LIVE from Dogs-Gators, and everybody’s feeling the heat
Georgia's Mark Richt and Florida's Urban Meyer greet each other before the game (Brant Sanderlin/AJC)
JACKSONVILLE — Time to play.
Was thinking last night — while Tim Tucker and I strategically avoided “The Landing” area — about the enormous pressure on certain individuals in today’s Georgia-Florida game. It’s odd only in that both teams are unranked going into this contest for the first time since 1979. So much for national ramifications.
But think about the pressure on . . .
♦ Mark Richt: Georgia has won three straight but you can’t just wipe out a 1-4 start. If the Dogs lose, they are absolutely, positively dead in the SEC East (I think) because they would lose tiebreakers with both Florida and South Carolina. They also would need to win two of their final three games (Idaho State, at Auburn, Georgia Tech) just to become bowl eligible.
♦ Urban Meyer: Think he’s not feeling some heat? Here’s a guy who appeared to have a serious health issue, suddenly retired, then even more suddenly unretired. He explained his chest pains as “esophageal spasms” and some immediately wondered about truthfulness. We can’t know if Meyer’s heath has affected the way he’s gone about his job this season but we know this: The Gators have lost three straight and they rank 89th in the nation in total offense. Florida can still win the East but if they lose they’ll be 2-4 in the East and all but cooked. For those Dogs’ fans looking for a possible omen, here you go: The last time Florida lost four straight was in 1988. The fourth loss in that streak came to Georgia 16-3.
Uga VIII was out on the town. (Kidding. It's not him.)
♦ John Brantley: It can’t be easy replacing Tim Tebow, but the Gators’ quarterback was expected to be better than this. In his defense, the offensive line and running game have been awful. But nobody could have expected these numbers through seven games: six touchdown passes, five interceptions, 10 sacks. Brantley had four touchdowns and zero interceptions against Miami (Ohio) and South Florida so you can do the math on the five SEC games.
♦ Aaron Murray: He has been great this season. But he never has played in this stadium or a game of this magnitude. Richt planned to talk to the freshman during the week about trying to maintain his composure. Also, Florida’s defense is still pretty good.
♦ Chris Rainey: Not too much pressure on him, huh? Mr. Time To Die Guy shouldn’t even be in this game (my opinion) but Meyer believes he has paid a big en0ugh price for texting a death threat to his estranged girl friend. He won’t have his phone during the game so he’ll actually have to speak his threats.
One last thing on Rainey: If you have no problem with him coming back because you believe he deserves another chance, that’s fine. But the worst — and most prevalent — excuse I’ve heard is that athletes used to do these dumb things all the time and we never knew about it. The point? I have no doubt that star athletes got away with things before that they can’t now. But that doesn’t make what happened before right. Fact is, that was wrong. Coaches never should be allowed to go pick up his star player from the sheriff’s office and say, “I’ll take care of it. He’ll run steps.” Pretty sure the science teacher isn’t doing the same thing for his students. (”Oh, he’ll just do extra experiments.”)
♦ Caleb King: He’s coming back from a two-game suspension after being arrested for failing to appear in court for a speeding ticket. The fact Washaun Ealey has a sprained knee may necessitate King taking on a major role. By the way: Funny line this week by Richt. He noted the Dogs are undefeated this year when they have a running back suspended (3-0 during King and Ealey suspensions). When asked Tuesday if any player has been suspended yet this week, Richt cracked: “It’s early.”
Fortunately, everybody made it through the night without handcuffs. One less thing to worry about. I’ll be back later with a few shots from the stadium and any updates, but I figured I would post a blog early.
Meanwhile, Freddie Mercury and David Bowie provide an appropriate tune …
♦
Our photographer, Brant Sanderlin, took a little video of the scene in The Landing last night and stumbled on this unsanctioned fight between Georgia and Florida fans:
♦
Catching up on Georgia-Florida week
♦ Weekend Predictions: Dogs go down to Gators again
♦ Urban Meyer slammed again for Chris Rainey decision
♦ This is the week Georgia’s defense needs to step up
♦ Dogs’ key to beating Gators: QB, defense or something else?
♦ Early Georgia-Florida primer (and why Meyer is catching heat)
♦
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2,829 comments Add your comment
simplythetruth
October 30th, 2010
7:47 pm
What’s on tap now? Fire Bobo, fire Richt, fire Grantham? You had your chances and in typical Richt fashion, you couldn’t even put away an anemic Florida offense. Will Hill and Janoris Jenkins are worth UGA’s entire secondary. Rambo and Gamble were running their mouths too much. It was a great game to watch and Chas Henry has my vote for the “Never Give In” award. Let’s see, that’s 3 out of 21, NUFF SAID… THWR
GATORMEAT
October 30th, 2010
7:47 pm
SUFFER MUTTS SUFFER=THIS FEELS SOOO GOOD—–IT IS LIKE COMING HOME AGAIN—I KNOW THE WHITE AND GOLD LOVE IT TOO.
THIS TAMPA BOY SAYS TECH SHOULD BEAT THE DOGS BY 21.
dawgfan
October 30th, 2010
7:47 pm
Did I mention that Florida played a a piece of trash thug that made a death threat 2 months ago? I wasn’t sure if I mentioned that or not.
Big Bee
October 30th, 2010
7:47 pm
I don’t usually waste my time on THUGA blogs but I think you guys need to change your offense. It just isn’t working out.
Nurse Rachet
October 30th, 2010
7:47 pm
todd grantham YOU ARE JUST A CLASSLESS PIECE OF CRAP- YOU ARE A SICK IDIOT.
Jell you need to kick this idiot off of here forever
Party school
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
You’ll have to beat Idaho State and Tech to be bowl elibible, lol.
the Owl of Prophecy
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
Bye, bye Coach Richt. Your dumbfounded loyalty finally did you in. Martinez should have been fired three years ago and Bobo two years ago. Your unwillingness to change to face the reality of today’s game will cost you your job, albeit $16M which I hope my University will contest because of your stupidity and ingnornace and bullheadeness. Good luck with your missions. BTW thanks for winning all the games and padding your record with Jim Donnan’s recruits.
5150 P.O.A.D.
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
Idaho St is an FCS team. Does beating then help UGA get bowl qualified? I think UGA has to beat both Auburn and Tech to get to a bowl game. It has to be 6 win against FBS teams right?
Urban Meyer
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
Who’s your Daddy???? Have fun in the toilet bowl!
Alabama Jack
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
its official. Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawgs SUCK !!!!
Hunker Down
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
GaGator sums up why they play who they do.
Georgia Tech Fan
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
Dawgs Stink!
THWG
October 30th, 2010
7:48 pm
AJ Green…4 receptions for 42 yards! The second coming of Calvin Johnson and Bay-Bay Thomas!
Top Dawg
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
Zack Mettengerger will be LSU’s QB next year, probably winning a national championship.
30-24
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
and it is still 30-24 douches
So say what you want but you know whats coming after Thanksgiving
Fire BOBO TONIGHT and CMR at the end of the season
Nurse Rachet
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
JEFF read Todd Grantham at 7:37 – this guy is a classless jerk and needs to be removed – forever if I had any say
Ugag
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
You can’t beat Urban Meyer’s worst FL team!!!!!! HA HA HA
Eldridge
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
We suck! Fire the whole state!
Deepdiver
October 30th, 2010
7:49 pm
Man Georgia sucks. Five losses! Richt is toast. Being a bible banger won’t save you.
Andy in Blairsville
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
I wouldn’t get too cocky about beating the Tri Lambs because at this point you couldn’t beat your meat.
Michael
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
GO DAWGS!
Party school
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
Where’s Patrick?????? That moron who talked about winning the conference??? Bank it!!!!! lol
uga_fan39
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
pathetic defense, and Murray finally looked like a feshman making freshman mistakes. But the one good thing is that hopefully this is the nail in the coffin for Richt
tbomachine
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
fire em all. dogs couldnt fight their way out of a paper bag. we suck all the way from the shuttle van to the press box
Michael
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
Must be Obama’s fault. GO DAWGS!
TrishaDishaWarEagle
October 30th, 2010
7:50 pm
This sets up a great Spurrier Vs gator battle for the dome trip…
RWRECK77
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
All the bad mouthing of your team and coach kinda reminds me the impatient guy at the Walmart checkout. After going through the half the pain of waitng in line he decides to go see if he can find a shorter line. Not finding one he returns only to find that he has five more people in front of him. You have a great team and a proven first class coach. your program is going through the same inevitable cycles everybody else goes through. Hang in there folks. I may be a Techie but I am a Georgia native too so the way I see it is its better for us for you guys to lose only once a year and it ain”t the Florida game. By the way who the h****s idea was it et it be known that dogs name was Big Bad Bruce?????
jsmuga
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
I am a GA alumni this is enough. FL has automatic win every year with this staff.
Augusta DAWG
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
I am a GA graduate and a dawg fan since childhood. Today, reality set in: FL owns GA and it has been that way for 2 decades. Let’s face it, we are 3-18 against the gators over that stretch. It doesn’t seem to matter much if their program is up or down, we just cannot beat them.
I would like to see the game moved to home and home. Forget Jacksonville. I have no love for it and most anyone that graduated over the past 2 decades likely does not either. Of course I realize changing the site won’t necessarily change the outcome, but I am sick of Jacksonville and all that goes with it.
MY O MY
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
Maybe Richt can get a modelling job. He looked so purty standing there on the sidelines with his fake tan and nicely coiffed hair
Ga Dawg 97
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
Richt and Grantham suck! At least now maybe we make a change at the top.
ARdawg
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
Toilet bowl?…..We don’t need no stinking bowl
Ex Georgia Fan
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
“UGA is the best FIVE LOSS team in the USA”
Well HELL! I guess Slippery Rock and Bum Fuc Iowa A & M are the two best SEVEN loss teams in the USA. Hahahah. But THOSE TWO don’t represent OUR state and the SEC. YOU go see the dawgs play Army in the Papa Johns Bowl azzhole. I have better things to do.
Duke fan
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
Good thing you don’t play Duke…how would you explain a loss to us…dawgs would be in last place in the ACC
30-24
October 30th, 2010
7:51 pm
Mettenberger can play grab arse in the shower at LSU all he wants
This is not on Murray, it’s Bozo and Richt’s fault
GT Dad
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
Tough loss for UGA but you guys did come back and make it a game. Murray is getting lots of heat on this blog but that kid is going to be a really good one for you guys.
THWG
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
AJ Green is incredible! 4 receptions, 42 yards. AJ Green for Heisman!!!!
Not a Techie
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
LMMFAO…again.
uga_fan39
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
Todd Grantham is unable to get a grip on the college game
the Owl of Prophecy
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
How many of you pu$$ys still want CMR to coach your team am collect $3M per year doing so?
chickenman
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
bey bey thomas was a nobody at gt.. what is he doing at the nfl.. Nothing. Calvin yes. and aj will b a top pick so choke on that. besides as bad as uga is they still are miles better than the yellowjackets
San Francisco Dawg
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
Thank god I did not make the trip to Jacksonville…I did last year and that turned out to be a joke…just like this year…
dandydawg
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
Man, there will be no one at the game next Saturday. Time to listen Greg. Mark may have to go…. You need a hard noise game to coach these game. You have to hit in practice, not just look at each other.
Nurse Rachet
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
I do wish that you would come on here and stand up for yourself- tell us and defend that comment you made. I suspect you left by now- you are a piece of crap pal
Georgia SEC East Scenarios
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
We will win the East if…….when 2011 starts.
Not a Techie
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
5 – 7 and NO BOWL for the puppies!!!
Ted M
October 30th, 2010
7:52 pm
Georgia was the better team and Georgia still lost.
Early on I thought I was going to be typing these words though… Georgia was the better team and Georgia got blown out.
THWG
October 30th, 2010
7:53 pm
Dawgs < Duke
had enough
October 30th, 2010
7:53 pm
murray sucked today because of Bobo if we don’t can Bobo we can expect the same for years to come. He’s a JOKE, we can sit here and call plays before they happen. My buddy who was an assistant coach for an SEC program said Bobo is only good for recruiting nothing else. Go figure he’s right! What a disastrous year we should only have one lose at the most and you want to trust our program going forward to CMR. time to cut him loose. I was not in favor of it earlier this year when we were in the tank but after watching today’s debacle we need to send him packing find an evil coach like saban and move forward. I’ll suffer for a couple of years.
Jordan
October 30th, 2010
7:53 pm
Come on guys! This team is just going to get better and better this year and next. I have to admit I have NEVER seen a football team stand around with the ball on the ground like these Georgia players!
Should have throw to AJ a hell of a lot more.