Heroes of The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry: Tra Battle

The 2006 matchup between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Auburn Tigers had a similar ring to the game that will take place this Saturday. Georgia was struggling with a freshman quarterback under center, having lost games earlier in the season to Vanderbilt and Kentucky. The record stood at 6-4 and the Dawgs were underdogs to an Auburn team that was in the national title race. The #5 ranked Tigers were 9-1 and were looking to reach the SEC Championship game for the second time in four years. What followed was an absolute destruction of the Auburn Tigers. The final score was 37-15 and the game became known as the Massacre on the Plains.

There were many heroes in game, from defensive lineman Ray Gant to quarterback Matthew Stafford. But if there was an MVP award for this effort, there is little doubt that award would not have gone to senior safety Tra Battle. From Mary Parsons High School in Forsyth, Georgia, Battle earned his spot at Georgia the hard way: as a walk-on. During his junior season, he became a starter and was put on full scholarship. The game against Auburn was Battle’s signature moment at Georgia, intercepting three passes from Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox including one for a touchdown. Here’s a look back at his performance:



Following the 2006 season, in which he totaled 58 tackles, Battle was named to the All-SEC first team. Soon after, he was also named a third-team All-American. Despite these awards, he went undrafted in the 2007 NFL Draft. But just like walking on at Georgia, Tra was determined to continue his playing career at the next level. He eventually signed with the San Diego Chargers and made his NFL debut in 2008. After being cut from the Chargers, he signed with the Dallas Cowboys where he spent the remainder of the 2008 season. In 2009, he practiced with the Detroit Lions and later the Cleveland Browns. For his NFL career, he has totaled 15 tackles.

Once again, Tra refused to give up on his dream of playing football. He signed with the Hartford Colonials of the UFL where he recorded 18 tackles in six games during the 2009 season. While his playing career continues, Battle also focuses much of his attention on charity work. Tra’s Battle for Success Foundation, a division of the Athletes for Education Foundation, focuses on children’s education programs in the San Diego area. For the last two years, Tra has hosted “Camp Battle” in Tijuana, Mexico, which focuses on events for children ages 4-16 with mild to severe autism.

Tra Battle: Damn Good Dawg.

For more information:

Tra’s Battle for Success Foundation

UFL Player Spotlight: Tra Battle

Where Are They Now: Georgia Pitcher Nathan Moreau

Most Georgia baseball fans will remember Nathan Moreau as a key member of the 2008 Georgia Diamond Dogs that came within one game of winning the College World Series. A three year starter for Coach Perno, Moreau made 42 starts during his Georgia career. Moreau compiled an 8-1 record during his freshman season in 2006 as the Dawgs advanced to the College World Series. He went 6-2 in 2007 and 4-4 in 2008 to finish his career with an 18-7 record. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 11th round of the 2008 draft.

Moreau is now in his third year in the Orioles organization and recently earned a promotion to the Advanced-A Frederick Keys of the Carolina League. In his debut with the team on June 30, Moreau turned in an amazing performance. He tossed a no-hitter against against Salem, striking out 6 batters and walking. He nearly threw a perfect game, but two Frederick errors resulted in the only base runners of the night for Salem.

Moreau has continued to have success with Frederick since his no-hitter. In three starts, he is a perfect 3-0 with 1.89 ERA. He has struck out 12 batters and only walked 4. Hopefully, we'll see Nathan continue his success as he climbs his way towards the big leagues.

Former Athletes Still Suing Over Video Game

Today is one of the few days during the achingly slow summer months when college football fans get something new to digest and blog about: NCAA Football 2011 (sorry, I just couldn't use the '11 Tebow cover) is now on a store shelf near you. On this momentous day, the Washington Post also feels the need to remind you of the continuing legal struggle of former athletes over the use of their likeness.

Former UCLA basketball star Ed O’Bannon (great current profile), former Nebraska/Arizona State QB Sam Keller and other athletes have consolidated their lawsuits against the NCAA, Electronic Arts, et al, fighting for a piece of the monetary pie from the continued usage of their names/likeness/jerseys dating back to their college glory days.

I don’t have a law degree (yet), but wording from a 2009 University of Arizona athletic form makes it sound like a large part of the ex-athletes’ legal case isn’t the strongest (assuming it is a standard form, used for many years), as it gives the school the right to the athlete’s image "forever and throughout the universe, and to license others to use them, in any manner and in any and all media now known or hereafter discovered, for commercial purposes." (h/t above linked Fanhouse article).

Now, even though I will be attending law school this fall at one of our rival SEC schools, I don’t want to hammer on contract legalese. Everyone always throws out the gaudy revenue numbers that the major football programs generate, but an estimated 44 percent of major college football programs don’t generate enough revenue to cover their operating costs, forcing a rather large number of universities to directly subsidize their athletic programs. For football, 85 offsetting scholarships have to be budgeted/allotted to female athletes due to Title IX considerations before the players can even line up for a snap, and that’s before accounting for operating costs within the football program. In reality, a lot of the revenue dollars being fought over in the lawsuit just don't exist at the end of the process.

While I do appreciate the viewpoint of a current Oregon tight end weighing in on the issue, the reality is that the NCAA and its members will fight any sort of payments/trust fund/stipend setup to the bitter end, since any alteration in that will inevitably trigger a review by the IRS on whether the NCAA would still qualify as a tax-exempt amateur sports organization.

Shouldn’t we still be expecting that just about all of the NCAA athletes will be going pro in something other than sports?

Where are they now? Blake Barnes is Playing Football ...in France?

Originally saw this mentioned over at Dawgsonline and I had to repost it here. Blake Barnes is now playing football in France (I didn't even know they played football in France.) While some of the players do get paid, they actually have to pay to join the team at first. Sounds kind of like my men's baseball league, except for the whole being in France thing.

The 2008 Sugar Bowl was Barnes' (15) last game at Georgia before transferring.

Check out the CBS story here.

Slummin' it with Quincy

***UPDATE - Quincy was arrested today. I started writing this article last week and this was completely random. Check out the story here.

Quincy Carter spent three years as the starting quarterback at The University of Georgia from 1998 - 2000. When I heard a couple of weeks ago that he was once again trying to resurrect his career, this time in low level arena league football, I decided to take a closer look at this fallen Bulldog star. Here is a look at the rise and fall of Lavonya Quintelle "Quincy" Carter.

High School Legend to Minor League Washout

In the fall of 1995, Quincy Carter led his Southwest Dekalb team to the Georgia AAAA State Championship over future Bulldog Brett Millican and the Parkview Panthers. The star QB committed to play football at Georgia Tech however he would never take a snap for the Yellow Jackets. The Chicago Cubs made Carter the 52nd overall pick in the 1996 Amateur Draft and he quickly began his baseball career. After hitting only .215 in 55 games his first season, Carter failed to improve over the next two seasons and found himself out of baseball in 1998, having never hit above .248.

Quarterback for the Georgia Bulldogs (1998-2000)
When Quincy Carter decided to restart his football career, he decided to stay away from the school he originally committed to (Georgia Tech) and instead headed to rival Georgia. Quincy would win a highly contested battle for the starting quarterback job (beating out the likes of Nate Hybl who would later start at Oklahoma and Daniel Cobb who would later start at Auburn). Carter enjoyed a successful freshman season under coach Jim Donnan leading the Bulldogs to a 9-3 record and a Peach Bowl victory over Virginia. Carter's signature win was a 28-27 upset of #6 ranked LSU in which Carter passed for 318 yards and two touchdowns. 1999 was another successful season for Carter as the Bulldogs went 8-4 and beat Purdue on New Year's Day in the Outback Bowl. Expectations were high for Carter's junior season, as he was on early Heisman watch lists and the Dawgs were ranked in the top 10. After a win over Georgia Southern, the Dawgs headed to South Carolina to take on a Gamecocks team that had not won a game in 1999. And that was the beginning of the end for Carter at Georgia:


Carter was never the same and ended his career on the bench with an injury. Rumors swirled around Athens that Carter was actually caught with drugs and that is why he was not playing. Coach Jim Donnan was fired and Quincy announced he was leaving for the NFL after his junior season, much to the liking of most in the Bulldog Nation.

Quincy in the NFL: The Trouble with Big D

Just as he was a second round pick in the baseball draft years before, Carter was taken as the 53rd overall pick in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. Following the retirement of legend Troy Aikman, Carter found himself as the starting quarterback of the most popular team in football. He would have a successful rookie season, however he lost his starting job the following year to Chad Hutchinson. Carter would regain his job just prior to the 2002 playoffs, where he led the Cowboys to a victory over the Cardinals. Under new Coach Bill Parcells, Carter led the Cowboys to a 10-6 record and another playoff appearance in 2003 but that would be his last year as a Cowboy.

Carter was released in the summer of '04 amidst rumors of failed drug tests. Carter denied the charge, but the Cowboys official release stated he was release because of a failed drug test and poor attitude. Carter signed with the Jets and backed up Chad Pennington until once again, drugs became his problem. Carter would go to rehab in December 2004 and was released by the Jets in early 2005. He has not played a down in the NFL since.

Canada, Arena Football, and More Issues

Carter signed a contract with the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL in 2006, however only spent a month with the team before being released. He was arrested in the December of 2006 for possession of marijuana, an incident that was famous because a sports talk show host bailed Carter out of prison. Carter landed back on his feet in the minor league for the AFL, A2, signing with the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings. He had a successful season, but that all came crashing down when he was arrested for drugs by the Shreveport police on October 12, 2007.

Carter's Mug Shot

Carter was released from the team and would later try out for the Miami Dolphins in the summer of 2008.


Where is Quincy Carter today?


In March of 2009, Carter signed a contract with the Abilene Ruff Riders of the Indoor Football League. With a salary of $200 per week plus an additional $50 bonus for wins, Carter is a far cry from his days as the quarterback of "America's Team". Carter has started all six games for the Ruff Riders, leading them to a 3-3 record. Carter has thrown for 1221 yards and 28 touchdowns in those games, including 8 against the San Antonio Stampede Express on April 25. Check out some of the footage here.

Afterword: Slumdog Quincy

For Georgia fans, we will never forget the bright times Carter had on the field. The wins over LSU and Virginia are found memories, but most people tend to remember the bad. Carter will mostly be remembered for the 2000 season, including the 5 picks at South Carolina and the horrible game against Florida. Carter's story is on of wasted potential, a gifted athlete who was drafted in the second round of both major sports but never lived up to his potential.

David Greene Retires

This came out a few days ago, but I guess I missed it. After 4 years, former Georgia quarterback David Greene has retired from the NFL. Greene was quarterback of the Dawgs for four out of the five years I was in Athens. Greene was named the 2002 SEC offensive player of the year in leading the Bulldogs to a 13-1 record and a Sugar Bowl victory. He left Georgia as the NCAA's all-time winningest quarterback with 42 wins and is the holder of numerous Georgia passing records including:

- Attempts: 1440

- Completions: 849

- Passing Yards: 11,528 (also an SEC record)

- Touchdown Passes: 72

- Consecutive Passes without Interception: 214

- Lowest Interception Percentage: 2.22% (also an SEC record)

Other highlights include:

- 4-0 record against Georgia Tech

- Victory over Florida in 2004, breaking a 6 game losing streak
- 3-1 record in bowl games (3-0 in New Year's Day Bowl Games)
- 2002 SEC Championship MVP

- 3-1 record against Tennessee, including this amazing victory in 2001

After being drafted by Seattle Seahawks, he bounced around to a number of NFL teams before calling it quits, having never taken a snap in a regular season game. As the guys on this blog know, David was a high school classmate of mine and it was a lot of fun watching him play for seven years. I will never forget my final Georgia game as a student against Georgia Tech in 2004. Greene came off the bench (after breaking his hand earlier in the game) in the fourth quarter to lead the Dawgs to a field goal and hold on for the victory over the Jackets. It may have been one of the coldest games I have ever been to (it was also pouring rain), but I would go back to that game again in a heartbeat.

DAMN GOOD DAWG!

Where are they now?

Terrence Edwards



"Learned on the playgrounds of Tennille. Perfected on the football fields of Winnipeg. "

This is what happens when you can't hack it in the NFL. You go to Canada and learn to play Duck Duck Goose.