Back from my California trip, WOW, hard to top that weather but also hard to top that LA traffic. Also, for all the glamour of Hollywood, what a complete dump. I have driven through Hollywood twice now in my lifetime and each time I have left saying, "what is all the fuss". More tattoo palors in a couple blocks than I have ever seen in my life I think. Just minutes away of course is Beverly Hills, what a HUGE difference. The smog that surrounds LA is very evident as well. I would NOT want to live anywhere near that city and if you go, please take a GPS with you as that will help out tremendously-there are so many interstates around that place, it really can boggle your mind. Now, a place I would consider moving if ever so inclined, San Diego. Again, have been there twice and both times have come away more than impressed. The weather is just outstanding, traffic not nearly as bad as LA, areas north of the city very nice. City right on the water, with the sailboats and yachts, just a beautiful place. If not for the long flight, threat of earthquakes, cost of living being through the roof, SD would be a great place to reside. Great Mexican food, Petco Park is very impressive, people friendly. My buddy and I were able to hit four games in 3 days. Stated at Dodgers/Angels game on Saturday, then decided to try to catch Braves/Padres since that game started later, 5:35 Pacific. We would have made it for the 1st or second inning if not for the horrible traffic getting out of LA-yes, even on the weekends the interstates are bumper to bumper. Made it to Petco in the 5th inning. No scalpers in sight, ticket office still selling full price tickets, we said NO WAY. Walked around a bit more and finally found a guy with a handful of tickets. He wanted 20 bucks a ticket, my buddy said no way, the game is halfway over and if you want any money at all for your unused tickets we will give you 10 bucks for two. Guy said fine and we were in the park for 10 bucks-parking was anywhere from 10-15 bucks but we found a free spot along the street, about a mile from the stadium. We got to see the Braves explode for 8 runs in the last 3 innings, winning 10-2. Next day, again at Petco, Braves-Padres scoreless through 7, Braves get a run in the 8th only to see Venters blow it in the bottom of the 8th-proving he is human. Padres won 4-1. Next day, drive up to Anaheim to see the Angels against the Nationals. What a nice area Anaheim is, great looking ball park as well, I was impressed. Angels won in 10 innings. Dodger stadium was the least impressive of the 3 but was still a great experience to go to a game there, after watching it on TV all these years as a big Braves fan, the 90's especially brought us a lot of great games in that stadium. So, great trip but glad to be back.
On the UGA front, of course Trey and Travis will hopefully be playing ball in LA, assuming there is no lockout. Good luck to those guys, playing in that city, they need to make some serious cash to afford to live out there, I can tell you that. Housing costs are out of this world, gas prices about 50 cents a gallon higher etc. Also, Brent Benedict has left the UGA program, given a full release. Rumor has it he will head to Gainesville to play for the Gators which of course has some UGA fans angry. I have no problem with it, I wish him the best and hope he plays well except against us. If a kid doesn't want to be in Athens, let him go. I have doubts Benedict will ever regain his HS form before he had the horrible accident, again rumor has it he was still not 100% after sitting out a year in Athens and we wanted him to take another year as a medical redshirt. Bottom line, the kid is from Florida, considered UF before picking us, for whatever reason was not fitting in and wants to go home. Like I say, I doubt he is much of a factor for UF but if he is, so be it we just need to beat him. Considering our depth on the OL though, it makes you wonder about a kid wanting to leave our program when if healthy, he very likely would see the field this year and would be in line to start next year.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Friday, June 24, 2011
Off to Cali
I am about to head out west for my baseball weekend. Dodgers hosting Angels on Sat, Padres hosting Braves on Sunday, Angels hosting Nationals on Monday. Should be fun. Speaking of LA, Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie both got drafted by that dreadful organization last night, in the second round. Congrats to both guys, a shame they slipped to the second but that is better than not getting drafted at all. Bad news is they have to play for the Clippers, good news, they might have a better shot to make the roster. Sorry for the short blog, I will be back Thursday of next week-we shall see what news breaks while I am gone.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
NBA draft tomorrow night
Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie hope to get phone calls Thursday night to find out where they will playing basketball in the future. Of course both passed up the chance to play one more year in Athens. Both are projected to be late first or early 2nd round picks. Most know that 1st round picks are where it is at when it comes to the NBA because those guys are guaranteed a multi year and multi million dollar contract. If you slip to the second round, your chances of making the NBA roster drop a good bit, you might be headed to the NBA-D league to improve your game. I hope that both make the first round, I think UGA hoops needs a shot in the arm, with several top recruits lately for the loaded class of 2012 pledging to other schools. Mark Fox needs to be able to say, yep, I coached those two guys, I helped develop them into NBA players, along with the kids he had at Nevada.
Below is a copy/paste from the Bulldog blog in the AJC-
Below is a copy/paste from the Bulldog blog in the AJC-
Georgia’s strength and conditioning program was in the news again on Tuesday when it was announced that former Bulldog Tony Gilbert was hired as assistant director. Gilbert became the sixth football letterman to join the strength staff in some capacity since the end of last season. He joins director Joe Tereshinki Jr. (1974-76), full-time assistants John Kasay Sr. (1965-66) and Thomas Brown (2004-07), and Kendrell Bell (1999-2000) and Verron Haynes (2000-01) , NFL veterans who are helping out while they’re taking classes at UGA. (Keith Gray and Rex Bradberry, assistants under former director Dave Van Halanger, also remain on the staff.)
I think bringing back former players is a great thing but, are these former players qualified to be weight training coaches? One thing you can say is that they love UGA and they are motivated to help our young pups get ready to get this program back to the top. They played during the early years of the Richt era when our guys worked hard and EXPECTED to win so I like that aspect of Gilbert and company being back. But, I just hope they are qualified to do the best possible job getting our guys stronger and in better condition. I think our closs losses in the 4th quarter last year could certainly be the result of our S&C program. Here is an article from the Athens paper about Gilbert.
Finally another good article about Jonathan Taylor, of course the injured UGA baseball player that was recently selected in the MLB draft. As I have said before, this kid is truly an inspiration and I also think the fact that Texas took a 33rd round pick and used it on him, speaks volumes for that organization and the type of kid JT truly is.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Predicting the UGA 2011 season, here is my turn at it
I have not been a regular blogger lately, and for those that check my blog on a somewhat regular basis, I do apologize. Between work and vacations, both in the past and one upcoming at the end of this week, just not a lot of time. I don't think I have that many loyal readers but for those that do stop by on a somewhat regular basis, thanks again for reading. For those that stop by every so often or those that have just found the blog, I hope you will continue to come back and read my thoughts/opinions for what little they are worth. So on Dawgpost the other day I noticed someone started a post about predict the 2011 season. I did not respond to that post but thought, what the heck, I will put my thoughts here. I have said before that I believe that Coach Richt IS on a warm seat, it could get HOT if he losses the first two games. That being said, if he wins those first two games, WATCH OUT.
So let's get started and this will not be an in depth preview of each opponent, rather just my general thoughts based on what I know about our team primarily and the limited amount I know about our opponents.
Boise State-very solid program, don't knock them because of their conference. I have watched them play enough of the big boys to believe this team is very capable of beating big boy teams such as UGA. I think a lot of UGA fans are banking on this Boise team being just like the one we rolled over in Athens back in 2005. That would be a mistake. First of all, this team has a MUCH better QB than that team-this kid reminds me a LOT of our own David Greene. He is very poised and simply doesn't make mistakes. They also have a solid running game and a couple experienced OL. On D, the Boise folks are saying this is their best front 7 maybe ever, the secondary is a bit weak but we are unproven at the WR position. Bottom line to me, Boise is not going to be intimidated playing us at the dome. We have a lot to prove and no doubt we have MORE talent overall but Boise will present a tough challenge. My gut tells me Boise wins this game, my heart tells me UGA wins it. For some reason, I go with UGA here simply because I have faith in our defense. I am not confident in our running game but I am confident that Aaron Murray will play well. So, again, I say UGA wins this game and I personally believe it will be lower scoring than a lot of people believe. I say UGA wins it 24-21.
Up next is the defending SECe champs South Carolina. This team is VERY dangerous and scares me to death in that they have Jeffrey and Lattimore. What gives me hope is Garcia-he is still around and although he has played well against us in the past, I feel like should we contain Latt, we win this game. SCarolina is a solid team and they always play us well but I really like us to win this game, even with a loss to Boise. I say UGA 21-17.
Coastal Carolina, after the first two weeks, this one over at half and everyone gets a good rest. 42-10.
First road game is in Oxford against the Rebels. Now, I admit I know very little about Ole Miss but do know they return a stud at the RB position but the QB position is up for grabs, looks like they have another transfer coming in to take the QB slot. If they beat BYU in week one, they have a shot to be 3-0 heading into this game, they play Southern ILL-not a pushover but they should win that one and at Vandy before they host us. I still think we should win this game and maybe regain some of the road success we used to rely on. 31-14
Miss State comes to Athens coming off a great season and they return a lot of those kids from last year, including the QB and stud RB. That being said, we have more talent than the imposter Dogs and if we get swept by them in our home and home, that will be an embarrassment. We will know a little bit about Miss State before we play them, they have SEC games before us @AU and home vs. LSU. I have to say we win this one, but it will be close, 21-17.
Next up is a trip to Knox. Last two times we have been up there, UGLY and honestly, I think this is a game we could easily lose. Not that UT is better than us but just I will play the percentages here. I don't think we are going unbeaten this year and based on the last two trips up there, one time where a QB name Crompton looked like Joe Montana, I will pick the Vols to beat us, 24-21.
Next we are back in Tenn, this time against Vandy. They have a new coach and honestly this is a game we must take care of business. Sometimes we play poorly up in Nashville but I think coming off my loss to UT, we will come out ready to go. 35-10.
After a week off, we play in Jax against the mighty Gators and new coach Muschamp. As much as we NEED to win this game and have to start beating the Gators again, I simply can't pick us to win this game UNTIL we start proving we can win this game-and not just every 7-10 years either. We lost to UF in OT last year, I think UF is going to lose 3-4 games this year with a brutal schedule but I think they find a way to beat us again. This time 21-17.
We roll NMexSt, 48-0.
Auburn comes to town next and I don't expect AU to be nearly as talented as last year. I think all the Chizik and Malzahn talk will be in a slightly different tone this year. Amazing how a star player at the QB position, coupled with a bunch of seniors can make coaches look so good. I think our players will see the cheap shot by Fairley on Murray probably 1 million times before the game and us fans will see it nearly that many times. One play in a game will not dictate how this years game goes but certainly I think our guys will be VERY motivated for the Auburn whatever you choose to call them-I say we beat these guys 28-14.
Next up is home against Kentucky. Two years ago, we handed the game to UK on a silver platter, we had a 14 point lead only to have Branden Smith fumble the opening kickoff inside our 20, then Joe Cox threw an INT that was returned for a TD, also had a fumble returned for a TD I think-simply put, it was UGLY. I don't know much about UK but I am thinking that this game could have HUGE SECe implications. We win 31-21.
Finally good old fashion hate, at GTU. PJ won a game against us in year one but we now have a 2-1 record against the great one. I follow GT closer than any team outside of Athens, heck I work right arcross the street from that campus and have many friends that attended the school. I want to beat them more than anyone on the schedule, except maybe UF. To be honest, I personally believe since PJ took over, the talent level has dropped over there. Yes, he is now recruiting for his system at Tech but his system is built to work on the high school or lower divisions of college. Yes, it worked at Navy and yes he has had some success at Tech but two years ago, when we beat them in Atlanta with probably his best assembly of talent, I think that is as high as he can get that program. I don't see another RB in that program-unless they redshirted him, that comes close to Dwyer or Allen. Without that big hoss at the fullback or B-back, whatever position they call it, that takes away a BIG part of that offense. The new QB, well, he might be able to pass better than Nesbitt but they don't have any decent receivers-they had DThomas but Chan Gailey recruited him for his pro style offense. Nesbitt was a warrior at QB and took a beating but kept on playing-his injury happened trying to make a tackle, not being tackled. Most QB's are NOT going to last like he did getting pounded. I predict we win this game going away because if you can get ahead of Tech by 2 TD's, the game is usually over-except for our first game with them of course. I think with Jenkins and Geathers in the middle crushing the middle, then our speed at the OLB position, it is going to be TOUGH for them to run that offense against us. UGA 35-17.
So, I predict we go 10-2 and win the SECe. Not sure about the SEC title because I think once again the SECw will be the stronger division. I think LSU SHOULD be the favorite to win the west this year. If we go 0-2 at of the gate which is very possible, I think our best case is 9-3 but more likely 8-3 to even 7-5. If we go 1-1 out of the gate, I can still see us going 10-2 but probably best case is 9-3. Bottom line to me is our program has talent, and the young guys coming in are not only talented but confident and WILL push our vets. That being said, our mental state is fragile right now. We have had two straight average to below average seasons and we have a pretty small senior class-meaning guys that were around in 2007 and 2008 when we had a bit of a swagger to us. I am VERY hopeful this Dream Team class can bring some confidence back and also hopeful that Coach Grantham can get our D level of play back to the Van Gorder ways. I base a big part of my 10-2 prediction on our defense to be honest with you. I think our offense should be able to average over 20 points a game. I am banking on our D being able to hold teams under 20 a game. I am worried a bit about the OL and having another WR step up, but I personally like our running back situation. I think Caleb, Isiaiah, and Ken can get the job done-I honestly do. I really like the QB we have and if another WR will step up, between TKing and Orson Charles, we will have a good passing game threat. We have the best kicking tandem in the nation, you can't forget about that and how important that aspect of the game is. So, what do you all think. Feel free to give me your take on the season if you so wish.
Also, if any of you have any suggestions for places to see in SOCAL, let me know. I leave on Friday and will return a week from today. 3 baseball games in 3 days, but also a lot of time to sightsee. A high school buddy and I are going and he will be driving. Last time I was out there, I think in like '97 or '98, I was with my wife and I was driving-I was a nervous wreck and didn't get to see all the sights I wanted. This time I will be the true tourist, taking pictures, looking at everything. Get to see Dodger Stadium, Petco Park (Braves-Padres) and then Angel Stadium. As a BIG baseball guy myself, this is a dream trip because I have always wanted to go to Dodger Stadium-as a big Brave fan, I can remember all the HUGE games played there in the early to mid 90's before the Braves were moved to the NL east.
So let's get started and this will not be an in depth preview of each opponent, rather just my general thoughts based on what I know about our team primarily and the limited amount I know about our opponents.
Boise State-very solid program, don't knock them because of their conference. I have watched them play enough of the big boys to believe this team is very capable of beating big boy teams such as UGA. I think a lot of UGA fans are banking on this Boise team being just like the one we rolled over in Athens back in 2005. That would be a mistake. First of all, this team has a MUCH better QB than that team-this kid reminds me a LOT of our own David Greene. He is very poised and simply doesn't make mistakes. They also have a solid running game and a couple experienced OL. On D, the Boise folks are saying this is their best front 7 maybe ever, the secondary is a bit weak but we are unproven at the WR position. Bottom line to me, Boise is not going to be intimidated playing us at the dome. We have a lot to prove and no doubt we have MORE talent overall but Boise will present a tough challenge. My gut tells me Boise wins this game, my heart tells me UGA wins it. For some reason, I go with UGA here simply because I have faith in our defense. I am not confident in our running game but I am confident that Aaron Murray will play well. So, again, I say UGA wins this game and I personally believe it will be lower scoring than a lot of people believe. I say UGA wins it 24-21.
Up next is the defending SECe champs South Carolina. This team is VERY dangerous and scares me to death in that they have Jeffrey and Lattimore. What gives me hope is Garcia-he is still around and although he has played well against us in the past, I feel like should we contain Latt, we win this game. SCarolina is a solid team and they always play us well but I really like us to win this game, even with a loss to Boise. I say UGA 21-17.
Coastal Carolina, after the first two weeks, this one over at half and everyone gets a good rest. 42-10.
First road game is in Oxford against the Rebels. Now, I admit I know very little about Ole Miss but do know they return a stud at the RB position but the QB position is up for grabs, looks like they have another transfer coming in to take the QB slot. If they beat BYU in week one, they have a shot to be 3-0 heading into this game, they play Southern ILL-not a pushover but they should win that one and at Vandy before they host us. I still think we should win this game and maybe regain some of the road success we used to rely on. 31-14
Miss State comes to Athens coming off a great season and they return a lot of those kids from last year, including the QB and stud RB. That being said, we have more talent than the imposter Dogs and if we get swept by them in our home and home, that will be an embarrassment. We will know a little bit about Miss State before we play them, they have SEC games before us @AU and home vs. LSU. I have to say we win this one, but it will be close, 21-17.
Next up is a trip to Knox. Last two times we have been up there, UGLY and honestly, I think this is a game we could easily lose. Not that UT is better than us but just I will play the percentages here. I don't think we are going unbeaten this year and based on the last two trips up there, one time where a QB name Crompton looked like Joe Montana, I will pick the Vols to beat us, 24-21.
Next we are back in Tenn, this time against Vandy. They have a new coach and honestly this is a game we must take care of business. Sometimes we play poorly up in Nashville but I think coming off my loss to UT, we will come out ready to go. 35-10.
After a week off, we play in Jax against the mighty Gators and new coach Muschamp. As much as we NEED to win this game and have to start beating the Gators again, I simply can't pick us to win this game UNTIL we start proving we can win this game-and not just every 7-10 years either. We lost to UF in OT last year, I think UF is going to lose 3-4 games this year with a brutal schedule but I think they find a way to beat us again. This time 21-17.
We roll NMexSt, 48-0.
Auburn comes to town next and I don't expect AU to be nearly as talented as last year. I think all the Chizik and Malzahn talk will be in a slightly different tone this year. Amazing how a star player at the QB position, coupled with a bunch of seniors can make coaches look so good. I think our players will see the cheap shot by Fairley on Murray probably 1 million times before the game and us fans will see it nearly that many times. One play in a game will not dictate how this years game goes but certainly I think our guys will be VERY motivated for the Auburn whatever you choose to call them-I say we beat these guys 28-14.
Next up is home against Kentucky. Two years ago, we handed the game to UK on a silver platter, we had a 14 point lead only to have Branden Smith fumble the opening kickoff inside our 20, then Joe Cox threw an INT that was returned for a TD, also had a fumble returned for a TD I think-simply put, it was UGLY. I don't know much about UK but I am thinking that this game could have HUGE SECe implications. We win 31-21.
Finally good old fashion hate, at GTU. PJ won a game against us in year one but we now have a 2-1 record against the great one. I follow GT closer than any team outside of Athens, heck I work right arcross the street from that campus and have many friends that attended the school. I want to beat them more than anyone on the schedule, except maybe UF. To be honest, I personally believe since PJ took over, the talent level has dropped over there. Yes, he is now recruiting for his system at Tech but his system is built to work on the high school or lower divisions of college. Yes, it worked at Navy and yes he has had some success at Tech but two years ago, when we beat them in Atlanta with probably his best assembly of talent, I think that is as high as he can get that program. I don't see another RB in that program-unless they redshirted him, that comes close to Dwyer or Allen. Without that big hoss at the fullback or B-back, whatever position they call it, that takes away a BIG part of that offense. The new QB, well, he might be able to pass better than Nesbitt but they don't have any decent receivers-they had DThomas but Chan Gailey recruited him for his pro style offense. Nesbitt was a warrior at QB and took a beating but kept on playing-his injury happened trying to make a tackle, not being tackled. Most QB's are NOT going to last like he did getting pounded. I predict we win this game going away because if you can get ahead of Tech by 2 TD's, the game is usually over-except for our first game with them of course. I think with Jenkins and Geathers in the middle crushing the middle, then our speed at the OLB position, it is going to be TOUGH for them to run that offense against us. UGA 35-17.
So, I predict we go 10-2 and win the SECe. Not sure about the SEC title because I think once again the SECw will be the stronger division. I think LSU SHOULD be the favorite to win the west this year. If we go 0-2 at of the gate which is very possible, I think our best case is 9-3 but more likely 8-3 to even 7-5. If we go 1-1 out of the gate, I can still see us going 10-2 but probably best case is 9-3. Bottom line to me is our program has talent, and the young guys coming in are not only talented but confident and WILL push our vets. That being said, our mental state is fragile right now. We have had two straight average to below average seasons and we have a pretty small senior class-meaning guys that were around in 2007 and 2008 when we had a bit of a swagger to us. I am VERY hopeful this Dream Team class can bring some confidence back and also hopeful that Coach Grantham can get our D level of play back to the Van Gorder ways. I base a big part of my 10-2 prediction on our defense to be honest with you. I think our offense should be able to average over 20 points a game. I am banking on our D being able to hold teams under 20 a game. I am worried a bit about the OL and having another WR step up, but I personally like our running back situation. I think Caleb, Isiaiah, and Ken can get the job done-I honestly do. I really like the QB we have and if another WR will step up, between TKing and Orson Charles, we will have a good passing game threat. We have the best kicking tandem in the nation, you can't forget about that and how important that aspect of the game is. So, what do you all think. Feel free to give me your take on the season if you so wish.
Also, if any of you have any suggestions for places to see in SOCAL, let me know. I leave on Friday and will return a week from today. 3 baseball games in 3 days, but also a lot of time to sightsee. A high school buddy and I are going and he will be driving. Last time I was out there, I think in like '97 or '98, I was with my wife and I was driving-I was a nervous wreck and didn't get to see all the sights I wanted. This time I will be the true tourist, taking pictures, looking at everything. Get to see Dodger Stadium, Petco Park (Braves-Padres) and then Angel Stadium. As a BIG baseball guy myself, this is a dream trip because I have always wanted to go to Dodger Stadium-as a big Brave fan, I can remember all the HUGE games played there in the early to mid 90's before the Braves were moved to the NL east.
Friday, June 17, 2011
It's Friday thank goodness-UGA news slow which is actually GOOD NEWS
I read the other day, and a huge knock on wood here, there have been no UGA football players arrested since October of 2010!! Now, on the surface it might seem to be no big deal but based on our past few years off the field (and that translates to on the field per Coach Richt), this should be looked at as a huge positive for our program. Perhaps just maybe Coach Richt has gained control of these kids OR maybe even more importantly, the players themselves are policing each other much better than in the past. I have read articles about a mentoring program that UGA has started, where former players or just folks in the local Athens community will take a football player and be his mentor. I say whatever it takes, get these kids the support they need to become productive citizens. They are placed on a pedestal while in Athens but they need to realize that unless they are fortunate to become a pro athlete, they are going to have to get an average Joe job which means sweating out monthly bills, not being able to buy and do everything you want, basically become a regular ADULT. While they do have a lot placed on them while in Athens, having to put so much time into their sport, they are also provided with a place to live, free food, free tutoring-it is not a bad gig. I hear about how these guys need to be paid and again, I say they DO?? If they come from families with lower incomes, more than likely they qualify for some sort of grant-like the Pell grant. If they come from families that are not in bad shape, I feel sure Mom and Dad can fork out a little extra cash to take their girlfriend to a movie and dinner every so often. I just think paying players opens up a HUGE can of worms that could destroy college athletics as we know it. I am all for putting an amount in a bank account, each year with the program a certain amount is deposited and then when the kid finishes school-and I mean graduates because I believe that these kids should be setting the goal of graduating, they would receive a lump sum. This amount could help them say buy a new house or car, basically get them off to a positive start in their life away from school. I think with the amount of money they bring in for the school, especially the football and basketball kids deserve this positive reward for a job well done. Of course the school/atheletic department makes PLENTY enough money to provid this for all athletes, maybe more could go to football, second most to basketball but all student athletes would qualify for the one time lump sum. Ok enough on that.
The Braves play the Rangers on Saturday, and both Zach Cone and Jonathan Taylor plan to attend the game. To read more, check this out.
http://dogbytesonline.com/taylor-cone-to-attend-rangers-braves-46448/
Again I say, incredibly classy move my the Texas organization to draft JT. I hope they find a way for him to be involved in the organization in some form or fashion. That would be a great/positive end to what has been a terrible accident.
Finally a few football related articles from the AJC, one I heard about listening to sports talk this morning. I could spend hours talking about the STUPID rules of the NCAA, this would be another classic example. Seems Mark Richt is about as talented working his cell phone as I am working mine, which means NOT talented. Seems he sent a text to a potential recruit's Dad instead of a staff member.
http://blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/2011/06/16/pocket-dialing-inadvertent-texts-result-in-ncaa-violations-for-uga/?cxntfid=blogs_uga_sports_blog
Finally, the Bill King blog in the AJC sums up the preseason magazine scene which some mags are predicting SECe champs for UGA. From 6-7 to SECe champs would be quite a jump but as I have blogged before, I think if we can win those first two games, obviously game 2 has HUGE SECe implications, there is no doubt we can win the east. I still think LSU is the team to beat in the west, I think Bama has peaked and will still be good but this year likely will finish with much the same record as last year. But, if you make the SEC title game, you at least have a shot to win it. Check back to our last one in 2005, everyone thought LSU would beat us but didn't quite turn out that way. Still, the east to me is really up for grabs between us, UF and SCarolina. I could easy any of those three winning the title. Honestly, I would prefer us to not be ranked to start the season. I don't think we deserve it right now, let the players/coaches earn the ranking based on their play on the field. Sure, ranking them 24 or 20 or whatever is probably not a stretch with the tradition our program holds, but I personally think this group needs to be unranked because they have not proved worthy of a ranking the past couple years quite honestly. Let them use that as yet another motivational factor.
http://blogs.ajc.com/junkyard-blawg/2011/06/17/dawgs-continue-unlikely-rise-in-preseason-picks/?cxntfid=blogs_junkyard_blawg
Happy Father's Day to all you Dad's out there, a special Happy Dad day to my Dad. A true inspiration to me in so many ways, I just hope I can be the Dad to my kids he has always been to my brother and I. I can say that being a Dad now, it has given me a greater appreciation for both my parents and all the sacrifices you make for your children. Yes, it is a tough job to be a parent, probably the toughest job you will ever have on this earth. But, you know what, it is a job that once you take it on you simply can't imagine your life without it. I am very proud of my two kids and love them more than words can say but there are some days where I just want to get away and take a break from them. That being said, I can honestly say they are the two biggest and best accomplishments in my lifetime. I hope you all have a great weekend and Go Dogs!
The Braves play the Rangers on Saturday, and both Zach Cone and Jonathan Taylor plan to attend the game. To read more, check this out.
http://dogbytesonline.com/taylor-cone-to-attend-rangers-braves-46448/
Again I say, incredibly classy move my the Texas organization to draft JT. I hope they find a way for him to be involved in the organization in some form or fashion. That would be a great/positive end to what has been a terrible accident.
Finally a few football related articles from the AJC, one I heard about listening to sports talk this morning. I could spend hours talking about the STUPID rules of the NCAA, this would be another classic example. Seems Mark Richt is about as talented working his cell phone as I am working mine, which means NOT talented. Seems he sent a text to a potential recruit's Dad instead of a staff member.
http://blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/2011/06/16/pocket-dialing-inadvertent-texts-result-in-ncaa-violations-for-uga/?cxntfid=blogs_uga_sports_blog
Finally, the Bill King blog in the AJC sums up the preseason magazine scene which some mags are predicting SECe champs for UGA. From 6-7 to SECe champs would be quite a jump but as I have blogged before, I think if we can win those first two games, obviously game 2 has HUGE SECe implications, there is no doubt we can win the east. I still think LSU is the team to beat in the west, I think Bama has peaked and will still be good but this year likely will finish with much the same record as last year. But, if you make the SEC title game, you at least have a shot to win it. Check back to our last one in 2005, everyone thought LSU would beat us but didn't quite turn out that way. Still, the east to me is really up for grabs between us, UF and SCarolina. I could easy any of those three winning the title. Honestly, I would prefer us to not be ranked to start the season. I don't think we deserve it right now, let the players/coaches earn the ranking based on their play on the field. Sure, ranking them 24 or 20 or whatever is probably not a stretch with the tradition our program holds, but I personally think this group needs to be unranked because they have not proved worthy of a ranking the past couple years quite honestly. Let them use that as yet another motivational factor.
http://blogs.ajc.com/junkyard-blawg/2011/06/17/dawgs-continue-unlikely-rise-in-preseason-picks/?cxntfid=blogs_junkyard_blawg
Happy Father's Day to all you Dad's out there, a special Happy Dad day to my Dad. A true inspiration to me in so many ways, I just hope I can be the Dad to my kids he has always been to my brother and I. I can say that being a Dad now, it has given me a greater appreciation for both my parents and all the sacrifices you make for your children. Yes, it is a tough job to be a parent, probably the toughest job you will ever have on this earth. But, you know what, it is a job that once you take it on you simply can't imagine your life without it. I am very proud of my two kids and love them more than words can say but there are some days where I just want to get away and take a break from them. That being said, I can honestly say they are the two biggest and best accomplishments in my lifetime. I hope you all have a great weekend and Go Dogs!
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
All freshmen on campus for the most part, 2008 kickoff classic like this year?
Just reading Seth Emerson's blog, he reports all freshmen have enrolled now, with the except of Chris Mayes, whom the coaches knew would not qualify when he signed, Devin Bowman, Ramik Wilson and Kent Turene. Now, of the other 3, the only surprise to the list is Bowman because the other two kids are from Florida and have yet to graduate HS yet-the Florida school calendar is different than Georgia's. Coach Richt still states he expects all to make it in except Mayes, so not sure what is holding up Bowman. When you look at the calendar and realize it is mid June, WOW, it truly is not very long until August now.
Here is a blog update on the 4 verbals UGA collected over this past weekend. You can see that Ray Drew is still impacting our recruiting. There is no doubt he will continue to be a big influence in the future. If you know anything about a kid like Drew-an ordained minister, they can be one of your greatest representatives of your university because they are so well respected and with him being a kid about their age, no doubt he carries a lot of respect, admiration and courage.
http://dogbytesonline.com/four-things-on-georgias-four-weekend-commitments-46371/
Here is another positive article to read, this time about former TE Leonard Pope, he dove in a pool to save a 6 year from drowning. With all the negative stories about athletes, it is always refreshing to read a story like this one.
http://dogbytesonline.com/pope-hailed-a-hero-after-daring-rescue-46401/
Finally a good article about how our players are viewing the start of the season, which includes the Boise game at the Dome followed by SECe champ South Carolina in Athens the next week. A great way to test our guys and our season right off the bat.
http://dogbytesonline.com/robinson-bulldogs-pumped-for-difficult-start-to-2011-season-46398/
Last thing for today, I posted on the Dawgpost how this kickoff game reminds me a lot of the Bama/Clemson game of 2008. Bama was coming off a 7-6 season, which would have been our record had we beaten UCF-a team that had no business beating but let us not beat a dead horse. Bama was ranked 24 in the AP, unranked in the coaches poll, Clemson was coming off a 9-4 season, ranked 9 in both polls and was a 4.5 pt favorite in that game. Bama had a great recruiting class coming in, had a great JUCO NT coming in to help turn around the 3-4 d they have set up the year before. Clemson was expected to win the ACC title that year, and had thunder/lightning in the backfield-CJ Spiller and James Davis. Bama won that game 34-10 and went on to go 12-0 and then lose the SEC title to UF that year. Now, I am not about to predict a unbeaten season for UGA this year, but, I think there is no doubt Bama used that game as a springboard to have a great turnaround season and I sure do hope we can do the same. Many will say that if you look at the coaching in that 2008 game, you could give a clear advantage to Nick Saban over Tommy Bowden-I would agree completely with that. You then look at Mark Richt against Chris Peterson and most say Peterson wins that hands down. While I respect the job Peterson has done with Boise, I firmly believe Richt has not forgotten how to coach football on the same level he did from 2002-2005, I think what has been missing the since 2005 is a dominating D. I have a lot of confidence that we have found our man to lead the D and I think our D will be the reason or way we turn our fortunes around. I am hoping that John Jenkins/Kwame Geathers will make the impact that Mt. Cody did for Bama-I think if you talk to most Bama fans they will tell you, inserting that guy on the DL, instantly improved their overall D. They also had a young RB that year in Mark Ingram who played along with a senior, Glen Coffee. The stud recruit at WR was Julio Jones, the QB was a senior in John Parker Wilson, starting his second year as starter after playing behing Brodie Croyle his first two years on campus. I just had this thought as I watched the replay of the 2008 SEC title game, #1 Bama vs. #2 UF, the Alabama announcers were doing this broadcast and they said something like, most fans expected Bama to lose their first game of the season at the Ga. Dome, none expected the first loss to be in game 13 at the Dome. Again, I don't predict we go unbeaten this season, it takes a lot of luck to make that happen. That being said, IF and it is as big IF, we win games 1 and 2, I can see us at least having a shot at it.
Here is a blog update on the 4 verbals UGA collected over this past weekend. You can see that Ray Drew is still impacting our recruiting. There is no doubt he will continue to be a big influence in the future. If you know anything about a kid like Drew-an ordained minister, they can be one of your greatest representatives of your university because they are so well respected and with him being a kid about their age, no doubt he carries a lot of respect, admiration and courage.
http://dogbytesonline.com/four-things-on-georgias-four-weekend-commitments-46371/
Here is another positive article to read, this time about former TE Leonard Pope, he dove in a pool to save a 6 year from drowning. With all the negative stories about athletes, it is always refreshing to read a story like this one.
http://dogbytesonline.com/pope-hailed-a-hero-after-daring-rescue-46401/
Finally a good article about how our players are viewing the start of the season, which includes the Boise game at the Dome followed by SECe champ South Carolina in Athens the next week. A great way to test our guys and our season right off the bat.
http://dogbytesonline.com/robinson-bulldogs-pumped-for-difficult-start-to-2011-season-46398/
Last thing for today, I posted on the Dawgpost how this kickoff game reminds me a lot of the Bama/Clemson game of 2008. Bama was coming off a 7-6 season, which would have been our record had we beaten UCF-a team that had no business beating but let us not beat a dead horse. Bama was ranked 24 in the AP, unranked in the coaches poll, Clemson was coming off a 9-4 season, ranked 9 in both polls and was a 4.5 pt favorite in that game. Bama had a great recruiting class coming in, had a great JUCO NT coming in to help turn around the 3-4 d they have set up the year before. Clemson was expected to win the ACC title that year, and had thunder/lightning in the backfield-CJ Spiller and James Davis. Bama won that game 34-10 and went on to go 12-0 and then lose the SEC title to UF that year. Now, I am not about to predict a unbeaten season for UGA this year, but, I think there is no doubt Bama used that game as a springboard to have a great turnaround season and I sure do hope we can do the same. Many will say that if you look at the coaching in that 2008 game, you could give a clear advantage to Nick Saban over Tommy Bowden-I would agree completely with that. You then look at Mark Richt against Chris Peterson and most say Peterson wins that hands down. While I respect the job Peterson has done with Boise, I firmly believe Richt has not forgotten how to coach football on the same level he did from 2002-2005, I think what has been missing the since 2005 is a dominating D. I have a lot of confidence that we have found our man to lead the D and I think our D will be the reason or way we turn our fortunes around. I am hoping that John Jenkins/Kwame Geathers will make the impact that Mt. Cody did for Bama-I think if you talk to most Bama fans they will tell you, inserting that guy on the DL, instantly improved their overall D. They also had a young RB that year in Mark Ingram who played along with a senior, Glen Coffee. The stud recruit at WR was Julio Jones, the QB was a senior in John Parker Wilson, starting his second year as starter after playing behing Brodie Croyle his first two years on campus. I just had this thought as I watched the replay of the 2008 SEC title game, #1 Bama vs. #2 UF, the Alabama announcers were doing this broadcast and they said something like, most fans expected Bama to lose their first game of the season at the Ga. Dome, none expected the first loss to be in game 13 at the Dome. Again, I don't predict we go unbeaten this season, it takes a lot of luck to make that happen. That being said, IF and it is as big IF, we win games 1 and 2, I can see us at least having a shot at it.
Monday, June 13, 2011
I'm back but not much time
I had a great time with my family down at Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. The seaweed was bad all days except one, it was HOTTTT but you can't beat good times at the beach. I don't have much time to post today, getting back to work and also planning a trip with a good buddy of mine in a couple weeks-a western trip to see 3 baseball games in 3 days, truly a trip that I will LOVE and one day I hope I can take my son on a similar trip. A game at Dodger stadium, always a place I have wanted to visit since the early 90's when the Braves and Dodgers used to lock horns for the division most years, Dodgers playing the Angels, then a trip south to watch the Braves take on the Padres, then finally back up north to see the Angels play the Nationals in Anaheim. I have been to LA once years ago with my wife, I was driving and a nervous wreck with that famous LA traffic. This time my buddy will be behind the wheel, he has family out that way and knows the area well so I plan to see a lot this time.
On the UGA front, of course the baseball team fell to Oregon State but put up a good fight. Of course Perno will be back for another year, let's just hope he has GOOD LUCK with the baseball draft. Our two best pitchers got drafted but low enough to hopefully bring them back. Of course some of our best signees got selected as well but hopefully some will still report. Of course the best story out of the draft was the Texas Rangers selecting Zach Cone in the first round but also selecting Johnathan Taylor in the 33rd round. What a classy move by that organization to give that kid a call like that, you have been selected by the Texas Rangers. Obviously JT will never play for the Rangers but they showed a LOT of class and respect to a player that likely WOULD have been drafted had he not had the horrible injury.
Football team picked up 4 more commits, the biggest being yet another Jonathan Taylor, this one from Jenkins County and possibly the #1 recruit in the state for the class of 2012. Also his teammate James Deloach. The Dogs also picked up a punter from Cartersville, Collin Barber and a FB/athlete from Pierce County in Quayvon Hicks. Some have made fun of Barber and Hicks because they didn't have many offers but we now have landed the replacements for Walsh and Butler in the class of 2012. Sure, it is possible to find walk on kickers but if you can sign the best, why not give out two spots. The troubling spot to me is the kid we have from California, Bogotay-that WAS a wasted spot. But, I have no problem getting the best punter and kicker you can get, and a great snapper-Theus. Special teams is truly 1/3 of the game, why not get the best you can. Seems our recruiting efforts are going fine, despite all the negative our opponents are spewing and the negative from our own fanbase about who we are NOT getting. We will NEVER have a problem with talent in Athens, just my personal opinion. All for now.
On the UGA front, of course the baseball team fell to Oregon State but put up a good fight. Of course Perno will be back for another year, let's just hope he has GOOD LUCK with the baseball draft. Our two best pitchers got drafted but low enough to hopefully bring them back. Of course some of our best signees got selected as well but hopefully some will still report. Of course the best story out of the draft was the Texas Rangers selecting Zach Cone in the first round but also selecting Johnathan Taylor in the 33rd round. What a classy move by that organization to give that kid a call like that, you have been selected by the Texas Rangers. Obviously JT will never play for the Rangers but they showed a LOT of class and respect to a player that likely WOULD have been drafted had he not had the horrible injury.
Football team picked up 4 more commits, the biggest being yet another Jonathan Taylor, this one from Jenkins County and possibly the #1 recruit in the state for the class of 2012. Also his teammate James Deloach. The Dogs also picked up a punter from Cartersville, Collin Barber and a FB/athlete from Pierce County in Quayvon Hicks. Some have made fun of Barber and Hicks because they didn't have many offers but we now have landed the replacements for Walsh and Butler in the class of 2012. Sure, it is possible to find walk on kickers but if you can sign the best, why not give out two spots. The troubling spot to me is the kid we have from California, Bogotay-that WAS a wasted spot. But, I have no problem getting the best punter and kicker you can get, and a great snapper-Theus. Special teams is truly 1/3 of the game, why not get the best you can. Seems our recruiting efforts are going fine, despite all the negative our opponents are spewing and the negative from our own fanbase about who we are NOT getting. We will NEVER have a problem with talent in Athens, just my personal opinion. All for now.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Baseball regional starts today, Ealey to Jax State, SCarolina in the heat
So the Diamond Dogs today start their road toward Omaha by taking on a school located in OMAHA. In fact Creighton has played 18 games this season at the new home of the College World Series-TD Ameritrade Park. Yes, Rosenblatt is no more which is kind of sad. Anyway, Creighton is a very tough opening opponent. They have an ace pitcher named Jonas Dufek, 11-1 2.17 era will start today against UGA. Game is set to start at 4pm eastern. Of course UGA will counter with our own ace in Michael Palazzone, 10-4 3.20 era. Creighton finished the season with a 44-14 record while we of course finished a game above 500 but enough to get in at 31-30. Check out these stats, pulled from Rivals Oregon State writer Jerry Perry, to give you an idea about the 4 teams in our regional.
I think one thing that jumps out at you, besides Creighton's W-L record, stength of schedule. Now, in a regional you throw that out the window but certainly you can see that UGA and OSU would be the favorites based on the competition we have faced. Meaning, neither team is going to be intimidated by facing Creighton or Little Rock or each other for that matter. Also interesting is OSU comes in having lost 5 straight.
Now look at the offensive numbers.
UGA has the highest batting average which is surprising to me but score the fewest runs. Bottom line though, none of the 4 teams are truly offensive teams. I mean, remember, Creighton strength of schedule is 115, and their offensive numbers are not substantially better than ours playing the toughest schedule.
Now looking at pitching and defense
Here is where you see the top 2 seeds seem to be further ahead. Now, considering Palazzone has a 3.20 era, the rest of our staff is obviously not on that level. But, again, the OSU numbers are FAR more impressive than is the Creighton numbers based again on competition. OSU plays some VERY good schools in the PAC, a 2.93 team era is OUTSTANDING.
My personal opinion here, it should be either OSU or UGA winning this regional. IF UGA can win today, I think they will have a shot but I simply can't see us making it through the losers bracket because of our lack of pitching depth. I think OSU clearly has the advantage pitching wise, plus they are at home so I look for the Beavers to take it but you never truly know and that is why they play the games.
Washaun Ealey has found a new home, that being Jacksonville State in Alabama. This year the Gamecocks will play at Kentucky, you may remember that WE rushed for 5 touchdowns last year against UK so he gets another shot as he will be able to play right away. Too bad Jax State is not continuing their rivalry with GT, I would LOVE for Ealey to run all over the bumble bees. Anyway, I wish him the best and I hope he does well. I think we will survive just fine without him however.
Mark Richt made mention several times on the road doing his speeches that the UGA/SCarolina game would be a night but come to find out, the game will NOT be a night-maybe you could say early evening. It was announced yesterday that ESPN will televise the game on Sept 10th at 4:30. Course the Boise State game will start at 8pm on Sept 3rd. Also, it was announced the UGA/UF game will be on CBS with a 3:30 kickoff on Oct 29th. Back to the SCarolina game, WOW, it is going to be smoking hot for that game. For me personally, I do not like the 4:30 kickoffs because it conflicts with my daughters cheer schedule more than likely but, maybe I will get to see the second half. I just can't believe it is so close to football season.
Well, all for now and I will be away at the beach next week, so no blogging more than likely unless something big breaks. Thanks for reading and Go Dogs!!
OSU (1) | Creighton (2) | Georgia (3) | UALR (4) | |
| Overall Record: | 38 – 17 | 44 – 14 | 31 – 30 | 24 – 32 |
| Conference Record: | 17 – 10 (T-2nd) | 15 – 6 (1st) | 16 – 14 (4th) | 10 – 20 (8th) |
| Home: | 20 – 7 | 23 – 5 | 15 – 13 | 14 – 11 |
| Away/Neutral Sites: | 18 – 10 | 21 – 9 | 16 – 17 | 10 – 21 |
| Last 10 Games: | 4 – 6 | 9 – 1 | 6 – 4 | 5 – 5 |
| Last 5 Games: | 0 – 5 | 4 – 1 | 3 – 2 | 4 – 1 |
| RPI*: | 31 | 29 | 17 | 156 |
| SOS*: | 31 | 115 | 1 | 80 |
| ISR*: | 14 | 25 | 32 | 157 |
| *RPI, SOS, & ISR numbers via boydsworld.com | ||||
I think one thing that jumps out at you, besides Creighton's W-L record, stength of schedule. Now, in a regional you throw that out the window but certainly you can see that UGA and OSU would be the favorites based on the competition we have faced. Meaning, neither team is going to be intimidated by facing Creighton or Little Rock or each other for that matter. Also interesting is OSU comes in having lost 5 straight.
Now look at the offensive numbers.
| Offensive Comparison | ||||
OSU (1) | Creighton (2) | Georgia (3) | UALR (4) | |
| Runs/Game | 5.73 | 5.33 | 4.80 | 5.20 |
| Batting Ave. | .266 | .269 | .277 | .275 |
| OB% | .366 | .357 | .340 | .365 |
| SLG% | .380 | .406 | .384 | .389 |
| HR/Game | 0.45 | 0.64 | 0.59 | 0.59 |
| BB Per Game | 4.42 | 3.43 | 2.67 | 4.11 |
| K’s Per Game | 7.13 | 6.60 | 7.05 | 7.20 |
| Stolen Bases | 50 of 64 | 66 of 90 | 45 of 59 | 51 of 76 |
UGA has the highest batting average which is surprising to me but score the fewest runs. Bottom line though, none of the 4 teams are truly offensive teams. I mean, remember, Creighton strength of schedule is 115, and their offensive numbers are not substantially better than ours playing the toughest schedule.
Now looking at pitching and defense
| Pitching & Defense Comparison | ||||
OSU (1) | Creighton (2) | Georgia (3) | UALR (4) | |
| Team ERA | 2.93 | 3.38 | 4.99 | 5.84 |
| Opponent Bat Ave. | .243 | .240 | .293 | .306 |
| Team WHIP | 1.19 | 1.24 | 1.54 | 1.74 |
| HR Allowed/Game | 0.29 | 0.31 | 0.77 | 0.68 |
| BB Per 9 IP | 2.67 | 3.27 | 3.50 | 4.84 |
| K Per 9 IP | 7.46 | 7.18 | 6.23 | 5.10 |
| Fielding % | .971 | .980 | .974 | .973 |
| Stolen Bases Allowed | 16 of 35 | 45 of 69 | 110 of 132 | 57 of 87 |
Here is where you see the top 2 seeds seem to be further ahead. Now, considering Palazzone has a 3.20 era, the rest of our staff is obviously not on that level. But, again, the OSU numbers are FAR more impressive than is the Creighton numbers based again on competition. OSU plays some VERY good schools in the PAC, a 2.93 team era is OUTSTANDING.
My personal opinion here, it should be either OSU or UGA winning this regional. IF UGA can win today, I think they will have a shot but I simply can't see us making it through the losers bracket because of our lack of pitching depth. I think OSU clearly has the advantage pitching wise, plus they are at home so I look for the Beavers to take it but you never truly know and that is why they play the games.
Washaun Ealey has found a new home, that being Jacksonville State in Alabama. This year the Gamecocks will play at Kentucky, you may remember that WE rushed for 5 touchdowns last year against UK so he gets another shot as he will be able to play right away. Too bad Jax State is not continuing their rivalry with GT, I would LOVE for Ealey to run all over the bumble bees. Anyway, I wish him the best and I hope he does well. I think we will survive just fine without him however.
Mark Richt made mention several times on the road doing his speeches that the UGA/SCarolina game would be a night but come to find out, the game will NOT be a night-maybe you could say early evening. It was announced yesterday that ESPN will televise the game on Sept 10th at 4:30. Course the Boise State game will start at 8pm on Sept 3rd. Also, it was announced the UGA/UF game will be on CBS with a 3:30 kickoff on Oct 29th. Back to the SCarolina game, WOW, it is going to be smoking hot for that game. For me personally, I do not like the 4:30 kickoffs because it conflicts with my daughters cheer schedule more than likely but, maybe I will get to see the second half. I just can't believe it is so close to football season.
Well, all for now and I will be away at the beach next week, so no blogging more than likely unless something big breaks. Thanks for reading and Go Dogs!!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Caldwell-Pope is officially qualified per AJC, Spurrier wants to pay players??
So, yesterday I looked at the UGA basketball roster, ASSuming that all our FR would be eligible to play this fall. Today I read in the AJC that our 5 star player is qualified-it had been rumored that he might not make it-I had heard the rumors but never really gave it much thought. Evidently, this kid was very close to not making it in school but per his high school coach, buckled down and made the grades. Good for Kentavious and good for our hoops program. Interesting to read in the article, a couple guys that I mentioned as being 3 stars, evidently in some rankings are only 2 stars, Tim Dixon and John Cannon. One thing I did fail to mention in breaking down the roster yesterday, you can't teach size. Same thing applies in football or baseball, you can't teach speed. You can teach (coach) a kid to rebound better, or shoot better or block out better, pass better, defend better etc but there are some things you can't coach up-in basketball, height is one of them. So, even though our bigs are not ranked very highly, it is very appealing that we have a 7-0, 6-11 and 6-10 coming in. IF nothing else, you have to figure those guys can block shots and grab some rebounds.
Good ole Steve Spurrier is getting some media attention today because yesterday he proposed that every football player should get $300 for every football game played-and said he would be willing to pay the money himself. This argument about players getting paid just never seems to go away. I think the players ARE getting paid, they are getting a free education, free food, and free TV exposure for a possible NFL career. Sure, the school gets money from merchandise sold, tickets sold, TV contracts, yep, they pocket money for every AJ Green #8 jersey sold, but so what. Do you not think there were a TON of #34 jersey's floating around back in the 80's? Sure, TV money is out of control now and the schools do make a ton of money but if you start paying players, you open up a HUGE can of worms. How do you cut that payment off-do all athletes get paid, do the non revenue athletes get paid? Do women get paid the same as men? If you look at how much it costs for a college education these days-including tuition, room and board, books, food, tutoring-I think you would be amazed. (Yes, student athletes have a special study center built just for them, they have tutors available to help them with every class). Also, the kids from families with less money qualify for pell grants and other grants-CASH in their pockets. For those that come from families that have some money-the ones that don't qualify for any grants, most likely Mom and Dad have a little cash to give their kids-they are NOT having to pay for college so I am sure they can afford to give the kid a few dollars when needed. I just get tired of hearing about how these kids need to be paid and how unfair it is that they are not getting paid. If anything, I can see a school setting up a fund for each kid when he enters college, for every year he is a student athlete in good standing, a set amount of money is deposited into an account. When that player finishes his eligibilty-even those that leave early for the pros, he is then able to withdraw his money from the account-but only after he has exhausted is playing eligibility-either because he/she is a senior or because they opt for the pros. As long as the kid was in good standing, he gets the money. I can see that as an incentive to the kids and it would be EASY for everyone to track-meaning the NCAA could and would closely monitor these accounts.
Looks like if the basketball coaches have their way, the divisions are gone. I think they should be gone for baseball as well. As I noted yesterday, there should be no divisions for sports that do NOT play a championship game as they serve no purpose. Now it will be up to the AD's to go along with what the coaches want.
The "dream team" will report to campus on June 6th. Per Mark Richt, they will be kept together for workouts this summer before eventually splitting off to work with the players at their positions. I can't remember a signing "class" before that has greater expectations as a group. Yes, there are certain players that maybe have even great expectations-Crowell, Drew, Mitchell, Swann, Marshall-maybe a few others, but really it is this entire class that comes in with the high praise and expectation of getting UGA football back to where it belongs. I think those expectations are a little high but I will say, these kids do come in with a high level of confidence and they believe they can and will take positions from the upper class kids that maybe have grown complacent. I think it is going to be a VERY spirited summer and fall camp-not only because of our first two games, but because our older guys are going to be ready to fight and compete for their jobs-competition is always a positive thing in my book. One more blog before I head to the beach-tomorrow might be a short one (baseball preview for sure) so I will take this opportunity to say again, thanks for stopping by. Please feel free to share my blog to all UGA faithful that might be bored and need something to read. As long as I don't put you to sleep-well, then again, if I can help someone that is having trouble sleeping, that is fine as well. Just hard to believe that it is already June, football season truly is just around the corner.
Good ole Steve Spurrier is getting some media attention today because yesterday he proposed that every football player should get $300 for every football game played-and said he would be willing to pay the money himself. This argument about players getting paid just never seems to go away. I think the players ARE getting paid, they are getting a free education, free food, and free TV exposure for a possible NFL career. Sure, the school gets money from merchandise sold, tickets sold, TV contracts, yep, they pocket money for every AJ Green #8 jersey sold, but so what. Do you not think there were a TON of #34 jersey's floating around back in the 80's? Sure, TV money is out of control now and the schools do make a ton of money but if you start paying players, you open up a HUGE can of worms. How do you cut that payment off-do all athletes get paid, do the non revenue athletes get paid? Do women get paid the same as men? If you look at how much it costs for a college education these days-including tuition, room and board, books, food, tutoring-I think you would be amazed. (Yes, student athletes have a special study center built just for them, they have tutors available to help them with every class). Also, the kids from families with less money qualify for pell grants and other grants-CASH in their pockets. For those that come from families that have some money-the ones that don't qualify for any grants, most likely Mom and Dad have a little cash to give their kids-they are NOT having to pay for college so I am sure they can afford to give the kid a few dollars when needed. I just get tired of hearing about how these kids need to be paid and how unfair it is that they are not getting paid. If anything, I can see a school setting up a fund for each kid when he enters college, for every year he is a student athlete in good standing, a set amount of money is deposited into an account. When that player finishes his eligibilty-even those that leave early for the pros, he is then able to withdraw his money from the account-but only after he has exhausted is playing eligibility-either because he/she is a senior or because they opt for the pros. As long as the kid was in good standing, he gets the money. I can see that as an incentive to the kids and it would be EASY for everyone to track-meaning the NCAA could and would closely monitor these accounts.
Looks like if the basketball coaches have their way, the divisions are gone. I think they should be gone for baseball as well. As I noted yesterday, there should be no divisions for sports that do NOT play a championship game as they serve no purpose. Now it will be up to the AD's to go along with what the coaches want.
The "dream team" will report to campus on June 6th. Per Mark Richt, they will be kept together for workouts this summer before eventually splitting off to work with the players at their positions. I can't remember a signing "class" before that has greater expectations as a group. Yes, there are certain players that maybe have even great expectations-Crowell, Drew, Mitchell, Swann, Marshall-maybe a few others, but really it is this entire class that comes in with the high praise and expectation of getting UGA football back to where it belongs. I think those expectations are a little high but I will say, these kids do come in with a high level of confidence and they believe they can and will take positions from the upper class kids that maybe have grown complacent. I think it is going to be a VERY spirited summer and fall camp-not only because of our first two games, but because our older guys are going to be ready to fight and compete for their jobs-competition is always a positive thing in my book. One more blog before I head to the beach-tomorrow might be a short one (baseball preview for sure) so I will take this opportunity to say again, thanks for stopping by. Please feel free to share my blog to all UGA faithful that might be bored and need something to read. As long as I don't put you to sleep-well, then again, if I can help someone that is having trouble sleeping, that is fine as well. Just hard to believe that it is already June, football season truly is just around the corner.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Let's break down our hoops roster, SEC takes over Destin this week
Ok, so regular readers on this blog probably think I am one of those negative fans that always look on the dark side and never look at the positive. Well, let me just say this, I LOVE the University of Georgia-following the sports programs of the university is a passion for me. I grew up following the sports programs, I graduated from UGA, I have attended a ton of football games over the years, I truly bleed red and black as do most that read this blog-oh and thanks for reading! So, I like to call myself a realist when it comes to our programs. Currently, I LOVE all three coaches for our major sports programs-which I consider football, basketball and baseball. That being said, I see flaws in each and every one of them as well. But then again, EVERY person has flaws and every coach has flaws-just look at the former head coach at THE Ohio State University as an example. So, while I love to heap praise on coaches and players when they need it, I also am not afraid to share my opinion when things look bleak. Now that I have opened with that disclaimer, I have been critical of Mark Fox and his recruiting efforts so I have decided to blog today about his recruiting efforts.
First of all, let's look at our current roster as it stands today-
SR's
Dustin Ware-G
Gerald Robinson-G
Connor Nolte-G-F
Matt Bucklin-G
JR's
Vincent Williams-G
Sherrard Brantley-G
John Florveus-C
SOPH's
Marcus Thornton-F
Donte Williams-F
FR
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope-G
Tim Dixon-F/C
John Cannon-C
Nemanja Djurisic-F
So, that is a total of 13 on scholarship, of course Bucklin and Nolte both are walkons that have been given spots, thus those two were the spots available for Harrow and or Ware. So, as you see in our roster, we are short on guards and thus why losing these two national recruits really hurts. Granted, the two Kentucky schools they chose instead have a boatload more tradition in hoops and coaches that are on the elite level-also slimeball coaches but that is another issue all together. If you were to list a starting unit off this roster, I think you have to have a 3 guard lineup-Ware, Robinson, Caldwell-Pope, Thornton/Williams and then either Florveus/Cannon/Dixon. Or you play both Thornton and Williams and you don't have a big man in the middle. Now, after this year you lose Ware and Robinson. You are left with Vincent Williams, Caldwell-Pope, and Sherrard Brantley as your guards-YIKES. Again, Harrow could have stepped right in here and been a starter day one, UK I can bet will recruit another stud or two at PG, Harrow will have to share time almost guaranteed. Just makes you really wonder, NBA folks will find you regardless where you play-if you can play.
To break down Mark Fox's recruiting since he arrived, let's break down his lists. Remember, I think most people, myself included, worried about his recruiting from the first day he arrived having no connections to this area. He did hire a couple assistants that had some recruiting ties to the ATL but Mark Fox himself was a virtual unknown. He was hired in the spring of 2009 so he basically didn't have a first recruiting class but here is the class of 2009. DeMario Mayfield who never showed up in Athens, and Vincent Williams-a late signee from Miami, Fla. Both these kids were 3 stars. Class of 2010, Sherrard Brantley-a JUCO that was not ranked by rivals, Marcus Thornton and Donte Williams, both 3 stars. Marcus of course was set to got to Clemson until Oliver Purnell left for another job-it was a great get for Fox just because Marcus was state of Ga. player of the year and had a lot of potential. Class of 2011, Cannon, Djurisic, Dixon, Florveus, all 3 stars. The shining jewel of the Mark Fox recruiting efforts for his 3 recruiting cycles, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, a 5 star and McDonald's all American. Both Harrow and Kevin Ware mentioned the chance to play with him when talking about UGA but both went elsewhere. Now, certainly getting CP was HUGE for Coach Fox but as you can see, other than this one kid, his recruiting has been no better than that of Dennis Felton. Look at the last 3 recruiting classes brought in by Felton-2006 Takais Brown and Albert Jackson-Takais was force but of course ended up flunking out. Albert was a 3 star big guy that never really panned out. 2007 class, Chris Barnes, Jeremey Jacob, Troy Brewer, Jeremy Price, and Zac Swansey. Barnes, Brewer and Swansey all 3 stars, Jacob and Price both 4 stars. Course Barnes and Price ended up being decent if not solid players-especially Price, Swansey helped out a little bit, Jacob and Brewer nothing. 2008 class, Thompkins, Leslie, Ware, Ebuka Anyaorah, Drazen Zlovaric. Of course we all know the first three on this list have turned out to be good players, all these guys were 3 stars except Thompkins who was a 4 star.
So, Felton's last 3 years recruiting, no 5 stars but 3 four stars. Fox's first 3 years recruiting, 1 5 star and no 4 stars. Now, if you look at Felton's first three years, you might give Fox an edge because Felton brought in Steve Newman, Dave Bliss, Younes Idrissi, Marcus Sikes but also in his first three years in brought in Levi Stukes, Channing Toney, Sundiata Gaines, Mike Mercer, Bobby Humphrey, Terrance Woodbury, and of course signed Lou Williams who never played. So, maybe it is a wash??? Also, Felton was recruiting in a time when our program, already a tough sale, had the Harrick mess/dark cloud hanging over us. It was a tough time.
This brings us to the class of 2012. This upcoming class will be Mark Fox's 4th class, he is coming off a great season for our program BUT also has lost his two top players. The SEC east is TOUGH and not getting any easier. This is why this recruiting class is SOOOO important and why UGA hoops fans have been paying such close attention to how this class shapes up. Looking at our roster, it is pretty easy to see where we need help-guard/wings are a really big need. We need a great point guard, we need more guys that can flat out shoot the basketball, I think we have a lot of big bodies, we have to hope one or two of them can offer some offensive scoring ability. The bigs that are in the class of 2012 appear for certain to be headed out of state. But, there are a lot of guard/wings possible that have UGA under consideration. Let me look at a few of the top ones-
Shaq Goodwin, F SWDekalb-ok, so this is a big guy (6'8" 230lbs) but he is ranked #1 in the state by Rivals but also is very interested in playing football in college as well as hoops. He would be a big get but Memphis is a big player for this one.
Marcus Hunt-listed as F but is listed at 6-5 so more of a small forward/wing type player. Is very interested in UGA and his friend and football player from his high school Amarlo Herrera will be at UGA this fall.
Jordan Adams-listed as F, but more of a wing player at 6-5, playing at bb power Oak Hill Academy. This kid also likes Memphis amoung others, he really likes UGA as well but we shall see.
Kenny Gaines-SG listed at 6-4, has visited this spring and had a great time. This kid seems like we have a legit shot to get.
Jordan Price-SG at 6-4, he currently favors AU but UGA is recruiting him pretty heavy.
Charles Mann-SG at 6-5, UGA recently offered, as did GT. He has 12 offers but says he is open to all schools at this point.
Here is an out of state player that has shown a little interest in UGA-
DeOndre Haynes from Calera, Alabama at 6-2.
I am having a lot of trouble finding a point guard that is interested in UGA at the moment-again, this makes the Harrow decision troubling to me. Of course Kentucky lost Brandon Knight to the NBA draft but have the top PG in the nation for 2011 heading in this fall-Marquis Teague-brother of Jeff Teague that plays for the Hawks.
So there you have it, a breakdown of UGA recruiting past, present and future. Those prospects I listed above, most are 3 or 4 star players, Goodwin is a 5 star and ranked #13 in the nation, Marcus Hunt is a 4 star and ranked #56, Jordan Adams is a 4 star and ranked #69, Gaines is a 4 star and ranked #98, Mann is a 3 star and ranked #135. There are other Ga kids ranked in the top 150 but I didn't mention them because I don't think we have a shot at them. But, with what I have listed, you would hope we can land 2-3 of them and we NEED to do just that.
Mark Fox has proven to me that he can coach basketball but he is coaching in a division that has Billy D, Cal, and Kevin Stallings-those three guys are really good coaches. Those 3 also are recruiting better talent. Great coaching and great talent=tough to beat with great coaching and just good talent. I am very hopeful that our recruiting efforts can pick up for the class of 2012 but if not, I am afraid we are going to have to be happy finishing at best 4th most years in the SEC east-that is assuming the SEC does not do away with divisions for basketball which leads me to my final update of the day, the SEC meetings in Destin.
I will be in Santa Rosa Beach next week so no blog, thankfully the SEC ego machines will be out of town by then-you can imagine how it must be this week with football coaches, basketball coaches, AD's and presidents all in town-WOW. One of the issues they are discussing this week is the practice of oversigning-should the limit be reduced from the current 28-of which only 25 can enroll in a given year. I am like Mark Richt, I have no problem with signing 28 as long as you are up front with the kids that are 26-28, telling them, they will not have a spot if 1-25 all qualify. Course the nature of the beast is, a lot of these kids are not the brighest light bulbs and so if you sign 28, you feel your odds are really good that at least 3 will not qualify for admission. I think the major problem that exists is what coaches like Saban will do. After a couple years in his program, he has pretty good idea which kids are never going to pan out, so (and this is just my opinion) calls the kid in and says, hey son, you are never going to see the field here, why don't I work out a deal for you to transfer to a smaller program OR didn't you have a neck/shoulder/knee injury during the spring, how about we just call it like it is, this injury is going to prevent you from ever playing college football again-right son! We have a medical spot for you, we will still pay your way but that will clear a spot for our next stud-you ok with that?
The basketball coaches are trying to get the divisions scrapped in favor of just a 12 team conference-and Billy D even wants to slot for the SEC tourney based on RPI. I am in favor of getting rid of the divisions in both basketball and baseball to be honest. They serve no purpose in either sport in my opinion. There is no championship game and that is truly the ONLY reason division play is needed.
Ok, all for now, hope you all have a great day and stay out of the heat. Wow, too hot for June 1st, this is more like mid to late July, early August temps.
First of all, let's look at our current roster as it stands today-
SR's
Dustin Ware-G
Gerald Robinson-G
Connor Nolte-G-F
Matt Bucklin-G
JR's
Vincent Williams-G
Sherrard Brantley-G
John Florveus-C
SOPH's
Marcus Thornton-F
Donte Williams-F
FR
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope-G
Tim Dixon-F/C
John Cannon-C
Nemanja Djurisic-F
So, that is a total of 13 on scholarship, of course Bucklin and Nolte both are walkons that have been given spots, thus those two were the spots available for Harrow and or Ware. So, as you see in our roster, we are short on guards and thus why losing these two national recruits really hurts. Granted, the two Kentucky schools they chose instead have a boatload more tradition in hoops and coaches that are on the elite level-also slimeball coaches but that is another issue all together. If you were to list a starting unit off this roster, I think you have to have a 3 guard lineup-Ware, Robinson, Caldwell-Pope, Thornton/Williams and then either Florveus/Cannon/Dixon. Or you play both Thornton and Williams and you don't have a big man in the middle. Now, after this year you lose Ware and Robinson. You are left with Vincent Williams, Caldwell-Pope, and Sherrard Brantley as your guards-YIKES. Again, Harrow could have stepped right in here and been a starter day one, UK I can bet will recruit another stud or two at PG, Harrow will have to share time almost guaranteed. Just makes you really wonder, NBA folks will find you regardless where you play-if you can play.
To break down Mark Fox's recruiting since he arrived, let's break down his lists. Remember, I think most people, myself included, worried about his recruiting from the first day he arrived having no connections to this area. He did hire a couple assistants that had some recruiting ties to the ATL but Mark Fox himself was a virtual unknown. He was hired in the spring of 2009 so he basically didn't have a first recruiting class but here is the class of 2009. DeMario Mayfield who never showed up in Athens, and Vincent Williams-a late signee from Miami, Fla. Both these kids were 3 stars. Class of 2010, Sherrard Brantley-a JUCO that was not ranked by rivals, Marcus Thornton and Donte Williams, both 3 stars. Marcus of course was set to got to Clemson until Oliver Purnell left for another job-it was a great get for Fox just because Marcus was state of Ga. player of the year and had a lot of potential. Class of 2011, Cannon, Djurisic, Dixon, Florveus, all 3 stars. The shining jewel of the Mark Fox recruiting efforts for his 3 recruiting cycles, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, a 5 star and McDonald's all American. Both Harrow and Kevin Ware mentioned the chance to play with him when talking about UGA but both went elsewhere. Now, certainly getting CP was HUGE for Coach Fox but as you can see, other than this one kid, his recruiting has been no better than that of Dennis Felton. Look at the last 3 recruiting classes brought in by Felton-2006 Takais Brown and Albert Jackson-Takais was force but of course ended up flunking out. Albert was a 3 star big guy that never really panned out. 2007 class, Chris Barnes, Jeremey Jacob, Troy Brewer, Jeremy Price, and Zac Swansey. Barnes, Brewer and Swansey all 3 stars, Jacob and Price both 4 stars. Course Barnes and Price ended up being decent if not solid players-especially Price, Swansey helped out a little bit, Jacob and Brewer nothing. 2008 class, Thompkins, Leslie, Ware, Ebuka Anyaorah, Drazen Zlovaric. Of course we all know the first three on this list have turned out to be good players, all these guys were 3 stars except Thompkins who was a 4 star.
So, Felton's last 3 years recruiting, no 5 stars but 3 four stars. Fox's first 3 years recruiting, 1 5 star and no 4 stars. Now, if you look at Felton's first three years, you might give Fox an edge because Felton brought in Steve Newman, Dave Bliss, Younes Idrissi, Marcus Sikes but also in his first three years in brought in Levi Stukes, Channing Toney, Sundiata Gaines, Mike Mercer, Bobby Humphrey, Terrance Woodbury, and of course signed Lou Williams who never played. So, maybe it is a wash??? Also, Felton was recruiting in a time when our program, already a tough sale, had the Harrick mess/dark cloud hanging over us. It was a tough time.
This brings us to the class of 2012. This upcoming class will be Mark Fox's 4th class, he is coming off a great season for our program BUT also has lost his two top players. The SEC east is TOUGH and not getting any easier. This is why this recruiting class is SOOOO important and why UGA hoops fans have been paying such close attention to how this class shapes up. Looking at our roster, it is pretty easy to see where we need help-guard/wings are a really big need. We need a great point guard, we need more guys that can flat out shoot the basketball, I think we have a lot of big bodies, we have to hope one or two of them can offer some offensive scoring ability. The bigs that are in the class of 2012 appear for certain to be headed out of state. But, there are a lot of guard/wings possible that have UGA under consideration. Let me look at a few of the top ones-
Shaq Goodwin, F SWDekalb-ok, so this is a big guy (6'8" 230lbs) but he is ranked #1 in the state by Rivals but also is very interested in playing football in college as well as hoops. He would be a big get but Memphis is a big player for this one.
Marcus Hunt-listed as F but is listed at 6-5 so more of a small forward/wing type player. Is very interested in UGA and his friend and football player from his high school Amarlo Herrera will be at UGA this fall.
Jordan Adams-listed as F, but more of a wing player at 6-5, playing at bb power Oak Hill Academy. This kid also likes Memphis amoung others, he really likes UGA as well but we shall see.
Kenny Gaines-SG listed at 6-4, has visited this spring and had a great time. This kid seems like we have a legit shot to get.
Jordan Price-SG at 6-4, he currently favors AU but UGA is recruiting him pretty heavy.
Charles Mann-SG at 6-5, UGA recently offered, as did GT. He has 12 offers but says he is open to all schools at this point.
Here is an out of state player that has shown a little interest in UGA-
DeOndre Haynes from Calera, Alabama at 6-2.
I am having a lot of trouble finding a point guard that is interested in UGA at the moment-again, this makes the Harrow decision troubling to me. Of course Kentucky lost Brandon Knight to the NBA draft but have the top PG in the nation for 2011 heading in this fall-Marquis Teague-brother of Jeff Teague that plays for the Hawks.
So there you have it, a breakdown of UGA recruiting past, present and future. Those prospects I listed above, most are 3 or 4 star players, Goodwin is a 5 star and ranked #13 in the nation, Marcus Hunt is a 4 star and ranked #56, Jordan Adams is a 4 star and ranked #69, Gaines is a 4 star and ranked #98, Mann is a 3 star and ranked #135. There are other Ga kids ranked in the top 150 but I didn't mention them because I don't think we have a shot at them. But, with what I have listed, you would hope we can land 2-3 of them and we NEED to do just that.
Mark Fox has proven to me that he can coach basketball but he is coaching in a division that has Billy D, Cal, and Kevin Stallings-those three guys are really good coaches. Those 3 also are recruiting better talent. Great coaching and great talent=tough to beat with great coaching and just good talent. I am very hopeful that our recruiting efforts can pick up for the class of 2012 but if not, I am afraid we are going to have to be happy finishing at best 4th most years in the SEC east-that is assuming the SEC does not do away with divisions for basketball which leads me to my final update of the day, the SEC meetings in Destin.
I will be in Santa Rosa Beach next week so no blog, thankfully the SEC ego machines will be out of town by then-you can imagine how it must be this week with football coaches, basketball coaches, AD's and presidents all in town-WOW. One of the issues they are discussing this week is the practice of oversigning-should the limit be reduced from the current 28-of which only 25 can enroll in a given year. I am like Mark Richt, I have no problem with signing 28 as long as you are up front with the kids that are 26-28, telling them, they will not have a spot if 1-25 all qualify. Course the nature of the beast is, a lot of these kids are not the brighest light bulbs and so if you sign 28, you feel your odds are really good that at least 3 will not qualify for admission. I think the major problem that exists is what coaches like Saban will do. After a couple years in his program, he has pretty good idea which kids are never going to pan out, so (and this is just my opinion) calls the kid in and says, hey son, you are never going to see the field here, why don't I work out a deal for you to transfer to a smaller program OR didn't you have a neck/shoulder/knee injury during the spring, how about we just call it like it is, this injury is going to prevent you from ever playing college football again-right son! We have a medical spot for you, we will still pay your way but that will clear a spot for our next stud-you ok with that?
The basketball coaches are trying to get the divisions scrapped in favor of just a 12 team conference-and Billy D even wants to slot for the SEC tourney based on RPI. I am in favor of getting rid of the divisions in both basketball and baseball to be honest. They serve no purpose in either sport in my opinion. There is no championship game and that is truly the ONLY reason division play is needed.
Ok, all for now, hope you all have a great day and stay out of the heat. Wow, too hot for June 1st, this is more like mid to late July, early August temps.
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