Georgia loses to Kentucky, and the song stays the same
This is the picture? Do you really need to know more? An interception by Kentucky's Shane McCord of a Joe Cox pass set up the Wildcats' winning touchdown in a 34-27 upset of the Dogs.
ATHENS — They got bruised in Stillwater, blindsided in Knoxville and humbled in Jacksonville. Also, their dog died.
Nobody intended for Georgia’s season to unfold like a country-western song. It just sort of turned out that way.
So what were the objectives Saturday night? Easy. To create a memory for seniors who were playing their final game in Sanford Stadium. To diminish chances of the season ending in Shreveport. To look convincing enough in a win over Kentucky — whose 6-4 record entering the night mirrored Georgia’s — that the Bulldogs’ somewhat jaded fan base would start salivating over a possible upset next week on North Ave.
They whiffed.
With representatives from the Independence and Liberty Bowls in attendance, the Bulldogs held a 20-6 halftime lead over Kentucky, then unraveled like they have far too often. They committed four second-half turnovers. The Wildcats scored four touchdowns. Georgia went down, 34-27, in its final home game of the season, and it’s just as well because there probably are not a lot of folks around Athens who wanted to be subjected to another game this season, anyway.
Mark Richt is going to have a chore trying to keep his players pumped up after this one.
Most fans in the students section wore black. At this point, we can’t be certain if they were mourning the sudden loss of Uga VII, or the passing of significant bowl game hopes.
The Dogs just lost a home game to Kentucky for the first time in 32 years. Their record is now 6-5. It’s the most losses ever for a Mark Richt team. They would need to upset Georgia Tech and win whatever low-grade bowl game that takes them just to match Richt’s all-time low win total at Georgia in 2001 (final record: 8-4).
By any measure, it has been a dreadful season.
This won’t make things any easier for Richt. He has been fielding questions about the future of the program and what changes he might make, both in direction and his coaching staff. All this has been going with games still left in the season. Richt has been trying to lay out some tangible goals for his players –one of them was to close the season with five straight wins, which would have led to a respectable final record of 9-4.
Last week, the Dogs responded with a win over Auburn in possibly the team’s best performance of the year. But this was one of their worst — at least the second half was.
It looked like it might be an easy night. Four straight scoring possessions (two touchdowns, two field goals) to close the first half gave the Bulldogs a 20-6 lead. But if you throw out the Tennessee Tech game, do you know how many easy games this team has had this season? Zero. What could not have been predictable was a complete collapse.
It started when Branden Smith fumbled the second-half kickoff return. That set up one Kentucky touchdown. Joe Cox connected with Rantavious Wooten for a 43-yard touchdown to restore the Dogs’ 14-point lead at 27-13. But no lead has been safe with Georgia’s defense, not even against pedestrian teams like Kentucky. It’s why defensive coordinator Willie Martinez may have coached his final game in Athens, at least as the defensive coordinator.
The defense did nothing to help secure Martinez’s future. Late in the third quarter, the Wildcats closed to 27-20 when quarterback Morgan Newton hit La’Rod King for a 21-yard score. Early in the fourth, tailback Derrick Locke got behind the defense down the left sideline, snared a pass from Newton and blasted off for a 60-yard touchdown, tying the game.
Instead of responding with a score, Georgia responded with a meltdown. On the ensuing drive, Cox threw a pass over the middle right to defensive tackle Shane McCord. That set up the Cats at the Dogs’ 8-yard-line and led to Randall Cobb’s second TD of the game and a 34-27 Kentucky lead.
The meltdown was soon complete: While driving for a would-be tying score, Washaun Ealey fumbled a pitch at Kentucky’s one-yard line with 2:21 left. Another possession ended with an inteception. Checkmate.
This was not how Georgia expected its final home game to go. But it also didn’t expect the losses to Oklahoma State and Tennessee and so many other messes this season. The song never changed.
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1,377 comments Add your comment
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
10:47 am
yes will,
the 2010 football season is a long time from now
Bright Side
November 22nd, 2009
10:48 am
At least CMR will pull in another top recruiting class. Screw November – February is our time of year!!
Go Dawgs!
GoDawgGo
November 22nd, 2009
10:48 am
Weiss out. Stoops to ND. Richt to Oklahoma. Kelly to UGA. The wheels have started turning…Damon Evans isn’t up to the AD job and beginning to see that either Richt or he (Evans) will be gone in the next year or so anyway.
Dawggy Style
November 22nd, 2009
10:50 am
Send the entire coaching staff and seniors to Shreveport in all black uniforms and just leave them there! I’ll pledge the first $1 million needed to lure Will Muschamp and Kirby Smart to Athens to restore what UGA football should be!!
Peter Pan
November 22nd, 2009
10:50 am
Somebody please take Tinkerbell,I’m allergic to that dam pixie dust. Hey, but hey Tuberville has 3 syllables in his name and he never lost to teams his teams were suppose to beat. It is just hard to recruit at East Alabama Tech without going on probation. Anyone can recruit for UGA.
Will
November 22nd, 2009
10:51 am
To bad Joe Cox is a senior, he was just starting to show flashes of brilliance
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
10:53 am
yes will,
joe cox is just a gem of a quarterback
SadDawg
November 22nd, 2009
10:54 am
I believe that in the near future, Coach Richt will have to win with much less-heralded players than he’s been snagging, because these horrid games with UT, UF, UK, and the upcoming one with Tech are gonna affect UGA dramatically in recruiting….. I mean, can you imagine how Marlon Brown, Aaron Murray, Branden Smith and their class feel about their decisions to come to UGA now? All of this talent just wasted by this coaching staff….
Dawg Tools
November 22nd, 2009
10:54 am
Next up – white helmets, silver jerseys and red britches. CMR has an impeccable fashion sense, he just hasn’t found the right combination yet. Give him more time….years and years, I hope!
Top Dawg
November 22nd, 2009
10:54 am
Why did GA toss the ball on the 1 yard line? That was STUPID!!!!
KY
November 22nd, 2009
10:58 am
Beating the Poodles in Athens – so easy a Wildcat can do it!
Go Cats!!
Why all the sad faces?
November 22nd, 2009
10:58 am
Yeah, the year was bad, but not ALL bad. But explain to me, how one year with 5 losses GUARANTEES the NEXT year MUST also have 5 losses? Too cynical, get a life! When we have an offense loaded with AJ Green (#1 WR), Marlon Brown (#2 ranked WR in country), Ealey RB (5.0 yard per carry average as a FRESHMAN, 55 yard explosion run in the Kentucky game), Murray as QB (top 10 ranked in the country), Charles as TE (Top 10 ranked–looked GREAT in the Kentucky game), why all the sad faces? Get a Life! Our defense didn’t give up a 100 yard rusher ALL YEAR (we usually win 94% of those game)!
If we can cut out the turnovers and get a 100 yard rusher (we win 93% of those games), we’ll be fine. Not a lot of adjustments need to be made. Georgia is CLOSE.
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
11:01 am
Look at the Thin crust falling from the sky
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
11:04 am
Look at the Extra Cheese falling from the sky
Basketball 101
November 22nd, 2009
11:04 am
It is pretty amazing that Georgia fans would approve of rap dances in the end zone and Soulja Boy on the sideline when Georgia is winning. When the dogs start losing, they are criminals and gangstas. The fans are as tacky as the players. Just look at the piles of garbage on the campus.
THWG Fans
November 22nd, 2009
11:04 am
The bad news is that this was/is a horrible season for the dawgs.
The good news is:
New quaterback next year…wait…he has NO experience.
All new coaching staff to replace the current idiots…wait….NOT.
A more experienced team…wait….don’t they lose like 16 seniors.
AJ Green will be back and healthy…wait….not if he’s amart.
Recruiting will be just fine….wait….they have to compete with GA STATE now.
Its basketball season….wait…..ughhhhhh.
How bout them gym dogs!!!!!
Bad Decision, Orson
November 22nd, 2009
11:05 am
A SERIOUS Question–Why is Georgia’s fight song a takeoff on the Battle Hymn of the Republic? I would have sworn that Sherman and the Boys did some heavy duty damage on that trek. Having Battle Hymn of the Republic as your fight song is akin to Japan incorporating Yankee Doodle Dandy into its anthem.
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
11:05 am
i was going to take my four year old son to his first Tech game next weekend, but i don’t think he should see smoke blowing out of dawg fans ears and their heads exploding…
i however might find that even more entertaining than the game
Recruiting insider
November 22nd, 2009
11:05 am
4* db Nickell Robey is now considered a silent commit to Tennessee after visiting Knoxville this weekend. You puppies better do something quick. You’re losing recruits….
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
11:06 am
yellow fuzz,
don’t forget that garlic dipping sauce
eastofA1A
November 22nd, 2009
11:06 am
Ya know, Super Dawg, like Ray Goff, Mark Richt also looks very tanned and rested. Maybe that’s the problem.
dawgit
November 22nd, 2009
11:07 am
I guess GT will be favored Saturday. That happens about once every decade.
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
11:07 am
Look at the Bread sticks falling from the sky
dave
November 22nd, 2009
11:08 am
Thanks for the recruits! Go Big Blue!!!
Michael
November 22nd, 2009
11:09 am
Dear Damon Evans:
Just so you’ll know, I don’t care what you do. Make Richt fire all his assistants; fire Richt; hire Charlie Weis; hire Nck Saban; discontinue the football program (your best bet). I’m resigning my citizenship in the Bulldog Nation. Color me gone.
Big Blue Hammer
November 22nd, 2009
11:09 am
Get a grip, English Bulldog Fans… It’s not that big a deal to lose to the Big Blue. When the CATS lost to recent English Bulldog Basketball Teams, the world didn’t end… We just went out and got Calipari. Maybe you all need a new coach… humm, Charlie Weis or Mangino may be available soon!
dawgit
November 22nd, 2009
11:10 am
One thing UGA and GT have in common. Neither team can remember the last time they had a year like they’re having.
Bad Decision, Orson
November 22nd, 2009
11:11 am
Hey Orson(aka Genius, Phi Beta Kappa and Punk A##), why don’t you comment on that brilliant decision to come up to Athens so that you can play with your “Little Friend” Murray?? Nice move!! Genius! Don’t you guys get any guidance in Tampa ?? how do you like playing with your ‘little Friend”?? Oh, I forgot. You are playing with your Little Friend Cox.
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
11:11 am
Look at the Spinach Alfredo falling from the sky
godawgs
November 22nd, 2009
11:12 am
The last time Richt had 4 losses, he rebounded THE NEXT SEASON and ended up #2 in the country the next year. That’s the way football goes. LSU and Flo have had 4 loss seasons recently too folks. They rebounded fine also.
GoDawgGo
November 22nd, 2009
11:12 am
It’s not just last night’s ugly loss, or even this season’s slump, it is the trend downward after last year’s disappointment that has so many of us down on the dawgs. It is clearly time to lower expectations for the next few years, and perhaps we’ll be surprised by a turnaround. I believe it was more fun years ago when we won several fewer games per year on average, but our expectations were more reasonable and more humble. Whipping Tech all those years and Richt’s early success and image has made us softer and spoiled. All of us–fans, coaches, players, administrators–should stop reading our own press clippings and defining ourselves by recruiting class rankings and alumni reporter assessments in the AJC. It can be fun again, when we go to Athens to cheer on the Dawgs and not assuming we’ll have more bragging rights for the break room on Monday morning. Have fun, Dawgs, and stop trying to measure up to the expectations of ungrateful fans who have never attended a class, who boo you when you make a mistake, who leave early and inebriated, and who confuse buying season tickets with “giving donations” to the university.
Lou Vales
November 22nd, 2009
11:13 am
godawgs, Florida rebounded to win a National Championship and the 4 losses came after ANOTHER National Championship. Do you REALLY see any comparison?
Paul From Milton
November 22nd, 2009
11:14 am
If Tech loses to Georgia this week how many Tech fans will be on here next week? Yep, that’s what I thought.
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
11:15 am
there is nothing and i mean nothing to suggest this will get better any time soon
Paul From Milton
November 22nd, 2009
11:16 am
Only Kentucky fans would brag about hiring a basketball coach where the odds are 50/50 as to whether they will win an NC or go on probation first.
Lou Vales
November 22nd, 2009
11:16 am
I bet “godawgs” talks about “Mark Richt is a good Christian gentleman”, so is my pastor and I don’t want him coaching Georgia.
Gold & White RESURGENCE
November 22nd, 2009
11:17 am
um Paul From Milton,
see you on here next week
Millie
November 22nd, 2009
11:17 am
It was soooooooooooo funny seeing Sanford Stadium bleeding red and black in the 4th quarter!
Really, really funny.
UA Alum
November 22nd, 2009
11:17 am
So regardless of what happens next weekend with UK vs. UT, there will be a tie for runner-up in the SEC East with UGA with both teams having 4-4 conference records. I wonder if they make co-runner-up rings?
jesse james
November 22nd, 2009
11:17 am
I did not hear for sure, but the last play, was Cox suppose to pitch it or hand if off. It looked like Ealey was giving a pocket for the hand off.
BOOGIE MAN FROM HARTWELL GA
November 22nd, 2009
11:18 am
LOOK AT THE TICKS FALLING FROM YOUR FUZZ…..GO DABO
SadDawg
November 22nd, 2009
11:19 am
Uh, GoDawgsGo, we have 5 (6 unless a miracle occurs next Sat) losses. Don’t remember UF or LSU having 6 losses lately….
Tech sucks
November 22nd, 2009
11:20 am
Time for Richt and his buddies to find new jobs. He’s done.
BOOGIE MAN FROM HARTWELL GA
November 22nd, 2009
11:20 am
RIGHT ON GO DAWGS GO!
browndog
November 22nd, 2009
11:20 am
Lose the turnover battle, lose the game. Really pretty simple. UGA is lucky not to be 3 and 8 right now. This season is really much worse than the record.
Millie
November 22nd, 2009
11:20 am
Hey, Paul from Milton: WE’LL BE HERE, I GUARANTEE IT!
Beatdown Alert: Tech 52, UGA 24, and that’s assuming that Cox doesn’t throw an interception on every pass.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JACKIE
November 22nd, 2009
11:21 am
poor joe cox panicked and looked lost and helpless. Where was his 5 years of coaching that should have discovered long ago that he could not handle pressure. in the 2nd half the whole team seemed to meltdown and no one on the sideline was doing anything to motivate them. the whole season has been a waste of a lot of young talent. our team got outplayed,by lesser but highly motivated talent. Steve always had a reason for throwing that visor on the ground,he was motivating someone………..
GoDawgGo
November 22nd, 2009
11:23 am
Let’s all hope that the university actually reads and believes this blog. Then they’ll fire the AD, all the coaches, revoke 75% of the FB scholarships, refund season ticket money, nominate Richt for sainthood, relegate Martinez to the seventh level of hell, kowtow to Tech fans, and naturally we’ll win 13-14 games and the NC next year. Piece of cake.
TrueDawg
November 22nd, 2009
11:24 am
Cox should DEFINITELY not be our starter next year. We have to find a different QB!
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
11:25 am
TrueDawg,
OK Cox will not be your starter next year.