It looks a lot like Georgia’s offense left town
Joe Cox produced more turnovers (2) than touchdowns (1) Saturday, fumbling here in the fourth quarter after being hit by Oklahoma State's Shane Jarka. (AP photo)
STILLWATER, Okla. — This is what happens when spin is put to the test. It explodes like a water balloon being dropped from a roof top.
A college football team loses a quarterback and a running back in the first round of the NFL draft, and what do we hear? That they’ll be more of a team. That they’ll be better up front. That they’ll spread things around and function as well — maybe even better — as before. Nobody in Athens ever said, “Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno were holding us back.” At times, it just sounded that way.
Well, try this. Georgia just opened the season scoring 10 points against an Oklahoma State defense that ranked 93rd in the nation last season, which has been fairly the program standard. How does that make you feel going into SEC play? If they can manage only a field goal in their last 11 possessions against a defense poor by even Big 12 standards, how will they fare against South Carolina, or LSU, or anybody?
This is what happens when spin and reality collide. The Bulldogs lost 24-10 on Saturday. The season isn’t over. But expectations just turned into water balloon guts on the sidewalk.
“We looked good for a minute,” coach Mark Richt said, and that was about the only comedic moment of the postgame.
The coach on the left, Mike Gundy, is feeling good about things. The coach on the right, Mark Richt, has some issues. (AP photo)
We can’t be sure at this point whether Joe Cox was feeling the effects of the flu (or “viral syndrome,” as he put it ), or if he just isn’t that good. The rest of the season will tell the story, but he really wasn’t that good Saturday. Nor was the offensive line. Nor was anybody on that side of the ball, including the fellow calling the plays, Mike Bobo.
Strange. They all looked brilliant after an opening drive that saw them drive 80 yards for a touchdown. They utilized a strong running game, led by Richard Samuel, and creative play-calling by Bobo. But the rest of the game produced six punts, three turnovers, 182 yards of offense and a field goal. That’s not all on Cox, even if it usually starts at quarterback. Bobo did what he could to jump on the grenade.
“It’s my job to put guys in a position to succeed,” he said. “Our guys played hard, but we just had too many mistakes and turnovers, and ultimately that falls on me. We wanted to establish the run and be physical, but I should’ve tried to stretch the field more. I didn’t do a good enough job.”
Not even the most devout of Willie Martinez bashers could put this on the defense. Seventeen of the Cowboys’ 24 points were mini-drives set up by two fumbles and a 74-yard kickoff return. Oklahoma State hadn’t scored so few points in a win since 2005. Georgia’s offense hadn’t produced so few points in an opener since 1996, when Jim Donnan lost his first game to Southern Miss 11-7.
There’s probably some other, “first since …” stats, but they all suggest the same thing: The Dogs are in trouble.
For one series, they looked like the team they told us they would be. Cox’s 4-yard touchdown toss to Michael Moore punctuated a drive that included: freshman defensive back Branden Smith entering as a running back and taking a pitch a pitch; backup quarterback Logan Gray replacing Cox for one play and taking a direct snap for a run; Smith taking a direct snap with Cox lining up as a wide receiver. “We were excited,” Cox said, adding he didn’t expect the Dogs to get the ball first. “I was thinking if they won the coin toss they would take the football and if we won we’d defer,” Cox said. “But they won and deferred. We went over and said we wanted to score first and we did.”
So ends the highlights.
No Stafford. No Moreno. No Mohamed Massaquoi (drafted in round two). A football team doesn’t lose that kind of talent without taking a hit. Cox, Bobo, Richt — they all said the same thing: “We weren’t that far off.”
But sometimes that only means they’re not good enough.
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864 comments Add your comment
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:26 pm
45ACP
Sugar Hill Dawg
Mountain dawg
Habersham Dawg
1eyedjack
Kendawg
WTF???
Reservoir dawg
Altamaha dawg
MiltonDawg
Reality Check
SECrules
Jax Dawg
Miami Dawg
DirtyDawg
NC Dawg
PTC DAWG
G Dawg
CLTDawg
GeoffDawg
Bugkiller
SimpleDawg
CUZ
RxDawg
DawginLex
ToccoaDawg
L-Dawg
Pumpdawg
Denver Dog
I thoroughly enjoy reading your comments and excuses.
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:29 pm
Whose got the gimick high school offense again?
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:30 pm
looks like georgia is going to be Tech’s bitch sooner rather than later
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:31 pm
((((( 45-42 ))))) hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:32 pm
((((( 24-10))))) hahahahahahahahahahaha
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:32 pm
0-3
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:32 pm
music city at best
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:33 pm
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:33 pm
I hate to say I told you so but I told you so
bigdawg01
September 5th, 2009
9:35 pm
We did not look good at all. Cox is not a game manager, he is not good at all. O-line did not provide the needed protection and our great D line did NOT get pressure. If we lose next week, it will be bad…very bad. Richt will seriously need to evaluate keeping Cox in. Very dark night in the Dawg Nation. F*** Florida, F*** tech.
BugKiller
September 5th, 2009
9:36 pm
joe cox < JOE TERESHINSKI
brewdawg
September 5th, 2009
9:36 pm
I say no shame in losing to a top 10 team on the road, and that’s true. But I’m feeling a very JT 3ish type of vibe about this year. The offense was not good, and that’s being generous. Very interesting and important game next week against another offensively-challenged team. Win that one, and things can still turn around. Also, it appears Sturdivant is gone again. That is the worst news that came out of today (other than the loss of course).
GeezusDawg
September 5th, 2009
9:38 pm
Not much traffic on the Tech Blog … celebrating the big win?
George P. Burdell
September 5th, 2009
9:38 pm
I’d be ashamed to have an insect as my mascot. And to start off with a 1-AA opponent. And to only win once against my major rival every decade or so, especially since they don’t consider us their rival. And what about our color, yellow? Pathetic!
Aaron Murray Era
September 5th, 2009
9:38 pm
Yellow Fuzz…….. STFU
Barry Jay
September 5th, 2009
9:41 pm
I’m sorry…but how many sacks did the OSU D have?
Jsonic
September 5th, 2009
9:41 pm
Bulldogs true colors showed today. They are terribly overated. Notre Dame would have slaughtered them the way they looked today! In the Poodles defense there were some questionable calls but none game changing. Long season of excuse making from Jeff and the rest of Poodle country!
SaltyDawg
September 5th, 2009
9:42 pm
What are you now, the Big Prick of North Avenue. Among so many you should be proud.
Aaron Murray Era
September 5th, 2009
9:43 pm
8-5 season
JAXDAWG
September 5th, 2009
9:44 pm
can’t we all just get along? on the other hand, yellow fuzz, go play in the street.
brewdawg
September 5th, 2009
9:45 pm
Let’s not start on the whole “Jeff Schultz is against us” thing. Why should he sugarcoat the truth? (Although I also disagree with his assessment of the o-line). You know what? If UGA wins 4 in a row or whatever, he’ll have a positive article.
BugKiller
September 5th, 2009
9:45 pm
Jeff,
Here’s the thing that frustrates ALL of us in the Bulldog Nation:
We KNOW that Richt will not do the right thing and replace Cox. Just like he refused to do the right thing and fire Willie Martinez.
I’m going to be honest. If Richt does not, at the very least, let Logan Grey play half the game next week I will officially be on the Fire Mark Richt Bandwagon.
I am SICK AND TIRED of seeing Mark Richt put his personal feelings above what is good for this football program.
Let me ask ANY of y’all:
If the Championship SEC Coaches (Miles, Meyer, Spurrier, Saban) had a QB play as poorly as Cox, do ANY of y’all honestly believe he’d be the starter next week for their teams?
If the Championship SEC Coaches had a DC do as poorly as Martinez has done the last four years, do ANY of y’all honestly believe he’d be given a 5th year?
If Richt doesn’t start making some changes in his program, if he isn’t willing to do what’s necessary to WIN…
… then I say he needs to go.
45ACP
September 5th, 2009
9:45 pm
Yellow Fuzz, yes the Bulldogs lost. We all know that.
But why are you not celebrating the Yellow Jackets victory on the Tech blog?
Just asking….
And I guess that the Jacksonville State defense is really tough.
Not one of those A-B-C , easy as 1-2-3 , doe ray me, running backs got 100 yards today.
What up wit that?
Dawgman566
September 5th, 2009
9:45 pm
First Yellow Fuzz Sucks. Second the Dawgs have a way to go. But I believe we will get there.
kevin
September 5th, 2009
9:46 pm
Yea we lost and didnt look good. Im scared for the rest of the season to be honest….yellow buzz, uh do u have absolutely nothing to do….like go to your own blog and celebrate your esteemed victory of J-ville State???
Yeah, we lost….most everyone loses.
quite frankly Bobo called some jacked up plays and idk….we are def lacking a killer instinct that good teams have. Cox’s throws looked weak and timid…idk….i could potentially see losses at SC, Tenn, LSU, Fla, and maybe even Tech…We better get our crap together and get it together fast.
Work in New York
September 5th, 2009
9:48 pm
Defense did not play that poorly, but still no DE stepping up. Offense has a ways to go but should improve by next week, but SC has a much better defense. OSU was a better team by far today. UGA will have a good season but it will be a fight all year long.
Yuck
September 5th, 2009
9:48 pm
That was ugly. Not sure what to think. Our offense looked anemic – and I don’t think it was due to the OkSt defense. We looked inconsistent – dropping balls, running directly into defenders, dumb penalties – and it reminded me of the same mistakes as last year.
That’s lame, because it looks like we have the same stupid mental mistakes with less talent = problems ahead. Not sure where to go from here, but as a fan, I am definitely getting frustrated.
FRED
September 5th, 2009
9:48 pm
JOE, BOBO TAKE REST OF THE SEASON OFF. THIS COULD BE THE LONGEST SEASON IN THE 28 YEARS I HAVE BEEN A DAWG FAN. ONE MORE GAME LIKE THIS ONE AND WE CAN START MURRAY.
Yuck
September 5th, 2009
9:50 pm
Fred – Why are you yelling?
Barry Jay
September 5th, 2009
9:51 pm
I’m watching AL and VaTech…this is a great game. 16-17 score…both teams making big plays and standing toe to toe. This is what a football game between two ranked teams should look like. UGA and OSU was a boring, poorly played game…not like two ranked teams should play.
kevin
September 5th, 2009
9:51 pm
shoot perhaps arkansas, kent, and auburn…..if not careful…does anyone else get the feeling that we dont maximize the talent of our players like others teams do…like saban, meyer, and so on. We have all these great recruiting classes and dont do much???
Virginia Cowboy
September 5th, 2009
9:52 pm
Sorry Dawgs! You got beat by a very good team that will compete for the Big 12 championship and maybe, the NC! Sorry about the loss but you lost on the road against a very good team. Now, please cut the crap about the SEC and how much better they are than the Big 12 and ACC. It get’s a little old after a while. I agree, that Florida is great but the rest is at best average.
Jeff Schultz
September 5th, 2009
9:52 pm
BugKiller – that’s going to be interest thing to track, depending on how next game or two go. The probably is it’s not like there’s a sure thing behind Cox. If I may invoke his name just as an example, it’s not like you have Matthew Stafford sitting behind Joe Tereshinski. But I’d be stunned if Logan Gray is not a bigger part of the game plan next week, just for the sake of trying to get something going and giving South Carolina something to think about.
Yellow Fuzz
September 5th, 2009
9:52 pm
My advice to the dog nation is to drink as much Koolaid as you can and hopefully by next Saturday you will actually feel like you can beat SC. LOL. You guys are terrible.
Jeb
September 5th, 2009
9:52 pm
Insanity – Doing the same thing year after year expecting different results. That’s exactly what is going on with the Dogs.
Next week will be once again, like always, a close game decided by less than a touchdown against South Carolina. I would have said a lesser team, but not after today. We will then squeak by the cellar dweller SEC teams and always give up too many points to everyone we play. Change needs to take place in order to gain a different result.
Barry Jay
September 5th, 2009
9:53 pm
Does anyone know how many sacks OSU had?
Paul's Johnson
September 5th, 2009
9:53 pm
I agree with every point Jeff makes. We did not see the team that we expected. Bozo’s play calling is high school grade coaching at it’s best, same crap as long as he’s coached here. Great talent always, poor coaching (both sides of the ball) always. this team needs accountability and leadership across the board. Now.
Work in New York
September 5th, 2009
9:53 pm
Would you take 8 and 4 today?
SOUTHGADAWG88
September 5th, 2009
9:54 pm
The defense was pretty good.We need to see more of Gray and hopefully Caleb King next week.I guess folks can stop talking about Cox’s HS stats.
WARBUCKS
September 5th, 2009
9:55 pm
MARK RICHT IS NO SABAN, OR URBAN.
cdog
September 5th, 2009
9:56 pm
joe cox is a loser, richard samuels is scared and is not a starter, the special teams is a joke, richt sit there and let the officials take his game despite these players blunders. georgia will be lucky to win 7 or 8 games this season
we need fans
September 5th, 2009
9:56 pm
Man, we lose to a top ten team, in their house, while we are starting a flu ridden q.b. and you guys are sh!tcanning the whole season already? Nice….
Meanwhile, why did Booboo stop running the ball, pounding with our OL, after the first drive?
Sanford Drive
September 5th, 2009
9:56 pm
Cox is NOT good. He’s just not SEC material. I’m sure he’s a great leader off the field, but that doesn’t really matter once you start playing games. Obviously receivers dropped balls too. Oh, and terrible special teams. I’m hoping for the best, but I expect the worst. First and foremost, let’s play Logan Gray. Pretty sure he can’t be any worse.
mass dawg
September 5th, 2009
9:59 pm
offense was terrible and predictable after the first drive.Cox did not appear to be a leader. D were put in holes from the turnovers and the big kickoff return. Refs were horrid in this one, bad spot on the forth down and goal for OSU and that 15 yard penalty against Jones was a terrible call. These next 3 are so important to the season and cannot afford to lose any of them or its going to be lights out against the likes of lsu, fla, tech and tenn.
Yuck
September 5th, 2009
9:59 pm
I’m growing tired of fans blaming the coaches for lack of execution on the field.
Players that trip over their own feet, drop passes, and commit dumb penalties are responsible for those failures. At what point does lack of execution become the focus rather than the play calling. Any armchair QB can blast a play that doesn’t work. I’m not happy with our performance, but at a certain point the players have to make the plays. Coaches can’t force turnovers or make big plays. Georgia players had ample opportunities to step up and didn’t.
Paul's Johnson
September 5th, 2009
9:59 pm
Yellowjizz:
I can’t believe that you’ve come home early from DragonCon. What, you got caught polishing the sword and buckles in the men’s room?
You should be of only beating a junior college team by 20 PLUS allowing 20 on that craphole of a defense. once again, TOOL!!
Bravo
September 5th, 2009
10:00 pm
And this is why you can’t go through life worshiping a football team. UGA was ugly on offense and decent on defense. UGA is what it is…. mediocre. BTW, time to throw in the kid QB Murray. I’m sure Joe Cox is a good guy but I don’t see much chance of success with him. Let the kid learn on the job this year and maybe next year, we’ll see improved results. Bobo can take the hit if he likes but little talent at QB and limited, inexperienced talent at running back spells a long season. How ’bout them gym dawgs?
Barry Jay
September 5th, 2009
10:00 pm
We won’t be S. Caro if we play like we did today. Spurrier is salivating right now.
Sanford Drive
September 5th, 2009
10:00 pm
Yellow Fuzz,
Most college kids go out and have fun on the weekends (yes, even TECH kids). You should try it sometime. I think you might like it.
tired
September 5th, 2009
10:00 pm
Fire Mark Richt!