I don’t know that I have ever watched a game that took me in so many emotional directions as the one I watched on Saturday. For the first three quarters, I was wondering if this team would be able to win against any decent team this year, and in the fourth quarter, I was standing up in my living room, shouting at the TV as the Dawgs came roaring back against a good team. This morning, here are my thoughts:
- Things can appear to be worse than they are. Yes Georgia is 1-2, and there is no excuse for being 1-2 at Georgia. BUT how many fans looked at the South Carolina game and the Arkansas game and thought, those are going to be tough? My guess is just about everyone. Georgia has been in both games, and has had chances to win both games, the cards just haven’t fallen our way so far. Georgia now hits a softer part of their schedule, and while no wins are guaranteed on the road in the SEC, I think Georgia will come out and play a great game against Mississippi State and get the season back on track.
- Aaron Murray is going to be really good, but right now, he needs the offensive line to help him out. There were a few times when Murray held the ball far too long, but there were other times when he was under pressure before getting set in the pocket. Offensive line was supposed to be a strength for this team, but yet again this season they are underachieving. They protected Murray great in the fourth quarter (except for the last drive), so you know they can do it.
- The defense is going to be fine. Read this next sentence very closely. Georgia played the best quarterback in the SEC yesterday, and he played well. But in the fourth quarter, when we had to get stops to get back into the game, the defense stepped up and stopped Arkansas three times. That should have won the game.
- Play calling. I’m not a coach, and I have never played organized football, so maybe there are things that I don’t understand. However, I don’t understand Georgia’s play calling. I don’t know that it is time for Bobo to go, however, there has to be an improvement on play calling. The TV guys had it right. On 3rd and 5, when all you need to do is get into Walsh’s field goal range to win the game, why are all the receivers running 20 yard routes. Watch the tape, Arkansas was conceding the first down, but we didn’t have anyone there to get it. The result: Murray got creamed. He is a young quarterback in the SEC, the last thing he needs to worry about is getting killed for standing the pocket.
- I was terribly disappointed with the lack of heart that Georgia showed against South Carolina. And for 3 quarters against Arkansas, Georgia wasn’t showing any heart on Saturday. They pulled together for a great comeback, but in the end they fell short. Why can’t these guys go out there and play hard for 4 quarters?
Georgia is going to play some close games this season. I’m not sure that we will see a win or a loss be more than 14 points all year (except for Idaho State). But for everyone who wants to get upset and talk about how bad this team is consider the following:
Georgia lost to Arkansas on Saturday without the best receiver in college football, without their co-starting tailback, without a starting cornerback, without their starting full back, with a redshirt freshman quarterback, and with a new defensive scheme. Before the season, I wrote that you have to have proper expectations coming into any season, I think the Georgia fans should re-evaluate what they thought this team could do. They can still go 9-3, which would be impressive in this transition season.
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