After the past couple weeks, I don't think I'm that out there in saying maybe we could all use a little less realism in our lives.
What's realism done for us lately? Well, realistically, I saw that I likely didn't have the fuel to make it UGA-Bama. And the Dawgs lost. Realistically, I know those two things aren't related...and yet. Superstitions aside, I know, realistically, I missed many good tailgates that day.
Realistically, my meager 401k lost almost everything that was in it. Realistically, people lost what they'd been saving for decades in the past month. Realistically, economically, things are going to get worse before they get better.
Realistically, it was folly to to think a UGA team that had lost its NFL-caliber Defensive Tackle (and then NFL-caliber middle linebacker on the first defensive play), it's preseason All-SEC Left Tackle, and was without its starting fullback; it was folly to think that a depleted top #5 was still a top 5 team. Realistically, while Willie Martinez has had moments of defensive greatness, he's yet to have a season at UGA where the defense didn't get absolutely torched at least once (Auburn and West Virginia in 2005, UT in 2006, UT again in 2007, 'Bama this year.)
Realistically, even if I finally finish a novel, get an agent, and get a publisher, I won't make that much money from it. Even if I have a cool idea where I'm writing songs to go with the novel, and slowly but surely practicing playing guitar and singing at the same time, so my book tours can be a cross between a normal signing/reading and an acoustic Butch Walker show. Because realistically, I'm not even half the songwriter Mr. Bradley Glenn Walker III is.
So for the game this weekend, I'm saying "nuts to realism". Realism is like a fancy massage parlor: there are no happy endings.
So, with MGMT in your head, let's pretend, get the bad news over quick, and get on with it:
The Cumberland Report:
Well, this one's easy. Look at the last few times the teams played. Moving on...
The Rose-Colored View:
For all the talk about how bad Auburn's "Spread Eagle" offense is (and how many bad jokes can be made at their expense) they still rank higher than UT's not-vaunted "Clawfense". How does a shredded Dawg D get to feelin' good? Matchup against a new QB making his first start on the road, pressure the shit out of him (literally--I want him so scared he loses all bowel control) shut down the running game and shut out the Vols.
And the Vol D has been considered the one bright spot. But we've been there before. They were stout in 2005 too, and we broke them. Line former offensive lineman Kiante Tripp up at TE, let Brannan Southerland knock the hell out of some people, and let Moreno and King go nuts.
This goes beyond revenge for the past two years.
This is about all of us "Dawg People" having something to feel good about. Hope for the future.
Bold prediction: if the Dawgs win big, or shut out the Vols, the stock market goes up next week.
Nuts to realism...
Go Dawgs
Showing posts with label Rose-Colored View. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rose-Colored View. Show all posts
Friday, October 10, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
And Now, A Whole New Set Of Problems To Deal With...
First up, a personal Cumberland Report: Atlanta has no gas.
Sonny Perdue, apparently channeling Kevin Bacon from the end of Animal House, tells us "there's plenty of gas," and then boards a plane to Europe, ostensibly for some government business, but I think in reality, to avoid the pitchfork'd masses who will eventually (after walking, or horse and buggy) show up at the Governor's Mansion.
But it's very up in the air whether or not I'll make it to Athens or not. So Sonny, you may be a Dawg, but today: you suck.
The Cumberland Report
Football usually comes down to the play of the linemen, and thus far it looks like Bama's got a sizeable advantage--and not just Terrance Cody, who is so large he has his own gravity (little-known fact: Bama's DEs don't actually do any stunting at the line, that's just a result of their usually rotation around Planet Cody.) Cooler weather could mean more snaps for Bama's Mangino-sized DT: who is going up against a freshman center for the Dawgs. The Dawg OLine in general is really making only its second start in its current iteration (last week vs. ASU was the first). Mismatches like this get your running backs stuffed, and your QBs horizontal (and not the way many female Georgia fans would like).
On the flip side, Bama brings a very experienced Oline up against a UGA front seven that, while they've been strong against the run, hasn't exactly gotten to the QB that much.
If Bama can get a running game going, and dominate on both sides of the line, we could get embarrased almost as bad as Clemson (at least none of our coaches keep the play chart stuffed in the front of their shorts, Al Bundy style.)
The Rose-Colored View
Georgia's had success with poor Oline play before (the 2003 Oline led the SEC in sacks allowed, yet the team won the SEC East) and the current group played much better last week than the SoCar game.
Terrance Cody: huge yes, but is the front seven for the Tide really that much better than Carolina's? If it's not, then we can run the ball on them: which will spell doom for the Tide.
The passing game's gotten better each week, dovetailing with the emergance of AJ Green. If Bama loads up to stop the run, Green (and MoMass) could have big days. Reggie Brown-and-Fred-Gibson-vs.-Saban's-LSU-team kind of days.
And if the Dawgs stop the run, that means it's up to the poster child for Bama Bangs, John Parker Wilson, to beat the Dawgs. And that just won't happen. The DLine has already figured out his secret: as a child, Wilson was very slow to lose his baby fat, and is still sensitive about his childhood nickname "John Porker Wilson." Plus, Bear Bryant is still dead. And Nick Saban is no Bear Bryant. Also, Georgia ain't Clemson.
Who wins? Ask Wesley Snipes about the blackout...
(And our good-luck charms have dressed the part.)
Sonny Perdue, apparently channeling Kevin Bacon from the end of Animal House, tells us "there's plenty of gas," and then boards a plane to Europe, ostensibly for some government business, but I think in reality, to avoid the pitchfork'd masses who will eventually (after walking, or horse and buggy) show up at the Governor's Mansion.
But it's very up in the air whether or not I'll make it to Athens or not. So Sonny, you may be a Dawg, but today: you suck.
The Cumberland Report
Football usually comes down to the play of the linemen, and thus far it looks like Bama's got a sizeable advantage--and not just Terrance Cody, who is so large he has his own gravity (little-known fact: Bama's DEs don't actually do any stunting at the line, that's just a result of their usually rotation around Planet Cody.) Cooler weather could mean more snaps for Bama's Mangino-sized DT: who is going up against a freshman center for the Dawgs. The Dawg OLine in general is really making only its second start in its current iteration (last week vs. ASU was the first). Mismatches like this get your running backs stuffed, and your QBs horizontal (and not the way many female Georgia fans would like).
On the flip side, Bama brings a very experienced Oline up against a UGA front seven that, while they've been strong against the run, hasn't exactly gotten to the QB that much.
If Bama can get a running game going, and dominate on both sides of the line, we could get embarrased almost as bad as Clemson (at least none of our coaches keep the play chart stuffed in the front of their shorts, Al Bundy style.)
The Rose-Colored View
Georgia's had success with poor Oline play before (the 2003 Oline led the SEC in sacks allowed, yet the team won the SEC East) and the current group played much better last week than the SoCar game.
Terrance Cody: huge yes, but is the front seven for the Tide really that much better than Carolina's? If it's not, then we can run the ball on them: which will spell doom for the Tide.
The passing game's gotten better each week, dovetailing with the emergance of AJ Green. If Bama loads up to stop the run, Green (and MoMass) could have big days. Reggie Brown-and-Fred-Gibson-vs.-Saban's-LSU-team kind of days.
And if the Dawgs stop the run, that means it's up to the poster child for Bama Bangs, John Parker Wilson, to beat the Dawgs. And that just won't happen. The DLine has already figured out his secret: as a child, Wilson was very slow to lose his baby fat, and is still sensitive about his childhood nickname "John Porker Wilson." Plus, Bear Bryant is still dead. And Nick Saban is no Bear Bryant. Also, Georgia ain't Clemson.
Who wins? Ask Wesley Snipes about the blackout...
(And our good-luck charms have dressed the part.)
Friday, September 19, 2008
Go West, Young Dawgs (and win!)
It may be the worst week in Wall St. and finance since John McCain was in his early teens (sorry, last crack at McCain's age for...well, at least the next few weeks let's say) but I still didn't forget there was a big game this week.
Of course, if I had a 401K worth a damn, it'd be a different story, but I've had almost no spare money for years now, so I'm used to it. If I could make it through my last few years of college on a little more than $100/week without eating Ramen then, I should be fine now (oh, wait. I also had a Platinum card then...hmmm...well this may be a problem.)
So off we go...
The Cumberland Report
What could go wrong here? It's not like UGA has already displayed issues in pass defense and they're going up against the future Pac-10 record holder in passing yards. Oh. Wait. So there's that risk.
Also, it's been great, semi-, almost-not-quite Fall weather in GA this week. Game time temp in Arizona? Expected to be between 98 and 101. Dry heat or not, that's a big jump in climate. Plus, the multiple time zone shift. And risk someone getting arrested for stealing diapers.
Throw an already suspect (at times) pass D in with a team that's out of sorts because of heat and time zone issues and you've got a disaster brewing. Throw in some offensive miscues, and then you've got a recipe for the pollsters to really, really drop the Dawgs.
The Rose-Colored View
On the other hand, the only team worse at protecting their QB than ASU last season was that Yakkity-Sax-bad Notre Dame team. While Rudy Carptenter differs from Jimmy Clausen in that he has both a functioning brain, isn't part cro-magnon man, and isn't going bald in his early 20s (the Clausen Gene: for those who thought The Simpson Gene wasn't that bad!) most of that seive-like OLine is back to protect (sic) him. The Dawg's D should make him hear the dulcet tones of Queen and David Bowie in his head.
And, while much gets written about the offensive firepower of the Pac-10, defense still doesn't seem to exist there outside of USC. If a woeful Maryland team could rough up Cal, and BYU could do things to UCLA that might be forbidden in the Book of Mormon, and UNLV could hang 20+ on the ASU D, this ain't the "Desert Swarm" out there. Stafford, Moreno and company could get well in a big hurry.
Honestly, there isn't too much precedent here. It's warmer, the time zone's different, and the Dawgs haven't done this type of thing before. Flying to Arkansas is one thing, Arizona's another. The first quarter/half is key. There should be a ton of Dawg fans there, and if ASU's offensive gets stymied early, and the Dawg's O returns to pre-SoCar form, it could be a very, very good day for the Dawgs.
Of course, if I had a 401K worth a damn, it'd be a different story, but I've had almost no spare money for years now, so I'm used to it. If I could make it through my last few years of college on a little more than $100/week without eating Ramen then, I should be fine now (oh, wait. I also had a Platinum card then...hmmm...well this may be a problem.)
So off we go...
The Cumberland Report
What could go wrong here? It's not like UGA has already displayed issues in pass defense and they're going up against the future Pac-10 record holder in passing yards. Oh. Wait. So there's that risk.
Also, it's been great, semi-, almost-not-quite Fall weather in GA this week. Game time temp in Arizona? Expected to be between 98 and 101. Dry heat or not, that's a big jump in climate. Plus, the multiple time zone shift. And risk someone getting arrested for stealing diapers.
Throw an already suspect (at times) pass D in with a team that's out of sorts because of heat and time zone issues and you've got a disaster brewing. Throw in some offensive miscues, and then you've got a recipe for the pollsters to really, really drop the Dawgs.The Rose-Colored View
On the other hand, the only team worse at protecting their QB than ASU last season was that Yakkity-Sax-bad Notre Dame team. While Rudy Carptenter differs from Jimmy Clausen in that he has both a functioning brain, isn't part cro-magnon man, and isn't going bald in his early 20s (the Clausen Gene: for those who thought The Simpson Gene wasn't that bad!) most of that seive-like OLine is back to protect (sic) him. The Dawg's D should make him hear the dulcet tones of Queen and David Bowie in his head.
And, while much gets written about the offensive firepower of the Pac-10, defense still doesn't seem to exist there outside of USC. If a woeful Maryland team could rough up Cal, and BYU could do things to UCLA that might be forbidden in the Book of Mormon, and UNLV could hang 20+ on the ASU D, this ain't the "Desert Swarm" out there. Stafford, Moreno and company could get well in a big hurry.Honestly, there isn't too much precedent here. It's warmer, the time zone's different, and the Dawgs haven't done this type of thing before. Flying to Arkansas is one thing, Arizona's another. The first quarter/half is key. There should be a ton of Dawg fans there, and if ASU's offensive gets stymied early, and the Dawg's O returns to pre-SoCar form, it could be a very, very good day for the Dawgs.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Now it's getting real
This is the point where these features get harder to write (must...not...make...joke...about...SoCar's mascot...and..."harder"...) for me.
It's one thing to speculate about the confluence of bad luck and downright freakish things necessary to imagine a UGA upset at Georgia Southern or Central Michigan's hands. There's almost no stress, because the chance of the upset happening is rarer than Ohio playing Ohio State close deep into the 4th quarter. Wait a second...
The Cumberland Report
On the other hand, worst-case scenarios become a little easier to envision. What's worse than losing again to a lesser team; a loss that, more or less, cost you the chance to depants Ohio St for the first nation title since 1980? Losing to that lesser team again, only this time around, that lesser team'd already lost to Vanderbilt. And it's not senior QB Blake Mitchell doing the minimal damage, but some guy named Stinky, or Shitty, or Smelley. Something along those lines.
It'd involve taking an offense that scored 100+ points and over 1,000 yds and having it transformed again by the South Carolina D (and inept execution) into something best viewed with protective goggles. And it'd involve ankle-twisted plays like the ones that 'Cocks inflicted on UGA back in the late 90s.
It'd be ugly, heartbreaking, and more or less end any national title talk for the Dawgs this year.
The Rose-Colored View
But, all that said, the stats are in UGA's favor. Lately, the Dawgs have beaten the cocks (must...avoid...crude...joke) more on the road than at home. Ideally, they'll see that SC has linebackers north of 250 lbs and run the fat fuckers ragged with short screens and misdirection runs. As good as SoCar's D has been so far, they still can be run on. And last year the coaches hadn't figured out what they had with Knowshon. This year? Well, maybe he saw what Darren McFadden did to SoCar last year and he wants to top it. 600+ rushing yds and 9 tds after Saturday? Plus shutting out Spurrier for the second straight trip to Columbia? Even Ice Cube would call that a good day.
The reality? It's likely to fall somewhere between all that. UGA rarely gets an L at SoCar's hands, but it's even rarer when they win so dominantly that the game's never really in doubt. I recommend keeping strong drink handy to calm the nervous, and don't let folks with heart conditions watch...at least after this it'll get easier...just like when the Israelites had it easy once they escaped Egypt. Right?
Maybe they need some Attractive Brunettes From TV mojo, just in case:
It's one thing to speculate about the confluence of bad luck and downright freakish things necessary to imagine a UGA upset at Georgia Southern or Central Michigan's hands. There's almost no stress, because the chance of the upset happening is rarer than Ohio playing Ohio State close deep into the 4th quarter. Wait a second...
The Cumberland Report
On the other hand, worst-case scenarios become a little easier to envision. What's worse than losing again to a lesser team; a loss that, more or less, cost you the chance to depants Ohio St for the first nation title since 1980? Losing to that lesser team again, only this time around, that lesser team'd already lost to Vanderbilt. And it's not senior QB Blake Mitchell doing the minimal damage, but some guy named Stinky, or Shitty, or Smelley. Something along those lines.
It'd involve taking an offense that scored 100+ points and over 1,000 yds and having it transformed again by the South Carolina D (and inept execution) into something best viewed with protective goggles. And it'd involve ankle-twisted plays like the ones that 'Cocks inflicted on UGA back in the late 90s.
It'd be ugly, heartbreaking, and more or less end any national title talk for the Dawgs this year.
The Rose-Colored View
But, all that said, the stats are in UGA's favor. Lately, the Dawgs have beaten the cocks (must...avoid...crude...joke) more on the road than at home. Ideally, they'll see that SC has linebackers north of 250 lbs and run the fat fuckers ragged with short screens and misdirection runs. As good as SoCar's D has been so far, they still can be run on. And last year the coaches hadn't figured out what they had with Knowshon. This year? Well, maybe he saw what Darren McFadden did to SoCar last year and he wants to top it. 600+ rushing yds and 9 tds after Saturday? Plus shutting out Spurrier for the second straight trip to Columbia? Even Ice Cube would call that a good day.
The reality? It's likely to fall somewhere between all that. UGA rarely gets an L at SoCar's hands, but it's even rarer when they win so dominantly that the game's never really in doubt. I recommend keeping strong drink handy to calm the nervous, and don't let folks with heart conditions watch...at least after this it'll get easier...just like when the Israelites had it easy once they escaped Egypt. Right?
Maybe they need some Attractive Brunettes From TV mojo, just in case:
Friday, September 05, 2008
A LeFevour You Probably Won't Sweat Out
And now we move on to Week Two.
The way I figure it, any week that has Spurrier and Fulmer losing before Saturday's off to a great start.
The Cumberland Report
What's the worst that can happen? Besides my Panic At the Disco allusion in this post's title? I'd say: Dan LeFevour being as good as his hype. As the only guy not named Vince Young to rush for 1,000+ yds and pass for 3,000+ in a season, dude has some skills. If he does it against a UGA D that looked at best kind of bored last weekend...well, some things, like "President McCain" I'd rather not think about today...
Oh, and the sky is cloudy, filled with random lightning delays, and run and muck, and everyone's somewhat miserable before kickoff.
The Rose-Colored View
Take what I said last week, and multiply it. Think UGA scoring a point for each year John McCain has been alive. Think stat-padding in the early 3rd qtr. that approaches A-Rod in a (now rare) Yankee blowout. Think Richard Samuel and Caleb King both topping 100 yds and Knowshon spending a half watching from the sidelines because the score was "run up" by halftime. And it remains sunny all game long.
Now, for good luck:
Gratuitous page-view-generating pictures of attractive brunettes!
The way I figure it, any week that has Spurrier and Fulmer losing before Saturday's off to a great start.
The Cumberland Report
What's the worst that can happen? Besides my Panic At the Disco allusion in this post's title? I'd say: Dan LeFevour being as good as his hype. As the only guy not named Vince Young to rush for 1,000+ yds and pass for 3,000+ in a season, dude has some skills. If he does it against a UGA D that looked at best kind of bored last weekend...well, some things, like "President McCain" I'd rather not think about today...
Oh, and the sky is cloudy, filled with random lightning delays, and run and muck, and everyone's somewhat miserable before kickoff.
The Rose-Colored View
Take what I said last week, and multiply it. Think UGA scoring a point for each year John McCain has been alive. Think stat-padding in the early 3rd qtr. that approaches A-Rod in a (now rare) Yankee blowout. Think Richard Samuel and Caleb King both topping 100 yds and Knowshon spending a half watching from the sidelines because the score was "run up" by halftime. And it remains sunny all game long.
Now, for good luck:
Gratuitous page-view-generating pictures of attractive brunettes!
Friday, August 29, 2008
UGA vs. Georgia Southern - When Spike played Chester
(Note: the following is be a regular, pre-UGA gameday feature. The gist of it is this: before each UGA game, I offer the overly optimistic, Kool-Aid-drinking, rose-colored-glasses wearing, “homer” preview, and then the wildly pessimistic, thinks-Munson-is-too-positive, doom-and-gloom take.
The first take is kind of a throwback to my carefree freshman and sophomore years at UGA, where, despite nearly a decade straight of losing to UT, I would talk smack, and UGA was favored to win every game, by a lot, according to me. And only me.
The less optimistic preview gets its name from the infamous Cumberland College game in which the North Avenue Trade School whipped a bunch of scrubs to the tune of 222-0--currently the most points and largest blowout in NCAA history, though it'd be nice if UGA breaks that record, against Florida, UT, and Tech this season...) It was inspired by The Girl’s less than positive attitude about UGA football during the 2006 season--which, to be fair, may have just been borne from the results on the field and might not be how she starts off each season--in particular when she admitted to me a night or two before the Florida game that she expected Florida to break the Cumberland record against us, because, she reasoned, even if we “only” lost by say, 182 points, it was better than what she thought would happen. She has a far better and subtler sense of humor than I realized at the time.
Anyway, the hope is between the two extremes something—good, ideally—happens. And yes, this is almost the same note that prefaced last season's feature, because A. I'm kind of lazy, and B. I like alphabetical lists and C. I'm superstitious as all hell w/r/t college football.)
It's almost here.
A day into 2008 this coming Saturday seemed ages and ages away.
There I was, watching the 2007 Dawgs do things to Hawai'i's QB that I think would be considered illegal in quite a few states, and stuck with the realization that it would be several hundred days (not counting G-Day) before I would see the Dawgs play again.
But now, at long last, and after a ton of hype and offseason...um..."extracurricular activities" from some team members...here we are.
Georgia vs. Georgia Southern.
Oh. Well maybe the G-Day game was more competitive.
I can't rip on GASou (GSU=Georgia State) too much, after all Erk got them their start. But man their fans can be annoying. After the 2000 game, they were talking smack...yet many of them ended up transferring to UGA anyway. Which makes Ace from the Real World the GASou poster boy. That's not exactly a plus.
The Rose-Colored View
UGA returns a ton of starters, but has depth/experience issues along the OLine. GASou returns almost no one and has 8 more players sitting out with suspensions. New OLine starters, prepare to feel good about yourselves.
This could shape up like a dogfight between Chester and Spike (the big bulldog with the yippy sidekick).
Sing the Statesboro blues, it's gonna get ugly. Stafford gets a good rapport with WRs not named Massoquoi, Knowshon tops 100 yds in the 1st half and they rest. The OLine stays in through part of the 3rd, then rests, and over half-a-hundred is laid on the Eagles' D. Meanwhile, the UGA D scares the GASou folks to the point that some begin to fear stains showing in their pants. Some garbage yds and points are scored once the starters rest, but all in all, UGA has their way with a far lesser, and undermanned opponent.
The Cumberland Report
The big fear here, other than the obvious Appy State comparison? Injuries. Followed by lackluster performances. UGA was, in theory, poised for big seasons the last two times they opened with Georgia Southern, in 2000 and 2004, and didn't look that good in either game.
In 2000, they didn't even break 30 points despite what we had been told was a loaded offense with junior QB Quincy Carter (yeah, I know, it sounds stupider in retrospect) and worse, lost Boss Bailey for the season on the opening kickoff.
In '04, the D gave up nearly 300 yds rushing and 4 TDs, at one point the game was 7-6 in the 2nd qtr, and UGA at no point looked that good or dominant. Both years' teams failed to perform to preseason expectations (though the 2000 team far more than the 2004 squad). Failing to set a tone early could be a disaster for the Dawgs.
Hopefully, a happy medium between these two will be the worst that happens. Get on 'em early Dawgs, and get on 'em BIG. Win this one for UGA VI and UGA VII.
And for luck, Sophia Bush will be aided and abetted by Leighton Meester this season.
The first take is kind of a throwback to my carefree freshman and sophomore years at UGA, where, despite nearly a decade straight of losing to UT, I would talk smack, and UGA was favored to win every game, by a lot, according to me. And only me.
The less optimistic preview gets its name from the infamous Cumberland College game in which the North Avenue Trade School whipped a bunch of scrubs to the tune of 222-0--currently the most points and largest blowout in NCAA history, though it'd be nice if UGA breaks that record, against Florida, UT, and Tech this season...) It was inspired by The Girl’s less than positive attitude about UGA football during the 2006 season--which, to be fair, may have just been borne from the results on the field and might not be how she starts off each season--in particular when she admitted to me a night or two before the Florida game that she expected Florida to break the Cumberland record against us, because, she reasoned, even if we “only” lost by say, 182 points, it was better than what she thought would happen. She has a far better and subtler sense of humor than I realized at the time.
Anyway, the hope is between the two extremes something—good, ideally—happens. And yes, this is almost the same note that prefaced last season's feature, because A. I'm kind of lazy, and B. I like alphabetical lists and C. I'm superstitious as all hell w/r/t college football.)
It's almost here.
A day into 2008 this coming Saturday seemed ages and ages away.
There I was, watching the 2007 Dawgs do things to Hawai'i's QB that I think would be considered illegal in quite a few states, and stuck with the realization that it would be several hundred days (not counting G-Day) before I would see the Dawgs play again.
But now, at long last, and after a ton of hype and offseason...um..."extracurricular activities" from some team members...here we are.
Georgia vs. Georgia Southern.Oh. Well maybe the G-Day game was more competitive.
I can't rip on GASou (GSU=Georgia State) too much, after all Erk got them their start. But man their fans can be annoying. After the 2000 game, they were talking smack...yet many of them ended up transferring to UGA anyway. Which makes Ace from the Real World the GASou poster boy. That's not exactly a plus.
The Rose-Colored View
UGA returns a ton of starters, but has depth/experience issues along the OLine. GASou returns almost no one and has 8 more players sitting out with suspensions. New OLine starters, prepare to feel good about yourselves.
This could shape up like a dogfight between Chester and Spike (the big bulldog with the yippy sidekick).
Sing the Statesboro blues, it's gonna get ugly. Stafford gets a good rapport with WRs not named Massoquoi, Knowshon tops 100 yds in the 1st half and they rest. The OLine stays in through part of the 3rd, then rests, and over half-a-hundred is laid on the Eagles' D. Meanwhile, the UGA D scares the GASou folks to the point that some begin to fear stains showing in their pants. Some garbage yds and points are scored once the starters rest, but all in all, UGA has their way with a far lesser, and undermanned opponent.The Cumberland Report
The big fear here, other than the obvious Appy State comparison? Injuries. Followed by lackluster performances. UGA was, in theory, poised for big seasons the last two times they opened with Georgia Southern, in 2000 and 2004, and didn't look that good in either game.
In 2000, they didn't even break 30 points despite what we had been told was a loaded offense with junior QB Quincy Carter (yeah, I know, it sounds stupider in retrospect) and worse, lost Boss Bailey for the season on the opening kickoff.
In '04, the D gave up nearly 300 yds rushing and 4 TDs, at one point the game was 7-6 in the 2nd qtr, and UGA at no point looked that good or dominant. Both years' teams failed to perform to preseason expectations (though the 2000 team far more than the 2004 squad). Failing to set a tone early could be a disaster for the Dawgs.
Hopefully, a happy medium between these two will be the worst that happens. Get on 'em early Dawgs, and get on 'em BIG. Win this one for UGA VI and UGA VII.And for luck, Sophia Bush will be aided and abetted by Leighton Meester this season.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Remember What Vince Lombardi Said: "If you lose, you're outta the family"
Ok, maybe Coach Lombardi didn't say it...maybe it's just something I remember from the Simpsons. But this is the one you DON'T lose guys. Sure, on paper Tech sucks, but ask LSU if say watching a weak UT D shutting down McFadden helped them at all on Friday.
(By the way, does any team want this?)
The Rose-Colored View
What's the best that could happen? Oh I don't know...something like the 2002 game would a great start. The run-stopping, blitz-happy D we've come to expect from Tenuta isn't quite up to their usual levels of craziness this season (the stats are close, but fattened up by feasting on the likes of Duke and Notre Dame's uber-weak offenses.)
As I wisely put it last week, if the Dawgs keep on keeping on with what works (and I put it more eloquently than this last week too--but I was not partly drunk) on offense, no team left on the schedule touches them. If Stafford can connect on say 2 deep passes in the first half, and Knowshon does his thing, both could be resting for the 4th quarter and talking about how they looked like New England out there.
(The last thing a Tech Defender sees before the end...)
Taylor Bennett is proving more and more that he's not the guy that put up big #s in the bowl, but the guy who couldn't beat out Reggie Ball. That's good news for a suddenly superbad UGA D that loves turnovers.
The Cumberland Report
But a loss, of any kind, is not something I want to fathom for this game. Tech's offense has shown signs of less suckitude lately, and a fully healthy Tashard Choice vs. a UGA run D that hasn't really had an elite RB test it...it could be bad.
(But the Dawgs wouldn't let down Sophia, right?)
Oh, and let's hope the refs--particulary the ones from the Auburn game--are not involved in this decision...
(And I'll be screaming at the TV like I was a character from a bad 80s comedy either way...)
The AJC and some other blogs have talked about how Tech will be extra motivated to save Chan's job. Missing in lots of these reports are the myriad quotes of players coming to their coaches defense. I think even Bill Callahan got a few supporters (of course, Callhan seems at least semi-capable of developing a QB...) This could be huge. If some players have already quite on Gailey, a couple early scores should get the NATS tapping out. Then it's on to...hopefully at least one bowl game in a domed stadium. And that's all I'll say to avoid any jinx.
(By the way, does any team want this?)The Rose-Colored View
What's the best that could happen? Oh I don't know...something like the 2002 game would a great start. The run-stopping, blitz-happy D we've come to expect from Tenuta isn't quite up to their usual levels of craziness this season (the stats are close, but fattened up by feasting on the likes of Duke and Notre Dame's uber-weak offenses.)
As I wisely put it last week, if the Dawgs keep on keeping on with what works (and I put it more eloquently than this last week too--but I was not partly drunk) on offense, no team left on the schedule touches them. If Stafford can connect on say 2 deep passes in the first half, and Knowshon does his thing, both could be resting for the 4th quarter and talking about how they looked like New England out there.
(The last thing a Tech Defender sees before the end...)Taylor Bennett is proving more and more that he's not the guy that put up big #s in the bowl, but the guy who couldn't beat out Reggie Ball. That's good news for a suddenly superbad UGA D that loves turnovers.
The Cumberland Report
But a loss, of any kind, is not something I want to fathom for this game. Tech's offense has shown signs of less suckitude lately, and a fully healthy Tashard Choice vs. a UGA run D that hasn't really had an elite RB test it...it could be bad.
(But the Dawgs wouldn't let down Sophia, right?)Oh, and let's hope the refs--particulary the ones from the Auburn game--are not involved in this decision...
(And I'll be screaming at the TV like I was a character from a bad 80s comedy either way...)The AJC and some other blogs have talked about how Tech will be extra motivated to save Chan's job. Missing in lots of these reports are the myriad quotes of players coming to their coaches defense. I think even Bill Callahan got a few supporters (of course, Callhan seems at least semi-capable of developing a QB...) This could be huge. If some players have already quite on Gailey, a couple early scores should get the NATS tapping out. Then it's on to...hopefully at least one bowl game in a domed stadium. And that's all I'll say to avoid any jinx.
Friday, November 16, 2007
A Dawg's Goal: Keep Doing What Works
It's that time again: the column that forgot to take its Olanzapine and Quetiapine bringing you some bi-polar football prognostication.
(And if you're afraid, sort of like me, that the early kick-off results in sunrise tailgating, skip ahead to the footnote at column's end for some tailgating tips.)
The Rose-Colored View
The Dawgs' offense is on a roll, and there's nothing in the statistical evidence that says UK is capable of stopping said roll. Kentucky comes into Athens 11th in the SEC in scoring D, a mere 0.3 better than last place Ole Miss (whom the Dawgs, even prior to discovering just what a total badass Moreno is and consistently blocking and catching, blew up for 40-plus points.)
While their pass D won't get confused with Florida's secondary (i.e. more willing to let you score than a drunk college freshmen finally out from under her fundamentalist parents' roof for the first time), Stafford should still be able to make more passes than those formerly hapless losers on The Pick-Up Artist (what can I say, in preparation for my favorite shows not having new episodes due to the WGA strike, I've been watching entirely too much Celebreality on VH1.)
+
But the truly beautiful stat going into tomorrow's asscrack of dawn kickoff is this: Kentucky is giving up nearly 200 yards per game on the ground. Brown and Moreno going for 300+ rush yards again? Oh it could happen.
And let's not forget the motivation of paying back the team that tried to knock out a helmetless Matt Stafford and tore the goalposts down last year. Unlike, say South Carolina this season, the 'Cats actually did take some motivation from last year's upset. But it's time to put 'em back in their place.
A lot of ink has been spilled on a lot of dead trees regard Coach Mark Richt's motivational tactics and how they've "keyed the Bulldogs' turnaround". This Saturday's game there's call for a Red-Out in the stands.
(If you think I can't make an alcohol-related joke, you're wrong, as hangovers from drinking too much of the cheaper Johnny Walker results in red eyes.)
But it really boils down to the players having more fun, and then making more plays, then having more fun, and it steamrolls from there. But. If we were to take the fun and put it on some sort of pie chart (I know: not fun) the offense seems to be getting more fun than the D. Kentucky has a great offense, and Woodson is a badass QB, a first-round pick. But if Mississippi State held them to 14, could a seriously pumped up, fun-loving-but-also-hey-media-types-don't-forget-about-us Georgia D shut them out? Well, this is the best-case scenario right?
The Cumberland Report
The absolute worst-case scenario happened to another team just last night. Oregon gained 200+ yds in the first quarter and then bupkis for the remaining three after star QB Dennis Dixon went down and back-up Brady Leaf (yeah, related to the "other" QB named Leaf) tweaked his knee. While an injury to Matt Stafford alone shouldn't bring the offense to a dead stop, injuries could kill this offense. Barring the unfortunate and hopefully unlikely circumstance, the early start won't help.
To your average college student 12:30 on a Saturday is about 3 or 4 hours after you go to bed after a really nice Friday night. And this season the team's had a nasty history of playing flat at home in these early kickoff games (see Ole Miss, see also Western Carolina, see also Troy). The "revenge factor" has been little to no help at all (little help vs. Vandy, no help vs. UT) and of those three teams, UK is demonstrably better than last year's iteration while it could be argued that this year's Vols and 'Dores were worse and at least no better than their prior season incarnations.
And just maybe the real reason the offense gets a lot of love is that the D really isn't that good. Troy and Florida combined for 64 points against the UGA D. If there are no turnovers, UK tops 30 easily. They have more balance on offense than either Troy or Florida if Little is healthy, and probably smart enough to run right at us on 4th and 1 rather than try rinky-dink piddling fancy crap like Urban Meyer and company. Can we keep up if the 'Cats keep scoring and scoring?
(Sophia hopes so.)
The bottom line is this: the Dawgs have gotten back to the top ten by doing certain things--blocking well, being badasses running the ball, and connecting on at least one long ball per game on offense; hitting the QB, sacking the QB and forcing turnovers on D. It started in the second half vs. Vandy and it's worked ever since.
A year ago I was dating a girl even more incredible than UGA winning a national title (your opinion may very, I freely admit bias.) I was open and honest about how I felt and things were great. Then, right around the Kentucky game, I stopped doing all those things that had "worked" for the relationship, and what do you know, things went to crap. I thought that somehow after doing one thing that had worked for a while, I had to change and do something different in order to "not screw up" and screwed up. Don't be like me Dawgs. Keep doing what works.
(Footnote to my somewhat personal inspiring closing paragraph: the first inkling I had that The Girl was something Amazing was an email she sent talking about curing Friday hangovers for early kickoffs with mimosas at Molly O'Shea's. I was smitten then, and there hadn't technically been a first date. So, I highly recommend that tactic to start your tailgating day, or, the favorite of Doug and the G-Day tailgaters: Stella and Krispy Kreme as a bright and early treat.
+
(And if you're afraid, sort of like me, that the early kick-off results in sunrise tailgating, skip ahead to the footnote at column's end for some tailgating tips.)The Rose-Colored View
The Dawgs' offense is on a roll, and there's nothing in the statistical evidence that says UK is capable of stopping said roll. Kentucky comes into Athens 11th in the SEC in scoring D, a mere 0.3 better than last place Ole Miss (whom the Dawgs, even prior to discovering just what a total badass Moreno is and consistently blocking and catching, blew up for 40-plus points.)
While their pass D won't get confused with Florida's secondary (i.e. more willing to let you score than a drunk college freshmen finally out from under her fundamentalist parents' roof for the first time), Stafford should still be able to make more passes than those formerly hapless losers on The Pick-Up Artist (what can I say, in preparation for my favorite shows not having new episodes due to the WGA strike, I've been watching entirely too much Celebreality on VH1.)
+
= 
(I'm convinced that they created Mystery by cloning a combination of Tommy Lee and Butch Walker, and then giving the resultant homunculus a Canadian accent.)
(I'm convinced that they created Mystery by cloning a combination of Tommy Lee and Butch Walker, and then giving the resultant homunculus a Canadian accent.)
And let's not forget the motivation of paying back the team that tried to knock out a helmetless Matt Stafford and tore the goalposts down last year. Unlike, say South Carolina this season, the 'Cats actually did take some motivation from last year's upset. But it's time to put 'em back in their place.
A lot of ink has been spilled on a lot of dead trees regard Coach Mark Richt's motivational tactics and how they've "keyed the Bulldogs' turnaround". This Saturday's game there's call for a Red-Out in the stands.
(If you think I can't make an alcohol-related joke, you're wrong, as hangovers from drinking too much of the cheaper Johnny Walker results in red eyes.)The Cumberland Report
The absolute worst-case scenario happened to another team just last night. Oregon gained 200+ yds in the first quarter and then bupkis for the remaining three after star QB Dennis Dixon went down and back-up Brady Leaf (yeah, related to the "other" QB named Leaf) tweaked his knee. While an injury to Matt Stafford alone shouldn't bring the offense to a dead stop, injuries could kill this offense. Barring the unfortunate and hopefully unlikely circumstance, the early start won't help.
To your average college student 12:30 on a Saturday is about 3 or 4 hours after you go to bed after a really nice Friday night. And this season the team's had a nasty history of playing flat at home in these early kickoff games (see Ole Miss, see also Western Carolina, see also Troy). The "revenge factor" has been little to no help at all (little help vs. Vandy, no help vs. UT) and of those three teams, UK is demonstrably better than last year's iteration while it could be argued that this year's Vols and 'Dores were worse and at least no better than their prior season incarnations.
And just maybe the real reason the offense gets a lot of love is that the D really isn't that good. Troy and Florida combined for 64 points against the UGA D. If there are no turnovers, UK tops 30 easily. They have more balance on offense than either Troy or Florida if Little is healthy, and probably smart enough to run right at us on 4th and 1 rather than try rinky-dink piddling fancy crap like Urban Meyer and company. Can we keep up if the 'Cats keep scoring and scoring?
(Sophia hopes so.)The bottom line is this: the Dawgs have gotten back to the top ten by doing certain things--blocking well, being badasses running the ball, and connecting on at least one long ball per game on offense; hitting the QB, sacking the QB and forcing turnovers on D. It started in the second half vs. Vandy and it's worked ever since.
A year ago I was dating a girl even more incredible than UGA winning a national title (your opinion may very, I freely admit bias.) I was open and honest about how I felt and things were great. Then, right around the Kentucky game, I stopped doing all those things that had "worked" for the relationship, and what do you know, things went to crap. I thought that somehow after doing one thing that had worked for a while, I had to change and do something different in order to "not screw up" and screwed up. Don't be like me Dawgs. Keep doing what works.
(Footnote to my somewhat personal inspiring closing paragraph: the first inkling I had that The Girl was something Amazing was an email she sent talking about curing Friday hangovers for early kickoffs with mimosas at Molly O'Shea's. I was smitten then, and there hadn't technically been a first date. So, I highly recommend that tactic to start your tailgating day, or, the favorite of Doug and the G-Day tailgaters: Stella and Krispy Kreme as a bright and early treat.
+
Friday, November 09, 2007
Pick a Mascot, Any Mascot, and Whip Its Ass
No time-traveling characters from contemporary literary fiction for this one, just straight-up bi-polar pontificating. With a side of beer. And a bemused/pensive Sophia Bush.
(If Google led me to an actual ad run by Budwiser in Days of Yore, I can add another to the list of "maybe I was born in the wrong time." Though this is kind of wrong. Give a kid some good beer first, or they'll hate it forever.)
Happy things first:
The Rose-Colored View
History, schmistory. The Dawgs have hiked up a leg and pulled an R. Kelly on history before, they can do it again. Two home wins vs. the War Eagle-Tiger-Plainsmen-Zoophiliac-Trailer Trash-Multiple Choice-We-Choose-All-of-the-Aboves since 1991?
Bosh, flim-shaw.
(Yep, I quote Mr. Burns when talking about the game. It's imperative that we crush Auburn before the start of the Rainy Season...and remember, a shiny new dime, to whoever brings me the head of Col. Montoya.)
The Dawgs hadn't won at Neyland Erector Set Stadium in years before a freshman named David Greene and a Verron Haynes erased that ghost of history.
The 2003 Bulldog team had no trouble at home against the mascotally-challenged.
And this year's team proved the 1990s no longer applies w/r/t Florida and Georgia.
So forget the bad mojo. In the past two years, the Dawgs topped 400 yds of offense and 31 points against equally statistically impressive, Muschamp-coached Auburn Defenses. No one in Red and Black (or some combination thereof) is going to be intimidated by Auburn.
However, Auburn just might panic a bit. Sanford has never been confused with death valley, but with both a black out and a noise out planned, things may be rocking in eardrum-damaging fashion.
(Like Spinal Tap's amps, Sanford needs to go to 11. And how black should the stands be? None more black.)
With Stafford remembering that Leonard Pope is gone and none of his current targets approach 7 feet in height, the WR catching everything near them and Moreno running better than all other UGA freshmen RBs save the man whose number is retired, it's pick your poison for the Auburn D. Meanwhile, Auburn, while talented enough on offense, has no Ronny Daniels or Cadillac Williams. And luckily for the UGA D, Greg Blue won't be stuck playing pass coverage on a 4th down late in the game.
The Cumberland Report
History can be a two-sided bastard. And just as an overwhelming amount of mojo and history was in the Dawgs favor in Jacksonville, a similar quantitiy of bad mojo is staring the Dawgs down Saturday.
Auburn Senior QBs are 10-0 lately (and yes, I think that even includes former UGA back-up, conceited and highly cocky jackass Daniel Cobb--who I can claim is a jackass because I rode the North-South bus with him when I was a freshman. At the time I think he was already 30 and was clearly in Chris Weinke territory with AU.)
The lower-ranked team usually wins, and the away team usually wins. Oh, and Auburn is up there with UGA for best road record in the SEC in the past 5 years.
Tuberville's road strategy of keeping his D off the field plays right into the weakness of the traditional Willie Martinez bend-but-don't-break D strategy. We got some stops when we needed to against Florida, and turnovers and stops early against Troy, but if the team that showed up in Knoxville or the 4th quarter vs. SCar takes the field...it will be bad and heartbreaking.
(Leading to a different kind of blackout.)
And as good as the offense has looked the past two games, don't be surprised to see them hit a wall (aka the Auburn DLine) Saturday. The WE-T-Ps are just a little better than Troy or Florida on D. Couple that with an encore performance from the Bad UGA that showed up in Knoxville and you get the worst-possible-scenario: Auburn-UGA 1999 Part Deux.
Some combination of the above is how this all likely plays out. It'd be nice if UGA breaks 40 points again, but pretty unlikely, just as it'd be nice (and a favor to UGA fans everywhere) if Brandon Cox played against us like he did last year (and did this year against South Florida and MSU).
It's going to be loud, brutal, and probably very entertaining. And the uniforms? Well I'm not going to say they don't matter.
(Sophia is again reticent, but dons black anyway.)
This year's team doesn't have that many intrinsic motivators. Moreno may evoke the odd David Pollack comparison, but he's pretty much it. The motivation and energy needs to be externally motivated for these guys to really get fired up (see the "Greatest Offense ever" comments ticking off the D prior to OSU, and the Celebration vs. Florida.) Without that, they can be flat and unfocused.
So cool-looking black jerseys just might be the trick to get over the home-field disadvantage. Hell, if it takes them wearing pink to get to and win the SEC this year, throw the white jerseys in with the red and let's do it.
Turn your vocal cords to 11 Saturday, and wear none more black. Go Dawgs
(If Google led me to an actual ad run by Budwiser in Days of Yore, I can add another to the list of "maybe I was born in the wrong time." Though this is kind of wrong. Give a kid some good beer first, or they'll hate it forever.)Happy things first:
The Rose-Colored View
History, schmistory. The Dawgs have hiked up a leg and pulled an R. Kelly on history before, they can do it again. Two home wins vs. the War Eagle-Tiger-Plainsmen-Zoophiliac-Trailer Trash-Multiple Choice-We-Choose-All-of-the-Aboves since 1991?
Bosh, flim-shaw.
(Yep, I quote Mr. Burns when talking about the game. It's imperative that we crush Auburn before the start of the Rainy Season...and remember, a shiny new dime, to whoever brings me the head of Col. Montoya.)The Dawgs hadn't won at Neyland Erector Set Stadium in years before a freshman named David Greene and a Verron Haynes erased that ghost of history.
The 2003 Bulldog team had no trouble at home against the mascotally-challenged.
And this year's team proved the 1990s no longer applies w/r/t Florida and Georgia.
So forget the bad mojo. In the past two years, the Dawgs topped 400 yds of offense and 31 points against equally statistically impressive, Muschamp-coached Auburn Defenses. No one in Red and Black (or some combination thereof) is going to be intimidated by Auburn.
However, Auburn just might panic a bit. Sanford has never been confused with death valley, but with both a black out and a noise out planned, things may be rocking in eardrum-damaging fashion.
(Like Spinal Tap's amps, Sanford needs to go to 11. And how black should the stands be? None more black.)With Stafford remembering that Leonard Pope is gone and none of his current targets approach 7 feet in height, the WR catching everything near them and Moreno running better than all other UGA freshmen RBs save the man whose number is retired, it's pick your poison for the Auburn D. Meanwhile, Auburn, while talented enough on offense, has no Ronny Daniels or Cadillac Williams. And luckily for the UGA D, Greg Blue won't be stuck playing pass coverage on a 4th down late in the game.
The Cumberland Report
History can be a two-sided bastard. And just as an overwhelming amount of mojo and history was in the Dawgs favor in Jacksonville, a similar quantitiy of bad mojo is staring the Dawgs down Saturday.
Auburn Senior QBs are 10-0 lately (and yes, I think that even includes former UGA back-up, conceited and highly cocky jackass Daniel Cobb--who I can claim is a jackass because I rode the North-South bus with him when I was a freshman. At the time I think he was already 30 and was clearly in Chris Weinke territory with AU.)
The lower-ranked team usually wins, and the away team usually wins. Oh, and Auburn is up there with UGA for best road record in the SEC in the past 5 years.
Tuberville's road strategy of keeping his D off the field plays right into the weakness of the traditional Willie Martinez bend-but-don't-break D strategy. We got some stops when we needed to against Florida, and turnovers and stops early against Troy, but if the team that showed up in Knoxville or the 4th quarter vs. SCar takes the field...it will be bad and heartbreaking.
(Leading to a different kind of blackout.)And as good as the offense has looked the past two games, don't be surprised to see them hit a wall (aka the Auburn DLine) Saturday. The WE-T-Ps are just a little better than Troy or Florida on D. Couple that with an encore performance from the Bad UGA that showed up in Knoxville and you get the worst-possible-scenario: Auburn-UGA 1999 Part Deux.
Some combination of the above is how this all likely plays out. It'd be nice if UGA breaks 40 points again, but pretty unlikely, just as it'd be nice (and a favor to UGA fans everywhere) if Brandon Cox played against us like he did last year (and did this year against South Florida and MSU).
It's going to be loud, brutal, and probably very entertaining. And the uniforms? Well I'm not going to say they don't matter.
(Sophia is again reticent, but dons black anyway.)This year's team doesn't have that many intrinsic motivators. Moreno may evoke the odd David Pollack comparison, but he's pretty much it. The motivation and energy needs to be externally motivated for these guys to really get fired up (see the "Greatest Offense ever" comments ticking off the D prior to OSU, and the Celebration vs. Florida.) Without that, they can be flat and unfocused.
So cool-looking black jerseys just might be the trick to get over the home-field disadvantage. Hell, if it takes them wearing pink to get to and win the SEC this year, throw the white jerseys in with the red and let's do it.
Turn your vocal cords to 11 Saturday, and wear none more black. Go Dawgs
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Henry DeTamble's Georgia Predictions (Special Time-Traveler Edition)
Today I temporarily turn blog duties over to a wealthy Chicagoan, as he can actually travel back in time and give a good/bad preview of UGA-Troy. But as he can't exactly control where in time he goes, or so he's claimed, we wound up with a few other musings. Without further adieu, here we go:
(Saturday, November 8, 1980 Henry is 28, Clare is 9)
Henry: Definitely back in the past. That Will guy told me to look for Georgia fans and that there probably wouldn't be many fans of the other team. He also gave me some photos of what the UGA campus and downtown Athens look like.
(Fig 1.)
(Fig 2.)
It was an odd thing to have someone be not only non-plussed about my "condition" but to actually hire me to help his "blog." What an ugly word. Apparently it's some sort of pseudo-journalism. He also claimed to know Clare, the gorgeous, odd girl that already claimed to know me that came in the library the other day. He threw in an extra UGA jersey and told me not to wear it myself, but, "if things worked out" let Clare have it, as he claimed "jerseys look a lot better on women than men." He also told me that it might be good to invest in the Euro, Pound Sterling, and even the Canadian dollar around 2003 or so, which I think is pretty ridiculous. What the hell's a Euro anyway?
But this place is not Athens. Lots of mulleted guys in jean shorts. I score a ticket from some noisy jackass Florida alum named Steve wearing a visor and go into the game. It's not going too well for Georgia at first, but then something amazing happens...I was stunned and after the game talked with this guy named Lewis about it:
"Georgia behind 21-20, ninety-three yards away, time running out.
(Saturday, December 7, 2002 Henry is 28, Clare is 31)
Henry: For a second I thought I'd found my way to Chicago again. It was not snowing, but it was plenty cold. I saw some drunk Georgia fans coming out of a parking garage and scored some moderately warm clothes and some very warm Jack and Cokes from them. Turns out I'm in Atlanta, and it's UGA's first-ever trip to the SEC Championship game. I see a guy that looks like a much-younger version of that Will guy walk past with a very attractive redhead, with what looked like freshly straightened hair, spouting some nonsense about "being nervous riding the elevator at The Sundial." It didn't make much sense, but I blamed the Jack.
The fans tried to be a bit nervous about Arkansas alleged "speed", but the only real disappointment came while watching the VT-Miami game. Had Virginia Tech won, UGA would have been in contention for something called the BCS National Title game. Which I guess is like a regular title game, but with more sponsors.
The Dawg fans were confident, the team destroyed Arkansas, and someone told me The Sundial was actually a revolving restaurant/bar some 70 stories up. Then I blacked out. Strike two.
3rd time's the charm right?
(Friday, November 2nd, 2007 Henry is 28, Clare is 35)
Henry: Ok, I think this time I've made it. It's dark, crowded, and there's no ringing bell. There are a lot of people around, so I quickly grab a discarded Halloween costume (at least I think that's what it is, unless somehow Zoot Suits are in fashion again in the future) and duck into the nearest bar for a drink. Some place called Tasty World.
According to the sideboard where the soundman is having a PBR, the band playing is called The Redcoats. The rock pretty hard, but in a kind of retro way. If the Kinks had somehow been punk, and they had a singer that really, really liked Mick Jagger's style, they'd be this band. There are some cute, but kind of young girls milling about, and then I see Will and figure the easiest way to do this is to just ask him his take. He was too busy or lazy or whatever to write in time, but he can still put some thought into it.
"Ok," he said, "here's The Cumberland Take:
"History was in the Dawgs' favor last week, not so much this week. The previous two times when those combinations of factors--The Red Sox winning the World Series--
"Wait, what?"
"Yeah, it happens twice in the early 2000s. Place a bet in 2004 on them coming back from 3-0 in the ALCS against the Yankees if you want to make a ton of money. Myself living in Atlanta and not Athens, plus UGA being undefeated against defending National Title Gator teams...well each time that's happened, the Dawgs lost the next game. It seems like it takes so much out of them to try and get that 800-lb. Gator gorilla off their backs, they don't have much left right after. And in 1997 and 2004 there were no huge celebrations after the first TD.
"Worse, Troy is no cupcake team. The walloped the piss out of Okie St., even more than the Dawgs did, and they did it in OSU's place. If the Dawgs come out flat, it could be UT game bad, except worse, because at least half the stadium will think Troy is a run-of-the-mill, take-the-check-and-get-beat Homecoming team."
"But what's the upside?"
"Well, the Rose-Colored View would be the Dawgs figured this offense thing out late against Vandy.
Moreno is a badass. Give him carries and he'll produce a buck-fifty at least, and that makes the passing game better. The WRs have held onto the ball, and caught it too, while the line has been awesome. If they keep doing that, even if the D struggles a bit, they run away with the game.
Good enough. I'm about to ask for an extra beer on him, when I black out.
(Saturday, November 12, 2005 Henry is 28, Clare is 33)
Henry: I'm back in Athens, but things feel different. I was able to get clothes with no trouble (the bonus of materializing in a closed clothing shop) but maybe I'm not alone here. I saw some other time-traveler, or possibly a very drunk person, run by, then get tackled by cops. The UGA fans were out and about, but very few looked happy. I hope this doesn't foretell bad things to come for Will's team...and then I black out.
(Saturday, November 8, 1980 Henry is 28, Clare is 9)
Henry: Definitely back in the past. That Will guy told me to look for Georgia fans and that there probably wouldn't be many fans of the other team. He also gave me some photos of what the UGA campus and downtown Athens look like.
(Fig 1.)
(Fig 2.)It was an odd thing to have someone be not only non-plussed about my "condition" but to actually hire me to help his "blog." What an ugly word. Apparently it's some sort of pseudo-journalism. He also claimed to know Clare, the gorgeous, odd girl that already claimed to know me that came in the library the other day. He threw in an extra UGA jersey and told me not to wear it myself, but, "if things worked out" let Clare have it, as he claimed "jerseys look a lot better on women than men." He also told me that it might be good to invest in the Euro, Pound Sterling, and even the Canadian dollar around 2003 or so, which I think is pretty ridiculous. What the hell's a Euro anyway?
But this place is not Athens. Lots of mulleted guys in jean shorts. I score a ticket from some noisy jackass Florida alum named Steve wearing a visor and go into the game. It's not going too well for Georgia at first, but then something amazing happens...I was stunned and after the game talked with this guy named Lewis about it:
"Georgia behind 21-20, ninety-three yards away, time running out.
'We need a miracle!' screamed Dorsey Hill, now fortified with more than collards.
Georgia got its miracle. Buck Belue to Lindsay Scott, for ninety-three yards and the winning touchdown with only seconds remaining. If that wasn’t enough, there was the astounding news from Atlanta. Georgia Tech had tied No.1 Notre Dame. Surely, Georgia will be ranked first in America when the ratings are released.
'A tie was a gift from Heaven,' said Dorsey. “Notre Dame gets knocked out of number one but Tech doesn’t get a win. God is a Bulldog.”
Verily."
Then this Dorsey character came over, drunk in ways I couldn't even fathom, threatening Lewis with retribution for leaving the game early. Then I blacked out. Strike one.
(Saturday, December 7, 2002 Henry is 28, Clare is 31)
Henry: For a second I thought I'd found my way to Chicago again. It was not snowing, but it was plenty cold. I saw some drunk Georgia fans coming out of a parking garage and scored some moderately warm clothes and some very warm Jack and Cokes from them. Turns out I'm in Atlanta, and it's UGA's first-ever trip to the SEC Championship game. I see a guy that looks like a much-younger version of that Will guy walk past with a very attractive redhead, with what looked like freshly straightened hair, spouting some nonsense about "being nervous riding the elevator at The Sundial." It didn't make much sense, but I blamed the Jack.
The fans tried to be a bit nervous about Arkansas alleged "speed", but the only real disappointment came while watching the VT-Miami game. Had Virginia Tech won, UGA would have been in contention for something called the BCS National Title game. Which I guess is like a regular title game, but with more sponsors.
The Dawg fans were confident, the team destroyed Arkansas, and someone told me The Sundial was actually a revolving restaurant/bar some 70 stories up. Then I blacked out. Strike two.
3rd time's the charm right?
(Friday, November 2nd, 2007 Henry is 28, Clare is 35)
Henry: Ok, I think this time I've made it. It's dark, crowded, and there's no ringing bell. There are a lot of people around, so I quickly grab a discarded Halloween costume (at least I think that's what it is, unless somehow Zoot Suits are in fashion again in the future) and duck into the nearest bar for a drink. Some place called Tasty World.
According to the sideboard where the soundman is having a PBR, the band playing is called The Redcoats. The rock pretty hard, but in a kind of retro way. If the Kinks had somehow been punk, and they had a singer that really, really liked Mick Jagger's style, they'd be this band. There are some cute, but kind of young girls milling about, and then I see Will and figure the easiest way to do this is to just ask him his take. He was too busy or lazy or whatever to write in time, but he can still put some thought into it.
"Ok," he said, "here's The Cumberland Take:
"History was in the Dawgs' favor last week, not so much this week. The previous two times when those combinations of factors--The Red Sox winning the World Series--
"Wait, what?"
"Yeah, it happens twice in the early 2000s. Place a bet in 2004 on them coming back from 3-0 in the ALCS against the Yankees if you want to make a ton of money. Myself living in Atlanta and not Athens, plus UGA being undefeated against defending National Title Gator teams...well each time that's happened, the Dawgs lost the next game. It seems like it takes so much out of them to try and get that 800-lb. Gator gorilla off their backs, they don't have much left right after. And in 1997 and 2004 there were no huge celebrations after the first TD.
"Worse, Troy is no cupcake team. The walloped the piss out of Okie St., even more than the Dawgs did, and they did it in OSU's place. If the Dawgs come out flat, it could be UT game bad, except worse, because at least half the stadium will think Troy is a run-of-the-mill, take-the-check-and-get-beat Homecoming team."
"But what's the upside?"
"Well, the Rose-Colored View would be the Dawgs figured this offense thing out late against Vandy.
Moreno is a badass. Give him carries and he'll produce a buck-fifty at least, and that makes the passing game better. The WRs have held onto the ball, and caught it too, while the line has been awesome. If they keep doing that, even if the D struggles a bit, they run away with the game.
Good enough. I'm about to ask for an extra beer on him, when I black out.
(Saturday, November 12, 2005 Henry is 28, Clare is 33)
Henry: I'm back in Athens, but things feel different. I was able to get clothes with no trouble (the bonus of materializing in a closed clothing shop) but maybe I'm not alone here. I saw some other time-traveler, or possibly a very drunk person, run by, then get tackled by cops. The UGA fans were out and about, but very few looked happy. I hope this doesn't foretell bad things to come for Will's team...and then I black out.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Sorry Mr. Adams, it's still a Cocktail Party to the rest of us
In the interest of getting better mojo flowing the Dawgs' way, I'm flipping the script this week:
The Rose Colored View
If you're a student of history who also has a superstitous bent, this weekend shapes up very well for the Dawgs. Why? Let's go into the past:
1. There's already recent evidence that history can repeat for the Dawgs. Last season the Dawgs lost to Vandy and Kentucky for the first time since 1973. Like in 1973 they finished the year beating Auburn, Tech and a bowl opponent.
2. In 1997 Florida was defending a national title (earned with one loss), and had already lost to LSU, in Baton Rogue at night, earlier in the year. The Dawgs entered coming off a non-impressive year and shellacked the Gators.
3. The Red Sox are in the World Series. The last time this happened was in 2004, coincidentally the last time UGA beat Florida.
Bonus personal history mojo: the two previous times UGA has beaten Florida I was not living in Athens. I was living in Athens from 1998-2003 seasons and moved back for the 2005-2006 seasons. 1997 and 2004 were wins.
(The Dawgs record vs. Florida=significantly better when I'm closer to this location.)
But beyond all that scientifically insignificant stuff, this is also the worst defense Florida's brought to Jacksonville since 2004 as well. And that's been the recent storyline for Florida wins in this series. Florida plays stout D and scores enough to eke out a win, UGA does just not enough on offense. Even last year's horrid D, fresh from barely stopping MSU and embarrassing shows against UT and Vandy, held Florida to 2 TDs (the third was a gift from our offense, which has played far more nervous than the D recently).
If ever there was a situation where Matt Stafford could rise to the occasion and live up to some of the massive hype he's had thrown his way, it's this one. He's got the physical tools, a good number of the WRs have the speed and potential (particularly Sean Bailey and Demiko Goodman), and Florida has the 95th ranked pass defense in the country. Ole Miss put some feat into them and had a career day passing, and that was when Reggie Nelson Jr., aka Major Wright was still suiting up. To date, Stafford still has not a single 300+ yard passing day in a Georgia uniform. It needs to happen Saturday. Because if it does, that means Knowshown gets a chance to ram it down the Gators' throats, just like LSU did. He was key in the Vandy comeback when (which, by the way, doesn't look quite as bad now...betcha Visor boy would love a close win against them) he took over on some late drives. If he can do it again Saturday, there might be just enough keep-away on offense to let a fast and rested UGA D inflict pain and suffering on Cro-magnon QB Tim Tebow.
And since this is positing the best-potential outcomes, since Lady Luck owes us one after Shockley went down a week before facing Meyer's weekest Gator team, it'd be nice if on his first carry, Tebow pulled up gimpy with a terrible hamstring strain and remained out for the rest of the game.
The Cumberland Report
Because the flip side is, while I've joked about losing by 200, if the Dawgs play in JAX like they did in Knoxville, 100 points is possible. Meyer seems to have no qualms at all about pouring it on rival teams (see the UT game in which they scored 59 on a team that beat UGA by 3 TDs and kept Tebow and company in). Sure the karma ought to catch up to him soon, but this could be over with half the first quarter left on the clock if the Dawgs play poorly and UF's D mimics its UT game performance. They shut down Ainge and Co., don't think they can't do that to an offense that struggled putting up points against Vandy.
Plus, unlike last season, there's no potential love of my life (well, I thought at the time) to distract me with her wit and charm. That's not to say a UGA loss would be easier if I had a date or a girlfriend (though for the record, normally girls that care about their teams losses are far more attractive than those that don't, I've pretty much given up on trying to pinpoint any particular thing about The Girl that made her so incredible...I will say that, as an obsessive UGA fan, that Saturday was a great day despite the loss and hope that speaks volumes about her, and then return to your regularly-scheduled hand-wringing.)
(The Girl had also been compared to Sophia Bush, but I attest was more attractive. Sophia's looking skeptical of this, but her skeptical looks have helped mojo-wise before...but I will get annoyed if she starts dating Tony Romo)
My biggest fear? (Besides going out to a halloween party/concert afterwards and seeing either no "Sexy _______" costumes worn or "sexy _______" costumes worn by folks with no business wearing said costumes.) Given their recent history, Willie Martinez's defense vs. the Tebow-lead spread offense is about as big a mismatch as Bill Hicks and LC from the Hills.
(As Hicks had a bit about wishing California fell into the ocean, and Ms. Conrad is from Cali, I figure they're a poor couple. Plus Hicks is, sadly, deceased. And for anyone that's not a zombie, that's an obstacle in dating.)
So to wrap it up, this whole thing reminds me of 2004, sort of. The Dawgs have been beaten by lesser Gator teams a lot lately, and clearly enter this time as the underdogs. Mentally, they've been one mild breeze from going over the edge in these games. Like the 2004 Red Sox against the Yankees, they need one good thing to go their way and they could turn it around. Here's hoping someone pulls a Dave Roberts steal, because if not, this will get uglier than Game 3.
The Rose Colored View
If you're a student of history who also has a superstitous bent, this weekend shapes up very well for the Dawgs. Why? Let's go into the past:
1. There's already recent evidence that history can repeat for the Dawgs. Last season the Dawgs lost to Vandy and Kentucky for the first time since 1973. Like in 1973 they finished the year beating Auburn, Tech and a bowl opponent.
2. In 1997 Florida was defending a national title (earned with one loss), and had already lost to LSU, in Baton Rogue at night, earlier in the year. The Dawgs entered coming off a non-impressive year and shellacked the Gators.
3. The Red Sox are in the World Series. The last time this happened was in 2004, coincidentally the last time UGA beat Florida.
Bonus personal history mojo: the two previous times UGA has beaten Florida I was not living in Athens. I was living in Athens from 1998-2003 seasons and moved back for the 2005-2006 seasons. 1997 and 2004 were wins.
(The Dawgs record vs. Florida=significantly better when I'm closer to this location.)If ever there was a situation where Matt Stafford could rise to the occasion and live up to some of the massive hype he's had thrown his way, it's this one. He's got the physical tools, a good number of the WRs have the speed and potential (particularly Sean Bailey and Demiko Goodman), and Florida has the 95th ranked pass defense in the country. Ole Miss put some feat into them and had a career day passing, and that was when Reggie Nelson Jr., aka Major Wright was still suiting up. To date, Stafford still has not a single 300+ yard passing day in a Georgia uniform. It needs to happen Saturday. Because if it does, that means Knowshown gets a chance to ram it down the Gators' throats, just like LSU did. He was key in the Vandy comeback when (which, by the way, doesn't look quite as bad now...betcha Visor boy would love a close win against them) he took over on some late drives. If he can do it again Saturday, there might be just enough keep-away on offense to let a fast and rested UGA D inflict pain and suffering on Cro-magnon QB Tim Tebow.
And since this is positing the best-potential outcomes, since Lady Luck owes us one after Shockley went down a week before facing Meyer's weekest Gator team, it'd be nice if on his first carry, Tebow pulled up gimpy with a terrible hamstring strain and remained out for the rest of the game.
The Cumberland Report
Because the flip side is, while I've joked about losing by 200, if the Dawgs play in JAX like they did in Knoxville, 100 points is possible. Meyer seems to have no qualms at all about pouring it on rival teams (see the UT game in which they scored 59 on a team that beat UGA by 3 TDs and kept Tebow and company in). Sure the karma ought to catch up to him soon, but this could be over with half the first quarter left on the clock if the Dawgs play poorly and UF's D mimics its UT game performance. They shut down Ainge and Co., don't think they can't do that to an offense that struggled putting up points against Vandy.
Plus, unlike last season, there's no potential love of my life (well, I thought at the time) to distract me with her wit and charm. That's not to say a UGA loss would be easier if I had a date or a girlfriend (though for the record, normally girls that care about their teams losses are far more attractive than those that don't, I've pretty much given up on trying to pinpoint any particular thing about The Girl that made her so incredible...I will say that, as an obsessive UGA fan, that Saturday was a great day despite the loss and hope that speaks volumes about her, and then return to your regularly-scheduled hand-wringing.)
(The Girl had also been compared to Sophia Bush, but I attest was more attractive. Sophia's looking skeptical of this, but her skeptical looks have helped mojo-wise before...but I will get annoyed if she starts dating Tony Romo)
(As Hicks had a bit about wishing California fell into the ocean, and Ms. Conrad is from Cali, I figure they're a poor couple. Plus Hicks is, sadly, deceased. And for anyone that's not a zombie, that's an obstacle in dating.)
Friday, October 12, 2007
It's All Up/Downhill From Here...
"Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run-Led Zeppelin
There's still time to change the road you're on
And it makes me wonder"
Makes me wonder too. Anyways, here's the reports:
The Cumberland Report
A loss, whether by one point or 200 could qualify here. The last time the Dawgs lost two straight to Lionel Ritchie's old backing band, Tech was still considered a "serious" national power (as in, they seriously thought they were up there with Notre Dame, and the whole country didn't even laugh at them. Now they will offer you everything short of sexual favors to see them play.)
("Hello, is it a good team you're looking for?" No thanks, I'd prefer the old, sucky Vandy.)
Vandy's posted decent rushing numbers this year (possibly due to the fact that half the opposing teams triple-cover Earl Bennett as he is good and the other Vandy WRs have hands of granite.) The UGA defense has shown an indifference to tackling reminicent of the 1999 team. That makes for a bad combo.
And if the offense shoots itself in the foot again (going for the hat trick with the SoCar and EweT game performances) it could be a long day in the music city. Or night even.
The Rose-Colored View
Someone on the team has to get pissed off. Losing to Vandy for the second year in a row needs to be as unfathomable as losing to Georgia Tech, or Matt Stafford not being able to lift an empty beer keg, or Phil Lesh's set at the Echo project having no hippies or pseudo-hippies in the crowd. It just shouldn't happen. It's unnatural. Like UGA girls dating Tech guys. Or sober Irish rockstars.
We're UGA. They're Vandy. And we're pissed (or should be). And the score should reflect that.
(The Dawgs should do this on Saturday night. I hear Nashville hates Hip-Hop too.)Friday, October 05, 2007
Kill Phil Parts 1 & 2
Transcript of the trailer for Quentin Tarantino's new film Kill Phil:
DISPLAY CARD: October, 2006
EXT. Sanford Stadium, 2nd Half.
THERE'S CARNAGE ALL AROUND, AND WHAT WAS TO BE THE HAPPIEST DAY FOR THE DOGS HAS TURNED INTO A BLOODLETTING
ERIK AINGE
I know you think I'm a bastard, but trust me, this is me at my most beautiful.
*SHOT FIRED*
*FADE TO BLACK*
DISPLAY CARD: REUSE THAT KLINGON PROVERB ONE THAT WORKED SO WELL LAST TIME
2007
EXT. NEYLAND STADIUM. HALFTIME
FULMER
You didn't think it would be easy did you?
MARK RICHT
You know...for a second there...I actually did.
COMING THIS OCTOBER
And now, this week's edition:
The CUMBERLAND REPORT
This is a pretty easy worst-case scenario to envision at this point. It would be a repeat of last year's game, only the Dawgs would blow an even larger first half lead, and the Vols would score even more points. Think getting a full 4 TD lead or more, then losing by 7 TDs or something.
Erik Ainge has been the Anti-Clausen for the Vols. He was nothing special in 2004, but he didn't screw up either. SoCar's already proven that if you add that to either a D disrupting Georgia's offense enough, or if the Dawgs forget and take their stone hand gloves with them to Knoxville, well that can get you a win.
(Sadly Ainge does not come from Emu stock.)
Last year's incarnation of That Guy Who's Related To That Guy From The Celtics destroyed Georgia's D with the precision and gusto of John Madden attacking a Turducken following a hungerstrike. He was aided by a Georgia offense that apparently decided that for the second half, the football was hot potato.
(My memory of last year's UT game from about the 2nd half on.)
Turnovers, drops, and Erik Ainge doing what he's done all season could easily lead to a game where I turn away from the TV in disgust (or to vomit) early in the 3rd quarter or sooner. I can look at the stats that have UT dead last in scoring...but John Chavis has never fielded a completely inept, Cool Breeze/UGA 1999-level-sucky D. Ever. Even in the Vols 5-6 season they could stop folks. And just maybe Cal and Florida are a wee bit better on offense than the Dawgs.
Not to mention, word out of the AD office in Knoxville is "No coach's job hinges on this game," which is the AD speak equivalent to when the girl you're dating says "we need to talk," (particularly when not prefaced by your name or some cute little endearment like "baby.") The threat of getting fired just may work as motivation.
("And then your one goal is just to not get fired...")
The Rose-Colored Glasses View
But maybe, just maybe, since the Vols do return a tiny # of starters on D, and they haven't had the same starting 11 all year, and since even Arkansas State had a RB top the century mark against them (after a looooong stretch in which no RB did), there just might be some validity in their Defensive stats, despite the relatively tiny sample size.
UGA's O vs. UT's D is a Strength vs. Weakness matchup, as are UGA's return teams vs. UT's kick coverage.
In addition to turnovers creating short fields for Ainge nearly all second-half long, UT also had three great WRs, and UGA had slow LBers. Those WRs have graduated and moved on to the NFL, and UGA has a much faster front 7, particularly with Washington seeing less time.
UT's players have also not responded well to adversity in previous seasons in which things turned south. In a way this could be a reverse of the 2005 season, in which the D began to resent the hapless O. Ainge and Coker and co. could come to hate a sieve-like D for not holding a lead (though it should provide an excellent chance at stat-padding.)
(Keri Russel is cautiously optimistic about the Dawgs' chances Saturday.)
The speedy D should do just enough to slow down Ainge and the passing game while mostly keeping the Vols from the hideous checkerboard end zone. Brown and Moreno should once again make the play-action game a major threat, and if Sean Bailey, Mikey Henderson, or Demiko Goodman start catching some deep passes, it could be a great day for the Dawgs.
DISPLAY CARD: October, 2006
EXT. Sanford Stadium, 2nd Half.
THERE'S CARNAGE ALL AROUND, AND WHAT WAS TO BE THE HAPPIEST DAY FOR THE DOGS HAS TURNED INTO A BLOODLETTING
ERIK AINGE
I know you think I'm a bastard, but trust me, this is me at my most beautiful.
*SHOT FIRED*
*FADE TO BLACK*
DISPLAY CARD: REUSE THAT KLINGON PROVERB ONE THAT WORKED SO WELL LAST TIME
2007
EXT. NEYLAND STADIUM. HALFTIME
FULMER
You didn't think it would be easy did you?
MARK RICHT
You know...for a second there...I actually did.
COMING THIS OCTOBER
And now, this week's edition:
The CUMBERLAND REPORT
This is a pretty easy worst-case scenario to envision at this point. It would be a repeat of last year's game, only the Dawgs would blow an even larger first half lead, and the Vols would score even more points. Think getting a full 4 TD lead or more, then losing by 7 TDs or something.
Erik Ainge has been the Anti-Clausen for the Vols. He was nothing special in 2004, but he didn't screw up either. SoCar's already proven that if you add that to either a D disrupting Georgia's offense enough, or if the Dawgs forget and take their stone hand gloves with them to Knoxville, well that can get you a win.
(Sadly Ainge does not come from Emu stock.)
Last year's incarnation of That Guy Who's Related To That Guy From The Celtics destroyed Georgia's D with the precision and gusto of John Madden attacking a Turducken following a hungerstrike. He was aided by a Georgia offense that apparently decided that for the second half, the football was hot potato.
(My memory of last year's UT game from about the 2nd half on.)
Not to mention, word out of the AD office in Knoxville is "No coach's job hinges on this game," which is the AD speak equivalent to when the girl you're dating says "we need to talk," (particularly when not prefaced by your name or some cute little endearment like "baby.") The threat of getting fired just may work as motivation.
("And then your one goal is just to not get fired...")
The Rose-Colored Glasses View
But maybe, just maybe, since the Vols do return a tiny # of starters on D, and they haven't had the same starting 11 all year, and since even Arkansas State had a RB top the century mark against them (after a looooong stretch in which no RB did), there just might be some validity in their Defensive stats, despite the relatively tiny sample size.
UGA's O vs. UT's D is a Strength vs. Weakness matchup, as are UGA's return teams vs. UT's kick coverage.
In addition to turnovers creating short fields for Ainge nearly all second-half long, UT also had three great WRs, and UGA had slow LBers. Those WRs have graduated and moved on to the NFL, and UGA has a much faster front 7, particularly with Washington seeing less time.
UT's players have also not responded well to adversity in previous seasons in which things turned south. In a way this could be a reverse of the 2005 season, in which the D began to resent the hapless O. Ainge and Coker and co. could come to hate a sieve-like D for not holding a lead (though it should provide an excellent chance at stat-padding.)
(Keri Russel is cautiously optimistic about the Dawgs' chances Saturday.)
Friday, September 28, 2007
Your Friday Bipolar Football Prognostication
(If Andre 3000 can show up for Okie State, maybe T.I. can show up for a trap game.)
The Cumberland Report:
As Doug already noted (with illustrations), the Dawgs have two (maybe three) bad track-records that could coincide in tomorrow's game:
1. Poor showings following up big, emotional wins.
Oddly enough this wasn't the case following the first massive win off the Richt era, as they restrapped on the hobnail boots and walked a mudhole in Vandy's ass the next week. And they did pretty well after ripping Auburn a new mascot-hole last season. But there are also games like the 2004 UT game, lackluster, closer-than-they-should-have-been games like the 2002 UT game (and really almost any win prior to the Tech game that season), UAB in 2005...etc.
2. Playing to the level of competition. See 2005 UAB game again, or even getting into the conservative, run mostly, pass occasionally Chinese Water Torture offensive game played by SOS this season.
2b. Lack of focus against lesser or perceived lesser opponents (see also: the Western Carolina game.)
Ole Miss has enough playmakers to make a sonambulant Georgia team pay. I hope our secondary is better than Florida's at this point, but it's possible the Ole Miss QB finally had the "stop sucking" lightbulb go off over his head.
Plus, BenJarvis Green-Ellis, in addition to having more names than the entire two deep at RB for other teams on the schedule, is the best back the Dawgs have faced, and unlike Cult Leader Major Applewhite and Terry Grant, the Rebs won't go whole periods without giving him a carry.
There are also added distractions.
Coach O could go crazy and begin to eat Georgia players and coaches (I'm also concerned that he shares the sideline with UGA VI.)
(Seriously, would anyone in their right mind let any animal mascot smaller than Bevo or Ralphie near this guy? If I'm the facilities director for LSU, I keep even Mike away, because I think Coach O would at least try to eat a tiger.)
Also, Georgia's lackluster performance in Oxford last year I think is directly attributable to the fact that Ole Miss is probably the only SEC school to boast a greater amount of ravingly attractive coeds than UGA. If Ole Miss's sorority girls travel well, the team may be prone to distraction as they near the visiting team's sections.
As the following clips culled from the YouTubes demonstrate, lasses hailing from Faulkner's favorite SEC school are winsome, but unlikely to actually own, or have read any of his works:
Though to be fair, I'm pretty sure this gal, and her fellow female fans below, are a wee bit tipsy (just maybe):
(Side note: I'm convinced every sorority at every major Southern University has some sort of secret requirement that at least one sister must, like the blonde on the right above, look hot, but also a good solid decade above her actual age. There really needs to be a word for this: the girls that are usually 19 or 20, but could easily pass for 30+. Is it just me?)
(On the flip side, as there are statistically more women in college than men, it's theoretically possible that more Ole Miss ladies make the trip than men, and if they lose, I will be there to
The Rose-Colored Glasses View:
The coaching staff knows about the opportunities missed in Tuscaloosa. The players have been told about the missed opportunities. Steps have been run, at asscrack-of-dawn-seems-like-sleeping-in-by-comparison hours. The lesson will, finally, be learned, and Ole Miss shall be beaten down.
If Matt Stafford was looking for a great shot at getting his first 300+ yard passing game, playing a team ranked worse against the pass than Louisville (!!!) should do it. Afterwards he can pick up an empty beer keg and cavort with the younger Ole Miss hotties not interested in slightly older, more mature UGA grads that also run a blog prognosticating happy and unhappy outcomes to all of UGA's games.
(And I'm seriously going to buy this T-Shirt...)
Meaning, the only logical outcome is Col. Reb leaves Crying:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
[