Turns out Urban Meyer also is ranked No. 1 in excuses
If only Urban Meyer had shook hands and kept his mouth shut, he woudn't look like a tool.
Let me be the first to congratulate Florida coach Urban Meyer. He’s already won two national championships and two SEC titles in Gainesville, but he just pulled off something that I never imagined was possible: He turned Lane Kiffin into a sympathetic figure.
Most of us who watched the Florida-Tennessee game were amazed how the Gators were relatively held in check by the Tennessee defense. It made anybody who screamed, “They’ll cover the 29 points!” look like a complete idiot, and I should know, because my throat still hurts. Florida won only, 23-13.
Why did this happen? Three reasons: 1) The Vols were able to run the ball early and used a conservative game plan to limit Florida’s offensive snaps; 2) Monte Kiffin, Lane’s father, proved again he’s one of the greatest defensive coordinators ever; 3) Florida, which lost Percy Harvin to the NFL, was exposed as not having nearly as much downfield speed as we thought, shortening their passing attack.
We all know about the buildup to the game. We all know what Kiffin said and what Meyer thought of it. We all know how Meyer can hold a grudge and how he will rub his opponent’s face in it if given a chance (see: timeouts vs. Georgia).
But what did Meyer say Monday when he met with the media? Here’s excerpts on the subject of his own conservative play-calling: “When I saw [Tennessee] start handing the ball off, I didn’t feel like they were going after the win. The way we lose a game there is throw an interception. Why put yourself in that position? We’re not trying to impress the pollsters. We’re trying to win the game.”
So, basically Meyer: 1) Ripped Tennessee’s game plan, which actually gave Tennessee the best chance to win; 2) Claimed he’s not trying to impress pollsters, this from someone whose team since 2007 has had point totals of 62, 56, 56, 51, 63, 49, 56, 70, 49, 59, 59,49, 51 and 59.
Meyer looks like a tool. How about just say, “The other team played great and it turns out the other coach is not a moron.” Instead, he alibied that several of his players had the flu.
To Kiffin’s credit, he didn’t fire back much, at least not beyond this crack: “I guess we’ll wait, and after [the next game], if we’re not excited about a performance, we’ll tell you everybody was sick.”
♦ ♦ ♦
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!
This is Mike Bell and those are his evil eyes.
OK, slight exaggeration. But I’ll be back on 790 The Zone again today with the somewhat chemically imbalanced but otherwise nice guy Mike Bell. Show-time: 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., assuming I can wade to the studios in time. Bell insists I get there no later than 3:58, so as to give us a solid two minutes of show prep. I once again will be substituting for former Georgia All-American David Pollack, just as I did a few ago. I can only assume Pollack no longer has the conditioning to work five days a week. Maybe all that Twittering has worn him down. Anyway, even if you’ve Twittered, emailed, Facebooked and column-commented me before, you now have another opportunity to actually SPEAK to me. Actual conversation. What a concept.
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172 comments Add your comment
Sloan
September 22nd, 2009
7:08 am
Urban Meyer is a tool? Say it ain’t so, Jeff!
Jeff Sanchez
September 22nd, 2009
7:12 am
Meyer is a massive, massive d-bag. Great coach, no doubt…but huge d-bag.
Florida fans, you KNOW this
Bill E. Goat
September 22nd, 2009
7:14 am
Maybe Meyer should have a blackout planned for the next homegame then he’ll be real cool.
Keep up the jealousy, fits perfect for you guys. We’ll enjoy winning titles.
Joe
September 22nd, 2009
7:16 am
Everyone forgot about about Meyer weeping after a loss a couple of years ago.
The guy is just a big, spoiled brat. Now, if we can just get Miami and FSU to actually start recruiting the best players in Florida again, UF may return to its historical place as an SEC also-ran program.
Larry
September 22nd, 2009
7:18 am
I’m a dog fan but I think it best we shut up until we can prove something. Meyer has two titles in four years and the last time we had one Jimmy Carter was in the final month of his Presidency.
Meyer gets the most our of his “jerk” factor, something we could use a little on defense in Athens!
Gern Blanski
September 22nd, 2009
7:25 am
Bill E. Goat – before you chalk up Schultz’s comments to petty jealousy from the SEC, remember that Schultz went to UF.
Michael Cox
September 22nd, 2009
7:31 am
So what….? I wish our Coaching Staff would “let loose” a little more!I’m sick and tired of watching Richt on the sidelines (after the third turnover or 10th offsides penalty) walk around in what looks like a walking Coma!! Kiffy and Meyer atleast have a fire under their buts. UGA has lost the swagger it had under VanG (on D. anyway). Bring back the LIP jar and the KILL SHOT jar!! And someone stop giving Richt the Xanax!!
S.L.
September 22nd, 2009
7:31 am
People in the media love to keep shiggidy going. Everybody made a scene about Kiffen’s “Sing Rocky Top” comment, but they never mentioned the rest of the comment. “AD Mike Hamilton told me to say that”. And he said it to a room full of boosters.
Anybody who saw the game, noticed that no Florida player who was on the field said this year…”they quit!”
Like any of the new coaches in the SEC or not…all of them are a upgrade.
» SEC links: Meyer, Kiffin still throwing verbal jabs John Clay’s Sidelines
September 22nd, 2009
7:41 am
[...] Jeff Schultz of the AJC writes that Meyer is also ranked No. 1 in excuses. [...]
ron mexico
September 22nd, 2009
7:42 am
Dawg fan here, but I was impressed with Tennessee’s defense. Their lack of offense is about the same as our lack of defense…no wait, our lack of defense is worse. Anyway, give Kiffen a break. He’ll probably win a championship before we do if we don’t make some changes. Also, Meyer will probably leave with Wonderboy at the end of this year anyway.
Jeff Schultz
September 22nd, 2009
8:00 am
# BillEGoat — Jealous? It doesn’t affect me if Florida/Meyer wins or loses.
# Gern — Actually I didn’t.
F-105 Thunderchief
September 22nd, 2009
8:04 am
Urban Meyer is a tool
Lane Kiffin’s still a fool
They skip the warm and fuzzle
and both need to wear a muzzle
Gators Rule
September 22nd, 2009
8:04 am
Surprise–more UGA homers in the AJC—the mouthpiece of the University of Georgia!!!! They all hate UF and Urban Meyer!! Who cares—just bring home the big crystal championship ball with a bunch of confetti falling baby!!!
honest_abe
September 22nd, 2009
8:08 am
*”We’re not trying to impress the pollsters. We’re trying to win the game.”*
um ok… how about against miami up 20-3 with under a minute to play and they still kick a field goal? that pompous a-hole tries to run up the score every chance he gets. the only thing urban meyer cares about is urban meyer.
richt on the other hand cares about winning but seems like his ultimate mission is to be a guiding influence in his player’s lives. i’ll take richt and his “sorry” d-fensive coordinator all day.
Texas Dawg
September 22nd, 2009
8:13 am
Much as I Hate the Gators we can’t we really don’t have a leg to stand on until we win a couple of NC….that will never happen with Willie….we need to hire Kirby Smart as the dc….say what you will about Meyer….he is what 4-1 vs the dogs? I know our boys are just as talented….so what gives?
Ali Akbar Allah
September 22nd, 2009
8:19 am
The SEC is way overrated this year. Florida looked like garbage against UT and that is the best SEC has to offer? I can’t wait for Tech to go 3-0 against the almighty SEC this year. Maybe Tech will get lucky and get matched up against one of their teams in a bowl to make it to 4-0.
Are you that Stupid?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
September 22nd, 2009
8:24 am
Yeah playing against the SEC in a bowl game last year worked out great for tech? And leave it to a Tech fan for gloating in advance about beating Mississippi State and Vandy.
Shorty
September 22nd, 2009
8:24 am
abe- that’s a sorry excuse for not winning a championship. That’s the kind of stuff I teach to my 3rd graders. This is major college football. Maybe Richt should quit and be Tony Dungy’s understudy.
FalconUGAFan
September 22nd, 2009
8:24 am
Texas Dawg, Honest_Abe answered your question. Mark Richt is a calm guy that values influencing his player’s and loyalty rather thatn winning a championship at all costs. I happen to think that Meyer is a heck of a coach, but he will move at some point. Richt, on the other hand, will stay at UGA as long as he is having fun and we don’t run him off. I for one hopes he stays.
Anonymous
September 22nd, 2009
8:24 am
Will someone please explain to me what is “unsportsmanlike” about kicking a field goal on 4th down with 1:30 left to play in the 4th quarter? Why would you turn the ball over on downs, thereby giving the ball back to the other team’s offense, especially after a great performance by your defense? I thought Randy Shannon’s comments sounded whiny and frustrated in September 2008, and I think fans attempting make hay out of it in September 2009 sound just the same.
And, no, I’m not a Gator fan. Just a voice of objectivity and reason.
orangeade
September 22nd, 2009
8:25 am
Jeff, I remember reading a comment you made to the effect “if Tennessee wins I’ll sing Rocky Top in 12 languages and shave my head.” I was just wondering if you were practicing there in the 4th quarter. Hope you hadn’t shaved that head already!
Mikey
September 22nd, 2009
8:27 am
UT exposed the UF weaknesses and a good team will capitalize on them.
Best chance to beat them:
LSU
UGA
Arky
Maybe:
FSU
No chance:
Kentucky
Miss St
Vandy
SC
Florida Intl- what ? another JV team?
Shorty
September 22nd, 2009
8:29 am
Arkansas has a chance at beating UF? UGA has a chance? Will both teams borrow the Ravens defense for the day?
Chris
September 22nd, 2009
8:31 am
Jeff, how does Lane Kiffin gain any leeway or credibility from what Urban Meyer says in a press conference? His only accomplishment is beating Western Kentucky High School.
The phrase “moral victory” has come up to describe Tennessee’s big-time, run-down-the-clock strategy to offset a 29-point spread.
Uh, this is college football, not Catholicism. You go for the win.
The Vols got their wish to lose, and they were close to losing big. They have a couple of guys who can run the ball, a decent defense, and no quarterback. I’ll say that again: no quarterback. That’s quite a handicap when you’re playing in a conference in which three teams are in the Top 5.
Tennessee hasn’t done a thing. We learned that Florida is overrated, but they were two yards away from being up 30-6. Who knows what would have happened after that?
You probably would have seen timeouts with 30 seconds left on the clock. You probably would have seen a final of 44-6. You didn’t, though. You saw a fluke fumble that helped Lane Kiffin out – not any real sort of functionality from his team. (Remember? They couldn’t even punch it in from the 10 after Eric Berry’s interception.)
Dad can’t save Lane from a flat team, folks. Not for a while.
honest_abe
September 22nd, 2009
8:32 am
anonymous: with a 17 point lead? it’s rubbing it in against a bunch of 18 year old kids. thats whats wrong with it. if he just gives the ball over on downs. that other coach simply runs out the clock. that’s what coaches with class do. that’s what mark richt has done on multiple occasions.
shorty: i never mentioned anything about a natl championship. so wth are you talking about? the excuse which is more like sound reasoning as to why cmr hasn’t won a championships is simple. the bcs is a bunch of bull. georgia had two chances but the it simply didn’t work out in the polls. georgia was the best team at the end of the season in 2007 but didn’t get a chance to go to the championship game. same can be said for 2002. those are my reasons. not only do you have to be good in college football but you also have to have a lot of luck.
SimpleDawg
September 22nd, 2009
8:33 am
The Urbane Crier wouldn’t have put his meal ticket in harm’s way so many times, if he truly thought the game was well in hand. Having Teblow run 24 times – some from scrambles – is asking for trouble. Lil’ Lane scared the Gators with the Vowels intensity and brutish style of play.
Frankly, I’d love to see both of them lose every game, but I stiil get the feeling that a little of the shine is off the Gators’ season already. It will be interesting to see how this game affects both teams.
Of course, for any team playing Tennysee…..Crompton is always a 12th man….a Reggie Ball type without the foot speed.
JB
September 22nd, 2009
8:36 am
Ok, let’s start with the important stuff. Google Layla Kiffin, his wife and check her out in the Orange sun dress. Holy Moly. With our D, we better stay out of ANY conversation about Florida, We better worry about ASU AND Tennessee. We’ll have our hands full with them, and really ANYBODY we play.
GetOverIt
September 22nd, 2009
8:36 am
Stupid, its so convenient to not include Miss. St. and Vandy when talking about the mighty SEC but there is no problem including UF and LSU (notice I didnt include UGA)
gdawginkalamazoo
September 22nd, 2009
8:42 am
Uh, Meyer would have made this a statement game if he could have. Flu, no flu, game plan was to run the score up. It just didn’t happen with that UT defense. Good smack talk though.
Gen Neyland
September 22nd, 2009
8:44 am
JS : Where do I send you a box of chocolates for this stellar peice of journalism..? Meyer knows there is now a fox in his hen house dressed in Orange and White. If Meyer would use his Gator brain he’d let the W speak for itself but the guy has a tendency to politic for poll position. I did like Kiffin telling the postgame lady on the field, “We’ll see them next year.”
Eric
September 22nd, 2009
8:52 am
AUBURN Tiger here. We’ve NEVER been beaten by Urban or Tim (Jesus Jr.) Tebow and I hate ‘em just as much as the rest of you. War Eagle!!
Pi$$onaDawg
September 22nd, 2009
8:53 am
Mark RICHT could score that many points if he wanted to. I mean Mark Richt would only score that many points because he had too in order to try to beat somebody. Willie’s D will keep it close. If close is 45-42. HAHAHAHAHAHA
Paddy
September 22nd, 2009
8:58 am
Anonymous…there is absolutly nothing wrong with kicking a field goal at that particular time in the game. Only people that say it is unsportsmanlike, never played the game. Sportsmanship is playing by and within the rules. It is not unsportsmanlike to kick field goals. Thank goodness that stupid handshake deal before the game didn’t continue. Is it not the idea to beat a team so bad that they never look forward to playing you again. And if you make them cry, so much the better.
tim
September 22nd, 2009
8:58 am
Enter your comments here Hey puppies have you won anything lately with your great coach? No, I didn’t think so…
UGASlobberknocker
September 22nd, 2009
8:59 am
Meyer is a bit chippy..however that isnt always a bad thing.. showing a little pissy attitude every now and then would serve Richt well IMO
Topp Dogg
September 22nd, 2009
9:00 am
URBAN IS A STOOL, LOOK IN THE TOILET AND YOU WILL SEE HIM SMILE!
MiltonDawg
September 22nd, 2009
9:00 am
that game gave some SEC teams some hope, only time will tell
JS- when’s the countdown coming? i need my fix. can you add a topic about our beloved ex-braves pitcher mike hampton going in for another surgery and missing all of next year or have we played that card too much?
PMC
September 22nd, 2009
9:02 am
This is new Jeff? He’s been like this his entire career. That’s just who he is. To his credit at least Steve Spurrier was funny. Urban Meyer is a hell of a football coach… I’m sure he gives plenty of money to charity…. he’s also a megalomaniac. That’s probably one reason he’s such a good coach. It just doesn’t change the fact that he’s a douche. He gets butt hurt over the slightest thing.
Bama Aaron
September 22nd, 2009
9:03 am
Maybe he wouldn’t have to make excuses if the media didn’t over-hype these things? UT had the 3rd ranked defense in the country last year, still has plenty of talent and now has the elder Kiffen drawing up the defense. So maybe, just maybe it was unreasonable to expect a 30 point blow-out?
Now having said that Meyer is a jerk and needed to just say “yep, they’re a better team than we expected”. But after all the back & forth during the off-season he really couldn’t say that.
That & his team has been exposed. You don’t think every coach from here on is going to be watching how Monte contained them? I know Saban will!
lojak
September 22nd, 2009
9:04 am
CHRIS, guys like you are going to continue to attack Lane Kiffen as Tennessee plays in an SEC Championship in a couple of years. We are currently number 4 nationaly in recruiting and the hottest team in the country according to Jamie Newburg at Rivals. The performance against florida was outstanding-the players played their butts off–as a national media pundit put it after the game “Tennessee is one quarterback away from playing with anyone in the country” Chris, you better wake up, quite calling Kiffen names and realize the BIG ORANGE IS ON THE WAY BACK…deal with it
PTC DAWG
September 22nd, 2009
9:07 am
Apparently, Urban is also a sore winner, on top of being a sore loser.
But really, he’s just upset about the $$$ his fanbase lost on the game Saturday. I’m guessing they are letting him know about it.
PMC
September 22nd, 2009
9:07 am
Urban was wrong about that anyway, Tennessee was running because that is the strongest point of thier offense not because they were trying to shorten the game and keep it close. They don’t have a passing game, many of thier receivers were lost before the season started and thier QB is a head case. (as nice as I can put it really sorry) I wouldn’t criticise Meyer for running Tebow up the middle because he’s also thier best inside runner and I wouldn’t criticise Kiffin for running the ball when they are behind… because that’s the best they can do this year.
Jason
September 22nd, 2009
9:09 am
Hmm. I bet Georgia fans would love to be making excuses after 2 national championships and a win over a solid Tennessee team. Lets see how many excuses Georgia fans will be making after they lose to Florida again.
UT96
September 22nd, 2009
9:09 am
Chris, I see you’re into making excuses just like your bed buddy Urban. The fumble was forced (ball was stripped, watch the replay). The reason Florida wasn’t throwing the ball was because they weren’t able to throw the ball on a consistent basis. We dialed up the pressure and blanketed your sorry azz receivers the entire game. Anyhow, see you chumps in Knoxville next year.
BullGator
September 22nd, 2009
9:21 am
“Lame Kitten” is right about 1 thing after saying he wishes there was a chance he could get another shot at playing against Tebow again this year. It’s unlikely Florida will be playing in the CiTrUs bowl.Enter your comments here
Gator Mike
September 22nd, 2009
9:24 am
It is early in the season for everyone, and we will see how it unfolds for all teams. Yes, the Gators need work, but UT is the first SEC Team I have heard of which has their fans touting a “Moral Victory”. Personally, I am embarassed that a SEC Team which is so rich in history, tradition and pride as UT is relishing the insipid “moral victory” slogan. The UT players gave everything they had to win the game, and they never gave up.
I firmly believe that the UGA DAWGS and Tide will clobber UT.
As for all of this Meyer vs kiffin nonsense, I am sick of it. Had Phil Fulmer played a conservative game plan in G’Ville, the Vols Fans would be raising h##. The spread for the game was ridiculous, and most Gator Fans know it. The game may have been a clunker from a lot of Gator fans perspective, but UF won, and that is all that counts in the SEC. As for all of the so called expert sports writers constantly hammering on what Meyer says, they should be ashamed of themselves. They hammer on Meyer because he wins, and most writers hammer at winners. Were UF in the middle of the pack, little would be made of Meyer’s comments.
The UT game plan for the Gators gave them their moral victory, but it will not work against the DAWGS and TIDE (even Spurrier’s game chickens). UT had a good defense last year and nearly every year that Chavis was Fulmer’s coordinator. Sound defense at UT is nothing new, but lousy offense has been the norm in Knoxville for the past few years, and that is not the UT norm. Kiffin has not yet fixed it. Until the Vols get a productive offense, they will remain in the middle of the pack in the SEC.
Go Gators!
Ed-Covington
September 22nd, 2009
9:25 am
…and I guess Duh “U” fans would have rather had Pope Urban go for it on 4th down and try to score another td? They would have griped if he did anything but take a knee and give the ball back, which he wasn’t going to do!
Pago Flyer
September 22nd, 2009
9:26 am
Not so sure if the DAWGS really want the Gators/Vols this year!
awwesome o'radical
September 22nd, 2009
9:28 am
I think being a tool is a requirement to be Florida’s coach.
RandyBogartGA
September 22nd, 2009
9:39 am
UT96 Do you really believe “The reason Florida wasn’t throwing the ball was because they weren’t able to throw the ball on a consistent basis. “????????? If so you don’t understand football. Why should Meyer run up points on UT when he doesn’t have to risk getting players hurt? If you knew anything about Florida’s team you would know that Hernandez has no backup. Letting UT run the clock out for themselves was to me a good game plan. I will not deny UT has a good defense but your quarterback stinks and there was no way he was going to win the game for you by throwing. UT is set for next year and probably the next couple of years if they find a quarterback. You have the #3 ranked recruiting class in the country and it seems Meyer is not concerned about this and I will admit that bothers me greatly. Florida has a lot of catching up to do but is hampered by the playing time these guys want right away. I see the SEC East evening out for the next few years between Florida and UT. Georgia however has issues, they recruit but those recruits are not coached up, there is no fire or desire to their program and that comes from coaching. You can have all the players you want in your program but until someone instills discipline and desire you aren’t going anywhere. Sorry Georgia just stating what I see.
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
9:41 am
Glad to see UF fans are still worried about what UGA blogs have to say. Anyways, Urban Meyer is a great coach but everyone who watches college football knows UF’s days are numbered. If it werent for Tim Tebow and Ohio St who knows how many titles UF would have won. Also, UF didn’t play that conservative, Tenn just played much better than expected. Wait til after the Tebow era to see how good UF really is!!
Chris
September 22nd, 2009
9:41 am
lojak and UT96:
You both seem like incredibly average, typical Tennessee fans, so this is a good time to address some of the talking points from the Kitten Klan.
I’m not a Florida fan. See if you can figure out which team I support.
I’m glad you’re able to read Rivals because I can too, and it looks like Alabama is number 5. The difference between you guys and Alabama is this: Alabama already has a great team and a great coach. So while you’re waiting “a couple of years” for something resembling a competitive team, Alabama is already very good, and will continue to win in “a couple of years.” Those SEC Championships you’re so confident about? You’ll get beaten by Alabama, if you even make it. Which you probably shouldn’t be so confident about, considering your coach has a 6-17 lifetime record.
Tennessee’s one quarterback away from playing with anyone in the country? That’s funny, because I seem to remember a good quarterback, BJ Coleman, who was ignored into playing for UT-Chattanooga. Your brilliant, prodigy coach was responsible for this. And I know you’re loving this 1-2 season with Crompton and next season with Stephens – two guys who couldn’t carry Rick Clausen’s jock. (And that’s saying something.)
So guys – congratulations on your “moral victory.” It must bring you great pleasure to lose gracefully to a rival, but other teams prefer winning.
Maybe you can pull one out of the hat against Ohio. I know you want to pull your record up to .500 in time to get mutilated in Tuscaloosa.
Shankit
September 22nd, 2009
9:44 am
Arkansas Gazette
“Coach Petrino is an offensive genius but he don’t know doodly about defense.
“Petrino should demote his defensive coordinator and move %^$ up.
“Gonna be a long season with our lack of defense.”
“Should have beaten the dawgs by 2 TD’s with their turnovers, but our defense
couldn’t handle the pressure.”
SOUND FAMILIAR?
Otto
September 22nd, 2009
9:45 am
Was Monte that good?
or
Does Urban miss Percy and Mullens that bad?
We will not know for a while if this season.
Running was UT’s strength. However, the running game kept the score close which is really a moral victory and helps recruiting.
george
September 22nd, 2009
9:47 am
????????????????????????????????????????? Nobody in the country compalins more than the patheitc pups and its fans but nice try though.
BullGator
September 22nd, 2009
9:49 am
I love all these shots at Urban Meyer. I guess it goes with the territory of clearly doing the best job of ANYONE in the country. Dawgs and Vols could only wish people were talking about them in such an envious manner. And I suppose you wouldn’t want him as your coach either.
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
9:53 am
Wow, I love all the UF fans whining on the AJC. Outstanding, think you could read your own paper. Just admit it, UF wanted to run up the score and couldn’t every time Urban has gotten the chance to run up the score even on smaller schools he’s had no problem, but all of a sudden its a depth thing, please, you have a top 5-10 recruiting class every year. Basically, from anyone that has a brain that watched the game realized that UF misses Harvin and Murphy more than they want to admit and that as far as Tebow can throw the ball to a wide open receiver down field, he doesn have any zip on the curl or out routes. UF is still a great team but not unbeatable and even as a UGA fan looks like Alabama is the team to beat right now.
ReptilesRule
September 22nd, 2009
9:55 am
DUMB ARTICLE! Why? Because it is impossible to make excuses when you WIN. You have to LOSE to make excuses. For instance, when’s the last time you heard the expression, “Excuses are for winners”?? Or heard a coach say after a game, ” Gosh, if only we had executed in the red zone a little better, we could have lost!”?? See what I mean??? Only losers can really make legitimate excuses. Or act like they won when they lost. In fact, when I was at the Swamp Saturday, I could almost hear Lane Kiffin telling his team in the tunnel before the game telling his players, “Let’s go out there men and get us a moral victory!”
RandyBogartGA
September 22nd, 2009
9:58 am
Clayton,
Jamaaliver
September 22nd, 2009
10:00 am
Is this really all we have on Urban Meyer. The man is the pre-eminent coach in college football today. One of the great offensive minds in NCAA Football history.
And he won the game. Geez.
Gen Neyland
September 22nd, 2009
10:00 am
BullGator : You’re right. I wouldn’t want him for Tennessee’s HC, but we’ll gladly take some of those Florida recruits off his hands.
Schultz is FUNNY!
September 22nd, 2009
10:02 am
This has to be the most slanted piece of yellow journalism I have ever read. Schultz lives in a state where the top University coach has used sickness and injuries for 8 years to downplay potential losses before they even happen! Every game this season was preceded by some lame excuse about so & so being hurt or possibly has the flu. We all know the flu is over in a day or so but somehow Cox getting the Flu on a Monday was supposed to effect his play a week later??? Not to mention the back-up never played so I guess the symptoms were not bad enough to put the #2 QB in even though he had supposedly taken most of the reps that week since the other QB was “Sick”. Richt is the biggest whiner in the SEC! Period! But he is loyal to his assistants. he he he What a lack of leadership it takes to let the organization not reach full potential so that you can keep a friend with a job!!!
RandyBogartGA
September 22nd, 2009
10:03 am
Clayton,
What would Florida fans complain about? National Championships? SEC Championships? Being in contention each year? Maybe the dogs ought to get out from under the porch and get to howling about issues bigger than Florida. Maybe something like coaching………
One other thing …if you don’t want people on your paper and giving their opinions then restrict it. Georgia simply put wishes they had people talking about their team instead of laughing at it.
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
10:04 am
yes dear?
Me
September 22nd, 2009
10:06 am
Did anybody actually watch the game?? Give credit to Tennessee for playing hard nosed football, but they never were in danger of winning that game after the half. In fact, if Tebow had not fumbled the ball down inside the 5 yard line when Florida was about to make it 30-6, the rout was on and that final margin would have been as expected. But nothing changes a game or momentum like a turnover and Tennessee then went down and scored and made that game seem much closer that it actually was. Florida played it close to the vest because they began to realize that the only way they lose is if they beat themselves. It’s always better to win ugly than to lose pretty…
VolsRule
September 22nd, 2009
10:07 am
Can’t say too much – as our record is 1-2.
Also – I believe it will be another season until we are ready to compete to win against the SEC elite (2011). Need some depth and a QB.
Predict UGA will lose in Knoxville this year:
– trap game after playing LSU (huge emotional loss for UGA)
– UGA is winning in shootouts against ARK and SC. Hey – a win is a win – but come on – SC and ARK?
– UGA trends = turnovers, penalties, poor special teams = getting beat by teams equal to or better than. Look at OSU game – turnovers and special teams cost UGA momemtum and opportunity to get the job done.
– National Respect – UGA is slipping. Looked on top of the world in 2005 – but boy has the program turned into much to do about nothing. UT has been to the SEC Title game more recent than UGA (2007) and have won 3 of the last 5.
– Defense – UGA = stupid defensive play – very athletic – but will make stupid plays and stupid penalties to keep an opponents big drive alive.
All in all – something is wrong in Athens.
Gen Neyland
September 22nd, 2009
10:09 am
And one last comment then I’ll turn the floor over to the Lizards. Why do Gator fans keep refering to Tennessee’s loss as a moral victory for Tennessee..? He11, we claim it as a loss but not the perceived blowout Meyer wanted. That’s all. Simply claim it as a victory of your own and put down the excuses for not being able to run ‘em out of The Bog. Hearing footsteps..?
Gator Growl
September 22nd, 2009
10:15 am
Is that really Dawg fans and sports writers I see accusing a Florida coach of making excuses?? And for WINNING a game at that??? Mark Richt should be so lucky!! That’s hilarious, ’cause excuses is all I’ve heard from you people for the last 20 years!!
JB
September 22nd, 2009
10:16 am
All florida fans……what you read from us Dawg fans is envy……most will not admit it, but the Gators have a great coach and a hell of a program………If you’re after nice guys, polite, politically correct etc, we offer our coach Richt and staff…………..If you want to win, at any cost, a douche bag, a nut cruncher, a winner, I offer you Urban. Hate him or not, he is results oriented. Urban would never stand for what we are going through. Georgia people are mixed about where we are. some say shut up and leave Richt alone and the staff. some say he took us up a rung or two but his style and ideology has us as good as we are going to get. Mark is a great “caretaker” of our our program and represents to University well, and will win more than he loses, but getting to the top is just conversation, because he is very comfortable, based on his Public remarks, of where we are as a program. His private remarks are mostly the same due to his “inaction’ to make the necessary changes to get us to the next level. We’ve given up 102 points in three games. the 1980 team gave up 137 in 12. We stink on defense.
Les Miles
September 22nd, 2009
10:16 am
Florida misses Percy Harvin and Luis Murphy. It shows. UF will not go undefeated and minus Tebow next year UF will become just another good SEC team. Expect Meyer to bolt post Tebow. Tebow has made that POS look good for 3 years. So did Ron Zook when he left all those players for the Urban legend.
Forrest Gump
September 22nd, 2009
10:16 am
Somebody is going to knock UF off their high horse.
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
10:17 am
RandyBogartGA,
but just cause its not restricted doesn’t mean you have to be here slamming our team cause you have nothing better to do. I’m sure Gainesville has a blog where everyone bows down to UF right?
I doubt anybody is laughing at our team but if they are then oh well. We have issues on Def sure, but yes if you read the blog UF fans are complaining. And like I said, once the Tebow era is gone we will see how good coach Urban really is. Cant knock a team that has done what you guys have done, but all good things come to an end and if UF doesn’t get it together they won’t win the SEC title this year. And the hole blog thing, didn’t mean to hurt your feelings,
Evil Richt 2009 S.E.C. World Tour: "(No longer) Banned in Columbus"
September 22nd, 2009
10:19 am
It’s “gratulate the gator”, not congratulate.
Al Davis
September 22nd, 2009
10:25 am
JUST WIN, BABY!!
Reggie
September 22nd, 2009
10:28 am
Jeff!!
Is the best you could come up with today?
Where have you gone jim Bob Cooter ?
September 22nd, 2009
10:28 am
Jeff-
Good piece.
I don’t particularly care for Kiffin ,but hats off for a pretty good game plan against UF. The guy brought a plastic cheese knife (Crompton ,his QB) to a gunfight and his options were very limited. The previous regime at Tennessee would have just let Crompton chunk it into the loving arms of Gator defenders and vowed to “work like heck” to solve the problem before the next beating. So give Kiffin credit for being realistic.His dad deserves a raise by the way ,for shutting down Florida’s offense so well.
Urban Meyer is Urban Liar. If he could have run up the score he would have. He has shown no reluctance to do so when he can ,so all of the hummuna hummna about the flu and impressing the pollsters is just a load of BS. He may want to keep the tape of this game handy in case he ever gets the itch to go try his “ball plays” in the NFL. There are 27 other defensive coordinators that can do what Lane Kiffin’s dad did to his offense on Saturday.
Ryan
September 22nd, 2009
10:32 am
Urban is the best coach in the nation. Deal with it. Everybody keeps saying “we will see how good of a coach he is after Tebow leaves.” Great point, before Tebow all he did was make Utah . . UTAH . . . into a national powerhouse. He went undefeated with Alex Smith as his quarterback and made Alex Smith into the #1 pick in the draft. If anything you people should say, “We will see how good Tebow is once he doesn’t have Meyer to coach him.”
VolDown
September 22nd, 2009
10:33 am
Tennessee—a once proud program, now “giddy” and “excited” over covering the spread against one of their biggest rivals. How the mighty have fallen! UT will be lucky to win 7 games this year.
m
September 22nd, 2009
10:36 am
What Meyer said was accurate. Tennessee had no chance to win the game. They just played to beat the spread.
They accomplished that mission…but so what?
All this game really showed is that Tennessee is a really bad football team and floriduh is not that much better.
Overall, the sec is very weak again this year.
Turns out Urban Meyer also is ranked No. 1 in excuses - VolNation
September 22nd, 2009
10:36 am
[...] [...]
Ryan
September 22nd, 2009
10:37 am
Here’s a good stat on Urban Meyer – He is 24-1 in his career in rivalry games, bowl games, and championship games.
Westurd
September 22nd, 2009
10:39 am
There is no arguement at all…………Florida won by two scores, why the Heck is everyone talking like Tennesse won. Makes no sense. Does losing by ten to the nations best team now qualify as a win!? Stupid journalist (and Tennessee fans)
RJ
September 22nd, 2009
10:39 am
I was watching the game and wondered what on earth Kiffin was doing at the end. UT was down by 10 with 3 minutes left and they ran the ball 3 straight times at mid field. He looked like he was trying to run out the clock.
RandyBogartGA
September 22nd, 2009
10:43 am
Clayton,
I am not slamming Georgia I have a lot of Bulldog friend around here (Got to it’s their home!) but they all complain about Georgia the same way, coaching! Richt is a good guy he has ethics, honest and fan friendly college football needs him and truth be told hundreds of more like him. But the Georgia program has no fire. I’m sorry but I cannot think of any other words to describe it. There is no burning passion to win. Every program will have losses, Florida and UT will lose but with Georgia it has become acceptable? Maybe that’s what I am trying to get at. I love SEC football, I don’t care what anybody says no other conference has the passion the SEC does. It just seems Georgia is losing theirs.
BullGator
September 22nd, 2009
10:48 am
Doe this sound familiar, “Georgia has a top 5 recruiting class every year” “What happens to them once they get there?” We’ll be saying the same thing about the Vols for years to come.
Fl will experience down years after Meyer retires. You can’t fix poor coaching.
VolsDontRule
September 22nd, 2009
10:49 am
Whatever dude. I’m sure you thought the Dawgs had lost too much on offense (3 in the top 50 in draft) to compete with anybody this year. You have a LOSING record, a coach that everybody thinks is a joke, and nobody to play quarterback next year. Haven’t y’all had two losing seasons recently? You need to worry about yourself and another year without a losing record, UCLA…pulease
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
10:49 am
And for all the dominance UGA still leads the series by 8 games
Clayton
September 22nd, 2009
10:52 am
RandyBogartGA,
Fair enough, and for DAWG fans unfortunately you might be right. I do live the fact that UGA can compete but even with Stafford and Moreno they couldnt get over the hump. Will all the talent on D its hard to argue that something is wrong, hopefully Willie M or someone can get those guys in the right position/s soon or when we face the tough D’s there could be some long days
schultz is mighty smart
September 22nd, 2009
10:53 am
UT beat the spread,party time in Knoxville. Monte Kiffin keeps Vols close. without a doubt, one of top DC’s EVER!
Iron Dawg
September 22nd, 2009
10:55 am
We knew UM was a cry baby but now he showed us he is a dishonest cry baby (was’t trying to impress the polls). He was lucky to score 23 and he is pissed.
Hillbilly Deluxe
September 22nd, 2009
11:05 am
We can’t get that radio station up here in the hills, especially when it’s raining. You need to get into TV, Jeff.
The REAL #1 Excuse Maker
September 22nd, 2009
11:10 am
The game is in Jacksonville, we got to take a plane, it’s SO hot down there, they get to take a bus, we need the game in Atlanta, the game is in F-L-O-R-I-D-A………….
Otto
September 22nd, 2009
11:14 am
Overall I would not read much into UF on how they played the Vols. UF is still very capable of winning every game. As a UGA fan I am a bit more concerned about the Vols. UF is beatable but most SEC fans expected them to drop 1 game to somebody. My pick is Arkansas will upset UF this year but who knows it could be just about anyone if it happens.
DawginLex
September 22nd, 2009
11:14 am
The idiot m ripping the SEC while the GT unbeatable new sheriff in town jackets can’t complete a forward pass or stop anyone.
Some things never change
bammer
September 22nd, 2009
11:17 am
Florida claims to be 3 deep with superstuds, but 3 guys with flu explain their unexpectedly tepid performance…..Kiffin nailed the tool to the wall.
AllVol
September 22nd, 2009
11:22 am
There are no moral victories. UF won the game. UF is a far better team right now and with all the hatred and expectations they(Florida) had a very lackluster performance. It happens. Defensive schemes by Monte Kiffin obviously helped. What it boils down to is Urbie Cryer is pissed and throwing out excuses for a win. A win people. Tennessee is getting better, but it will take a while. In the meantime the media is all over this saying how juvenile Meyer is for coming up with all these excuses. Firtst take just blasted him. UT will be back. It may take another year or two to get back where they want, but believe me….it’s coming.
bull-gator
September 22nd, 2009
11:24 am
Meyer sounds like he’s using Ron “The Zooker” pretzel logic. He needs to STFU and start working on the next game plan. Also, If Demps had that high of a fever why wasn’t he in sick bay. And Spikes looked like crap well before he tweaked his achilles. Also, Cooper ain’t no Murphy so quire making excuses like “my neck hurt”. Wussies! There are way too many head cases on this Gator team and I predict a crash to earth in Baton Rouge, that is if they don’t get whupped by Kentucky. It could happen very easily.
Recruitnik
September 22nd, 2009
11:29 am
Jeff,
This is one of your better articles. You won’t get anyone from the orlando sentinel or the gainesville sun say jack about meyer anymore. He has threatened them and has them quit under his thumb. You break it down very well. I can’t stand Lane, but in this situation he is right.
Knuckle Sandwich
September 22nd, 2009
11:29 am
Hey goat, a blackout would be just as cool as a “blueout” right? Tool.
Pot meet Kettle
September 22nd, 2009
11:30 am
I can’t find one quote where Florida coaches ever talked about running up the score on UT. Lane made his comments last February and I didn’t see it then. Can anyone post a link?