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
Darryl
November 22nd, 2009
11:53 am
I am a big fan of Buck and Kincade on 680 the fan. Over the years I have listened to the program and many times they would make fun of the Alabama booster for being over zealous at looking at the program and creating a new coaching search because of mediocore performance on the field. Many times, I agreed, but now I am man enough to admit, maybe, we as Georgia fans are too complacent to just “Let it Be”. What I mean is, maybe we should demand more from our coaches and the program overall. We have the best Highschool football players in the country in our back yard and yet (even with a top 10 recruiting class each year) we can’t seem to put a product on the field to compete for the BCS every year. a decade is a life time in coaching years. I think a dynasty would have risen and fallen in that amount of time. Maybe the UGA dynasty that would be has come and gone under the Mark Richt era. Maybe now is the time to take a look at the Alabama Crimson Tide program and learn a thing or two about moving on and moving up!
Tron5000
November 22nd, 2009
11:54 am
OK, Jackson, you’ve proven your ignorance and inability to have an actual discussion based on merit. Good luck in the Toilet Bowl.
Larry Munson is done, son
November 22nd, 2009
11:54 am
UGA fans are delusional. What in the history of the program makes you guys think you are “elite?” All those national championships? Wait, there are only two and the most recent one was over a quarter of a century ago (last year’s doesn’t count because it was preseason; that means it happened before a single game was played). Get real, folks. You’re an above average program. You’re not now nor have you ever been a program with a championship pedigree. To see what that’s like, you have to travel south to Gainesville, Tallahassee or Miami; west to Tuscaloosa or Austin; or north to South Bend, Ann Arbor, or College Station. Even those programs have down years (see FSU, Notre Dame, Michigan, and Miami’s recent troubles). UGA’s history is nowhere near as rich as those programs, yet you knuckleheads are acting like football was invented and perfected in Athens. The way you have turned on the program is ugly; it’s easy to see why you can’t understand the confidence and loyalty Richt has shown to his assistant coaches because they’re not characteristics UGA fans have.
Hack bowl
November 22nd, 2009
11:54 am
to make it even better, is UGA and Notre Dame in the Ice Bowl in Boise
Ghost of LG
November 22nd, 2009
12:00 pm
There is still only one reason people go to Tech, they are butt ugly and don’t have females there. It is the only place in the world where students are mistaken for corpses, and of course woman are mistaken for pigs.
John Sieweke
November 22nd, 2009
12:00 pm
You are too kind. This “team” is not a team and has been an embarrassment. It has no discipline, no pride and no leadership. It is time for a reality check and a gut check by the whole program from the coaches on down.
Jackson
November 22nd, 2009
12:00 pm
It doesn’t take much to get Tech fans in a tizzie—they have such an inferiority complex when it comes to football—now they get a taste of winning after ALL those years of being BAD!—( check the series record vs. with UGA!)
I’ll be at Tech-Georgia to celebrate the BIG upset next Saturday–GO DAWGS!
JustDamonNotDamien
November 22nd, 2009
12:01 pm
I always dress very well. I am articulate and make a good impression. I don’t let my condescension towards our redneck, uneducated, cracker fanbase show in public, usually. I have been personally annointed by St. Vincent. I think CMR is doing just fine, thank you, since he is winning a lot more than the teams I played on ever won. I begin all my sentences with “I,” never “We.” I have reasonable expectations which don’t require an SEC or even National Championship for another decade or so.
NorthStarsDave
November 22nd, 2009
12:04 pm
Darryl….you are right on…..
FullMetalJacket
November 22nd, 2009
12:06 pm
Saturday at the Flats should be a good game. Tech should win, but if UGA rallies and with nothing to lose, they are certainly talented enough to pull an upset. The bye week should help us, for a change, but we may start out a little flat. And I have to wonder if CWM and the defense didn’t spend a little UK prep time getting a head start on prepping for the Option…. Chins up, Pups, the pendulum will swing back your way eventually….
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:06 pm
Some of the players aren’t very smart.
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:07 pm
Cox…limited vision.
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:07 pm
Coaching…can’t instill team discipline.
VolnATL
November 22nd, 2009
12:07 pm
What fun it is to be living in Atlanta today. It’s cold, raining, and the doggies lost at home to Kentucky. How perfect!!!
Oh yeah – GO VOLS!!!!
BOOGIE MAN FROM HARTWELL GA
November 22nd, 2009
12:08 pm
I AGREE WITH JACKSON 100%
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:08 pm
Loss to UK at home…lowest point since mid 90s.
need2fish
November 22nd, 2009
12:08 pm
Cox looked great at times. I just can’t fathom what happened other than a complete loss of confidence or just being scared of success. Was hoping KY would keep it close until the final qtr and then the pups would win by two scores. Now Richt has the old “save the season” motivational material for the Tech game – crap. Damn you Dawgs! BTW – sorry about uga V11.
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:09 pm
VolnATL…are you actually proud of your convict team? I wouldn’t be crowing a whole lot.
Yellow Fuzz
November 22nd, 2009
12:10 pm
Larry Munson is done son:
very well stated
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:10 pm
Calling all future convict recruits in Georgia…please line up at Lane Kiffin’s front door.
godawgs
November 22nd, 2009
12:10 pm
Crying Dawgs-
Facts are facts. Head to head, Cox beat Tebow in TD passes, Yardage, and gave up less sacks. Cox can always tell his kids “I threw for more yards and td’s than Tim Tebow.” Tebow’s Natl’ Championships don’t change the fact that Cox outhrew him TD’s and Yardage wise and took less sacks. Tebow won’t see much action in in the NFL as a QB or probably as anything else, that’s why he stayed in for his senior season, nobody wants him or his High School type offensive skills. If he thought he would have got $50+ million like Georgia’s QB last year, he might have tried, but…not so much. Tebow is not a QB, you said it best, he’s really a rusher, he scored almost as many td’s running the ball as passing, that’s how BAD he is as a passing TD type QB.
Joe Cox threw for MORE TD’S, MORE YARDS, and took LESS SACKS than Tim Tebow.
FullMetalJacket
November 22nd, 2009
12:11 pm
To UGA fans, on a serious note, if you end up getting the bowl game on the Blue Carpet in Boise, don’t go. As bad as it is on TV it is even worse in person (we know, we’ve been there before unfortunately). And while I like Idaho as a state, Boise is not a fun bowl city. Good luck (really) after next Saturday, wherever you may go.
The Golden Rule
November 22nd, 2009
12:12 pm
Hey Jackson, when you give up and leave at half time next week please be so kind to dispose of your garbage in the trash cans. Unlike ugump fans we like to keep our campus clean.
No Dog, No Glory - Dan On The Street – Sports and More from Dan Sheldon
November 22nd, 2009
12:12 pm
[...] first game without a live bulldog mascot in attendance in 53 years turns ugly for the home team thanks to a massive 2nd half meltdown. It was Kentucky’s first win in Athens since 1977. [...]
AUC Jacket
November 22nd, 2009
12:12 pm
UGA loses a home game to KY for the first time in 32 years and UGA VII is VI feet deep. I’d stay away from WalMart this week.
godawgs
November 22nd, 2009
12:13 pm
the last time Mark Richt has a 4 loss season, he ended up #2 in the nation the next year. 2010’s LOOKING GOOD.
Eric C.
November 22nd, 2009
12:14 pm
FullMetalJacket…I hear the “Craters of the Moon” park in Idaho is beautiful this time of the year.
Tron5000
November 22nd, 2009
12:14 pm
Hey “Ghost,” there is 1 reason people go to Tech. It’s called an education.
VinceDooley
November 22nd, 2009
12:14 pm
Can’t believe as a UGA alumn that you’d mention chess – “checkmate” with the overriding majors at UGA. I personally graduated with a degree in journalism and my wife is an educator, my three daughters all have degrees from UGA as well. Social Services, marketing and business degrees…for them. And not a single one of us truly considers UGA a bastion of academic pursuits.
Should have used tic-tac-toe or checkers but the checkers would also be a stretch. Hmmm…with the School of Law and the Vet school we just might earn checkers but of course those are mostly graduate level schools.
Wreckmaniac
November 22nd, 2009
12:14 pm
Gov announces resignation. Comments that ” One of my responsibilities is to attend the Tech-UGA game. I just can’t take it.” The gov is reported discussing with Sara Palin how to resign in mid-term.
Cecil34
November 22nd, 2009
12:15 pm
You can talk all you want about Martinez and Bobo, but Richt is supposedly the man in charge and he is responsible for this mess that is UGA football, pure and simple.
I see so much written about what a good Christian man he is, blah, blah, blah.
Is he a preacher or a coach of a 1A college football program making millions per year?
This man cannot coach. What ever he did achieve was done with Donnan’s players.
All this 4 star, 5 star crap is just that – crap. What he is targeting to recruit are immature characters with no bearing on the sidelines and certainly no class. The players who do have some class are the ones that don’t play.
Penalties? Poor play-calling? Poor defensive play and schemes? NO half-time adjustments? These are the coaches that RICHT hired.
Is this his judegement that these men are qualified to coach on the 1A level?
If so, Richt is more of a fraud than everyone knows.
I have never seen such a dis-interested coach on the sidelines. As if he is biding his time until Bowden or someone else hangs it up.
I can assure you that this is not going to have a happy ending – there is no magic rejuvenation that is going to occur next year. Or any year. This is as good as it is going to get, because coaching-wise, GA has been passed by from the likes of Tenn, AlA, FLA, and I reckon Kentucky now. And Tech obviously.
Ok, Richt, keep recruiting those 5 star smiling, dancing, jive hooligans that no amount of coaching can turn into disciplined hard-nosed football players with bearing.
You certainly can’t do it – you don’t have the stones…..
SEC Football Pride
November 22nd, 2009
12:15 pm
Many of the rst of us in the SEC would readily trade ugay for Georgia Tech. Ugag has become an embarassment for the conference and is reduced to counting sellouts vs. their in-state rival for any smack talk. The rest of us are hearing from both recruits & fair weather fans (the thousands leaving the “sellout” early) how they can affiliate with programs not looking at 6-6 and the Weedeater Bowl. Now, you’ll embarass yourselves this week by losing a second straight to “nerds” and ACC weaklings. Yes we would prefer GT much more than you to enhance the image of the league. Both school (loose term for uga) and toothless followers, please crawl back under the front porch and be satisfied with any crumbs that fall through the cracks.
Frogger
November 22nd, 2009
12:16 pm
Thou shalt not steal.
1. Mark Richt has to back up to the cashier for his paycheck. He is stealing money by not earning it.
2. Willie has stolen the Junkyard D and he is not capable of returning it.
3. Bo Blo has stolen any confidence the fans have in the offence making a comeback or being consistent.
4. All the coaches have had what, 10 years, to win a Nat’l Championship. They failed, it’s time for someone else to come in here and win before all hope is stolen.
Cut the ties now and hire CHRIS PETERSON away from Boise State before someone else gets him.
Wreckmaniac
November 22nd, 2009
12:18 pm
Bobby Dodd plans to return from the grave next Saturday night. Reportedly Tech will quick kick on several third downs in order to give UGA a better chance. The tall grey fox said ” Its always good to have Georgee in Atlanta “
Rev. Right
November 22nd, 2009
12:20 pm
Do the bulldogs have a young blue chip qb coming next yr or redshirted this year?
I thought they signed a replacement for Stafford last spring
GT DDS
November 22nd, 2009
12:22 pm
I don’t know what the heck Evans #3 was complaining about his pass interference call. That was the most blatant pass interference but instead of kicking himself, he was comlaining like heck to the officials. No accountability.
At least, men of Martinez played 4 quarters of good defense: last 2 quarters of Auburn game and the first half against Kentucky. Congrats.
Keep it up Dawgs.
house divided
November 22nd, 2009
12:24 pm
Hey, DP, go to a baseball game this spring and see how UGA fans treat their own players when things aren’t going well on the field. Absolutely disgraceful. Oh yeah, and for some perspective we might all remember to pray for the young UGA baseball player who was seriously injured on one of those stupid scooters all the athletes in Athens seem to ride around on.
Kyle
November 22nd, 2009
12:27 pm
we will be ga tech. i guarantee it.
GoDawgsGo
November 22nd, 2009
12:27 pm
DARYL
I agree with you. I would add that If we truly are, or want to be, an “elite” program, we can not “settle” for just winning seasons and a photogenic coach. I would go further and suggest our politically correct university leadership and AD underestimate the importance of a championship-calibre team to the supporters and alumni of the university. Perhaps the risk of trying to take another step up is too great when you already are selling out seats and reaping great revenue, but trends in athletics mirror trends in academe: reputations are hard to build and slow to decline, but once they do they are even harder to re-build. I don’t want to give fodder to the Tech fans straying on this site, but there are some disturbing similarities to the Jan Kemp-days of shame and chaos in the Dooley era to the (for lack of better words) moral and disciplinary decline under Richt these past 3 years. Keep Richt until something absolutely better is available (and I don’t know who that would be), but do so with your eyes wide open.
Crying Dawgs
November 22nd, 2009
12:28 pm
Godawgs – I’m used to delusional UGA fans, that’s hardly unusual, but in a sea of loonies, you stand out.
You want to discuss head to head? Tebow and Cox did go head to head this year in Jax. Here are the numbers in case you forgot.
Tebow: 15-21 164 yards 2 TD / 0 INT 71.4 completion% 168.46 RATING
Cox: 11-20 165 yards 2 TD / 3 INT 55 completion% 127.30 RATING
And the most important numbers, UF pounded UGA (again) 41-17.
Cox has thrown 14 INT’s this year. All those picks have cost UGA the opportunity to win games. And in case you’ve missed the forrest for the trees, that is the whole point here, to WIN GAMES. Tebow wins; Cox doesn’t. End of story.
Your team is a disaster so you look for anything to latch on to. I get it. At 6-5 and facing another embarrassing whipping next weekend, I don’t really blame you.
We’ll see about the NFL. But since we’re talking college football here, consider this: Peyton Manning has been a far better pro than Danny Wuerffel could ever hope to be, but the 1996 national championship trophy and Heisman trophy are in GAINESVILLE not Knoxville.
boobah
November 22nd, 2009
12:28 pm
thank god that dog died of natural causes because that game would have killed him.
Wreckmaniac
November 22nd, 2009
12:28 pm
DAWG 5: Decades and decades ? Who won the last nat champ ?
Angry Dawg
November 22nd, 2009
12:30 pm
Georgia should turn down any minor bowl game offered. Going to a bowl with this sorry bunch would be an embarrassment to the university. Losing to some mid-major in Shreveport would set the program back even farther than it is. Pack it up, change a bunch of coaches and figure out something new.
FLA DAWG
November 22nd, 2009
12:30 pm
A complete degredation of our University. Richt, Martinez & Bobo should be ashamed. Will they blame it on the players again? If this isn’t the last straw then I don’t know what is. GT will hammer us – and if that’s what it takes to get new coaching then I hope the Bees sting us for 50 points.
This is absolutely sick. It’s hard to support Richt when he hired and manages the coaching staff. I think a fair compromise would be for Richt to stay (though I’d like to see what Spurrier could do with our talent) and call the Offensive Plays and hire Tubberville as DC. I hear Tubberville as DC at UGA is a very strong possibility.
At the very least Martinez and Bobo must go. By the way, who the heck has any QB experience going into next season? Yet another error on Richt’s part. I’m afraid he just doesn’t have the Killer Instinct required to be a success in the SEC.
Chris Peterson
November 22nd, 2009
12:30 pm
Hello Dog fans. I’m Chris Peterson coach of the Boise State, Broncos. I always win 10 games a year and am in the hunt for a Nat’l Championship on a yearly basis. My players are intelligent and are capable of not only tossing the ball left, which Georgia cannot do now, but also right and multiple times. My Offence is creative which is why we are the highest scoring team in college football. My D is always near the top. We just never get the title shot since we’re not in one of the big 6 conferences.
I can come down to Georgia, recruit smart players, and restore order to the great tradition which is Georgia. I will have the program back to the top in 2 years and together we will win a Nat’l title. I hate seeing what is happening down there so please make me an offer before I head somewhere else. I look forward to restoring the order that has been completely destroyed by the lack of coaching that now exist. Tune into my teams bowl game and see what a well coached team can do.
Best of Luck,
Coach P.
Vince's Dooley and Wally's big ole Butt
November 22nd, 2009
12:31 pm
just being a realist, has anyone decided to sell their UGA – GT tix now? Would like to see this game!
SoSad
November 22nd, 2009
12:32 pm
That nationally televised game was really sad. Agree, the nation seeing the fans leaving early was embarassing. The fans have spoken: Richt & staff must go.
BOOGIE MAN FROM HARTWELL GA
November 22nd, 2009
12:32 pm
GO JACKSON GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GoDawgsGo
November 22nd, 2009
12:33 pm
Damon can’t afford for the team to turn down a bowl game. The school and conference will still pick up a paycheck, if they travel on a budget.
Dawg Gone
November 22nd, 2009
12:33 pm
Florida’s going for their 3rd national championship in 4 years and georgia can’t even beat a bad kentucky team. Totally embarrassing. I’m not giving any money to ga this year—they just waste it on useless stuff like black helmets!