Not much going on today

I have been swamped at work, I hate it when I actually have to work, at work!! What a bummer. Anyway, a few things I have picked up from reading various UGA sites today. AJ Green will wear #18 for the Bengals. I guess the fact the NFL has rules on what numbers certain positions can wear, it doesn't allow guys like AJ of course 8 in college, to wear that number in the pros. So, 18 it is for AJ. I think several WR's lately have been sporting numbers in the teens-seems strange but then again, I don't see why he can't wear 8 if available. Now, I have heard our new NT Jonathan Jenkins plans to wear I believe #6, I can see where the NFL wouldn't want a NT to wear #6 I guess but again, it is just a number. Speaking of recruits, read today that UGA offered Dillon Lee from Buford. His older brother is currenty a RSFR on our football team-he figures to get some PT this fall I would think at OG. I watched film on Dillon and WOW, the kid looks great-very fast, has a lot of natural ability. He is from the football powerhouse in Buford, Ga-not far from me. UGA just offered, our new LB coach making the call yesterday. Lee plans to make a late May decision and he has over 20 offers. The interesting thing, we made his top 4 and just offered yesterday. I have read up on this kid and it seemed he was NOT interested in the least with coming to UGA with his brother but after reading about him today, I think we have a legit shot to land him. A lot of folks are wondering why it took us so long to offer him-again, I think our consistent turnover at the LB position, Olivadotti is now our 3rd LB coach in 3 years, coupled with his statements in the past about wanting to leave state, I do believe those were a couple of the issues. The kid stated his family all are huge UGA fans, he has many friends attending UGA, his brother is already there, etc etc. In other words, we have a shot now, and he wants to get with Olivadotti and Grantham to figure out his role in the D. I have been saying for quite a while now, we have not one but now TWO guys that have a TON of NFL experience on our defensive staff. If you don't think that can impact a young kid in his thinking about playing college football, you are mistaken. I think that NFL experience leads to immediate credibility to these kids because they all WANT to play pro football. Now, of course it would help big time if our D steps up this fall and plays lights out, then you are going to hear even more talk about our coaches-and if we continue to get kids drafted off the D, that helps as well. You think about it though, this past draft, we had ONE player drafted off our D, and our numbers drafted on the D off the top of my head are not that great. Last year we had several guys drafted but none even as high as our one D player this year, Akeem Dent and Justin Houston both in the 3rd round. When is the last time we had a guy from our D drafted in the first round-I believe it would have to be Thomas Davis-or was it Pollack-one of those two-ok, here we go, try both. Below are all the #1 picks since Mark Richt took over our program. Course you can now add AJ Green to the list.

2001 Richard Seymour 6 New England Patriots

Marcus Stroud 13 Jacksonville Jaguars

2002 Charles Grant 25 New Orleans Saints

2003 Johnathan Sullivan 6 New Orleans Saints

George Foster 20 Denver Broncos

2004 Ben Watson 32 New England Patriots

2005 Thomas Davis 14 Carolina Panthers

David Pollack 17 Cincinnati Bengals

2009 Matthew Stafford 1 Detroit Lions

Knowshon Moreno 12 Denver Broncos

If you look at the Richt recruits, two D and four offense=6 in 10 years. Amazing the job Jim Donnan did in recruiting though, again if you go back a few years before which would include Donnan recruits, Champ Bailey would also be included. I believe Matt Stinchcomb was a Goff recruit. So Donnan was our head coach for 5 years and players he recruited to Athens, a total of 6 including Bailey. Course then you look at our friendly rivals to the west, Bama had 3 guys drafted in the first round THIS year, AU had two. Bama had two first round picks in the 2010 draft, and one in 2009. Right there is 6 total in 3 years, I think you might begin to see that something is going on in Athens, either our recruiting is step behind Bama or our player development?? All of that is a topic for another day but I am hoping by the time the dream team becomes JR and SR's, you see our play on the field improve as well as us sending more players to high draft status.

Per Seth Emerson's blog, our latest basketball recruit has signed his LOI. See below. I hope this kid turns out to be great, and if so, it will make a LOT of schools in North Carolina look bad. But the fact remains, none of the big schools in that state offered him a shot to play for them-that scares me a little bit. Not that UNC or DOOK didn't, but that NCST, Wake Forrest, East Carolina-no offers. He had offers from UNC-Asheville and Wilmington, Appy State, Old Dominion, Western Carolina, Richmond, Princeton, and Northwestern. Sometimes a kid will slip through the cracks but it is not often a HS kid at 6'10 and 225 lbs, that can actually play the game, has an offer list like this kid. As I say, I HOPE everyone was wrong but I still look at this kid as a project at best and honestly, I remain really concerned about Mark Fox's recruting. Time will tell so until we can know for sure, I trust Coach Fox completely-doesn't mean I am not a bit skeptical and nervous however.

Hoops recruit officially signs

John Cannon, who committed to the Georgia men's basketball team over the weekend, has signed his letter-of-intent. The Bulldogs announced Cannon's addition on Monday.

The official release from UGA, along with a statement from head coach Mark Fox:

Cannon, a 6-10 and 225 pounds, is currently a senior at Mountain Heritage
High School in Burnsville. In the most recently completed season, he
averaged 21.9 points, 12.3 rebounds and 6.5 blocks per contest. The Cougars
went 23-7 and reached the North Carolina Class AA semifinals of the state
tournament.

"We're very excited to have John Cannon joining the Bulldog family," Fox said. "John has good size and good skills for a young big man. He understands the game extremely well and is an outstanding student. We believe that he has a very bright future ahead of him. I look forward to John's arrival on campus in the very near future."

This season, Cannon earned All-State honors by the Associated Press, the N.C. Basketball Coaches Association and by NCPreps.com, an online recruiting service. He also was named the Player of the Year in the Western Highlands Conference. For his career Cannon blocked a state of North Carolina-record 606 shots in his four years at Mountain Heritage.

Cannon is the fifth signee for the 2011 class for Georgia. There's still room for one or two more, even though the team is officially at the 13-scholarship limit; Matt Bucklin and Connor Nolte could return to walk-on status if the team wants to sign someone like Kevin Ware or Ryan Harrow.