"That's how winning is done"

I will be back tomorrow to offer my review of the Tech game and begin to look at LSU. But until then, I offer this quote from the last Rocky movie which perfectly sums up what the attitude the Dawgs should take heading into this match up:

Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done. Now, if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hit, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you are because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that!

Quick Observations from the LSU-Miss State Game

Because I have been at extended tailgates during the first two weeks of the season, I have not had a chance to sit down and watch much college football this season. But tonight I was able to sit on the couch and watch almost all of the Thursday night match up between LSU and Mississippi State. It was a throwback game to earlier days in the SEC when running the ball and defense ruled. Here are my thoughts about the game and the two teams:

LSU

- LSU's defense is ridiculous. Quick to the ball, solid tackling, and they make big plays. Mississippi State was averaging 300 yards a game rushing during the first two weeks. Tonight they barely had 200 yards of total offense.

- #17 for LSU (can't remember his name) was mentioned in the game as early target for MSU to pick on. The guy finished with two interceptions.

- LSU has enough talent on defense that they will never need to score a ton of points to win. That is good, because Jarrett Lee will not be lighting up the scoreboard. He is the very definition of a game manager.

- LSU has some good young receivers and the duo of Ware and Ford in the backfield are very solid.

Mississippi State

- All the injuries on the Mississippi State line are really killing them. They were getting little to no push against the LSU front.

- Relf makes some pretty good moves for such a big guy, but he doesn't sell play action well at all.

- Ballard is a bowling ball, you've got to keep him off his feet.

- Mississippi State's defense looked out of breath in the second half. If you can sustain long drives like LSU did tonight, you can wear them down and then begin hitting long passes.

- Overall, Mississippi State has not progressed much from last year. Don't get me wrong, they are a solid team who hung with the number 3 team in the country. But, they are still too one dimensional offense which makes them vulnerable late in the game (as evidenced by Relf being pulled in favor of Russell). The defense is solid, but they still rely so heavily on the blitz that a decent quarterback should have little trouble tearing them apart. Fortunately for them, Jarrett Lee is not that type of player. When they play Arkansas, expect big numbers from Wilson and his trio of receivers.

It was a really fun game to watch. I love seeing old school SEC games where you think the final score may be 6-3. I feel like the Dawgs will have a tough challenge when MSU comes to Athens in three weeks, but it won't be much different than waht we saw in Starkville last fall.

Public Perception and College Football Rankings

As Georgia struggles through its worst season since Mark Richt came to Athens, many people are worried about the direction of the Georgia program. After an 8-5 campaign last year, the Dawgs reputation as one of the best programs in the SEC has certainly taken a hit. While it is clear that the Dawgs will not return to the top 25 this season, it is not out of this world to think the Dawgs will at least be mentioned in the "others receiving votes" at the beginning of next season. So, how long does it take for the public perception to completely lose faith in a program? To illustrate this question, I will examine two schools currently ranked in the top 25: Michigan and LSU.

In the fall of 2007, Lloyd Carr of Michigan had announced his retirement as long time coach of the Michigan Wolverines. The team had began the year at #4 in the country, but an embarrassing loss in week 1 to 1-AA Appalachian State changed the complexion of the season. The leading candidate to take over the job was LSU coach Les Miles. After rumors that he would be leaving Baton Rouge for Ann Arbor ran wild during the week of the SEC Championship game, Miles publicly declared that he was staying with the Tigers. LSU beat Tennessee and earned a chance to play Ohio State for the BCS Championship.

With Miles staying in Baton Rouge, Michigan had to find another person to replace Carr. West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez was soon hired. Just a year before, Rodriguez had agreed to take over the Alabama coaching position, but changed his mind (resulting in Nick Saban coming to Tuscaloosa). Michigan closed its season with a thrilling victory over Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and the Florida Gators. LSU won the National Championship. For the next two years, these programs would fail to match the success they had in the previous seasons.

The next two years in Michigan were a complete disaster. Without the players to run his spread offense (particularly after Terelle Pryor chose Ohio State), the Wolverines struggled through back to back losing seasons. Compiling a record of 8-16 in the next two years, Michigan entered the 2010 unranked, with many expecting this to be Rodriguez's final season on the sidelines.

Following its second national championship in 5 years, LSU lost its perch atop the SEC West as the Saban coached Crimson Tide retunred to national prominence. Unusual coaching decisions be Les Miles combined with poor offense and bad pass defense marked a complete change from the Tiger teams of the mid-2000's. They entered the 2010 season ranked 19 in the country.

2010 has been a successful season for both Michigan and LSU. Michigan, who in quarterback Denard Robinson finally has the correct player to run Rodriguez's offense, has looked impressive in winning 5 straight games to start the year. They appear to be a team on the rise and have returned to the rankings after a two year absence. LSU is also 5-0, but their path has been much different. The offense has been horrible with quarterback Jordan Jefferson already benched a number of times. The team struggled to beat a North carolina team missing 14 players and needed a Tennessee penalty to escape a horrible time management gaffe by Miles to beat the Volunteers. Despite the undefeated record, many are calling for Miles to be fired.

And here in lies the problem that the Georgia Bulldogs may face in the future. Michigan has looked impressive this season, climbing from the bowells of the unranked to #18 in the country. LSU, on the other hand, has looked horrible. But they currently sit at #9 in the AP Poll and #12 in the Coaches Poll. Now ask yourself, which team should be in the top ten?

After a few bad seasons, Georgia may be faced with a similar uphill battle when (or if) they get back to the winnings ways they once enjoyed. The SEC schedule is tough enough that an undefeated team will almost certainly always play for the national championship. But in the ever important recruiting season, only the top teams in the national get billing on national television. And while I think most people would rather watch Denard Robinson right now over Jordan Jefferson, LSU's #9 ranking says otherwise. Hopefully the Dawgs can find some magic like Michigan has this year, or else the climb back to the top may take longer than you think.

Ivy League or Bust

Evidently LSU is taking the Ivy League by storm.

Andrew Hatch, the one-time LSU QB, who competed on and off during the 2008 season with Jarrett Lee for the starting spot, is now in competition for the starting QB role with the Harvard Crimson.

Even though Hatch started his collegiate career at Harvard in 2005, went on his 2-year Mormon mission trip, transferred to LSU when offered a spot with the Tigers by the former BYU HC/LSU OC, and transferred back to Harvard after breaking his fibula in LSU's 2008 loss to UGA, he still is only an academic junior, due to Harvard not accepting any LSU transfer credits.

Apparently Hatch couldn't run fast enough.

And evidently he still has a lot to learn on the gridiron too, according to Harvard coach Tim Murphy:

Murphy said he could tell that playing for LSU, which is in college football’s elite division, made Hatch a better player, although he still had some soft spots in his game.

“He needs to work on taking care of the football better, and he’s got to do a better job in his decision making,” Murphy said. “Part of that is becoming more comfortable with our offense, which is a little more complex than the offense he ran at LSU.”

Sort of makes you wonder what Les is up to down on the bayou...

Thoughts on Louisiana State

After LSU scored to take a 20-13 lead, I looked at the time left on the clock and immediately thought something special might happen. Georgia was about to receive the kickoff with 1 timeout remaining and 46 seconds on the clock. 8 years ago, the Dawgs received a kickoff with one time out remaining and 44 seconds on the clock after Tennessee had scored a touchdown late in the fourth quarter on the Dawgs in Knoxville. Unfortunately, there were no hobnail boots to rescue the Dawgs this time. Here are my final thoughts from a tough game that leaves the Dawgs at 3-2 and a tough game next week against the Vols in Knoxville:

- Despite the score only being 6-0 at half, this game felt a lot like the 2008 Bama game. The fact that we held it that close is a testament to the defense's performance. If you were to remove the final 3 minutes of the game, that was one of the top 10 defensive performances of the Mark Richt era (and yes, there have been some great defensive games during that time).
- People have been complaining about Richard Samuel and Caleb King in the first half, but really they should be complaining about the O-line. The offensive line was great on pass protection, but every time we ran there were mutliple guys through the line. However, it was nice to see the number 24 bursting through the line again. Washaun has a bright future in Athens.
- The lack of effort to both block and return punts is horrible. Put Carlton Thomas back there and let him give it a try if Prince can't. Every time we send out Logan, we might as well be raising a white flag.
- Rennie Curran and AJ Green continue their wonderful play. Our offense would be nothing with AJ right now. He is not on any Heisman lists (and with the team at 3-2, he stands no chance of winning it) but he is clearly the most valuable player in college football right now.
- The penalty was crap and the make up call against LSU was BS as well. Bottom line is the first one should have never been called, it changed the game. Walsh had two touchbacks during the game and I believe he could have done it again if we kick off from the 30.

This game was a heart breaker. After an exhausting 5 week stretch to open the season, the Dawgs have yet to play a game that they either had a no chance to win or lose. The won-loss records of the teams Georgia has played so far is 16-5 (I believe). To come out with a 3-2 record, while disappointing, is still something to be proud of. We've got two games in Tennessee and then the week off before Florida. I hope the Dawgs can right the ship like we did in 2007.

GO DAWGS!!!

D-Day 2009: The Louisiana State Preview

Four games into the 2009 season, the Georgia Bulldogs are still looking for an identity. After opening the season with a tough loss on the road to Oklahoma State, the Dawgs have come back to win three games in a row. Sitting at 3-1 (2-0 in the SEC), the Dawgs are right where most experts expected them to be. But the road to get here has been rather unpredictable. After two shootout victories in conference, the Dawgs struggled to put away Arizona State at home and find themselves as a team that can't find a pass rush, shows brilliance on offense one moment and looks horrible the next, and continues to make turnovers which lead to easy scores for the other team. Without the play of AJ Green, the Dawgs record may be 1-3 instead of 3-1. This weekend, the #4 LSU Tigers come to Sanford Stadium as a team that is searching for an identity as well. At the end of this game, we will know that one team is alive and should be a contender for the SEC Championship. The other team could be in for a very long season.

Who are these guys?

LSU is ranked #4 in the country, but that ranking comes mostly from starting the season ranked high and winning games they should win while other teams ahead of them have lost. The Tigers have looked rather unimpressive in their victories over Washington, Vanderbilt, Louisiana-LaFayette, and Mississippi State. The Mississippi State game was the most telling, as the Tigers needed a goal line stand to prevent an upset loss to the lowly Bulldogs from Starkville.

On the defensive side of the ball, LSU has been solid allowing just over 15 points a game. They are led cornerback Patrick Peterson. An elite member of LSU's 2008 signing class, Peterson draws the task of guarding AJ Green this week. Peterson will not be alone, as LSU safety Chad Jones will provide support. I expect to see both of these players on Green almost everytime he is on the field. The Tiger defense is much improved over the squad that struggled down the stretch in 2008. While I am not ready to put them on the level of the 2007 team, they are dangerous with playmakers at every position.

The real trouble for the Tigers this year lies on the offensive side of the ball. The Tigers rank dead last in the SEC in yards, averaging only 310 a game. That is good for 105th in the country. With dual threat quarterback Jordan Jefferson and experienced running backs Charles Scott and Keiland Williams, many expected the LSU rushing attack to be among the best in the SEC, but they are only 76th in the country right now. Charles has really struggled, averaging a mere 44 yards a game (after averaging 90 yards a game last season).

Jordan Jefferson was expected to improve his passing during his second season, but despite having a great receiving tandem in Terrance Tolliver and Brandon LaFell, the Tigers are 88th in the nation in passing at 190 yards per game. Jefferson has been an improvement over Jarrett Lee 9he of the many pick 6's last season) by throwing only 1 interception thus far. like many other teams this season, I expect LSU to try and use its size advantage over the Georgia corners to complete deep passes.

What are the Dawgs going to do?

That is a real good question. This team has been more up and down than the 2006 team that lost to Vandy and Kentucky and came back to beat three ranked teams to close the season. One minute the offense looks great, the next minute we can't move the ball. There have truly only been two consistent things about Georgia in 2009: turnovers on our side of the field that lead to easy scores and AJ Green.

For Georgia to win this football game, Georgia will have to prevent LSU from getting easy scores. That may mean that Joe Cox is not able to just throw it up and hope that AJ comes down with. LSU's secondary is too tall and athletic to just count on the fact that AJ will make a play. That also means that the running backs must hold on to the ball. All three Georgia running backs have had costly fumbles that have led to points for the opposing team this season. Caleb King had a good game running the ball for the second week in a row, but the fumble and two dropped screen passes put a damper on the performance. LSU is big and quick up front, and i think stretch runs and toss sweeps to Caleb give Georgia the best chance to get a running game going.

If the running game is successful, Georgia should be able to open up the play action game and take advantage of the double coverage applied to Green. Look for Cox to throw short to Michael Moore and Orson Charles if LSU keeps the double team on Green into the second half.

Defensively, the game plan should be similar to what was applied against Oklahoma State. They have a mobile quarterback with proven weapons at receiver and tailback. If Georgia can keep Jefferson in the pocket and get some pressure, they may be able to force some bad throws.

Prediction

This is a match up between two teams who I feel are very similar. Both teams are filled with extremely talented players who have yet to put it all together. If one team can cut down on the mental mistakes, this games has the potential to move from a close battle to a blowout. However, I do not think that will happen. Vegas favors the Dawgs in this one pretty much on the fact that we are at home. I was in Baton Rouge last season and I am sure the Tigers want to get some revenge for that game. This one should be close, but for the first time i am predicting us to come out on the short end of the stick.

LSU 31, Georgia 28

Neck: LSU vs. Southern University

LSU and Southern University fans go back and forth about which band plays the best version of "Neck", originating from the Cameo song, "Talkin' Out the Side of Your Neck".

Here are both versions. Who's better?

LSU: 2004 Edition

I know that we posted this clip prior to the LSU game last year, but it's too good not to post it again. And we won last year after we posted it. Good vibes.

Georgia vs. LSU: The Importance of Joe Cox

If Georgia is to beat LSU this Saturday in Athens, the Dawgs will most likely need a big game from senior quarterback Joe Cox. In the last three Georgia-LSU matchups (all Georgia victories), the quarterback position has been responsible for 11 total touchdowns (9 passing, 2 rushing).

- David Greene threw for 5 touchdowns in the 2004 victory over LSU in Athens
- DJ Shockley threw for 2 touchdowns and rushed for another in the 2005 SEC Championship game
- Matt Stafford threw 2 touchdowns and ran for one in the 52-38 victory in Baton Rouge last season

If Joe Cox can have a day any where close to these, the Dawgs should be in a good position to upset the #4 ranked Tigers.

LSU Notes: The Series

LSU leads the series 14-12-1. Georgia has won the past 3 meetings, including last year in Baton Rouge, 52-38.

The series is tied 6-6 in Athens.

And Saturday's matchup will be the 8th meeting between the two schools while both are nationally ranked. Georgia leads those meetings, 4-3.

Georgia is the only SEC team that Les Miles hasn't defeated (0-2).

LSU Notes

Turnover Margin: LSU +7 (first in SEC); UGA -9 (last in SEC)

Sizable sophomore cornerback Patrick Peterson (#7) and safety Chad Jones (#3) have played very well for the Tigahs in their defensive backfield. Both are playmakers and possible game changers. Peterson had a pick 6 vs. Miss. State while Chad Jones returned a punt for 6 of his own. Jones also had a game-saving pass breakup on 3rd-and-goal from the 1-yard-line late in the 4th quarter vs. Miss. State. Peterson will get the AJ Green assignment, not an envious assignment for even the best of cornerbacks.

The Tigahs struggled handling the football in the rain on special teams vs. Miss. State, dropping two snaps, one on an extra point attempt and the other on a punt attempt.

Where's QB Jarrett Lee and all of those pick 6's when you need them? And Georgia needs them with that awful turnover margin...

What's Really Under the Hood? Will Georgia see more of highly touted freshman Russell Sheppard (#10) at quarterback?

The LSU fans want it, although starting QB Jordan Jefferson (#9) is still a sophomore and has plenty of room to grow, even though it looked like he was a full-grown man vs. Georgia Tech last year.

Helping those two are WRs Brandon LaFell, Terrence Tolliver and Trindon Holliday, three dangerous threats. LaFell is just so consistent, it's hard to find much wrong with him. With the onslaught arrivals of AJ Green and Julio Jones in the SEC last year, LaFell was the forgotten man in the SEC WR rotation. He answered with a great season in 2008.

The surprise has been LSU's lack of a running game with two good RBs like Charles Scott and Keiland Williams. The offensive line has been a source of frustration for LSU fans as it has seemed to clog up running lanes instead of creating them. And QB Jefferson has faced constant pressure this year too.

Final Thoughts on Arizona State and on to LSU

Here are my final thoughts on the 20-17 victory over Arizona State on Saturday:

- The rain screwed up a lot of things. That was by far the most rain I have ever seen at a Georgia game, but unlike the 2004 Georgia Tech game, it was not freezing cold out. If it was not raining, I honestly think the Dawgs would have blown the Sun Devils out.

- Caleb King has his faults (the fumble and two dropped passes) but he look much better carrying the ball than Samuel did. He now has 22 carries on the season for 110 yards giving him a nice average of 5 yards a carry.

- Where was Michael Moore? Joe Cox only threw two passes his way and on a rainy night I thought the slot receiver would have played a much bigger role.

- The defense did a complete 180 from Arkansas. They only allowed 10 points and once again the touchdown came when the other team had a short field. Justin Houston and Geno Atkins had big games, and I am sure Arizona State fans are still having nightmares about Rennie Curran.

- Blair Walsh is money this year. So much for our scholarship kickers always losing their jobs to walk-ons.

- As Earl said, AJ Green. There are no other words needed.

After an ugly few weeks, the Dawgs sit at 3-1 with LSU coming to town. LSU is 4-0 and has moved up to #4 in the country. I honestly do not think they are a #4 team, but because so many other teams have lost, they have found their way to the top. LSU struggled in wins over Washington and Mississippi State and have failed to find any type of running game despite having two of the best backs in the SEC. This should be an interesting game on Saturday and could really provide a boost to the Dawgs national image if we pull out the victory.

Georgia won last year in Baton Rouge, 52-38. Here's a look back at last year:

Where's The Hardware? '06 LSU Tigers

Disclaimer: This list and subsequent blog posts were formed to create conversation between SEC fans about teams that were very close to having championship seasons. Looking at the teams listed and thinking about the teams that were left off further proves the depth of the SEC and the focus needed to win week in and week out. Teams were chosen and ranked based on significant wins/losses, star power and old school opinion (because we're opinionated SEC fans).

BNE Top 10 List so far...
#10 - 2001 Florida
#9 - 1997 Florida

BNE's best teams to not win the SEC title (post-1992): #8
2006 LSU Tigers

AP Preseason #8

Record: 11-2 (6-2)
Final AP Ranking: #3
Final Coaches Ranking: #3

Losses:
@ #4 Auburn 7-3 (LSU ranked #7)
@ #5 Florida 23-10 (LSU ranked #10)
- eventual SEC and National Champion

Wins vs. Ranked Opponents:
@ #8 Tennessee 28-24
@ #5 Arkansas (Little Rock) 31-26
Sugar Bowl: #11 Notre Dame 41-14 (what a joke of a team)

Star Power: QB JaMarcus Russell, ATH Trindon Holliday, FB Jacob Hester, WR Dwayne Bowe, WR Early Doucet, WR Craig Davis, DT Glenn Dorsey, DE Tyson Jackson, LB Ali Highsmith, S LaRon Landry, S Jessie Daniels, S Craig Steltz

Why Ahead of '97 Florida?
Star power. Les Miles' second year at LSU bore the fruits of Nick Saban's recruiting classes just like '05 LSU did. To his credit, Miles has continued LSU's dominance on the recruiting trail during his four years in Baton Rouge. The '06 version of the Bayou Bengals could compete on a Who's Who list with any other team in BNE's Top 10.

Bubba says: 2006 LSU was a big time team that didn't perform up to their talent level in their two biggest moments, at Florida and at Auburn. Based off of on field results, 2005 LSU could easily hold this spot with their 7-1 conference record, but this team was virtually the same, only a year older and stronger. The Bayou Bengals had the unfortunate privilege to face all of their ranked opponents on the road while all four were ranked in the top 10, and funny things happen on the Plains no matter who you are (some questionable officiating in that one). This team was over loaded with talent and you could easily include DC Bo Pelini and OC Jimbo Fisher as stars of this squad as well.


Holtz plugs Notre Dame (surprise!), while Corso wouldn't want to play LSU even with the Indianapolis Colts.

Earl says: "That was a war!" Those words were proclaimed by Kirk Herbstreit after ESPN's highlights of the 7-3 defensive struggle between LSU and Auburn. That was/is the SEC. The '06 Bayou Bengals faced four teams ranked in the top 8 all on the road. They split those contests 2-2. The other game that LSU dropped featured the very first Tim Tebow jump pass and the national media fawned.

LSU was trending up at the end of the season with road wins over ranked opponents Tennessee and Arkansas. Ultimately, the tough schedule tripped up this LSU team though, and while JaMarcus Russell had a tremendous arm, his leadership skills as a quarterback were tremendously lacking.

Basically, the '06 Tigers are ranked this high because of their talent level. Even with the tough schedule, I just don't believe they should've lost two games. However, LSU perfected losing twice the very next year and proved a two-loss team could still win the national championship. Of course, Les would remind us that LSU was undefeated in regulation in 2007.

Next installment: #7 - 2007 Georgia Bulldogs

The Countdown 2009: 45 Days to Go

45

Points scored by Georgia against LSU the last time the two teams met in Athens (Georgia won 45-16) during the 2004 season.

Quarterback David Greene threw for 5 touchdowns as the Dawgs got revenge for two losses at the hands of the Tigers during the 2003 season.

The Dawgs hope to continue its current winning streak when the Tigers come to town on October 3 this season.

Road Trip Memories - LSU/New Orleans 2008

As the summer days drag on, I am finding myself spending lots of time day dreaming about how awesome the start of a new football season will be. The only other things I can think about are the memories I have from each game last year.

The 2008 season was the first time I have ever attended every game (home, away, and the bowl game). It is no small feat generally, but with a trip to Arizona and back to back games at LSU and Jacksonville, it was a deep commitment.

The first memory I'll share is from when our good friend C-matt and I stayed in New Orleans after the LSU game in Baton Rouge. C-matt and I did not return to Atlanta after the LSU game. Instead, we stayed in New Orleans for two more days before driving straight to Florida for the Georgia-Florida game.

On the Sunday night following the victory in Baton Rouge (and after everyone else in our crew had left for Atlanta), C-matt and I were downing hurricanes from Pat O'Briens while watch some great jazz music next door at Preservation Hall.

Towards the end of the final of the three performances that night, an older gentleman (approx 65-70), began talking to C-matt and I while the band was taking a break between songs. Seeing our Georgia polos, he began telling us that he lives in Florida, but is from New Orleans and is an LSU grad.

After discussing the previous day's game, he pointed over to his son sitting just outside the room where the music was being played. He began to tell us how his son was a Florida alum, and was absolutely "A TYPICAL GATOR!" By "A TYPICAL GATOR," he meant his son was an overly arrogant Florida alum and Orlando resident who couldn't give a shit less that he was at a historic venue listening to what many consider the best jazz performances in New Orleans.

"He's just A TYPICAL GATOR! He couldn't care less!," the old man continued to say, "And my daughter, she went to Florida State! She has two degrees, and may by smarter than me, but SHE'S WORTHLESS! Florida State, aw SHE'S WORTHLESS!"

At this point in time, this old gentleman became my hero.

Eventually, his son came over and began talking to us. "I just bring my dad here to appease him everytime we're back in New Orleans. Old man is crazy in his age, ya know?"

"Uh, yeah, whatever," I replied as I was amazed at the arrogant douchebaggery of this Gator grad. It is even more amazing that I was amazed at his arrogant douchebaggery. I mean, he was a gator.

After a few minutes, the son went back outside where he sat down and typed on his blackberry and continued his many ways of douchebaggery.

"TYPICAL GATOR! Look at him! Sitting there and couldn't give a shit where he is! A TYPICAL GATOR."

After meeting the son, we toasted the old gentleman and agreed with him that his son was "A TYPICAL GATOR", and we thanked him for coining the "TYPICAL GATOR" phrase.

That old LSU fan was dead on about Florida fans and their typical attitude of not caring about anything that doesn't relate to themselves or Gator University.

Eventually the show ended, the old man left, and the rest of the night became a blur (it was New Orleans).

But, C-matt and I will always remember running into the old LSU grad at Preservation Hall, and his "TYPICAL GATOR" son.

The Countdown 2009: 68 Days to Go

68

Yards on the touchdown run for Knowshon Moreno against LSU last season. The Dawgs won, 52-38.

Streit's Bowl Picks: SEC Edition

The bowl season is almost halfway over and now the real bowls can begin. The SEC has sent 8 teams to bowls for the 2008-2009 season (the only guys missing out are Mississippi State, Auburn, Arkansas, and Tennessee). Below are my picks for all of the SEC games, including Georgia's match up with Michigan State, leading up to the BCS Championship. I will preview that game in a later post.

Music City Bowl - Boston College vs. Vanderbilt

Vandy finally qualified for a bowl game for the first time in 26 years and they get to travel to... Nashville. That's right, they get to stay home and play Boston College in their home town. Vanderbilt was everyones early season darling, jumping out to a 5-0 start and a top 15 ranking. But, the Commodores soon returned to Earth and lost 6 of their final 7 games (including an embarrassing loss to Duke). Boston College was not expected to compete for the ACC Championship in their first year PMR (Post Matt Ryan). The Eagles ended the regular season strong, winning their final 4 games before falling to Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship. Boston College improved during the season while Vandy seemed to get worse.

Boston College 37, Vanderbilt 13

Chick-Fil-A Bowl - LSU vs. Georgia Tech

As much as the Georgia defense was a disappointment this season, LSU's defense was worse. LSU allowed 31 points in each of its final 3 games to the likes of Troy, Ole Miss, and Arkansas. Lesticles does not have a solid option at QB with Jarrett Lee continuing to throw touchdowns to the wrong team and Jordan Jefferson still a year away from being ready to take the reins. Receiver Brandon LeFell and RB Charles Scott are big time players, but the lack of a QB hurts the Bayou Bengals. Georgia Tech has become a media darling this season with Paul Johnson's triple option attack working better than most thought it would. ACC player of the year Jonathan Dwyer, Roddy Jones, and Josh Nesbitt will be a tough task for the LSU defense. most people are picking Tech to win this one, but I think there will be an upset.

LSU 31, Georgia Tech 27

Outback Bowl - South Carolina vs. Iowa

Steve Spurrier's Palmetto State chickens finished an up and down 2008 season with a loss to rival Clemson and a 7-5 record. Outside of WR Kenny McKinley (who missed part of the season with injury) Carolina never found a true identity on offense. The strength of the SC team is their defense led by linebackers Eric Noorwood and Jasper Brinkley. The 'Cocks will be without leading tackler Emanuel Cook, who has been suspended by Coach Steve Spurrier. The Carolina defense ranked 11th in the nation, one spot ahead of the Iowa Hawkeyes. For Iowa, the game plan is all about defense and running back Shonn Greene. Greene beat out Knowshon Moreno and Javon Ringer for the Doak Walker Award by putting up big time numbers for the 8-4 Hawkeyes. The edge in this game goes to Iowa because of their ability to pull a major upset (of then #2 Penn State).

Iowa 20, South Carolina 14

Cotton Bowl - Ole Miss vs. Texas Tech

Houston Nutt surprised a lot of people in his first season in Oxford by winning eight games. I was not one of those people. With Texas transfer Jevan Snead under center and a new attitude on the sideline, I expected the Ole Miss program to have a strong 2008. Jevan Snead and WR/HB Dexter McCluster lead an explosive Mississippi offense. The question is, will they be able to keep up with Mike Leach's Red Raiders? Graham Harrel and Michael Crabtree lead the Texas Tech offense that scored 535 points this season. This team reached as high as #2 in the rankings and also gave one of the most memorable moments of 2008:

Texas Tech 45, Ole Miss 38

Liberty Bowl - Kentucky vs. East Carolina

Kentucky gave Georgia a scare this season when it finally found its QB of the future in Randall Cobb. The 'Cats were riddled with injuries this year, and after a 4-0 start lost 6 of their last 8 games. East Carolina also started the the season with some big wins, dropping Virginia Tech and West Virginia in consecutive weeks. But, disappointing losses to NC State, Houston, and Virginia derailed their BCS dreams. The Pirates recovered and won the Conference USA Championship by beating Tulsa. Even with ECU's impressive wins, I think Kentucky has a chance to pull the upset.

Kentucky 27, East Carolina 21

Sugar Bowl - Utah vs. Alabama

Another non-BCS school gets to take on the SEC in the Sugar Bowl. This sucks and I expect to see a similar story to play out as the one that happened last year. Nick Saban will have the Crimson Tide ready for the Utes and I expect the defense to have a field day. The Tide offense, while not explosive, will do enough between the running of Glenn Coffee, the passing of JPW, and the receiving of Julio Jones to put up 40 points. Without consensus All-America OL Andre Smith, suspended for violation of team rules, Alabama will need to get the ball out of the backfield a little quicker than usual. Don't look for that to cause Saban too many headaches in the game planning. Utah still runs a variation of the offense left by Urban Meyer, so look for them to use a similar scheme to that which was used by Florida in the SEC Championship. This game won't be as ugly as Georgia's destruction of Hawaii was, but another easy win for 'Bama none the less.

Alabama 45, Utah 24

Capital One Bowl - Georgia vs. Michigan State

At this point, we all know the big story line of this game is the match up between Knowshon Moreno and Javon Ringer. Both backs had great seasons and were finalists for the Doak Walker Award. The Dawgs were a preseason #1 team that underachieved and lost big games while the Spartans were a middle of the pack Big 10 team who is hoping to get to 10 wins for the first time since Nick Saban left for LSU. Rather than carry on about statistics, I'm just going to give my opinion on this game: Georgia should win rather easily. Georgia's offense boasts several top-tier college players: in addition to Knowshon Moreno, consider the fact that Matt Stafford and the combination of AJ Green and Mohammed Massaquoi have become one of the best QB/WR combos in the country. While Georgia may have struggled on D over the last few games, the offense has not. We are the better team and we should win. Ringer is a good back, but he averages only 4.2 yards a carry vs. 5.9 for Knowshon. If we step up and make tackles (yes, that is a big IF), we should stop Ringer in his tracks. And despite our struggles on D, we still ranked 28th in the country on total defense while Michigan State was 61st. I'm picking the Dawgs to pick up their 10th win of the season.

Georgia's 2009 New Year's Resolution: TACKLE BETTER!

Georgia 45, Michigan State 28

I'm headed to Orlando in the morning to cheer on the Dawgs. I'll be back next week with my National Championship Game preview as well as a season wrap up for Georgia.


GO DAWGS!!!

TIGER BAIT!

NOTE: I realize we're in the middle of Florida Hate Week, but I still wanted to re-cap LSU for all of our friends.

New Orleans is the only city where it's okay to play a piano in the middle of the street.

Friday, C-Matt and I began our 10 day Tour de Gulf Coast 2008 journey by heading to Nawlins.

Streit, Bubba, BFR, and several other friends had left Thursday to begin the celebration of Melissa taking Streit off of our hands.

I've got to give props to Streit. He agreed to a road trip with seven assholes who were going to berate him the entire time and force him to imbibe massive amounts. He took his punishments well (I'm sure whooping LSU helped).


After arrivng Friday night, we immediately began conquering the french quarter and Bourbon Street, with C-Matt leading the charge with a hand grenade in each hand.

At one point, we did run into a gang of Bama fans and some Oklahoma State students. You'll run into just about anyone on Bourbon Street, including a clown that gives out change (I'm not joking).


THE RIDE TO BATON ROUGE

Saturday morning our group of eight woke up and went to Harrah's to jump on a party bus to Baton Rouge.

Riding a bus with 60+ Dawgs, drinking some beers and not having to worry about driving sounds like an awesome enough of a time.

However, this bus ride was absolutely amazing. Vince Dooley, Larry Munson, and Pulpwood Smith were on our bus in the form of a very funny guy who does dead on impressions.

My life is better for having been on that bus. Not only was he dead on (especially with Dooley), he started telling some stories, embellishing them, and then just making up stuff that was absolutely hilarious.

My favorite line was at the end of Dooley talking about the 1980 national championship:

"Notre Dame's coach at the time was Dan Devine, and Dan and I spent a number of evenings together smoking crack cocaine."

We also took a back road to Baton Rouge that made me feel like I was driving to Auburn down Wire Road.

Mr. Bus Driver, there's no need to rush! I already have beverages here!


BATON ROUGE

We arrived in Baton Rouge about 3 hours before game time. From the second we got off of the bus we heard, "TIGER BAIT! TIGER BAIT!" with fingers pointing at us. I must have heard it a minimum of 18,000 times.

Despite it getting old, I did like how the entire fan base was shouting it at every fan.

The biggest surprise were the fans. I've never had bad experiences with LSU fans, aside from their massive obnoxiousness.

Maybe we didn't get the full brunt because it wasn't a night game, but I have never been to a place with more generous fans. Within 5 minutes of walking off the bus, we were being offered free food, beer, shots, and games of beer pong.

At one tailgate, a group of LSU fans had a beer funnel with 8 hoses and insisted that every DAWG take a stab. Then, they proceed to hug all of us.

We also tailgated with some ladies of a different persuasion. They had an awesome spread of food, great shots, and they were professionals at beer pong.

We also saw confederate flags that were purple and gold. LSU fans will change anything and everything to purple and gold if you let them.

If we make everything purple and gold, we can say it is ours!


THE GAME

DARRYL GAMBLE IS GOD! DARRYL GAMBLE IS GOD! DARRYL GAMBLE IS GOD!

It did not seem that Death Valley was as loud as it was cracked up to be, except during the middle of the 3rd quarter. It could be because it was an afternoon game or it could be due to the fact that we were sitting in the upper deck. LSU's upper deck is not really directly connected to the rest of the stadium, so that might have been the problem.


VICTORY BUS AND NEW ORLEANS

After yelling Tiger Bait at LSU fans so that they could have a taste of their own medicine, we got back to the bus and headed to New Orleans. Pulpwood continued to entertain the entire bus and eventually it turned into a drunk gator bashing good time.

There's nothing like walking into a major opponents' stadium and just kicking their ass. This is especially true when you're celebrating on a bus that's driving to the debauchery capital of the USA.

Arriving in New Orleans, we took over Pat O'Brien's with the rest of the Dawg family until the late hours of the morning.

On Sunday, C-Matt and I stayed in New Orleans and ran into an old LSU fan at Preservation Hall. This awesome guy proceeded to tell us that his son was a "typical gator." We met his son later, and he indeed was a typical gator. He also said his daughter was worthless because she went to Florida State. This guy ruled. I love cajuns.

C-Matt and I left New Orleans mid-afternoon on Monday and stopped in Gainesville to tell them how much they suck.

We've been in Florida all week helping to destroy the Jean Short Nation.



See you in Jaaksawnville!

Hate Orange. Hate Blue. Hate Florida.

Weekend Wrap Up: ONE DAY IN THE VALLEY

Week 9 of the college football season has passed. We survived our trip to New Orleans and Baton Rouge and it is now on to face the hated Gators in Jacksonville . Here are my thoughts on the victory over LSU, the Tiger Stadium experience, the other big games from the weekend, and the upcoming clash with the Gators. Welcome to Hate Week 2008.

VICTORY!!!

What an amazing game in Death Valley on Saturday. We arrived at Tiger Stadium expecting to see a hard fought SEC battle that would be won in the trenches. What we got was a shootout that looked a lot like it belonged in the Big XII. Despite the efforts of the Bayou Bengals, the Dawgs kept their focus and left Louisiana with a 52-38 victory.

Georgia 52, LSU 38

- The offensive line played an amazing game. They gave Stafford enough time to stand tall in the pocket and get the ball to open receivers. The boys up front also opened the holes to allow Knowshon Moreno to slash his way to another huge game (163 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown.)

- Matthew Stafford may have played his best overall game as a Georgia Bulldog. He made some great throws despite getting hit by the LSU pass rush. The long touchdown pass to AJ Green was a thing of beauty, as Stafford waited just long enough for AJ to get past the coverage and delivered the pass before getting hit hard by the defender.

Stafford also ran in a score from 5 yards out on a third and goal.

- Daryl Gamble is getting better every week. I had a number of people tell me before the game that they thought Gamble would play a big role. Gamble had 13 tackles and returned two Jarrett Lee interceptions for touchdowns. He was awarded SEC defensive player of the week for his efforts.

- Georgia played a great game, however there were definitely some issues. LSU gashed the Georgia defense for over 500 yards and once again the Dawgs failed to deliver the final knock out punch. There were way too many missed tackles and that must be improved before the Florida game.

This was a huge win. The boys were warming up their dance skills for next week.

The Tiger Stadium Experience

- As advertised, a visit to Baton Rouge is everything it is advertised to be. The fans are crazy and definitely make you feel intimidated. If I never have to hear "Tiga' Bait" again, I won't be sad. I also witnessed grown men throwing dog biscuits at us and heard about the LSU cops turning the other way to a man getting beaten on the ground.

- We were on the top row of Tiger Stadium (row FF in section 641) but the view was actually very good. Death Valley is very steep so while you are very high up, you are actually still pretty close to the field.

- The LSU band puts on a great show. It is too bad that their fans seemed to give up on their team in the 3rd quarter. When Georgia took the lead at 38-17, the place began to clear out. The Tigers certainly did not quit, but their fans did.

Other Games

- Penn State defeated Ohio State and has pretty much guaranteed themselves an undefeated season.- The suddenly hot Virginia Cavaliers knocked off the Bees from the North Avenue Trade school . Tech has tough games with Florida State, Miami and Georgia left on their schedule.

- Oklahoma State gave Texas a run for their money but came up short in the end. That trip to Stillwater to open the season in '09 keeps looking tougher and tougher.

- Alabama beat Tennessee in another ugly game for the Volunteers. Is Fulmer's career at UT going to end without being bowl eligible?

Showdown in Jacksonville

- This may be one of the biggest Georgia-Florida matchups in Cocktail Party history. The Dawgs really got under the skin of the entire Gator nation with the celebration and the beatdown in 2007. The tag line for this year's game: "There Will be Blood"

GO DAWGS!!!!

In Nawlins, Leave A Message

Still celebrating on Bourbon Street. We cannot seem to find any Tiger Bait.

We'll give you a call later, promise. Gotta head back to Pat O'Briens for now. Hopefully we'll see Pulpwood.