Just Don't Feel It Dawgs

We are coming down to the wire before football season kicks off and everyone is ramped up and predicting good things for the Dawgs. Well, I just don't feel it.

 

1. Over Hyped from the fans - I keep reading about how good things are, how we should contend for the East. Well I see one or two injuries away from doom. Heck, we are not even starting the season fully loaded. Granted some of that is bone-headed issues, but others are injuries


2. I just get the feeling of the other shoe that will drop and just crush the season. 


3. Depending on too many young guys to carry the load. This is from the RB to the lines to the Defense. Just too many players with the FR or R-FR letters in their names.


4. I'm hoping for 8-4. Loses to BSU, SC, Either TN or FL and then Kentucky. I know this isn't popular, but that's what I feel.


5. I don't look at the numbers in the pre-season. I know some take a lot from it, for me I look for one word. INJURIES. If that is none, then good. So far this hasn't been the case. Most seem minor, up see number 3. When those 2 meet up, watch out. 

 

So am I down on the dawgs, no. But I don't believe that we are as good as many think.

SIDENOTE : Please don't go all ape shit over the new NIKE uniforms. It's not like they are changing the name or the school colors. 

 

Has Social Media Dampened My Excitement

This is the first football season that I can remember where I haven't been excited for it to start. I'm sure some years I've been more jacked up than others, but this year just seems different. It's like I don't care. So I started to think about why this could be.

Well after sitting on it for a few weeks, I came to the conclusion that I just got burned out on the excitement everyone on twitter and Facebook was showing. Now, nothing is wrong with this, but it seems since the end of the bowl game everyone has been counting down to the first game. Then over the last few months this has really ramped up. So bad that I have muted and unfollowed folks.

Nothing wrong with off season excitement, but it was becoming such a bore that it seemed many didn't live a life from January to September. I'm all for a cheer and a rah rah, but damn folks take a break. Now I do like reading the stories and thoughts about a season on many of the blogs I follow, those are not the rah rah rahs that I'm speaking of. It's the constant stream of fandom that sleeps and breathes on the actions of an 18 or 19 year old kid.

Another aspect that social media and the 24 hour news cycle has brought out is how many fans live in the past or the future. This is not 1980 folks. Get over it. Also take a break from the class of 2016. Just step back and enjoy what's in front of you.

I also feel that this over the top rah rah rah is being done to try to show others that they are the biggest fan. That they bleed the school colors the most. It's like a group of animals all showing each other up for the attention of some mythical sports overlord. Heck, they could make a show about it and have it on espn. Now this all could be for show in Social Media land and in real life they don't think about it, but I'm willing to bet that's not the case.

I have my school gear like everyone else, but I don't hunt out rival fans for debate or jump on every message board and scream at the top of my lungs how great my team is. Remember folks, there are other things out there to enjoy.

I've now reached a point that I have no idea of game times or who we play when. I'll leave it up to my espn app to tell me when games start. As I did several times last year. And truthfully, really didn't miss it.

This waning of excitement started last year and matches up with some changes in my life as well. So I think those changes opened my eyes to this rabid fandom and how much people live through it and how much it just didn't fit who I am.

Also since my life changes I've noticed a few other disturbing trends, but I'll save that for later.

Hoop Dawgs provide Cardio Workout

The Hoop Dawgs win again, now 2-0 in the early season. In the win over the Colorado Buffalos (83-74), we are left with a single phrase.

 

FREE THROWS

 

Last year, we made great strides and won games because of our free throw shooting improvements. This time the dawgs won despite free throws. Shooting 62% will not win you many games, period. 

So in two games, we have had issues with REBOUNDS and now FREE THROWS. At least we are having these in different games. I know Coach Fox will fix these or the players will feel the pain.

On a different note, Watch out for Connor Nolte, Gerald Robinson and Jeremy Price. Connor isn't the best player, but wow he is all over the place. Last night he led the team in Minutes. Gerald will be just fun to watch. He made some great passes and moves, something we haven't seen in a while. Finally JP, well he is slowly becoming a leader on the floor. He will have to maintain his control, which I could see him losing last night. 

Finally a word on Trey. What the TV won't show and many miss, is how much he is coaching during the games. He was doing one on ones during timeouts and when the game had stops. This was more of the on the court players going over to him than him calling out. He is going to be great when he gets back. My take is, he should not come back until late December. 

I think we can beat Tech and some others without Trey and no need to take a chance on his injury. Lets just save him for SEC play with a warm up with the late December games.

GOOOOOO Dawgs. 

Hoop Dawgs Win, Barely

One word sums up the entire game against Mississippi Valley State University. 

 

REBOUND

 

No way should the dawgs have been out rebounded by 10. This alone nearly cost us the game. 

One other area jumps out at me, at that was the man to man defense. At times the dawgs struggled to get back and then there was some confusion on who had who. Both the rebounding and defensive missteps are fixable. So I'm writing this one off as first game nerves. 

So Dawgs win 72-70. 

Shout out to Jeremy Price who down the stretch showed some great senior leadership and brought the dawgs back. He will be a great asset as the season continues. 

And like the football team, we missed our star in Trey. He was dressed and without a boot, so this is encouraging, but would rather him sit as long as needed. We need him at 100% come SEC play.

The Hounds in Year Two

We are now entering year two of the Mark Fox Era at Georgia and the Bandwagon is filling up quickly. This past week I attended the now annual Meet the Team event and it had almost triple the number of persons and season ticket orders are up 30%. 

ESPN and the like are getting on the bandwagon. Georgia is now getting listed by the media as missing on players. Hell, two years ago we weren't even on the list. So everyone, sit back, enjoy, but also keep things in perspective. 

We are in year two of the building of Georgia Basketball. Yes we have had teams in the past. Some that were pretty good, but we have had far more that were just bad. Either at the coaching level or the talent level. To show you how far the excitement in Georgia Basketball has come, we had more people at an exhibition game than we had at some of the early games last year and a lot more than we had during some of the Felton Years. 

So what did I hear and see at the Meet the Team and Exhibition Game

 

• Jeremy Price is looking fit having lost a good deal of weight or at least turning it into muscle. So look for big minutes and production here. Oh I wish he would have been under Coach Fox for four years. He could have been a great player.


• Trey Thompkins, is well Trey. He was out with a bum ankle and we are not sure when he will return, but when he does, expect lower minutes until SEC play. 


• We actually have a bench this year. With Connor Nolte, Gerald Robinson, Marcus and the crew, we may be able to have a second team come in and play and score.


• In the exhibition game, we turned the ball over way too much and didn't have enough assists or rebounds to make me happy. Hoping this improves with some actual game play. 


• Defense is a big factor this year and Coach Fox has made it a priority. The problem he says is the number of fouls coming out of the Man Defense. So don't be surprised by some early man followed by zone when the foul count goes up. 


• The Stegeman renovations are looking great. This place will be fabulous when completed. Arthur Johnson says by the 18th of November all the graphics will be in place. 

 

I expect some nice things from the hoop dawgs this year, but I ask each of you to keep a level head. Yes we have two players that could go pro. But remember, before Fox, I don't think either would have gone pro unless it was in the D-League. We are still learning as a team. So yes, I think we will make the NCAA tourney this year. I would even go as far as sayign we might win the first game. 

Do I think we are a Sweet Sixteen team, doubtful. But not ruling this out. But I do think we are a First round win team. Now if we made a run and made the Sweet Sixteen, would I be shocked, no. But remember, this team didn't win a road game last year, and then only one a game on a neutral court. As the saying goes, it can take some time to turn a ship around. And I think we are about half way there. 

So come out if you can and support the hoop dawgs. I know I'll be there for each home game. 

You can find some of my Meet the team pics here on flickr. 

Hoops Ticket Special

Okay Hoops Fans. I got an alumni email for some discounts on hoops tickets. See below.

This pre-sale will last from October 20 to October 31. Just follow the link below and enter the promo code ALUMNI. 

Single game tickets to all home games: $15 each.

Highlights – Colorado, UAB, Xavier, 8 SEC matchups and 5 weekend dates

 

Flex Plan- Choose any 5 home games you want to attend for only $60 (get 1 game free).

All packages also receive a $10 gift card to Raising Cane’s.

 

Holiday Hoops Package- Get a ticket for all 4 home games over the holidays for only $30 (saves $30 – half price).

All packages also receive a $10 gift card to Boswell Oil and a ticket to the Lady Dogs game vs. High Point on 12/21.

 

See : http://www.alumni.uga.edu/evites/evites/1286554000.html

Wow, just Wow

Dawgs are 1-4 after getting beat by the Buffs. I had a post but fumbled it away before posting. And will not post anything else about the state the the Dawgs.

Nothing else to say.

I'm a Dawg, I love my Dawgs. But my Dawgs are crushing me this year.

Just Some Dawg Numbers

I'm a firm believer that some coaches are coaches and some coaches are recruiters. So you may have talented players (Goff Era) that just don't show the results. Other times we have lesser talent that gets coached up into great players (Early Richt Era). You hear it all the time that he won with the other guys players. And this is inevitable these days. I'm not saying RIcht is a good or bad coach or a good or bad talent evaluator, you can make your own judgement. So I went through the wins and losses and decided to add my opinions on this. So lets look at the Richt Era.

Now this is not, I repeat NOT a fire Richt post. 

The Wins and Losses over the Richt Era.

Year	Win	Loss	SEC Win	SEC Loss
2001	8	4	5	3
2002	13	1	8	1
2003	11	3	6	2
2004	10	2	6	2
2005	10	3	6	2
2006	9	4	4	4
2007	11	2	6	2
2008	10	3	6	2
2009	8	5	4	4
2010*	1	3	0	3

 *in Progress

So what do you see, any patterns. Well try this. Break it down by Eras. You can't compare 2004's 10-2 to 2008's 10-3. Why, Coaches change, players change, times change. You have to look at it from this perspective. Look at the teams that have the same story. Like the 2001-2004 (maybe 2005) teams. Why Because that is really the time when Georgia had the last of the Donnan players. It was also the time of Brian VanGorder, David Greene and David Pollack. So here's the break down

2001-2004 Keys

• David Greene


• David Pollack


• Billy Bennett


• Brian VanGorder as the DC


• Donnan's last recruits and signees


• 1 SEC Championships (should have been more)

2005

• DJ Shockley


• 1 SEC Championship

2006-2008

• Matthew Stafford


• Mohamed Massaquoi


• Brandon Coutu


• Willie Martinez as DC


• Mike Bobo as OC


• All Richt PLayers

2009

• Joe Cox


• AJ Green


• Blair Walsh


• Willie Martinez as DC


• Mike Bobo as OC

2010

• To Be Determined

So now that's it's broken down, do you see a pattern. I see a 4 year run, a one year question, a 3 year run, then last year. So what does this mean. Well the way I see it, this could be like the 8-4 year in 2001. I know we aren't playing as well as 2001. But we could still turn it around and end with a decent year. Much like the 8-4 year. 

So 2011 will be the key. Do we perform like 2009 and 2001 or do we perform like our 10 win years. IF we rebound and start another run, then everyone will settle down. If not, well you know what happens. 

I don't believe college football allows coaches to stay in place for to ride out the bad years. Every coach has a bad year and if he has some history of winning, he will usually get a mulligan or two. For Richt, he got 2 rings, so two mulligans. 

So what years are his mulligans. I see it like this : 2002 covered for the 2006 year and the 2005 ring covers the 2009 year. You can stretch this to have the 2002 year cover this year. But anyway you look at it, Richt is about to run out of mulligans. 

So you can see how the 2011 year is going to be the make or break year for Richt and his staff. Now I think we should let him stay. I do believe he has been good for the players and the school. BUT and this is a big BUT, things have been amiss lately both on and off the field. And if Richt is shown the door, it will be because of the off the field troubles. Because ultimately those impact the on field performance. 

No Words for the Dawgs

Now that the Dawgs have started 0-3 in the SEC after falling to MSU in Starkville, 24-12, with our lone overall win against the ULL, I have no words to describe what is happening.

But here are just a few.

• Penalties 


• Big Plays against 


• Red Zone Meltdowns 


• Confusion 


• Run Stopping Failures 


• Off-Season stupidity 

 I don't want to write what I'm thinking, so I'll just say this.

I'm a Dawg, will always be a Dawg, and will always pull for the Dawgs.

But I have not felt like this since some of the Goff years. And now it's time to do some soul searching.

Things could get rough for the Dawgs Coaches

We are approaching the 4th game of the season and you can hear the rumbles. Before we look at the rumbles, lets look at what we have and are seeing. This is just on the field observations. Any talk of the off the field issues and the Fulmer Cup is to be left to others to post.  

• New DC and Defensive Staff except Rodney Garner


• New Defensive Scheme


• Redshirt Freshman QB


• Ineligible wideout in AJ Green (4 Games)


• Questionable play calling by Mike Bobo


• Where is this great O-Line we heard about


• Conditioning issues

So where do we go from here. Lets take a look on defense first

• New DC staff - After years of having to deal with the terrible defenses under good ole Willie, CMR mad the change to bring in Todd Grantham and a new staff. And I always feel that a coach or a coordinator needs 2 years at a minimum. So I'm not going to harp to much on the coaches on this side of the ball. But they better start earning those checks by fixing some of the issues that were left over from last year. Such as the fundamentals of coverage and tackling. So lets check with this staff after the season. Remember, they are learning the players, just as the players are learning the coaches.


• The 3-4 Scheme - This will take some time. I'm not totally on the 3-4 band wagon as we have built and recruited for a 4-3 defense. Until we get some mass in the middle. Do I think we can run the 3-4 without the bulk, yes. But we would need some outstanding LB play to counter the size issue. Currently our OLBs are playing pretty good, but the middle guys need to step up to cover this lack of size in the middle. 


• Redshirt Freshman QB - Aaron Murray has play great. He has an arm and he is getting better at reading the coverage. My one gripe is he holds the ball to long and for his health he needs to speed up that clock on when to dump the ball. This is especially important since the line and RBs are having issues protecting him. Also impacting his growth is the play calling by CMB (Mike Bobo). I have said over and over that I think the talent we have had in the years past overcame the piss poor play calling by Bobo. I have never been a fan of his, dating back to when he played at Georgia. Nothing personal, but he just bugs me. 


• Life without AJ  - This has been discussed to no end, and I will not say anymore on this. If you want my thoughts, here is my post on it. 


• Play calling by Coach Bobo - As I said earlier, I'm not a fan and never have been. But what is going on now is just mind numbing. Why run a 20 yard route when you need 3 yards at the end of a game. His plays leave no outs for this young QB. Aaron is trying, but Bobo isn't helping matters. Also, we heard about the use of the TEs and how great they would be in the offense. So far, they are a forgotten breed. I remember in past games, Bobo saying he forgot about players. So someone please go slap Bobo with a TE so that he knows we have them. So if you run 20 yard routes, have the TE come across the middle about 5 yards out. At least then you have an out for Aaron. Remember, we have some blocking issues and no way we can wait for the wideouts to get open.


• O-Line issues - This year we heard about how great the O-Line will be. How it would be a great asset in helping Aaron grow and develop. Well so far, I see some massive issues. We can't block, we are not opening holes for our RBs, and basically all we are getting is a QB on the run for his life on a good number of plays. If I'm MSU this week, I send the house on nearly every play. 


• Conditioning Issues - I heard it after the South Carolina game, but not so much after the Arkansas game, but it's still out there. Our guys looked beat. I know these noon games are brutal, I know it's hot, but there are a good number of the 120 schools out there that play noon games and we just look tired and slow at the end of games. What fundamentals we have on defense fall apart as we get tired. Now I never played college ball or HS ball, but eyes don't lie. 

So where do we go from here. First step away from the ledge. We don't need to carve up the staff after 3 games. We loved CMR for years. But I do believe that he has used up his 2 mulligans (2 SEC rings). If the ship is not righted this year, you can kiss the offensive side of the ball good bye and that will be the last straw. Next step is a new coach. 

I'm not calling for heads at this point, but CMR needs to do something now. The first and foremost is teaching his coaches not to toss the kids under the bus. If Aaron is holding the ball to long, then that is a coaches problem. Maybe the reason he is holding it too long is the plays take too long to develop behind a O-line that looks more like a strainer than a dam. Same goes for the defensive side. If a kid blows the coverage, address it to the player not the media. It's okay to say some assignments were missed, but there is a way to do this. If the kid continues to miss reads, then either the kid needs less playing time or better coaching.

I'm not at practice, so I'm not sure how things are handled. But I can tell you this, if the coaches continue to call out players in the media, the fan support for those coaches will dry up quickly. We are talking about 18-22 year old kids, they need to learn how to handle them. I know fans, and I have been guilty of this, call out players for bone headed moves, but we are not being heard by thousands. 

This was not intended to be an "Off with their heads" post, although it started to sound like it. Maybe we need a change and maybe not. You can read some of my thoughts on this here via the Dawg Gone Blog. 

I will continue to pull for the dawgs and the kids who play, forgive me if I cuss you from time to time. But I may lose the support I have given the coaches. 

GOOOOOOO DAWGS

AJ is but One Man and He Doesn't Play Defense

So the ruling came down. The NCAA upheld their ruling of having AJ Green sit for four games. Does this surprise me, no. But it does make me think that there may have been more to this than selling a jersey. Could it be that the NCAA is holding Georgia accountable because UGA is the reason for this rule. Remember the eBay SEC ring issues a few years back.

Now the good thing is, the NCAA didn't stick around to see what else there may have been.

For the Dawg Nation. It's time to move on. We may not like the NCAA, but a written rule, is a rule, good or bad. And in this case AJ knew the rules and he broke them. I'm not even going to get into the whole "UGA made how much from #8 Jersey sales." That is a post in and of itself.

Also for the Dawg Nation, AJ may be the best wideout in the country, but he doesn't play defense. But you say our offense didn't look so hot without him. Well I blame the coaches for that.

As for the defense, nothing about AJ not playing caused the dawgs to miss tackle after tackle. It wasn't because of bad field position, but rather the lack of fundamentals that I'm hoping is just a carry over from the former DC.

Now what do the dawgs look like over the next two games. Well I see a spilt. Mainly because StarkVegas is a bitch of a place to play and the Hawgs may actually be good. My heart wants us to win both, but the brain says otherwise.

So sit back and have a brew or 8 and get out there and call the Dawgs on Saturday.

Dawgs vs Hawgs - What's it going to take

The Dawgs enter the game at home versus the Hawgs with some unknowns still to answer. This is a game that i feel is going to be the difference between the Independence Bowl and a Citrus bowl. Yes, I know it's early, but win or lose, this game will set the table. 

If the Dawgs don't show some improvement in stopping the run and the screen pass, we will be in for a long season. It could be that we just don't have the players to fill the needs of our new 3-4 defense. As I heard earlier today, Bama had issues in the 3-4 until it got Mount Cody in the middle. Now I don't think we need a Mount Cody to make the 3-4 work, but we do need the fundamentals to win.

The Defense left too many tackles on the field against South Carolina and if we see the same thing happen Saturday against the Hawgs, we will be in for a world of hurt. Worse is the fact that the Hawgs will be without their primary RB. So the Dawgs MUST tackle and stop the run on Saturday. 

So lets say the Dawgs step up and stop and tackle. Will the secondary be able to stop Mallett. I'm hoping that when the Dawgs stop the run, that it means our D-Line and LBs are in the backfield. This alone should slow Mallett down. If he does get the ball out, it falls to our secondary. The game against South Carolina didn't really expose anything as we were too missing missing tackles that they didn't have to throw the ball that often. 

So you noticed that I didn't get into any offensive issues. Those I'm hoping have been worked out. It's up to Bobo to open things up. We have great TEs and WRs that can make the catch and get some yards. I know we have been without AJ Green, but one player does not make a team. So here's hoping we can get some points. Because I fear a shootout with Arkansas this year will not end well. So it comes back to the defense. 

What I need to see Saturday

 

• Tackles, Tackles and more Tackles


• The Dawgs need 150 yds from our running backs


• No Turnovers


• Limit to 2-3 penalties for the game. (So far this year, not too bad in this area)


• Keep Mallett off the field. See bullet number 1


• Spread the ball around. I have faith in Murray to handle this pressure.

 

I feel if we can do those bullets and finish the drill, the dawgs can come out with a win. If not, I would not want to be on the other side of the ton of posts about a hot seat. 

NOTE : No word on AJ Green's status as of this post, other than the NCAA has heard the appeal.

Game Day at South Carolina

Short and simple today. 

GATA. Period. 

To expand just a little, Aaron needs to maintain control of the ball. This is not the game to have turnovers. As for the Defense, we must swallow up the QB and stuff the run. I'm not as concerned with the deep ball, as I feel our front 3 can get enough pressure and thus open things up for the LBs to get in there. 

Remember, today is not only gameday, it is also a day to remember. 

GOOOOOOOO DAWGS