun Ealy and Caleb King should be our primary running backs, and we should continue to try and get the ball to Carlton Thomas IN SPACE (NOT BETWEEN THE TACKLES…HE IS BUILT LIKE A SMALL CHILD, FOR GOD’S SAKE! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL HIM?)
- Welcome back to the linebacker position, Richard Samuel.
I don’t honestly think that’s going to happen, but it’s what I would do. Yet another inexcusable fumble in this game, even though we did recover it. He wasn’t even hit that hard…the ball just came out.
Overall, this was exactly the kind of game we needed at exactly the right time.
My schedule is lightening up a little, so I may be posting a little more often. Try to contain your excitement.
Since it’s a bye week, I may even throw in a few thoughts on the fall TV season to date.
GO DAWGS!!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
BIG game today
Today's game is huge for both teams, but especially the Dawgs...this could be the swing game between something like 9-3 and 7-5 or 6-6.
I've been busy again this week, but I also am holding off on posting some things that I really don't want to...it's sufficient to say that I'm hoping to see a HUGE change in mindset from this team and coaching staff today.
Here, this should help us feel a LITTLE better...
Check the 0:15 point of this clip... :-)
And, finally, a fellow Austell, GA native:
GO DAWGS!!!!!!!
I've been busy again this week, but I also am holding off on posting some things that I really don't want to...it's sufficient to say that I'm hoping to see a HUGE change in mindset from this team and coaching staff today.
Here, this should help us feel a LITTLE better...
Check the 0:15 point of this clip... :-)
And, finally, a fellow Austell, GA native:
GO DAWGS!!!!!!!
Friday, September 25, 2009
The week that was...
Hello, interwebs! Have you missed me?
For my longtime readers (all 2 of you), you may remember that around this time last year my posting schedule became sporadic at best, nonexistent at worst. This is my busiest time of the year at my job, and by the time I get home I tend to collapse on the couch rather than share all my remarkable insight with all of you…for that, I apologize. I’m not sure how you survive without me.
(that was sarcasm, by the way)
So…what’s been going on?
- I guess I’ll be the last Dawg blogger to remark on the comments Coach Martinez made this week regarding the play of the defense so far (h/t to David Hale).
Here’s the thing…I don’t expect CWM to say, “OK, we’ve done this, this and this from a scheme standpoint, and now we are going to do that, that, and that instead.” I understand that his answers are going to be a bit vague, by necessity. However, what I DO expect is for him to say is something like, “This is my fault. Whether it’s scheme or execution, it doesn’t matter…the buck stops here.” Instead, he says that the players are in the right position, they just have to make the play, which is another way of saying, “My scheme is fine, these players are just screwing up.”
I’m not even saying that this is not a true statement…but ultimately, as the Defensive Coordinator, isn’t it his job to make sure these guys are executing the scheme properly? I know that he can’t make the plays himself, these are 18-22 year olds, etc, etc…but this is not a problem that has just cropped up in the last two ball games. Our opponents are AVERAGING over 30 points a game against us the last nine games. Those are inexcusable results, regardless of the competition or any extenuating circumstances like offensive turnovers, etc.
Good news is that the coaching staff is at least showing some sense of urgency this week. Looks like there will be a shakeup in the playing time among the secondary, especially at safety. Bryan Evans, God love him…he’s extremely fast and he can definitely bring a lick, but he is just not blessed with the skills to cover anybody one-on-one.
The talent is there on that defense…I still believe that. I keep thinking that this will be the week when that talent meets scheme meets execution and our defense puts together a performance worthy of their Junkyard Dawg reputation. I still think that this week as well.
- ASU prediction: Dawgs continue to gel on offense, seemingly working new playmakers in every week. This week, I say we get big contributions from Brown, Wootentheballcarrier, and Caleb. And, yeah, I’ll say it again in hopes that this week it will be true...the defense finally gets their act together, aided by big games from the emerging DE tandem of Houston and Washington.
Dawgs 38, Devils 13.
NON DAWG STUFF:
- DawgSports put it best about the Ole Miss – South Cackalacky game last night…it was the huge upset everybody saw coming from a mile away. I’ve been saying for months that Ole Miss was overrated…they got WAY too much hype based on a winning streak at the end of last season.
An excerpt from my SEC Media Days coverage:
My opinion on teams like Ole Miss is that they are going to have to elevate themselves to elite status…I ain’t putting them there until they prove that they can do it. Add to the massive hype (and pressure that comes with it) the fact that they had played absolutely nobody so far, so their first real game was on the road, at night, in Columbia against a team that had already been through a couple of real games….and that was easy pickings last night.
Oh, and something else I agree with DawgSports about…I miss Erin Andrews’ hot librarian look from last week.
- Big game coming up for the Falcons, on the road against the Patriots. This is a chance to see if we have really stepped up to an elite status. I know, the Pats haven’t exactly looked like themselves so far, but I think that makes them even more dangerous.
I think this game may look very familiar to Dawgs fans…I don’t see us shutting down the Pats offense, so we are going to have to outscore them. I say we do…Falcons win 38-34.
On a related note, how much of an upgrade is Mike Peterson over Keith Brooking? He makes more plays in one quarter than the overrated Brooking made in the last five years…interceptions, forced fumbles, recovering blocked kicks, big hits BEHIND the line of scrimmage (not seven or eight yards downfield, where Brooking made his living). Another coup by Demitrof, this one with an assist to Mike Smith and the seriously-missed-in-Athens Brian VanGorder, who coached Peterson in Jacksonville and convinced the GM to go get him.
- Looks like next year will be the end of an era, as Bobby Cox has announced that he will step down following the 2010 season. Bobby is a very polarizing figure among Atlanta sports fans…you get people saying that he couldn’t manage his way out of a paper bag, and you get people saying that he was the key to the extended run of success that the team had in the nineties and early aughts.
I think the truth, as usual, is somewhere in the middle. I think that for a 162 game schedule, you would be hard pressed to find a manager better suited to be successful. However, as so often is the case, what makes you awesome is also what makes you suck…his even-keel, never-too-high-never-too-low, “that’s just baseball, we’ll get ‘em tomorrow night” attitude always seemed to carry over into the more pressurized atmosphere of the playoffs. After the first couple of playoff runs, I just never really sensed the intensity out of the Braves dugout the way I did from the opposition…not sure how to quantify that, but if you’re a longtime Braves fan you probably know what I mean.
I do, however, take issue with people who say that he had the best team in the playoffs every year and only managed to win one ring. We may have had the best pitching staff every year, but our top-to-bottom roster was usually not the best in baseball. Now, that being said, we definitely lost to teams (Padres, Cubs, Astros, etc) who I thought we were better than, but I don’t know that we were the best team in baseball any of those years.
The one World Series I thought we “should” have won but didn’t was in ’96. Braves got down 3-1 against the Cardinals in the NLCS, and it looked like it was all over. But they swept the next three against the Cards (winning 14-0, 3-1, and 15-0) and then the first two in Yankee Stadium (winning 12-1 and 4-0). For those five games, that was the greatest baseball team I have ever seen.
You all know what happened next, so I’m not going to rip the scab off that old wound.
Bottom line…Bobby Cox is a Hall of Famer and whether we know it or not, we’ve been lucky to have him for the last two decades.
Wow…I’m starting to think I should have broken this up into several posts. To those still reading, thanks for hanging with me, and I’ll be back on Sunday to recap the Dawgs win over ASU!
GO DAWGS!!!
For my longtime readers (all 2 of you), you may remember that around this time last year my posting schedule became sporadic at best, nonexistent at worst. This is my busiest time of the year at my job, and by the time I get home I tend to collapse on the couch rather than share all my remarkable insight with all of you…for that, I apologize. I’m not sure how you survive without me.
(that was sarcasm, by the way)
So…what’s been going on?
- I guess I’ll be the last Dawg blogger to remark on the comments Coach Martinez made this week regarding the play of the defense so far (h/t to David Hale).
Here’s the thing…I don’t expect CWM to say, “OK, we’ve done this, this and this from a scheme standpoint, and now we are going to do that, that, and that instead.” I understand that his answers are going to be a bit vague, by necessity. However, what I DO expect is for him to say is something like, “This is my fault. Whether it’s scheme or execution, it doesn’t matter…the buck stops here.” Instead, he says that the players are in the right position, they just have to make the play, which is another way of saying, “My scheme is fine, these players are just screwing up.”
I’m not even saying that this is not a true statement…but ultimately, as the Defensive Coordinator, isn’t it his job to make sure these guys are executing the scheme properly? I know that he can’t make the plays himself, these are 18-22 year olds, etc, etc…but this is not a problem that has just cropped up in the last two ball games. Our opponents are AVERAGING over 30 points a game against us the last nine games. Those are inexcusable results, regardless of the competition or any extenuating circumstances like offensive turnovers, etc.
Good news is that the coaching staff is at least showing some sense of urgency this week. Looks like there will be a shakeup in the playing time among the secondary, especially at safety. Bryan Evans, God love him…he’s extremely fast and he can definitely bring a lick, but he is just not blessed with the skills to cover anybody one-on-one.
The talent is there on that defense…I still believe that. I keep thinking that this will be the week when that talent meets scheme meets execution and our defense puts together a performance worthy of their Junkyard Dawg reputation. I still think that this week as well.
- ASU prediction: Dawgs continue to gel on offense, seemingly working new playmakers in every week. This week, I say we get big contributions from Brown, Wootentheballcarrier, and Caleb. And, yeah, I’ll say it again in hopes that this week it will be true...the defense finally gets their act together, aided by big games from the emerging DE tandem of Houston and Washington.
Dawgs 38, Devils 13.
NON DAWG STUFF:
- DawgSports put it best about the Ole Miss – South Cackalacky game last night…it was the huge upset everybody saw coming from a mile away. I’ve been saying for months that Ole Miss was overrated…they got WAY too much hype based on a winning streak at the end of last season.
An excerpt from my SEC Media Days coverage:
It had been 727 days since they won a conference game when they beat Florida. That says a lot about what an impressive performance and huge upset it was, but also...this is the team that so many are picking top 5 and handing the SEC West to? A team that, as recently as last year, had a TWO YEAR conference losing streak going? Excuse me if I don't jump on that bandwagon just yet.
My opinion on teams like Ole Miss is that they are going to have to elevate themselves to elite status…I ain’t putting them there until they prove that they can do it. Add to the massive hype (and pressure that comes with it) the fact that they had played absolutely nobody so far, so their first real game was on the road, at night, in Columbia against a team that had already been through a couple of real games….and that was easy pickings last night.
Oh, and something else I agree with DawgSports about…I miss Erin Andrews’ hot librarian look from last week.
- Big game coming up for the Falcons, on the road against the Patriots. This is a chance to see if we have really stepped up to an elite status. I know, the Pats haven’t exactly looked like themselves so far, but I think that makes them even more dangerous.
I think this game may look very familiar to Dawgs fans…I don’t see us shutting down the Pats offense, so we are going to have to outscore them. I say we do…Falcons win 38-34.
On a related note, how much of an upgrade is Mike Peterson over Keith Brooking? He makes more plays in one quarter than the overrated Brooking made in the last five years…interceptions, forced fumbles, recovering blocked kicks, big hits BEHIND the line of scrimmage (not seven or eight yards downfield, where Brooking made his living). Another coup by Demitrof, this one with an assist to Mike Smith and the seriously-missed-in-Athens Brian VanGorder, who coached Peterson in Jacksonville and convinced the GM to go get him.
- Looks like next year will be the end of an era, as Bobby Cox has announced that he will step down following the 2010 season. Bobby is a very polarizing figure among Atlanta sports fans…you get people saying that he couldn’t manage his way out of a paper bag, and you get people saying that he was the key to the extended run of success that the team had in the nineties and early aughts.
I think the truth, as usual, is somewhere in the middle. I think that for a 162 game schedule, you would be hard pressed to find a manager better suited to be successful. However, as so often is the case, what makes you awesome is also what makes you suck…his even-keel, never-too-high-never-too-low, “that’s just baseball, we’ll get ‘em tomorrow night” attitude always seemed to carry over into the more pressurized atmosphere of the playoffs. After the first couple of playoff runs, I just never really sensed the intensity out of the Braves dugout the way I did from the opposition…not sure how to quantify that, but if you’re a longtime Braves fan you probably know what I mean.
I do, however, take issue with people who say that he had the best team in the playoffs every year and only managed to win one ring. We may have had the best pitching staff every year, but our top-to-bottom roster was usually not the best in baseball. Now, that being said, we definitely lost to teams (Padres, Cubs, Astros, etc) who I thought we were better than, but I don’t know that we were the best team in baseball any of those years.
The one World Series I thought we “should” have won but didn’t was in ’96. Braves got down 3-1 against the Cardinals in the NLCS, and it looked like it was all over. But they swept the next three against the Cards (winning 14-0, 3-1, and 15-0) and then the first two in Yankee Stadium (winning 12-1 and 4-0). For those five games, that was the greatest baseball team I have ever seen.
You all know what happened next, so I’m not going to rip the scab off that old wound.
Bottom line…Bobby Cox is a Hall of Famer and whether we know it or not, we’ve been lucky to have him for the last two decades.
Wow…I’m starting to think I should have broken this up into several posts. To those still reading, thanks for hanging with me, and I’ll be back on Sunday to recap the Dawgs win over ASU!
GO DAWGS!!!
Monday, August 3, 2009
A voice of reason...
One really weird internet meme that has come up over the last few months is Coach Richt somehow being "in trouble", "hearing grumblings", or even "on the hot seat".
Really? Maybe it's just the circle of people I hang out with, but I have no idea where any of this is coming from, and I truly hope this doesn't become one of those stories that everybody latches on to and turns into a self-fulfilling prophesy.
David Hale does a magnificent job of laying out the reasons that this kind of thinking is ridiculous in his blog post today. It's a very informative, well researched piece, and I think that all Dawg fans, ESPECIALLY the ones who somehow, someway feel that we may be able to do better than Coach Richt, should read, re-read, and post on their refrigerator.
I know, every school has its Lunatic Fringe (except Alabama, who has their Reasonable Fringe), but any so-called fan who is thinking we need to be looking for another head coach needs to have his/her head examined. The man has won two SEC championships, played for another, has us in contention for SEC championships on a yearly basis, wins 10 games every year, consistently finishes in the top 10, consistently brings in top 5 recruiting classes, and represents the University with the utmost of class and high moral standing. Yep, let's kick this one to the curb.
No, he doesn't have a national championship yet....YET. But if you look at the performance of the 2002 and 2007 teams, for instance, they had every bit the pedigree that, say, the 2006 Florida team or the 2007 LSU teams had...we just didn't get the benefit of some of the breaks that those teams received.
If Richt's teams continue to perform the way they consistently have (and if you see any reasons to believe they won't, please feel free to enlighten me) then it's simply a matter of WHEN he wins a MNC, not IF.
Maybe that will be enough for the lunatics, but probably not.
GO DAWGS!!!!!
***UPDATE - Cousin Walter at Football on the Brain is apparently as tired of this crap as I am, and he also links to a piece that Tony Barnhart did for AJC that I totally agree with...check it out hyeah.
Really? Maybe it's just the circle of people I hang out with, but I have no idea where any of this is coming from, and I truly hope this doesn't become one of those stories that everybody latches on to and turns into a self-fulfilling prophesy.
David Hale does a magnificent job of laying out the reasons that this kind of thinking is ridiculous in his blog post today. It's a very informative, well researched piece, and I think that all Dawg fans, ESPECIALLY the ones who somehow, someway feel that we may be able to do better than Coach Richt, should read, re-read, and post on their refrigerator.
I know, every school has its Lunatic Fringe (except Alabama, who has their Reasonable Fringe), but any so-called fan who is thinking we need to be looking for another head coach needs to have his/her head examined. The man has won two SEC championships, played for another, has us in contention for SEC championships on a yearly basis, wins 10 games every year, consistently finishes in the top 10, consistently brings in top 5 recruiting classes, and represents the University with the utmost of class and high moral standing. Yep, let's kick this one to the curb.
No, he doesn't have a national championship yet....YET. But if you look at the performance of the 2002 and 2007 teams, for instance, they had every bit the pedigree that, say, the 2006 Florida team or the 2007 LSU teams had...we just didn't get the benefit of some of the breaks that those teams received.
If Richt's teams continue to perform the way they consistently have (and if you see any reasons to believe they won't, please feel free to enlighten me) then it's simply a matter of WHEN he wins a MNC, not IF.
Maybe that will be enough for the lunatics, but probably not.
GO DAWGS!!!!!
***UPDATE - Cousin Walter at Football on the Brain is apparently as tired of this crap as I am, and he also links to a piece that Tony Barnhart did for AJC that I totally agree with...check it out hyeah.
Monday, July 27, 2009
SEC Media Days - Day 3
OK, let's get Chizik out of the way so we can get to the Spurrier/Miles/Kiffykins trifecta...
AUBURN:
- I was disappointed that he talked about spring recruiting with no mention of the War Eagle Express. Seriously, that was the ONLY thing I was interested in hearing ChiZZZZZZZZZZZZZik talk about.
- The SECOND most intriguing thing to me about Auburn next year is what Gus Malzahn, their new OC is going to do. They're trying again with a spread approach. I think Malzahn is a better option than Tony Franklin, and now I think they have a coaching staff that will actually support the philosophy, so I think this one has a better chance at success. Chizik brought up the fact that over the last two years, Malzahn's offenses have averaged over 270 yards on the ground. Last year at Tulsa, his offense was #5 in the country on the ground and #9 through the air...I don't care where you are, that's impressive.
Chris over at SmartFootball gives his thoughts on the Malzahn running game here.
- He made mention of the PR push that has seen Auburn billboards go up all over the place...I've seen a couple of them in the Paulding and Alpharetta areas.
I'm putting up a bounty...if you can give me verifiable proof of you defacing one of these billboards, I will personally award you with a prize package that defies description.
SOUTH CAROLINA:
- Let me add my voice to the chorus of people who do NOT like the new watered down, apologetic, humble Steve Spurrier. I like watching him lose, but I don't like watching him snivel.
Brandon Adams on 790AM made an apt comparison the other day...as a kid, we watched Darth Vader through the first two and a half Star Wars movies and just hated him. Even if we thought he was a cool villain, we still loved to hate him. So then he finally dies in Return of the Jedi, and Lucas turned him into a sympathetic figure...bullied by the Emperor, weak, vulnerable. I felt a little bit cheated...I don't want to feel sorry for Darth Vader! I want to EXULT in his destruction, not sympathize with it!
Similar situation here...I want to ENJOY the downfall of Steve Superior, but instead I have to watch it happen to this pathetic shell of what he used to be.
- Case in point...we start fall practice next week, and he still doesn't know who is going to be in charge of play-calling. Who would have ever imagined that on a Spurrier-coached team?
- But there was one little bit of vintage Spurrier...in response to a question about Stephen Garcia, his entire answer was about incoming freshman athlete Stephon Gilmore possibly playing some quarterback. So don't be surprised to see the typical quick hook we've all come to know and love.
- More about Gilmore...as a true freshman, he is already penciled in at one of the starting corner spots...Joe Cox should have some opportunities to make some plays on 9/12.
- He actually said he was trying not to talk about other schools anymore....that's just sad.
LSU:
- No hat? What's up with THAT?
- Best hire of the offseason, in my opinion: John Chavis as LSU's new DC. That guy saved Phat Phil's job on NUMEROUS occasions.
- Another reason to love Les Miles (which I do)...he was the only coach to bring up the new focus on helmet-to-helmet contact, saying it has a chance to be "over-officiated." You can COUNT on SEC officials screwing this one up at least one or two times a week.
The sissification of America continues....
- This was maybe the most enjoyable Q&A of any of them...a great mix of humor and real football talk.
Bottom line, Jordan Jefferson should be much improved, they still have tons of playmakers on offense (LaFell, Charles Scott, Trinton Holliday, etc) and the defense has nowhere to go but up, especially with the addition of one of the best defensive coordinators in the country.
A lot of people are jumping on the Ole Miss bandwagon. Not me...I'm calling LSU as the SEC West champs.
TENNESSEE:
- Kiffykins! I think it should be mandatory that his wife appears with him at ALL media functions. Yowza.
- He continues to spout this crap about how all of this attention has been good for the program, stating that every 17 year old in the country is seeing UT in the news more than any other school. I don't see how being a national punchline on a regular basis can be construed as a good thing. If he actually believes that, he's extremely naive...if he DOESN'T believe it, then he just thinks that all of us are.
- Another example of The Lane Kiffin Reality....the injuries to all three of his top 3 receivers is a GOOD thing. O....Kay.
- Oh, and he continues the B.S.....he actually is throwing that crap out there that he took less money so that they could pay assistants more. Baloney. He took what he could get from UT, as a head coach with ZERO track record of success. He was the best UT could get, and he was paid according to his record and worth on the market. THEN they went out and overspent on assistants, to make up for the fact that they have a pubescent as a head coach.
Sorry, there is no way you're going to convince me otherwise.
You know what? That's all the Kiffin I can take. And the amazing part is that he actually came off as more likeable than I would have thought possible. But he is either fooling himself, or he thinks the rest of us are fools, if he expects us to buy this whole "Master Plan" nonsense.
That's a wrap, folks...hope you enjoyed my rather lengthy Media Days thoughts. Almost time to tee it up....BETWEEN the HEDGES!!!
GO DAWGS!!!
40 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!!
AUBURN:
- I was disappointed that he talked about spring recruiting with no mention of the War Eagle Express. Seriously, that was the ONLY thing I was interested in hearing ChiZZZZZZZZZZZZZik talk about.
- The SECOND most intriguing thing to me about Auburn next year is what Gus Malzahn, their new OC is going to do. They're trying again with a spread approach. I think Malzahn is a better option than Tony Franklin, and now I think they have a coaching staff that will actually support the philosophy, so I think this one has a better chance at success. Chizik brought up the fact that over the last two years, Malzahn's offenses have averaged over 270 yards on the ground. Last year at Tulsa, his offense was #5 in the country on the ground and #9 through the air...I don't care where you are, that's impressive.
Chris over at SmartFootball gives his thoughts on the Malzahn running game here.
- He made mention of the PR push that has seen Auburn billboards go up all over the place...I've seen a couple of them in the Paulding and Alpharetta areas.
I'm putting up a bounty...if you can give me verifiable proof of you defacing one of these billboards, I will personally award you with a prize package that defies description.
SOUTH CAROLINA:
- Let me add my voice to the chorus of people who do NOT like the new watered down, apologetic, humble Steve Spurrier. I like watching him lose, but I don't like watching him snivel.
Brandon Adams on 790AM made an apt comparison the other day...as a kid, we watched Darth Vader through the first two and a half Star Wars movies and just hated him. Even if we thought he was a cool villain, we still loved to hate him. So then he finally dies in Return of the Jedi, and Lucas turned him into a sympathetic figure...bullied by the Emperor, weak, vulnerable. I felt a little bit cheated...I don't want to feel sorry for Darth Vader! I want to EXULT in his destruction, not sympathize with it!
Similar situation here...I want to ENJOY the downfall of Steve Superior, but instead I have to watch it happen to this pathetic shell of what he used to be.
- Case in point...we start fall practice next week, and he still doesn't know who is going to be in charge of play-calling. Who would have ever imagined that on a Spurrier-coached team?
- But there was one little bit of vintage Spurrier...in response to a question about Stephen Garcia, his entire answer was about incoming freshman athlete Stephon Gilmore possibly playing some quarterback. So don't be surprised to see the typical quick hook we've all come to know and love.
- More about Gilmore...as a true freshman, he is already penciled in at one of the starting corner spots...Joe Cox should have some opportunities to make some plays on 9/12.
- He actually said he was trying not to talk about other schools anymore....that's just sad.
LSU:
- No hat? What's up with THAT?
- Best hire of the offseason, in my opinion: John Chavis as LSU's new DC. That guy saved Phat Phil's job on NUMEROUS occasions.
- Another reason to love Les Miles (which I do)...he was the only coach to bring up the new focus on helmet-to-helmet contact, saying it has a chance to be "over-officiated." You can COUNT on SEC officials screwing this one up at least one or two times a week.
The sissification of America continues....
- This was maybe the most enjoyable Q&A of any of them...a great mix of humor and real football talk.
Bottom line, Jordan Jefferson should be much improved, they still have tons of playmakers on offense (LaFell, Charles Scott, Trinton Holliday, etc) and the defense has nowhere to go but up, especially with the addition of one of the best defensive coordinators in the country.
A lot of people are jumping on the Ole Miss bandwagon. Not me...I'm calling LSU as the SEC West champs.
TENNESSEE:
- Kiffykins! I think it should be mandatory that his wife appears with him at ALL media functions. Yowza.
- He continues to spout this crap about how all of this attention has been good for the program, stating that every 17 year old in the country is seeing UT in the news more than any other school. I don't see how being a national punchline on a regular basis can be construed as a good thing. If he actually believes that, he's extremely naive...if he DOESN'T believe it, then he just thinks that all of us are.
- Another example of The Lane Kiffin Reality....the injuries to all three of his top 3 receivers is a GOOD thing. O....Kay.
- Oh, and he continues the B.S.....he actually is throwing that crap out there that he took less money so that they could pay assistants more. Baloney. He took what he could get from UT, as a head coach with ZERO track record of success. He was the best UT could get, and he was paid according to his record and worth on the market. THEN they went out and overspent on assistants, to make up for the fact that they have a pubescent as a head coach.
Sorry, there is no way you're going to convince me otherwise.
You know what? That's all the Kiffin I can take. And the amazing part is that he actually came off as more likeable than I would have thought possible. But he is either fooling himself, or he thinks the rest of us are fools, if he expects us to buy this whole "Master Plan" nonsense.
That's a wrap, folks...hope you enjoyed my rather lengthy Media Days thoughts. Almost time to tee it up....BETWEEN the HEDGES!!!
GO DAWGS!!!
40 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!!
Friday, July 24, 2009
SEC Media Days - Dawg edition
Yep, there he is...the most tenured coach in the SEC. Nine years of unquestioned, unequaled success in Athens. I feel supremely confident with Coach Richt at the helm, and am always proud to see him represent UGA at these functions.On with the highlights...
- Starts off hitting the "team" aspect for this year, with the absence of the "starpower" that we had in 2008. I understand the concept, but I don't necessarily agree with the assertion that A) the combined superstardom of Stafford and Moreno caused the rest of the team to be complacent or; B) that them not being here anymore is somehow a good thing.
Losing Stafford and Moreno has to hurt us...there is no way around it. Now, guys are going to have an opportunity to step up and fill in the gaps, and of course I hope they do. But they had those same opportunities last year (most of them, anyway), and I think it's a little bit revisionist to say that the presence of those two guys caused everybody else to shrink like wallflowers. Maybe I'm wrong...Richt surely knows more about the team than I do. But, in my humble opinion, any complacency was caused more by guys reading their own press clippings.
- First question, right out of the box, is about Joe Cox. Richt lists Cox's assets thusly:
- Accurate passer
- Great decision maker
- Handles pressure well
- Leadership ability
These are the attributes that Richt says make up a great quarterback, and he says Joe C has them all. All of that sounds great, and I believe him in every case...I just can't wait to actually see these attributes manifest themselves on the field.
- And, as we know now, Coach Richt is also slightly psychic...he said in his answer to the ever-present Tebow question that whomever snubbed him probably made a typo. Which, as it turns out, was exactly right. This man is a GENIUS!
- Richt on moving the WLOCP out of Jacksonville: "This is what I want to do. I want to focus on winning that game. That's all I want to focus on when it comes to that game. That's my goal from here on in. That will be my pat answer from here on in. "
Bravo, Coach. Exactly the response I wanted to hear.
- His two explanations for the defensive debacles last year:
- Injuries. In my mind, the Jeff Owens injury was the biggest, but our DE position was also decimated, as well as the safety position at times.
- He told the story again about how he had the team stop tackling after the second practice, due to the injury situation. I know that's one that he would do differently if he could do it over, and the defense certainly looked a lot more aggressive and fundamentally sound in the bowl game after they switched back to full contact
My explanations were severe deficiencies in both rushing the quarterback and, especially in the later part of the season, breakdowns in fundamentals.
- Hasn't ruled out a blackout game this year. Sorry, but at this point the whole concept makes me queasy. I say we give it a rest for a year.
- He said there has been no difference from the coaching perspective when it comes to off-field incidents, and says that the difference is the leadership coming from the players. Also, he said the players were as sick of hearing about it as everybody else was, so they just wanted to make sure it didn't happen again.
He specifically mentioned both Owens and Joe C as guys who have led the charge against any of the stupid behavior. I can definitely see that.
- The schedule this year is a bear. As much as we talked about how hard last year was, this one is probably just as tough. Only things that might make it easier is that we don't have to go to Baton Rouge (we have them at home), we replace Alabama with Arkansas, and we get the off week before Jacksonville.
But our out-of-conference opponents? I'll put them up against anybody's schedule in the country.
Richt said that the goal was never to have three BCS-level opponents in the same year, but it's just the way the schedule fell this year. I agree that we probably want to avoid something like that if we can, but as a fan I do love the cajones we are showing by beefing up the schedule.
- When asked about the strengths/weaknesses of the team, Richt started with the strength up the middle on defense...the beastly quartet of Owens/Atkins/Weston/Tyson at DT, Curran/Dent at LB, and then Jones/Evans at safety. I will agree with him, even on the safeties...I think Evans has really found a home there, and I have high hopes that Reshad has matured enough to fix the fixable issues he had last year.
Mentioned DE as a position where we have to improve, but brought up the point that I talked about last week...this coaching staff has a history of getting production out of our defensive end position. Last year was the aberration, and hopefully not a trend.
On offense, the strengths he listed were the O-line (agree wholeheartedly) and experience coming back. And he is very confident in Blair Walsh's ability to kick extra points. O....K?
Needs Drew Butler to be more consistent. Not sure where all of the special teams talk came from all of a sudden, but I guess I agree with him. He did say that he knows that we will be more effective in kickoffs. I guess we can't go anywhere but up.
- Sounds like Brandon Boykin has the starting job for now opposite Prince Miller, but Sanders Commings and Branden Smith will both get a shot. I have to say, this position is one of the most concerning for me...not a lot of experience, and we will be playing a lot of teams that like to sling the ball around.
Richt's quote: "Losing Asher Allen was not a good thing for us." To which I say AMEN.
- At running back, it still sounds like nobody has separated themselves as The Man, but Richt says that is more due to having a bunch of talented guys rather than a pack that isn't very good. I think we are going to be fine at running back, mainly due to the fact that I think the offensive line has a chance to be tremendous.
- He basically said that the #2 QB is an open competition, and he's not afraid to give it to one of the freshmen if they earn it. He also mentioned the possibility of a Wildcat-type package for Logan Gray (although I agree with Blutarsky that we would probably call it the Wild Dawg)...that's exciting to me. I love Logan's athleticism and was very impressed with the way he threw the ball at G-Day. That's quite a weapon, and I'm glad to see that they are looking for ways to use him.
- More assurances that he's not looking to go anywhere:
"You know, every decision I ever made since I've been at Georgia has been to try to make a decision that would help us in the long run. I didn't try to do anything in a quick fix fashion. I was used to working for a man, named Bobby Bowden, he had so much success at one place, you know, that was attractive to me. I wanted to provide that same kind of stability for our players and our program and our staff and their wives and children, as Coach Bowden did for me and my family. So everything I've done is to try to make sure we will be here for the long haul."
Overall, some refreshingly boring stuff from him, in my opinion...it was nice not to have to hear any questions regarding arrests, injuries, The Celebration. Looks like we are entering the season under the radar, which is just fine by me.
Joe Cox highlights: Mostly from Hale's Blog
On whether he ever considered a transfer...
"I never thought about leaving. When I signed to come to Georgia, it was for good, and I love everything about the school. No matter what happened, even if Matthew would have come back, I wouldn't have regretted anything. I've made too many good friends, had too many good times and having been part of this team to just pack up and go somewhere else."
On people's expectations of Georgia this year...
"I figured a lot of questions would just be about how we're going to come back this year after losing so many guys, about everybody's expectations. Our expectations haven't changed. We know a lot of people are probably overlooking us, and that's probably the best thing for us. It's made us have a good offseason, and we're looking to keep rolling on through into camp and through the season."
On becoming a leader:
I have stepped into my role as a leader of this team. I am right where I want to be. I've worked hard and a lot of guys look up to me and are ready and willing to follow me.
On his leadership style vs. Matthew Stafford's style of leadership:
We are different types of leaders. I'm more vocal that Matthew was. That's not a good thing or a bad thing. Matthew was a great leader, but the distinction is the team. I don't think he had enough help. This year a lot more guys have stepped us as leaders as well.
That last part jumped out at me...Staff has taken a lot of heat about not being the "leader" that the team needs, but Cox kind of hit on what Richt said. Sounds like guys just expected other people to lead (whether it was Stafford, Moreno, or whomever), and there weren't enough guys taking accountability.
Jeff Owens highlights:
On losing star players Knowshon Moreno and Matthew Stafford:
The star of our team this year is our team. AJ Green stands out as a star. But this year its all about the "team." Everyone has to be a star to win and be successful.
On the off-season this year:
It has been a lot different than last year. It's been a low-key offseason. I've stepped into my role of leadership. I challenge my teammates and we combine everything for the Georgia football equation for success.
Again, great choice by Richt to bring these guys, and I think they all did the Dawg Nation proud.
GO DAWGS!!!
43 DAYS!!!
SEC Media Days 1 and 2
Ahhh, football season is right around the corner. And what better way to spend it than in Hoover, Alabama with a few thousand Alabama fans clamoring for the chance to touch the hem of Saban's garment?
(By the way, I know I'm using the word "excited" in every one of these bullet points. Trust me, I'm leaving out 95% of the times he used the word)
- Ongoing theme we hear from Meyer a lot...people talk about his offensive "scheme" all the time, but he's not married to any one scheme. It's all about personnel, and finding the right system for the players you have. He's made enough adjustments to what he does over the years that I believe him when he says that, and it's part of what makes him a great coach.
This picture is from Jeff Schultz's blog over at ajc.com...he is actually doing a fairly entertaining job of covering the festivities, including this quote about the above picture.
"You see what I see. Fortunately, you don’t smell what I smell — like these Bama fans who’ve been waiting in the hotel lobby since 7:30 a.m., hoping to get a glimpse of a football coach or a left tackle. They didn’t move. For hours. It was a Thursday. I can’t verify their employment at this time."
Let's hit the highlights:
(fair warning...this turned out to be a lot longer than I thought it would be. That's what happens when all of the bosses take the same day off.)
Day 1:
Wow, they must have really backloaded the schedule this year. Today we get Petrino, Bobby Johnson, Dan Mullen, and Rich Brooks. Should be a real laugh riot.
Before the coaches took the podium, we did get the "State of the SEC" speech from Commissioner Slive. To sum up: The SEC is doing just fine. Or, as Orson Swindle put it in his twitter: "Mike Slive, paraphrased: We're getting hit by the recession just like everybody else. Please excuse me while I adjust my platinum underwear."
Then the ESPN guys talked about the new contract with the SEC...the gist of that is that SEC football is going to be on ALL THE TIME. Like, every day. On every channel.
Really cool news coming out is that Matt Stinchcomb, former Dawg great, will be co-hosting the studio show for the early games. Great news for him, and I think he's going to do a great job. I have also heard that Pollack may be involved on some level as well, but I don't know the specifics on that one.
On with the show...
ARKANSAS:
I have made my thoughts about Petrino pretty clear in this post...let's just say I'm not a big fan.
Most interesting quotes:
- He made some pretty interesting comments about high school offenses. He said that while he is excited and happy that high schools are throwing the ball around a lot, going no-huddle, having a lot of 7-on-7 drills/tournaments, etc., he thinks it's hurting the development of quarterbacks when it comes to getting a play, calling it in the huddle, and walking up and taking the snap from under center. He said that one of their backup QBs, Tyler Wilson, had taken every single snap since 8th grade in the shotgun, in a no-huddle offense. When he got to Arkansas, they had to start by teaching him how to simply get a play called in the huddle that has been sent in from the sideline. Not to mention things like the footwork involved in taking a snap under center and turning to hand the ball off to your running back in the right place. He said he wishes they would institute a rule that HS offenses have to operate from under center at least 25-40% of the time. That will never happen, of course, nor should it (and if somebody tried to tell Petrino what type of formation he had to run 25% of his offense from, he'd tell them to stick it), but it was still an interesting train of thought.
- Ryan Mallett was over 265 pounds when he showed up on campus, which explains why he probably would not have been effective in the Rich Rodriguez spread at Michigan. They now have him down to under 240. I wish they had gotten him to go the other way, and just see how big he could get and still throw the ball. I can't be the only one who misses Jared Lorenzen.
- He never thinks about how his stint with the Falcons would have been different had Vick not gone to jail. Yeah, Coach, I'm right there with you...I don't like to think about it, either. I wouldn't trade Smith and Ryan for Petrino and Vick even if you threw in the '85 Bears defense in the deal.
- He voted for Tebow. I could not care less, and have no idea why this is a story. I only wish it had been Richt who didn't vote for him....since it wasn't him, this will be the last I mention of this absurd obsession.
VANDERBILT:
Most interesting quotes:
- ummm....still searching the transcript....oh, here's something: They play 12 straight weeks without a bye week. Sucks for them.
- And, according to Coach Johnson, Florida has a chance to be pretty good. That's the kind of insight you will ONLY get at SEC Media Days.
And, that pretty much wraps up the Vandy portion of our show.
MISSISSIPPI STATE:
New head coach Dan Mullen proves to be the funniest speaker of the day (not that there was a lot of competition in this group), by claiming when he gets to the podium that he will ONLY be communicating via Twitter for the day.
New head coach Dan Mullen proves to be the funniest speaker of the day (not that there was a lot of competition in this group), by claiming when he gets to the podium that he will ONLY be communicating via Twitter for the day.
By the way, Mullen talks a LOT, and he talks very QUICKLY. I would hate to have been the one transcribing him.
Most interesting quotes:
- Claims to be very excited to be living in Starkville, Mississippi. Yep. Told you he was funny.
- Talked about how excited he was to have Carl Torbush as the Defensive Coordinator. That one, I will agree with...not so much the Starkville thing.
- Very excited to be playing a SWAC school in the opener. I was just surprised to learn that the SWAC still existed. I thought it disbanded back when SMU got the death penalty, Arkansas joined the SEC, and Texas A&M went to the Big 12.
Oh...that was the SWC. So who are they playing in their opener? JACKSON STATE? Wow...way to go out on a limb there, guys. No wonder Mullen is excited about it.
(By the way, I know I'm using the word "excited" in every one of these bullet points. Trust me, I'm leaving out 95% of the times he used the word)
- He also gave a description of his "spread offense" that would make Chris Brown cringe:
"I'll give you all my definition of a spread offense. I don't know if we're spread option, spread passing, spread running or just spread. To me, we're a multiple spread team. We're going to be a team that goes out there, spread offense. I want to make sure the defense has to defend the entire field sideline to sideline. Through personnel and through formations, we want to create advantageous one on one matchups, where I get a player in the open field matched up against someone that he's better than. That's the spread offense, the offense we're going to run. The biggest thing we have to do is make sure our personnel fits that. "
OK....so the point of his offense is to create matchups that are advantageous for his team. BRILLIANT!!! Dude, Urban is going to miss that kind of forward thinking at Florida this year.
- Seriously, he just went on and on at the beginning...just a stream-of-conciousness type ramble where he starts every sentence with the word "and" or "so" and uses the word "excited" about 675 different times.
Here's an example of one of his, for lack of a better description, "sentences":
"You see our team play, hopefully if you do, hopefully win enough games y'all want to show up, watch us play one week, if you do come to that stadium, you're going to walk out of there, my expectations, I'll be proud of my team if you walk out of that stadium and say, Wow, did you see how hard those guys played every single snap of that game."
I believe Coach Mullen had one too many Red Bulls.
- That's enough time spent on Miss. State, but the transcript of his time at the podium is just fascinating...just a big ole word vomit, as the answer to every question.
Oh, and there's this...he has a deep and unending love for Tim Tebow. Just like the rest of us.
KENTUCKY:
Coach Brooks gets off a zinger, saying it's appropriate that he was going last, since that's where they are picked to finish every year, anyway. Ha...ha? I don't think I would find that too funny if I were a UK fan. Actually, if I were a UK fan, I would be too busy worried about how Calipari is going to do and monitoring basketball recruiting to even know that Coach Brooks was speaking today.
Most interesting quotes:
- He was as surprised as the rest of us that Trevard Lindley came back for his senior year, and thinks he's the best returning corner in the country. He may be right. I at least think Lindley will be the best returning corner in the conference...sure wish Asher had made the same choice.
- Mike Hartline will be the full time QB, Randall Cobb will play mostly at WR with some Wildcat packages thrown in there for him at QB. I think this is the right move for them...a lot fewer negative plays with Hartline back there, I think.
- You know, the more I look at this UK team, the more impressed I am with them. In Hartline, Cobb, Lindley, Corey Peters, and Micah Johnson, they have some playmakers on both sides of the ball. Four seniors on the offensive line. They have really played us pretty tough the past few years, and there's a chance that we may be looking past them to the gnats when we play them. So now I'm nervous....as if I needed ANOTHER game to worry about.
WHEW...that was just Day 1. Day 2 is when the fireworks REALLY start.
DAY 2:
UGA had our day on Day 2, but I think I'm going to do a separate post for them, since I will obviously want to go into some more detail with the Dawgs.
ALABAMA:
- First of all, Orson was on fire with his tweets during Saban's time at the podium. My two favorites:
- "Saban approaches the podium, looks like money and anger"
- "Someone's phone rang loudly while Saban speaks. He has been taken out by snipers, and the body pulled through a trap door"
- "Saban: No one player can make a team great, but one player can destroy everything. That player? ERIC BERRY"
- Seriously, the hysterical reverence that the Tide faithful have for this guy would be funny if it weren't so scary.
- I do kind of like the guy, though, or at least admire his intensity. Check out this quote:"I think it's also important that you establish a work ethic on your team, that your team understands they're working to dominate the competition. It's not relative to what they think hard work is; it's what they need to do to dominate the competition in a very competitive, difficult, tough league, with a very difficult, tough schedule." (emphasis added)
That's what I want to hear from a football coach. Your goal is to work hard enough to DOMINATE, not just work hard enough that you feel like you worked hard.
- VERY interesting stuff about leading up to the bowl game. Basically called Andre Smith out...said that one player not doing the right things can destroy everything you've worked on, and an example of that was what happened to them in the Sugar Bowl, where they embarassed the conference by getting destroyed by Utah.
Seriously, that's pretty blatant. He just shifted the entire blame for that debacle onto one guy. I'm surprised nobody called him out on that.
- They are in a tough spot on the O-line, having to replace two All-Americans in Smith and Caldwell. How they do that could go a long way in determining their success.
- He's very happy about the recruiting bump he gets from playing the opener in Atlanta two years in a row. Coach Richt has talked about that...I hope to see us in that opener sometime soon, if we can find a place on the schedule for it.
- Soldiers have DIED for the rights of SEC coaches to vote privately for the All-SEC team. Hey, Saban said it...it must be true. So, thank a soldier today!
(seriously, thank a soldier today...but I do not remember from my history class the great Battle of Hoover that won this right for SEC coaches)
- I do love hearing him talk about defense.
- On the other hand, I do NOT like to hear him talking about how they are going to get down to the 85-scholarship limit. I think that the way they go about these things is disgraceful...oversigning every year and then having to find ways to take scholarships away.
I haven't said anything about the whole "UGA is banned from Carver-Columbus HS" flap, but I will say this...if I were a HS coach I would MUCH rather my players go through something like Devin Burns did (even though I don't think we handled it right, which is why Richt called and apologized) than to have a team accept the committment and then find a creative way to pull the scholarship after he is already signed.
- He went on and on about how the fans and players are going to react to seeing him wear LSU colors in the movie adaptation of the Michael Oher book "The Blind Side." I'm not sure why they would be expecting anything else...does somebody need to explain the difference between real life and a movie?
OLE MISS:
Most interesting quotes:
- Coach Nutt talked about some of the same things I have thought...lots of high expectations for them, but replacing Michael Oher and Peria Jerry will be tough.
- It had been 727 days since they won a conference game when they beat Florida. That says a lot about what an impressive performance and huge upset it was, but also...this is the team that so many are picking top 5 and handing the SEC West to? A team that, as recently as last year, had a TWO YEAR conference losing streak going? Excuse me if I don't jump on that bandwagon just yet.
- Jerrell Powe is still there? Well, most of him is...he's down to 320 from 383. Hasn't he been there for like 6 years now? How is he only listed as a sophomore? He signed in 2005, for crying out loud!
- And, as a sort of follow up to my Alabama scholarship thoughts...Ole Miss signed THIRTY NINE guys last year. There is no way that should be legal...that's a disgrace.
- Last in the SEC in pass defense last year. I'm just sayin'...this team is getting an awful lot of love.
FLORIDA:
Meyer said he has never been more anxious to coach a team than this one...kind of reminds me of Donnan's "I've been waiting thirty years to coach a team like this one" quote before the 2000 season. Somehow, I don't expect similar results.
- Man, this guy is boring. Intense, sure, but very boring to listen to.
- Interesting to see what happens with the play-calling this year. Mullen always called the plays from the box, but Adazzio will be calling from the sideline. I know Richt has talked about what a transition that is, so it might cause some issues.
I know, I'm grasping at straws.
- He's fine with FSU being their only big out-of-conference game. What a pansy. For somebody who talks about "competition" so much, he sure wants to reduce the amount of competetion they have on their schedule.
- Refuses to answer any questions about suspensions. Funny how they don't take the heat the Georgia did last year regarding behavioral issues, even though their arrests have been for much more serious offenses than ours. Not like funny ha-ha...more like funny-makes-me-want-to-punch-somebody-in-the-throat.
- In case I haven't mentioned it before...Florida brings back their entire two-deep on defense. All 22 of them. Ridiculous.
- Still looking for an every-down running back...haven't found him yet.
- Ongoing theme we hear from Meyer a lot...people talk about his offensive "scheme" all the time, but he's not married to any one scheme. It's all about personnel, and finding the right system for the players you have. He's made enough adjustments to what he does over the years that I believe him when he says that, and it's part of what makes him a great coach.
- Funny story...Brandon Spikes was originally supposed to go with them to media days, but get this...he's scared of crowds. I can only wish it affected his football ability, and not just his public speaking ability.
- I haven't talked about the players Q&A portion, mainly because they were very boring for the most part. But Tebow can really work a room. He came off as intelligent, humble yet confident, funny...man, I hate that guy.
And that does it for now...I'll be back later with thoughts on the Georgia portion of the day, and then later tonight or tomorrow with the Miles/Spurrier/Kiffen show...should be fun!
GO DAWGS!!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Off work today...
...and taking full advantage of it, so I don't know how much I will be at the computer.
So, quickly, here's the scoop on today:
- TJ Stripling verbally committed to the Dawgs early this morning. This is just more great news on the recruiting front, as this guy is the kind of strike-terror-in-the-hearts-of-quarterbacks guy coming off the edge that we have been missing. He is our 5th commitment who is classified as a defensive end, so I would expect to see some position changes. Maybe Morant or Fields move inside, since they are both around 240 right now, or maybe Stripling (who is around 215) moves to linebacker. Either way, the Dawgs got themselves another playmaker today.
Plus, his hair is cool...looks kind of like the Predator.
- SEC Media Days start TODAY. I will be following Hale and Forde on Twitter, as well as following all of the typical outlets. Hope to have my thoughts posted on the days events each night.
- Also starting this week (tomorrow) is the annual Comic Con event in San Diego. Should be getting some cool news/updates/interviews regarding a lot of my favorite shows, so don't be surprised to see some of that geektastic stuff find its way into the blog, as well.
How geektastic? Well, last night I watched Torchwood (the Dr. Who spinoff on BBC), Big Bang Theory, and Warehouse 13 (a really cool and entertaining new show on SciFi), and I am also reading through Ender's Game again. So, yeah, I am really embracing my inner geek at the moment.
- Oh, yeah...one more thing...HAPPY BOSS BAILEY DAY!!! ONLY 45 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!
So, quickly, here's the scoop on today:
- TJ Stripling verbally committed to the Dawgs early this morning. This is just more great news on the recruiting front, as this guy is the kind of strike-terror-in-the-hearts-of-quarterbacks guy coming off the edge that we have been missing. He is our 5th commitment who is classified as a defensive end, so I would expect to see some position changes. Maybe Morant or Fields move inside, since they are both around 240 right now, or maybe Stripling (who is around 215) moves to linebacker. Either way, the Dawgs got themselves another playmaker today.
Plus, his hair is cool...looks kind of like the Predator.
- SEC Media Days start TODAY. I will be following Hale and Forde on Twitter, as well as following all of the typical outlets. Hope to have my thoughts posted on the days events each night.
- Also starting this week (tomorrow) is the annual Comic Con event in San Diego. Should be getting some cool news/updates/interviews regarding a lot of my favorite shows, so don't be surprised to see some of that geektastic stuff find its way into the blog, as well.
How geektastic? Well, last night I watched Torchwood (the Dr. Who spinoff on BBC), Big Bang Theory, and Warehouse 13 (a really cool and entertaining new show on SciFi), and I am also reading through Ender's Game again. So, yeah, I am really embracing my inner geek at the moment.
- Oh, yeah...one more thing...HAPPY BOSS BAILEY DAY!!! ONLY 45 DAYS TO KICKOFF!!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Doc Saturday looks at Okie State
Doc Saturday makes the case for the opener against the Dawgs as the lynchpin for the Okie State season....just like it was in '07.
Here's hoping for similar results...
GO DAWGS!!! 68 Days to kickoff!!!
Here's hoping for similar results...
GO DAWGS!!! 68 Days to kickoff!!!
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Well, that helped a little...
Kudos to The Hat...LSU's defense finally showed up in a ROUT over the Techies.
That was pretty fun to watch...I'd say my favorite part was the fake punt up 35 points in the 4th quarter...BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Although...this makes me even more furious about the performance by our defense against this same Tech team.
Willie, if you're reading this (and be honest...you are) - your D better make Javon Ringer look like Ron Dayne today. Otherwise, this could be a long and painful offseason.
GO DAWGS!!!!
P.S. - Prediction? 38-20, good guys. They can't stop Matt Stafford, they can't even hope to contain him.
That was pretty fun to watch...I'd say my favorite part was the fake punt up 35 points in the 4th quarter...BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Although...this makes me even more furious about the performance by our defense against this same Tech team.
Willie, if you're reading this (and be honest...you are) - your D better make Javon Ringer look like Ron Dayne today. Otherwise, this could be a long and painful offseason.
GO DAWGS!!!!
P.S. - Prediction? 38-20, good guys. They can't stop Matt Stafford, they can't even hope to contain him.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
The only thing UT has going for them right now...
This guy is amazing...sure do wish his dad wasn't a Vol, because he would have been a Dawg otherwise.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
More piling on the ACC...
Bruce Feldman of ESPN has what I assume will be a weekly feature where he ranks the strength of the conferences. This week's are out, and he has the ACC at #7, right behind...the Mountain West. Ouch.
Full rankings are here. I don't really have to tell you who #1 is, do I?
Full rankings are here. I don't really have to tell you who #1 is, do I?
Monday, September 1, 2008
Thoughts on UT-UCLA
And now you know why players hate kickers.
Well, it was entertaining, huh? Not a lot of offense early on, but some big plays on special teams and defense and then the offenses kind of coming alive late, culminating in some tremendous back and forth at the end. It kind of reminded me of a heavyweight fight, where not much happens until the last round, and then both guys get desperate and start throwing haymakers. I started writing this post and had to revise it about four times....
Maybe it was the urnge uniforms, but I was having flashbacks to the Hobnail Boot game when UCLA came flying back down the field after the UT touchdown to take the lead late in the 4th.
I HATE the pooch kick....UCLA pooched it after their last TD in regulation, and UT ended up with the ball at the 42. I know Jones is dangerous, but aren't the odds better that you will at least be able to shut down a kick return before it gets to the 42 yard line? Not to mention the fact that it would have taken up more time...and UT kicked the tying field goal with what, :05 left on the clock? Ugh.
Early returns on the Clawfense...color me unimpressed. The UT offense looked really out of synch all night, even having problems lining up correctly several times. Not sure if it was being unfamiliar with the scheme or what, but even the vaunted UT offensive line did not perform up to their usual standards, with not a lot of holes being opened up in the running game (until the end) and Crompton under pressure all night.
Speaking of which, one thing that I believe bodes well for the Dawgs is how uncomfortable Crompton seems to be under pressure. When given time, he looks very impressive, but any time he was under pressure he couldn't keep his feet under him and his accuracy plummeted. I think the Dawgs ought to be able to pressure the QB at least as well as the Bruins D with the personnel we have on defense.
On the flip side, it was interesting to watch a QB grow up right in front of our eyes. Kevin Craft looked like an entirely different QB in the 4th quarter than he did in the first. It was like one of those bad movies...the QB who couldn't hit the side of a barn in the first quarter all of a sudden becomes John Elway at the end of the movie. Nice coaching job there by Neuheisel and Chow, I think...whatever they showed him and talked to him about at the half certainly seemed to click.
So, to recap the weekend...I'm now a little more worried about Alabama than I was, but South Carolina and Tennessee did not impress me at all.
Well, it was entertaining, huh? Not a lot of offense early on, but some big plays on special teams and defense and then the offenses kind of coming alive late, culminating in some tremendous back and forth at the end. It kind of reminded me of a heavyweight fight, where not much happens until the last round, and then both guys get desperate and start throwing haymakers. I started writing this post and had to revise it about four times....
Maybe it was the urnge uniforms, but I was having flashbacks to the Hobnail Boot game when UCLA came flying back down the field after the UT touchdown to take the lead late in the 4th.
I HATE the pooch kick....UCLA pooched it after their last TD in regulation, and UT ended up with the ball at the 42. I know Jones is dangerous, but aren't the odds better that you will at least be able to shut down a kick return before it gets to the 42 yard line? Not to mention the fact that it would have taken up more time...and UT kicked the tying field goal with what, :05 left on the clock? Ugh.
Early returns on the Clawfense...color me unimpressed. The UT offense looked really out of synch all night, even having problems lining up correctly several times. Not sure if it was being unfamiliar with the scheme or what, but even the vaunted UT offensive line did not perform up to their usual standards, with not a lot of holes being opened up in the running game (until the end) and Crompton under pressure all night.
Speaking of which, one thing that I believe bodes well for the Dawgs is how uncomfortable Crompton seems to be under pressure. When given time, he looks very impressive, but any time he was under pressure he couldn't keep his feet under him and his accuracy plummeted. I think the Dawgs ought to be able to pressure the QB at least as well as the Bruins D with the personnel we have on defense.
On the flip side, it was interesting to watch a QB grow up right in front of our eyes. Kevin Craft looked like an entirely different QB in the 4th quarter than he did in the first. It was like one of those bad movies...the QB who couldn't hit the side of a barn in the first quarter all of a sudden becomes John Elway at the end of the movie. Nice coaching job there by Neuheisel and Chow, I think...whatever they showed him and talked to him about at the half certainly seemed to click.
So, to recap the weekend...I'm now a little more worried about Alabama than I was, but South Carolina and Tennessee did not impress me at all.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Observations - GSU
If you asked Dawg fans what they hoped the team would accomplish against Georgia Southern, I think most of them would have said, A) Look sharp, and B) Stay healthy. I would say they were about 70% effective on the first one, but the second one is not looking very likely. Here is my take on the game:
THE GOOD:
THE BAD:
OK, off to cheer on the Tide...SEC SPEEEEEEEEEEEED, BABY!
THE GOOD:
- The #1 offense looked sharp. When the #1 offense was on the field, they seemed to move the ball at will. Stafford was very accurate with the ball, made good decisions, and was generally the play maker/field general we need him to be. Knowshon was a man among boys...I don't think he was brought down by the first or possibly even second defender he encountered all day. The o-line was good enough...a lot of big holes, I don't remember a sack, and a lot of plays ended up with our o-lineman laying on top of GSU defenders. I remember particularly the screen play that Moreno took for about 40 yards, GSU defenders were being eliminated from the play all over the screen...it was a beautiful thing to see.
- We played a LOT of guys. There were a lot of guys out there in the 4th quarter that I had never even heard of, especially along both lines of scrimmage. Logan Gray flashed the athleticism that will bring an added dimension to this offense once he is the guy at QB (which I think he will be sometime in the next two years). He was even out there once to return punts, but they kicked it out of bounds...obviously scared of the white quarterback returning punts. TONS of wide receivers played, too many to even keep track of. Good to get some guys some game experience, and it was nice to see some of the 5th-6th stringers get what is probably the only action they will see on the field all year.
- The freshmen. We played a lot of freshmen, and many of them were very effective. AJ Green showed signs of the playmaking ability we get to witness for at least the next three years...the first catch he had was a pure mismatch where he just ran by his guy on a skinny post and then caught a PERFECT pass from Stafford. The TD catch was a very athletic play where he had to twist his body and leap to catch the ball...very nice. Both Caleb King and Richard Samuel got plenty of carries and they were both very effective when they got any blocking at all. Samuel is definitely more of a north-south guy, and when he sees the hole he hits it running downhill. As for Caleb, he made several right-analog stick type moves, and generally looked like the big-play tailback we were all hoping for. Marcus Dowtin made several plays, DeAngelo Tyson was able to get in a tackle or two, and Blair Walsh...well, he deserves his own bullet point.
- Blair Walsh looks like the real deal. Yes, I know it was just GSU, and it's not like the game was on the line or anything, but he stepped out there for his first game-situation kick, from a LONG 52 yards out, and promptly blasted the ball right down the middle, into the stands. Perfect on PATs, and effective on kickoff...I just wish the coaching staff would let him blast the ball through the endzone every time like he did on the opening kick.
THE BAD:
- ELEVEN penalties. Absolutely unacceptable. We HAVE to play a lot smarter than that. It would be one thing if they were penalties of aggression, but it was stupid stuff. Offsides, false starts, lining up wrong...sloppy. I like what Zeier said on the post game. You may say it's "typical first game problems," but this team should not be striving to be typical...we are looking for this year to be SPECIAL.
- The defense didn't dominate. Against a team like this, the defense should have overwhelmed them with speed, power, and numbers. That did not happen, even before we emptied our bench in the second half. The first team gave up two touchdowns, and needed an INT in the end zone and a missed field goal to keep it from being worse. The d-line, especially, disappointed against the run...they seemed to be out of position a lot, either because they over-pursued or because they got blocked out of the play. That should not have happened today, at least not against the first team.
- Jeff Owens' injury. If I was doing the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, this would have been the only item in the Ugly. We haven't heard anything definitive yet, but all the quotes from the staff and players lead me to believe that this could be a long-term thing. This one will really hurt...the depth at DT is one of the things I really loved going into this season, and it looks now like a huge cog in that depth may be gone. I know that we can plug Weston in, probably next week, but it hampers our ability to continually rotate guys in and out, which was really going to help us make it through this brutal schedule by keeping guys fresh and healthy in the middle of the line. Dawgspeed, Jeff....Dawgspeed.
OK, off to cheer on the Tide...SEC SPEEEEEEEEEEEED, BABY!
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