Richt’s words, actions haven’t changed ugliness at Georgia
HOOVER, Ala. — Mark Richt says he has “really enjoyed this summer.”
Given that seven of his players have been arrested, three have been kicked out of the program, another transferred after being suspended for half the season, his boss was arrested for a DUI and ultimately was forced to resign and the NCAA just phoned to announce their impending arrival in Athens, we’re left to wonder: Just how low does Richt set the bar for his summers?
Mark Richt has had a tumultuous summer. (AP photo by Butch Dill)
Or has he just become used to this sort of thing?
“It’s like, you know [something is] gonna happen,” he said Thursday morning. “It’s just like a ballgame. You know there’s going to be a penalty or a turnover, even though you don’t want there to be. Now you have to decide: How are you going to react to that? You can lose your cool and start spouting things you wish you didn’t say. Or you can just take care of the issue and move forward. That’s what I try to do.”
Problem being: It’s not working.
We can go round and round about how players are individuals who make individual choices (sometimes dumb ones). We can talk about how a coach, who has given a thousand speeches and made a thousand threats, may be on a remote tropical island while his quarterback is drinking himself into oblivion and groping a woman in a small-town bar. But does it really matter?
Whether Richt is saying the right or wrong things, or recruiting the right or wrong players, or setting the right or wrong tone, this is his program. He knows that. Anything that happens, whether it’s a stirring win in Tuscaloosa or an ugly arrest in Remerton, reflects on him.
Right now, the ugliness reflects on Mark Richt.
When he met with a small group of media members Thursday, prior to his main news conference at SEC media days, Richt was typically calm and cordial, even as a storm swirled around the program. Some would say that’s one of his strengths, not seeming like he’s going to put his fist through a wall every time something goes wrong. The downside to that is it gives others the perception, whether accurate or not, that he’s either bringing in the wrong players or he’s not a strong enough disciplinarian when they get here.
Question: Do you get a sense that when Nick Saban walks into a locker room that every one of their players is just a little bit intimidated. If so, do you get that same sense with Richt?
“I’ve got a process of handling these situations and I think I do a good job of it,” Richt said, calmly.
He was asked if he has tightened restrictions on player, in light of the arrests this summer. He declined comment.
He was asked later about some media outlets having him on a “hot seat,” partly because of last season’s 4-4 conference record.
Insulted?
“Not really. I understand the business,” he said. “I don’t worry about it. My goal is to focus on the important things and the things I can control.”
Coaching at the same SEC school for 10 years will grow a man some thick skin.
“In the end, we’re still in process of educating young people: How to handle adversity and rebound from that,” Richt said. “[Former UGA linebacker] Dannell Ellerbe. He had an issue early in his career: a DUI and a car wreck. I said, ‘Look, what you did damaged your reputation and Georgia’s reputation. But it didn’t destroy it. It only destroys it if you let it destroy it. If you allow this to put you in the tank, then you’re probably not going to make it.’ He was on his last leg at Georgia. But he got his act together.”
He has had those success stories. But arrests and losses have a cumulative effect. To use Richt’s words, they can damage the reputation of a man and a school.
♦
Previous SEC/Georgia posts
♦ SEC media days: Waiting on Richt as NCAA hovers at Georgia
♦ NCAA inquiry is the last thing Georgia and Mark Richt need
♦ It’s no coincidence Saban suddenly is concerned about agents
♦ SEC media days: Hey, who let the BCS in here?
♦ We’re LIVE at SEC media days (with no shortage of storylines)
♦ NCAA reportedly investigating Florida (but temper excitement)
♦ Can Dogs end Alabama-Florida monopoly in SEC title game?
♦ Listen up, Ole Miss: I’ve got Colonel Reb’s replacement
♦
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713 comments Add your comment
Flo-Ri-Duh!
July 23rd, 2010
12:31 am
Schutlz is working for the right scandal sheet – the AJC. He knows controversy sells papers so he is trying to stir things up and he also knows that the AJC and it’s writers are pro Tech and anti UGA. As I recall, Tech has had some unruly athletes too and their head coach of a few years ago showed his immoral side just soon enough for Notre Dame to offer him the head coaching job and then withdraw the offer, but he never mentions that. When did Schultz become so sin free that he can pass judgement on others? Leave that to God and stick to the facts and maybe you will qualify as a “journalist” some day.
Flo-Ri-Duh!
July 23rd, 2010
12:36 am
Bull Dawg you are a pervert in disguise- not a real Dawg. Tavarres King didn’t get charged with anything illegal so cut the unqualified misinformation you are spewing from your jagged yaw. King was in the vehicle with Jackson which shows poor judgement but is not criminal.. Are you so perfect that you can judge others. Are you sin free? I didn’t think so. Go bother somebody on the Tech site and leave the Dawg vent to the real Dawgs.
gadawgs
July 23rd, 2010
12:50 am
Coach has a .769 winning percentage. Third best among active coaches in the COUNTRY. Shultz and anyone else who thinks Coach is in a bad light you do not have a clue. He is the best coach UGA has ever had. Yes, even better than Butts or Dooley.
Thumper
July 23rd, 2010
12:58 am
pi$$onadawg…..you want to be a bada$$ so bad you can’t stand it. You’ve got a huge inferiority complex and got beat up a lot as a kid. I know plenty of bad mofo’s…..and they don’t talk sh!t. ESPECIALLY behind a keyboard.
You give the good Tech folks a bad name. I would love to see you confront ANYBODY in person the way you do in cyberspace. But you won’t….cause you’re scared sh!tless. You’re just a mad little person and there is no way in hell you graduated from GT. The GT grads I work with would love to whip your punka$$.
Red Dog 77
July 23rd, 2010
1:21 am
Yup……….Shultz, I imagine all of Bud Wilkinson’s players at Oklahoma were scared poopless when ‘ol Bud walked into the room too !………..A whole lot like Mark Richt, that Bud Wilkinson, mild-mannered, cerebral, a considerate gentleman, and one of the brightest football minds in modern college football history………….Jeff, you my friend, are the loser, for not recognizing coaching brilliance when it is right under your nose………and you call yourself a sports journalist ? and you say it’s not working ?……..90 wins in 9 seasons ?……….Jeff, you should go get a real job, and stop pretending to be something you most certainly are not……….With warmest, Best Regards, RED
BuLLdawg
July 23rd, 2010
1:23 am
LIAR :
“Tavarres King didn’t get charged with anything illegal so cut the unqualified misinformation you are spewing from your jagged yaw. King was in the vehicle with Jackson which shows poor judgement but is not criminal.”
Tavarres King 100 percent was ARRESTED and SUSPENDED for it.
TAVARRES DANTHONY KING
ARRESTED
UNDERAGE POSSESSION OF ALCOHOL
http://www.onlineathens.com/pdfs/071210_Players_arrested.pdf
GoDawgs1
July 23rd, 2010
1:53 am
Everyone should know that the reason these kids are getting arrested isn’t because of Mark Richt. Instead, Its because the Athens Cops are absurdly strict to adults under 21. The kids signed up to play football as well as live the full college experience, so it is understandable that they might have the urge to endorse in alcohol in a town like Athens.
BuLLdawg
July 23rd, 2010
2:19 am
I see nothing that says that Rennie Curran has a full grasp of the value of his opportunity to earn a degree from The University of Georgia.
Is that hidden subliminally contrary to every word he does state ?
Rennie Curran was a un-recruited player whom we did NOT offer a scholarship to, who came to UGA and later was GIVEN A SCHOLARSHIP to my alma mater.
The Degree is worth millions of dollars.
Rennie Curran did NOT graduate UGA and does NOT have his degree, despite the fact that Coach Richt gave Rennie Curran a SCHOLARSHIP here.
The point is that Rennie Curran does NOT care about a degree.
Rennie Curran cares about making $320,000 instead from the Tennessee Titans.
He cares about the money, now doesn’t he ?
NFL Draft Pick # 97
Brookwood High School, he graduated from there.
His purpose in coming to UGA was to get drafted and to make money playing football however many years he could.
MONEY.
BuLLdawg
July 23rd, 2010
2:21 am
Not understanding the value of an Education at ALL.
Moreover, his statements are STUPID that the very day that the NCAA flies in their Authorities to INVESTIGATE The University of Georgia FOOTBALL TEAM, that our MVP yells at them that
IT IS WRONG to NOT PAY student-athletes.
For God’s sake; he could not be more stupid in a more untimely fashion if he wanted to.
Rennie Curran FEELS that The University of Georgia TOOK ADVANTAGE OF HIM FINANCIALLY.
That he has every right to be paid by these rogue agents, against the law.
Whose fault is it that Rennie Curran has a 1-year old child ?
What was he here for ?
A degree ? To graduate ?
B.S.
Ok, so let’s say he makes $320,000 playing football this season.
I make that in 2 years.
He plays how many years ?
BuLLdawg
July 23rd, 2010
2:22 am
What in the name of God, does he do AFTER playing those very few years ?
Watch this one.
Notice also that with NCAA Investigators just looking for something, that they now must ADDRESS
LOOKING AT RENNIE CURRAN.
Investigate him, Rennie Curran.
Absolutely stupid statements all around by Rennie Curran and at the most inopportune time and addressed to the most crucial people whose sole responsibility is to make sure that the kids are EDUCATED that this is EXACTLY how they should NOT feel.
What would we do next Rennie ? Pay you to play at Brookwood ?
How about your teammates ? Pay them too ? Just you ?
bitter old school
July 23rd, 2010
2:49 am
lissen richt is and will aways be soft, but he is the 1st gear in the gear train, coach dooly figured it out by public speaking as a nice guy but behind the scenes he hired hard as– like erk and his hard vs hard in your face coach’s, or for the new school, good cop, bad cop, retune, richt had it with the atl new def cord, now he has it back with the new team of coach’s so just wait and see how it plays out dog eat dog fans, get on board as a supporter new school fans learn from old school show respect or get your theeth kick in punks, just jiving ps be a supporter by not being a urban cryer type or like that whinning as— saban “o” bamma sux
Jen
July 23rd, 2010
4:39 am
Terrible….. most worthless article I ever read.
You have blown this situation way out of the water!!
Did Mark Richt cause the oil rig explosion in the Gulf too?
aladamnbama
July 23rd, 2010
5:41 am
Oh Lord please let the season begin…. these blogs are getting just too painful to read.People we’ve got young men the same age as these players dying in Afghanistan, an administration that is destroying the American free enterprise system, and a political process that no longer works… and you people, regardless of which side of the argument you are taking,are obsessed with the daily ups and downs of a friggin entertainment industry. Get over it, and just enjoy college football for what it is… entertainment.
12-2
July 23rd, 2010
6:31 am
14-game seasons 9 years is possible 124 wins.
Instead not 124 wins, 90 wins 27 losses.
This is not 1959 when 10 wins meant something when we went 10-1.
This is not 1966 when 10 wins meant something when went 11-1.
We won The SEC Both of those years too.
Lost to South Carolina 14-30 in 1959.
Lost to only Miami 6-7 in 1966.
2010 when 10-win season means no SEC Championship Game.
Our goal is NOT 10-WIN SEASON.
We could have won 124.
We won 90.
We MISSED OUT on 7 SEC Championship Games, didn’t we ?
We won 2, last coming 2005.
This is 2010.
In the meantime, all we do are penalties, fumbles, interceptions, losses, arrests and suspensions.
12-2
July 23rd, 2010
6:33 am
I do not find that any more entertaining than Coach Richt :
“It’s like, you know [something is] gonna happen,” Coach Richt said Thursday morning. “It’s just like a ballgame. You know there’s going to be a penalty or a turnover, even though you don’t want there to be.”
“Arrests and losses have a cumulative effect,” Jeff Schultz replies.
dawgdip
July 23rd, 2010
7:08 am
To Pi$$onadawg: For someone who quotes the Bible, your language is really sad.
SuperB
July 23rd, 2010
7:10 am
Jeff: You are being a “Drama King.” Evans’ dismissal has nothing to do with Richt, the penny-ante drinking charges against some players are only highlighted by the “Fox News-types,” and A. J. says he was “never” in Miami and that statement is easy to verify. Have you?
poopdawg
July 23rd, 2010
7:13 am
Schultz, your article reflects how big a Goober you really are. PATHETIC!
JD
July 23rd, 2010
7:13 am
TOUCHDOWN DAWGS: UGA WINS AGAIN. Fishing followed by a FISH FRY for gtu fans.
The ORIGINAL Auburn Man
July 23rd, 2010
7:20 am
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRR EEEEAGLEEEEEEEEEEEEE
piss on the dawgs.
H-Town Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
7:20 am
Tech nerds love this time of the year because it’s the only real chance they have to get some shots in at UGA’s expense. When it really matters – on the field – the Dawgs will own the Nerds the same as always. Everybody likes to talk about the bad year Georga had in 2009…and yet they were good enough to dispose of the Nerds, weren’t they?
Dawgs on Top
July 23rd, 2010
7:38 am
With all these arrests and suspensions at other schools, this may be the year that UGA finally wins the SEC East! Richt’s roster is loaded with talent and he should be able to finally beat florida, which is way down due to a loss of most of their talent.
Ugliness is in the eye of the beholder. « Get The Picture
July 23rd, 2010
7:45 am
[...] why Jeff Schultz thinks Mark Richt signed up for the level of responsibility Schultz assigns to him in this post, but Hall’s sarcasm strikes me as the proper rebuttal to [...]
Stildawg
July 23rd, 2010
7:50 am
It must be summer and there is nothing else to write about…come on football season.
Gatorbait 17-3
July 23rd, 2010
7:50 am
Dawgs on Top
What are you drinking-you didn’t notice Florida had the most pre-season all SEC players.
Had the juniors not left for the NFL, the Gators would have lapped the dawgs. Also,
you may recall that Florida had the top recruiting cllass in the country last year and
possiblily the best defensive class in the history of the NCAA.
And this year while Ga. leads Florida with 16 commitments to 10, UGA only has 6 4 star
players 37.5%. The Gators on the other hand also have 6 or 60%. Do you understand
quality over quantity. Also this just in the #2 DE end in the country last year just announced he is transferring from Cal to Florida. Now with out a doubt the Gators have the best defensive class in the history of the NCAA. The rich get Richer.
Gatorbait 17-3
July 23rd, 2010
7:52 am
Ga. better get more than 14 points this year, because they may never score that many again for the next 4 years.
James
July 23rd, 2010
7:54 am
As long 18-21 yr old kids go to college these problems will continue to occur regardless of who the coach is. Same type stuff happened under Dooley, Donnan, and everyone else has coached. Kids do stupid things, get in trouble and either learn from it or they don’t. That simple. For the most part they aren’t doing anything that other students aren’t doing.
bitter old school
July 23rd, 2010
8:01 am
most sec schools have tallent to be involved in the sec champs at the end of the year, fools you have to play the games to see who will survive, it will always boil down to the fewest injuries and outstanding coaching, simple forula, so all you hater’s just need to go and learn to get off the “X” box and learn to actually play a sport in real life!!! ps. bamma got lucky last year, who gets lucky this year??? dark horse
da’slick rogers re-writes the freshman record books look at you tube and its possible, he’s still a traitor, urban crier finishes 4th and gets commited, hahahaha
reality
July 23rd, 2010
8:30 am
UGA’s football program is similar to Miami and Southern Cal’s programs except for the National Championships…
handsome jeff
July 23rd, 2010
8:36 am
Dang! Talkin’ about UGLY, Schultz- have you even looked at that picture of yourself? Now that’s what UGLY looks like. Not having to deal with a bunch of testosterone filled teenagers.
Wanted you to know
July 23rd, 2010
8:51 am
Jeff,
I just wanted you to know that a 12-year-old is writing columns under your name. You might want to check into it, because it’s making you look really bad.
Shultz Hates Richt
July 23rd, 2010
8:56 am
It’s pretty clear Jeff Shultz hates Mark Richt. Shultz has a job that requires no talent and he is accountable to no one for stupid articles with convoluted reasoning. Sad thing is even with such low standards he is still not very good at it.
PI$$on a dawg reminds me of a guy I saw on CNN last night that called himself a national socialist and wants a country only for white people…. a real dimwit… I feel dirty being on the same blog as an idiot like him.
Go Dawgs
July 23rd, 2010
9:11 am
Jeff, we’re very sorry if our head coach isn’t a big enough jerk for you. We’re very sorry if he doesn’t yell enough and give you great soundbytes about pimps for you. We’re also very sorry that you’ve kept a running tally of alcohol related arrests among a small group of UGA college students who happen to play football, and that you’re now holding that list against Mark Richt. While we take very seriously the charges against Damon Evans and the kid who was driving under the influence and left the scene, as evidenced by the fact that neither are now involved with UGA athletics, we’re not really that sorry that we have college students who drink, because you did, too. And you know it. Thankfully, you were a geek working for the school paper and not a high-profile athlete. There but for the grace of God and Dungeons and Dragons go you. We’re very sorry that your running total for the “summer” actually goes far back beyond the start of “summer” to make the program look worse. We’ve very sorry that you still have a job writing about sports in our state. We have a solution, though. Take some more journalism classes. It may help.
DawgDad
July 23rd, 2010
9:17 am
“Question: Do you get a sense that when Nick Saban walks into a locker room that every one of their players is just a little bit intimidated. If so, do you get that same sense with Richt?”
I think most players would respect either man. Perhaps Richt a bit more because of loyalty and trust factors.
This article struck me as somewhat of a baseless attack piece. Not trying to be overly homey here, but if the agent-party issue is what triggered this article the substantive support for the arguments is quite weak – we don’t really know anything yet as to whether or not the Georgia program will be implicated. Everything else referenced is past history and doesn’t really reflect a lack of coaching leadership or institutional control. It reflects the reality that when you run an NCAA football program you’re going to have to deal with some bad apples in the barrel and a lot of external bad influences on the players – every program has those issues.
Let’s wait and see what comes of this and how Richt and UGA respond, IF there is anything to respond to. Right now, I’d grade Richt a “A” and Saban a “C-” for their responses.
SEC media days: Tennessee and Dooley take center stage | Jeff Schultz
July 23rd, 2010
9:52 am
[...] Coach Mark Richt said he has come to expect there will be issues in the offseason, commenting: “It’s like, you know [something is] gonna happen. It’s just like a ballgame. [...]
BRAD STEVENS!!!
July 23rd, 2010
9:59 am
Go get em dawgs! I think Paul and Co. lost to the Dawgs because it would allow Rev. Richt to continue to do such a fine job. It is hilarious to listen to all of these excuses. Can’t wait for the program to collapse. So many years of pretty good teams, but what will people remember? No national championships and beating Hawaii and a FSU team that had already quit on their season. Have fun with another mediocre team this year.
the silent majority
July 23rd, 2010
10:00 am
The media and the world today can’t hate to see a good man have success. Shultz is spending his time trying to make Mark Richt as unhappy as he is….the sad truth of it is, Mark Richt doesn’t even care what Shultz writes. Mark Richt should be at UGA as long as he wants the job. Like he said yesterday, the only thing he can truly control is his attitude and his effort. Shultz, GROW UP!!!!
Matt
July 23rd, 2010
10:01 am
Jeff,
This article is PURE TRASH! Creating a negative spin on Richt’s tenure. Try also looking at the positives and then put that into perspective of all other successful college football programs (DO SOME RESEARCH). Richt is very highly thought of outside of Georgia and I think those that are close to the program are blinded. If you are in any program long enough, you will go through rough patches. I guess you think another coach would do better… That’s truely sad. You have now become a news hype artist ala Mr. Moore.
CPO Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
10:01 am
I understand that the coaching staff are the mentors not only on the field but also as role models, and mentors on basics of everyday life. But at some point these “young men” have to be held accountable for their actions which they are, it`s just magnified due to the fact that they are “high-profile” athletes many young people do stupid things when they are young at colleges all over the U.S. So far from what has been in the media the senior players are doing what they can to police themselves (the team) the coaches are proactive, examples have been made to players of what the consequences are if you screw up. So, Jeff what exactly do you want them to do now? hire babysitters and lock them down for 23 hrs of the day during summer? In my opinion this article is really stretching for attention because SEC Media days is not exciting this year. Why can`t you cover how the dawgs are preparing for the season this year, what recruits are doing, work-outs, etc,etc something the fans WANT to read not this pre season man-drama type stuff. You have produced better material than this.
96Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
10:06 am
Shultz. Speak for yourself. Reading these comments, it obvious you are off the mark on how others perceive Richt. So it’s safe to say you are wrong and wasted a lot of peoples time with a a lazy effort. I WOULD be worried if Richt wasn’t there. That should make for a good article since it seems to be closer to reality for most fans. Now do some research old school style and find out how these arrests compare to the overall student body figures or other peer instiutions, both in number and seriousness of the crime. I learned nothing from your effornt than a disrespect for your work.
Urban's Mom
July 23rd, 2010
10:10 am
Jeff- You might want to take a look at the other 100+ football programs. Get out of your cubicle at the AJC and write something of interest. The bigger picture is that there’s a real dilema going on in college football…not just at UGA. So get off your bandwagon you rode in on and get a life.
BeefATL72
July 23rd, 2010
10:20 am
BuLLdawg, you’re a complete douche-nozzle. Enjoy your stay on this planet, i’m sure your personal losing percentage at life will round out the bottom quartile.
These kids know right from wrong, period. Richt pounds it into them with constant reinforcement. Ultimately the person is responsible for their own choices & actions. It’s rediculously unreasonable to make Richt culpable for the ones who made the wrong decision.
The bad eggs have been kicked out of the institution. This is the highest degree of punishment Richt can possibly dish out & he’s done it everytime it’s been warranted.
The ones who’ve made mistakes & earned second chances got them. Nobody is perfect, people do make mistakes, learn from them, change, & become better people for it. And if they take it for granted again, they pay ultimate consequences. This is how it’s supposed to be done & this is how Richt does it. If you think otherwise, then you’re an ignorant moron. (just like Schultz)
Marys31011
July 23rd, 2010
10:59 am
Mark Richt has the Power!!!! A greater Power than any human, he relies on his LORD and SAVIOUR for his answers!!!!!! NO ONE can top that or be more intimidated by the TRUE POWER!!
reality
July 23rd, 2010
11:37 am
Well said Mary, but the Lord has a few more important items on his agenda than helping the UGA football program out of the hole that it has dug.
Tweets that mention Richt's words, actions haven't changed ugliness at Georgia | Jeff Schultz -- Topsy.com
July 23rd, 2010
12:16 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Kate Larson, michael sherwood. michael sherwood said: Read the first line and the first paragraph, I can't help but laugh http://bit.ly/9YOfy0 [...]
droopydawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:35 pm
Hey look! It’s Schultzie’s monthly s**t on UGA blog post written solely to drive up his page views!
droopydawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:39 pm
I’m shocked, SHOCKED to learn that college age kids actually drink from time to time before they turn 21. If that is what constitutes ugliness (I will grant that the Robinson and Mettenberger situations were worse, but those two are no longer on the team), then UT and USC must be Sarah Jessica Parker after a car wreck with no seatbelt.
Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee | Jeff Schultz
July 23rd, 2010
3:46 pm
[...] ♦ Richt’s words, actions haven’t changed ugliness at Georgia [...]
Jerry
July 23rd, 2010
5:32 pm
Scott summarized the whole UGA program: dumb down and then go down. Adams is as guilty as the UGA football recruiting staff. He hired a $550,000 dummy. And the loyals tell us boys will be boys. Thanks to Jeff S. for putting UGA on the line.
Mr. Georgia Football Returns
July 24th, 2010
3:34 am
David Ching said:
“The program is backsliding,” say his critics.
“The team is undisciplined.”
“He needs to win this year or he needs to go.”…………………………………………………….
…………………………………………………………………..