Bowl Preview

If you talk to a sports fan over the age of 35 they might be able to tell you what it was like when college football's bowl season mattered.  However, mainly thanks to ESPN and their intention to have as many bowls as possible, despite the quality of the games or the teams, bowl season has become a drawn out process of little importance.

Of course, there is the national title game coming up in a little more than a week, but there are some other games that should provide us with a nice appetizer before the title game.

The Chick-fil-A Bowl is often one of the best games of bowl season and this year should be no different with a match up between LSU and Clemson.  Clemson had a 10 win season but lost their two biggest games of the year, against Florida State and South Carolina.  Their offense is spectacular while their defense is average on a good day.  On the other hand, LSU's offense has been hot and cold throughout the season while their defense has been fantastic as usual.  I think this game will come down to Clemson's ability to slow LSU down on the ground.  If Clemson can stop the run, even a little bit, then they will have a chance to win the game.  I don't think they can do it.  Clemson will score, but LSU will be able to keep the dynamic Clemson offense on the sideline with a run game that will dominate, especially in the second half.

LSU 31   Clemson 24

The Outback Bowl matches up South Carolina against Michigan.  The Wolverines came up just short as they tried to stop Ohio State's perfect season.  Michigan is a good team, but not elite.  Their offense is average as is there defense.  South Carolina had a wonderful season that was just short of the best in school history.  If not for a close loss to LSU in Death Valley, South Carolina, not Georgia would have been playing Alabama in the SEC title game for a chance to go to the national championship game.  Unless South Carolina turns the ball over, a lot, then they will win the game.

South Carolina 26    Michigan 10

No real reason to spend a lot of time talking about the Rose Bowl.  Stanford may be one of the best teams in the country at this point in the season and Wisconsin is mediocre.  Wisconsin is also dealing with the fact that they are being coached by their Athletic Director because their coach left after the Big 10 title game to go to Arkansas.  Stanford's physicality will be the difference in this game.

Stanford 30      Wisconsin  13

It is an embarrassment to college football that Northern Illinois is in the BCS.  It is also a shame because you are wasting a chance to watch a good team in FSU play another team that might be able to give them a good game.  Unless FSU decides to play their backups for the entire first half, this game will be over before half time.  Northern Illinois is just not that good of a team.

Florida State 42    Northern Illinois 16

Florida is going to kill Lousiville.  That is all.

Florida 28   Louisville 6

In the "What might have been" Fiesta Bowl, Oregon will play Kansas State.  The Wildcats will be playing their last game with Colin Kline at quarterback and if you believe all of the rumors, the Ducks might be playing their last game with Chip Kelley as their coach.  The question in this game is whether or not the Kansas State offense can score with Oregon.  The Ducks' offense is as high octane as it gets and they play just enough defense to be aggravating.  I think Oregon is just too good.  Kansas State will play well and Kline will keep them in the game, but at the end of the day, Oregon will just score too much for the Wildcats.

Oregon 38   Kansas State 34

There are so many story lines in the Cotton Bowl, but to me, the most interesting one is that Texas A&M, newest member of the SEC takes on Oklahoma, a power of the Big 12, A&M's old conference.  Johnny Football, Heisman in hand, will try and deliver A&M's 11th win of the season, more than any Aggie fan could have hoped for in their first year in the SEC.  Meanwhile, Big Game Bob Stoops will try and reclaim the place that Oklahoma held for so much of the past decade.  It will be Landry Jones' last game as a Sooner, but I don't think he will be able to get past A&M.

Texas A&M   24     Oklahoma 20

Georgia isn't playing in the biggest bowl game this year, and the game itself isn't as appealing as some other games, but make no mistake, this is a huge game for the Bulldogs.  After coming ever so close against Alabama, Georgia has a chance to win 12 games this season, and begin to get ready for the 2013 season with a win.  Last year, Georgia blew a huge lead to lose to Michigan State in the Outback Bowl and it hurt the Dawgs' perception nationally.  This year, many pundits believe that Georgia deserved to play in the Sugar Bowl not the Capital One Bowl, so Georgia needs to take care of business and stomp Nebraska.  This Nebraska team got killed in the Big 10 title game against a mediocre Wisconsin team so they have already shown that they can come up small on a big stage.

Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez told the media earlier this week that there wasn't anything special about Georgia's defense.  He thinks that they are "an average Big 10 defense."  Well he should talk to Sheldon Richardson, Missouri defensive lineman, about talking about Georgia's defense, and how they respond to trash talk before a game.

I wouldn't be surprised if Georgia jumped out to an early lead, just like they did last year, only this time, they will finish the game, and their season, in style.

Georgia 42    Nebraska 10

Have a safe and Happy New Year!

Life after college football

It has taken almost three weeks for me to have the desire to get back on here and talk about sports.  The SEC Championship Game might be considered a classic, but for me, it was torture.  Every time I see a promo on ESPN about the National Title Game all I can think about is that Georgia could have been, should have been in that game.  A local radio show host still talks about how heartbreaking the 1983 Sugar Bowl was for him.  When he talks about it, you can still feel the pain in his voice.  I think that is the way I will feel about the SEC title game, probably forever.

But life, as they say, must go on.  So I will attempt to give at least some level on analysis on pro football, the NBA, and even college basketball, once the season starts in March.

That said, it is sad how little I have been able to watch the NFL this year, especially the Falcons.  I have missed two games because of work, numerous games because of the obligations of fatherhood, and I have missed the second half of the Falcons three prime time games (against the Broncos, the Cowboys, and the Saints) because I am now an old man who finds it difficult to stay up past 10 pm.

Though I have missed many of the games, I do have a pretty good idea about the team and how this season has gone and I have only one thing to say about the Falcons: nothing matters until the playoffs begin.

Now don't lump me in with the rest of the national media.  I think it does matter what you do in the regular season, most of the time.  However, for this team, this year, all that matters is the playoffs.  They have had fantastic seasons in the past (2010 13-3), but failed miserably in the playoffs against Green Bay.

The win over the Giants on Sunday was impressive, but it won't matter at all if Atlanta lays another egg in the playoffs.

The way the NFC picture is shaping up, the Falcons should have the number one seed and home field throughout the playoffs.  I know they had the same situation in 2010, but as good as this team is at home you take the first round bye and take your chances in the second round.  The Falcons haven't been the best team in cold weather historically, but with the number one seed, there is a chance they won't play outside again this season or throughout the playoffs.

Hopefully I will be able to stay awake to see the Falcons try and clinch that number one seed this Saturday night against the Lions.

I would give you some riveting commentary on the bowl season, but until we get to some games with at least one team that matters a little bit, I can't fake it.  I will say that I'm looking forward to watching the Chick-fil-A, Cotton, and Capital One Bowls.  I am sure that I will try to watch the National Championship Game, but it might just be too hard, we will see.

Have a Merry Christmas!

SEC Championship Game Reaction

There are no moral victories in major college football, and certainly not in a championship game.

Georgia came up just short on Saturday night in what can only be described as a classic college football game.  Now, Alabama will go on to play for the National Title, and Georgia will wait to see how far they fall down the SEC's bowl tie-ins.

As for the game itself, I was shocked at the poise shown by Georgia.  Both teams played well in the first half, but it almost seemed like a warm half rather than an indication of how the rest of the game was going to be played.  The third quarter was amazing.  Georgia scores a touchdown to take the 14-10 lead, then blocks the punt and returns it for a touchdown to take the 21-10 lead.  I'm not going to lie, when the punt was blocked, I didn't think the game was over, but I thought this was going to be our night.  It just seemed like things were going Georgia's way.

Bama answered as you would expect them to.  They battled back to take the lead at 25-21, and I think most Georgia fans probably figured this is where things would go astray for the Dawgs.

However, Georgia answered back and took the lead 28-25, and showed that they were capable of making a touchdown drive when they had to have it.  Bama got their one big pass play of the game when they needed it the most to take the lead 32-28, and now, surely, the Dawgs would falter.

Georgia's offense went three and out, seemingly ending the game.  All Alabama had to do was get one first down, and the game was over.  Alabama had been running all over Georgia, so surely they could  run for one first down right? Wrong.

When they had to do it to save the season, Georgia's defense managed to stop Alabama one last time and give Aaron Murray a chance to win the game.  The next minute plus of football almost seemed like a blur.  Completion after completion, with a Gurley first down run tucked in on third down, and all of a sudden Georgia was in Bama territory.  Murray found Arthur Lynch and now Georgia was inside the Bama 10.  Here it is, its going to happen.

I started yelling at the TV for Murray to spike the ball.  But no spike came, Murray's pass was tipped, Connelly did what receivers are trained to do, and the game was over just that quickly.

I think Georgia would have been better served spiking the ball on first down and calling two pass plays into the endzone that you would have had time to run with 14 seconds left.  However, I heard the explanation after the game that Georgia got the play called and Bama's defense wasn't able to substitute  so that is why Georgia didn't spike the ball.  I buy that.

As I said before, it was a fantastic game that didn't end in the way Georgia fans wanted it to.

Anyone who wants Mark Richt, Mike Bobo, or Todd Grantham to be fired, should turn in all of your red and black attire for the gold and blue of Georgia Tech because you are an idiot and you deserve to be miserable watching the triple option.

Anyone who hopes that Aaron Murray goes pro because Georgia would be better off without him, can do the same thing.

I started this post by saying that there are no moral victories, and that is true for the players and the coaches. The one thing that I hope comes out of this loss, is that I hope the fan base finally falls in love with this team.   I feel like the Bulldog Nation is constantly looking for someone to blame when things don't go right, but there is no one to blame after last night's game.  We played great, they played a little better.

There is one criticism that makes sense.  It has taken 12 years for Georgia to have a legitimate shot at the National Championship under Richt.  When you play in the biggest games against the best teams, you are going to lose sometimes, just like Georgia did last night.  The problem is that Georgia needs to be in that position more often.

Still a Dawg through and through, and looking forward to having one more chance to watch the Dawgs play this season.

SEC Championship Game Preview

All of the hype is almost over.  It is less than 24 hours until Georgia and Alabama meet for the first time in the SEC Championship Game. 

The enormity of this game has me reflecting a bit on my relatively short history as a Bulldog fan.

I was born in 1985, so I just missed the "Glory Days." 

Baseball was my first love, probably because we went to a lot of Braves games, and because I played little league.  The first Georgia game I can remember was the 1996 Auburn game, which was the first overtime game in the SEC's history. 

I remember watching the Florida game in 1997, which Georgia actually won, and not realizing what a big deal it was that the Dawgs beat Steve Spurrier and the Gators.  The significance of that win would be reveled to me over the next 7 years as I watched Georgia lose time and again in Jacksonville. 

By the late 90's I was hooked.  I remember being so excited when Georgia would be ranked in the teens preseason. 

Mark Richt's first season will always be remembered for the "Hob-nail Boot" win in Knoxville, but at the end of that season, I remember thinking that this guy wasn't going to be able to get the job done.  He ran the clock out on us against Auburn that season, then punted to Boston College in the bowl game with less than 2 minutes left. 

Obviously 2002 was the year that Richt won me over, and for good reason. 

I have documented the Richt Era extensively here before, so I won't go into a lot of detail, but I will say that the thing about Coach Richt that I have come to admire more than anything is the type of person he is.  I had questions about him as a leader when he let Willie Martinez stay too long, but his hire of Todd Grantham has reinvigorated the program.  I'm proud to have Coach Richt represent my university.

When I was a student at Georgia (2005-2007), my roommates and I would talk about what it might be like if Georgia ever played for a National Championship.  The conversation kind of felt like talking about what you would do if you won the lottery.  Georgia had some good teams in the 2000's, but they were never on the doorstep of the title game.  They were never even in title contention by the time November came around, usually because of a loss to Florida.

In this blog, I said that this season should be different.  I said that the expectations for this team were very simple.  Georgia should be 12-0 or 11-1 playing Alabama for a chance to go to the National Championship game.  Well, here we are.  Georgia has met expectations, now it is time to exceed them.  I'm sure that in January of 1983 Georgia fans never could have guessed that it would be 30 years until their team got this close to a National Championship again.  Likewise, they couldn't have known in September of 1980 what a magical three-year run they were about to embark on.  My son turns 1 on Sunday.  If Georgia wins on Saturday, his uncle and I will tell him for years to come about how the Dawgs beat the Tide, the day before his first birthday.  Who knows when he might get to see Georgia play in a game this big?

Moments like these aren't guaranteed.  Tomorrow may be the peak for this program under Mark Richt.  Tomorrow may be a disappointment, but a learning experience that will bare fruit in the future, much like the 2008 SEC Championship Game was for Alabama.  Tomorrow could also the beginning of the Georgia Bulldog Era in college football, where the Dawgs go one a run like Florida and Alabama and win multiple National Titles. 

Time will only tell what tomorrow's game will mean, but I do believe there is one, simple key to tomorrow's game.

Aaron Murray.

I've heard so much talk this week about the defenses.  The defenses are a wash.  Bama's defense is great, Georgia's defense is great.  I've heard a lot of talk about the run game for both teams.  We are going to be able to run the ball, and so are they.  It is going to come down to the quarterbacks.  AJ McCarron is a good quarterback who has been on a great team, won some big games, and made some big plays.  Aaron Murray is a great quarterback who has been on some good teams, won a lot of games against inferior competition, and made no big plays in big games.

AJ McCarron can't win the game for Alabama.  He can be a part of a team effort where he makes some plays that lead to victory, but he can't be the reason they win.  Aaron Murray can win this game for Georgia.  Aaron Murray can also lose this game for Georgia.

To even think about comparing Murray to Quincy Carter is an insult, but they do have one thing in common.  They are both like a box of chocolates, you never really know what you are going to get.  Carter was amazing as a freshman and beat LSU in Baton Rouge.  Carter threw five picks as a junior and handed Lou Holtz a program changing win when he was at South Carolina.  Murray has been spectacular at times, and at other times, he just leaves you scratching your head.

Aaron Murray is statistically the most efficient passer in the country.  He has thrown for over 3000 yards and has 30 touchdowns in the SEC.  I think that translates to about 50 touchdowns in the Big 12 or the Pac 12.  However, you haven't heard Murray's name mentioned once in the Heisman race.  Why?

Because Murray has come up incredibly small in Georgia's two biggest games of the season.  Murray was ineffective at South Carolina and he was bad against Florida. 

This week, Murray decided no to talk to the media for some reason.  While Murray was silent, former NFL coach and current NFL commentator Tony Dungy said that he believed Murray was a franchise quarterback in the NFL, and that he would draft Murray in the first round of April's NFL Draft.  Of course, this led to speculation that Murray would leave Georgia after this season. 

If Murray comes back next season, barring injury, he will hold every significant passing record in school history, and he will throw for the most touchdowns in Southeastern Conference history.  His numbers suggest greatness, but his play in big games suggest that those numbers are a product of a good system and weak opposition. 

Tomorrow's game can change everything for Murray.  Forget whether or not he goes pro, he can change his legacy if he wins tomorrow.  Matt Stafford was the number 1 pick in the NFL draft, so on some level, he is successful.  But Georgia fans love David Greene and DJ Shockley much more than Stafford, because they won.  Murray can throw all the touchdowns he wants, but to score with the Bulldog Nation he has to win when it really counts. 

It has been a long time since it has counted this much for Georgia.

We are so close.

1 game. 
1 victory. 
1 chance to play for the greatest prize in college athletics. 

The nation expects Alabama to win.  Alabama expects Alabama to win.  Meanwhile, Georgia fans could be characterized as reluctantly optimistic.  Don't get too excited, then you won't be too disappointed.

One of the problems with sports is that you aren't a winner until you are.  Everyone always doubts whether a team, a coach, or a player can win the big one if they haven't won it yet.  Phil Mickleson couldn't win a major.  Then he won the Masters.  He has since won three more majors.  Now he is a winner.

Michael Jordon was drafted by the Bulls in 1984.  He lead the league in scoring multiple times in the 80's, but the Bulls never won the NBA title.  People questioned whether Jordan could lead a team to a title.  Then, starting in 1991, Jordan won the NBA title every year he was in the league until 1998, a total of 6 titles.  It sounds crazy now that anyone would have ever thought Jordan couldn't win the big one, because he is thought of as one of the greatest winners of all time. 

Lebron James went through the same thing since he came into the NBA.  He got his title last season with the Heat.

My point is this: a Georgia win tomorrow might shock a lot of people because Georgia hasn't won on this level in so long, but the lack of victory doesn't make you a loser.  Georgia has had a remarkable season, and they are playing in a huge game against a program with as much history as any in college football.  Anyone that tells you they KNOW what is going to happen tomorrow is a fool.  These are two great teams and any number of variables could decide the game. 

The motto for the Dawgs this season has been Our Team, Our Time, No Regrets.  If they play with that mindset tomorrow, there is no reason the Dawgs won't be dancing on South Beach on January 7.
Glory, Glory to Old Georgia!

Dawgs  27      Tide 24

A Tale of Two Programs

It's been (some) of the best of times, and (some) of the worst of times, and it all started on one fateful night in September of 2008.

The Georgia Bulldogs were at the top of the college football world.  They were the preseason number one  going into the 2008 season, but they had dropped to 3rd by the time our story begins.  Georgia was coming off a magical season in 2007 when they had finished as hot as any team in the nation.  They ranked second nationally at the end of the '07 season.

Going back a bit farther, Georgia had been a power in the SEC for the past 6 years.  They had played in the SEC Championship Game 3 times from 2002-2007, won 2 SEC Championships, and 2008 was thought to be the year they broke through and played for a National Championship.

To the west, there was Alabama,  one of the most storied programs in the history of college football.  However, they came into the 2008 season longing for the success of the past rather than bragging about recent success.  In hopes of summoning the ghost of "The Bear", Bama went out and hired Nick Saban.  Saban had a promising first season in 2007, but his Tide was only ranked 24th coming in to the 2008 season.  After an impressive start to the season, they came to Athens ranked 9th.

Hoping to carry over some success from the year before, the Georgia seniors called for a "Blackout."  One Bama assistant famously predicted that Georgia was wearing black because they were going to their own funeral.

Bama dominated the Dawgs on their own homefield that night.  It was 31-0 before halftime.  The final score ended up being 41-30, but it was never that close.  As the two teams left the field that night, there was no way of knowing that these two teams were heading in two very different directions.

Alabama would go on to be ranked number 1 in the nation in 2008 before losing a great SEC Championship Game to Florida.  However, they would return in 2009 to overcome the Gators and eventually Texas would win the National Championship.  They would return to the National Title Game in 2011, this time defeating LSU to claim their second title in three years.  A Western Division Championship in 2012 means that Alabama has been to 3 SEC title games, won 1 SEC title, and won 2 National Championships since September 21, 2008.

Meanwhile, Georgia would go on to lose to Florida and Georgia Tech in 2008.  Matt Stafford and Knowshon Moreno left after the season to go to the NFL, and the program would fall far and fast.  2009 would see a 5 loss season for Georgia and an Independence Bowl appearance that, despite winning, would best be forgotten.

2010 would prove even worse.  Georgia lost four straight games in 2010.  Those losses weren't against teams like Florida, Alabama, Michigan, and USC.  No, those losses were to South Carolina, Arkansas, Mississippi State, and wait for it, Colorado.  They would go on to lose to Florida and Auburn at the end of the season and at 6-6 played college football juggernaut, Central Florida in the Liberty Bowl.  An uninspiring 10-6 defeat at the hands of UCF gave Mark Richt his first losing season in Athens.  Georgia had hit rock bottom.  There were legitimate discussions about firing Richt at the end of the 2010 season, and after losing the first two games of the 2011 season to Boise State and South Carolina, those talks intensified.

Being the pre-season number one in 2008 seemed like a lifetime ago, and Richt was one loss away from being unemployed.

The Dawgs managed to win the next 10 games of the season to finish 10-2, and played LSU in the SEC title game.  Georgia stayed with the Tigers for a half, but were blown away late in the game.  Georgia then fell to Michigan State in the Outback Bowl and finished the season a confusing 10-4.

Now we have seen Georgia go 11-1 in 2012.  They lost their toughest road game of the season and looked terrible doing it.  They beat the number 2 team in the nation on a neutral field.  They destroyed their competition in November, and seem to be on a roll that we haven't seen since the '07 season.

After going from the top of the college football world in 2008 to near the bottom of the SEC in 2010, Georgia finds itself back in the big time again.

It has been over 4 years since that fall Saturday night in 2008 when Georgia fell to Alabama.  At times, I have wondered whether or not Georgia could make it back to this point with Mark Richt as their head coach, but here are the Dawgs, one victory away from playing for the National Championship.

All that stands in their way is the team that sent them down that dark road - Alabama.  The Tide comes into this game as the defending National Champions, and presumably the team to beat.  Bama fans expect to win this game, as they expect to win every game, and go on to beat Notre Dame to claim what they believe to be their birthright, the National Championship.

Years from now, we might look back and say that this was just another Crimson Night in a Crimson Age of college football.

Or maybe, just maybe, we will look back and say this was the night that a new dynasty began.  Only time will tell, but make no mistake, it only takes one game to change the course of history.

A historic season and its not over yet!

After showing yet again that they are the best team in the state of Georgia, the Georgia Bulldogs will prepare for the Crimson Tide of Alabama in the SEC Championship Game.

I will have plenty to say in the coming week about the game with Alabama, but I think it is only right to take a  moment to look back on the 2012 regular season.

Make no mistake, this was one of the greatest regular seasons in the history of the program.  For only the fourth time in school history, Georgia has won 11 games in the regular season.  It is the second time in the Richt era that Georgia has won 11 games in the regular season, the other being in 2002.

Georgia beat all of their historic rivals.  Georgia beat Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, and Georgia Tech.  It would be a mistake for Georgia fans to forget that the reason Mark Richt was hired in Athens.  Jim Donnan had the program at a certain level, but he couldn't get this team over the hump against Georgia's rivals.

Georgia's season started out with what seemed like a huge win against Missouri.  At the time, the Missouri game was thought to be a chance for this team to slip up on the road.  Many national pundits picked Missouri to win that game because it was their first game in the league.  Georgia, thanks to Jarvis Jones, set Missouri on the road to a rough first season in the league.

After some concerning performances against lesser competition came the revenge game against James Franklin and his Vanderbilt Commodores   Georgia thumped Vandy in a game that was as dominant as you can be.

The Tennessee game was the best of times and the worst of times, but at the end of the day, it was a victory.

Then came the biggest disappointment of the season.  South Carolina played a great game, and Georgia failed to respond to the challenge as they were embarrassed 35-7 in Columbia.  Before that game, Spurrier said that Georgia was South Carolina's biggest rival although he knew that South Carolina wasn't Georgia's biggest rival.  I think that is exactly how both teams played.

Georgia sleepwalked through the Kentucky game, but again won.

The season came down to one game.  Georgia v. Florida in Jacksonville.  At the time, Florida was ranked #2 in the country and could clinch a spot in the SEC title game with a win.  Georgia, however, still controlled their own destiny thanks to two South Carolina losses.  Shawn Williams made news by calling out the defense before the game, and the entire team responded.  It wasn't the prettiest win in school history, but it looked pretty good from Georgia's sideline when the game was over.

All of a sudden, Georgia was back in control.  Georgia turned away a tough Ole Miss team on Homecoming.  Then, the Dawgs headed to the Plains to destroy Auburn to clinch a spot in the SEC title game for the second consecutive season.  Wins over Georgia Southern and Tech finished out a campaign that all the Bulldog Nation can be proud of.

I sincerly hope that Coach Richt will finally be given his due for what he has accomplished in Athens.  He is our coach, and he should be our coach for the foreseeable future.  No more of this hot seat garbage.  Mark Richt is the best coach Georgia has ever had, and he should be treated as such.

Now comes the biggest game for Georgia in 30 years.  Make no mistake, Alabama is a great team and it will take a great effort from the Dawgs to win.  However, after the seasons that we had in 2009 and 2010, its nice to be back at the top of the SEC.

For two years, Georgia has been criticized for their schedule and their has been an asterisk next to their success because they have not played Alabama.  Well, bring on the Tide and shut up the critics!

GO DAWGS!!!!!

This is my nightmare...

For years I have told people that I think the rivalry with Tech is an awful idea.  Georgia has nothing to gain by playing Tech.  Where the two programs are right now, Georgia should beat Tech every year.  That is an amazingly high standard, that obviously can't be kept.

Mark Richt has done a fantastic job with this rivalry since he has come to Athens.  10-1 against Tech.  Almost perfect. Almost.

The loss was in 2008, at home.  The 2008 team was also the 2nd most talented team that Georgia has had under Richt.  Second only to this year's team.  Not making you feel good?

Before last week's game with Georgia Southern, I said that Southern would score more against the Dawgs than Tech would.  I was surprised how well Georgia handled Southern's running game, especially in the second half.  After Georgia's game finished last Saturday afternoon, I could not have been more confident that Georgia would crush Tech and head to Atlanta for the SEC title game.

So what changed?

Stanford beat Oregon and Baylor beat Kansas State.

But that is a good thing, right?

Yes.  But it causes me to be more concerned about this game.

You see, I have always thought that the Tech rivalry was pointless because one day, I didn't know when, Georgia would be having a great season, and would be in the hunt for the National Championship.  They would get to the end of the schedule, and they would have to play a mediocre Tech team.  Then, inexplicably, the Tech team would upset my beloved Dawgs, and cause them to miss out on the National Championship.

This is my nightmare.

Georgia is more talented than Tech in every aspect of the game.  Georgia is playing its best football of the entire season.  Georgia has everything to play for, while Tech can do nothing on Saturday that can help or hurt them.  There is no reason to think that this game should even be close.

But then you remember last week.  Stanford is a good team, so you can see how they beat Oregon.  However, Baylor has a terrible defense.  They gave up 70 points to West Virginia earlier this season.  There is no reason to think that they could stop the inevitable Heisman trophy winner.  But that is exactly what happened.  Sports are the original reality television, and anything can happen.

There is only one thing about this situation that makes me feel better.

Mark Richt.

Richt has said all week that his team is focused on Georgia Tech.  Some people might think that is coach-speak, but not me.  Richt knows what is at stake.  He has been at Georgia a long time, and there is only thing he hasn't achieved.  This is as important to Mark Richt, his future, his family, and his legacy as it is to any person in this world.

Georgia can't win the National Title this Saturday, but they sure can lose it.

Mark Richt won't let them.

Tech's offense is a gimmick. They will move the ball, but at the end of the day, they are just not good enough to beat Georgia.  Personally, I think the Dawgs are going to make a statement.  They are number three now, and everyone assumes that the upsets last week mean Alabama will get a shot at Notre Dame for the title.  I think the coaches and the players are going to send a little message to the nation to not count the Dawgs out just yet.

Georgia will win this game in convincing style, move on to Atlanta, keep the dream alive, and avoid my nightmare.

Georgia 52    North Avenue Trade School  13

GO DAWGS!!!!!

This Changes Everything

It has been 43 days since I walked out of Williams-Brice Stadium, numb, after watching Georgia's undefeated season ended with a huge thud.  35-7.

The backlash almost started immediately  Fire Richt, Fire Bobo, Fire Uga! Ok maybe not Uga.

I wrote then, that despite the loss is Columbia, it was a long season, and Georgia still had a chance to achieve all of it's goals.

Going into the Florida game, Georgia fans were dejected.  There's no way we could beat the Gators.  They are the number two team in the nation.  Remember Columbia?

After the Florida game, I said that we true Georgia fans needed to move to the middle of the band-wagon to make room for those who jumped off.  Well, everyone get ready to get even more crowded, because everyone will be back on after this week.

I toot my own horn not to be obnoxious, only to give more credibility to what I'm about to say.

The biggest hurdle is still ahead.  The Alabama Crimson Tide.

After what can only be described as an amazing day and night of college football, the Georgia Bulldogs control their own BCS destiny!  Barring an upset of epic proportions next weekend, Georgia will play Alabama in Atlanta, with the winner moving on to play in Miami for the National Championship.

There will be plenty of time to break down the Georgia/Georgia Tech game, as well as the eventual game with the Tide in the Dome.

Right now I want to talk about the next few weeks.

Before Saturday, I thought Notre Dame would lose to USC.  After watching, yes I actually watched USC play UCLA, I'm not as sure.  Barkley is a mess at quarterback and USC's defense seems to have lost all of the talent that they were known for in the early 2000's.  Irish eyes might be crying tears of joy next weekend as they cap an undefeated season and punch their ticket to the National Championship game.

Let's get two things out of the way right now.  First, Florida will NOT be in the National Championship game, because they will lose, rather convincingly, to Florida State next weekend.  The Gators are not a great team, and I think you might even see the human polls drop them this week just to make sure they aren't in position to get to the title game.

Secondly, if Notre Dame loses to USC, no other SEC school deserves a shot at the National title, other than the winner of the SEC Championship game.  You need to take a good look at Florida State and even Oregon.  The fact that there are so many SEC teams in the BCS top ten is a testament to the strength of the conference, but Florida is not great, South Carolina is not great without Lattimore, LSU should have lost to Ole Miss, and Texas A&M got way too big of a jump in the polls after beating Alabama.  I love the SEC, but we need to beat a team outside of the conference to win our 7th consecutive championship.

Georgia, and Alabama,, are in the driver's seat, and before Dawg fans start raising their expectations too high too quickly, remember that this is Alabama and this is Nick Saban.  If Georgia is going to beat the Tide, they will have to beat an angry team playing at their very best.  Georgia will have to play their best game, not only of this season, but maybe their best game in a generation.

To steal a line from Ric Flair, to be the man, you have to beat the man, and Alabama is the defending National Champions for a reason.  Georgia will have to earn every yard.

That said, think about the fact that 32 years later, Georgia has a chance, with freshman running backs to possibly play Notre Dame for the National Championship.  If that doesn't make some chills run down your back, nothing will.

I love Georgia with all of my heart, and that heart is racing even now thinking about what could happen over the next two weeks.  This Georgia team is more talented than any other team we have ever had.  Ever.  I hope so badly that the players are invigorated by this opportunity  and respond by putting in the best two weeks of practice that they have ever had.  As a lifelong Georgia fan, I have hoped  that one day I would get the chance to watch my team play for the National Championship.  Being this close to it is almost surreal.

No matter what happens over the next two weeks, Its Great to be a Georgia Bulldog!

This has been an amazing ride and it isn't over just yet.

Tech preview later this week.  Happy Thanksgiving to all!

GO DAWGS!!!

UGA v. GA Southern Preview

The Bulldogs are a 38 point favorites against the second best team in the state of Georgia as Georgia Southern comes calling in Athens on Saturday.  The Eagles will run the triple option that is a left over from former Southern and current Tech coach, Paul Johnson.

All I have heard this week is that Southern ran for over 300 yards against Alabama last year.

There are two things that I'm sure of:
1. Georgia will win this game by double digits.
2. Georgia will not cover the 38 points.  That point spread is crazy.

Southern will get things going on the ground at times during this game, and they will score enough to make some Georgia fans angry.  Then you will hear that Tech will run all over us because if Georgia Southern can score what ever number they score, then Tech is going to score 100 points.  Those people are dumb, and we shouldn't listen to them, ever.

The reason Georgia will win this game is that there is no way in this world that Georgia will not score as much as they want on Saturday.  Southern's defense doesn't have as much talent as Auburn's defense, and you see what Georgia did to them last week.  Southern will be fired up, they might sack Murray early, and you might start getting nervous.  Please don't.  Don't waste your nerve on this game.  It doesn't matter what the score is, Georgia will win.

Now, if you are a true Georgia fan you know that the biggest game on Saturday is not in Athens.  We have to stay up late to watch Kansas State play Baylor and Oregon play Stanford.  Now when I say we have to watch these games, I mean that those two games are on at the same time, and Tennessee/Vanderbilt is on as well.  You will have to switch between all three games to stay awake, because, if you are anything like me, its hard to watch some of these games.

I don't think this is the weekend for an upset, but you have to watch just in case.

Why is it such a big deal?  If two of the top three teams lose, then Georgia will have something they haven't had in 30 years: a chance to play for the national title.

In 2002 Georgia finished second in the nation, but they never had a chance to play one game to get to the title game.  In 2007, Georgia had to watch and hope, and then still got left out of the title game.

If two of these team lose, then the Georgia/Alabama game will be a national semifinal in the Georgia Dome.

At this point it is still a long shot, but it is worth keeping an eye on these other games, because you just never know what will happen.

This weekend should be fun, but not as fun as next weekend.

Georgia 45   Georgia Southern 31

GO DAWGS!!!  

Georgia Bulldogs: SEC East Champions!

When the night began in Jordan-Hare Stadium, the home fans spirits were lifted by the loss of cross-state rival Alabama, and there was a sense of hope in the air.  By the time the night ended, the home fans were long gone, and the stands at the north end of the stadium were rocking with fans celebrating a division championship.

Georgia took care of business in an impressive way against Auburn on Saturday night.  They scored touchdowns on their first 4 possessions and took their foot off the gas mid way through the third quarter.  Make no mistake, Georgia could have picked their number against Auburn, and I'm not sure if the two teams played until the rapture, that Auburn would have scored on Georgia's defense.

Aaron Murray was spectacular.

Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall were sensational.

The defense was dominating.

And even the punt team was fantastic, three times pinning the Tigers inside their own 5 yard line.

You cannot dominate another team more than Georgia did on Saturday night.

Many will look at this game and believe that it says more about Auburn than Georgia, and that is fine.  For the Dawgs, only one thing matters.  Two years after experiencing their first losing season under Coach Mark Richt, the Dawgs are going to their second straight SEC title game.

Richt has been consistent that Georgia's first goal each season is to win the East.  Now with that goal checked off, Georgia looks to take the next step and win the title game.  Richt said after the game that this team is not done yet, and that there was no big locker-room celebration this year.

With Alabama's loss, the Western Division Champion is still to be determined.  However, it would take a Tide loss to Auburn to open the door for LSU or Texas A&M to make it to Atlanta, so it is a pretty safe bet that Georgia will meet the Tide for the first time in the SEC title game, and the first time since the infamous 2008 Blackout Game when Bama rolled Georgia in Athens.

I saw another Dawg fan post on Facebook on Sunday morning that Georgia will not play for the National Title.  I really don't understand some Georgia fans.

One month ago he probably would have said there is no way Georgia will beat Florida and win the East.  Before the Alabama game on Saturday, he probably would have said there is no way that Texas A&M would go into Tuscaloosa and beat the number one team in the nation.

Can we please stop this?

There is only one thing that can be certain at this point in the season: nothing is certain.

Oregon will be the new number 1 in the human polls.  They still have to play 3 games.  All 3 games will be played against ranked teams.  An ESPN analyst said that playing those games would help Oregon's ranking in the BCS computer polls.  Of course, he is assuming that Oregon will win all three of those games.

Notre Dame should have lost to Pitt last week.  Notre Dame looked pedestrian against Boston College on Saturday night.  Notre Dame still has to play at USC to finish the season, and the Trojans won't have anything to play for except ruining Notre Dame's season.

Kansas State is a one man show, and they still have to play Texas.

Of course, for Georgia, any road to Miami would have to feature a victory in Atlanta over Alabama.

I'm not going to sit here on November 11 and predict that Georgia will play for the National Title, but you can't tell me it won't happen.

The one thing I am willing to predict is that Georgia will play in a BCS game.  Florida will lose to Florida State at the end of the season, knocking them out of contention.  As long as Georgia doesn't get run out of the Georgia Dome by Alabama, the Dawgs will make their 4th appearance in the BCS.

A few weeks ago, I said that Georgia fans should let the season play out before making judgments on this team and this coaching staff.  Now, I think, we can all see that this team had one bad night, but has showed great character in coming back and playing their best football at the end of the season.

The story of the 2012 Georgia Bulldogs is still to be written.

Georgia/Auburn Preview

The Deep South's Oldest Rivalry is renewed on Saturday night when the Dawgs travel to the Plains to take on Auburn.  Historically, this game is is full of upsets and road victories.  Those two trends will battle each other in this game.

Let's just focus on the Mark Richt Era and talk about the significance of this rivalry.  In 2001, Richt's first season in Athens, Auburn beat Georgia when Richt failed to show he understood how to handle late game clock management.  It seems like a joke, but Mark Richt had doubters in Athens after his first season, so he is used to being on the hot seat.

In 2002, Georgia won an epic game on the Plains to clinch a spot in the SEC Championship game for the first time in school history en route to their first league title since 1982.  David Greene found Michael Johnson in the back of the end zone with under a minute to play to secure the win.

In 2004, Georgia was dominated on the Plains by an Auburn team that eventually finished the season 14-0 and finished #2 nationally.  The highlight of that game was Auburn running back Cadillac Williams throwing a touchdown pass on the way to a decisive Auburn victory.

In 2005, Auburn won in Athens when Georgia had a chance to clinch the SEC East when quarterback Brandon Cox found a open receiver on 4th and 16 late in the game.  Auburn ended up running the clock down before kicking a game winning field goal to give the Tigers the 31-30 victory.

2007 was the famous "Black Out" when Georgia ran right through a good Auburn team on their way to a Sugar Bowl victory.  2010 was Cam Newton's one and only contribution to the rivalry as Auburn overcame a three touchdown deficit to blow Georgia away in the second half.  Nick Fairly attempted to kill Aaron Murray that afternoon, and the referees seemed like they were okay with it.  To my recollection, that is the only game in Murray's career that he had to be taken out of because of injury.

2006 is the game I want to focus on.

This was Matt Stafford's freshman season, and a freshman running back named Knowshon Moreno was stadning on the sidelines watching.  Georgia came into the game at 6-4 having already lost to Tennessee, Florida, Vanderbilt (at home on Homecoming), and on the road at Kentucky.  Rebuilding or not, this was unacceptable for Georgia.  Now, all the Dawgs had to do was travel to the Plains to take on the fifth ranked Auburn Tigers who had hopes of not only an SEC title, but a national title.

What happened next will forever be remembered by Georgia fans.  Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox threw  7 passes in the first half, none of them hit the ground.  He completed 4 to his team, and 3 to Georgia defensive back Tre Battle, one of which was returned for a touchdown.  Georgia won the game 37-15 and won the rest of their games that season, including a Chick-fil-A Bowl victory over Virginia Tech.

Okay, that was a lot of history to make this simple point, Georgia better be ready to play on Saturday night.  This game defines seasons, more often than not.  It seems like one of these teams always has something big to play for in November when this game is played, so it makes or breaks your season.

Of course Georgia wins the East with a victory, and Florida wins the East with a Georgia loss.  But rest assured, Georgia and Mark Richt lose a whole lot more with a loss.  This is the worst Auburn team Richt has ever faced.  This is the worst Auburn team in my lifetime (since 1985).  Auburn only has Georgia and Alabama left on their SEC schedule, they have yet to win a game in conference play.  The last time Auburn went winless in the conference: 1952!  This could be the worst Auburn team in the last 60 years!  Georgia can't lose this game!

The fact that Georgia fans are even a little nervous about this game, is not a good sign.  But in the Richt era, Georgia constantly plays down to lesser opponents.

I don't think that is going to happen on Saturday night.  Georgia knows what is at stake.  Georgia has everything to play for.  Auburn will be firing the coach and starting over as a program in 3 weeks, while Georgia will be taking their best shot at Alabama.

This is going to be a 3 1/2 hour party for Dawg fans!  Georgia will get on them early, stay on them throughout, and spend the fourth quarter thinking about which Gatorade tub to hit Richt with at the end of the game.

Georgia 42    Auburn 6

GO DAWGS!!!!!!

UGA v. Ole Miss

A week after one of the biggest wins Georgia has ever had over Florida, the Bulldogs return home for the first time in a month to take on the Ole Miss Rebels. 

Geogia proved last week that a big win doesn't have to come on the back of a great performance, but this week, Georgia is looking to not only win the game, but start playing like a team that can compete for a championship.  Georgia's task is very simple, win the next two games, Saturday against Ole Miss and November 10th against Auburn, and punch their ticket for a second straight SEC title game.

In the span on just one week, Georgia has gone from hoping to get a shot at a trip to Atlanta, to it being a huge disappointment if they don't get to Atlanta. 

Before they look too far down the road, Georgia better be ready to play Ole Miss this weekend.  Now, you might not know his name, but I bet everyone already knows the head coach of Ole Miss.  His name is Hugh Freeze and the reason you know him is because he was the coach of Michael Oher, from the book and movie "The Blindside."  Freeze was hired at Ole Miss last December, and he is a candidate for SEC coach of the year because he has the Rebels playing as well as they have since Oher left campus in 2009.  Freeze is known for offense, and his team is averaging 32 points per game this season.

At quarterback, the Rebels have Bo Wallace, who has been good at times this season.  Of his 9 interceptions this season, 7 of them have come in Ole Miss' 3 losses.  Wallace has also been sacked 18 times in 8 games, so keep an eye on Jarvis Jones this weekend, because he could have yet another stand out game.

If there is one player for the Rebels that could really hurt Georgia it is running back Jake Scott.  Scott has 3 100 yard rushing games this season and has rushed for over 600 yards on the season, despite the fact that he missed the first game of the season.  However, Scott managed only 49 yards on 19 carries against Alabama earlier this season.

Georgia is a 14 point favorite in this game and they should cover the spread easily.  While Freeze has improved this team greatly from last season, they are still not at the level of the elite schools in the SEC.  They don't have the depth that Georgia has, so this game might be close at half time, but it shouldn't be close in the 4th quarter.

For Georgia, this game is about one thing, and one thing only: Get right!

Despite winning the game against Florida, this hasn't looked like a team that can stay on the field with Alabama for a full four quarters.  We need to see something this weekend that makes us believe that we can, not only get to the Dome, but shock the world in the process. 

We need to see something out of Aaron Murray.  In his last four games, Murray has thrown seven touchdowns and five interceptions.  Incredibly mediocre.  Murray is the leader of this team, and if Georgia has a chance to do something special in December, he will have to lead the charge.  Alabama won't give Georgia 6 turnovers, I promise you that.

We also need to see the return of the Freshman Phenoms.  The last time Georgia was at home, Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall were the talk of the SEC.  They were playing at an amazing level, and Georgia was looking like an offensive jugernaught.  For the past month, however, the two freshman have been MIA.  Gurley has only one touchdown in his last three games.  We need these guys to get back to doing what they were doing in September.

Finally, we need to see this defense play like they did last week, every week.  Personally, it is far more frustrating to have a defense that is capable of playing great but constantly under-performs, than it is to have a crappy defense to start with.  It makes no sense that this defense has to be called out and challenged before they come prepared to play.  In my opinion, if we see Georgia's defense return to playing the way they did against Kentucky, then it is not a problem with coaching, it is a problem with the players.  In this league, you have to come ready to play every week, not just when your backs are against the wall.  I believe this defense has something to prove, because at this point, they might be talented, but I think they are also lazy.

In the last 4 weeks, Georgia has gone from the top of the world, to the bottom of the barrell, and back again.  The Dawgs have four games left in the regular season, and they are going to be double-digit favorites in every game.  Three of the four games left are in Athens.  Four games is a quarter of the season, and it is time for this team to create some momentum heading toward Atlanta and the SEC title game.  Play well on Saturday.  Then head to Auburn to give Gene Chizik a final farewell.  Then come home and beat the daylights out of two in-state teams.  That is the plan for November.  Simple, right?

Now, very quickly, I have a quick guide for Georgia fans for the rest of the college football season.  Because the Dawgs have gotten themselves back in the picture for the big game in January it is worth taking a look at what Georgia needs to happen.  First we need Kansas State to lose to Oklahoma State this weekend.  After the Cowboys, K State only has Texas left on its schedule and they don't play a championship game.  I don't trust Texas to beat anyone, so OSU needs to take K State out of the ranks of the unbeatens this weekend.

Secondly, Georgia fans need to be USC fans on Saturday night.  Just hold your nose and close your eyes and hopefully it will be over quick.  USC is the most talented team on Oregon's schedule.

Okay, I forgot, you need to just buy a USC T-shirt because the Trojens are probably the only team left that could be Notre Dame too.  Ugh. 

Georgia needs 2 of the 3 remaining unbeatens to lose to open the door for a 1 loss team to make it to the National Championship Game.  After Alabama beats LSU this weekend, Georgia will be the highest ranked 1 loss team, so the chance is there for Georgia. 

Oh yeah, then Georgia has to beat Alabama, but we will worry about that later.

Have a good week, and GO DAWGS!!!!!

GLORY GLORY!!!

I'm going to get this out of the way at the very top and move on very quickly.  Georgia better be ready for a much improved Ole Miss team next week.  Can't have a let down.  More on that later in the coming week.

Right now:

Georgia 17  Florida 9

Everyone please to the middle of the band wagon to make room for all of those people who jumped off in the past 3 weeks.  I guess we are going to keep our coach now, huh?

For Georgia fans, all that matters is the final score.

For the past 20 years Georgia fans have flocked faithfully down to Jacksonville, only to see our beloved Dawgs fall short more often than not.  The trip home from Jacksonville is sometimes referred to as the "Trail of Tears."  Well, they will be tears of joy in 2012!

Aaron Murray played terribly.

Georgia 17  Florida 9

We turned the ball over, went away from the run inexplicably when it was working early in the game, and we were awful on third down.

Georgia 17  Florida 9

See, for Georgia fans, none of that other stuff matters.  We beat Florida.  That is the only thing that matters for the next 6 days.

We have taken bad teams, mediocre teams, good teams, and in 2002 a great team to Jacksonville and come home empty, but this year, the script was reversed.  We ruined Florida's season.  We control our own destiny to get to Atlanta, despite the game in Columbia.  We didn't play great, but we won the game.

You might hear some people talk over the next few days about how they don't think this team is really that good.  Some people might say that we got lucky.  Other people might say Florida gave us the game.  Let them talk.  Why?

Georgia 17  Florida 9

Next year, before the game starts, you know what stat they will show?

Georgia has won 2 in a row against Florida.  First time you can say that since I was in kindergarten.

Georgia's players will have to get back to work on Monday, but for Georgia fans, we can enjoy this one for a while.

Glory, Glory!

Cocktail Party Preview

It is almost impossible to cover all of the story lines heading into the annual Georgia/Florida game in Jacksonville.

The headline, without a doubt, is that the winner of this game will most likely face Alabama in the SEC title game for a chance to play for the National Championship.  Florida officially clinches the East with a win, while Georgia still has to beat Ole Miss and Auburn to make it official.  With all the negativity surrounding the program for the past three weeks, it is important to remember that Georgia still has a chance to achieve all of it's goals.

Florida is overachieving at a spectacular level.  I truly believe that the only aspect of this team that is as good as they have been playing is the special teams.  The kicker is almost automatic.  The punter was the biggest reason Florida destroyed South Carolina last week, the punter... When you look at the offense, it is totally dependent on the run.  CBS will probably show the throw that Driskel made against Tennessee about 100 times tomorrow, but it is because that is the only big throw he has made all season.  Their running back is good, and Driskel, in my opinion, is a bigger running threat than he is a throwing threat.

Defensively you will hear people talk about how great they are, but I'm not convinced that they are that good.  They are opportunistic for sure, but I think they lack the sheer talent that the best teams in the SEC have.  Their defensive line isn't dominant, but they are strong at linebacker and in the secondary.

No matter what happens on Saturday, there is one thing I'm convinced of:

Georgia is far more talented than Florida.

But as we well know, especially in Jacksonville, that doesn't mean Georgia will win the game.  Spurrier once remarked that the same caliber of player goes to Georgia and Florida, but that he wasn't sure what was happening to them once they got to Athens.  That comment was made back in the '90's, but sadly, not much has changed in that regard since Richt got to Athens.

Casual fans will look at this game and say that Georgia got rolled by South Carolina, and Florida stomped South Carolina, so that means Florida is much better than Georgia.  They would be wrong.  South Carolina played out of their minds against Georgia, and Florida was the beneficiary of three South Carolina turnovers inside their own 20 yard line last week.  This game is going to be close, which probably favors Florida because of the special teams players that I mentioned earlier, but you will never get me to pick the Gators over the Dawgs.

I heard the local radio guys ask a question this week that I thought was interesting.  Who is this game bigger for, Mark Richt or Aaron Murray?

Richt has been great in Athens.  Not good, great.  But fans are seeing other teams in the conference win National Championships and they are convinced that Richt is the reason that Georgia hasn't joined them.  I am convinced that if Georgia losses big on Saturday, Mark Richt will be fired.  Maybe not at the end of this season, but after next season.  They can't fire him if he goes 10-2, no matter what the schedule looks like.  I got sucked into engaging the Richt haters on the AJC's website earlier in the week, but its like talking to the wall.  They aren't satisfied that Richt has brought the longest period of success that the school has ever seen along with 2 SEC titles to Athens, they want more.

The biggest thing for me that the Richt haters don't understand is that it can ALWAYS get worse.  Why do they think you can fire a great coach, and automatically find another great coach, and then he will start winning right away?  I said it last week, and I'll say it again.  Ask an Auburn fan if they would take 10-2 right now?

Going back to the radio question, the game is much bigger for Richt.  He is the one making millions of dollars and he is the one that can be fired.  Murray will get his shot in the NFL no matter what happens on Saturday.  Just ask Peyton Manning.

Manning never won anything at Tennessee, and he is one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history and a Super Bowl Champion.

The question on Murray goes deeper than just Saturday against Florida.  The question is, how do we define greatness?  By the time he is done in Athens, Murray will hold every passing record that Georgia has.  Midway through his junior season, he has already thrown more touchdown passes than any other quarterback to wear the Red and Black.  However, he hasn't won a big game.  A win on Saturday would change that, and it would most likely set up a chance to play Alabama in what could be the biggest game Georgia has seen since the glory days of Dooley and Herschel.

Murray is good player, but he still has to prove that he is a winner.  He is running out of chances to be what he wants to be at Georgia, because a loss on Saturday will make this season a total failure.  So what if we go 10-2 and play in the Outback or Capital One Bowl.  No one cares.  With this team and this schedule, 10-2 is terrible.

Shawn Williams called out the defense this week for playing soft.  I'm glad someone on the field noticed.  It was embarrassing watching Kentucky run the ball on Georgia last week.  You can bet that this defense is going to come out fired up and aggressive, and if I were a Florida coach, I would be ready to take advantage of that aggressiveness.  The problem with playing with emotion is that it can go both ways.  Hopefully Georgia can settle into the game before they make a big mistake.

I have one BIG pet peeve right now with Richt and this coaching staff.  Is there not one person on our team that can hit an extra point?  This is ridiculous!  I have heard many fans criticize Richt over the years for sticking with players because they have seniority, just like he did last year when Blair Walsh struggled.  Marshall Morgan is a freshman!  Are you telling me that we have to watch this kid miss extra points for the next 4 years because he won the kicking job in fall practice before the start of his freshman year?  I can't take it.  Pull a kid out of the stands and he can hit extra points.  My God there are girls you can pull out of the stands and they can hit extra points.  If he misses one more, he should be done.  Period.  No more.  This isn't Pop Warner where everyone gets a trophy   It's the SEC.  You don't let the entire team suffer because one guy can't do his job.  Last week, when Morgan hit the upright and bounced the the field goal through right before half time, Richt was laughing about it.  I wasn't laughing.  Saban wouldn't be laughing either.  This has got to stop.

Like I said, I think this game is going to be close.  A missed extra point in the first quarter could change how the entire game is played.

Now, I climb down off my soap box, and get back to the game.

I can see this game going about 100 different ways.  Georgia is more talented.  They could play a great game and win by 3 touchdowns.  Florida is consistent and they play as a team.  I could see them forcing turnovers and winning by 3 touchdowns.  There is also a hurricane in the area which might mean high winds and rain.  That makes it even easier to try to predict what will happen.

I said earlier I can't pick Florida and I can't.  Georgia is going to win this game.  We are better than them.  There is no way that this Florida team can go undefeated, and if they beat us that is probably what is going to happen, at least until they play Bama.  This isn't Florida circa 1996 with Wurfull and Spurrier.  This isn't Florida in 2006 with Meyer and Tebow.  This is 2012 and we are talking about Muschamp (who yelled at his own radio guy before half time last week when Florida was up 3 touchdowns!) and Driskel.  Florida should have lost to Bowling Green to start the season.  They can't go undefeated.

Georgia is going to win this game.  Georgia is going to win this game.  A few more times and I might convince myself right along with a few of you.

I'm Back!

It has been just over two weeks since I was walking out of Williams-Brice Stadium, completely shell shocked at what I had just witnessed.  Don't get me wrong, I wasn't shocked that Georgia lost to South Carolina, but the way Georgia lost to South Carolina was shocking to say the least.

It has taken all of the last two weeks for me to really figure out how to look at the rest of this season.  The bye week meant that I had some time to stop thinking about the team, the match-ups,  the possibilities   I tried to sit down and write a Kentucky preview about 3 times last week, but just couldn't find it in my heart to do it.  I really thought it was a second straight bye week (boy was I wrong about that).  But this morning I woke up and the picture of this season was clear in my head and in my heart.

As I stated at the beginning of the season, with this team,  and this schedule the only acceptable records that Georgia should have were 12-0 or 11-1.  After further evaluation, my conclusion is that nothing, absolutely nothing has changed.  Well I take that back, one thing has changed, and I hate to say this, but some Georgia fans really suck.

Like I said I was at the South Carolina game, and I thought the atmosphere was amazing.  The Georgia fans were just as amazing, but as the game played out, it was difficult to stay excited about what was going on.  I was so frustrated I wished that I could go down on the side line and ask some of these guys who have all the talent in the world where their heart was, where their pride was.  My brother and I stayed until the very end of the game, but a lot of Georgia fans left.  When I got on Facebook after getting back to my hotel, I saw members of the band criticizing the fans that made the trip for not supporting the team.  That was the first instance of what the last two weeks have been about in Bulldog nation.

After one loss, given it was a awful loss, but still just one loss, you start hearing the "fans" talking about how this team isn't that good, Richt and Bobo should be fired, Georgia will never win anything with Richt.  First of all, Richt has already won 2 SEC championships.  Secondly, it was a bad night.  Georgia didn't play well and South Carolina played out of their minds.

It is a long season, and there is no reason to give up on this team.  Just look at what a difference two weeks can make.  Two weeks ago South Carolina had moved up to be the number 3 team in the nation and had  hopes of a SEC and perhaps National Title.  Now, just two weeks later, they are done.  No SEC East title for South Carolina.  They still have to play Tennessee and Clemson, they have a quarterback controversy thanks to Spurrier's quick trigger against Florida and I'm not convinced they won't lose another game.

And now look at where Georgia sits.  They control their own destiny to get to the National Championship Game.  I'm not saying it is going to happen, but I am saying that if Georgia wins the rest of their games, they can still achieve every goal they had at the beginning of the season.  South Carolina can't say that.

There is going to be plenty of time for breaking down the Cocktail Party, and I will be doing that all week, but right now I want to finish up this post by saying one thing to Georgia fans: It could always be worse.

When I hear people talk about firing Richt, I wonder if they are new Georgia fans.  You know, fans that have started following the team in the last 10 years or so.  They have seen Georgia win some big game and a pair of SEC titles, but they have seen LSU, Florida, Alabama, and Auburn win National Titles and they wonder why Georgia hasn't been able to do that.  They assume it is because of Richt.

First of all, it takes more than a good team to win a National Title.  It also takes a bit of luck.  Luck?  Yes Luck.  Look at Bama just last year.  They got a huge break even being in the Title game!  They didn't win their division but they got the chance to play LSU again.  That was lucky.  Georgia went 12-1 in 2002 and played in the Sugar Bowl not the title game.  In 2007 Georgia was left out of the title game because they didn't win the SEC despite the fact that anyone with a pair of eyes could tell they were the best team in the nation at the end of the season.

So back to my original point: It could always be worse.  Use the internet, new Georgia fans, to look at the team's record from 1989-2000.  There were a couple of high points in there, 1997 for example, but for the most part, it was bad.  Losing every year to Auburn, Tennessee, Florida, and a lot of the time Tech.  Mark Richt changed that the moment he got to Athens.  We have lost to Tech once in the Richt era.  The only team  Georgia has a losing record to under Richt is Florida.  But during that time, 1989-2000 Georgia beat Florida twice.  Richt has done just a little bit better by beating Florida 3 times.  So Georgia fans it could be worse.  It could be so much worse.  And if you think I'm wrong, do you know an Auburn fan?  Call them.  Ask them if it could be worse.

It is Georgia/Florida week and the Dawgs have everything to play for.  Forget Columbia.  GO DAWGS!!!!

Georgia/South Carolina Preview

At the beginning of the season, you looked at October 6^th and thought that it could be a big game.  Well October 6^th is rapidly approaching, and it is a very big game for the Georgia Bulldogs.  There aren't enough adjectives in the English language to properly put this game in perspective.  Let’s just say this, football games in the SEC are big occasions in their own right, but this game is as big as Georgia has played in the last 10 years.

  

Not since Georgia traveled to Jacksonville as an undefeated team in 2002 have the Bulldogs been poised for a legitimate run at the National Championship.  We all remember what happened that night, well I remember and Terrence Edwards and his butterfingers remember as well.  Georgia lost to Florida, and that was the only blemish on an otherwise spectacular season that saw Georgia win the SEC and the Sugar Bowl on the way to finishing their season with a 13-1 record. 

The only other game that could be considered this big would have been the Alabama game in 2008, but I can’t talk about that game at all, so we are going to move on. 

The importance of the game can’t be overstated for Georgia.  Having already played Tennessee, a win on Saturday would mean that Georgia would have to lose two of their final four SEC games for South Carolina to win the division.  Georgia will beat the pants off of Kentucky and Ole Miss.  Auburn is down, so even though it is a rivalry game, it’s hard to see Georgia losing that one.  That leaves only Florida on the 27^th of the month as a swing game.  Florida and South Carolina have to play each other later in the season, so one of them will have 1 loss already.  Both South Carolina and Florida have to play LSU.  Barring an upset, both teams would lose those games.  Still with me?  If you think Florida is good, but not great, as I do, then there is no way they are winning two games out of three against Georgia, South Carolina, and LSU, which means simply this: 

A win on Saturday means that Georgia will be playing for the SEC title in the Georgia Dome on     December 1^st. 

Now, quickly, what does a loss mean?  A loss means you better hope that LSU beats South Carolina and then you better hope that either Florida, Tennessee, or Arkansas beats South Carolina too.  Hmm.  A loss means simply this: No SEC title game.

Now that we know what the stakes are, let’s get down to business on the game itself.

South Carolina is a 3 point favorite given that they are playing at home, but that is standard, which means the guys in Vegas think this is an even match up.

Games like this could come down to a single play, a single call, or a single mistake by the coaching staff.  Everyone associated with the game for Georgia has to bring their best on Saturday night. 

No wasting timeouts because players didn't know what personnel was supposed to be on the field.  No stupid penalties.  No TUNOVERS!!!!!!!!

Defensively, Georgia is underrated this week.  For the first time all season, Georgia had their intended starting lineup on the field against Tennessee, and the results weren't great.  But that is good news for Georgia fans, because Coach Grantham has been telling his players all week (I’m sure in a calm and respectful voice) that they have to be better.  This is the kind of game made for big players like Jarvis Jones, and I would be shocked if he doesn't play well.  Rambo and Ogletree will be wanting to make some noise after missing time.  The key to this game the past two years has been Marcus Lattimore.  In 2010, Lattimore seem to pick up every third down South Carolina faced by a foot.  In 2011, with the game on the line, Lattimore ran the ball very well in the fourth quarter to help keep the Georgia offense on the sideline.  I would expect that the game plan will be to stop Lattimore, and dare Conner Shaw to beat you, and if they can manage to slow Lattimore down, I don’t think Shaw will be able to win the game for South Carolina.

Offensively, Georgia has too many weapons to not score points.  South Carolina’s defense is amazing, especially up front, but Georgia’s offensive line has played well all season, and Murray has done a great job of getting Georgia into the right plays.  As crazy as it sounds, the key to Georgia’s offense are the strongest parts of the offense to this point in the season. 

The two freshman running backs have been amazing.  Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall have been more productive so far this season than Herschel Walker was in his freshman season.  Obviously there are two of them, but production is the key, and Georgia has gotten amazing results out of their running game.  Can these two avoid making freshman mistakes in a crazy environment like Columbia?  Will they pick up their blocking assignments, and will they hear the audibles?  Will they turn the ball over?  They are amazingly talented, but can they be poised in the face of great adversity?  We will find out.

The other question facing the Georgia offense is Aaron Murray.  Once Murray’s four years are up in Athens, he will, statistically speaking, be the greatest quarterback in the school’s history.  He will hold every major passing record, and he might break the record for wins in a career by a quarterback.  He is already been to 1 SEC title game, and there is no reason he couldn't play in a couple of more.  So why is he a question mark?  Because 32 games into his college career, Murray has yet to win a big game.  Murray hasn't won a bowl game, lost the SEC title game last season, and has lost road games at Mississippi State and Colorado.  His biggest win to date, would be a tie between the Florida and Tennessee games last year.  Those teams were not good last year.  Can Murray avoid making big mistakes at the worst possible times?  The fumble against South Carolina last year, killer.  The turnovers against LSU and Michigan State in the second half last year, killer.  Can Aaron Murray win when the eyes of the college football world are squarely on him and his team?  Again, we will find out.

Special teams cost Georgia the game against South Carolina last season.  South Carolina faked a punt, and scored a touchdown.  Georgia was offsides on a converted onside kick in the second half.  Those two plays were the turning point.  That should make Georgia fans very nervous.  Special teams were a disaster last week against Tennessee.  Georgia has already announced that there will be a new punt returner, but as a unit, things have to get better now for Georgia. 

In 2005, Georgia beat South Carolina because of a missed extra point.  After Georgia scores touchdowns on Saturday, don’t look away.  Marshall Morgan has to hit his extra points!  It could change the game and the season.  I can’t remember a kicker that I felt better about when he was kicking a 50 yard field goal rather than an extra point.  Maybe Georgia should start taking penalties on extra points to move him back to a place where he is comfortable?

South Carolina has beaten Georgia each of the last two seasons.  Never, in the history of this series, has South Carolina beaten Georgia three years in a row, and it won’t happen this year.

Georgia will win this game because their defense is plenty good enough to limit, not stop, Marcus Lattimore, while Georgia’s offense is elite.  Elite.  There are more playmakers on this Georgia team than we have had since the 2008 team with Stafford, Moreno, and AJ Greene. 

Georgia 27   South Carolina 17

GO DAWGS!!!!!!

Georgia/Tennessee Reaction

For the first quarter of the Tennessee game, Georgia looked exactly like the number 5 team in the country, and then something happened.  It was almost like Georgia forgot how to play.

Turnovers can kill a football team, and on Saturday turnovers were the only reason that Tennessee even sniffed at Georgia's heels.  Georgia was the far better team, but they gave Tennessee 7 points on Murray's pick 6, and they gave Tennessee a short field twice and both times, Tennessee scored touchdowns.

The rest of the game went about like I expected.  Bray made some good throws, but you could just tell that the talent level of Tennessee's skill players isn't up to the level of the elite teams in the SEC.  The surprising aspect of the game, was the fact that Tennessee ran the ball with great success against the Georgia defense.  Whether the defense's problems can be contributed to the return of Ogletree and Rambo for the first time this season, or whether it is a flaw going forward in the season will play itself out over the next few weeks, but I will keep my faith in the Georgia defense.

Offensively, Georgia looks prolific.  Through five games, no one has slowed down Georgia's two freshman for even a quarter, let alone an entire game.  While the level of competition will begin to go up as the season progresses, there is no reason to think that Georgia's 1-2 punch won't be able to step their game up as well.

Aaron Murray isn't perfect, but he is an excellent quarterback who can win games, not just manage them for Georgia.  For the first time this season, Murray showed a glimpse of the accident prone guy that cost Georgia the South Carolina game, and even the LSU game last season.  Relying on the running game is the smartest course of action against the best teams in the SEC, but Murray will have to play within himself and not force things as the season progresses in order for Georgia to win the big games.

Georgia fans shouldn't over analyze this game.  All that matters is that Georgia won the game and now they move forward.  Georgia didn't play their best, but they still won, and that is what championship teams do.  Maybe Georgia got their bad game out of the way, because they will need a complete game this weekend at South Carolina.  I will have a lot more to say about this game this week, but for starters, it is vital that the coaches, players, and fans realize how important this game is this weekend.  It is the biggest game for the program since Georgia played Florida in 2002.

Isn't it nice that Georgia is back in the position to play games like this again?  Hard to remember the 6-7 season of 2010.

Tennessee Preview and Prediction

After laying out all of the things that could go wrong for Georgia this Saturday against Tennessee earlier in the week, I will make you feel a little bit better by telling you that almost none of that stuff will happen.

My prediction for this game is simple: Pain.  Georgia is different this season.  They are locked in and they are focused on their goals.  Tennessee's offense is too good for Georgia to shut them out, but I don't think they will score more than 20.

For the first time this season, we will have the pleasure of having all of their starters available.  Alec Ogletree and Bacarri Rambo will return to the team this weekend, and I think they will be anxious to make their presence known early in the game.  This defense is deep and it is nasty.  As they begin to gel over the next few weeks it might end up being the best defense in the school's history.  Georgia has done an amazing job in a short period of time of stepping up the level of talent on defense.

Offensively, Georgia has the best scoring offense in the SEC.  They have scored 40 or more points in each of their first four games for the first time in the school's history.  Go ahead and make that 5 straight weeks, because this offense is going to put on another show on Saturday.  There is just too much balance.  Even the good defenses in the league, and Tennessee's defense is pretty good, they can't stop everything.  If they load up on the run, then you have Aaron Murray, who might set the all time Georgia record for touchdown passes in a season this week, picking you apart.  Okay, so you are going to drop back and play the pass.  The dynamic diaper dandies, Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall will run over, around, and through you all night long.

Early this week, Mark Richt put the idea of a letdown to rest bringing up what happened in 2004.  Georgia blew the doors off of the defending national champion LSU Tigers, only to lay a huge egg against Tennessee the very next week.  With Richt bringing that fact to life, that means that he is aware that his team could become complacent and look ahead to South Carolina, but he isn't going to let that happen.

Like I said before, this team is different.  This year is different.  This year is going to be special.  Georgia is going to win this weekend 45-17, and set up the biggest game Georgia has played in a very long time on October 6 in Columbia, South Carolina.

Get on board Georgia fans, because this is going to be ride that you will remember for the rest of your life!

Tennessee Preview Part One: What could go wrong

Georgia is getting ready this week to play for their biggest game of the season to date.  Not only is the game with Tennessee a rivalry game, not only it is a SEC East divisional game, but it is also the perfect trap game.  Looming large for Georgia is the trip to South Carolina on October 6th that will go a long way to determine who will play in the SEC title game in December.  However, Tennessee is far too talented to be looked past.

There is also some history here to make Georgia fans nervous.  It has been 6 years since Georgia started a season 4-0.  That year, 2006, the Dawgs were 5-0 and hosting Tennessee in Athens.  However, in 2006, the season came off the tracks against the Vols.  After playing well in the first half, Georgia faltered in every aspect of the game in the second half and ended up losing 51-33.

I was at that game, and I remember sitting there once the game was over, and just trying to figure out what happened.  Georgia would go on to have a horrible season, losing to Kentucky and Vanderbilt before salvaging what they could with wins against Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech to finish the season 9-4, with all of those loses coming in SEC play.

If Georgia loses to Tennessee on Saturday I believe one reason could be Tyler Bray.  I caught some flack a couple of weeks ago for calling Bray a great quarterback, but his statistics this season point to that being the fact.  Bray has passed for over 300 yards in 3 of his 4 games this season.  He has 12 touchdowns and has only 3 interceptions this season.

The rushing game hasn't really been a huge factor thus far in the season, but with Georgia focusing on the pass so much, it might be an X factor this week.

Another reason for Georgia to be nervous this week is that Tennessee (and their coach) are desperate.  They have already lost to Florida, and another loss would all but eliminate Tennessee from the discussion in the SEC East.  They are basically playing for their season.

In addition, Derek Dooley might be coaching for his job.  Dooley came to the rescue after the debacle that was Lane Kiffin, blew out of Knoxville in the middle of the night.  However, Dooley hasn't had much success and Tennessee fans aren't going to keep waiting for Dooley to figure it out.  Dooley hasn't beaten Georgia since he became head coach, and he will need a big win very soon if he wants to keep his job.

Here is a little bit more history to make you nervous.  In 2007, it was a horrible loss to Tennessee (35-14 in Knoxville) that was the reason Georgia didn't play for the SEC title.  Georgia didn't even show up for that game, and at the end of the season, they were left wondering "what if."

Self inflicted wounds are a concern for Georgia, and I"m hoping that Mark Richt didn't open the door for some bad karma by calling for a "Red Out" against Tennessee.  The last couple of times that Richt has done things like this, it hasn't exactly worked out.  Against Alabama in 2008, Richt and the seniors called for a Black Out, but it turned out that Georgia fans were in mourning for a terrible performance as Bama routed Georgia 41-30 in Athens.  In 2009, Georgia sported different helmets in the game against Florida, and subsequently lost to the Gators 41-17.  And don't forget about last season.  Georgia sported the Nike Pro Combat uniforms against Boise State.  You couldn't recognize the Dawgs on the field, which was a good thing considering the way they played.  Georgia won't be wearing anything different on Saturday, but this type of stuff seems so stupid to me.  Do the players really need this stuff to be motivated?  When was the last time Saban came out and said that Bama was having some gimmick for a home game?  I understand it is fun for fans, but the fact that the head coach is involved just kinda bugs me.

Now, off my soap box, and moving on.

While everyone has been so impressed with Georgia's offense, there are some reasons to be nervous there as well.  First, what if these freshman running backs start playing like freshman?  I don't mean they forget how to run the ball, but what if they forget how to protect the ball.  The fumble bug hasn't bitten Georgia yet this season, but if and when it does, it will be interesting to see how these young players bounce back from a big mistake.

Aaron Murray's history is another concern.  Murray was nearly perfect against Vanderbilt, but it was Vanderbilt.  Murray wasn't great against Missouri in Georgia's only other legitimate game of the season.  Can Murray play within himself, make the right decisions at the line of scrimmage, and avoid the big mistake that has plagued him his entire career?  This game might go a long way in showing whether this season we are seeing a new Aaron Murray or if the real Aaron Murray is the guy that makes great plays but can't avoid huge mistakes.

I know that last week's game has most Georgia fans riding high, but there are reasons to be nervous this weekend.  Georgia will have to play a complete game to win, and Georgia fans need to be loud and proud on Saturday and help pull the Dawgs through a tough SEC East showdown.  Oh yeah, and don't forget to wear red!

Coming tomorrow, the more optimistic side of things.

Vanderbilt Game Reaction

It was  a game that previous Georgia teams struggled with.  Not just against Vanderbilt, but against lesser teams in general.  At times, you might think that it was a signature of the Richt Era in Athens, playing down to teams that had no business being in a game against Georgia.

However, Georgia gave a clear indication that it is a different team in 2012 on Saturday night.

Georgia dominated Vanderbilt on a night where all phases of  the Bulldog football team seemed to work in perfect harmony.  Georgia's defense was spectacular, with Jarvis Jones creating the havoc that we have come to expect from him on a weekly basis.

Aaron Murray continued his wonderful season by showing off his accuracy all night long and throwing a couple of touchdown passes.

And for me, the most exciting thing of all: the two freshman running backs, Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall rushed for a combined 215 yards and 4, yes that is right, 4 touchdowns!  Tailback U is back, and we have the pleasure of watching these two fantastic young men make fantastic plays for the Bulldogs for the next three (maybe 4 if we are lucky) years.  Marshall broke a long 52 yard touchdown run where he ran right past the Vanderbilt defense.  Gurley looked like a beast shrugging off tacklers as he scampered 26 yards for a touchdown.

There was nothing to be critical of in Georgia's win on Saturday night, and now it is time to look ahead to the next few critical weeks for the Bulldogs.

Obviously, you can't overlook Tennessee coming to Athens next weekend.  Tyler Bray has a lot of talent, and the Vols are going to be desperate for an upset that would keep them in the conversation for the SEC East, but after seeing the way Tennessee struggled with Akron for 3 quarters, not to mention the way they fell apart, at home, against Florida last week, you have to think that Georgia will find a way to win that game.

A win against Tennessee would set up a game of historic proportions against South Carolina on October 6th in Columbia, South Carolina.  It is hard to think of an adjective to properly put the magnitude of this game in perspective.

There will be plenty to write about this game next week if Georgia takes care of business against Tennessee, but I will go ahead and throw this out there.

Georgia can not lose this game if they want to play in the SEC title game.  Last season, Georgia managed to lose to South Carolina, but still went to the title game because the Gamecocks lost to Arkansas and Auburn. South Carolina will probably lose at LSU the week after they play Georgia, however, I would not expect them to lose another SEC game.  Yes they have to play Florida the week after they play LSU, but I'm not sold on Florida being at the same level as Georgia and South Carolina at this point.  A win against South Carolina would mean that Georgia would have a chance to clinch the SEC East championship against the Gators on the 27th of October.

The next 5 weeks might be the biggest, most exciting weeks of Georgia football that we have seen since... well maybe since I have been alive (1985).  This team's motto for the season (chosen by the players) is Our Team, Our Time, No Regrets.  Take care of business against Tennessee, and this team will have a chance to prove that is their time indeed.

GO DAWGS!