Ok, I admit it, I didn't stay up to watch all the second half, I have a cold right now and just couldn't do it. But I did watch the first half, and a little bit of the second half so there you go. When I woke up this morning, first thing I did was switch over to sportscenter to see the final result, when I saw 60-59, I was thinking, WOW wish I would have seen that. I have looked over the play by play box and it appears that we actually had 5-6 point lead late in the game but Arkansas cut it down to 2, then tied it and we played for the final shot. Got the ball to Trey, he missed but got his own rebound and was fouled with 1.4 seconds left. He made the first and missed the second and Ark never got a shot off. So, here is my breakdown from what I did see.
First half, and from looking at the play by play of the second half as well, VERY SLOPPY basketball. Considering our travel issues, Arkansas playing before less than a normal crowd, either the D was really good or the offenses were really bad-possibly it was a little both but I will go with sloppy offenses. We shot 39.7% from the field, Ark 43.1%. They shot only 11-20 free throws, while we only attempted 9 and made 6. Wow, a +11 difference in FT's for Arkansas. Little home cooking but hey, at least we got the late call, unlike when we were at home and UT got the call. Again, the first half we got NOTHING from Trey, he had a few ugly turnovers but offered little else except maybe a couple rebounds. I can't say enough about our bench though-Donte Williams, Marcus Thornton, Price, Barnes and my favorite player, Connor Nolte. Let me say something about Connor for a second, I personally believe he needs more PT. Now, he is not the most skilled player on our roster but what he does offer is effort/hustle, he seems to make something happen every time he gets the chance to be on the floor. Last night, in only 9 minutes of play he grabbed 6 boards, 3 offensive and 3 defensive. Only Price had more rebounds, he had 7 and he played 29 minutes. Rebounding is all about hustle/effort and having a knack for the ball, Connor Nolte certainly carries those traits on the floor when he enters the game. He missed a couple easy layups in the first half but he battles. Let me also say, I continue to be impressed with Dustin Ware. He is just such a steady player for us, he is not a spectacular point guard but that kid has really improved his game over his 3 years. He makes a lot of very good decisions on the floor and is a good leader. Gerald Robinson had a good night last night, leading us with 14 points and Jeremy Price also I must praise because when Trey went out, he really stepped up and played well. He also knocked down 2 FT's late in the second half, the guy is a really good FT shooter, as is Ware. Trey played well in the second half certainly scoring 12 and came out strong early in the second half. The fact our best player only played 19 minutes, our second best player Leslie only scored 7 points, we were playing on the road against a team that is very tough at home, that qualifies as a very solid win. Up next is a game against the worst team in the SEC, the Auburn Tigers. Simply put, we can't lose this game-playing at home against a team that does not have the same talent level, this should be a game that resembles the Miss State win at home. This next stretch of the season is critical, Auburn, then Xavier, at SCarolina and home against Vandy. IF, that this is a big IF of course, we can win all 4, we would sit at 19-6, 7-4 in SEC play. Granted we still have the back to back tough road games, at UT and UF, but then have SCarolina and LSU back to back at home. You get the picture, this next stretch, with 3 of 4 at home is very important indeed for our NCAA tourney chances. We just need to get Trey and Travis playing at the top of their games and continue to get quality play from our guards and bench, we can go on a nice run here. Anyway, hats off to Coach Fox and our players for getting a tough win last night.
As for recruiting, our class looks really good to me. Not only did we get some outstanding talent, we really addressed depth at a lot of positions. We got a bunch of OL guys, most of which will redshirt, we got a lot of secondary guys and atheletes-some that can play either way, up to the coaches to decide where these guys will play. We got some quality LB's and DE types, and of course hopefully we get our NT on Saturday. We got a very talented QB that I am hoping we can redshirt to give him two years seperation from Murray. We got another great looking TE, and then of course we got one of the best RB's in the nation. A kid that gives us the homerun threat we have been missing since Knowshon left us after the 2008 season. The class is very balanced and really does meet our needs very well. Great job by our coaches to land such a talented class with all the negative surrounding the program-especially negative vibes from the local media and many fans as well. These coaches knew we needed more talent and they busted their rear ends to make it happen. Now, will these new guys be able to come in and help us get what I believe is needed for Coach Richt to survive-9 or more wins in the regular season-time will tell. But certainly, even if you want to take the negative approach that this year will not turn out as well as we hope, this coaching staff really set up the next coach if that does happen. Speaking of coaches, Coach Richt said yesterday he expects to name a new OL coach by early next week. My guess is he will name one today or tomorrow-I think he already knows who he is going to hire personally but just wanted to wait for the job posting time as he is required, and then wait on signing day to pass. I would expect us to know either tomorrow or Monday at the latest. I personally am very excited to get a new OL coach, as I have said, I was less than impressed with the job Searels did. Either he is not as good as we thought or the OL talent we have are not as good as we thought. I think we have some talented OL myself-Boiling will be drafted this year, Sturdivant and Glenn next year, Ben Jones I also suspect will get a shot. That would be 4 of the 5 starters on his OL that could not get a push on 3rd and 1 against Central Florida but could be playing professional football in the very near future. Course also, we have not had a back that can make the OL look better than they really are since Moreno left-that is something else to consider. The two work hand in hand.
Most that read this blog already are aware of our signees so I will not put that link back on here, I did that yesterday anyway. But in closing today, I will post something I found on the rivals site, breaking down the 5 star kids for the last 5 years. It is pretty interesting to look at because as you know, this year we got 2 in Crowell and Drew. Granted, a lot of the past 5 stars have not lived up to their billing but a LOT have. I still believe, it is better to have the highly regarded player than to not have them. This is not what Paul Johnson believes at GT but then again, Tech lost their only 5 star recruit in history a day after they got him so not like he has much experience in coaching a 5 star player. I feel sure if he could ever secure a 5 star, he would welcome the opportunity. As for Tech, not sure where they landed recruiting wise but I think last year, the Orange bowl will end up being the pinnacle of the Paul Johnson era. The bad news for Techie fans, when PJ does get canned, they will have to hire another option coach or basically start all over again with their talent based being built to run option. Enough on the insects, here is the link to the rivals article, interesting read.
http://uga.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1184533
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