Fiesta Bowl Turmoil: Jerry Jones' Dream

The Fiesta Bowl is in turmoil, firing its 30 year CEO John Junker, who had guided the bowl from its infancy to BCS-welterweight status. Jerry Jones must be salivating...

It's all part of the plan

Fiesta Bowl CEO Junker allegedly reimbursed employees for campaign contributions:

"The reimbursements, listed as at least $46,539, are an apparent violation of state campaign finance laws and the charter that allows the Fiesta Bowl its nonprofit status. The Arizona attorney general's office is conducting a probe of the matter."

While the Fiesta Bowl only dates back to the 1970s (and was originally modeled after the Peach Bowl), there is another older, historically prestigious bowl waiting in the wings to assume BCS status: The Cotton Bowl, which dates back to the 1930s and is soaked with history and cachet, which is practically currency in college football.

Right now, the BCS is in the middle of a TV contract with ESPN, locking in the BCS lineup until 2015. However, rest assured that Jerry Jones, Cowboys owner and the co-captain of the joint 1964 Champion Arkansas Razorbacks, is already blowing up the phone lines trying to line everything up. After all, the BCS Chairman has previously stated that he is willing to discuss the Cotton Bowl joining the BCS lineup with Jones.

The Cotton Bowl's prestige largely fell off due to the Southwest Conference's downfall, driven by recruiting scandals, as well as the 'Pony Express'/SMU Death Penalty in 1987. Additionally, until 2010 the game continued to play in the equally historic Cotton Bowl at the Texas State Fairgrounds, which is outdoors and not as modern as the ideal bowl site would be (ironically enough, SMU's downfall equally contributed to the Cotton Bowl Stadium's disuse, as the Mustangs had used the stadium as their home field until their attendance suffered post-Death Penalty).

With the right publicity and the ripe opportunity, no need for the Cotton Bowl to wait for the bowl system to change to a +1 bowl format or for the BCS to break up the rotating MNC game among current BCS locales. As the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association originally envisioned in their announcement, moving the game to Cowboys Stadium makes BCS membership ripe for the picking.

Tavarres King's Time to Shine

Tavarres King came to Georgia as a member of the 2008 recruiting class, in which he was raned as the #22 receiver in the country. For most teams, getting a top 25 player at wide receiver is a big deal. But the 2008 class also included uber-recruit AJ Green and King has spent his first three seasons in Athens in the shadow of #8.

Before I go any further, let me state for the record that Tavarres King will be a redshirt junior this fall. I have seen a number of places call him a senior, but anyone who follows Georgia closely knows that King is only a junior. He played in 4 games in 2008 and made a spectacular 41 yard catch against Arizona State. But his season ended early and he was granted a medical redshirt. For that reason, King is only a junior this fall.

King has spent the last two years starting opposite AJ Green at the splint end position for the Bulldogs. In 2009, he caught 18 passes for 377 yards and one touchdown, a 50 yard grab in the shootout victory over Arkansas. Last fall, his production increased once again, as hauled in 27 passes for 507 yards and three touchdowns. His most impressive highlight was a 63 yard touchdown against Florida.

With the graduation of Kris Durham and the departure of Green, the Dawgs will be without their top 2 receiving threats from last year. While the tight end position is deep in experience, the wide receiving corp is not. TK will move to the vacated flanker position this fall and will need to become the go-to receiver for Aaron Murray. Success for King should open up the other side of the field for the likes of Marlon Brown, Michael Bennett, and maybe Malcolm Mitchell.

If King continues to show the progression he has during his first three years, a 50 reception, 850 yard season with 7-9 touchdowns is a perfectly reasonable expectation.

Top 10 Games involving SEC teams in 2011

The complete schedule for all 12 SEC schools for the 2011 football season was released this week. Here is a quick look at the top games this fall (thought this could all change throughout the season).

#10 - Alabama at Auburn - November 26

Auburn is lucky that the Iron Bowl takes place at the end of their schedule. Alabama will be looking to get revenge for the 28-27 loss last season. Auburn lost so much talent from last year's team, but by the end of the 2011 season, the new players should be comfortable and ready to welcome the Tide to the Plains.

#9 - Tennessee at Alabama - October 22

Last time they played in Tuscaloosa, Mount Cody saved the day for the Tide. Can Derek Dooley finally get things turned around in Knoxville?

#8 - BYU st Ole Miss - September 3

I know Ole Miss is horrible, but it will be interesting to see what happens to BYU students who come to the Grove. Does the BYU administration kick them out for just being there?

#7 - Mississippi State at Auburn - September 10

Upstart MSU almost beat eventual national champion Auburn last fall. After a 9-4 season, this game may help dictate the season for the western Bulldogs.

#6 - Georgia vs. Florida - October 29

The Dawgs lost in overtime to a bad Gators team last year. Now that Urban is gone, can Coach Richt turn around Georgia's fortune in the series now that a Georgia grad is on the sideline for the Gators?

#5 - Arkansas at LSU - November 26

I have a feeling the outcome of this game may decide the SEC West Champion. I expect Arkansas' offense to be even better this year with their experience at receiver and a star at running back. Arkansas has stolen victories from LSU of late.

#4 - Alabama at Florida - October 1

The Tide crushed the Gators at home last fall. Will Muschamp have his team ready for this game which begins a tough four game stretch for the Gators that includes Alabama, LSU, Auburn and Georgia?

#3 - Auburn at South Carolina - October 1

Carolina had the Tigers beat in their first meeting last fall but turnovers cost them the game. When the two met again in the Dome, even hail mary passes were being caught for touchdowns. Lattimore and company were able to knock off Bama at home last year, can they beat another defending national champion in Columbia this fall?

#2 Georgia vs. Boise State - September 3

The country will be pulling for Boise to beat the Dawgs. I sure hope we are ready to send them packing just like we did back in 2005. Georgia typically shows up in these situations. I definitely don't want to be the team that let Boise State get the SEC monkey off their back.

#1 - Oregon at LSU - September 3

LSU hosts the defending Pac-10 at Jerry Jones' football palace in Dallas. It should be quite a show!

North Campus Tailgating: Is It Really 'Back'?

While the supposed official 'Gameday Gameplan' website has not yet been updated, new regulations for the 2011 tailgating on North Campus have been issued.

The highlighted changes in the media reports include:

• Can now setup 5 hours ahead of game time (from 4 hours).
• Tailgating tents are now allowed
• 6 foot tables allowed! (from 4' previously)

2008 seems like eons ago... From UGA/Bama Blackout, crowd watching on TV the UF/Ole Miss game

In reality, not a monumental change. Tailgating is now feasible on North Campus with a 5 hour window, and I do anticipate North Campus not being a vast, empty wasteland as it was last year. But will there still be grumbling? Sure; alumni will not be completely placated.

I think there still needs to be more flexibility in terms of time and setup... while the time window for setup now is perfectly reasonable for 12:30 games, having to wait and setup until 10:30 for a 3:30pm game is a stretch. And 2:30 for a 7:30 ESPN game just ain't happening.

If the University wants to address North Campus "destruction" and general inebriation, why can't we just bring back the 7am setup rule, and actually enforce the rules? You would think the University Police, of all people, would love to enforce some real laws.

Hopefully McGarity at least will continue to re-evaluate the regulations each off-season and will also make vast steps in providing a realistic infrastructure this fall on North Campus (adequate numbers of trash cans, trash bags and Port-a-Potties are all good starts).

At the end of the day, an Alumni group should establish the broad rules of North Campus tailgating (what you can bring, what you can't bring, and setup times) and allow the police to enforce the laws otherwise on the books. After all, Ole Miss is structured this way, has pretty permissive rules and they actually get positive press for having a good, safe, yet legendary time.

Pro Day for Green, Houston, and others

Georgia will host an on-campus pro day tomorrow at 10:00 AM to showcase former players who will be available in the upcoming NFL Draft. The day will be highlighted by early entrants AJ Green and Justin Houston, but will also be important players like Kris Durham who were not invited to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis last month. Here is the full list of participants:

Clint Boling, Shaun Chapas, Vance Cuff, Chris Davis, Josh Davis, Akeen Dent, Demarcus Dobbs, Kris Durham, Darryl Gamble, Chad Gloer, A.J. Green, Justin Houston, Derek Rich, and Kiante Tripp

AJ Green is the biggest name, and the receiver from Summerville is most likely going to be taken in the Top 5. There has been a lot of press covering AJ since he made his decision to leave early. Here is a video that takes a look at the workouts he has been doing to prepare:




For those interested, you can watch the Pro Day online at ESPN3.com.

Good luck to all the former Dawgs tomorrow!

Not There Yet

It has taken Georgia 9 years to get back to the NCAA Tournament based on their body of work from the regular season. The Dawgs looked brilliant at times this season, but the troubles that plagued them in the second half of the season cost them the game tonight against the Washington Huskies. Periods of sloppy passes and bad shots, combined with an inability to handle full court pressure and hold onto a lead killed the Dawgs tonight. Georgia may well become a great basketball program, but we are not there yet.

Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie have blossomed into great players but it appears as though their Georgia careers will end with a year of eligibility left. If Thompkins had been healthy this season, Georgia may have had a better record and more confidence heading into the game tonight. As it was, they were the underdogs and they played like it. With absolutely no scoring from the bench, the Dawgs just could not keep up with the fast paced Huskies. Too bad there was not about two more minutes, or the Dawgs may have won it.

Coach Fox certainly has the team headed in the right direction. While we may lose Thompkins and Leslie, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope comes to campus next fall as the only 5 star player we have had since I started at Georgia in 2000. Football signee Nick Marshall will also play basketball (and maybe even Jay Rome). A bright future for the Georgia program is beginning to come on the horizon.

Congratulations to Coach Fox and the Georgia program on a great 2010-2011 season.

We now return to your regularly scheduled football blog. Thanks for watching!

Dance with the Dawgs - BnE Bracket Challenge

Submit your brackets! As a reminder, BnE is hosting a college basketball bracket challenge, with the winner receiving prizes (more on that below), glory and the associated fame.

Congrats again to the Dawgs making the Big Dance! Expect a strong turnout in Charlotte on Friday in support of the Dawgs... begin to expect a lot of sick days at work (or school) this week.

Entering the Bracket:

We will be using CBS Sports' scoring system and default point scores. To enter, here is the link to the official BnE Bracket Challenge, and the password is 'lewis' (no quotes).

Prizes:
The big winner of the bracket, beyond the fame, fortune, accolades and women will receive one copy of Lewis Grizzard's If I Ever Get Back To Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet To The Ground as well as one copy of AUMaverick's favorite Grizzard book, Shoot Low, Boys--They're Ridin' Shetland Ponies. And if McGarrity or Mark Fox will agree to it, they'll throw in the 2008 SEC Basketball Championship Trophy as a lovely paperweight.

Enter today! The deadline for submitting your bracket, per CBS, is Thursday at Noon (which is ignoring Tuesday's play-ins).

The Dawgs are Dancing as a 10

Screw the experts! Georgia made the tournament with eases, securing a #10 seed in the East regional. And while getting a 10 seed is great, the Dawgs do have to take on a Washington team that just won the Pac-10 conference tournament.

I would love the see the Dawgs pick up a win Friday and take on the North Carolina Tar Heels for a shot at the sweet 16. Either way, getting the Dawgs back to the tournament in only his second season was quite an accomplishment for Coach Fox. I congratulate the team and wish them the best of luck in Charlotte on Friday.

GO DAWGS!!!

Spring Practice: What to Watch For

Georgia will open 2011 practice later this week. And with the "recruiting class high" finally wearing off, it is time to get back on the field to correct the mistakes that led to the first losing season in 15 years. Here's the headlines to watch for over the next few weeks leading up to G-Day on April 16.

1. New kids in town

The "Dream Team" certainly helped take the sting off a tough 2010 season, but most of those players will not step foot on campus for a few more months. The Dawgs do have two early enrollees in Chris Conley and Christian LeMay. It will be interesting to see how LeMay looks in spring and G-Day since he has not played a competitive down of football since 2009.

2. Aaron Murray as the leader

Murray had an amazing first season and I expect he will become a vocal leader for the Dawgs this year. He should be recovered from his "amputated leg" in time to participate fully.

3. Who steps up at receiver?

Tavarres King immediately becomes #1 but who's next. I hope Marlon Brown can finally live up to the expectations many of us had for him two years ago.

4. Feeling the pressure at RB

Every running back knows Isaiah Crowell is coming this fall and will be given every opportunity to win the starting job. With Ealey back from suspension and Caleb King headed into his senior year, I wonder if they can hang on to the #1 spot for now or if Ken Malcome takes over heading into summer practice.

5. Same Faces, Different Places

A number of position changes were announced last week, most notably Alec Ogletree moving to inside linebacker. Also keep an eye on Bruce Figgins at fullback who will be one of the biggest players at that position I have ever seen.

6. The Line Backing Duo

I am really excited to get a look at Richard Samuel and Jarvis Jones. Having seen Samuel in high school, I know what he is capable of. And it should be fun to watch Jones coming off the edge in Grantham's 3-4.

Those are just a few of the things I'm looking forward to. What are you looking forward to?

Our Thoughts are with Jonathan Taylor

During yesterday's contest with Florida State, Georgia outfielders Zach Cone and Jonathan Taylor collided on a fly ball. Taylor suffered a major spinal injury and will most likely be transferred to the Shepard Center in Atlanta later this week. AJC has the full story here.

Please keep Jonathan Taylor and his family in your prayers.

***UPDATE - The Taylor family has set up a website where you can leave messages for Jonathan.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/Johnathantaylor