A.J. Green says Georgia ready to ’shock people’ in Auburn
A.J. Green had two touchdowns. Later, he had a message for Auburn. (Brant Sanderlin/AJC)
ATHENS – On the same day Georgia commemorated the 30th anniversary of the 1980 national championship team, the current incarnation of the Bulldogs had to embrace something significantly south of that: bowl life.
When a team starts 1-4, even Birmingham starts to look like the promised land.
But forget Birmingham or Nashville or Memphis. There’s an opportunity for the Dogs to celebrate something far more significant a third-tier bowl game — and certainly more tantalizing than Saturday’s 55-7 win over a Division I-AA punching bag, Idaho State.
Hello, Auburn.
“I know we’ve got a chance to win,” A.J. Green said Saturday. “I feel like they haven’t faced anybody else like me and [quarterback] Aaron [Murray] with our offense. We’re really going to show them. We’re going to shock a lot of people.”
This might be the first time in recorded history a player on a 5-5 team has thrown down the gauntlet against potentially the best team in country. But you’ve got to admire the spunk.
Georgia’s quest this season has long since been reduced to that of a spoiler. Embracing that is the Dogs’ best chance for mental and physical survival.
Last week’s overtime loss to Florida hit this team hard emotionally.
Green: “I still carry it with me.”
It was a foregone conclusion they would beat Idaho State. The Bengals are bad even by I-AA standards, having now lost eight straight and 33 of their past 36. Put it this way: Idaho State (No. 206 in Jeff Sagarin’s computer rankings) entered the week ranked lower than even Georgia State’s opponent (Lamar at 204), and lower than the first-year Panthers (185).
Idaho State accepted a $525,000 payment in exchange for the likelihood of getting pounded. That’s precisely what happened.
Upsetting Auburn (10-0) wouldn’t nearly make up for losses in Starkville and Boulder and every other headache associated with this season. But it would ease the pain of the big picture. Imagine being jobless and then hitting a $10,000 scratch-off lottery ticket..
Green again: “A lot of people are probably going to favor them. But that’s just talk.”
“They’re going to be ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the nation, and we haven’t beaten a ranked team all year,” Murray said. “Our last two games [against Auburn and Georgia Tech] are against teams with winning records. We can still salvage a lot.”
Murray threw for 228 yards and three touchdowns. Green caught two of those scores and finished with six receptions for over 100 yards. Each played only one possession in the second half.
The Dogs, however, were not without some early hiccups. They started this game like their heads were somewhere else. Jacksonville, probably.
Georgia’s first three offensive possessions produced only two field goals and a punt. Some fans booed, particularly when coach Mark Richt chose to go for three points on fourth-and-2 from the Idaho State 20 on the opening possession.
The score was only 6-0 after the first quarter. I’m not sure, but I think I saw Todd Grantham give Mike Bobo a choke sign.
But any sense of drama left the building in a 35-point second quarter. A partially blocked punt set up the Dogs at the Idaho State 43. Six plays later, Caleb King ran in from 3 yards out. Bacarri Rambo had an interception and returned it 39 yards for a touchdown soon after. Then came another interception, this by Brandon Boykin, and one play later Murray threw a 3-yard scoring pass to Green. Georgia scored 21 points in 2:15. The rout was on.
Here’s the big picture in the SEC: Seven teams are bowl eligible. Georgia isn’t one of them. An upset of Auburn would change that. It also would give the Dogs something significant this season: a highlight.
It’s an obvious long shot. But a team clings to what it can.
♦
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1,074 comments Add your comment
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:10 pm
“are you the only one who can comment on here?”
No.
“should we all just stop typing and watch you and your words of wisdom?”
How does one “watch” someone type on a blog?
This proves my assumption
November 6th, 2010
10:10 pm
Between the Katherine and other similar posts from the same Auburn fan, we know that Auburn dislikes A.J. Green’s comments. The posting by different names but saying the same stupid comments makes this blog ineffective, but not for the first time, nor the last.
dawgfan
November 6th, 2010
10:10 pm
Auburn’s defense is not that great and they are the worst 10-0 team in the history of the SEC. In any normal SEC year this Auburn team would be 9-3 or 10-2 at best at the end of the regular season. Nothing special.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:10 pm
“Gotta love that lack of auburn self esteem.’
Gotta love stupid people.
Nutty
November 6th, 2010
10:10 pm
If Mark Richt beats Cam Newton’s Auburn Tigers, he should be given a 25 year extension.
Seriously, it would be the greatest upset in SEC history, Georgia will be 25 point underdogs.
Katherine
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
ok ill just ignore you cam…..
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
“Auburn’s defense is not that great and they are the worst 10-0 team in the history of the SEC.”
Poor loser dawg fan.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
UGA is the funniest 5-5 team in the history of the SEC..come on, tell us again how big and bad colorado was!!
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
“ok ill just ignore you cam…..’
If you’re going to ignore someone, you don’t tell that person you are going to ignore them.
AU PRIDE
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
WAR DAMN EAGLE!!!
Next weekend will be very exciting…. for Auburn.
Face it – Georgia SUCKS!!! There is a reason Georgia is 5-5 – with two wins coming from LA-LA and ID STATE.
Take out the punk teams – Georgia is 3-5 – with a loss to COLORADO??!!!
And Murray thinks the naiton will see that Georgia is a good team next weekend?
Like I said, Georgia is 5-5 for a reason – they suck
final score next Saturday – AUBURN 41- UGA 24
bgdawg
November 6th, 2010
10:11 pm
is auburn gonna be like florida after cam leaves?
Katherine
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
Nutty..no doubt georgia will be huge underdogs…but you never know what might happen.
Vegas bookmakers
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
Nutty- thank God you don’t set our lines- we’d all be broke
Beast from the East
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
dawgfan,
What do you base that opinion on? Just becuase your team sucks this year doesn’t mean that everyone in the SEC has to follow suit.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
“In any normal SEC year this Auburn team would be 9-3 or 10-2 at best at the end of the regular season.”
What’s a normal year, dawg$hit?
OoltewahDawg
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
I meant Oh what could have been if UGA lucks up and beats Auburn.
Cat
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
Georgia has a freshman QB, who’s playing like a freshman. And a brand new defense, and lost 3 DL to the NFL. And Georgia got beat by the likes of Colorado.
Look for Auburn to trounce Georgia by 40.
cattle dawg
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
Hey it was fun war terds, see ya saturday.
Voice of Reason
November 6th, 2010
10:12 pm
Let’s get back on topic, folks: the loudmouth punk who runs his mouth a lot and sells jerseys to agents.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:13 pm
“is auburn gonna be like florida after cam leaves?”
You mean, better than UGAY?
USC
November 6th, 2010
10:13 pm
TrishaDishaWarEagle- you know who the funniest 12-0 SEC is? You guessed it, Auburn in 2004. We’re still laughing at you.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:14 pm
“Hey it was fun war terds, see ya saturday.”
Ok, cattle dung. See ya.
Cat
November 6th, 2010
10:14 pm
Auburn could break a 100 points against Georgia, I wouldn’t be surprised.
1eyedJack
November 6th, 2010
10:14 pm
“Kyle Thomas Glasser is charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child.”
What position does he play? Must be a walkon.
AJ just done the equivalent of firing a deck gun through the hull of the boat. Part of the game plan really, Auburn is so concerned with AJ that Durham, Charles, and King eat ‘em up. Hopefully, the running game improves.
Dent and Gamble must have a big game and force Newton to the outside. He would appear easier to tackle from the side than head on.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
“You guessed it, Auburn in 2004. We’re still laughing at you.”
Not as much as everyone is laughing at USC. How’s that probation working out?
Oh, does Petey the Cheaty ever send his regards?
Headley Lamar
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
You guys keep saying Urban is 0-2 against Auburn
Whats Richts record against Auburn?
Katherine
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
Voice of reason…..he isn’t a punk and he can say whatever he wants. He is trying to fire up his team..and whether or not that bites him in the butt remains to be seen.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
USC, oh that NC you had to vacate?
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
“you know who the funniest 12-0 SEC is? You guessed it, Auburn in 2004.”
Auburn was 13-0, cheater.
JASon
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
When a team is ranked in the top 5 it gives lower or non-ranked teams an enormous amount of motivation in these games. That’s how you get huge upsets. However, lets be honest, Georgia is about to get the living crap knocked out of them.
Bull Dog Fan
November 6th, 2010
10:15 pm
AU is nothing without Cam Newton take him out and they will get there a– kicked
Headley Lamar
November 6th, 2010
10:16 pm
Oh, does Petey the Cheaty ever send his regards?
This from the school that just paid Cam Newton.
jp
November 6th, 2010
10:16 pm
auburn we are going to beat you the the bunch of democrats you are
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:16 pm
“Whats Richts record against Auburn?”
Doesn’t matter since UGAY won’t be in the SEC Championship this year. Have fun watching everyone else go to bowl games.
bgdawg
November 6th, 2010
10:16 pm
sure UGAY, the team ur team lost to the last 4 years
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:17 pm
“This from the school that just paid Cam Newton.”
Where’s your proof? Oh that’s right, there isn’t any.
Gabe
November 6th, 2010
10:17 pm
Chattanooga smacked AUburn for 24 points today. So Georgia will score as AUburn’s defense stinks, just won’t be able to stop the AUburn ground attack and offense.
Headley Lamar
November 6th, 2010
10:17 pm
Richt is 6-3 versus Auburn
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:17 pm
“sure UGAY, the team ur team lost to the last 4 years”
Have fun watching us in a big bowl game.
Headley Lamar
November 6th, 2010
10:18 pm
Where’s your proof? Oh that’s right, there isn’t any.
Its coming. The smoke is just starting.
crabapplejoe
November 6th, 2010
10:18 pm
@Headley Lamar who wrote: “If that were the case why do we have the most players in the NFL? Could it be because they arent biased and just want the best players?”
If the NFL isn’t biased and “just wants the best players” then why was Wes Welker not drafted and cut by his first NFL team? Why was Danny Woodhead not drafted and cut by his first NFL team? Why was Jamal Anderson the eight overall pick and Kroy Bierman drafted in the sixth round? Is their scouting that bad or are they biased? How many Wes Welkers, Danny Woodheads and Kroy Biermans are now selling insurance instead of playing NFL football because they were told they can’t? Oh, and did I mention that DahMarcus Russell was the number one oveall pick in the NFL draft….you’re right…they’ve got it down to a science…LMAO.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:18 pm
“Chattanooga smacked AUburn for 24 points today.’
How many points did Auburn score? Oh that’s right, more than UGAY did.
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:18 pm
“Its coming. The smoke is just starting.’
And you know this how?
Cam Newton Rocks
November 6th, 2010
10:19 pm
Headley Lamar
I’m guessing that you aren’t a lawyer.
Buford T. Pusser
November 6th, 2010
10:19 pm
It’s well documented that thUGA nation is the most delusional fan base in football, at any level. What’s really sad is that it has now infected the players. Unlike most thUGA fans, at least AJ Green attended college (not that thUGA is really higher education).
Hope you enjoyed your win today. The last one this year. Of thUGA’s five victories (trying to keep a straight face) how many are against teams with a winning record? Don’t bother looking it up, the answer is ZERO. That was a rhetorical question, look it up in the dictionary, if you own one, which I doubt.
As you sit in your trailer awaiting your midnight shift at the convenience store, acknowledge the fact that your life has been been miserable the last two months because you live vicariously through a bunch of teenagers who look down on you while you fill their Slurpee cup.
The Sheriff has spoken.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
November 6th, 2010
10:19 pm
Chattanooga was playing mid 2nd quarter on, against the second string..
a defense only has to be good enough to keep the score below what the offense can deliver..and nobody but nobody has slowed down our offense this year..
do-dah do-dah
November 6th, 2010
10:20 pm
Ga will be 7-10 point underdogs- MAX.
bgdawg
November 6th, 2010
10:20 pm
i will and once cam newton leaves auburn i will be having even more fun laughing at your team to win games without a QB next year
BreakingNews
November 6th, 2010
10:20 pm
Cam Newton Rocks – get a freakin’ life – you have about 30 posts on this one blog entry…don’t they have “War Eagle / Tiger / Whatever the heck you are” blogs for you to post on?
CigarDawg
November 6th, 2010
10:21 pm
bgdawg,
You posted earlier that LSU could also get into the MNC game. Since their one loss (to date) is to Auburn, Auburn would have to lose to both UGA and Bama and I don’t se that happening. There’s no guarantee LSU will beat both Ole Miss and Ark, either, so I see LSU as such a long shot that it’s not a real possibility.
I am afraid the SEC will have to produce a 12-0 team to have a chance at the title because of the ridiculously easy schedules played by the western conferences’ leaders. If that’s true, it leaves only Auburn with a chance.