I'm still sick and feel like crap.
Check DawgBone.net for articles about the game and what not.
pwd
December 31, 2006
James Brown: Love Power Peace
Long time Georgia Sports Blog readers know that I used to (and still occassionally do) put together Munson Mixes that combine Larry's voice over with music tracks. One of my favorites was the 2002 Season Highlight Mix.
It was James Brown Live in Paris 1971 from the Love Power Peace Tour. The two songs were Let the Brother Rap and Ain't it Funky Now. Begger found an actual Paris performance from James Brown on Youtube (same tour). It's below. It doesn't have any Munson voice over, but it's so damn good, I wanted to share it.
The Love Power Peace album is the best James Brown concert recording that I've ever heard. You can still buy the CD from Amazon.
Some thoughts on the Peach Bowl soon. I'm pretty heavily medicated right now.
PWD
It was James Brown Live in Paris 1971 from the Love Power Peace Tour. The two songs were Let the Brother Rap and Ain't it Funky Now. Begger found an actual Paris performance from James Brown on Youtube (same tour). It's below. It doesn't have any Munson voice over, but it's so damn good, I wanted to share it.
The Love Power Peace album is the best James Brown concert recording that I've ever heard. You can still buy the CD from Amazon.
Some thoughts on the Peach Bowl soon. I'm pretty heavily medicated right now.
PWD
December 29, 2006
Georgia vs. Clemson Hoops - Recap
Not much positive to say about this one. In a word - Regression. The AP recap is already up as is the box score. If you're looking for "what went wrong," you can probably start with the 26 UGA turnovers vs. the 11 Clemson turnovers. Particularly maddening was the 4+ times that our guards had the ball stolen from them from behind while walking the court up.
On the positive side:
-- Woodbury continues to improve by leaps and bounds. His stat line 14 points on 5-9 shooting including 4-6 from beyond the arc. He only turned the ball over once. Unfortunately, his 4 fouls limited him to 21 minutes.
-- Takais Brown was unstoppable under the basket. He put in 27 minutes, probably his longest stint of the year, while shooting 6-8 from the field for 13 points but only two rebounds.
-- Other than free shooting, Clemson is a good team. We didn't lose to a bunch of tomato cans.
The negatives are too long to list. But to sum up....our leading rebounders were Stukes and Gaines who combined for 15 of our 33 boards. Unfortunately, they also led the team with 14 combined turnovers and 3 of 15 shooting from the field. Our guard play was wretched.
The good news...our 5 best players are Stukes, Gaines, Mercer, Takais and Woodbury, and those 5 could play with lots of folks. Only, I'm not sure if those 5 get on the court at the same time b/c it's such an odd lineup.
It's a long season. Plenty of time for improvement.
PWD
On the positive side:
-- Woodbury continues to improve by leaps and bounds. His stat line 14 points on 5-9 shooting including 4-6 from beyond the arc. He only turned the ball over once. Unfortunately, his 4 fouls limited him to 21 minutes.
-- Takais Brown was unstoppable under the basket. He put in 27 minutes, probably his longest stint of the year, while shooting 6-8 from the field for 13 points but only two rebounds.
-- Other than free shooting, Clemson is a good team. We didn't lose to a bunch of tomato cans.
The negatives are too long to list. But to sum up....our leading rebounders were Stukes and Gaines who combined for 15 of our 33 boards. Unfortunately, they also led the team with 14 combined turnovers and 3 of 15 shooting from the field. Our guard play was wretched.
The good news...our 5 best players are Stukes, Gaines, Mercer, Takais and Woodbury, and those 5 could play with lots of folks. Only, I'm not sure if those 5 get on the court at the same time b/c it's such an odd lineup.
It's a long season. Plenty of time for improvement.
PWD
December 28, 2006
Some Chick-Fil-A Highlights
The first article on VT's special teams is the one I'm most interested in. This year we had 3 punts blocked. The bowl game will likely be too close to withstand a blocked punt by either team.
Dawgs Get ready for VT's Kick Blocking Expertise -- AJC
Hokies put heat on Punters - ABH
Danny Ware may go pro - AJC
Dawgs turn up the noise - AJC
Thin Up Front - Ugasports.com
Dawgs visit Scottish Rite - AJC
Beamer: The Force behind the Hokies - DawgPost.com
Stafford's Best is Yet to Come - ABH
Bowl critical to Moses Draft Stock - SI.com
And in sucky Tech news, West Virginia's superstar RB, Steve Slaton, has injured his thigh. Damn. I want him and Pat White healthy for a New Years Day beat down of the Yellow Jackets. He'll play, but he's a little gimpy.
Also, don't miss DawgPost.com's Year in Pictures. My favorite is this one from the UK game:
Matt Stafford
PWD
Dawgs Get ready for VT's Kick Blocking Expertise -- AJC
Hokies put heat on Punters - ABH
Danny Ware may go pro - AJC
Dawgs turn up the noise - AJC
Thin Up Front - Ugasports.com
Dawgs visit Scottish Rite - AJC
Beamer: The Force behind the Hokies - DawgPost.com
Stafford's Best is Yet to Come - ABH
Bowl critical to Moses Draft Stock - SI.com
And in sucky Tech news, West Virginia's superstar RB, Steve Slaton, has injured his thigh. Damn. I want him and Pat White healthy for a New Years Day beat down of the Yellow Jackets. He'll play, but he's a little gimpy.
Also, don't miss DawgPost.com's Year in Pictures. My favorite is this one from the UK game:
Matt Stafford
PWD
Dawgs vs Clemson tonight in hoops
Tipoff time is 7:00 pm EST on Fox Sports. Some quick headlines:
-- Sundiata Gaines will play -- AJC
-- Dawgs present reality check for Clemson - AJC
-- Dawgs excited to get Gaines Back -- ABH
PWD
-- Sundiata Gaines will play -- AJC
-- Dawgs present reality check for Clemson - AJC
-- Dawgs excited to get Gaines Back -- ABH
PWD
Tech "Men"
This sort of stuff writes itself. Interestingly, I think they are getting ready for their frat's social. Everyone just assumes they are prepping for game day.
PWD
PWD
December 27, 2006
Georgia Sports Blog at the Movies: We are Marshall
Matthew McConaughey gives a pep talk in "We are Marshall"
I saw We Are Marshall tonight. In a word.....Excellence. This isn't a cheesy sports movie. It's a well written, well produced story of human triumph. As you probably already know, the movie tells the story of how Marshall University, The City of Huntington and the football team rebuilt from the ashes of the Nov. 1970 plane crash that killed 75 people.
On board the plane were all but 4 varsity football players, all but one coach and many of the school and town's most prominent citizens/boosters. I had concerns about Matthew McConaughey being the lead character, but he does a solid job.
My advice. Take a box of tissue you with you. The "paint fumes factor" in this one is off the charts. A real tear jerker / feel good story. It gets the Georgia Sports Blog's full endorsement. The movie trailer (2:30 minutes) and other links of interest are below.
Links of interest:PWD
December 26, 2006
Final Peach Bowl Ticket Note
Prices for tickets on Stubhub.com have come way down. If you're interested in picking up tickets for the game, now's the time. Check out the inventory here.
PWD
PWD
You've Been Croomed
Croom at practice. Image: Bulldogblitz.com
No idea how I missed this, but there's a new term on these here Internets.
"Croomed" (v.) - To lose your job as a head football coach upon being defeated by Mississippi State's Sylvester Croom.Rusty Hampton of the Clarion Ledger appears to have coined the term in November. The fellas at Hail Dear 'Ole State turned me on to it. Sly Croom has recorded 9 wins over the past three seasons at MSU. Per Hail State, here is how his opponents have faired:
- Coaches Croomed
Florida - Ron Zook
Murray State - Joe Pannunzio
Alabama - Mike Shula
Tulane (2 times) - Chris Scelfo (a year later)
UAB - Watson Brown
Night of living croomed
UK - Rich Brooks
OM - Ed Orgeron
Jacksonville State - Jack Crowe (Div I-AA)
PWD
Chick-Fil-A Bowl Articles
Unfortunately, this is not Jeff Jarrett. (Image: AJC)
-- Seth Watts is suspended for the game. Given Watts limited role, the biggest problem is the loss of a warm body. It is what it is. The AJC also has the story.
-- The Macon Telegraph talks with RB coach Tony Ball about getting ready to face his former employer in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. Some funny back and forth with Beamer about Ball and his playbook.
-- Bobo's turn to take the heat. The AJC talks about our new play caller.
-- Early last week, Carter Strickland (who I threw under the bus recently) wrote an exceptional piece on Tra Battle. It's a really heart warming piece.
-- The Banner-Herald talks about Moses as he tries for a Big Finish to his career at Georgia.
-- The Roanoke, Va. paper has a nice profile of assistant strength coach Keith Gray. Gray is from a long line of Hokie fans.
Unrelated...but check out the Huntsville Times for an interview with Bama's Joe Kines about the Oklahoma State option. Since we open the season with the Pokes next year, you might be interested in the article. The Independence Bowl airs on Dec. 28th at 3:30 pm.
ht-dawgbone.net for the reminder on this pic.
PWD
Coaching Carousel News
Alabama Coaching Search:
-- Finebaum is still pushing Saban. Although Saban has all but said, "Are you people deaf AND stupid? I don't want the Bama job." Personally, I think Finebaum is pushing the coach that he knows Bama can't land so that he can complain even more about whoever they do hire.
-- Joe Kines says his next move will be "to heaven." The new coach at Bama will either retain him, he'll move into an admin role in Tuscaloosa, or he'll retire. He's not moving again.
UAB:
-- David Ching says that Neil Callaway won't be bringing any UGA assistant coaches with him to UAB.
-- Callaway has named four assistants to his coaching staff. First, he announced Will Friend as his OL coach. Friend played OL at Bama in the mid-90s, and he served two years as a graduate assistant coaching OL under Callaway at UGA. He spent the last two seasons at Gardner-Webb. He also coached OL at Tuscaloosa high school.
-- Callaway's LB coach is Tyson Summers. Summers was also a graduate assistant at Georgia in 2005 helping out the DBs. He coached linebackers under Van Gorder at Georgia Southern in 2006. Summers spent time as a HS coach at his alma mater, Tift County, along with other small college stops.
-- Steve Davenport will coach an undetermined offensive position. He played and coached at Georgia Tech. He also coached at Decatur HS (State Coach of the Year), Redan (assistant) and Rockdale HS. He gives the staff excellent connections across the Atlanta recruiting area.
-- Corey Barlow will coach cornerbacks for the Blazers. Barlow was an All-SEC performer under Pat Dye when Callaway was also at AU. He's coming over from Rhode Island, but that's not what's interesting about his resume. He coached for 4 years at Morehouse, and he spent two years coaching Southside HS in ATL.
It looks to me that Callaway is bringing on a young staff with deep recruiting ties in Atlanta, Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. It's a bunch of no-names, but it's guys tailor made to bust tail on the regional recruiting trails while making a name for themselves surrounded by SEC and ACC powerhouses. Smart move.
PWD
-- Finebaum is still pushing Saban. Although Saban has all but said, "Are you people deaf AND stupid? I don't want the Bama job." Personally, I think Finebaum is pushing the coach that he knows Bama can't land so that he can complain even more about whoever they do hire.
-- Joe Kines says his next move will be "to heaven." The new coach at Bama will either retain him, he'll move into an admin role in Tuscaloosa, or he'll retire. He's not moving again.
UAB:
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-- Callaway has named four assistants to his coaching staff. First, he announced Will Friend as his OL coach. Friend played OL at Bama in the mid-90s, and he served two years as a graduate assistant coaching OL under Callaway at UGA. He spent the last two seasons at Gardner-Webb. He also coached OL at Tuscaloosa high school.
-- Callaway's LB coach is Tyson Summers. Summers was also a graduate assistant at Georgia in 2005 helping out the DBs. He coached linebackers under Van Gorder at Georgia Southern in 2006. Summers spent time as a HS coach at his alma mater, Tift County, along with other small college stops.
-- Steve Davenport will coach an undetermined offensive position. He played and coached at Georgia Tech. He also coached at Decatur HS (State Coach of the Year), Redan (assistant) and Rockdale HS. He gives the staff excellent connections across the Atlanta recruiting area.
-- Corey Barlow will coach cornerbacks for the Blazers. Barlow was an All-SEC performer under Pat Dye when Callaway was also at AU. He's coming over from Rhode Island, but that's not what's interesting about his resume. He coached for 4 years at Morehouse, and he spent two years coaching Southside HS in ATL.
It looks to me that Callaway is bringing on a young staff with deep recruiting ties in Atlanta, Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. It's a bunch of no-names, but it's guys tailor made to bust tail on the regional recruiting trails while making a name for themselves surrounded by SEC and ACC powerhouses. Smart move.
PWD
December 25, 2006
R.I.P. -- James Brown
From the AP:
PWD
James Brown, the dynamic, pompadoured "Godfather of Soul," whose rasping vocals and revolutionary rhythms made him a founder of rap, funk and disco as well, died early Monday, his agent said. He was 73.Brown wasn't just the hardest working man in show business. He was a dawg fan. Rest in Peace JB.
Brown was hospitalized with pneumonia at Emory Crawford Long Hospital over the weekend and died around 1:45 a.m. Monday, said his agent, Frank Copsidas of Intrigue Music. Longtime friend Charles Bobbit was by his side, he said.
PWD
December 24, 2006
Merry Christmas from the Georgia Sports Blog
(Image: This is not Dawgnoxious)
Ho. Ho. Ho. Thanks for making 2006 a blast for me. I'm constantly amazed at the number of people that visit (1.6 million page views and counting). Special thanks to Dawgnoxious for his ongoing help in keeping things fresh around here and keeping me (mostly) out of prison. Please keep dropping by!
Merry Christmas!
Paul Westerdawg
Georgia Sports Blog
(image: Amazon.com)
December 23, 2006
Hoops: GT recap
Image: georgiadogs.com
There are no moral victories in sports, but tonight's outcome was one I can live with. Georgia lost to Tech 78-69. The team was without point guard Sundiata Gaines due to injury. Mike Mercer is a solid player, but he's not a point guard. The box score showed 18 turnovers for the Dawgs. It felt like 30. Mercer had 7 turnovers, but it seemed like a dozen.
Pre-game, I said the keys to the game were Turnover/Pace, Free Throw Shooting and Three Point Shooting. Georgia never got past point #1. Tech dictated the tempo and pace of the game to us, and that was that.
We are what I thought we were going into the game. We're a 7 to 9 win SEC team that likes to run, struggles with the half court offense, but has a chance to go dancing. I still feel that way. Tech is talented, and they've got a big season ahead of them. We need to get Gaines healthy, and we need to become more disciplined in our decision making.
Most of our problems can be fixed with coaching and time.
More articles:
-- Tech wins - AP/ESPN
-- Young Leads Jackets - AJC
-- Jackets Evolve at UGA's Expense - Mark Bradley
PWD
December 22, 2006
Scouting GT: View from the Enemy
Nathan Fowler, AOL's GT Fanhouse Blogger, and I swapped articles/scouting reports on our teams for tonight's game. Below is Nathan's take on the Yellow Jackets and the Game.
- - - - - - -
By Nathan Fowler
Georgia Tech is an extremely young team still, playing 3 freshman and a sophmore heavily. The two McDonald's All-American freshman are the focus of the hype coming into this season, and while they have struggled at times - they have both lived up to their repuations for the most part. Unlike the Georgia Team that fell apart in the Stegamausoleum last year in a flurry of turnovers and self-inflicted destruction, this team actually has a real PG.
Image: RamblinWreck.com
Crittenton is perfectly in the mold of previous GT, big, physical and with a scoring bent. He still turns the ball too much, though a lot of it is trying to make flashy plays he really doesn't need (of his 9 TO's against Centenary, at least half were on crazy alley-oop attempts). Thaddeus Young has filled the hole at small forward well, and has fought through his knee problems early in the year to show his all court game the past two times out. He can score from anywhere, handles the ball well and is a strong rebounder and defender.
Other than the two big freshman, Lewis Clinch is the biggest difference in this team. He was hurt early in the year last season and didn't really get going until the ACC season was in full swing. I've heard a lot of Georgia fans claiming he was overrated coming out of high school, and Mike Mercer is the better player, but Clinch is destroying that notion right now. He's leading GT at 17ppg (in only 24 minutes per) and is shooting 57% from the field and 49% from 3. He shot 50% from 3 during ACC play last year, so it's not some fluke that he's shooting this well.
Clinch is probably the best pure scorer in the ACC now with lethal combination of quickness and a super smooth and hyper quick release on his jumper. Clinch has really polished his mid-range game, and scores a lot from the 15' area, something of a lost art in college basketball. I expect Clinch and Mercer to absolutely go at each other all night long in Atlanta.
This Georgia Tech team as a whole can score and rebound with the best of them. Despite having played a brutal schedule to this point (UCLA, Memphis, Vanderbilt, Purdue, Penn State and Miami all from "high major" leagues and only Penn State was at home) Tech is still offensive rebounding more than half of their missed shots. This is a remarkable statistic, and says a lot about Jeremis Smith and his attitude around the rim.
Ken Pomeroy has Tech as the 11th most efficient offense in the country (Georgia is 18th for comparison) and the team is shooting 40% from 3 for the season. While the half court offense looks ungainly at times, and despite the turnover numbers, Tech is putting points up on the board in big bunches.
Defensively is where the problems have been, as Tech has really struggled to contain dribble penetration and has no defensive shot blocking presence. This is a not a good situation to be in facing a Georgia team who's strength is in their guards, so I'm expecting a high scoring shootout type affair in the Thriller Dome.
Overall though, this is a very talented and good GT team who has only played 5 games at home and put a couple of thousand miles on their bodies before they even really began their college careers. Certainly as the season goes on I expect us to improve even more, and I think in front of what will be a flatout mean crowd at the AMC tonight they should be able to do enough on the glass and in transition to beat a (surprising to me) much improved Georgia team.
I think UGA v. GT will become a much better basketball rivalry in the near future, both programs are vastly upgrading their talent levels.
Nathan Fowler
AOL Fanhouse
- - - - - - -
By Nathan Fowler
Georgia Tech is an extremely young team still, playing 3 freshman and a sophmore heavily. The two McDonald's All-American freshman are the focus of the hype coming into this season, and while they have struggled at times - they have both lived up to their repuations for the most part. Unlike the Georgia Team that fell apart in the Stegamausoleum last year in a flurry of turnovers and self-inflicted destruction, this team actually has a real PG.
Image: RamblinWreck.com
Crittenton is perfectly in the mold of previous GT, big, physical and with a scoring bent. He still turns the ball too much, though a lot of it is trying to make flashy plays he really doesn't need (of his 9 TO's against Centenary, at least half were on crazy alley-oop attempts). Thaddeus Young has filled the hole at small forward well, and has fought through his knee problems early in the year to show his all court game the past two times out. He can score from anywhere, handles the ball well and is a strong rebounder and defender.
Other than the two big freshman, Lewis Clinch is the biggest difference in this team. He was hurt early in the year last season and didn't really get going until the ACC season was in full swing. I've heard a lot of Georgia fans claiming he was overrated coming out of high school, and Mike Mercer is the better player, but Clinch is destroying that notion right now. He's leading GT at 17ppg (in only 24 minutes per) and is shooting 57% from the field and 49% from 3. He shot 50% from 3 during ACC play last year, so it's not some fluke that he's shooting this well.
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This Georgia Tech team as a whole can score and rebound with the best of them. Despite having played a brutal schedule to this point (UCLA, Memphis, Vanderbilt, Purdue, Penn State and Miami all from "high major" leagues and only Penn State was at home) Tech is still offensive rebounding more than half of their missed shots. This is a remarkable statistic, and says a lot about Jeremis Smith and his attitude around the rim.
Ken Pomeroy has Tech as the 11th most efficient offense in the country (Georgia is 18th for comparison) and the team is shooting 40% from 3 for the season. While the half court offense looks ungainly at times, and despite the turnover numbers, Tech is putting points up on the board in big bunches.
Defensively is where the problems have been, as Tech has really struggled to contain dribble penetration and has no defensive shot blocking presence. This is a not a good situation to be in facing a Georgia team who's strength is in their guards, so I'm expecting a high scoring shootout type affair in the Thriller Dome.
Overall though, this is a very talented and good GT team who has only played 5 games at home and put a couple of thousand miles on their bodies before they even really began their college careers. Certainly as the season goes on I expect us to improve even more, and I think in front of what will be a flatout mean crowd at the AMC tonight they should be able to do enough on the glass and in transition to beat a (surprising to me) much improved Georgia team.
I think UGA v. GT will become a much better basketball rivalry in the near future, both programs are vastly upgrading their talent levels.
Nathan Fowler
AOL Fanhouse
My UGA vs. GT Pre-game Thoughts
Nathan Fowler over at AOL's GT Fanhouse asked for my pre-game thoughts. It's broken into two parts. First, some quick comments on the game. The second is some thoughts on our team. It was written primarily for a Tech audience. Much of you already know.
PWD
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Basketball Quick Hitters
How am I going to stop Georgia? (Image: AJC)
"Tech has lost six straight to Georgia in football, six of the past 10 in men's basketball, 27 of 29 in women's basketball and two years ago got gut-punched by the baseball Dogs to be knocked out of the NCAAs — at Tech!" -- AJC
Pre-game articles:
-- Josh Kendall has his UGA vs. GT preview.
-- Hair raising season for Dawgs - ABH
-- Rivalry Revelry - ABH
-- Stukes can't miss - AJC
-- Dogs have upper hand in rivalry - AJC
Also, SI.com's Seth Davis has put together a Christmas article suggesting how to fill the missing pieces for a variety of power teams. Nice props hear for Georgia's Sundiata Gaines. He suggests that LSU's team would be complete with a guy like Gaines running the point.
Over on ESPN.com, Andy Katz has us at #15 on his Power 16. The composite Power 16 has us on the bubble.
PWD
December 21, 2006
Knife Wielding Maniacs Attack UGA Mascots (allegedly)
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Georgia was giving the Jacksonville Dolphins a 93-77 pounding Tuesday night at Stegeman Coliseum when the teens allegedly ran from their seats to the court floor and -- according to a university police report -- attacked the two mascots.Where to begin with this story?
Georgia students Tyler Martin, dressed as Spike, and Trey Dunn, dressed as Hairy Dawg, were knocked to the hardwood floor. In the process, the tangle of teens and mascots took down three young girls who had just finished performing in the halftime show.
A university police officer says the 18-year-olds smelled of alcohol and were carrying small knives. Breathalyzer tests showed both had blood-alcohol levels of 0.12 percent.
First off, UGA has announced a 2 year ban from Campus for these two alleged idiots. The state's legal system is still sorting out a more formal punishment. Personally, I think attacking Hairy Dawg with a knife should get you thrown out of the state...after your 30 year jail sentence is over.
Now, as for Spike. I pity the person inside the Spike uniform. I do. But if someone where to mysteriously kidnap his empty inflatable, annoying costume and throw it into a wood chipper, I wouldn't shed a tear. Or as LiquidCourage said, "If they had just taken out Spike, the crowd would've cheered."
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Personally, I use Hitman: Professional Killers, Inc. they "provide permanent solutions to common problems. " Clearly
May their punishment be swift and brutal.
PWD
ok - they had the knives on them. They weren't really using them.
Reggie Ball ineligible for Gator Bowl
Image: Jim Hipple
According to the AJC, Reggie Ball (Sr.) and Kenny Scott (Sr.) have both been declared academically ineligible for the Gator Bowl. Both players are ineligible by NCAA and Georgia Tech standards. Per the AJC:
NCAA rules require seniors to pass at least six hours in the fall semester to be eligible for a bowl. Tech rules require seniors to maintain a 2.0 grade-point average to play, according to the athletics department Web site. Gailey, citing federal privacy laws, wouldn't say how Ball fell short but said he was ineligible under NCAA and Tech rules.I'm sorry, but what? You didn't realize that your starting quarterback and cornerback were struggling to pass only six credit hours worth of classes and maintain a 2.0? Come again? In 2003, GT announced new procedures designed to ensure that a repeat of Flunkgate wouldn't happen.
"We would have probably been able to look at some things to help them a little bit better down toward the end of the semester if we realized they were in this situation," Gailey said.
I guess they didn't put those procedures through AutoCAD for the benefit of all the rocket scientists on the team. On the flip side, Reggie will have more time to get ready for The Draft. Unfortunately, Gailey probably thinks Reggie still has another
Gailey will start Taylor Bennett in the ultimate damned if you do damned if you don't scenario. If Bennett bombs and proves that Reggie really was the best QB on campus, then where is the optimism at QB for next year? The fan base's four year whipping boy -- Reggie Ball -- won't be around to blame when things go badly. On the other hand, if Tech wins behind a solid game by Bennett, then the Tech faithful (sic) has to wonder why Gailey didn't make the switch sooner.
pwd
See also:
GT loses QB for Gator -- AP
I'll Take: Least Damaging Suspension in History for 1,000 - Alex -- AOL
Hoops: UGA vs. Tech -- By the Numbers
Stats thru 12/17/06 (in other words, they don't include GT's beat down of Centenary or our clobbering of Jacksonville). Teams are ranked against all 325 Div. I basketball programs.
Thoughts on the stats:
PWD
| Stat | UGA (NCAA Rank) | GT (NCAA Rank) |
| Scoring Offense | 91.6 (2) | 83.7 (15) |
| Scoring Defense | 64.1 (96) | 73.7 (255) |
| Scoring Margin | 27.5 (3) | 10.0 (73) |
| FG Percentage | 59.9 (3) | 50.6 (17) |
| FG % Defense | 41.2 (94) | 46.4 (265) |
| Free Throw % | 62.2 (288) | 64.5 (246) |
| 3 pt. percentage | 43.4 (8) | 38.6 (66) |
| Rebounding Margin | 11.0 (7) | 6.4 (44) |
| Assists / Game | 18.8 (10) | 15.4 (90) |
| Steals / Game | 11.9 (5) | 9.3 (33) |
| Turnovers / Game | 17.0 (223) | 16.6 (183) |
Thoughts on the stats:
- -- Tech has played a much tougher schedule to date. They've already completed games against UCLA (L), Memphis (W), Penn State (W), Miami (L) and Vandy (L). On the other hand, UGA has only played two "brand name" teams in Gonzaga (W) and Wake Forest (W). This throws the side by side stats way off.
-- Some things do jump off the page that remain relevant despite the quality of opposition. First, GT wants to run as much as UGA does. They are long and athletic, and their ability to change the game via steals and pressure is comparable to ours.
-- Both teams turn the ball over way, way, way too much.
-- Neither team is reliable from the free throw line. This is a big win for Georgia as it will be uncommon for us to play teams who shoots as poorly as we do from the charity stripe.
-- Georgia is deadly from beyond the arc. Our three point shooting continues to rise. After the Jacksonville game, Levi Stukes has upped his season average to 63% from 3 point land.
-- Two years ago, I don't believe that UGA could've scored 91 points if they were playing in an abandon gym with the entire team on the court using 5 basketballs at once shooting non-stop for 3 hours against thin air. To average 90+ on the season is incredible. Granted, we've played more than our fair share of tomato cans, cupcakes, hypenated colleges and orphanages. However, we hung 87 on Wake Forest and 96 on Gonzaga so the scoring average isn't a total fluke.
PWD
What's the Frequency Bobo?
Apparently, Mark Richt has named Michael Stipe as our new offensive coordinator. Image: DawgPost.com. I'm not saying. I'm just saying.
PWD
December 20, 2006
Site News: Upgraded to the New Blogger
Blogger.com, the Google owned service that powers this site, finally finished their upgrade. With the new functionality comes the ability for me to "label" posts. Anyone familiar with blogs powered by Word Press and other similar services are familiar with how this works.
I assume that I'll be able to incorporate the labels/tags into my side bar. But I'll figure that out later. I'm going to try and re-tag some of my articles over the past month or so. I doubt I'll go back beyond that.
Some of the labels you'll see will be:
I assume that I'll be able to incorporate the labels/tags into my side bar. But I'll figure that out later. I'm going to try and re-tag some of my articles over the past month or so. I doubt I'll go back beyond that.
Some of the labels you'll see will be:
- UGA
GT
recruiting
SEC
ACC
humor
national
basketball
football
Hoops: Dawgs Win vs. Jacksonville. Gaines Injured
Stukes scored a career high 27 vs. Jacksonville (image: georgiadogs.com)
The Georgia Bulldog basketball team beat the Jacksonville Dolphins 93-77 last night. However, the win was costly as our starting point guard Sundiata Gaines injured his right ankle. He's uncertain for Friday Night's game vs. Georgia Tech.
From the AJC's Chip Towers:
[Gaines'] status for Friday night's game at Georgia Tech is uncertain.
"I don't know; it's day to day," said Gaines, in a walking boot but without crutches. "It will probably be a game-time decision. I'll pretty much have to get as much treatment as possible to try to get back. It's frustrating, but as a player on this team, I have to encourage everybody."
Gaines came in averaging 9.8 points per game and leading the Bulldogs in rebounding (5.4), assists (5.1) and steals (3.5). He earned SEC honors this week for his performance in Saturday's 96-83 win over No. 16 Gonzaga, scoring 21 points with eight rebounds, five assists and six steals.
Some highlights from the Box Score:
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-- Mike Mercer played point guard in Gaines absence. He had a career high 11 assists along with 21 points. Unfortunately, he also had 6 turnovers. (Image: OnlineAthens.com)
-- Woodbury had 15 points, 7 rebound and 3 blocks.
-- The Bulldogs shot 82% from the free throw line in the first half, but only 42% in the second half. We have to improve from the charity stripe.
-- The Dawgs outrebounded the 'Fins 30-21, but we were beaten on the offense boards 9 to 16.
-- UGA had 12 blocks, 8 steals and 21 assists, but we had 22 turnovers.
More Articles on the Game:
- Dawgs Cruise Past Dolphins - Georgiadogs.com
Win Proves Costly - AJC
Interview with Terrance Woodbury - Dawgpost.com
Stukes Leads UGA to Victory - AP
Dawg Slam Another Foe - OnlineAthens
Also of note, Wisconsin comes to Athens on Sunday, Dec. 31st at 1:00 pm (EST). The Badgers are now ranked #4 in the AP Poll, and they could be ranked as high as #3 when they come to Athens.
To the best of my knowledge, this will be the highest ranked non-conference team that UGA has played in Athens since the #1 ranked UNC Tarheels came to town in '97 with Vince Carter and Antwan Jamison. That was one of the best/loudest crowds that I've ever seen in Athens. The Dawgs had a chance to win it in regulation, but Jumaine Jones missed a jumper from around 10-12 feet. We later lost in overtime. Georgiadogs.com still has great seats available for the showdown with the Badgers. Make sure you come out for that one.
PWD
Tech's Broken offense
Finger pointing never solved anything.
A guy claiming to be a former GT player under O'Leary talks about the Chan Gailey / Patrick Nix offense. He refuses to accept that it's all Reggie Ball's fault. It's coaching.
It's an interesting take.
PWD
December 19, 2006
Coach Bobo Named Offensive Coordinator and other Football Headlines
It's official. We've got a new OC. (Image: Georgiadogs.com)
From Georgiadogs.com official press release:
University of Georgia quarterback coach Mike Bobo will be promoted to offensive coordinator according to an announcement Tuesday by Bulldog head coach Mark Richt.
Bobo will succeed Neil Callaway who Sunday was named head coach at the University of Alabama Birmingham. Richt had turned over play-calling duties to Bobo in Georgia's last regular season game, a 15-12 victory over Georgia Tech, and said he would also call the plays in the Dec. 30 Chick-fil-A Bowl game.
In Other News:
Our current players provide scouting reports on all the redshirting freshmen. David Ching has the story in the Columbus-Ledger. Ray Gant's comments on Kiante Tripp, Brandon Woods and Demarcus Dobbs are the best. Gant on Dobbs:
"Great upside. A little quiet, needs to get more of a football mentality, a little more toughness. He has it, but he's a nice guy too, though. When he gets some of that jerk in him, then it's a wrap." Defensive tackle Ray GantSeparately, Josh Kendall of the Macon Telegraph talks with Coach Garner about the influx of JUCO recruits. The article is interesting because Garner is so vividly candid in talking about the sense of urgency created by "The Matthew Stafford Window." Garner says:
"You work your whole career to get a quarterback like Stafford," Garner said, "and you feel like you have some really good running backs and the receivers who are coming along, and you need some guys there to protect him and open holes for those backs."Two good reads on the future.
"We feel like (Stafford) is a special player," he said. "You want to put him out there in a position to perform to his abilities. He has a lot of ability, but he has to be protected and he has to have an opportunity to throw the football."
PWD
Basketball Tickets: Georgia at Clemson (face value)
The Clemson Athletic Department has tickets available for the Georgia vs. #25 Clemson game at Clemson's Littlejohn Coliseum. Tickets are available for $18.00 each by calling 800-CLEMSON. Or you can order online.
The web site makes it look like you have to be an IPTAY member to buy online. I talked to the CU ticket office, and that isn't the case. Simply select the number of "IPTAY" tickets or Children tickets that you want to buy. You will get best available tickets regardless of whether or not you're a Clemson IPTAY giver. After the system tells you where your tickets are, select your delivery method and checkout. Then select OPTION 3 "New IPTAY Donor or New Ticket Customer."
PWD
The web site makes it look like you have to be an IPTAY member to buy online. I talked to the CU ticket office, and that isn't the case. Simply select the number of "IPTAY" tickets or Children tickets that you want to buy. You will get best available tickets regardless of whether or not you're a Clemson IPTAY giver. After the system tells you where your tickets are, select your delivery method and checkout. Then select OPTION 3 "New IPTAY Donor or New Ticket Customer."
- Game Date: Thurs, Dec. 28, 2006
Location: Clemson, SC
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FSNS
PWD
Chan Gailey gets Contract Extension
ESPN.com is reporting that Gailey earned a 1 year contract extension. Per the ESPN article:Hip-hip-hooray, for example, for Georgia Tech's Chan Gailey. Even coming off season-ending losses to rival Georgia and to Wake Forest in the ACC title game, Tech's Toyota Gator Bowl bid activated an "extension bonus" in Gailey's contract that tacks an additional year onto his new five-year deal. That's a nice holiday perk, considering Gailey made nearly $1.2 [million] already this fall. He also collects a $25,000 postseason bonus, along with 10 tickets for family and friends to Georgia Tech's Jan. 1 game against West Virginia.Interestingly, the contract makes no mention of whether or not the tickets come with the matching 10 hot dogs and 10 Cokes.
(Image: Someone should bring the sign on the right when they do the press conference for Gailey's new deal)
In other coaching news, FanBlogs.com lets us know that Boston College (Jeff Jagodzinski) and Stanford (Jim Harbaugh) have named their new head coaches. Sorry Dawg fans, Al Borges is still at Auburn.
PWD
Chick-Fil-A Bowl Tickets Still Available
Georgia Bulldogs vs. Virginia Tech Hokies
Sat, Dec 30, 2006 8:00 PM
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Via Stubhub, you can buy or sell tickets to the game. They also have a guarantee that you'll get your tickets in time for the game. Check out their inventory of upper, lower and prime tickets. Also, it seems that some of the newer ticket sellers are offering lower prices to the game.
PWD
December 18, 2006
Steve Spurrier Offers Advice to Tommy Bowden
I believe it was the great philosopher Hank Hill that said it best, "Don't go teasing the gorilla in the monkey house, son." To that end, Tommy Bowden has opened pandoras box of smack talk with Spurrier, and he's already losing. Per the AP:
PWD
South Carolina's Steve Spurrier has some advice for his colleague at Clemson - if Tigers coach Tommy Bowden wants a raise, talk to his bosses like Spurrier did.Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice work Steve.Spurrier was given a contract extension and a nearly $500,000 a year raise earlier this month after finishing 7-5 and going to the Liberty Bowl to play Houston.
Bowden quipped days later that "it's amazing how this thing works because I'm at a place where seven [wins] gets you fired. He's at a place where seven gets you a raise."
Spurrier responded, "If Tommy Bowden wants a raise, he can just ask his AD and president if he's as good a coach as Mark Richt, and me, and Fulmer and Tuberville and those other guys. That's the only reason I got a raise. They think I'm that good a coach."
Spurrier's increase brought his total package from $1.257 million to $1.75 million on a deal that will run through the 2012 season. Bowden, whose Tigers went 8-4 and are headed to the Music City Bowl, has four years left on a pact that pays him about $1.2 million.
"If [Bowden] wants a raise, he ought to go and say, 'Am I as good a coach as all them guys?'" Spurrier said. "And they'll probably say, 'Why sure you are.' 'Well, why don't you pay me like that?' And they'll probably pay him like that. Or else they'll say ... it could be the other answer, right?"
Spurrier chuckled and smiled at times as he answered questions about Bowden's remarks.
He says he doesn't worry about other coach's salaries. "They're printed in the paper. Everybody knows what everybody makes. Your bosses pay you whatever you think your value is," Spurrier said. "You guys ought to tell him he needs to go talk to his bosses, see what they think about him."
PWD
About the Jeff Bowden Rumors
Daddy Bowden isn't seen pointing to Athens in this picture
I've heard the rumors about Jeff Bowden coming to UGA, and I really don't buy it. If John Eason, our current WR coach, does decide to retire or move into an administrative role one day, it wouldn't be the worst hire in the world to bring Jeff Bowden over to Athens as the WR coach. But I don't see it happening...at least not now anyway.
Jeff's buyout is $537,000 at FSU. As a WR coach at a school like Georgia, he would be making $125,000-$175,000. From what I've heard, it wouldn't be shocker to see Jeff Bowden take a year off from coaching. JB is about to get his hands on a massive settlement, and he may want to get away from coaching, the media, the fans and the complaining for a while.
The Rumor Mill in General:
The rumor mill around recruiting, suspensions, arrests and injuries in Athens is remarkably solid. But the rumors around assistant coaching changes at UGA absolutely sucks.
Every year Coach Bobo is rumored to be going somewhere. The past two years it was GSU. Despite no evidence of that being the case at all. Every year Eason is rumored to be retiring. Obviously, he hasn't yet. How many times have we heard that Brad Johnson was about to join the coaching staff? And no one saw Callaway to UAB cooking until Richt called it. I think the same folks pushing the Jeff Bowden to UGA rumors are the same folks pushing the other non-sense.
It wouldn't be a bad thing if Jeff did show up in Athens as a WR coach, but I don't see it happening. There is no other position on staff that would make sense for him.
PWD
Football Scheduling: SEC makes move to help TV Partners
Awesomeness like this should happen at a reasonable football hour. Not pre-noon.
Last year, the SEC ran into a problem on Nov. 11th when the SEC full slate of action included
- Alabama at LSU (ESPN Night Game)
South Carolina at Florida (CBS 3:30 pm EST)
Tennessee at Arkansas (ESPN2 Night Game)
Georgia at Auburn (LF Sports at 11:30 CST)
The SEC is swapping Bama's games with LSU and Miss. State. That thins out the SEC schedule for Nov. 10, 2006, and it strengthens the league's TV schedule for Nov. 3, 2006. The move should avoid one of the league's TV log jams from last year.
It's a small win, but it's a good thing. Ultimately, for Dawg fans it almost assures that UGA vs. AU will be a 3:30 game or a night game next year in Athens.
pwd
PS -- Not that it matters, but UGA plays Troy on Nov. 3rd next year. See our full 2007 schedule.
Great Video of Mike Mercer's Dunk vs Gonzaga
Go. Here. Be. Amazed. At. The. Awesomes.
I vote this Best in Game Dunk by a Dawg at least since Rashad Wright threw one against the back board for Jarvis Hayes to slam home in the final moments of the 1st round NCAA tourney game against Murray State in Chicago.
PWD
I vote this Best in Game Dunk by a Dawg at least since Rashad Wright threw one against the back board for Jarvis Hayes to slam home in the final moments of the 1st round NCAA tourney game against Murray State in Chicago.
PWD
News on Callaway's New Gig at UAB
Congrats to Callaway. Image: georgiadogs.com
Articles on the hiring:Callaway will stay with Georgia through the bowl game, and he has talked with Richt about possible replacements for the OL position. Although, neither he nor Richt shed any light on that topic.
More importantly, the AJC says that all the offensive line recruits look like they're going to stick around with Georgia in spite of Callaway's departure. The only exception is Ben Harden. Harden is at Hargrave, and things aren't looking so good for him to qualify. It's also not looking like Georgia is still involved in Clifton Geather's recruitment. Both Geathers brothers had non-traditional recruitments. So it's not a shocker that Clifton isn't going to show in Athens.
Earlier this weekend, I put forth a list of candidates that might fit into the OL coach role. DawgSports.com's Kyle King agrees with most of my list except for one person. He's not big on Scelfo.
pwd
hat tip to dawgbone.net for many of these links
December 17, 2006
Derek Dooley to Head Coach Lousiana Tech
ESPN.com is reporting that the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs will name Derek Dooley as their head coach at a press conference on Monday. Derek is obviously Vince's son. His undergrad degree is from UVA and his law degree is from Georgia. He served on Saban's staff at LSU for 5 years and on his staff with the Dolphins for two years among other stops.Congrats to a guy with a lifetime of UGA and Clarke Central ties. With UGA still having openings for Tier 2 non-conference opponents in 2008 and beyond, don't be shocked to see us add La. Tech to one of those slots. I'd personally love to see that.
Check out this great profile on Derek from NFLHS.com. It talks about Derek's time at Clarke Central and at UVA. Good read.
LaTechSports.com confirms the Story.
PWD
Georgia Races Past Gonzaga
Stukes dropped 25 on the Zags (Image: georgiadogs.com)
UGA may or may not make the NCAA Tourney this year. But one thing is for certain. The days of winning and losing unwatchable games by scores like 45-42 appear to be over. This team can run and run and run some more.
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(Image: Gaines was unstoppable)
Kudos to Felton. This is a well conditioned team with solid hands that looks great in transition. We still need to iron out the half court offense and defense, but damn. That was fun.
Box Score Highlights:
-- Sundiata Gaines had 21 points, 8 rebounds, 6 steals, 5 assists and only 4 turnovers. You won't see a better stat line than that.
-- Levi Stukes had 25 points including a 10 in a row.
-- Mercer had 19 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists
-- UGA had 14 offensive rebounds to Gonzaga's four.
-- .539 on field goals is outstanding
-- 19 assists and only 12 turnovers while forcing the Zags into 21 turnovers.
The Zags may have "looked past us" in preparation for their big game with Duke, but it sure didn't look like it from their 59% shooting or the 10 3-pointers. We were just more athletic than them, we protected the ball better, and our guys made huge shots when it mattered.
Other Articles of Interest:
- -- UGA Surprises Zags - ESPN
-- Georgia Wins - AP
-- AP Photo Gallery - ESPN
-- Dawgs Make Statement - AJC
-- Dawgs Win over Zags - DawgPost.com
-- Buy Hoops Tickets - Georgiadogs.com
PWD
Possible Candidates to Replace Coach Callaway
Congrats to Neil Callaway. UAB's New Coach according to ESPN.
Now, time to replace him. This is a list of ideas. No sources here just speculation. Names listed alphabetically. Not by preference:
-- Greg Adkins -- Currently with the Tennessee Vols. At UT, he has served as tight ends coach, recruiting coordinator and now offensive line coach. Adkins spent five years as an assistant at Georgia under Jim Donnan. He coached the Bulldogs' defensive line in 1996 and oversaw tight ends and the offensive line from 1997-2000. He became the offensive line coach for Donnan in 1999 after Coach Pat Watson's unexpected mid-season death. He was an excellent recruiter for the Dawgs finding hidden gems such as Randy McMichael, Tony Gilbert and Arnold Harrison (if memory serves).
Upside - Exceptional recruiter. Understands the Georgia landscape. verstile enough to coach multiple positions including DTs (coached Jason Ferguson and Jermaine Smith for UGA).
Downside - Only two years of full, total responsibility for offensive line coaching at the SEC level despite his 8 years in the league. Has a good thing going in Knoxville. Would he have a bad taste in his mouth from his and Donnan's departure? The move would be lateral for Adkins and require a huge financial commitment.
-- Jimmy Heggins -- Heggins is currently the Kentucky offensive line coach. However, he's better known for his tenure with FSU from 1986-2004. He coached beside Richt on Bowden's staff for 15 seasons. He has two national championship rings.
Upside: Richt would have a pretty good idea of what he was getting. He would also know our offense immediately. UK's offensive line mauled Georgia's defense when it mattered in Lexington this year.
Downside: Fired/pressured to resign at FSU after the offensive lines started to slip. FSU hasn't had a dominating offensive line since Van
-- Art Kehoe -- Kehoe is currently the offensive line coach for Ole Miss. A better bio on Kehoe can be found here. Kehoe came to Ole Miss after a 24 year career with the Miami Hurricanes including 20 years as the offensive line coach for all five national championship teams. In a desperation move, Larry Coker fired Kehoe after the 2005 season despite a track record as good or better than any in America. The guy can identify and coach up players from HS, Juco ranks and other positions. Here are some quotes attributed to him over his career.
Upside: Did I mention the five National Championships? Plus, he played and/or coached alongside Martinez and Richt in the past. Moving from OL coach at Ole Miss under The Orgeron to OL coach at UGA is *not* a lateral move. It's a return to glory for him.
Downside: I have no idea why in the hell Coker fired him. Randy Shannon the new Miami Hurricanes head coach may try and bring Kehoe back to Coral Gables.
-- Mac McWhorter -- Texas Longhorn offensive line coach from 2002-today. And yes. That last name is familiar. Pretty sure that Bob McWhorter, Georgia's first All-American in 1913 was his grandfather. Bob was also the former namesake of the old Athletic Dorms. Mac is a Georgia man. His resume is incredible. He's been an offensive line coach at GT and Alabama under Bill Curry. He's coached OL for the 2005 National Champion Longhorns. He's coached at UGA under Goff/McDuffie and at Clemson. He also spent two years at Georgia Tech after Doug Marrone (sp?) left GT to join the UGA staff. He has been a head coach in High School, and at West Georgia College. He served as the interim head coach at Tech for the 2001 Seattle Bowl victory.
Upside: An excellent recruiter and position coach with a national title ring and deep Georgia Bulldog ties. After being screwed by Georgia Tech in the search to replace O'Leary, he would have a special place in his heart for clobbering the Yellow Jackets.
Downside: Mack Brown has already named McWhorter associate head coach. Pulling assistants away from all that oil money is brutally tough. It would be a lateral move to come back. The only reason to come back would be the call of home.
-- Hugh Nall - Hugh Nall is currently Auburn's offensive line coach. He has served as Tuberville's offensive line coach since 1995 when the two worked together at Ole Miss. Nall's Georgia ties run deep as he was a member of the 1980 National Championship team. Excellent eye for talent along the offensive line. Usually produces elite OLs; however, this year has been a bit of a disappointment considering the group had 4 seniors and a junior.
Upside - Georgia man. Heck of an OL coach. Solid recruiter.
Downside - Overwhelming failure as an offensive coordinator for Auburn in 2003. Extremely loyal to Tuberville. Georgia reportedly tried to lure Nall away when Richt first arrived with no success. Would see that Bobo is "The Chosen One" as a play caller. The move would be lateral for Nall and require a huge financial commitment.
-- Chris Scelfo - Scelfo was the head coach at Tulane from '98 to '05. He weathered unbelievable crisis situations as a head coach including multiple threats to cancel the football program and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Prior to joining the staff at Tulane, he was the Offensive Line Coach and Offensive Coordinator at Georgia under Jim Donnan from '96-98. At Georgia, he helped recruit George Foster, Jon Stinchcomb and Jonas Jennings. He also oversaw the transition of Chris Terry from little used defensive end to 2nd Round NFL draft pick. At Georgia, he was the offensive coordinator, but he didn't call the plays. A position he would find himself in again at UGA.
Upside - Veteran coach with 20 years experience. Solid teacher of Offensive linemen. Understands the Georgia landscape. Not currently working anywhere else.
Downside - Would he want to enter a situation where he knows that he won't be the play caller? Also, is Damon Evans still on speaking terms with Scelfo after Tulane absolutely shat on Georgia regarding the scheduled 2002 and 2003 football games? They canceled the series at the last minute leaving UGA scrambling to find a quality opponent.
Who else is out there for us to look at?
PWD
hat tips to message boards for some of the ideas. Particularly redclayhound on Heggins and
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Georgia Sports Blog
December 16, 2006
Georgia vs. Gonzaga Today on ESPN2 at 5:00 pm
Georgia (6-1) takes on #16 Gonzaga (9-2) today at 5:00 pm at the Gwinnett Arena in Duluth. The game will also air on ESPN2. The Zags have already beaten UNC, Texas and Washington. It's one of the few nationally televised games of the year for the Dawgs so don't miss it. They will appear on regional TV (Fox Sports, LF Sports and CSS) quite a few times. Some pre-game articles:
If we can win two of the four remaining big non-conference games, we'll likely finish the season 10-3 out of conference (we have a Feb. game against Kennesaw State remaining).
Ten non-conference wins would mean that we would only need to go 6-10 in SEC play to make the NIT. An NIT birth would stabilize the program, and it would give Felton some breathing room. Ten non-conference wins with this schedule would also mean that 8-8 in the SEC would make us a near lock for the NCAA tourney as well.
Last year, the Dawgs went 5-11 in SEC play with a close loss to Auburn in the middle of the season. Six SEC wins is very obtainable. Eight SEC wins will be a stretch, but it's not out of the question if we stay healthy and suspension free.
Tonight is a big game against a quality Gonzaga team.
PWD
(Photo credit: Donavan Eason. Georgiadogs.com)
- Games in Gwinnett is important to Felton - AJC
Tickets Remain for UGA vs. Zags - Georgiadogs.com
Team Previews - Georgiadogs.com
Gonzaga Hits the Road - Seattle Times
Georgia Hopes for Nation's Attention - ABH
Dawgs to Face Zags - AP
- Tues. Dec 19th - Jacksonville (home) at 7:00 pm
Fri. Dec. 22nd - Georgia Tech (away) at 7:00 pm
Thur. Dec. 28th - Clemson (away) at 7:00 pm
Sun. Dec. 31st - Wisconsin (home) at 1:00 pm
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Ten non-conference wins would mean that we would only need to go 6-10 in SEC play to make the NIT. An NIT birth would stabilize the program, and it would give Felton some breathing room. Ten non-conference wins with this schedule would also mean that 8-8 in the SEC would make us a near lock for the NCAA tourney as well.
Last year, the Dawgs went 5-11 in SEC play with a close loss to Auburn in the middle of the season. Six SEC wins is very obtainable. Eight SEC wins will be a stretch, but it's not out of the question if we stay healthy and suspension free.
Tonight is a big game against a quality Gonzaga team.
PWD
(Photo credit: Donavan Eason. Georgiadogs.com)
December 15, 2006
Velasco to Center and More on Callaway
Dean Legge's Chick-Fil-A Bowl Notes calls this tidbit out:
PWD
ANOTHER LINE MOVE: Junior guard Fernando Velasco will back up center Nick Jones in the bowl game and probably will move to center full-time next year, Richt said.Speaking of offensive linemen, Josh Kendall has the latest on the UAB coaching search and Neil Callaway. The Birmingham News says that Jimbo Fisher was the first choice of the search committee, but they can't afford Fisher. So they've moved on to Callaway. Given that Tyrone Nix, South Carolina's defensive coordinator, has pulled his name out of the search...all eyes are on Callaway.
The move of Velasco and freshman guard Chris Davis to center is bad news for the Ian Smith. The redshirt freshman has been suspended indefinitely after two alcohol-related arrests this year.
PWD
UGA vs. GT Motivational Posters
I feel that I've let all my readers down (all 3 of you). I didn't immediately link to Doug's UGA vs. GT motivational posters after the game.
click to enlarge
Go to Doug's site to see the full series of posters.
I found the link via DawgSports.com. Speaking of DawgSports, check out Kyle's Bowl Season preview.
PWD
click to enlarge
Go to Doug's site to see the full series of posters.
I found the link via DawgSports.com. Speaking of DawgSports, check out Kyle's Bowl Season preview.
PWD
Callaway to UAB gaining momentum
Fox 6 in Birmingham says that Jimbo Fisher is out of the UAB search process. Callaway is now being listed as the front runner to replace Watson Brown.
Developing.
PWD
Developing.
PWD
December 14, 2006
Coach Callaway meeting with UAB Officials
Callaway catches a job offer?
Richt say that Coach Callaway met with UAB officials on Wednesday about their head coaching job (Source: AJC). Interestingly, Jimbo Fisher of LSU is also a candidate for that job.
Normally, I would be a proponent of Coach Callaway considering other options. But to be totally honest, this probably isn't the ideal year. We have nine offensive linemen committed to Georgia. About half of them will enroll early. As completely and totally desperate as we are for OL help, the last thing we need is mass defections of our recruits.
Secondly, Richt has made it clear that he wants Bobo to focus exclusively on play calling. He has hinted that he doesn't think Bobo is ready for the full job of assembling the game plan for the upcoming week. He wants to work on the planning with Callaway who will retain the "offensive coordinator" title. Bobo's chance of success next year is less if he's trying to learn two new jobs at once.
Twelve SEC Titles
I've long felt that Callaway's offensive line recruitment has ranged from puzzling to inexplicable for most the past 6 years. You look at the kids we offered vs. the ones we didn't IN STATE and it'll drive you crazy.
Considering the talent level of the player he has signed prior to this class, one could argue that he's worked miracles putting together an OL that has won 60 games. The flip side of that coin being -- he wouldn't have to work miracles if he recruited the past 6 seasons like has this year.
We've also had games where our motley crew of OL misfits have dominated exceptional defensive lines. Games like Wisconsin '04, LSU '04, LSU '05 and UT '05 stand out as staggeringly impressive. We've also had games where Mississippi State, South Carolina, Marshall and even Vandy have made our OL look ridiculous. The wildly inconsistent product we see on the field week to week is maddening.
You look at his resume, and you see something like 12 SEC titles as a player and assistant at Alabama, Georgia and Auburn. Professionally, the guy is an enigma wrapped in a mystery while shrouded in a cloak of WTF.
That said:
That said...He FINALLY looks to be bringing on an diverse group of mostly primetime offensive line recruits. These guys appear to be academically eligible with multiple working shoulders, and they average around 300 pounds. He finally has something to work with.
That said. If you could guarantee me that we wouldn't lose any recruit AND that we could bring on someone like Hugh Nall from Auburn. I would be sitting here wishing Callaway all the best next year at UAB.
Said another way. I don't think OL coaching is program's biggest opportunity for improvement. It probably isn't the right time to make any changes.
PWD
(Image: WoodsandWaterOutdoorsShow.com)
More on the Bama Search
What's so hard about replacing the greatest coach ever?
The B'ham News has an interview with Bama's headhunter. The Mobile Press-Register has an article about people who would make interesting candidates. While the Tuscaloosa News talks about the Bama search turning costly financially.
Most interesting is a separate article in the Birmingham News about the attractiveness of the job. In the interview, they talk about the Nick Saban rumors.
I've said from the jump that it's a pipe dream to pursue Saban. The $57 million contract offer has already been strongly refuted as bogus. And, frankly that's the type of offer that it would take to land Saban given that he makes $4 million/year with the Dolphins. $57 million is offer that Bama can't and wouldn't make. Here's what a former LSU assistant and current NFL Scout had to say about Saban being a part of the search:
"Coaches are highly structured people. They want to know who's their boss, exactly who's calling the shots. And that's been a problem at Alabama for a while now."Exactly. Saban ain't coming.
For that reason, Landry said he believes Miami Dolphins coach Nick Saban would not take the Alabama job even if Saban wanted to leave the NFL. Landry and Saban are acquaintances.
"When Nick came to LSU, he interviewed LSU as much as they interviewed him," Landry said. "The thing that made it a really good job is the chancellor took over and he was Nick's only boss. He went straight to the chancellor every time."
Landry said discussion about Saban coming to Alabama is "absurd" and being orchestrated by his agent, Jimmy Sexton.
"Jimmy privately knows Nick is not interested," Landry said. "If other people speculate there's interest in Nick, it keeps Jimmy in the loop for the possibility of other clients, including possibly Houston Nutt. Those things are done all the time."
Added Landry: "I don't think the people doing the search truly think that Nick Saban is still attainable. I think that's coming from other people. But who's doing the search? Mal Moore may be doing all he can do, but it's worthless if he's got a bullet-less gun."
If I'm Bama, I have no idea who I'd call at this point. Mike Leach looks to be the most interesting guy that hasn't already turned them down. You'll laugh, but Larry Coker is a better candidate than most of the guys who's names are being thrown around.
BTW -- How in the hell did they end up without Butch Davis? What a shank!
PWD
Chick-Fil-A Bowl Articles of interest
Image: Hokiesports.com
Articles on preparing for the Bowl:
-- Lessons Learned - ABH
-- No Surprises This Time - Columbus-Ledger
-- Richt to Work Dawgs Harder for Bowl - Macon Telegraph
-- Playing Hokies Gets Dawgs Ball Rolling - Chattanooga Free Press
Articles Coach Ball being a former Hokie Coach:
-- Friends Across the Field - Richmond paper
-- Assistant to Face Former Team - AJC
-- Familiar Face Awaits Tech - Roanoke Times
Overall Preview:
-- Bowl Game Preview - AP
-- Time to Buckle Down - Ugasports.com
-- Hokies Aim High - AJC
PWD
December 13, 2006
UGA doing a nice job of staggering this OL class
The underrated Fernando Velasco returns at OG (image: Georgiadogs.com)
Currently, Georgia has nine offensive line commits. That doesn't include the always mysterious Clifton Geathers, who may end up at another school, at another position (DE) or both. It also doesn't include the highly touted Chris Little who still has UGA in his top three.
Recently, some Gator fans were among the many UGA rivals commenting on our OL heavy class. Some folks question the decision to bring on so many Jucos. Others question the over emphasis of one position in one class. Others are looking for a way to spin this as a negative. One of the Gator site moderators was asked about UGA's OL class. His response:
I commented on this a day or two ago. These nine linemen will end up being spread out between three classes, possibly even four. The juniors, true freshmen and redshirts who will be freshmen the following year. This is a smart way to catch up on years when recruiting went poorly or in Georgia's case where they had some bad luck getting kids qualified. Richt is accustomed to having excellent players up front. He's making up for lost time. They're recruited well at other position the last two years. This shouldn't hurt them at all. They're obviously in good shape at DL and QB.He makes an excellent point about class separation; although, the players will definitely be spread across four classes with an outside shot at being spread across five classes if a non-qualifier rears his head. It's also a great class because so many will enroll early including all the Jucos, at least one Prep Schooler and some of the high school kids.
IMHO, Richt is the most consistently successful recruiter in the SEC. He knows what he is doing.
Class separation in no particular order:
- Blaes - JR (Juco)
Haverkamp - JR (Juco)
Vance - So. (Juco)
Anderson - True Freshman (Prep)
Harden - True Freshman or Redshirt (Prep)
Sturdivant - True Freshman or Redshirt (HS)
Greenlee - True Freshman or Redshirt (HS)
Boling - True Freshman or Redshirt (HS)
Strickland - True Freshman or Redshirt (HS)
With only
PWD
ht - lakelanddawg
The Orgeron's New Blog
Everyday Should be Lemsday debuts strong enough to immediately lock down the "New Blog of the Year" award from the BlogPoll guys. (Ht - Orson Swindle). The guys at Fire Mark May and House That Rock Built put the site together for Coach O.
My favorite post is Coach O's 12 Days of Christmas.
The whole site is written in Coach O's thick cajun dialect. I pretty much have to give a hat tip to Chris Vernon while I'm at it. Vernon's "Col. Reb is Crying" song looks to have been the inspiration for this masterpiece.
PWD
My favorite post is Coach O's 12 Days of Christmas.
The whole site is written in Coach O's thick cajun dialect. I pretty much have to give a hat tip to Chris Vernon while I'm at it. Vernon's "Col. Reb is Crying" song looks to have been the inspiration for this masterpiece.
PWD
SEC South Park Coaches
My favorite is Coach O
Someone sent me this months ago. I sux for not posting it sooner. I didn't save who sent it. Send me an email (See the profile for the address), and I'll give you props.
PWD
December 12, 2006
Oddly, Auburn struggling to sell Cotton Bowl tix
This is just really odd to me. Auburn hasn't been to the Cotton since Bo Jackson's Heisman year. They haven't played Nebraska in forever, and they are struggling to move their allotment of tickets to a premium, historically strong bowl.
I don't get that one.
We sold ours.
In UGA bowl ticket news, all Peach Bowl orders were filled that were submitted by UGA contributors.
PWD
I don't get that one.
We sold ours.
In UGA bowl ticket news, all Peach Bowl orders were filled that were submitted by UGA contributors.
PWD
Damon Evans sits down with Carter Strickland
Now, if you're lik me...you're hoping the next sentence after "Damon Evans sits down with Carter Strickland of the AJC" is...."Then Damon clobbered him."
I told folks when Mark Schlabach left the AJC that:
"I'm smart. Not like everybody says. I can handle stories."
Anyway, here's Carter's interview with Damon.
PWD
I told folks when Mark Schlabach left the AJC that:
- A. It can get worse.
B. Most UGA fans have no idea how good we have it with Mark.
C. Be careful what you wish for.
D. Mark isn't such a bad guy.
"I'm smart. Not like everybody says. I can handle stories."
Anyway, here's Carter's interview with Damon.
PWD
Bama Continues Search for Coach
Some would call this Mal Moore's "Plan B." I would argue that it was Plan A from the start. With any luck they'll have the job filled by the time we roll into Tuscaloosa in September.
Thanks to everyone that sent me this. Special thanks to the Aubie who put it together.
PWD
BTW -- Stallings doesn't want it afterall. It sounded like he wanted it on Finebaum the other day. Oh well.
Thanks to everyone that sent me this. Special thanks to the Aubie who put it together.
PWD
BTW -- Stallings doesn't want it afterall. It sounded like he wanted it on Finebaum the other day. Oh well.
December 11, 2006
Inspirational Bulldog Video
This aired on ESPN after the 2004 Season. Goooooood stuff. Many of you have seen it. If not, grab a Kleenex before you start.
PWD
ht - DawgshankRedemption
PWD
ht - DawgshankRedemption
Chick-Fil-A Bowl Tickets Still Available
Georgia Bulldogs vs. Virginia Tech Hokies
Sat, Dec 30, 2006 8:00 PM
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Via Stubhub, you can buy or sell tickets to the game. They also have a guarantee that you'll get your tickets in time for the game. Check out their inventory of upper, lower and prime tickets.
PWD
