Epic Fail

Did we come out in uniforms that made us look stupid? Check.

Did we make stupid penalites that cost us yards in key situations? Check

Could we not defend short passes to the tight end? Check.

Did we let Tebow (officially) break Herschel's TD record just when it looked like we
might actually be in the game? Check.

Did we basically give up in the 4th quarter and send in a bunch of back ups against Florida's #1 defense? Check.

Was this an indictment of how much the coaching staff has lost touch with the current state of college football? Check.

Epic fail, on all fronts. Last year, the score may have been worse but this hurts more. Fire Willie now. If Coach Richt can't see that this must be done, then maybe it is time for Damon Evans to step in and do it for him. I still love the Dawgs and have full faith in Coach Richt, but if you seriously thought black helmets were going to make a difference you were damn wrong.

BTW, if I ever see Urban Meyer on the street, I will punch that SOB in face and gladly serve the jail time. Sending Tebow out up 24 with 3 minutes on the clock inside your 10 was a much worse slap in the face than the timeouts last year. I hope you get gangrene and your feet fall off. Go to hell Florida!

UGA Halloween

Dear UGA,

We understand you're having a tough season. We know how hard it can be to have a losing season and try to find something to rally around. Heck, look at Vanderbilt for crying out loud, they think the Liberty Bowl is a BCS game (shhh...don't tell them its not). But seriously guys, can you find another way to spark some excitement in the team? We know the "black out" against Auburn worked wonders, and we know today is Halloween, but seriously?

First off, when we saw you run out onto the field, we thought UGA had given up and sent Grambling to play in your place. By the way, Grambling is threatening a copy-right lawsuit, Secondly, how many uniforms changes are y'all going to make? Are you trying to be the Oregon of the SEC? Do you want to be compared to the Pac-10? What happened to tradition, uniformity, and simplicity. The UGA uniform is a classic! We know its trendy, but UGA should not be in the fashion business...you're better than this. Next year, leave the color changes alone.

Sincerely,

The 11 other teams of the SEC

80's Music Video of the Week - Halloween Edition

Well, it looks like Streit and I are the only one left in the ATL. So, with all due respect to Streit's video for his WLOCP post, I am here to present the BNE 80's Music Video of the Week.

Tomorrow is Halloween (yes Dawgs fans, its not just the WLOCP), and I hope that at least one team will feel the fear and fright from a thrilling upset this weekend. And speaking of thrilling, this week marked the release of 'This Is It", the 80's legend and self-proclaimed "King of Pop", Michael Jackson's final performance and movie. In dedication to Michael, Halloween, and the hope for an upset, or at least a thriller by the Dawgs, I now present the iconic 80's music video, "Thriller".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkjtctcuQ9Q

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

WLOCP - Nothing To Lose

While Bubba, BFR, and Josh are living it up in Saint Simmons and Jacksonville with most of the rest of the Bulldog Nation, I unfortunately am having a crazy week at work. We all know what this game means and a Georgia would upset would be amazing. If Florida plays offense like it has the last few weeks, the Dawgs definitely have a chance. The South Carolina and Arkansas games proved we have some amazing athletes who can make plays and score. For Georgia, we are out of the SEC race, so at this point we are just playing for pride.

In honor of this year's cocktail part, I present the video of the week, "Nothing to Lose". I know it's not 80's, but I'm not Bubba or Josh.


Prediction

I think Georgia will be fired up and ready to erase some of the bad memories of last year. Does that mean we have enough to beat this insanely talented and experienced Florida team? Probably not. The Dawgs will give them a fight, but it won't be enough in the end.

Florida 27, Georgia 17

GO DAWGS

We're Outta Here

Bubba, BFR, and I are headed to St. Simons where we shall partake in debauchery with minimal interference from Teblowme's followers, before heading on the par-tay bus Saturday.



HATE ORANGE. HATE BLUE. HATE GATORS.

Key Matchups: AJ Green vs. Joe Haden

This is a blockbuster matchup between two players who were recently named Mid-Season All-Americans by The Sporting News.

We all know what Green has meant to Georgia this season. Without AJ and 41 catches for 682 yards and 6 touchdowns, Georgia's record may be 1-6 instead of 4-3. He has clearly separated himself from Julio Jones as the best recevier in the SEC, and with Dez Bryant suspended and Eric Decker injured, is now the front runner for the Bilitnekoff award.

Joe Haden is the top performer in the experienced Florida secondary that helps anchor the nation's #1 defense. On the season, Haden has been a force in the passing game, recording two interceptions, three pass breakups, and two sacks. He has also been a solid tackler, recording 39 total tackles (including 4 for a loss).

What makes this match up so intriguing is how Florida will handle the distinct size advantage Green has. At 6'4'', he towers above the 5'10'' Haden. Georgia will need to rely on Green to create separation, because Haden has the closing speed to make any small holes in coverage disappear. If Haden (and some help from safeties) shut down Green, Georgia will be forced to use its tight ends and slot receivers if it hopes to generate any kind of pass offense.

More Rambo = More Violence

Bryan Evans is a loyal Georgia Bulldog. The senior began his career at corner and after losing his job last season, moved to safety where he became the starter going into this season. Bryan has proven to be a heavy hitter, but his pass coverage abilities are marginal at best.

Bacarri Rambo began seeing more playing time for the Dawgs at safety in recent weeks. The redshirt freshman from Seminole, Florida has shown in the span of a few games that he has the ability to both hit and cover well in the SEC. Rambo made his first signature play during the Dawgs loss to Tennessee just a few weeks ago:




I think it is time for the nice story that was Bryan Evans as a starting DB to end. Coach Richt and Willie Matrinez need to get Rambo into the game as much as possible for the remainder of the season. I would love to see Rambo out there taking shots at Tebow this Saturday. Maybe they would look something like this (warning: this video contains graphic violence):

"When you're pushed, killing's as easy as breathing." - John Rambo

GO DAWGS!!!

Lewis Grizzard Florida Joke

"What do you get when you cross a pig and Florida graduate?"

"Nothing. There's some things even a pig won't do."

- Lewis Grizzard

Baby Steps: Margin of Victory

Since 1990, Florida has dominated the Georgia-Florida match up winning 16 of the 19 contests between the two teams. Under Steve Spurrier in the 90's, Florida absolutely owned the Dawgs winning 9 of the 10 games. The average magin of victory (for either team) during that span was 25.2 points. The largest margin of victory was 40 points coming in 1996 when the Gators won 47-7.

Since 2000, the games have been decidely closer. Despite a 39 point victory for Florida last year (which is clearly an outlier this decade) the average winning margin has been 11.5 points. While Meyer has continued Spurrier's winning tradition, the victories are not coming as easy as they once did. Under Mark Richt, the Dawgs have won twice in Jacksonville. The average score of the games during the Richt Era - Florida 24.75, Georgia 17.8. We may not have found the edge in the won-loss column, but at least the score is trending closer.

Why do we call it the Cocktail Party?

For anyone who has attended a Georgia-Florida game in Jacksonville, we all know why someone would call it the world's larget outdoor cocktail party. Despite the wishes of The University of Georgia, the University of Florida, or the SEC, the name is a perfect description of what takes place during the final week of October each fall on the banks of the Saint Johns River. But where did the name get its start?

Bill Kastelz began working for the Florida Times-Union as a sports writer in 1947. While covering the annual Georgia-Florida match up in Jacksonville during the 50's, he witnessed an intoxicated fan offer a cocktail to another person just outside of the Gator Bowl. It was not shocking that the drunk fan would offer another person a drink, the interesting circumstance that Kastelz observed was the fact that the person being offered a cocktail was a uniformed police officer. Kastelz would go onto describe the scene as The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party and the name has withstood the test of time.

Kastelz would continue to cover Florida sports for the Times-Union and would later cover the successful Alabama Crimson Tide teams under Bear Bryant. Bill Kastelz retired from writing in 1982 and passed away in 2002. So here's a drink to you Mr. Kastelz, we'll all carry on the tradition of the cocktail party this year and for many years to come.

BNE Pick 'Em Week 8

Due to obligations to my company, I will have to forego the usual post for the BNE Pick 'Em. In recognition of 'Hate Week', here is the abridged Pick 'Em Update:

Overall standings after Week 8:
1. Gen. Stoopangle
2. allyugadawg
3. shelt320
4. DawgDai
5. yedidawh, OneHairyDawg, & Dutch
8. JeremyRoyAdams
9. Donald Eason
10. bulldog91

From the BNE staff:
1. BFR  - congratulations on the #1 top spot.
2. bubba
3. earl
4. aumaverick - The 1st week not to be ranked #1
5. Streit
6. bulldawgjosh...still wrestling with mediocrity.

The Bottom Feeder of the Week remains mmike032 despite his valiant attempts.


The only matchup that matters this week is Florida vs. UGA. Good luck!

Have fun at the...

          

GO DAWGS

Our Turn to Spoil Their Season

Mark Richt has won two SEC Championships during his tenure at The University of Georgia. During both of those seasons, Georgia went into the game in Jacksonville with undefeated records only to fall short against the Gators.

In 2002, Georgia came to Florida sporting a #4 national ranking and an 8-0 record that included key victories over #22 Alabama and #10 Tennessee. Georgia was led by rising star David Pollack, who had made a name for himself with his amazing interception for a touchdown against South Carolina earlier in the year. Steve Spurrier had left Gainesville for the NFL, and the Dawgs were favored to defeat Florida for the first time under Mark Richt. A defensive struggle throughout the game, Florida took the lead in the 4th quarter on a touchdown pass from Rex Grossman. Georgia attempted to tie the score when David Greene found a wide open Terrance Edwards streaking down the field, but Edwards let the ball drop through his hands. Final Score, Florida 20, Georgia 13.

Unfortunately, more people remember Edwards for his drop than his brilliant career at Georgia

After stomping Boise State to open the 2005 season, Georgia was rolling along with 6 straight victories before hosting Arkansas for homecoming. But with the Dawgs out to an early lead, senior quarterback DJ Shockley was injured. The Dawgs held on to win 23-20, but knew they were facing a tough task in Jacksonville the following week.

Without Shockley, the Georgia offense failed to get going. They were able to hold the #18 Gators in check and finally found the endzone on a reverse pass to Shockley's replacement, Joe Tereshinski.

Joe T III put up a fight, but the Dawgs came up on losing end, 14-10.

Georgia would lose its next game to Auburn the following week, but recovered to defeat LSU in Atlanta for the second SEC title of the Mark Richt era.

This year, the tables are turned as Florida comes in #1 in the country and a perfect 7-0 record. Despite three national championships in the last 15 years, Florida has never had an undefeated championship season. The Dawgs have a chance to play the spoiler, much like the Gators have in years past. It will take one hell of an effort, but in this series, the better team doesn't always come out the victor.

GO DAWGS!!!

Here's to the favorite attire of the Gator Nation!

Defending National Champs...Who Cares???

When the Dawgs meet the Gators in Jacksonville on Saturday, it will mark the fourth time this decade Georgia has faced a defending National Champion. In the three previous contests, Georgia has emerged victorious. The Dawgs defeated LSU in 2004 and 2008 after the Tigers had taken home the BCS trophy. And we all remember what happened the last time the Dawgs faced a defending NC Gator team with a bye week to prepare:



Let's hope the Dawgs bring some of the same fire they brought to the table in 2007. GO DAWGS!!!

Gordon Beckham Wins Another Rookie Of The Year Award

Last week, Gordon Beckham was named American League Rookie of the Year by the Sporting News.

This morning, Gordon Beckham appeared on Mike & Mike In the Morning on ESPN Radio, where they interviewed him about the Major League Baseball Players Associaion members announcing him as the American League Rookie of the Year.

Both of the awards were decided by Major League Baseball players, so hopefully the Baseball Writers Association of America will agree with them at the end of the season.

The Players Association is also going to donate $20,000 to the charities of Beckham's choice. Beckham decided to split it between the National Parkinson Foundation and the Children's Hospital of Illinois.

Go Gordo!

Damn. Good. Dawg.

BNE Pick 'Em Week 8

I'm sorry for the delay, but unfortunately the results for the BNE Pick 'Em will be up Monday evening.

Welcome to Hate Week 2009!

It's Florida week and that means it is time to unleash the hate on our jean short wearing, Tebow worshiping neighbors to the south. First, let me get this off my chest:

Gators, Gators howd'ya like to bite my ass
Gators ,Gators howd'ya like to bite my ass
Gators, Gators howd'ya like to bite my ass
With your bright orange shirts ,
And your sissy blue britches ,
You can go to Hell you sons of bitches.
Gators, Gators howd'ya like to bite my ass
GOOOOOO Dawgs.......Sick 'em Woof Woof Woof

For all you heading to Jacksonville this weekend, remember that there is only one correct response when you hear the words Go Gators:


Let the smack talk begin! Welcome to Hate Week 2009!