Let me get this out of the way, first thing. I have mixed feelings on the Grantham situation. Coaches should not act like idiots dropping F bombs after game. There is no excuse for that. However, no head coach should ever go and start yelling at another team's player after the game, and that is what James Franklin did. From the camera angle, we don't know how much Franklin was yelling. The media has tried to make Grantham the complete bad guy in the situation, but maybe Franklin should get more blame as well. While Grantham could have gone about it with a few less F bombs, I am still glad he let Franklin know his place. I am glad Coach Grantham is passionate and will stick up for his players, but he needs to tone it down.
As for the game itself, it was ugly (to say the least) and not the outcome I expected. But a lot of people were expecting a tough game for Georgia, including Herbstreit and Corso on college Game Day, so I am not mad like a lot of people are. And for those who say this games shows that we are still horrible and are not headed in the right direction, I ask you this: Would Georgia have won that game in 2010? If you said yes, I would ask you to watch the Colorado game or the 2009 Kentucky game. Both losses to inferior teams where Georgia had leads in the second half only to give the game away.
And maybe this was just the type of game the Dawgs needed. The last time the Dawgs won an SEC game by less than 7 points was the 2009 game against South Carolina. And the time in the last few years that Georgia was able to stop a team driving in the closing minutes for a potential game winning (not game tying) score was Georgia Tech in 2009. All most of the players on Georgia know is losing close games. Finally, they got a chance to win one. Think back to 2007. An up and down Georgia team with a sophomore quarterback, a flashy freshman running back, and some up and coming play makers at linebacker won a close game at Vandy and used that to propel them to 7 straight wins and a Sugar Bowl. I'm not saying that is going to happen again, but remember that that game also ended with coaches yelling near midfield (albeit at our own players instead of the opposing coaches).
The biggest gripe I have about the entire game is the failure to cover the fake punt. At that point, Georgia had a 23-7 lead and had forced Vandy to kick them the ball back. Vandy had not scored a single point at offense and looked like they were about to get blown out. When the formation shifted, I jokingly yelled fake to the group of friends we had watching the game at my house. And, holy crap, I was right. From that point on, Vandy was back in the game and they had all the momentum. It was like that single play, followed immediately by the trick play, sucked all the life out of the defense. Vandy still could not pass the ball, but the defense's inability to wrap up on tackles nearly cost us the game. And don't get me started on the fake punt. There were multiple Vandy players who had a shot to block it, and when it happened I thought they were going to scoop and score. Our kickers are talented but they will be gone next year and if we don't improve, our freshman kicker and punter could be in for long seasons in 2012.
But the silver lining to this whole game was there were some definite positives from Saturday night. While the defense was certainly not stellar in the second half, they managed to only give up 160 yards passing and 65 of those came on a fake punt and a trick play. Vandy quarterbacks were forced into three interceptions, including a key one early in the game in the Georgia end zone. Ray Drew had a great game, including his first career sack, and looks ready to contribute down the line. And just think, when we play Florida we get Cornelius Washington and Alec Ogletree back. It may not be perfect people, but I feel a lot better about our chances with this defense taking on an injured John Brantley than I did about our defense that took on a healthy Brantley last year.
On the offensive side of the ball, Crowell's benching combined with his injuries clearly impacted the Georgia offensive attack. Despite this (an the poor defensive showing) Georgia still out gained Vanderbilt by over 100 yards of offense. Aaron Murray was still not flawless, bet his passes looked much better than they had in recent weeks. Marlon Brown and Michael Bennett both stepped up and had the best days of their career. And even though a couple of negative rushes near the end of the game hurt his average per carry, Richard Samuel looked better than I have seen in a long time. No doubt we need a healthy Crowell back there to keep our offensive successful, but hopefully this shows we can still move the ball some even if he isn't around. Keep in mind, at one point Georgia scored on 6 consecutive drives and it would have been 8 if Walsh had not missed the 42 yard field goal.
In the end, there are a lot of things to work on. Thank god the Dawgs have two weeks to rest and get healthy for Florida. The loss of Lattimore at South Carolina makes me think South Carolina will lose at least 2 of their 3 remaining tougher SEC games (Arkansas, Florida, Tennessee). Once again the Cocktail Party will most likely decide the fate of the SEC East. Hopefully, Georgia can get it together and get Richt victory 3 over the Gators.
Showing posts with label Vanderbilt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vanderbilt. Show all posts
Monday, October 17, 2011
Friday, October 14, 2011
Vanderbilt Preview
Things Vanderbilt does well:
Georgia 34, Vanderbilt 7
- Produce major league pitchers
- Shoot three pointers
- Being really smart
- Churning out future CEOs
- Run the football
- Pass the football
- Score points on offense
- Win games in the SEC
Georgia 34, Vanderbilt 7
Monday, October 18, 2010
Has the ship been righted? Thoughts on Vanderbilt
For the second week in a row, the Georgia Bulldogs did what a good team is supposed to do when they play inferior competition. The 43-0 shutout of the Vanderbilt Commodores, may have been the most complete Georgia effort in the last few years. The offense racked up close to 600 yards of offense and the defense did not allow the Commodores to reach the red zone the entire game.
The only negatives of the entire game were the slow start for Aaron Murray (he started the game 1 for 4 passing, missing Kris Durham wide open at the 3 during the first drive), a drop in the end zone by AJ (yes, he’s human), and a missed 31 yard field goal by Blair Walsh. In the first quarter, the defense got burned once again by the wheel route, but that was the only mistake they made all game. The worst performance of the day goes to the coaching staff in the first 5 minutes of the game, blowing all three timeouts. This can’t happen when you are playing a team that actually has a pulse.
The positive were many, but I’ll highlight two that will be important next week against Kentucky. First, Aaron Murray was not relied upon to create the Georgia running game. Ealey put forth his best effort since Tech last year, including a great 50 yard plus run when it appeared the defense had him bottled up. Carlton Thomas added the first two touchdowns of his career and with that we get the first appearance of the Cartlon Dance:
The other thing that the Dawgs did really well was contain All-SEC player Warren Norman. For those of you who don’t know, Norman broke Herschel Walker’s SEC freshman record for all-purpose yards last season. Norman had 33 yards of total offense and was basically a non-factor. If the Dawgs hope to win in Lexington on Saturday, they are going to have to do the same thing to Randall Cobb.
Speaking of Randall Cobb, how the heck does Carolina leave him wide open with the game on the line? With Kentucky’s upset of South Carolina and Florida’s loss to Mississippi State, the East is a complete mess. (The Georgia loss to Mississippi State doesn’t look so bad now that the west Dawgs are 5-2.) If Georgia somehow found a way to win its remaining 3 SEC games (which looks impossible the way Auburn is scoring points) and Florida defeated South Carolina, the Dawgs would end up in Atlanta on the first weekend of December. It is a complete long shot, but stranger things have happened.
The road back to respectability begins Saturday in Lexington. The Wildcats are playing well and will have a lot of confidence heading into the game. If Georgia shows up like they have the last two weeks, winning should not be a problem. Otherwise, we’ll head to Florida with a 3-5 record and pretty much all hopes of making a bowl game gone.
GO DAWGS!!!
The only negatives of the entire game were the slow start for Aaron Murray (he started the game 1 for 4 passing, missing Kris Durham wide open at the 3 during the first drive), a drop in the end zone by AJ (yes, he’s human), and a missed 31 yard field goal by Blair Walsh. In the first quarter, the defense got burned once again by the wheel route, but that was the only mistake they made all game. The worst performance of the day goes to the coaching staff in the first 5 minutes of the game, blowing all three timeouts. This can’t happen when you are playing a team that actually has a pulse.
The positive were many, but I’ll highlight two that will be important next week against Kentucky. First, Aaron Murray was not relied upon to create the Georgia running game. Ealey put forth his best effort since Tech last year, including a great 50 yard plus run when it appeared the defense had him bottled up. Carlton Thomas added the first two touchdowns of his career and with that we get the first appearance of the Cartlon Dance:
The other thing that the Dawgs did really well was contain All-SEC player Warren Norman. For those of you who don’t know, Norman broke Herschel Walker’s SEC freshman record for all-purpose yards last season. Norman had 33 yards of total offense and was basically a non-factor. If the Dawgs hope to win in Lexington on Saturday, they are going to have to do the same thing to Randall Cobb.
Speaking of Randall Cobb, how the heck does Carolina leave him wide open with the game on the line? With Kentucky’s upset of South Carolina and Florida’s loss to Mississippi State, the East is a complete mess. (The Georgia loss to Mississippi State doesn’t look so bad now that the west Dawgs are 5-2.) If Georgia somehow found a way to win its remaining 3 SEC games (which looks impossible the way Auburn is scoring points) and Florida defeated South Carolina, the Dawgs would end up in Atlanta on the first weekend of December. It is a complete long shot, but stranger things have happened.
The road back to respectability begins Saturday in Lexington. The Wildcats are playing well and will have a lot of confidence heading into the game. If Georgia shows up like they have the last two weeks, winning should not be a problem. Otherwise, we’ll head to Florida with a 3-5 record and pretty much all hopes of making a bowl game gone.
GO DAWGS!!!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
A Sort of Homecoming: A Brief Vanderbilt Preview
Normally, the Dawgs enter the month of October in the middle of the SEC race with annual showdown in Jacksonville just a few weeks a way. While all the pagentry associated with Homecoming is taking place, the Dawgs often struggle to put their overmatched opponent (usually Vanderbilt or a bad out of conference school) away. But something is different this year.
With a 2-4 record, any hopes of a Georgia bowl game this year pretty much hang on every contest. While Georgia typically handles Vanderbilt year in and year out, we can't forget 2006 when a struggling Georgia team lost to Vandy on homecoming.
After the drubbing of Tennessee last week, I feel somewhat safe to say that the team will once again handle Vanderbilt without issue this week. Aaron Murray has played great thus far, but has yet notched his first 300 yard passing game. With Caleb King suspended, the Georgia passing game will carry more of the load this weekend. The defense should continue to play well against the run, but that doesn't mean the big pass plays will end.
My prediction: Georgia 38, Vanderbilt 17
With a 2-4 record, any hopes of a Georgia bowl game this year pretty much hang on every contest. While Georgia typically handles Vanderbilt year in and year out, we can't forget 2006 when a struggling Georgia team lost to Vandy on homecoming.
After the drubbing of Tennessee last week, I feel somewhat safe to say that the team will once again handle Vanderbilt without issue this week. Aaron Murray has played great thus far, but has yet notched his first 300 yard passing game. With Caleb King suspended, the Georgia passing game will carry more of the load this weekend. The defense should continue to play well against the run, but that doesn't mean the big pass plays will end.
My prediction: Georgia 38, Vanderbilt 17
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Thoughts on Vanderbilt: Long Live the King
Now that's a little more like it. For the first time all season, the Dawgs put together a solid effort that resulted in a victory that was not decided in the fourth quarter. I know a lot of people will say that it was just Vanderbilt, but we needed this one bad. It was a great start to a long day of college football yesterday, one which I spent the entire day on my couch surrounded by friends. I couldn't ask for a better day. Here are my thoughts on our game and other things I observed this week.
- The start of the game may have been one of the ugliest performances by two teams I have ever seen. Before the AJ Green 65 yard touchdown, Georgia had already punted twice and thrown an interception. Vanderbilt had already punted three times. It was disgusting. If the offense plays like that in Jacksonville in two weeeks, it will look like the 2nd half last year.
- AJ, by god, Green. How could he only have 3 catches yesterday? The 65 yarder was a thing of beauty and really shows how much he has improved over last season. Did Joe Cox really deserve credit for a touchdown pass on that play or could we just give it to AJ?
- The defense was solid. They played like you are supposed to play against a team the likes of Vanderbilt. Justin Houston is a beast and Rennie Curran was Rennie Curran.
- Drew Butler can kick it 50 yards in a tornado. The punt he hit just before the end of the first quarter went about 45 yards in the air into a stiff wind. This is kid awesome.
- Boykin and Prince Miller were both about 1 tackle away from scoring touchdowns. Nothing helps out a struggling offense like a good kick return.
- Joe Cox is still not that good. When we went the first 4 drives with barely any yards, I really had to question why Logan Gray was not out there.
- Glad to see the running game get going, even if it was in the 4th quarter. We need to stop this rotation though, it should be 1 and 1A with Caleb and Washaun.
- The King has returned. He may not have put up big rushing numbers, but I thought Caleb had a great day. With his two touchdowns, the King is back!
2009 KING TOUCHDOWN COUNT: 2
Now, onto other games:
- Notre Dame put up a good fight against USC. The fake field goal play they ran was the same one that Georgia Tech ran against Clemson and should have been flagged as a penalty.
- SEC officials are the worst in the country. Florida celebrates, Tebow runs around, Riley Cooper pushes off and they do not get called. There were some bad calls in the Alabama game against South Carolina as well.
- Nice win for Georgia Tech. I did not think they would get it done against Virginia Tech. Too bad the lost to Miami, because right now they would still be on the outside looking in at the ACC Championship game.
After over a year of posting at least 2 articles a week, I am going to be taking my own "bye week" this week. The rest of the guys will be picking up the slack and I will be back next Sunday for the start of Hate Week 2009!
GO DAWGS!!!
- The start of the game may have been one of the ugliest performances by two teams I have ever seen. Before the AJ Green 65 yard touchdown, Georgia had already punted twice and thrown an interception. Vanderbilt had already punted three times. It was disgusting. If the offense plays like that in Jacksonville in two weeeks, it will look like the 2nd half last year.
- AJ, by god, Green. How could he only have 3 catches yesterday? The 65 yarder was a thing of beauty and really shows how much he has improved over last season. Did Joe Cox really deserve credit for a touchdown pass on that play or could we just give it to AJ?
- The defense was solid. They played like you are supposed to play against a team the likes of Vanderbilt. Justin Houston is a beast and Rennie Curran was Rennie Curran.
- Drew Butler can kick it 50 yards in a tornado. The punt he hit just before the end of the first quarter went about 45 yards in the air into a stiff wind. This is kid awesome.
- Boykin and Prince Miller were both about 1 tackle away from scoring touchdowns. Nothing helps out a struggling offense like a good kick return.
- Joe Cox is still not that good. When we went the first 4 drives with barely any yards, I really had to question why Logan Gray was not out there.
- Glad to see the running game get going, even if it was in the 4th quarter. We need to stop this rotation though, it should be 1 and 1A with Caleb and Washaun.
- The King has returned. He may not have put up big rushing numbers, but I thought Caleb had a great day. With his two touchdowns, the King is back!
2009 KING TOUCHDOWN COUNT: 2
Now, onto other games:
- Notre Dame put up a good fight against USC. The fake field goal play they ran was the same one that Georgia Tech ran against Clemson and should have been flagged as a penalty.
- SEC officials are the worst in the country. Florida celebrates, Tebow runs around, Riley Cooper pushes off and they do not get called. There were some bad calls in the Alabama game against South Carolina as well.
- Nice win for Georgia Tech. I did not think they would get it done against Virginia Tech. Too bad the lost to Miami, because right now they would still be on the outside looking in at the ACC Championship game.
After over a year of posting at least 2 articles a week, I am going to be taking my own "bye week" this week. The rest of the guys will be picking up the slack and I will be back next Sunday for the start of Hate Week 2009!
GO DAWGS!!!
Friday, October 16, 2009
Struggle Fest 2009: The Vanderbilt Preview
The Dawgs head to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt this Saturday hoping to get its season back on track before the date with the Gators in Jacksonville on Halloween night. Following the heart breaking loss to LSU, the Dawgs looked flat as they got crushed by a Tennessee team that had struggled to beat Ohio University. Vanderbilt, who reached a bowl game last season for the first time since the 80's, comes in at 2-4 and struggling worse than the Dawgs. This match up is not worthy of a normal preview, so instead I present to you a quick preview of the game I have dubbed Struggle Fest 2009.
What have you done lately?
Georgia got crushed by Tennessee on the road. Vanderbilt lost to Army. As bad as the Dawgs loss was, Vandy's is worse. Advantage: Georgia
Who has played a tougher schedule?
All of Georgia's games this season have been against opponents from BCS conferences, including 3 teams currently ranked in the top 25. Vanderbilt has victories over Western Carolina (1-AA) and Rice. The only common opponent is LSU, who Georgia lost to by 7 on a late TD and Vandy lost to by 14. Advantage: Georgia
Can anyone move the ball on offense?
Georgia is 97th in the country in total yards, Vanderbilt is 86th. Georgia cannot run the ball this year (104th in the country) but Vanderbilt cannot pass the ball (113th). Neither teams score a lot, but Georgia has the lead (75th in the country to 110th in the country). Georgia is -11 in turnovers, Vandy is +6. Advantage: Push
Who can make a stop on defense?
Vanderbilt has not allowed more than 23 points in a game this season. Georgia has only allowed less than 23 twice and has allowed more than 38 three times. Advantage: Vanderbilt
Who has more to play for?
If the Dawgs lose this game, the season will essentially be over. At 3-4 with games left against Florida, Auburn, and Georgia Tech, there would be little chance for the Dawgs to even make a bowl game. After a season where they made a bowl game, finishing under .500 is just the norm again for Vanderbilt. For Georgia, this game is life or death, for Vandy it is just another Saturday in Nashville. Advantage: Georgia
Final Score: Georgia wins, 3-1-1
I think (hope) the Dawgs come out pissed off. The loss at Tennessee last week was embarrassing and they need a good game to get that out of their system before the bye week. It is desperation time for the Georgia coaching staff and hopefully they unleash the talent on the team this week. I think the Dawgs win this one fairly easy.
Georgia 27, Vanderbilt 10
What have you done lately?
Georgia got crushed by Tennessee on the road. Vanderbilt lost to Army. As bad as the Dawgs loss was, Vandy's is worse. Advantage: Georgia
Who has played a tougher schedule?
All of Georgia's games this season have been against opponents from BCS conferences, including 3 teams currently ranked in the top 25. Vanderbilt has victories over Western Carolina (1-AA) and Rice. The only common opponent is LSU, who Georgia lost to by 7 on a late TD and Vandy lost to by 14. Advantage: Georgia
Can anyone move the ball on offense?
Georgia is 97th in the country in total yards, Vanderbilt is 86th. Georgia cannot run the ball this year (104th in the country) but Vanderbilt cannot pass the ball (113th). Neither teams score a lot, but Georgia has the lead (75th in the country to 110th in the country). Georgia is -11 in turnovers, Vandy is +6. Advantage: Push
Who can make a stop on defense?
Vanderbilt has not allowed more than 23 points in a game this season. Georgia has only allowed less than 23 twice and has allowed more than 38 three times. Advantage: Vanderbilt
Who has more to play for?
If the Dawgs lose this game, the season will essentially be over. At 3-4 with games left against Florida, Auburn, and Georgia Tech, there would be little chance for the Dawgs to even make a bowl game. After a season where they made a bowl game, finishing under .500 is just the norm again for Vanderbilt. For Georgia, this game is life or death, for Vandy it is just another Saturday in Nashville. Advantage: Georgia
Final Score: Georgia wins, 3-1-1
I think (hope) the Dawgs come out pissed off. The loss at Tennessee last week was embarrassing and they need a good game to get that out of their system before the bye week. It is desperation time for the Georgia coaching staff and hopefully they unleash the talent on the team this week. I think the Dawgs win this one fairly easy.
Georgia 27, Vanderbilt 10
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