Georgia Sports Blog: February 2008

February 28, 2008

Is it football season yet?

DawgBone.net has all sorts of encouraging football headlines. Give it a read today.

PWD

Did the basketball team get the memo?

I recommend: "Scream Therapy"
Did Felton and the players get the memo regarding last night's game? The one that clearly stated:

some

It certainly didn't look like it.

While I have been critical of Felton this season in many respects. I have defended him in one key area up to now. Until last night, I really felt like his players were still fighting for him and/or each or other.

From my seats watching it up close and personal, I felt that all parties pretty much rolled over last night. Granted, the officiating stunk. Granted, we're banged up. Granted, the Gators are good. But I'm pretty sure that we were a two point favorite last night. Vegas didn't build all of those bright shiny buildings by being woefully out of touch with reality. Yet, we didn't really compete.

Felton described it this way to the AJC:

"Tonight we looked like a team that had hit some sort of wall," said Georgia coach Dennis Felton, clearly befuddled about what he had witnessed. "We were just sluggish and a step slow to most every and in all parts of the game. ... We were slow to loose balls, to rebounds, to stopping drivers. Offensively we were sluggish and hesistant. It was that sort of night for us all around."

That was almost as pathetic as the final two weeks of Jirsa's Death March towards unemployment. And it warrants mentioning that Ron Jirsa -- who was a complete boob -- did in fact make the post-season BOTH years.

Per Sundiata Gaines

"We did come out playing flat," acknowledged senior co-captain Sundiata Gaines. "We had no effort, and we were real tentative on offense. Florida's not a great defensive team, and that's the most disappointing thing about it. We had a lot of opportunities, and we really didn't take them. We really showed no emotion, no effort."

"Just because guys aren't playing to their potential or giving their all doesn't necessarily mean they're quitting," Gaines said. "As a team we just have to understand we have to play hard to have a chance. With the team we have, we have no other alternative. Other teams might be to take a few possessions off, but we can't." (emphasis added)

The season rolls on.

See Also:

UGA Hoops: If I only knew how to quit you

Dawgs Hit Wall vs. Gators

Dawgs Fall Flat

Building Frustration

Struggles Continue

Well...at least we're consistent

PWD

February 27, 2008

Georgia vs. Florida Tonight in Hoops

Don't forget that UGA takes on the Gators tonight in basketball at Stegeman. Actual tip-off time is 7:36 pm; however, the game will be broadcast on CSS via tape delay at 10:00 pm.

Leading up to the game, the Athens Banner-Herald has an article about Bliss' strong year. Apparently, his back is healthy for the first time, and the results are paying off for him. In conference play he averages 8.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 25.8 minutes. (source: ABH)

On the other end of the spectrum, Chip Towers of the AJC points out that the final five games of the season (including the SEC Tourney) are Do or Die for Felton. I agree that Felton needs wins in the worst way imaginable.

He actually needs three more wins this season to avoid coaching two of the three worst UGA teams (based on number of wins) since Hugh Durham arrived in 1979.

See Also:
-- Losses tough to get used to - Macon Telegraph

PWD

Braves Open Spring Training With Dawgs

The Braves open their spring training this afternoon with our Georgia Bulldogs. The Dawgs dropped their series with Arizona last weekend, two games to one. Despite the losses, the team played well.

Arizona was ranked #1 and started their ace pitcher, All-American Preston Guilmet Friday night. Georgia continued their tradition of battering the opposing ace and jumped on Guilmet with four runs in the first. They held on to win 9-7. The other games were losses, but encouraging.

Our starting pitching held up well, but the bullpen faltered down the stretch. Sunday's game was going well until Arizona had two big innings and got just enough out of their bullpen to win by a run. Although they are 1-2, the team has nothing to be down about. Gordon Beckham and Ryan Peisel both had impressive performances at the plate this weekend. New second baseman Michael Demperio didn't have a great offensive series, but on the first out of the season had a sizzling put out, ranging for a ground ball that looked like a sure hit and throwing the batter out. Our middle infield is solid.

The team has all the ingredient to be good: sound hitting, good front line pitching, speed, and an elite closer. The schedule may not let that mix translate into wins in the short term. The first two series are killer.

In keeping with tradition, the Braves have invited the Dawgs down for a game in Florida. I wonder what Josh Fields will feel like if he faces the Braves. Fields turned down a contract from the club last year and opted to return to Athens for his senior year. I'm sure the club harbors no ill will, but Fields will no doubt be eager to show the Braves why they should still want him. Fields, by the way, hit a home run and recorded a save Friday night. The Braves will start Charlie Morton and former UGA catcher Clint Sammons is likely to play.

After the game with the Braves, the team heads to two-time defending national champion Oregon State for a weekend series. A win out west would be good, two would be fantastic.

Quinton

February 26, 2008

Knowshon Moreno 2007 Highlights

The soundtracks for these files do not use the "radio" version songs. In other words, if you're at work, listen with the volume off. Uploaded by hoodgangsta001

See Also:
-- Knowshon Moreno Black #24 Jersey

PWD

February 25, 2008

Fark of the Day

Hat Tip: Hunkering Hank

(Update: Don't blame the Georgia Sports Blog for the spelling. It's Fulmer's advertisement. That's how they spell it in Knoxville)

.

February 23, 2008

Dawgs Lose to Vandy in Hoops

Image: Georgiadogs.com

Georgia played tough for the first half, and the Bulldogs held a 1 point lead at the break. But the open three pointers that the Dores missed in the first half found their intended destination in the second as Georgia was beaten by 12 in Nashville.

The Positives:

Gaines continues to play very well. He didn't have the second half that he wanted, but it was still a strong performance. 24 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and three steals.
Billy Humphrey played like his old self. He had 15 points on better than 50% shooting.
Albert Jackson had arguably his best game as a Bulldog. He pulled 9 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and zero credited turnovers against only one foul in 25 minutes.
I have often criticized Felton for his use of timeouts. He used them at the proper times in this game, and he made every attempt to slow Vandy's momentum. Obviously, it didn't work, but he didn't sit on this hands while Rome burned.

The Negatives:

Felton's overall, regular season SEC record is now 25-51 in almost five full seasons. His home SEC record is 20-18, and his road SEC record is 5-33. He has two true road wins against NCAA Tourney Teams in five years (UK in Year 1 and ARK last year).
Woodbury continues to play to the wrong side of "in control." When he focuses on taking a quality shot from the arc or working his way inside, he plays with above average results. But when he rushes shots and rattles recklessly towards his opponents, he's a train wreck. He is averaging one turnover per 11.9 minutes of game time. That's the worst margin of his three year career. If he could be brought under control, he could be a much more consistent weapon for Georgia.
The Technical Foul was pointless. He had only gotten a warning up to that point. Why was he still complaining about a warning? It's Vandy. Everyone knows the box and court are shaped funny. Plus, it's Ted Valentine. You know Valentine is a douche ref so why give him a reason to screw you? All you had to do was keep quiet about the "sideline warning" or whatever it was called. Not that it mattered in the end. It was just annoying. I agreed with the TV announcer. That one was probably just the stress of the season getting to Felton.

Ace Recruiter Neil Callaway Brings in the Heavy Hitters

Neil Callaway, former UGA offensive line coach and current UAB head coach, closed out his second recruiting class a few weeks ago with a blistering finish. Callaway signed 14 high school players and 11 junior college prospects. According to the Birmingham News

"The Blazers' signing class is not highly ranked. Scout.com ranks it 104th overall and last in C-USA. The rankings were slightly better by Rivals.com but UAB was still 101st overall and tied for ninth with UTEP in C-USA.

Callaway said he's not concerned with rankings and he is optimistic that this class will help next season."

In Callaway's defense, he has a proven, unmatched eye for talent. He had the vision to see that Pro Bowler Marcus McNeil wasn't worth a scholarship at UGA, and that about a half dozen kids with one functioning shoulder and/or leg should be locked up as early as possible in the recruiting process.

This is his second back-to-back Top 100 recruiting class at UAB. Indeed, we'll miss his eagle eyes and smooth talking sales pitch in Athens for sure.

PWD

February 22, 2008

Dawgs on TV - Feb. 24 to Mar. 1

Tomorrow's games are outlined in last week's post. The listings for the week ahead:

Sunday - February 24
-The Dennis Felton Show - 1:00 PM on SportSouth - Replays: 7:30 PM and Monday at 6:30 PM.

Monday - February 25
-Georgia v. Florida - men's basketball originally played on February 9, 1993 - 4:00 PM on ESPN Classic - Gators win at home by 3.

Tuesday - February 26
-Florida v. Georgia - men's basketball originally played on March 4, 2003 - 1:00 PM on ESPN Classic - Jim Harrick, despite the chaos erupting around his program, coaches the Dawgs to an upset of #3 Florida on a Jarvis Hayes jumper with seconds remaining.

Wednesday - February 27
-Florida v. Georgia - men's basketball - 10:30 PM on The Sunshine Network (Delay) - We're left with trying to burst the NCAA bubble of our rivals. UF is athletic, but young, and we might be able to pick them off in Stegeman.

Thursday - February 28
-The Suzanne Yoculan Gym Dog Show - 4:30 PM on SportSouth - Replay Friday at 11:00 AM.

-Georgia v. South Carolina - women's basketball - 7:00 PM on Fox Sports South - Andy and the girls probably don't have to have this win for the NCAAs, but it wouldn't hurt their resume. Plus, losing to South Carolina in anything is shameful.

Friday - February 29
-LSU v. Georgia - men's basketball originally played on February 8, 1991 - 3:00 PM on CSTV - Shaq and LSU nip the Dawgs in Athens.

Quinton

Add this to the list of things Tech Men can't do

The list of "Things Tech Men(sic) Can't Do" gets longer every day. We have published reports that address critical issues like...

Can't Count to Four - See Reggie Ball circa 2004
Can't Beat Georgia without Cheating - See last 17 years
Can't go to NCAA Compliance Class - See 1960-2005
Can't Win 9 or 10 Games Consistently - See Dave Braine
Can't Beat Georgia without Ralph Friedgen - See last 22 years
Can't Find The State of Atlanta on Map - See Joe Hamilton
Can't Sell Tickets without Free Hot Dogs - See last 100 years
Can't Hide 100 Pounds of Weed in his Dorm - See Reuben Houston
Can't touch a boobie - See last 200 years

And now we add...

Can't engineer a roof - See The Rain Out

I mean seriously...a helluva, helluva, helluva rain out? Stegeman may have its flaws, but we don't play in the rain. Engineering geniuses my ass. The roof project must've been one of Stephon Marbury's projects when he was in school. Oh. Wait. He was never in school. My mistake.

PWD

February 21, 2008

License Plates, Lady Vols, and Burlington Coat Factory Salesmen

A few oddball stories caught my eye today. First, the Georgia Legislature is again embroiled in controversy about college athletics. This time its those logos on state license plates. The noble lawgivers in the House voted overwhelmingly to stop selling Georgia license plates with out-of-state school logos on them. This move is the only logical choice after UF alums got Gator license plates approved by the Georgia department of motor vehicles. If Florida alums can have a Georgia plate, then it's time to shut the whole operation down. The ban extends only to those schools in states that won't allow Georgia schools on their license plates, which is basically everywhere but Tennessee. This whole thing is silly, since you can basically get any logo you want on your Georgia license plate. The state just wants your $25 fee. Is it me or does the Georgia legislature just not know how to let things go? I mean I get it and I guess I like the spirit of it all, but don't those guys have other things to do?

Candace Parker, Lady Vol superstar, is skipping her senior year to go pro. I think that's a first for women's basketball, but I'm not sure. Is the WNBA that lucrative?

Lastly, if you want to be the AD at LSU, please submit a resume. It doesn't matter if you have no experience in sports administration or even upper management. Besides the actually qualified applicants, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports that a "mortgage loan officer in Georgia," a "self-employed fitness coach," and a "former Burlington Coat Factory salesman" have already applied for the job.

Quinton

Another year for Felton?

I'm not here to call for anyone's head or bang on the desk and ask for changes. But I do hear the question being asked...just like you do...will Felton be here next year?

Before answering that question, it's important to understand the bigger picture surrounding Felton's contract. Prior to this season, Felton was given a contract extension through the 2010-2011 season. He was given the extension because it's almost impossible for basketball coaches to recruit with only two or three years left on their deal. They need around four years on their contract so that recruits can buy into the idea that their coach will be there for their entire tenure.

This season (2007-2008) was the first year of that four year deal. There are only three seasons left after March of this year. If Felton gets another year (2008-2009), then one of two things must happen at the end of next season:

another

We simply can't have him lingering in purgatory. The early signing day for 2009 recruits is in November 2008. If Damon Evans and Michael Adams elect to keep Felton after this season is over, he would be touring the country this off season trying to sign kids like all-everything Derrick Favors, with only two years left on a deal after the kid's enrollment date. That means the 2009 recruiting class will be tricky.

The questions for Damon Evans and Michael Adams seem to boil down to these:

If Damon and Adams think that Felton can meet their bar for a "successful" season next year, then they may give him another year. If they don't think that he can get it done next year, then we're only postponing the rebuilding process by waiting to make a move.

I don't know what's going to happen, but I do know that Michael Adams fired Ron Jirsa and Jim Donnan for a helluva lot less than these types of results.

Hopefully, Felton strings together several big wins and quiets the grumbling. Otherwise, the toughest personnel decision of Damon Evans' tenure is on a very short horizon.

PWD

February 20, 2008

Football Signees Get Up

Below I present UGA cornerback signee Brandon Boykin throwing it down. Boykin is a candidate for best dunk in the AJC's annual high school dunk contest, but the video below shows a variety of Boykin's dunks. At 5'10", Boykin may be a bit shorter than the ideal corner, but as you see he oozes athleticism. A forty inch vertical is NBA/Boss Bailey caliber hops.

It's a good thing too since he will be defending guys like A.J. Green, our uber wide receiver signee, in practice.

When I was at UGA, the intramural basketball tournament champions the only year I played started Hines Ward and Robert Edwards in the backcourt. Looks like the football team will be favored in that tournament as long as Coach Richt keeps recruiting guys like this.

Quinton

February 19, 2008

Top SEC Plays of the Year Series

Get the Picture is running a series of articles recapping the Top 10 SEC Games of ~~2008~~ 2007. They recently unveiled #7 on the list....UGA vs. Bama in the overtime thriller.

In a couple of hours, the hoops team takes on UK in Rupp. In case that doesn't go well, you could always seek solace in this football video:

PWD

February 18, 2008

It's An Even Number Year, So Book Your Trip to Omaha

Baseball season starts Friday and it should be an exciting season for UGA baseball if this trend holds up:

2003 - no postseason
2004 - College World Series participant
2005 - no postseason
2006 - College World Series participant
2007 - no postseason

On paper, the Dawgs have the ability to get back to Omaha and uphold the trend, but the schedule is rough. The strength of the team is a veteran weekend pitching rotation of Stephen Dodson, Nathan Moreau, and Trevor Holder. All three have SEC starting experience and have shown they can pitch in the league. Jason Leaver and Nick Montgomery, if healthy, should provide quality depth. Both can start and both can relieve.

The big hammer for the Georgia staff is Joshua Fields. After a dazzling 2006, Fields took a serious step back last year, blowing six saves. He pitched well at times, but was not the consistent lights out closer of 2006 and 2005. Look for Fields to be back to his usual dominant form this season. Baseball America named Fields to their preseason All-American team, even if it was the third team. Plus, it sounds like Fields will get some at bats as a designated hitter this season.

The offense will be anchored by shortstop Gordon Beckham, a first-team preseason All-American. Beckham hit for power and average last year, belting 13 home runs, 19 doubles, and knocking in 51 runs. The steady Ryan Peisel and outfielder Matt Olson will back up Beckham at the plate.

There is also a mystery to keep your eye on this year, too. Texas transfer Michael Demperio will start at second base for the Dawgs. Demperio was a high school phenom who spurned a host of schools to sign with the Horns. His first season was a struggle though and he is now back home in Georgia. He was a heralded hitter in high school, but Demperio is also a great defensive player. He and Beckham should be fun to watch and make up one of the league's best defensive middle infields. The question is can he hit college pitching?

The schedule is a beast, especially early. This weekend, the Dawgs open at Foley Field against preseason #2 Arizona. Then, they play the Braves next week. Then they go to two-time defending national champion and preseason #7 Oregon State the next weekend. If we can come out of those two weekend series at 3-3, we'll be looking fine. Other nonconference games of note include Clemson and the Georgia Tech games. This is all before the SEC schedule which features conference preseason favorite Vanderbilt, South Carolina, and Ole Miss.

The Dawgs have the players to make it to the postseason. Our baseball team has been inconsistent for sure, but there are abundant promising signs at Foley Field. Rivals.com says we shouldn't stink too bad and our early signing period recruiting class was awesome. Like basketball, there is no reason that we can't be a consistent conference power, if not national power. Unlike basketball, though, the baseball team should make it to the postseason this year.

Quinton

Of indoor practice facilities and rising ticket prices

Anyone that has read this site for a long time knows that I am completely and totally opposed to building an indoor practice facility for football. My biggest reasons are:

In spite of all of that I'm not opposed to staying ahead of the broader curve when it comes to meeting space, locker rooms, weight rooms training areas, etc for our coaches and players.

Therefore, I think the new proposed $25 million expansion of the Butts-Mehre building is a reasonable investment when taken in the broader context of the Facilities Arm Race gone mad college athletics environment. The AJC describes the expansion:

Plans call for the back, or north, side of the Butts-Mehre building to be built out into a nearly 44,000 square foot expansion that would extend the training room and strength and conditioning areas, and house a 10,800 square-foot multipurpose area. Phase Two would include the construction of football offices, lobbies and display areas on the second floor.

The multipurpose area will feature a floor of synthetic grass over which a hard floor could be placed through automation. It will include a full kitchen to host events, team meals and recruiting engagements.

The facility will provide enough room for the football team to run some drills or conduct walk-through practices. However, both Adams and Evans emphasized that the Butts-Mehre expansion does not take the place of Richt's continued requests for an indoor practice facility.

So it's not a full bore practice facility, but it'll meet some of those practical needs. The investment reminds me of the Basketball Practice facility investment. Having toured that facility, I can tell you that it's much less about having two gyms for the hoops programs to practice in. It's more about the locker rooms, training spaces and offices that present the program in a first class manner.

The new Butts-Mehre expansion builds on our legacy investments in those areas for football, and it addresses some immediate practical needs. It also allows for a much more functional and less expensive practice facility to be built in the future.

As far as timing...they are going to have a dedicated fund raising effort for this building. In other words, construction won't start for at least two years. If I'm Damon Evans, I start with the NFL lettermen on this one.

Lastly, the ticket price increase made total sense to me. To quote someone on a message board. If we're getting 90th percentile results on 50 percentile ticket prices, that's a hell of a deal. Agreed.

PWD

February 16, 2008

Black Jerseys Back in Stock: Moreno And Stafford

FINALLY. Our store has black jerseys in stock for Knowshon Moreno and Matthew Stafford. Get them while supplies last.

PWD

The good and bad from the UT hoops game

Image: Georgiadogs.com

Some rambling thoughts on Georgia's three point loss to the Vols.

The good:

Outrageously good effort. Felton has clearly NOT lost the team. Some of them may or may not like him (who knows and who cares), but they are still playing hard. That's impossible to ignore as an attribute in Felton's favor. It would be very easy to lose the kids at this point. Maybe it's more of a credit to Gaines. Who knows. But they haven't rolled over on him the way the kids did in Jirsa's last few games.
Gaines is playing his nuts off. 23 pts, 9 rebs, 8 assist, 3 steals.
Zac continues to progress.
Price. 10 points, 5 rebounds and only ONE turnover. Sadly, he did have 4 fouls, but more progress from him.
We had a shot to win it.
We only took 16 three pointers and I'd say at least 12 were high quality looks.
Lofton is a senior.
The Vols didn't have more than about 1,500 people in attendance. As expected. Dantlzer said they had 9 full sections on the radio. I got into the gym and it was maybe 4 or 5. Then again, what do you expect from him?

The Bad:

Ajax is playing stone cold terrible hoops right now. 18 minutes, 2 points, 3 turnovers, 4 rebounds, 3 fouls and umpteen dropped/mishandled rebounds. I sincerely believe that Singleton might have had better hands.
When Bliss is in the game, he plays pretty solid. But picking up those quick fouls and making us play AJax more is a killer.
The new fangled concept of executing inbounds plays continues to escape our team.
The entire last 1:40 was a train wreck. Once again, we drag around and blow an absurd amount of time on consecutive possessions sandwiching a UT possession with 40 seconds left where we neither foul or play pressure defense. That stuff makes me want to pull my hair out. Who knows if we win if we manage the game better at the end or not. Probably not. But at least give yourself the best opportunity for success.
They don't give trophies for "Most Moral Victories" nationally or in SEC play.

Overall:
It's not Felton's fault when we miss shots. I can live with losing because quality, open looks that are within the aptitude of our players' abilities aren't falling. I can also live with losing to a dramatically more talented team.

But it sends me up a wall when we consistently blow basics like inbounding the ball or managing the clock. That drives me completely and totally crazy as a fan.

If we weren't completely craptastic on the road under this regime, I'd say that the "other NIT" was still within reason because of the way the schedule breaks and the overall better play lately. But I'll have to see us win two on the road back to back in one season to believe it.

Great effort in a game no one expected us to win. But still frustrating for most of the same reasons.

See Also:
-- Narrow margin of error snags Dogs - AJC

PWD

February 15, 2008

Dawgs on TV - Feb. 17 to Feb. 23

Tomorrow's games are outlined in last week's post. The listings for the week ahead:

Sunday - February 17
-The Dennis Felton Show - 1:00 PM on SportSouth - Dennis and Chuck will have some good things to talk about this weekend after we clocked the Cocks. Replays: 7:30 PM and Monday at 6:30 PM.

Tuesday - February 19
-Kentucky v. Georgia - men's basketball originally played on January 26, 1999 - 1:00 PM on ESPN Classic - Jumaine Jones and the Dawgs force overtime with the 7th ranked Cats, but fall short in the end. A moral victory for the Jirsa administration.

-Georgia v. Kentucky - men's basketball - 9:00 PM on ESPN - We can beat these guys, but maybe not at Rupp. Our last meeting was close and the Cats don't look like they are getting better. 11 points in a half? Felton, even at his worst, could do better with total slop. Dear Dennis, please play Price and let him attempt to guard Patterson in the lane. He killed us last time.

Thursday - February 21
-The Suzanne Yoculan Gym Dog Show - 4:30 PM on SportSouth - Suz and Jay enthusiastically discuss another win for the GymDogs. Replay Friday at 11:00 AM.

Saturday - February 23
-Georgia v. Vanderbilt - men's basketball - 4:00 PM on Lincoln Financial (check your local listings) - Vandy's better than us right now and they are at home. Please, please score more than 11 in each half.

Quinton

February 14, 2008

Steps UGA has taken to keep the Orange Out on Saturday

I spoke in passing to a friend in Butts-Mehre. The discussion centered around how many UT fans would show up to the UGA vs. UT game in Athens on Saturday. My assumption (despite much hand wringing by some UGA fans) is that the number wouldn't be overwhelming. (Capacity is 10,500) Here's the gist of that conversation

Knowing that this was on a Saturday and how UT fans have started to follow their team, we went ahead and scheduled several things for this game in an effort to [keep UT fan attendance to a minimum].

We’ve sold close to 900 tickets to fraternities and sororities who are having their parents’ day at Saturday’s game, over 250 tickets are being used by former basketball lettermen as part of our annual reunion game and a lot of our endowment donors will be in town as part of donor appreciation day.

When you take into account that we sold 2,600 single game tickets for the UT game and you take out the 1,300 above sold to UGA groups, it really only leaves about 1,300 tickets that would be available for single game ticket sales. Out of the 1,300 remaining single game ticket sales, it is tough to say how many were bought by UT fans.

Also, UT got their contracted 100 tickets for their player/family allotment. Unless a lot of Georgia fans have given/sold their tickets to UT fans, then 1,300-1,500 is the max that UT could have in the house. Probably closer to 1,000 in the house as I don’t think all other 1,300 single game sales were sold exclusively to UT fans.

Nice planning by the good guys. Way to protect this house.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Update: I want to address some things in the comments section. This info was NOT positioned to me as a "point of pride" by anyone in the Athletic Department. It was simply stated as fact. As in, this is how we're working to minimize our risk and maximize attendance of UGA fans for this game. And hey...there are fans who are wondering if we're going to get over run by Vols on Saturday.

This is clearly not the best solution for filling up a stadium with Dawg fans. In my opinion, the best solution for selling tickets is winning a heck of a lot more games in SEC play. However, the marketing, ticketing and administrative departments at UGA aren't responsible for winning games. (Those are my words. Not theirs or anyone else's)

Separately -- Per the question raised in the comments area...I agree that the camera angles are on the wrong side of the gym given the pathetic showing by alumni who hold premium tickets in Athens behind the benches. However, it's important to remember two things. First, the SEC does not allow student sections to be behind the player benches. Secondly, most schools have the TV cameras facing the player benches just like we do. Cameron Indoor Stadium is the most notable exception to this practice as they flip the camera angle to show the students. Therefore, our issue here is primarily that we're not winning enough to make people with great seats show up. That said, I would flip the camera angles if it were up to me.

PWD

Georgia beats South Carolina senseless

Sundiata Gaines continues to rise to the challenge of playing on a team of disappearing players. He followed his 32 point performance against the Gators on Saturday with a 27 point, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals performance vs. the Gamecocks.

It was exactly the type of win Felton desperately needed. I'm in meetings all day. So I'm not expecting much posting from me. Here are other articles about the blowout win:

Dawgs snap losing streak

Yata leads Rout

Domination

Just what they needed

Georgia is a good basketball team

PWD

February 13, 2008

The Honor That Wasn't, Or Why Mike Adams Sucks

Michael Adams' one man war against Vince Dooley continues. We established a long time ago he is a big fat liar. But, his fingerprints are all over this one. I am convinced that Adams cannot abide the idea of Vince Dooley's name being affixed to anything connected to Sanford Stadium, so he's trying to take the bull by the horns so the opportunity never comes to pass.

The Georgia Sports Blog distrusts men in bowties. Especially this one.

Cleverly couched by Adams as a decision by the "Athletic Board" and the "Regents," there is a motion to name the South Campus athletic facilities the Vince Dooley Athletic complex. In addition, there is proposal to erect a statue of Dooley near Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall--virtually off-campus. Wow! Thanks...for nothing.

I am convinced that Adams wants to pre-emptively name the decidedly unpresitigious Lumpkin Street athletic facilities in Dooley's "honor" so that if anyone ever suggests naming something on Sanford Drive for Dooley, Adams can say "we've already done enough to honor him." He tellingly revealed his true thoughts on this issue by telling the press "the stadium already has a name." Frank Ros responded by saying he’s doubtful Dooley’s name will ever be placed on the stadium as long as Adams is UGA’s president. “He’s made that clear on a number of occasions,” Ros said. “He’s made the statement before that ‘the stadium already has a name.’ But I think you have to be respectful of a person’s accomplishments regardless of your politics.”

"I am not a crook." [See, he's lying again.]

Several former players seem to have caught on that this honor is more like a slap in the face. Some honor. Dooley is a football coach. There is a Southeastern Conference tradition of naming football facilities for legendary football coaches. There is no football stadium on South Campus. The traditional honor for legendary college football coaches is to have something connected to the stadium named in their honor. (See, Bryant, Bear; Dodd, Bobby; Jordan, Shug; Neyland, General; Vaught, Johnny; et al).

We're not banging the drum for St. Vincent here. We're not even advocating our stadium should be Sanford-Dooley. We're personally hoping to name it Sanford-Richt in about thirty years and half a dozen national championships from now. But for crying out loud is it too much to ask to put the statue of Dooley near the stadium? What about on the renovated Gate 6 with all that bricked-in open space? I mean, to put the Dooley statue further away they'd have to put it next to the Iron Horse.

Make room for Dooley's statue.

It would be nice if the Board of Regents did something besides kiss Don Leebern's ancient ass for a change. They could start by voting down this "honor" and proposing something that is more fitting for a guy who dedicated his entire forty year professional career to the University of Georgia.

Update: Chip Towers chimes in on the controversy here.

Dawgnoxious

February 12, 2008

Excellent Article on UGA Legend Kid Woodruff

David Ching knocks the cover off the ball with this article on UGA legend George "Kid" Woodruff. The article starts with Woodruff screaming at General Eisenhower during WWII about the UGA vs. Auburn series. Woodruff was a former player, coach and booster for the Bulldogs.

Woodruff was one of the chief power brokers behind the construction of Sanford Stadium and the UGA and Auburn series being played in Columbus.

The article reads like one of Dan Magill's walks down memory lane with Bill Brasky. All of Magill's stories seem to involve a 7'4" 356 pound man who once wrestled a rabid platypus near the County Fair while a small Tech man cried.

Seriously...all of Magill's friends have life histories so off the chain that hyperbole just undermines the reality of their existence. Friends like Herschel Carithers who once flew a small airplane under Stegeman Coliseum's roof. Or Fred Birchmore who built a 9 MILLION pound wall at age 75 on his property in Athens...decades after walking down the stairs of the Washington Monument on his hands, riding his bicycle 25,000 miles across Europe or being a champion boxer. But I digress.

The point is...the tale of Woodruff is in that same ballpark of over the top coolness. It's a great history lesson and a great read. Nice work by Ching. Magill would be proud. (Note: It's 3 pages)

See Also
-- Kid Woodruff's bio -- Georgia Encyclopedia

PWD

Hartman Fund Contributions Due Friday

Image: Georgiadogs.com

If you want season tickets, you gotta pay to play. Fans who have never contributed before, but want to buy season tickets should be prepared to dig deep. First time contributors are not guaranteed tickets. Contributing for the first time only guarantees that you'll get an order form for season tickets.

~~Ballpark first time contribution to get seats for a season like this will probably be north of $1,500 for a new giver. That's very unofficial. But I wouldn't give less than that if I were you.~~ I really have no idea what it's going to take to get in. So, I shouldn't be advising on a purchase like this. Talk with the ticket office about it.

Renewable season ticket holders can obviously give at their normal rates.

PWD

February 11, 2008

A Modest Scheduling Proposal

More of this.

At the end of the season, the big bowl complaint was justifiably coming from Columbia, Missouri. The Tigers had played a Big 12 schedule and traveled out of conference to play an SEC team and a Big 10 team that went to the Rose Bowl. Meanwhile, Kansas, a team that Missouri beat, waltzed into the Orange Bowl after playing a Big 12 schedule and no other BCS conference teams. Mizzou got to go to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl. All this because KU had one less loss and played no one out of conference. Is that fair? No, and I have a least a partial solution. Since we now play 12 games a season, every BCS team should have to play at least one other BCS team from outside their conference. You don't have to be heroic, but you have to play someone. Thus, Kansas can't breeze through their easy nonconference season while their competition for bowl slots play other teams of equal resources.

Many teams have done their part simply because they have a rival they hate. Florida has Florida State. Florida State had Miami. Georgia has Georgia Tech. South Carolina has Clemson. Meanwhile, teams like Texas, LSU, and Penn State can pick and choose when they want to play these games and when they want to sit out a year. (By the way, I'm not picking on those teams because they typically do a decent job of nonconference scheduling, but they don't have a team out of conference that they have to play. They have a choice.) It seems unfair to have one power team with the option to play a big nonconference game while others do so as a matter of course.

The good news is that games like Virginia Tech/LSU, Auburn/West Virginia, Ohio State/USC, and Alabama/Clemson seem to be increasing. I'd just like to see everyone get a big match up, even if it is Michigan/Vanderbilt.

Less of this.

Quinton

Here's hoping we're not Preseason #1

I personally don't think that being a front-runner is Mark Richt's strongest suit. However, he plays the disrespect card extremely well. When the media hypes an opponent to exceptional heights, we inevitably clobber them. See UF '07, Auburn '06, Ok State, Boise State, Clemson '03, etc for beat downs that came after the naysayers and pundits counted us completely out.

As a heavy favorite his results are more dicey. We've shown a tendency under Richt to have a great predisposition to reading our own press clippings with disastrous results. To quote Dawgnoxious, "It don't take nothing for us to put on airs and get uppity." See examples like:

So when I see the AJC's article about UGA possibly being the Preseason #1, I'm not giddy. I'm hoping for a #2 or #3 ranking when we kickoff on August. 30th. That gives us something "extra" to strive for without being ranked so low as to keep us out of the national title conversation later in the season.

That said...if we're being honest...I don't see this team playing in the title game. Not with this schedule, and not with an offensive line featuring no senior leaders (and possibly no juniors starters). But all the fun is in the dreaming right?

201 Days til Kickoff.

PWD

A Neighborhood in Transition?

In looking around the Southeast, there seems to be a number of coaches who are on a liquid magma hot seats. There are also some hot up and comers who may be on the move soon. So much so that we could see some large scale changes in the neighborhood.

The first two dominoes have already fallen as Dave "Crash Davis" Odom (SC) and John Brady (LSU) have retired and gotten canned respectively. Those schools may not be alone in searching for a new coach: (Note -- All records listed are against Div I teams only)

Alabama - The past two years Alabama has experienced more than its fair share of critical injuries. This season, the program is 13-11 overall / 2-7 in SEC play, and they are heading towards their third consecutive year without an NCAA tourney appearance. The natives are indeed restless in Tuscaloosa. Prior success should give Mark Gottfried another year. But winning soon would be an excellent idea.
Auburn - Jeff Lebo is 12-10 / 2-7 with the Tigers this year. In four years on the Plains, he has yet to break the 17 win mark or enjoy the post-season. Lebo is another coach who has experienced extensive season ruining injuries at Auburn. While I personally don't think he's a long term solution there, I'd wager he gets another year. The Tigers are tentatively set to open a new arena for the 2010-2011 season. I think Lebo is the sacrificial lamb as the AU administration waits to make a move closer to the new arena opening.
Georgia - Let's face it. Felton needs to win some ball games. We're currently 10-10 against Div I teams and 2-6 in SEC play. We're five years into Felton's tenure, and we're starring down the barrel of a 4 or 5 win SEC record. I'm not calling for his head. I'm just saying that it's awfully hard to keep investing in a coach that's struggling so mightily year after year. Regardless of the reasons. Dean Legge of DawgPost.com offers the opinion that "it's just not working." While several fans have written into the AJC suggesting that "wins matter, too."
Georgia Tech - The Wizard of Techwood is 11-11 overall / 4-4 in ACC play. Paul Hewitt is in no real danger right now. A Championship Game appearance buys you quite a long leash, but his teams continue to play below their talent level. Hewitt has traditionally been one of the worst road game coaches in the history of...well...ever. However, he has picked up Ws in his last 3 ACC road games. In eight years, Hewitt has never won more than 9 ACC games in a season. He needs a strong finish this season, and a big year next season to dial the pressure way down.
Mississippi - If Andy Kennedy can get his team back on track in SEC play, he will move to the top of the list of hot young coaches. Ole Miss is one of the toughest major conference jobs in the country when you factor in tradition, facilities, budget, recruiting base of in state literate kids, and emphasis on b-ball. He could be on the move very soon to a venue where the wins and recruiting come easier and with more financial rewards tied to them.
UAB - If Bama makes a move and replaces Gottfried, they would likely take a long look at Mike Davis (former Bama player). Particularly, if he can take his current momentum into the NCAA Tourney.

With Arkansas's hire of Pelphrey last year, you could see as many as six SEC schools changing head guys in a two or three year period.

That type of movement creates a lot of demand for coaches with Southern ties. Guys like Anthony Grant (VCU by way of the Gators), Travis Ford (UMass by way of UK), Lon Kruger (UNLV by way of UF) and others are going to be making a helluva lot more money very soon. It's a shallow talent pool to go fishing in, and the price of doing business is going way up.

PWD

February 9, 2008

Dawgs on TV - Feb. 10 to Feb. 16

Tomorrow's games are outlined in last week's post. The listings for the week ahead:

Sunday - February 10
-LSU v. Georgia - gymnastics - 12:30 PM on ESPN2 - The Gymdogs beat LSU in front of lots of folks in pink. Some took it too far.

-The Dennis Felton Show - 1:00 PM on SportSouth - Concentrate the agony of our men's basketball program into a manageable 30 minutes! Replays: 7:30 PM and Monday at 6:30 PM.

-Georgia v. LSU - women's basketball - 2:00 PM on ESPN2 - With the way these two teams are playing, LSU should win by 20. The girls did win at Arkansas last night, but the Hawgs are not that good. LSU is very good.

Thursday - February 14
-The Suzanne Yoculan Gym Dog Show - 4:30 PM on SportSouth - Replay Friday at 11:00 AM.

-Florida v. Georgia - women's basketball - 7:00 PM on CSS - I can't think of a better way to spend your Valentine's Day than cuddling up with your girl to watch the Lady Dogs. You get to watch a ball game and she gets to watch a group of women overcome the odds to achieve success in a patriarchal system. It's like Lifetime and ESPN have merged! (No, seriously, take your girlfriend out to eat. Someplace nice, too.)

Saturday - February 16
-Tennessee v. Georgia - men's basketball - 3:00 PM on Lincoln Financial (check your local listings) - Men in orange will likely celebrate in the Stegeman stands. Sigh.

Quinton

February 8, 2008

Tech Admits Mistake. Attempts to Rejoin SEC

The Yellow Jackets announced their non-conference foes through the 2022 season. Tech apparently longs for a return to their Southeastern Conference roots as the Jackets have scheduled 16 games against current and prior members of the SEC in addition to the yearly tear jerker against Georgia.

They have two game deals booked with Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi, Mississippi State, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. They also have a four game deal with former SEC member Tulane. The Green Wave left the SEC in 1966 while the Jackets ran scared in 1964. (source: Football Data Warehouse). Given that they've also booked games with Elon and Wofford, the old school SEC fan in me was hoping to see the Jackets book Sewanee.

"The new schedule is really an old schedule. It's a trip down memory lane for our fans. It's a journey back to a time when Tech was relevant within our own state," said Tech Athletic Director Dan Radakovich. "With these games, we can reminisce about life before indoor plumbing, face masks and games scheduled at the Georgia Dome that up stage our own program and force us to play on Thursdays. This schedule is an homage to Bobby Dodd, tossing fish at Catholics and pretending to be manly."

The Tech schedule is below. I didn't bother listing the Div I-AA or ACC games. Otherwise....

Year	Home	Away
2008	Miss State	UGA
2009	UGA	Miss State, Vandy
2010	Ole Miss, MTSU	UGA
2011	UGA	Ole Miss, MTSU
2012	???, MTSU	UGA
2013	UGA, Vandy	Alabama
2014	Alabama	UGA, Tulane
2015	UGA, Tulane	Syracuse
2016	Syracuse	UGA
2017	UGA, Auburn
2018	Tulane	UGA, Auburn
2019	UGA	Tulane
2020	???	UGA
2021	UGA	South Carolina
2022	South Carolina	UGA

Personally, I think it's a bit unfair of Tech to schedule games that far out. All of those SEC teams are booking these match-ups, and they are expecting to play an ACC team. By 2020, the Jackets will likely be a MAC or CUSA team at best with the way recruiting is going.

Note: They still owe Louisville a series that has to be squeezed in there somewhere.

PWD

Thursday Night Lights: GT's 2008 Schedule

Georgia Tech announced its 2008 schedule tonight. Despite the absurdity of playing two Div I-AA teams in a single season, it could still be the toughest schedule in years on The Flats.

2008 Schedule

Aug. 28 (Thur.) JACKSONVILLE STATE

Sept. 6 at Boston College

Sept. 13 at Virginia Tech

Sept. 20 MISSISSIPPI STATE

Sept. 27 Open

Oct. 4 DUKE (Family Weekend)

Oct. 11 GARDNER-WEBB

Oct. 18 at Clemson

Oct. 25 VIRGINIA (Homecoming)

Nov. 1 FLORIDA STATE

Nov. 8 at North Carolina

Nov. 15 Open

Nov. 20 (Thur.) MIAMI

Nov. 29 at Georgia

Despite all the obvious jokes I normally make, it's actually a pretty well crafted schedule for the nerds. By starting the season on a Thursday, they get to start their Fall Practices a few days sooner. Plus, they won't have to compete head to head for media attention with Clemson vs. Bama game at the Georgia Dome. They will also get a two day jump on Boston College game planning.

Lastly, they get two extra days to prep for their annual beating against UGA. Unfortunately for Paul Johnson, Georgia gets a full week to get ready to defend the triple option.

Despite those positives, they still have to play the games. They have extremely losable games ahead of them at home against FSU, Miami and Mississippi State plus road games against Virginia Tech, UGA, and Clemson. Ouch.

The Boston College game looms enormous. The Techies will need a win there to get their feet underneath them, or it could be a long season.

See Also:
-- Full ACC Schedule
-- Just beat a bulldog. Any bulldog - Get the Picture
-- Huge challenge for Jackets - AJC

PWD

Honoring Sundiata Gaines

Sundiata Gaines has been a warrior for Georgia in his four years on campus. He's made the best of his tenure despite experiencing one of the most frustrating four year runs over the program's past 30 years.

I just wanted to take a minute to thank him by listing some of his accomplishments.

Did You Know...
He recently became the only player in UGA history to amass 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 400 assists in his career, and his list of accomplishments don't stop there. According to UGA's SID, some of his other career achievements include:

Rebounds

Georgia plays at Florida on Saturday at 3:00 pm on Raycom Sports TV (check local listings).

See Also:
-- Gaines tries to move on - DawgPost

Go Dawgs.

PWD

Classic recruiting stories

ESPN has interview with Donnan, Curry and others about some of their classic recruiting moments. Donnan's stories are good stuff.

February 7, 2008

Finebaum Loves Richt

Paul Finebaum took precious minutes out of his Alabama recruiting droolfest radio show yesterday to interview Coach Richt. I think Coach Richt hit every radio show in the southeast yesterday, so if you heard him elsewhere, some of the Finebaum interview may be old news to you. In any case, here's the interview. They briefly discuss recruiting and then get into the outlook for next season. Typically, Richt downplays the hype by saying after seeing the first day of mat drills, we'll be lucky to beat Georgia Southern.

Finebaum, who has made his considerable reputation on frenzied criticism of football coaches, seems absolutely smitten with Richt lately. He wrote a glowing piece on Richt last week in his weekly column. Last month, he rated Richt as the best coach in the SEC. Do Finebaum's fangs retract after he crosses the Alabama state line?

Quinton

The other shoe

Yes. I saw it.
No. I'm not breaking it.
I'm still hoping for a wacky mix-up.

Well...that was a stupid as hell way for me to handle it. Sorry for being a cryptic ass. That said, I was only a cryptic ass for about 45 minutes. Regardless, it only made it sound worse than it was.

I had been emailed about it with questions, it had been reported on 960am, and it was already on a message board and more importantly on the official Clarke County Jail Report web site...before I wrote anything. It just hadn't been confirmed that the person named in the report was the same as our player. Either way, lesson learned. It was a dumb way to handle it. I acted like a dumb blogger instead of a quasi-responsible guy with a well trafficked fan site.

Regardless, according to the AJC the player is Billy Humphrey. He was arrested this morning. He was pinched at 2:12 am for underage possession of alcohol and failure to "obey traffic control."

This typically comes with a 10 percent of the season suspension. That would mean that Billy could miss the UF (road), SC (home) and UT (home) games. Given Billy's earlier run in this season, the suspension could be worse.

Update: Rather than have this be a complete Billy Humphrey bash session in the comments or the article. I have it on excellent authority that Billy doesn't have class on Tuesdays or Thursdays, and he's not required to attend study halls because of his good academic standing. He's a good student, and he didn't have class on Thurs. So the whole "school night" thing is less of an issue. It probably won't change his punishment, but it may change the perception of the offense by UGA fans.

Update 2: AJC says Billy blew a .03 after getting stopped for what sounds an awful lot like jaywalking. I would blow a .03 if I walked past a liquor store on a windy day. For a kid Billy's size, it's about 1 stiff drink in 1 hour or 2 regular drinks in 2.5 hours. So he wasn't pulling an Ian Smith or anything.

PWD

Signing Day Wrap-Up

I wrote a piece sorta grading the class. I've re-read it, and it blows so I'm not publishing it. lol.

Suffice it to say that I'm thrilled with the class coach Richt brought in. The Allen thing isn't that big a deal beyond a missed opportunity. I seriously doubt that we'll look back on that fiasco and say, "he cost us a national title."

Dawgbone.net has all the updates.

PWD

Georgia loses to Vanderbilt in basketball

In the wake of their 67-59 loss to Vandy, the Dawgs are now 11-9 overall and 2-5 in the SEC. They are riding a hope crushing four game losing streak.

Offensively, the team is averaging 68.4 points per game which puts them at 12th in scoring offense in the SEC. That's the lowest point total per game since Felton's second year when most of the team players were freshmen, castoffs and walk-ons. In SEC games this season, Georgia is averaging only 62 points per game. The team is also 12th in assists, 10th in turnover margin and 12th in assists to turnovers. The team hasn't finished above 11th in the SEC in assists to turnovers in the past three seasons.

And we continue to go critical stretches without any ability to generate any offense. Per the AJC:

Instead they perfected a demonstration of how to lose winnable games in the closing minutes. Georgia was within one point with 4:53 to play but managed only a single basket the rest of the way.

On the bright side, Jeremy Price was allowed to play in this game. He had 16 points (7 of 9 shooting), 3 rebounds, 2 assists and only 2 fouls / 2 turnovers in 32 minutes of action. Price is one of Felton's biggest recruits, but he missed the most of the prior two games because he couldn't or wouldn't do things the Felton Way(TM). The Felton Way got us two close loses as one of our much less talented inside players got unproductive minutes at the expense of the team's #3 scorer and rebounder.

Although, his return got us a loss, too. So there's that. I really don't know or care who was right or wrong. I'm just tired of the outcome.

In the movie Hoosiers, a drunken Shooter comes over to Norman Dale at the restaurant counter and compliments him on "breaking the colts" before he builds 'em back up. Let the record show that it's been five years. At some point we have to stop breaking the colts and focus on building something up.

Speaking of Shooter...the Picket Fence would be a massive upgrade from what we've been seeing offensively lately.

The team's next 6 games consist of UF (away), South Carolina (home), UT (home), Kentucky (away), Vandy (away) and Florida (home). This team needs wins like Paris needs Valtrex.

PWD

February 6, 2008

Georgia loses commitment from Allen

In July of last year, I wrote the following article after one of many flip flop moments in the recruitment of DeWayne Allen. I didn't publish the article because he flipped back to UGA the day before I was to publish the article.

On Monday night, Allen discussed his eagerness to sign with Georgia in the Fayetteville (NC) Observer. Today, he signed with Clemson. The July article (with some minor tweaks) is below. My feelings then hold true now.

I don't want this to come off as sour grapes. I'm sure he's talented, and we obviously wanted him badly.

The thing that I'd wager frustrates the Georgia coaching staff the most is that Allen occupied a scholarship from Dec. 2006 to the morning of signing day (roughly 400 days). If he had come clean with us any of the 5-6 times he wavered, we could've signed Zebrie Sanders (OT) or Omar Hunter (DT).

Frustrating. But the good news is that Richt announced at noon today that things aren't quite finished yet. Stay tuned to the recruiting sites for more info.

PWD

Signing Day Coverage

We defer to the recruiting services and Georgiadogs.com for the breaking news on incoming recruits. I do have an article written about my thoughts on the class that I'll probably publish tomorrow evening. We'll do some more forward looking things later in the week.

In the meantime...here are your sites of note

PWD

One Area Where Coach Felton has done really well

....Is reaching out to the students. The AJC has a really strong piece online right now about Felton's work in getting the students to come out and support the team. The past 2 years, he has put more time and effort into getting the students to show up than any basketball coach at UGA since Tubby's first year of '96.

Without the student attendance at some of the SEC games, the crowd would've been really sparse. Good job on his part.

PWD

February 5, 2008

Yip Yap Recruiting Talk on DawgPost

Dean Legge of DawgPost.com posted this a few days ago on Youtube.

Good Stuff.

PWD

MAILBAG: Steve Spurrier vs. Chan Gailey

One of our readers sent us this tidbit....

Did you know that Chan Gailey (GT) over his final three years won more games than Steve Spurrier (SC) over the same time frame. Three years is the time frame for this conversation as that's how long Spurrier has been with the Gamecocks.

The records over the past 3 years:
-- Gailey: 23-16 / 16-9 (includes ACC Champ Game)
-- Spurrier: 21-16 / 11-13

Vs. biggest rivals over the past 3 years:
-- Gailey: 0-3 vs. UGA and 2-1 vs. Clemson
-- Spurrier: 1-2 vs. Clemson and 1-2 vs. UGA

Spurrier is considered by many to be a miracle worker at South Carolina despite results lower than Chan "Mr. Mediocre" Gailey's.

Yet, it's Gailey that had the Conference Divisional Championship Trophy, 3 consecutive bowl game streak, and a New Year's Day Bowl appearance compared to Spurrier's...well....Liberty Bowl trophy.

My Point:
Is South Carolina really going anywhere? The high water marks of the Gamecock's 2007 season were their victories over Georgia and Kentucky.

Yet, the Chickens just approved a $1 million annuity for Spurrier in hopes of getting him to coach for 4 more years. I'm sure that recruits in South Carolina's 29th (Rivals.com) and 37th (Scout.com) ranked recruiting class will be relieved to know that he's there for the "long term."

And furthermore, when compared to Spurrier, should Tech still have run off Gailey to bring in a coach who's wrangled up the #33 (Scout.com) and #47 (Rivals.com) ranked recruiting classes? The lowest ranked classes at GT in 4 or 5 years.

And yes, Chicken fans...I know. "16-12" I also know #2 in the Nation vs. Home for the Holidays.

PWD

February 4, 2008

Bobby Knight resigns effectively immediately

Knight is out at Texas Tech. He got to 902 wins and then just stopped. His son had been named Coach in Waiting in 2005 so he takes over today. Texas Tech has won 3 of its past 6 games. A video interview with Pat Knight is online here.

In honor of his departure, here are some of his greatest quotes.

PWD

February 3, 2008

Where's our One Shining Moment

The ball is tipped
and there you are
you're running for your life
you're a shooting star
And all the years
no one knows
just how hard you worked
but now it shows...
(in) one shining moment, it's all on the line.
In college basketball, it's all about the One Shining Moment. The buzzer beater, the upset, the super human performance...that second when your team catapults forward into true March Madness on one of the world's largest sport stages.

For Georgia, the last time we really experienced that sort of post-season euphoria was during the 1996 NCAA Tournament following a victory over #1 seeded Purdue in the second round. Since then, we've been the victim of a series of One Shining Moments for the other guy (See: John Wallace's Miracle Three in '96, the UTC big man that seemingly never missed in '97, and the entire SIU team performance in '02). We were also the victim of One Turd Filled Moment in March 2003 (See: Jim Harrick,Tony Cole and Mike Adams).

But how far away are we from getting there again? How long until we see our shooting stars on the biggest stage? How long until we feel the pride of watching our guys compete for glory in a tournament that really matters?

I have no idea. But right now, things look dim from my seats.

With yesterday's loss to UK, the Dawgs are 2-4 in SEC play. On Wednesday night, we will likely be underdogs at home against a Vanderbilt team with arguably more talent and unarguably more to play for. After the Vandy game, we get 5 of 8 games on the road...and our woes away from Stegeman are well document. Our lone home games during that stretch will be against Florida, Tennessee and South Carolina. It's now hard to see this team finishing SEC play with more than 5 wins.

Is that good enough? Obviously not for the Big Dance, and probably not for the Sock Hop either. So, how long must we wait? Well, that all depends on how much patience we're really willing to show vs. how much patience should really be required.

In 1979, Georgia had never been to the NCAA Tourney...heck, we had never been to the NIT! Four years and 1 Hugh Durham hire later, we were in the Final Four having beaten Michael Jordan's UNC team in the Elite 8.

In 1990, the Florida Gators were an SEC bottom feeder. Their program had arguably less tradition in basketball than Georgia, Auburn or Ole Miss, and they had just completed a season in which they went 7-21 overall and 3-15 in the SEC. Four years and 1 Lon Kruger hire later, they were in the Final Four.

In 1999, Georgia was laughed out of the NIT at Clemson. Ron Jirsa had driven the program into the ground, and his incoming recruiting class was almost a complete disaster. After hiring Jim Harrick and suffering through an initial 10 win season, Georgia squeaked into the NCAAs in Year 2, and landed a #3 seed in Year 3.

In 2003-2004, Baylor University's basketball program found itself dealing with a scandal involving player to player murder, drugs and recruiting sanctions. The scandal was so severe that the NCAA gave Baylor what amounts to the "Half Death Penalty." Along with scholarship reductions, the team lost the ability to play non-conference games for an entire year. In the scandal's aftermath, several of the team's top players transferred. Five years after the scandal started, and two years after the half season penalty, the Scott Drew and the Bears are now 16-4 overall and 4-2 in the Big 12. They will get their One Shining Moment this year.

My point.
It doesn't take six years to build a program. No matter the circumstances.

I'm as familiar as anyone about what it took to get us into the mess we're in now. I know all about Harrick's recruiting (or complete lack thereof), the NCAA scholarship reductions (which were later overturned) and our university's perception within the AAU community. But you will struggle to convince me that we were worse off than Baylor was at roughly the same time.

So when?
So when is our next March Madness appearance? Like I said...I don't know. But there's an old saying, that I remember in times like these. "The best part about hitting yourself in the head with a hammer...is when you stop."

I'm not giving up, and I'm not calling for anyone's head. I'm just suggesting that Felton is going to make his life incredibly miserable if he doesn't get this team together in a big damn hurry.

Felton really needs to start showing progress soon. Yesterday, we had the perfect storm for a huge pro-UGA crowd. A weekend game, a big name opponent and an advance sellout. Instead, we saw thousands of UGA no-shows in the alumni and student sections, and what looked like 1,500+ UK fans. We can't let apathy continue to fester among the broader UGA population.

I'll still attend just as many as I always have. But it's hard to sit here with a straight face and suggest that this is even an NIT team. And if it isn't...when will things turn around?

See Also
-- Price doesn't play - ABH (My title would've been "WTF")
-- Smaller lineup: Mixed results - ABH

PWD

February 1, 2008

Dawgs on TV - Feb. 1 to Feb. 9

With the unified football viewing season splitting into basketball, gymnastics, baseball, and all sorts of other contests, I thought it might be useful to bring "Dawgs on TV" back. Here's the listings for the week ahead. Again, this is based on my DirecTV listings and I'm not going to go through all the CSS listings.

Saturday - February 2
-Kentucky v. Georgia - women's basketball replay - 12:00AM on Sunshine Sports Network - start your Saturday early by watching in dismay as a talented Georgia squad squanders a nine point second half lead to lose to a .500 team at home. Is there any variety of Georgia basketball worth watching?

-Kentucky v. Georgia - men's basketball - 1:00 PM on CBS - Felton and the gang need this one. The Cats looked extraordinarily beatable early in the year, but it's hard to imagine a Georgia team who lost at South Carolina beating the Big Blue, even in Athens with a noted Kentucky-killer for a coach.

Sunday - February 3
-The Dennis Felton Show - 1:00 PM on SportSouth - Paul's new favorite show will no doubt breakdown the few bright spots of this week's basketball games. Replays: 7:30 PM and Monday at 6:30 PM.

Thursday - February 7
-The Suzanne Yoculan Gym Dog Show - 4:30 PM on SportSouth - Suzanne breaks down the big Alabama meet with assistant Jay Clark. This show is the best means of keeping up with the Gym Dogs, if you are so inclined, because the meets are televised only on tape delay weeks after they happen, if at all. Plus, the show is only 30 minutes, as opposed to two hours for a meet. Replay: Friday at 11:00 AM.

Saturday - February 9
-Georgia v. Florida - men's basketball - 3:00 PM on Lincoln Financial (check your local listings) - at least this year we won't hear the "just like football" chant.

-Georgia v. Alabama - gymnastics - 4:00 PM on FOX Sports South & Sunshine Sports Network.

Quinton

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