We’ll finally get some use out of the Sanford Stadium lights this year.
The ACC has announced that the November 27th game against Georgia Tech will be at 7:45 PM. ESPN will broadcast the game.
Georgia hasn’t had a home game start later than 12:30 this season. The unpredictable late-November weather makes a night game at this time of year less attractive than one in September or October, but we’ll take it. We’ll also finally get to see a real test of the new tailgating policies put into place after night games in recent years left North Campus full of trash.
North Campus has pretty much been vacated during this football season, but tailgating all over campus has been subdued thanks to the early starts. It’s not worth it for many fans to make the effort of an elaborate tailgate just for a few hours in the morning. In fact, downtown business have had a pretty decent football season, thanks in part to increased traffic from fans who might have tailgated if the game times were later. That’s the case for our group – we’ve found it easier just to meet up at a downtown restaurant until 11:00 or so rather than try to set up and take down a decent tailgate within the span of 2 to 3 hours.
The proposal had met with strong opposition from Georgia Tech officials and alumni who felt that increased investment at Georgia’s lone public engineering school was enough to meet the state’s future needs. The vote was a close 9-8 which reflected how much of a political battle the proposal had become. The governor and certain state legislators had become involved, and it remains to be seen whether opponents will try to find some sort of legislative roadblock when the legislature convenes in January.
But Georgia Tech is only part of the story. It’s also about Auburn, Clemson, Tennessee, and the other regional schools with engineering programs that attract engineering students from Georgia that for one reason or another don’t go to Tech. As Lee Shearer explains in the Banner-Herald this week, state schools are not producing enough engineers to meet the state’s needs. Even though Georgia Tech produces nearly 800 engineering graduates each year, “fewer than half Tech’s graduates remain in Georgia” following graduation. These programs at UGA (along with similar ones at Georgia Southern) will give Georgians quality in-state alternatives to going out-of-state with the goal of keeping more of them at home when they enter the labor force.
Of course there’s also a financial angle. As President Adams argued, “the new degrees will give UGA access to millions in federal grants and research money.” That’s not necessarily a zero-sum game with Tech; it’s likely a net increase of research money coming into the state. With a medical school and now an engineering program coming to Athens during this decade, the University of Georgia will be moving into a different class of public universities.
If none of that matters to you, just know that there are some fuming Yellow Jackets tonight, and count it as the first of several wins over Tech to come in the next month.
While the Senator and Elkon take up how we record yardage lost by sacks, Saturday’s scoreboard explosions got me thinking again about my own peeve.
This is a drum I’ve been beating for at least four years now, and it came up again last weekend in the Michigan-Illinois game. It was already a high-scoring game at 45-45 after regulation, but the effect of three overtimes makes it possible to write something like this: “In the highest-scoring game in the storied history of Michigan football, the Wolverines’ defense provided the game-winning play, stopping a 2-point conversion attempt in the third overtime for a 67-65 victory on Saturday.”
Nearly a third of those record-setting points came in overtime when the offense was given the ball at the opponent’s 25. They didn’t have to drive the field or create the field position with defense or special teams. There’s no way that the score should stand as any kind of record.
My recommendation remains the same: as in hockey shootouts, just give the winning team a single additional point whether it takes 1 field goal or 7 touchdowns to get there. I’m even torn whether individual stats should stand – those are still legitimate yards gained, but does it inflate touchdown stats? Fortunately overtime games aren’t terribly frequent to where this is a big deal; it just doesn’t sit well that scoring records are falling simply because we cut the field by 75 yards.
So Dan Hawkins is out at Colorado. No surprise, and we all know against which team he notched his final win. I’m fairly certain now that we’ll look back on this year’s loss at Colorado as the worst of Mark Richt’s career. Let’s count the ways:
It was a poor quality opponent in an unnecessary non-conference game. So much for the “brand.”
Georgia blew a double-digit second half lead. The Dawgs took a 24-14 lead on Marlon Brown’s 3rd quarter touchdown reception.
From killer third down conversions to big plays, it was probably the worst performance by the new defense.
At least 13 points were left on the field due to turnovers deep in Colorado’s end and a missed field goal.
On a more personal level, an otherwise perfect road trip with thousands of Bulldog fans on hand will always have the loss associated with it.
Sure, there are a few other candidates. Most obvious is the 2006 Vanderbilt loss. That was bad, but the Commodores were in a period of building respectability under Bobby Johnson. In 2006, Vandy was a 4-8 team that lost to Alabama, Arkansas, and Florida by a combined 11 points. You could also go in a different direction and point to games in which the Dawgs were completely outclassed like the 2008 Alabama game. Last season’s loss at Tennessee was an unexpected blowout, but at least the Vols were a bowl-eligible team. Any loss to Tech is a low point. But for sheer you-gotta-be-kidding-me effect, losing that game in Boulder was as bad as it gets. No wonder they rushed the field.
Several people found this useful when we did it for the Kentucky game, so we’ll do it again. Fortunately finding the Idaho State game (12:30 kickoff) will be much less complicated.
Do you get Atlanta’s ABC affiliate WSB-TV (Channel 2)?
If so, you’re set. That applies to all cable, satellite, and antenna viewers who can get Atlanta’s WSB-TV. That includes the 53-county Atlanta TV market as well as certain cable systems in Albany, Macon, Savannah, Columbus, Chattanooga, Greenville, and Tallahassee. Check your channel guide if you have any doubt.
If you’re on Dish Network, see if you get WSB on channel 8300 before you order Gameplan.
Note that the game is NOT an ABC production. You won’t find it on any other ABC affiliate.
For everyone else, it’s ESPN Gameplan
The game is blacked out on Gameplan in the local WSB-TV market (see map), but that’s the extent of the restriction. Once you order Gameplan, here are the channels:
DirecTV: Channel 792
Dish: Channel 459/465
Online
ESPN3 will also have the game. The same blackout for metro Atlanta that applies to Gameplan could apply.
The thing that gets me about the Grantham story isn’t the manufactured outrage from the Florida camp or the local media. We expect it from them (but, jeez Tony Barnhart). It’s that a fair number of Georgia fans are so willing to fall into line for the self-flagellation. Here we go forging another sword for the sole purpose of falling on it – there’s no fan base better at it.
I have to admit though that I’m now giving long thought to opting out of the “BLOCK THAT KICK!” cheer this weekend. That’s just not how things are done at Georgia.
Hoops
If you’re looking for a distraction from the football season, both basketball teams will start their seasons with exhibition games during the next week. The men open this Thursday night (an unfortunate missed opportunity with Saturday’s home football game). The women host their exhibition next Wednesday. We learned last week that the men will start the season just outside the national rankings, and the Red & Black reports that the women will open the season #19 in the initial AP poll.
McGarity makes a move
Volleyball coach Joel McCartney was dismissed on Monday after a relatively disappointing four years at the helm. The season is still ongoing, and an assistant will take over on an interim basis. This is new athletic director Greg McGarity’s first head coaching change. Some will read a lot into this move – certainly justified by the state of the program – and suggest it’s a signal that the bar is being raised for other coaches and programs, but we have no idea what else went on to bring about a midseason change for a nonrevenue sport.
Singing virus
Finally, UGA graduate student and composer Alexandra Pajak has created a musical composition based on the genetic sequence of the HIV virus. “Sounds of HIV (Azica Records)…explores the patterns of the virus’s nucleotides as well as the amino acids transcribed by HIV, playing through these biologic signatures in 17 tracks.”
On one hand, it was nice to avoid the blowout/collapse that we’ve been treated to during the last two trips to Jacksonville. Instead, 2010 will go down like 1992 or maybe 2002 or 2003 – games in which Georgia might’ve had momentum or an even shot coming into the game but left empty-handed and thinking about a handful of plays, decisions, and missed opportunities.
Florida deserves a ton of credit for the way in which the won the game. They made their chances, and just as Georgia did a week ago in Lexington, Florida cashed in with good efficiency. The game might have come down to overtime, but the game was framed during the consecutive Georgia turnovers and Florida scores that made it a 21-7 game and forced Georgia to, once again, play from behind in Jacksonville. Even with Georgia’s defense standing tough for a quarter, there was only so long they could hold back the inevitable. Whether it was the pressure that caused Murray’s fumble or good recognition to jump the first pass, Florida made their luck. Contrast that with a chance at a fumble recovery or a dropped interception by the Georgia defense – plays they made only a week ago in a much different environment.
So the "overtime game" will go down next to the timeout game and the Edwards drop and the facemask in 2006 as just another year where Georgia had its chances to do something about the dreadful record against Florida but couldn’t. Georgia was again part of a classic Georgia-Florida game and played its usual role in a game between two fairly even teams. Of course Florida’s punter-turned-placekicker would nail two out of three after his 0-fer in the loss to Mississippi State.
But to focus on the mind games and to buy into the role of Charlie Brown to Florida’s Lucy is to ignore what Florida did to win the game. The 450 yards of offense were as many as Florida has put up against Georgia since 2004. A team that had been held under 100 yards rushing in two of its last three games gashed Georgia for 231 yards on the ground. They had the game’s biggest playmaker: Chris Rainey made the most of his return with 241 all-purpose yards. If you had to guess based just on this game which team was riding a winning streak and which was struggling with its offense, you’d have a tough time getting it right. Even with the success Georgia had throwing the ball, the game was played the way Florida wanted it on both sides of the ball.
As for Murray, it’s asking a lot to put a game of this magnitude and the angst of a program on a freshman. His shaky start was the product of something we talked about the other day. "Urgency can lead to intensity and focus, but it can also lead to pressing…and turnovers." He was amped up and tight and played like it. That he kept his head, adapted to the defense, and led Georgia to the brink of victory was a tremendous accomplishment. If this is his "worst" Cocktail Party, he won’t leave with a losing record against the Gators. At the same time, he’s yet to have his first signature moment in a big game like this with the game on the line. Will he get another opportunity in two weeks?
Georgia’s offense should take a good deal of confidence from the game. They won’t face a defense that good as a unit again, and Murray won’t be in nearly as harsh of a spotlight as he was on his first start in his home state. Defense is another story. Georgia’s difficulties stopping the run and dealing with multiple looks from the backfield weren’t encouraging given who the final two opponents of the season are. The Dawgs had to come up with two great performances to get to 7-5 and a bowl game last year, and Florida’s success running the ball leaves us with a clear picture of the biggest challenge facing this year’s home stretch.
After witnessing the horror of a -16 turnover margin last year, I’m glad to finally be on the other side of one of those games.
Maybe I’m just overreacting to the annoying habit of the CSS broadcast of pointing out Kentucky’s statistical advantage throughout the game. Kentucky was built up quite a bit coming into this game based mainly on their comeback against and upset of South Carolina. Few seemed bothered that Kentucky’s celebrated comeback a week earlier was also fueled by four South Carolina turnovers – or that the Gamecocks had the better stats. A year ago Georgia outgained the Wildcats 487 to 260. All I’ll remember is the loss.
It’s tempting to write off the turnovers as luck, and we had plenty of discussion about that last year when the ball was bouncing the other way. But for the bobbled ball on Kentucky’s goal line, Georgia had plenty to do with those turnovers. Kentucky’s offense had allowed just six sacks entering the game – tops in the SEC. They also came into the game with only six turnovers. Whether it was the sack leading to the fumble on the opening drive, the persistence that caused the second Kentucky fumble, or the huge 4th down stop at Kentucky’s 39, those were positive plays by the Georgia defense that helped the Dawgs, as they say, make their own luck.
Three points: First, Georgia could have made Kentucky’s comeback a lot easier or even unnecessary. A year ago, Georgia led Kentucky 20-6 at halftime. In Athens. It was a 14-point edge instead of the 18-point halftime lead we enjoyed this year. It would have taken a conscious effort to match or beat the four-turnover meltdown that led to Kentucky’s win a year ago, but there’s no understating the fact that Georgia’s offense got out of its own way in the second half. The running game was working, a few high-percentage passes were peppered in, and Georgia made Kentucky work for what they got.
It’s also worth mentioning that Georgia was cashing in these short field opportunities with seven points instead of three – or none. Think back to a key series at the end of the first half of the Colorado game. A Dowtin interception set up Georgia at the Colorado 38 with enough time left to widen a slim 17-14 lead going into the locker room. Instead, Georgia got nothing from Colorado’s lone turnover of the game. That happened also in Lexington as Georgia more or less wasted the second Wildcat fumble, but they got all they could out of Kentucky’s other miscues. It’s potentially a much different game if Ealey gets stood up on 3rd and 2 from the Kentucky 15 on Georgia’s first possession.
Georgia also deserves credit for not letting off the gas. Kentucky’s comebacks earlier in the season were led by defensive turnarounds in the second half that held Auburn to six points and shut out South Carolina. If Georgia fell into that pattern, Kentucky would have been in a position to win this game as well. Instead, Georgia did a great job of putting three second half scoring drives together. Those scores answered Kentucky scoring drives and made sure that the temporary swings in momentum wouldn’t snowball into another comeback. The 8:05 drive midway through the fourth quarter was a devastating use of possession to seal the win.
Throw a big SEC game on a regional cable station, and it’s likely to produce a bit of confusion. Most of us with CSS are used to catching edited game rebroadcasts during the week, but this is something unusual for Georgia fans: CSS is handling the live broadcast. I’ve already received a few questions about availability, and the message boards are full of them this week. So here’s what you need to know:
Cable:
You probably already know whether or not your cable system offers CSS. Even if you don’t have Charter or Comcast, there are a number of cable systems throughout the South – including Cox, Time Warner, and Bright House – which will have the game. Here’s a guide from the SEC if you’re unsure.
For those with CSS, the game will be available in HD. I only know the details for my cable provider, Comcast of Atlanta: the game will be on channel 805 (in addition to ch. 45 in SD). Yes, that’s the CSS-HD channel that always shows a test pattern. But it will be activated for the SEC games.
If your cable provider is one of the few not on the list (such as AT&T Uverse) or if you live outside of the southeast, ESPN Gameplan and ESPN3 are your alternatives. See the sections below for more information.
Satellite
No satellite system carries CSS*, but you will be able to order the game as part of ESPN Gameplan. Call your provider for details and to order. There will NOT be any kind of a blackout for this game. As per the SEC, CSS games are "distributed on ESPN Gameplan with no blackout restrictions."
Dish: If you order Gameplan on Dish Network, the game will be on channel 463.
DirecTV: If you order Gameplan on DirecTV, the game will be on channel 790.
Online
You’ll also be able to see the game online via ESPN3. Whether or not you get access to ESPN3 depends on your ISP. You can see a list of participating ISPs here. If you really want to make sure, just go to espn3.com and try to watch something ahead of time.
* – there is a possibility that those Dish Network subscribers around the Gulf Coast who have the appropriate package to receive Cox Sports New Orleans on Ch. 421 will get the game for free. I figure the number of interested people that applies to makes it barely worth mentioning.
Chip Cosby of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports today that Kentucky RB Derrick Locke will definitely miss the Georgia game this Saturday. Locke, dealing with a shoulder stinger, missed Kentucky’s game last weekend against South Carolina and had been doubtful all along for Georgia.
Locke burned Georgia for 160 yards of total offense last year – 80 on the ground, and 80 on just two receptions, both of which were short screens that ended up going for touchdowns. He was by far the leading rusher on the team with 574 yards and seven rushing touchdowns, and he also was the team’s 4th-best receiver with 225 yards out of the backfield. The Wildcats managed just 52 yards rushing last week in their win over South Carolina without Locke.
Donald Russell, with 41 yards on 18 carries, was Kentucky’s top rusher last week. Russell is just as dangerous as Locke as a receiving option; he caught 7 passes for 70 yards against the Gamecocks. Randall Cobb of course will be another option to run the ball for Kentucky whether out of the Wildcat formation or on handoffs.
Georgia will also be without their starting tailback Caleb King. King is serving the tail end of a two-game suspension. Washaun Ealey, Carlton Thomas, and Aaron Murray helped Georgia rack up 232 rushing yards in King’s absence last week against Vanderbilt.
The Gators should get a boost from the return of suspended slot receiver Chris Rainey. Rainey missed the past five games after an arrest, but has met the terms Meyer set for him to be able to play again.
“Chris Rainey is eligible to participate in the Georgia game, but I’m not saying he will,” Meyer said. “That hasn’t been determined.”
Anyone want to lay odds on how that determination will go? On the Meyer rubric of discipline, we have to guess that “eligible-to-play-but-might-not-play” is a big step forward from Rainey’s “he’s-not-off-the-team-but-he’s-not-a-part-of-the-team” status of a few weeks ago.
Highlighting the news is the selection of Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie to the preseason first team. Thompkins was also tabbed the preseason SEC Player of the Year, receiving 18 of the 20 first-place votes cast.
The outlook for Georgia in 2010-2011 can be summed up by this fact: despite two first team all-conference players on the roster, Georgia was picked a distant third in the SEC East. While there’s a lot of excitement entering Mark Fox’s second season, Georgia’s top players will only go so far as the rest of the supporting cast allow. There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the newcomers, but there are many important roles for them to fill right away.
Georgia should be better than last season’s team that finished 5-11 in the SEC, but the preseason picks remind us that climbing through the standings towards an NCAA Tournament bid won’t be easy. Florida returns all of its starters. Kentucky emptied its chamber and has reloaded with another talented roster. Picked just below Georgia is a Tennessee team that went deep into the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
The new dog grew up with marching band music piped into his kennel, said Swann’s brother Charles Seiler, who has been handling the dogs on the field since he was 15 years old.
He’ll get to hear the real thing on Saturday. Hopefully he’s not conditioned to fall asleep to the Redcoats. His face will continue to fill out over the next year as he matures, but this pup already very much looks the part.
I’m looking forward to being down on the field during pregame…maybe I’ll get within 100 feet of Uga VIII. Meanwhile Dawg fans, just give thanks that you’re not having this mascot discussion today.
If you sampled preseason previews of the 2010 Georgia football team, most would contain a sentence like this: "Georgia hopes its talented tailbacks and experienced line can take the pressure off an inexperienced quarterback." This was, after all, the team of "we run this state" and Phil Steele’s top-rated offensive line.
It’s not really worth debating the severity of Caleb King’s suspension, but the midseason two-game suspension of Georgia’s starting tailback only underscores the reversal that’s taken place with Georgia’s identity on offense. The offensive line has had to go back to the drawing board, and the tailback position has suddenly become very thin. King is suspended, Thomas is injured, Dontavious Jackson was dismissed, and Ealey has ball security issues.
Meanwhile, the return of A.J. Green has served to highlight the rapid development of freshman quarterback Aaron Murray. Murray accounted for four of Georgia’s five touchdowns against Tennessee last week, and the Bulldog offense showed signed of life spreading the field, getting Murray into space, and distributing the ball to a diverse set of receiving options.
You still have to be able to run the ball in the SEC, so King’s suspension and the depth issues at tailback are still significant. They’re just much less of a concern than they would have been two months ago. The role of the tailback in the offense has changed – out of necessity, of course. Georgia’s tailbacks combined for around 90 yards against Tennessee. There were some key carries and first downs from the position, and the Dawgs are going to at least need one guy like Ealey to make those runs. But he doesn’t have to carry the ball 30 times for Georgia to be successful.
The immediate question now is whether Ken Malcome’s redshirt should be burned. For the time being, he and Ealey are the only available tailbacks. The Bulldogs are also looking at occasionally using a fullback like Fred Munzenmaier. Malcome was a tough power back in high school, but the concern is this: so much of the offense now depends on Murray and the passing game, and Malcome has admitted for a while that pass blocking is a real weakness of his game. If he’s still a liability in protection, he’d have to be used sparingly in order to limit Murray’s exposure.
If I had to take a guess, I’d say that Malcome’s redshirt stays on. He has to be ready to go in, but I expect Georgia to see how far they can go against Vanderbilt with Ealey and Munzenmaier. The state of Thomas’s hamstring in a week will determine whether we revisit this question before the trip to Kentucky.
One more thing…this doesn’t have to be a permanent transformation. If Sturdivant continues to come along and Gates gains experience with the starting group, there’s still hope for the line to improve in its run blocking. More strong performances by Murray and the passing game should loosen things up around the line of scrimmage. We know that King and Ealey can be an effective tandem. Georgia doesn’t have to bail on the running game for the rest of the year, but for the time being they can at least start to lean on the passing game during these lean times at the tailback position.
"Everyone is different, but the smartest decision you can make as a prospect is to stay in state if you are from Georgia. If a guy comes from Parkview, Thomson, or anywhere, the best thing that he can do is to be a Dawg. Everybody will know you, and it is such a big thing to play for the University of Georgia."
Break out the tailgates: UGA-GT to be a night game
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