Is it ‘hot seat’ time already for Mark Richt at Georgia?
Mark Richt is coming off a 4-4 SEC season at Georgia. (Johnny Crawford/AJC)
Sometime last season — probably between the 45-19 loss at Tennessee and the 41-17 loss to Florida — I lost track of the number of times I was asked on blogs, emails and radio shows if Georgia coach Mark Richt was in trouble.
My response now is the same as it was then: He’ll be in trouble if he has one more bad season. I’m not sure if that qualifies me as being among the “handful of anonymous Internet trolls,” that Bill “Junkyard Blawg” King referred to this morning.
Fact is, even most fans who wake up every morning in their Bulldog boxer shorts must understand that life in the SEC is different than any other conference in America.
This is a topic now because a few publications are compiling their coaches-under-the-gun lists. The latest came today: The Orlando Sentinel is running a five-part series on coaches on the hot seat.
Part I focused on Michigan’s Rich Rodriguez, and you can hear the laughter all over West Virginia from here.
Part II focuses on Richt.
An excerpt:
Two words: National Championship. It’s been 30 years since the Bulldogs won their last title and Georgia fans are getting restless. Watching Florida, LSU, and Alabama win the past four BCS titles hasn’t probably helped either. Or the fact that Georgia has gone 2-6 against the Gators during Richt’s tenure.
But problems have dogged the Bulldogs program in recent years.
In the offseason, Richt decided to shake up his staff, firing defensive coordinator Willie Martinez and two other assistants. The Bulldogs went after several big-name coordinators eventually settling on Todd Grantham, an NFL coordinator [sic] with the Dallas Cowboys.
Then the program was hit with a string of arrests culminating with starting [sic] quarterback Zach Mettenberger’s arrest outside of a bar in Valdosta, Georgia.
In many ways, Richt is under more pressure now than ever before. While expectations certainly aren’t meteoric like two years ago, when the offense included Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno, Richt knows going 4-4 in the SEC again won’t cut it in 2010.
Because if that happens, folks, the seat would be very hot in 2011.
Agree? Or do you think Richt is on the hot seat already?
♦
Earlier posts
Georgia Tech, ACC content to watch expansion for now
Bud Selig, Phil Jackson get it right on immigration law
♦
Follow me on Twitter @JeffSchultzAJC and on Facebook.com/JeffSchultzAJC
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
736 comments Add your comment
Brian Asselstine
May 18th, 2010
8:45 pm
Hot Seat? Damon Evans should be fired the day he ever considers firing that man. Georgia is NOT going to be year in and year out what Florida or some others are. But the fact is UGA has a man of character and is trying to make his players act right or leave. He is trying to improve the team by getting rid of an old friend. Everyone hated Willie but he was an old friend and it was difficult. He will keep this program strong. This year? Rookie QB. They may strugle but will soon be back in the hunt.
Good man, good coach
Gator Nation
May 18th, 2010
8:52 pm
I agree with everything Patrick says…In fact, I say, give him a lifetime contract. And not that “lifetime” contract that ‘Ol Bobby Bowden got. The Dawgs should have given Ray Goff a lifer years ago. He was a very nice man and very loyal to UGA and most important…very kind to UF.
POSER
May 18th, 2010
8:53 pm
If they will be patient and give the man time, he will build a championship team in Athens. But dawg fans are not patient, like so many others in the SEC. Just as bad as UGA wants a SEC and national championship, so does Fla, Tenn. Bama, Auburn, S. Car. etc. But to most fans its”WE GOTTA WIN NOW”. No excuses. Its a constant war for recruits and top level coaches. It would be funny if CMR. was fired from UGA and went somewhere else and went undefeated. GIVE THE MAN TIME!!!!!
Logger
May 18th, 2010
8:56 pm
This is possibly the most retarded rhetorical question in the history of the ajc. And that’s baaaaaad. Let’s fire Frank Beamer and Butch Davis too. Mack Brown coached a lot longer than Richt has to this point when they were saying he couldn’t win the MNC. Until he did.
Me
May 18th, 2010
8:57 pm
UGA is never gonna be a UF athletically or academically. Why not keep Richt? Who you gonna get that’s any better??? Meyer, Saban, Brown, Carroll, Stoops…they ain’t commin’. Maybe Lane Kiffin, I heard he’s looking for another raise LOL.
Logger
May 18th, 2010
9:01 pm
Riiiight…90 wins in 9 seasons in the toughest conference, 3 BCS bowls, 3 SEC East titles, 2 SEC titles. He’s only THIRD in winning percentage in active D1 coaches with 100 games coached. A #2 and a #3 finish (in seasons in which the Dawgs weren’t expected to contend for the NC but let’s all talk about the 2008 season). If you can finish #2, you can finish #1.
Knock Out Punch
May 18th, 2010
9:03 pm
Richt is DETERMINED after bad seasons, he’s dialed in, methodically goes through every strategic decision to get it right, then he comes out swingin’ the next year. Both times Richt had a “below expectation” season in the past, 2001 & 2006, he finished in the top 3 in the National Polls the next season in 2002 & 2007. 2009 was the 3rd “below expectation” season, and you can bet he’ll respond by knocking out Steve Spurrier with a blowout victory that will have the Gamecoack nation crying for Spurrier to get the hook. Next, Richt will annihilate Meyer for the worst defeat in his coaching career–Meyer will be sent out of the SEC, citing health reasons. Next up, IF Saban somehow makes it back to the SEC Championship, Richt will enact more offensive genius than Saban’s Shadow has ever seen and crush Alabama like a tiny gnat & Grantham will baffle the Alabama offense as Grantham the Master meets his young protege’: Saban’s Shadow. Saban and Meyer have nothing to prove, they both have 2 National Championships. They both have no juice left. It’s time to sense they’re both on the ropes, and deliver the KNOCK OUT PUNCH.
Me
May 18th, 2010
9:06 pm
And Poser, I disagree with your statement about UGA fans being impatient. I mean look at LSU, only 3 years removed from a NC. They’ve watched UF and Bama each win and start to take over and already the natives are losing patience with Miles.
Kip
May 18th, 2010
9:07 pm
In the article form the Orlando Sentinel Jeff cited, they polled people to see if the fans thought Richt would be fired after 2010.
14% said yes, 84% said No, Richt would NOT be fired.
Me
May 18th, 2010
9:10 pm
hey Knock Out…let me add a little more Grey Goose in there for ya.
GeorgiaFan
May 18th, 2010
9:12 pm
You are back and writing negative a negative article about UGA and CMR. Please go away again and stop writing negative articles about a great school and a great coach.
O Zone
May 18th, 2010
9:14 pm
You guys don’t realize how much winning those 2 National Championships in 5 seasons took from Meyer. I’m surprised he’s still with Florida. That’s an unreal amount of stress which no human body can withstand. At some point, it breaks and the toll on Meyer just becomes more than he can bear. Meyer is an all or nothing guy–and he needs to turn it off for a few years and find himself. He DESPERATELY needs some time off, I’m concerned for all the things he said when he retired last season: his physical health, his social relationships with his wife–kids–friends outside of football, his spiritual health, his intellectual growth, and his emotional stability. He needs a sabbattical worse than any coach in America.
Jb
May 18th, 2010
9:18 pm
He is taking us where we want to go…..look at the recruits lining up……the press is a joke
O Zone
May 18th, 2010
9:21 pm
Here’s the article when Urban Meyer resigned citing spiritual, social, and physical health reasons. This was just a little over 4 months ago.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/27/sports/ncaafootball/27florida.html?_r=1
Patrick Sulley = Richt's agent
May 18th, 2010
9:23 pm
Only a dufus like you would say Richt is undefeated against GT. You kinda forgot the shellacking a couple years ago bubba.
O Zone
May 18th, 2010
9:24 pm
Here’s the video of Urban Meyer going off on a reporter 10 weeks ago, he did not look rested and healthy in this video, you can tell by his face, his jaw, his words, his body language, he really needs a break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgqQshESm8s
Jb
May 18th, 2010
9:25 pm
Jeff…you should fired for this headline…. This is precisely the reason the ajc is the worse major metropolitan newspaper in the country……you couldn’t write a meaningful article if you had too
Chuy Dawg
May 18th, 2010
9:27 pm
Everyone needs to calm down. The best way to know is to wait and see how our record looks after September. There’s 3 tough opponents in that month and depending on the outcomes of those games will determine the temperature of this “seat.” After these games we still have UK, UF, AU, and the nerds.The reality is that CMR would not be fired even with another 5 loss season. And yes, a 5 loss season is a very strong possibility when you analyze the schedule. In the end, this will create a very interesting ‘11 season, but he’s not going anywhere after the ‘10 season unless something insane happens like at Michigan a few years back.
Jb
May 18th, 2010
9:27 pm
Also, please take mark and Terrance with you…….you guys couldn’t hold fur man’s pen
O Zone
May 18th, 2010
9:29 pm
If Meyer returns, he’ll face a devastated defense without Tebow and Strong, 9 NFL players gone, and he’ll play 5 top 25 ranked teams on his schedule including a stocked Georgia & South Carolina team, and #1 ranked Alabama. He’ll also face LSU.
Tough, tough schedule for Florida and Meyer:
5 Top 25 ranked Teams in a rebuilding year
Dear GeorgiaFan
May 18th, 2010
9:30 pm
We get paid to cover sports topics in the state of Georgia. Puppy dawg fans need to realize their program is a regional team and not national. Afterall the only team outside the south that’s been played away since 1965 is the one and ONLY Arizona State. ASU is considered a .500 team in the Pac 10. So put away your lofty thought’s about competiting nationally. Your just a regional team. Consider the away opponents of Bama, LSU, UT and UF if you want to ever attain national status.
Most folks consider Georgia the Michigan State of the South. A mid-pack team that randomly wins a SEC title. Nothing more or less. That’s why most Georgia supporters like yourself are content with 10 win seasons and no NC titles.
Jack in Jax
May 18th, 2010
9:30 pm
So, anyone that’s for Richt, you label as his “agent”? Hmmmm.
Urban know how to win Titles
May 18th, 2010
9:31 pm
Hypocrite Mark Richt and UGAY fans only talks about 1980.
Sneaky Castro
May 18th, 2010
9:32 pm
UGA fans that want Richt gone are just dumb. Who are they going to get if Richt gets canned?
Cedrick (Texas Hawk)
May 18th, 2010
9:33 pm
Hell yeah his seat shold be ablaze by now. We have not sniffed a national Championship while the other teams in the SEC has one or multiple. I dislike Murray and I think CMR did Logan wrong. I hate to say this but I hope they lose the first 2 or 3 to watch CMR begin to squirm. LOL
UGA has always sux
May 18th, 2010
9:36 pm
Gee what a easy cupcake schedule UGA has for 2010. Uga not man enough to play LSU AND BAMA!!
Chuy Dawg
May 18th, 2010
9:38 pm
Dear Georgia Fan,
In some weird way I kind of agree with you. I have been bashed before for saying that the Braves held onto Bobby for way to long. Don’t get me wrong I love Booby but 1 championship out of what 15+ divisional titles. We have a way of always settling for middle of the pack type status and its frustrating that we take the same kind of attitude in College Football. Top 5 recruiting classes and having a backyard loaded with the best talent in the country should equal to multiple NC’s and its just not getting done, period.
PLEASE KEEP MARK RICHT
May 18th, 2010
9:38 pm
As long as he is at Georgia they will never be a contender for the SEC Title or a National crown.
O Zone
May 18th, 2010
9:39 pm
Georgia is in the top 10 for most Profitable college football programs, even after a down season, ranked 3rd in apparel sales, has a VAST National fan base 3rd to only Texas and Florida. Usually in top 5 Forbes, but this year was a down year for Richt.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/22/most-vaulable-college-football-teams-business-sports-college-football_slide_10.html
What Role Will WR Meier Play? | Atlanta Falcons: Bird Cage
May 18th, 2010
9:40 pm
[...] -Jeff Schultz on Richt’s Hot Seat? [...]
Sneaky Castro
May 18th, 2010
9:41 pm
UGA sux is a gonad.
Hedge fund scammer
May 18th, 2010
9:43 pm
Mark Richt is as safe as a turtle in the mississippe river delta.
Georgia's Weak Schedule
May 18th, 2010
9:45 pm
The boys in Athens and around South Georgia deer camps have complained loudly the last two years about UGA’s tough, tough schedule. The addition of Arizona State suddenly made Dawg backers everywhere squeal about the unfairness of the schedule. Think about that–Arizona State–a .500 club in the weak Pac 10.
You have to go back to 1965 to find a worthy opponent played outside the southeast by Georgia. Fla, LSU, Bama and UT have all played many tough teams away during that time.
For example a few teams played by Bama during the same period: Oklahoma, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Penn State, UCLA, BYU, FSU, Southern Cal, GT, Clemson, Virginia Tech.
Tassey May
May 18th, 2010
9:46 pm
Serious Dawg fans need to start organizing and demanding that D. Evans fire Richt.
Otherwise, sports writers will be asking the same question this time a year from now.
Richt represents mediocrity. Saban and Meyer represent excellence and championships. Richt simply isn’t in their class, nor will he ever be. Richt would have to be incredibly lucky to win the division, and the odds against him winning the SEC championship go up to at least 20:1.
Those are the simple facts, and there’s no amount of enthusiasm or cheerleading or Top 5 recruiting classes that can get around it.
As they say in poker, “Read ‘em and weep.”
TimberDawg
May 18th, 2010
9:48 pm
This fish-wrapper and other like media sources are trying to stir the pot and make something out of nothing. The more the AJC and its journalists try to make a story that isn’t there, the more they lose my respect. Everyone, there is no story to Mark Richt being on a hot seat. Mark Richt is in no way, shape, or form on any sort of hot seat. To even think this is totally preposterous. Don’t you see we are living in a society where people are envious of others abilities and talents and try to tear them down as human beings because they happen to stand for what they believe in? He is the head coach at UGA and I look forward to seeing him at the University of Georgia for a very very long time. We all have short comings but can any of us truly say that we could handle the spotlight he lives under or live as balanced a life as he lives. He is a winner to me both on and off the field. The taste of defeat is bitter while the taste of victory is sweet and it is all apart of the wonderful game of football. Whether it is a win or the sting of defeat, I stand by my coach Mark Richt. I feel nothing but disdain towards the people making these heinous accusations and trying to fault find in Mark Richt to avoid looking at their own faults.
Raymond Crabtree
May 18th, 2010
9:50 pm
I hope the bulldogs do badly enough for him to be fired.
Lane Pimpin
May 18th, 2010
9:51 pm
It is pure ignorance for those Poodle fans to dream that Urban will leave. His family loves Gainesville, he has a daughter playing volleyball for Tech; no chance Urban leaves. He just signed perhaps the greatest class in conference history and will dominate the SEC for two decades. Any literate UGA fan understands that fact; that is why you have all the ignorant posts.
I understood that Urban will be the king. That (and $4 million) is why I went west.
COME....ON
May 18th, 2010
9:54 pm
Why do we contine to discuss this? Great man, Great coach, Great life teacher. Stop with this already.
Dear TimberDawg
May 18th, 2010
9:54 pm
Learn how to use paragraphs. Nobody will read your long winded speeches if you don’t break up into readable paragraphs. A friendly reminder from a Big Ten school.
Bride of Chucky Knapp
May 18th, 2010
9:54 pm
How about writing your own idiotic story on the Dogs instead of quoting someone else’s idiotic story?
Reason
May 18th, 2010
9:54 pm
Ridiculous! Richt is not on the hot seat now. I think he has earned the right to have some time to make corrections. Last season was disappointing, but for anyone to be calling for his head at this point is just stupid. The man brings class and character to whatever he does and the product on the field has been better than anything we have had in a long time. More SEC titles will come and it’s just a matter of time for that crystal trophy too.
Me
May 18th, 2010
9:55 pm
I think Patrick has now gone off into the “O Zone”. The Meyer family is on extended vacation overseas and if nothing else, Jeremy Foley is gonna force him out of the office during much of the off season. Watch out…he’s gonna come back in the fall fully charged up and ready to administer another butt whoopin’ come the end of Oct.
Lane Pimpin
May 18th, 2010
9:56 pm
O Zone has all those videos of Urban. Do you suppose OZone is a Gator in dawg clothing. He spends a lot of time dreaming about a poodle defeat of the Gators, probably because he understands the futility of a real win over UF. Urban will be back — to call time out when the Gators are drubbing the poodles.
Tassey May
May 18th, 2010
9:58 pm
UGA has been irrelevant on the national level for a good many years, but it’s now painfully obvious that the Dawgs are no long relevant in the SEC. They just aren’t a factor, especially after the #1 preseason ranking debacle in 2008.
Pathetic, isn’t it. Even more pathetic are the losers who still think UGA matters to anyone outside of Athens, Georgia.
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2010
10:01 pm
Rob, you need to stop getting your talking pioints from the rivals in Here. He does NOT always have a top 5 recruiting class, in fact has only had a couple since he has been here. (if anything, he needs to have a few more) He does however usually have top 10 rated class and has plenty of top 10 finishes and a few top 5’s. So there ya go, your reason to put him in the hot seat is de-bunked and I am sure that you feel much better now. You are welcome.
Me
May 18th, 2010
10:01 pm
Pippin, maybe Urban’s reduction in work load will include taking the first half of the Georgia game off. That way, Florida only wins by 20.
Me
May 18th, 2010
10:04 pm
Sitiing here sort of watching the replay of Auburn spring game. There’s another team that’s gonna dawg collar Georgia!
Ghengis Kahn
May 18th, 2010
10:05 pm
Georgia’s weak schedule,
You left out Ohio State, Texas A&M, Boston College with Doug Flutie, and Washington when they were a national power under Don James, Rutgers, and NC State. We played these teams also in the 70s through the 90s. NC state and Rutgers were not national powers at the time but the others were certainly top 25 caliber teams.
tampadawg86
May 18th, 2010
10:06 pm
Coach Richt is a fixture at UGA. He’s not going anywhere.
National Championship.
May 18th, 2010
10:07 pm
Yes, Richt may have only beaten Florida twice since he’s been there, but against what I would consider the “Big Four” games on our schedule (Tennessee, Auburn and Tech in addition to Florida) he has actually fared quite well. In fact, much better than his two predecessors (Goff and Donnan). Against Florida, Goff won the first year he was coach (1989) and Donnan won in 1997. Richt’s done well against the other three (including only 1 loss against Tech). Also, Richt’s never had a losing record (playing 8 SEC games per year) which none of the last 5 Georgia coaches can boast. And, he’s won two SEC titles.
So, I suppose it’s a matter of perspective. Would it be great to win a National Championship? Of course. I think Richt gives us the best shot.