Georgia’s embarrassment grows more historical by week
Mississippi State's Arceto Clark leaps high to catch a touchdown pass over Branden Smith, one of many plays to not go Georgia's way Saturday. (AP photo)
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Was this convincing enough? Georgia just made Mississippi State look like a major force in the SEC. It’s seldom a force even within state borders.
Last week the Bulldogs lost to Arkansas for the first time in 17 years. This time they lost to another conference opponent for the first time in 36 years.
Doesn’t that suggest this isn’t some aberration?
The Bulldogs are 0-3 in the SEC. They stand alone in the conference in that regard. Behind Mississippi State, behind Vanderbilt, behind the schools you used to joke about. They are no longer the team that can beat everybody except Alabama and Florida. They are the team that can lose to every team well below Alabama and Florida.
After a 24-12 loss to Mississippi State on Saturday night, Georgia is 2-7 in its past nine SEC games. That’s not trivial, and it’s certainly not an aberration. The opponents in those seven losses are LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky, South Carolina, Arkansas, Mississippi State.
Such widespread failure screams this isn’t about missing one suspended player, no matter how good A.J. Green is.
“We’ve got to fix a lot of things,” said the maligned offensive coordinator, Mike Bobo. “It’s not just A.J. Green. We got beat on the field. You’ve got to go earn it.”
Turn back the clock. Cover your faces. The Dogs just lost to Mississippi State for the first time since 1974 and the first time in Starkville since 1951. Their humiliation becomes more historical by the week.
Embarrassed?
“It’s one of those things where you’re not embarrassed to be a Georgia Bulldog,” wide receiver Kris Durham said, “but we’re embarrassed at the way we’re playing.
“Our season could turn into a catastrophe if we don’t stay together.”
Georgia was coming off losses to South Carolina and Arkansas. Mark Richt remained optimistic (of course). He didn’t believe his team would come into Starkville in a funk. But in the first three minutes of the game, the Dogs went three-and-out on offense and allowed Mississippi to drive 53 yards to a touchdown in four plays.
If that’s not a funk, it’s the early stages of rigor mortis.
Offensive-line play remains mediocre, particularly in the running game. The offense had three red-zone possessions in the first half, resulting in a net of six points (two field goals, one fumble). Georgia’s only touchdown came with less than two minutes left.
At least give Bobo credit for throwing himself under the bus: “You can’t turn the ball over, and you can’t have penalties. That’s coaching. It’s our fault.”
Starkville is cowbell central. Think vuvuzelas, only slightly less obnoxious, thanks to an SEC rule that allows fans to ring their bell only during the pregame, timeouts and following Mississippi State touchdowns and field goals. The video board at Davis Wade Stadium even carries the message, “Respect the bell.”
Regardless, coach Dan Mullen implored Mississippi State fans to make life as miserable for Georgia as possible. Just 15 minutes before kickoff, he stood in the end zone with a microphone and yelled: “Our team is ready to go, and I know our students are ready to go!”
Glad somebody was.
Many of Georgia’s early problems were self-inflicted. Washaun Ealey fumbled at the Mississippi State 1 following a 20-yard run after he was clocked by safety Nickoe Whitley. The Dogs also fumbled when a Mississippi State punt inadvertently was touched by Bacarri Rambo, then quickly recovered by the home team.
The offense has gone from a mild concern to a five-alarm blaze. Bobo has replaced Willie Martinez, the departed defensive coordinator, as fans’ primary punching bag.
But this is about more than one assistant coach or one suspended player. Once again, Richt did not have his team ready to play. The Dogs should have played desperate. They didn’t. They certainly didn’t play smart or play well.
They are 0-3, having lost three in a row under Richt for the first time. They are somewhere south of ordinary. And it’s not a blip.
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1,247 comments Add your comment
gadawgs
September 26th, 2010
12:56 am
reepwhatyousew…STFU! You lost to freaking Kansas and NC State put up 45 against you in your house. TEch is in no better shape than us right now.
DeweyGator
September 26th, 2010
12:56 am
I laughed Chickenman
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
12:56 am
I have much more empathy for Joshua Nesbitt than Murray and I like Murray. But no one, no one, in college football takes a greater beating each week than Nesbitt and yet he has to lose today because
Tech can’t play high school defense. I will be bedridden for two days because of it. And another thing. PJ can’t handle being behind in the last 5 minutes. Until then he’s fine. But when he decides that his great running offense has to go to a 4 down passing offense, he’s lost it. We’ve seen this 2-3 times in the past 5 games.
chickenman
September 26th, 2010
12:56 am
CMR should stay… Hes a fine man and a fine coach.. but Bobo needs to go… i dont know what OCs we could get but CMR should take back playcalling..
i still believe….i like murray and i think we will play good enough to beat a crap big 12 team… but this is a feeling i havnt had since MIKE VICK broke his leg… yall remebr that season..for atlanta… yikes
realist
September 26th, 2010
12:57 am
Oh, I also love the Tech fans and Dog fans fighting it out over who will make a bowl this year… Brilliant
Mark Richt for President of the United States
September 26th, 2010
12:58 am
Its funny to hear all these unrealistic Dawg Fans. Richt is not leaving but some of his staff might be. Give Will or Kirby an offer they cant refuse. There is not a coach available out there with Richt’s record since hes been here. If you do find that coach- He is not leaving where he is at now. So let me get this straight- Dawg fans want a coach that will average 10 or more wins a season for the next 10 years. Mack is getting too old, Nick aint leavin Bama other than that Richt is as good a leader, coach etc than anyone out there.
Dawg Winner
September 26th, 2010
12:59 am
Why is everyone so shocked we won, Dan Mullen owned Mark Richt when he was OC for Florida, looks like he still does.
Someone tell Grantham he should study up on the ‘Read Option’ if he wants to keep his job he needs to learn how to defend it.
chickenman
September 26th, 2010
1:00 am
to the guy above me… MISS ST is MISS ST..the only good thing to come out of there was…
excatly
LakeDawg
September 26th, 2010
1:01 am
UGA Ticket Holder Since 86…I think you just contradicted yourself in your post. You just explained many of the reasons Dooley was a better coach tham Richt. Dooley’s winning percentage isn’t as good as Richt’s (though close) because he had to build the program. By the time CMR took over he had a program with great facilities, winning tradition, great fan support, and high expectations thanks to what Dooley built. Hence my comment on Richt standing on Dooley’s shoulders when he started. Another analogy would be that Dooley hit a triple and Richt pinch runs for him and scores and then everyone says Richt scored a run, but Dooley didn’t.
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:02 am
How many UGA fans will be at the next game with bags over their heads ?
Lisa
September 26th, 2010
1:02 am
Go DOGS! Mississippi State that is…………………….We whipped that tail tonight! Next time you won’t be so quick to think you will get your first win over the REAL BULLDOGS! You won’t ever forget Saturday, September 25, 2010 will you??!!…..Admit it……..it may have been a shocker and yes looooooooooooonnnnng overdue, but it was OH SO SWEET! I have loved walking around GA since 2001 proudly wearing my MSU shirts and caps , but it will be even sweeter now.
Try to get you a little sleep now. It is over. It happened. I know you can’t believe it. It’s OK. You WILL live through it. I promise.
DeweyGator
September 26th, 2010
1:03 am
To UGA SEASON TICKET HOLDER The only reason I decided to impart erudite and lucid statement on thie venue, which I’ve never done before, is because of all the dawg fans on the GATOR post sites. You really ought to go there and enlighten yourself on what a dog fan can say
big bad john
September 26th, 2010
1:04 am
what a bunch of sore losers! Dawg fans suck! You are so freakin spoiled!! I find it hilarious that you are calling for Richts job. Who would be better suited to replace him??? noone you idiots, noone.
The fact is that you Ugay Dawgnationers have inflated and unrealistic expectations every year. Get real. You will forever be a middle of the road team in the SEC East…… Dorks!!!!
Veritable Quandary
September 26th, 2010
1:04 am
Lisa – you’re a loser. One win doesn’t change that. Go on your Mississippi fan board and keep your comments there. You wouldn’t be talking like this unless you knew how shocking it was that you actually won tonight. Great win for you guys. Mullen’s clearly a good coach. Now shut up and go to sleep.
Dawg Winner
September 26th, 2010
1:04 am
Miss State just put a whooping on your sad pups, have fun looking at the injury roster on Monday. Not only did UGA lose they got physically whipped, beat up, and abused. The 2nd half they laid down and quit period.
MISSISSIPPI STATE made UGA roll over and quit.
Times are changing some programs are on the way up, some are on the way down. Been a long time since Herschel was in Athens.
Shane
September 26th, 2010
1:05 am
Even with our pathetic showing thus far, and the fact that I am rather angry about it, I still support this team. It is going to be a long season; at least now reality has set in about that fact so at least I expect it and have come to terms with it. It’s not our year folks and hasn’t been our year for a while. The program will bounce back in a couple of seasons and be a contender in the SEC East again. This expectation will only be met once we have a new OC and a team who plays to win. Maybe once we get new recruits and a new OC, then maybe they will play with the intention of winning.
Just saying
September 26th, 2010
1:05 am
I think you meant “subconsciously” not “unconsciously”. It is hard to pick up the ball while “unconscious”. I will say he either lacked situational awareness, is lazy, thought he was down on contact, or was seeing stars. I hope it was the latter.
Fire the entire coaching staff. Richt needs to go because he is in charge of the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, special teams coach, recruiting, Water Girl, and the whole program. Its all been downhill since VanGorder left.
UGA Season Ticket Holder since 1986
September 26th, 2010
1:05 am
Tonight’s game really was between the two worst teams in the SEC. I changed the channel several times between the SC-AU game, LSU game, AL-ARK game. The game tonight between Miss St. and UGA was a terrible, sloppy mess by both teams. You could really tell a difference between how the good teams and the bad teams played.
Frustrated Dawg
September 26th, 2010
1:05 am
All of you fans who are frustrated because we are losing…I hear ya, and I agree the play calling is absolutely terrible. However, so is the execution. Maybe it is time to realize just how bad this year’s team is all-around. Richt needs to take back the play calling from Bobo b/c his rearend is on the line regardless of whether he does or not…might as well have a part in determining your own fate the rest of the season.
For the fans who are talkin about not going to games, not donating, or starting to root for another team…please follow through with your threats b/c the fact that you are making those threats means you are not real fans to begin with. You are the fans that left before our boys made a great comeback in the game against AR last week…you are worse than the product on the field right now b/c your only job is to support this team and you sure as heck aren’t doing it. Man up and get real.
Betrayed
September 26th, 2010
1:07 am
Coach MR has had 10 years to put it together at Georgia. We are worse for allowing this as a University. People can say what a good man he is all they want. I’m sure that he is. But, as a coach? That my friends is an all together different story. We have recruited well while he has been at the helm. Lot’s of NFL players. What happened? Lack of control on and of the field. There is no doubt at this point that he has been proven as that he lacks control of what the players do on or off the field. No way that these players are this bad. It starts at the top, and I only wish that when this nightmare of a season ends no matter what the rest of the schedule holds he will do the RIGHT thing and resign. I have watched and hoped that someway somehow he would show some sign of turning this around. Now I have to tell my fellow fans that they have been correct over the last couple of years. It is time for him to go. People can blame the assistants all they want, who picked them? That’s right, we all know. MR wants to be a leader of men. The football field is not where he is suited to lead. He is on the hot seat now for sure. He has embarrassed our school in a way that has made us the laughingstocks of college football. Does anyone see a game that is a sure thing on our schedule? The way these young men rolled over the last few games show that they have lost heart as well. And the word is out with the recruits already. So don’t worry about who we are going to get are lose. The talent is there and will be. We need a leader! So let’s stop the bleeding and hope that he leaves so we can get a coach that gets tough, teaches these kids, and stop the ridicule that has become of our proud institution.
CMR shows stones
September 26th, 2010
1:08 am
Boy – CMR really showed some stones today – showing what a true winner is by never quitting. He called his last time-out with about 0.55 seconds left in the Game )score was 24-12 at that point). He really showed us what a TRUE winner he is. He even had one of his thugs to cause a scene and take a swipe at the ball at the end. WOW – what a competitor. It seems like he wanted to spend as much time on the field at the end – maybe he was taking it all in, and wanted to prolong the dreadful trip to the locker-room just a little longer.
disgusted
September 26th, 2010
1:10 am
everyone wants to fire mark richt, fire bobo? At some point these players especially the off. and def. lines need to play with a little heart and passion. at some point you critics need to realize that we have the players, we have a good enough scheme to win, the damn players just need to have alittle pride and fire about themselves. running backs cant break tackles or pick up blocks, its not because they cant ,its because none of them have decided to say that guy isnt going to beat me on this play or the next. you cant coach pride and passion, at some point these boys are going to have to stop making excuses and are going to have to play like men. watch an alabama game, they dont have a superior game plan but by god they refuse to let the other guy beat them. they go every play at 100 mph and play with chip on their shoulder. where is the georgia attitude of 2007? the offensive line should be ashamed of theirselves, attitude starts up front and they are letting the team down. its time for someone up there to bring some serious violence. fire someone? how about the strength coach, we should dominate the 4th quarter but we have been run over twice now. fire that guy. its simple these guys need to check theirselves and play with a little attitude the rest of the way.
Warshan
September 26th, 2010
1:10 am
I am still running this state.
Garry Owen
September 26th, 2010
1:11 am
University of Georgia Football – The Keystone Cops of College Football!
Pope UGA XXIII
September 26th, 2010
1:11 am
Now for tonite’s history class.
In 1953, UGA won 3 and lost 8 with victories coming over UNC,
Tulane, and always strong Villanova. We were winless in the SEC.
That year was UGA’s worst since teams went to a 10 game format.
For the rest of 2010, we have a gimme vs Tater Tot State, and
winnable games against Georgia Tech and maybe Vanderbilt. We
have sure losses against Florida and Auburn and quite probably,
losses against Tennessee and Kentucky as they will want it more
with lesser talent.
That works out to possibly a 3-8 or a 4-7 season which won’t
have me running to the ATM to withdraw money to make a bigggg
contribution for 2011.
A young offensive line ????? Give me a break which may well
happen to Murray if they don’t start protecting him. A J Greene is
the difference ???? Don’t see him in the defensive backfield. As
much as I hate to agree with Darth Visor, he has a point on our
recruits. They are basically all highly rated, but when they arrive
in Athens, something always seems to go wrong. I wish I could
blame this on Adams, but I can’t find any evidence of his calling
the offensive or defensive plays.
This season is rapidly turning into an embarrassment, not only
in Athens, but I’m sure there’s an unhappy bunch of nerds over at
Tech also.
Sure glad I have roundball tix.
Courtney
September 26th, 2010
1:12 am
Time for a change
raplphie
September 26th, 2010
1:12 am
At least AJ is coming back next week. Our prayers are answered. This is heavy sarcasm. Fire them all tonight. Pay Muschamp tomorrow.
About that swat...
September 26th, 2010
1:12 am
On the next to last play of the game, the QB for MSU was taking his precious time to take a knee…Boykin was just continuing to play in order to attempt to get a turnover. That is effort…period. Nobody wants to lose…not us fans, but especially the players and coaches. You think the coaches enjoy having idiots on these blogs call for their heads every week?
big bad john
September 26th, 2010
1:14 am
what a bunch of whiners, you guys cuck, CMR sucks, Ealey Sucks, Butler Sucks, the Dawg Nation Sucks, you all suck!!! now shut up and realize it, then go to bed DORKS!!!
gadawgs
September 26th, 2010
1:15 am
Bottom line is coach has lost this team and now he has lost the fans and I betcha the “big money” is knocking on McGarity’s door.
GT BABy
September 26th, 2010
1:16 am
24-12
HAHAHA
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:16 am
I suggest burning Athens and moving all classrooms to Ga Perimeter College.
GT BABy
September 26th, 2010
1:17 am
QUIT YOUR CRYING LITTLE PU^&YS! UG@Y SUCKS AND EVERYONE KNOWS IT. HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE IN DEAD LAST IN THE SEC?
UGA- WHAT A JOKE BY THE COKE
HAHAHHAHAH
Betrayed
September 26th, 2010
1:17 am
Please excuse my rambling in my previous post, I am so disappointed at how we have played the last few years. I know that these guys go out on that field with the intention of making their state proud. But this coaching staff is, from top to bottom not giving them what they need to succeed. It’s just like business, you put your best in charge. We are not doing that. GM you have some serious questions to ask of your coaches.
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:18 am
I’m now really worried. If Tech loses to a UGA team with a losing record I’ll have to slit my throat.
Greg McGarrity (new UGA AD)
September 26th, 2010
1:18 am
All the fans on here asking for Mark Richt to be fired are idiots. Effective Monday morning, all of you are fired for letting your immediate emotions get the better of you. Maybe I should grant your wishes. Then, I could bring back Ray Goff or Jim Donnan…ooo, or maybe I will punish you by bringing back Nick Saban’s errand boy Kirby or that coordinator in Texas that just got his butt handed to him by UCLA. Count your blessings that Mark Richt wants to have anything to do with you after your fickle/bandwagon support. You are pathetic.
Cobb Dawg
September 26th, 2010
1:19 am
No more of my time and money will be spent on this program until major changes are made. If this were a corporation, the stockholders would be screaming. The charades are over. Richt is a good man and was a pretty good OC, bad HC. I’m not going to support aweful, and neither are most of my friends. Plain and simple.
Lisa
September 26th, 2010
1:19 am
VQ: I’m the loser? Oh, you didn’t see the score tonight, my bad. SHUT UP! Yes, it is a great win for us especially since YOU never thought we would beat your team!:) And by the way….I’m not shocked but you clearly are…………….I never go into a game thinking we can’t beat the team on the field. I don’t care who they are or how high they may be ranked. Nor do I dog the coaches and players out after a loss regardless of my feelings towards that school and how Not so up to Par I feel like they may be which is clearly how you feel about us. Get OVER it , you SORE LOSER AND GO TO BED.
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:21 am
I think in all reality that UGA will have to accept a successful high school coach like Notre Dame did when it hired Gerry Faust. No head coach from TCU or Boise St is going to come to Athens. Its a step down and they’re already secure. Where does this mush come from ?
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:21 am
Oh Lord please keep CMR at UGA.
disgusted
September 26th, 2010
1:21 am
GT baby im sure it feels a lot like losing to kansas and nc state. that puts you guys near the bottom of that pop warner league you call a football conference.
put me to sleep dawg
September 26th, 2010
1:22 am
the mark richt farwell tour has begun , does anyone have mike leachs number? i’m sure he’s rested and ready to get back to coaching. he did a whole lot at texas tech with not a lot of talent i’m sure he could get a lot out this talent. if you can’t beat your rival’s join them ROLL TIDE because we are now the vandy of the league. so sad.
The nerds are funny
September 26th, 2010
1:23 am
Hey Techsters, please realize that as you make fun of the Dawgs, you are making even more fun of yourselves. We beat you last year, and I am betting we will beat you this year…1 win against UGA in 9 years for you. Not to mention, your team is not doing so well this year either.
UGA Season Ticket Holder since 1986
September 26th, 2010
1:23 am
DeweyGator – You really thought that you posts were insightful and erudite? Really? Really?
LakeDawg – We went through Donnan and Goff between VD and CMR. True, CMR inherited a program with a proud tradition and (my point) really knocked it out of the park at the beginning. He has a winning percentage and bowl victories that may never be duplicated at UGA. So, it is true that he is one of the best coaches ever at Georgia. He’s achieved things that VD never did in 20 years (i,e, two Sugar Bowl victories, 2 SEC championships out of 3 years, etc.). UGA, outside of the Herschel years, never thought that it should compete for a NC every year. Under Richt, that was the expectation and he delivered initially. Until recently, unfortunately. Like I said, Georgia fans like discipline second only to winning. If we were a disciplined team and were losing, the fans (the REAL fans who have REAL money in the program) would still respect the team. But we aren’t. We’re losing AND we are undisciplined. (But if we WERE a disciplined team, how many of the loses this season would have been wins). I STILL think that Penn Wagers has it in for CMR and I STILL would like the SEC to investigate what CMR’s winning percentage is where Penn Wagers is the referee since the UFla celebration. But the program clearly has worse problems than Penn Wagers. Chief among them, a lack of football knowledge. VD won A LOT of games that he shouldn’t have by his players making smart, smart plays. Credit to VD for that because it was reflective of good coaching. But, truth be told, outside of the Herschel years, UGA NEVER thought, year in and year out that it should be competing for a NC during the VD years. We were a top 20 team.
Wreckmaniac
September 26th, 2010
1:23 am
I thought Caleb King was supposed to save the day.
gtfan92
September 26th, 2010
1:24 am
Don’t know if any of you posters will look at this, but here it goes:
Both GT and UGA look like absolute crap right now. However, I have faith in CPJ to right the ship in Atlanta. And for now, you should have the same faith in CMR. He has put together some of the best teams you guys have ever had. You finished 2nd in the nation just a few short years ago. If you let him go now, you should not expect anything of that level for the next decade.
My solution for you: get rid of Bobo. Now. There is absolutely no reason for you to have two games where you have not scored a TD. You O-Line sucks, but despite that, Murray is still making plays. Give CMR the play-calling duties and let the rest of the year play out. At that point, you should evaluate the direction of your team.
Also, GT does not have a high school offense. Defense, however …
steve
September 26th, 2010
1:24 am
Our O-line is weak and overrated, we have no dominant running back, our defense is average, our QB is talented but very young, and most our players are very good athletes but not disciplined football players, they don’t play sound smart football and that has to go back to coaching and recruiting.
Texas Dawg
September 26th, 2010
1:26 am
I’m with “Oh Come Now” posting @12:45. I say back off criticizing players. But if we are gonna criticize players, criticize ALL the players — including Murray and Durham. Last I checked, they both play for UGA and ALL of UGA is 1-4. Yeah, Murray had a couple of hard-nosed runs, but he holds the ball, too long and “stares down” his receivers on pass plays (that’s the REAL reason he got sacked at the end of the Ark. game, not a blown block by Ealey). And speaking of Ealey, on the play tonight, the kid fumbled because he was rocked as he tried to score. And he WAS looking for the football, not his helmet, he was just stunned and didn’t realize what was going on. And Durham is as slow as dishwater. I know some of posters think of him as a “Wes Welker type” the racist — but acceptable — euphemism for slow-footed white wide receivers who can catch, but he’s not. He’s made some nice catches but if he had any speed, he would have scored on that long pass against SC. So, when our team is 1-3 (0-3 in the SEC), there are NO good players worthy of singling out for glory.
In Denial
September 26th, 2010
1:26 am
We lost to Mississippi State? What is this? The 70s?
steve
September 26th, 2010
1:26 am
Who the heck is the strength coach?? our players look physically dominated by any other SEC team. They look weak, even compared to MSU!