UGA at #25 in Rivals Rankings

Rivals.com has a good pre-season analysis of Georgia on their site, and they rank the Dawgs as the #25 team going into 2010. I think it's a very fair summary of the current team and what we can expect this year. They predict that a realistic final record would be 9-4, assuming Murray is good and the defense adjusts well. But I'm sure most would agree that if Murray shines and the defense comes out playing the hard-hitting, disciplined football that fans are hoping for from Todd Grantham's scheme, the Dawgs could win 10+ games.

Did You Know a Georgia Alum Created Buzz?

I took the above picture with my phone just before sitting next to "Buzz" on the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags two years ago. I've never smelled such a pungent odor combination of whiskey, Clearasil, and mothballs.

OK, so it's very possible that most older Georgia fans out there already know this, but I know that there are plenty in the Bulldog Nation who don't.

In 1983, an artist named Mike Lester designed a yellow jacket named Buzz. Mike Lester is a Georgia alumnus.

WHAT?

So the beloved mascot and logo of Georgia Tech, a school where most of the fans LIVE to hate Georgia, was created by a former Dawg?

My first question is: Why would Tech let this happen, even back in the 1980s? They have always hated Georgia, and when choosing their new mascot and logo, why did they HAVE to choose one created by a Georgia alumnus? Couldn't someone else in the state draw a bee and give it a cutesy name?

Now I don't know Mike Lester, and apparently a lot of Tech fans already know about this and act like they're fine with it. Hey, maybe Mike Lester actually hated Georgia even though he went to school there. Maybe he was always a Tech fan. I don't know at all. But even if he was, why would Tech choose a logo created by a Georgia alum?

Imagine if having a white English bulldog named Uga was an idea given to Sonny Seiler by a Tech grad. Or if a Tech grad designed Sanford Stadium. Wouldn't that be a constant teasing point for Tech fans to chuckle at Georgia?

I just thought it was interesting.

PS: This is not meant in any way to make fun of Mike Lester. Anyone would be happy to sell their work to a big school, even if it was a rival institution. I'm more confused as to why Tech would want to use a Georgia alum's work in the first place.

Mark Richt "gets excited on the inside sometimes"

One of the few times in history Mark Richt got outwardly "excited".

ESPN decided to make their "Blue Ribbon Preview" of the 2010 Georgia team free to public viewing, and while it really doesn't give any information most Dawg fans don't already know, it does offer up this nice quote from Mark Richt:

"[Grantham] is intense, there's no doubt," Richt said. "And that's what you want -- a guy that's got some fire. Everybody knows my demeanor & and I think it's probably good to have somebody who's a little more outwardly excited. I do get excited on the inside sometimes."

Good quote.

And no, I have no idea why ESPN chose to use the ampersand "&" instead of just typing the word "and" in that quote.

Georgia Returning MOST Receiving Yards in 2010

Yeah, it isn't a great headline, but it's still significant. First, a quick recap of recent years in Bulldog history.

2004-2005: Georgia loses its two top receivers Reggie Brown and Fred Gibson, 58.5% of total receiving yards.

2005-2006: UGA says goodbye to leading receiver, tight end Leonard Pope, as well as WR Bryan McClendon. This means they lose 36.8% of receiving yards, and 38.5% of receiving touchdowns.

2006-2007: TE Martrez Milner leaves Georgia, along with WR Mario Raley. Georgia loses 22.4% of receiving yards, 41.7% of scoring.

2007-2008: Top WR Sean Bailey and WR Mikey Henderson are lost, totaling 36.9% of receiving yards, 45% of scoring.

2008-2009: Georgia loses Mohamed Massaquoi, Knowshon Moreno, and Demiko Goodman. This means they lose a whopping 45.3% of receiving yards.

2009-2010: UGA will lose only Michael Moore (and Vernon Spellman), and their 9.7% of receiving yards, 20.8% of receiving touchdowns.

So clearly, this trend isn't nearly as indicative of Georgia success in the past few years as the rushing statistics were. Going into the 2005 SEC Championship season, Georgia lost over HALF of receiving experience. Still, UGA did find success in the 2007 season after losing only a small amount of receiving yards and TDs.

It certainly doesn't hurt, though, that Georgia returns more receiving (and rushing) experience this year than it has for many years. In fact, based on returning numbers, UGA may have a more experienced and "good on paper" offense (minus the QB) in 2010 than it's had in a very, very long time.

Scratch that: Georgia Returning ALMOST Every Rushing Yard

Well, great. Right after I make a post about how significant and amazing it is that Georgia will return every rushing yard from 2009, this happens.

Jackson's departure will only take away 38 yards, so it isn't a huge deal, but it does crash the "every rushing yard" celebration. Still, returning ALMOST every rushing yard is a good thing, and if the trend has any significance, then Georgia could have a good season in 2010 (or at least a good running game).

Finebaum: Mark Richt and the Invisible Hot-Seat

Oh joy. Another article from the ever-wise Paul Finebaum about Mark Richt and the invisible hot-seat on which he resides.

Exactly two months ago Finebaum made a similar post, and I responded on this blog with a long, drawn-out rant about how wrong he was. This time, I'll try to keep things short.

Finebaum asserts this time that Mark Richt, who apparently is already on the "hot-seat" for Georgia's terrible and horrifying 8-5 season, is in even more trouble now because he'll be having a new boss as Athletic Director.

But as I asked last time: Who decides if a coach is in trouble? Who chooses when the mythical "hot-seat" is placed under their rear-ends with a raising temperature?

The answer to that is easy. The fans decide. And if the fans are content, then the coach is safe.

Of course, Georgia fans in general are not happy about last season's results. But if you can find me a large contingent of Bulldog Faithful who are actively calling for the firing of Mark Richt, or even the consideration of such an action in the near future, then I will spend the rest of my days spreading the gospel of Finebaum.

But even Finebaum seems to agree that Georgia fans are still happy with Richt as their coach.

From his article:

"At first, one can bet the new athletic director will echo the Bulldog Nation, which starts every lame defense of Richt with a recital of his overall record: 90-27 and two SEC titles."

What? So he thinks the Bulldog Nation adamantly defends Mark Richt as their coach, yet at the same time he's "on the hot-seat?" Does that make any sense at all?

So I can only come to this conclusion: Paul Finebaum decides when a coach is on the hot-seat.

Georgia Returning EVERY Rushing Yard in 2010: What does it mean?

Could it be that an area Georgia struggled in during the early parts of 2009 could be its strength in the 2010 season?

While it's hard to not notice that Georgia's offense returns nearly everyone from last year (except for the quarterback), most may not realize what UGA has that's special in the running game. Out of all 12 SEC teams, Georgia is the only team that doesn't lose a single yard of production in rushing. If you count the loss of Joe Cox, well, that actually gives us an extra 28 yards. If you want to get picky and mention the "loss" of Richard Samuel as a convert to linebacker and take away his 395 rushing yards of contribution, then shame on you. Richard Samuel is still on the team, and I see his running ability as still a potential weapon (or backup, if needed).

Georgia's returning of virtually ALL rushing experience is pretty significant. Many teams go for long stretches over many years without having a 100% yardage return in rushing. So let's take a look back at previous years in Georgia rushing experience.

2008-2009: Going into the 2009 season, Georgia lost Knowshon Moreno, possibly the biggest blow to the UGA running game since the loss of Herschel Walker. Moreno ALONE accounted for 72.6% of UGA's total rushing yards in 2008, and 76% of UGA's rushing touchdowns. Needless to say, it's never good to lose any player that accounts for that much of your offensive production. This loss showed in 2009, and likely contributed to some (if not all of) the five game losses that followed.

2007-2008: After the 2007 season, Georgia lost Thomas Brown (34% of yards, 31% scoring), and an injured Kregg Lumpkin. Although Moreno had already appeared as a star earlier in the season, Brown was a very important part of the running game, and responsible for a large part of production. In 2008, Georgia has three disappointing losses, a step down from 2007.

2006-2007: Georgia loses Danny Ware, who was responsible for 19.7% of rushing yards. Not a huge loss production-wise, and Georgia has a spectacular 2007 season.

2005-2006: UGA loses QB D.J. Shockley (15% of yards, 25% scoring). This isn't only a blow to the running game, but also the entire offense. Georgia struggles in 2006.

2004-2005: Georgia loses virtually nothing in the running game, except for a total of 57 yards from some backups, and goes on to win the SEC Championship in 2005.

In recent years, UGA squads that lost very little in the running game did very well the following year, while teams that lost a significant portion didn't have as much luck.

I can't find stats that go back far enough to determine when the last time was that Georgia didn't lose a SINGLE yard or touchdown in the running game. It quite possibly could have never happened before. But we're looking at that now, going into 2010. Will they make it count?

USC won't be ranked in Coaches' Poll.... at all

First, Lane Kiffin and the USC Sanctions were turned down by Tennessee after trying to get them to play in the 2011 Chick-Fil-A kickoff game in the Georgia Dome.

Now? The USA Today Coaches' Poll says that they won't allow USC to be ranked this season... at all. If the AP decides to follow the same path (which they won't), then does that mean anyone who ranks USC at all in pre-season rankings is overrating them?

Steps to Being a Tech Fan: A Study of Forum Posts

"But I thought we ran this state..."

If you ever get bored of reading Georgia-related material online, just find your nearest Georgia Tech message board for... even more Georgia-related material!

Today I have four message board threads for you that I found over the weekend that can illustrate the important steps in the normal progression of being a Tech fan.

The first step to being a Tech fan: confusion and onsetting inferiority. Below we have a topic where Tech fans simply cannot understand why such a crappy school (UGA) is considered by so many to be the leading institution in the state. Clearly, Tech is a better school! Right? Right guys?....

THE FIRST STEP LINK

The second step is misplaced anger and childish behavior. These threads pop up ALL THE TIME. Tech fans often tend to see UGA merchandise sold at local stores (considering UGA is the largest and most supported college in the state). Then Tech fans assume two things:

#1. This clearly means the entire company is full of nothing but UGA supporters and they want to destroy everything good and decent in the world (my view of my school and myself).

#2. If I act in a childish manner about this, I will succeed and win the battle. (Often, a Tech fan will make up stories and lie about their exploits in order to gain admiration and reputation from other Tech fans.)

THE SECOND STEP LINK

The third step is grasping for ammunition, or information that a Tech fan finds valuable to prove, once and for all, that Tech is the superior institution of higher learning, and that Georgia is worthless, even in athletics, due to its barbarian intelligence.

THE THIRD STEP LINK

And the final step is realization of inferiority. Not many Tech fans are brave enough to make it to this step, and many will refuse to acknowledge it. But we found a rare glimpse into the final step here.

THE FOURTH STEP LINK

Research into this exciting new field is ongoing, and more steps may be revealed later.

Note: This post is intended for humor and not meant to offend Tech fans any more than the offense of my existence as a stupid redneck UGA fan.

P.S.: If Tech fans don't like Cracker Barrel, I'm fine with that. You keep the nasty Waffle House, and I'll keep delicious Cracker Barrel.

P.S.#2: And yes, that was meant to offend Waffle House. Please clean up your "restaurants".

If Damon Evans is Gone, is Mark Richt Too?

Obviously, the answer is no.

But ESPN is really trying to play it that way.

Check out the Tweets on ESPN's CFB Rumor Central.

For example:

"The news for Georgia AD Damon Evans -- and potentially for coach Mark Richt -- gets worse"

and

"Report: Damon Evans out as Georgia AD. What does that mean for Mark Richt?"

1947 Sugar Bowl Video: UGA vs. UNC

What better way to celebrate our country's history than by watching a piece of the University of Georgia's history?

A North Carolina fan posted this link on the DawgPost forum a while ago. It's a UGA Libraries archive video of the 1947 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, played between Georgia and North Carolina. Georgia won the game 20-10, completing their 10-0 undefeated season, thanks to Georgia legend Charley Trippi, who dominated the game on offense, defense, and even special teams (he was the punter, too).

Click here to see the video

Happy 4th of July, everyone!

South Carolina Fans: Alshon Jeffery as good as A.J. Green?

I'm really lowering myself here by posting a link to the general college football message board on Rivals.com, where the most unrealistic/delusional fans spout nonsense about how great their teams will be every season, but hey, it's the off season and I'm not going to write about Damon Evans. (And that board is fun to read every once in a while)

But an especially entertaining thread caught my eye today. I can understand South Carolina fans believing that they have a shot at the SEC East this year. I can even understand them feeling like they have a good chance at beating UGA in Columbia. But to see multiple Gamecock fans attempting to argue that USCe's second year wide receiver Alshon Jeffery is at least as good as A.J. Green?

I will not stand by and watch this atrocity unfold. I will make an unimportant blog post about it.

Aside from the obvious sentiment of most media and fans that Green is one of the best (if not the best) receiver in the country and his numerous awards, you can even just take a look at the stats from 2009.

South Carolina's Alshon Jeffery played in 12 games, with 46 receptions for 763 yards (avg. 16.6) with 6 TDs.

A.J. Green played in 10 (technically 9.5) games, with 53 receptions for 808 yards (avg. 15.2) and 6 TDs (while struggling through injury).

If you don't think it's fair to compare Jeffery's freshman season to Green's sophomore year, then here are Green's freshman stats (even better).

In 2008, Green played in 13 games, with 56 receptions for 963 yards and 8 TDs. PLUS he rushed 4 times for 61 yards.

Maybe stats and awards and general opinion aren't everything, and maybe (hypothetically) Alshon Jeffery is a better or equal receiver. Even if he was, how can fans honestly argue such a point with no evidence whatsoever to support their argument? Well, that is why the Rivals.com college football message board exists.

New Poster For Georgia's Anti-DUI Campaign

I really want to say what I think about the whole Damon Evans DUI/"just a friend" incident (and I could say pretty much whatever I want since I don't get paid for this), but I will refrain. Instead, I'll just leave this here.