It's Great to be a Georgia Bulldog

Just thought I'd throw in a little optimistic feeling I had recently. If you look at the current state of Georgia sports, you have a lot to be proud of, UGA fans.

First we have football, where our Dawgs finished 10th in the USA Today Coaches' Poll last season, after being preseason number 1. I have 3 things to take from this:

1. It takes a lot of program recognition for a team to be preseason #1 in college football. Before the season begins, AP voters are making very bold predictions with these often seen as meaningless rankings. However, the number one spot is not given away easily, even in the preseason. Even if the preseason top team doesn't end up in that position, they are still always a national powerhouse team who is recognized by people everywhere. Before Georgia was preseason #1 in 2008, the other teams to share this early rank were USC (2007), Ohio State (2006), USC (2005), USC (2004), and Oklahoma (2003). When you think of the biggest college football programs of recent times, those 3 teams will likely come to mind. Georgia, like them got that preseason #1 ranking.

2. The Dawgs still finished 10th in the coaches' poll with a 10-3 record, which may be a lot less than what most fans wanted/expected, but it was a great ending nevertheless. If your team gets 10 wins, wins a big bowl game, finishes in the top 10 in the country, and you're angry about it: you know that your program is really good. We don't get excited about 8 wins, 9 wins, even 10 wins. We're all in for a SEC title and a national championship. That's how the top teams are.

3. Georgia will likely be ranked in the preseason top 25 next season. Even if the polls don't matter, it says a lot about our program that with losing two superstars, one maybe the first pick in the NFL draft and the other the top running back (as well as some other great players like Massaquoi), our team is still recognized and respected as a top team. We are nationally known for having great coaching and great players every season.

But let's move onto other sports, shall we?
(Most polls are listed here)

Baseball: #1 in most polls
Softball: #6
Men's Swimming: #12
Women's Swimming: #2
Men's Golf: #1
Women's Golf: #10
Men's Tennis: #3
Women's Tennis: #2
Gymnastics: #1 (going for their 10th national championship since 1981 and their 5th in a row)

and:

Basketball: Looking optimistic with a new coach, Mark Fox, from Nevada.

(And academically speaking, U.S. News and World Report has UGA as the number 20 best public college in the country for 2009 and Forbes.com has us at #19)

Some more tidbits: Our beloved mascot Uga seems to always be ranked the top college mascot in the country.

The city of Athens, Georgia is one of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's "Dozen Distinctive Destinations" to visit in 2009 and is one of the 29 destinations to visit (in the world) for 2009 in the Los Angeles Times (Athens is up there along with other places like Australia, Borneo, and Iceland).

Not many colleges have such a great combination of wonderful academics, top athletics, unique tradition, and a one-of-a-kind city (built around the university).