LIVE from Liberty Bowl: A.J. and Russ are in, Uga is out
Russ is in the house! (Literally.) He's got his bowl game face on.
MEMPHIS — Welcome to the end of Georgia’s season. I know. The Liberty Bowl is not what you were expecting, and neither is the modest goal of trying to finish with a winning record. But Memphis is a nice place, particularly if you’re into barbecue, and I can recommend the ribs at the “Germantown Commissary” (albeit not a BBQ-sounding place).
I would’ve saved the bones for Uga VIII but, alas, he has a tummy ache and didn’t make the trip from his palace in Savannah. At least, that’s the word that the Seiler family is putting out. I’m more inclined to think Uga just didn’t want to make his bowl debut at a game so beneath his standards, particularly since he came in as such a highly touted recruit.
Or maybe Uga’’s just academically ineligible like Caleb King. Like everybody else, he lost interest after the Florida game. Like King, he missed five “academic-related appointments” (obedience school).
So, we have this significant change the depth chart: Russ, The Temporary Mascot, is back!
Don’t, worry. Russ has more bowl experience than Aaron Murray: He won the Independence Bowl last year. Come to think of it, maybe Georgia Tech should’ve borrowed Russ last week for its game in Shreveport. Does Russ get holiday pay for this? The poor mutt was probably happy in retirement, playing shuffleboard at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm.
But this could be good news for the Dogs. Russ is only 4-4. But he’s 1-0 in bowls and won his last game over Tennessee. Also, Georgia is 3-1 when both Russ and A.J. Green are in the lineup. (Kudos to newshound Tim Tucker for supplying me with that statistic.)
Meanwhile, back here on earth . . .
A loss would give Georgia (6-6) its first losing season since 1996, when the Dogs went 5-6 in Jim Donnan’s first year. Ironically, the last time the Dogs lost in the Independence Bowl was to North Carolina State, which had Donnan at quarterback, in 1967.
Here’s the good news: Donnan is not in Memphis.
But do I think Georgia will lose this game? No. Central Florida will be able to put some points up but in the end I don’t think George O’Leary’s defense will have an answer for Murray-to-Green.
Take one last look at Green because this likely will be his final collegiate game. He most likely will be a top-five NFL pick and I don’t believe the threat of an NFL lockout has any significance. Remember, any college junior who comes out can always take a nice little $1 million loan from an agent to hold him over, just in case the league doesn’t play next season. The potential of a lockout affects mostly mid-to-low-round picks, not first-rounders.
As for the significance of this game, it’s obviously a much bigger deal if the Dogs lose (panic!) than if they win (expected). But going 6-2 after a 1-4 start would be a slight boost going into the offseason.
Not sure what kind of crowd this game will draw but I’m guessing not great. The last report was that the Dogs had sold only 5,000 tickets for this game and gave about 1,000 tickets away for staff and families. That would still leave about 4,000 from its 10,000-ticket allotment.
If you missed them, here are links to a couple of stories from the week worth looking at:
– Tucker’s story on Murray, who’s about to break every significant, single-season Georgia passing record as a freshman.
– Tucker’s piece on the homecoming and disappointing season by Marlon Brown, a highly touted receiver out of Memphis.
That’s it for now. I’ll be here to report on the game and all of Russ’s movements.
♦
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2,311 comments Add your comment
Vain Jangling
December 31st, 2010
8:49 pm
The offensive numbers tell the tale: 3-13 on third down conversions, 2.5 yards per rushing attempt, 3 sacks, 2 interceptions, 279 total yards. Look up “mediocre” in Funk and Wagnalls and there we be!
boots
December 31st, 2010
8:49 pm
Just a disappointing end to a horrible season. Our coaches should realize that they are not getting the job done. The honorable thing would be to resign and walk away without taking more than a year’s worth of salary. We have had two very bad seasons in pretty much every way. I don’t think serious Dawg fans will argue with the intelligent posts here, but the stupid haters are just losers from another losing program. At least we beat Tech again but apart from that, this season sucked in every way. Disgrace.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:49 pm
Here are a couple of coaches UGA could hire:
1: Jim Donnan ( he had a great bumper sticker in “Donnan of a new era”)
2: Ray Goff
3: Mike Price
4: Mike Shula
5: George O’Leary
Georgia Tech Fan
December 31st, 2010
8:49 pm
UCF wins it’s first ever bowl game thanks to UGA lol.
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:50 pm
TOO TRUE JASON T. THEY WILL BE DELUSIONAL, AND CONTINUE TO LAY OUT THE ROAD MAP, WHEN EVEN IT IS IMPOSSIBLE.
George O''leary
December 31st, 2010
8:50 pm
You guys must have a high school offense since UCF had more than one week to prepare for the vaunted bobo attack and shut it down. I guess it has been figured out. Time to start over.
Loyal Dawg Fan Forever
December 31st, 2010
8:50 pm
I’m hanging in boys.
although I know we will be 2-10 next year.
A fan is a fan.
Damon Evans
December 31st, 2010
8:50 pm
How do i remove fish smell from my finger?
USMC dawg
December 31st, 2010
8:50 pm
Guys, our program is one of the highest netting profits of ALLLLLLL College Football programs in the country…………. Let that sink in for a second………………..
Pay his contract off and get a new coach.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:51 pm
SEC will be 0-3 after today. The C0CKS are TEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:51 pm
HAHA, AND SOUTH CAROLINA IS GETTING HAMMERED BY FLA STATE… YOU CANT MAKE THIS STUFF UP! SO MUCH FOR THE SEC SPEED!
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
Auburn, Alabama, LSU and Arkansas will be the only SEC teams to win their bowl games.
Tech fan
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
Damon -
Shove it up your ass, for a start.
bag over head dawg fan
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
Georgia Tech fan, if Uga stinks, Tech must smell like your mom’s box
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
DAMON, USE A LITTLE VINEGAR!
Phil
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
Coaches have great runs and then they bottom out. Such is the life of a coach. John Fox had the Carolina Panthers in the Super Bowl a few years and now he is fired.
Tom Couglin won the Super Bowl 2 years ago with the Giants and now he is close to being fired.
This is the vicious cycle that comes with being a coach. You don’t keep a coach based on what he did 5 years ago. It’s pretty much a year to year evaluation these days. And Richt’s last few years are not good enough in today’s standards.
That’s just the facts of life people. Richt has bottomed out. Time to go in a new direction.
Letterman85
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
Missed post game comments. Anything else of interest?
JB
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
We have sunk to a point where …Talking, blogging,reading about it, predicting, promising……will not do. We are not to be taken seriously anymore……..We’ve got to re-prove it on the field. In the world of hamburger meat, we’re filler.
LIVE from Liberty Bowl: A.J. and Russ are in, Uga is out | Jeff …
December 31st, 2010
8:52 pm
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Damon Evans
December 31st, 2010
8:53 pm
UGA stinks and so does my finger.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:53 pm
“SO MUCH FOR THE SEC SPEED!”
Not much speed when 2 out of those 3 teams were 6-6. There’s always tomorrow.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:54 pm
“How do i remove fish smell from my finger?”
Quit fingering your mom.
JB
December 31st, 2010
8:54 pm
Phil…… great post…….lot’s of folks hanging on to the Richt of 4-6 years ago…… The curtain has fallen.
Greg Mendel
December 31st, 2010
8:54 pm
Watching that game was like watching paint… no, it was like LISTENING to paint dry.
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:55 pm
YOU SLOW DOWN WHEN YOU ARE 6-6?
Tore Down
December 31st, 2010
8:55 pm
Friends, and neighbors,
‘Tis with a heavy heart that I write this, on this eve of the new year. Having been a member of the only UGA fan family in the state of SC in the early 80’s, having lived on a stranger’s couch during the ‘97 season at River Mill apartments (woot!), having been there and done that for the sake of a football program (and beautiful Scots-Irish lasses, thank the lord), I can finally say thus: I am emotionally divorcing myself from this program. Done. Period. I look at my UGA ball cap, worn pink from sun scorching and too many woolite cycles, and I can smile knowing what the program has meant to me: a sense of pride and ownership in a proud heritage that traces back to the founding of the University and a uniquely Southern heritage. But for the sake of all that is holy! When did we become such a band of wussies? I’ll tell you when. It was after the 2005 SEC championship. That was the moment we allowed talent to overshadow coaching and set CMR on cruise control that he is enjoying still. He struts down the sideline with his fatback hair cut and chem-tan. Who is that tired, lazy cat, Mr. $3,000,000 per annum? Boy, I wish I was paid that kind of loot to half-a** it. In all of our lines of work, unless there is some union paid lurker out there, we have to perform to get paid. WELL PERFORM ALREADY!!!! I, and I feel that I can speak for the majority of the Bull-GD-Dawg Nation when I say FIRE RICHT AND ALL OF HIS HIRES. START FRESH. What have we to lose? Aaron Murray would be better off with a new staff than he is now with Richt and Bobo. How many season are you going to throw away, Mr. McGarity and boosters? Mark (Richt) my words: we are done, we are done, we are done. Fire the bas****s and start over. I don’t care if you hire Bill Cosby. At least he is a man unafraid to tell thugs how the cow eats the cabbage.
USMC dawg
December 31st, 2010
8:55 pm
“I hope the Dawgs of old return next season and prove all of us wrong”
I do too, Letterman. But let’s be proactive and move forward.
Money talks guys. The Athletic Dept at UGA has a Golden goose to protect and it is not looking ggod for the golden goose if we lay the same egg next year that we did this year,,, no AJ….
Tech fan
December 31st, 2010
8:55 pm
On a resume is it cool to list “masturbating” under hobbies & interests?
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:56 pm
YES
StingDoc
December 31st, 2010
8:56 pm
Snake Doc,
I concur with your quote:
“There are gargantuan problmes in Athens.”
I suggest that before you attempt to mimic my name with a lame retort you try spell-check even though I doubt it would make you sound more intelligent.
.
Letterman85
December 31st, 2010
8:56 pm
Dumbass wants to know from all the AD’s on the post who would you bring in?
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:57 pm
“On a resume is it cool to list “masturbating” under hobbies & interests?”
Yeah, you can list it right next to “UGA grad.”
Loyal Dawg Fan Forever
December 31st, 2010
8:57 pm
Richt has gone homo for Jesus like Hitler did.
It always ends badly.
USMC dawg
December 31st, 2010
8:57 pm
Listen, we sucked this year, and I am not a Tech hater at all, but I know Tech fans aren’t coming on here and talking $h!t. Really.
Georgia Tech Fan
December 31st, 2010
8:57 pm
bag over head dawg fan
you’re gonna have to keep that bag over your head for years to come cause UGA not winning anything worth much for a long time if not ever lol.
Go Jackets!
jod
December 31st, 2010
8:57 pm
BWAHAHAH… THIS IS THE SECOND BEST TEAM IN THE SEC IN USC??? GOOD GREIF.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:58 pm
“Show me the WMD’s that we were promised were in Iraq!!!! 4600 dead. No WMD’s and GWB was a liar.”
So why are we still there and why is Gitmo still open, moron?
Oh, and if Obozo is so great, why did his party get their a$$es kicked last month?
Alphare
December 31st, 2010
8:58 pm
Take comfort dawg fans, all SEC East teams probably will lose their bowl games.
JB
December 31st, 2010
8:58 pm
I’ll take the staff from Brookwood or Buford high….Really……. This is one bad staff……..
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:59 pm
USMC dawg
I’m an Auburn guy and have no problem making fun of Tech and UGA.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
8:59 pm
“all SEC East teams probably will lose their bowl games.”
I give that a 90% chance of happening.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
9:00 pm
“GWB was a liar.”
Yet Obozo still continues with W’s war policies.
5150 P.O.A.D.
December 31st, 2010
9:00 pm
Nick Fairley
The last times Tech and Auburn met TECH kicked your butts and Reggie Ball was our QB.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
9:01 pm
“Do you Jack it to pics of Obama or Rahman emanuel?”
He Jackets to pics of Obama and Rahm, not Rahman.
JB
December 31st, 2010
9:01 pm
Take the political crap to the front page under Cynthia Tucker please…..
jod
December 31st, 2010
9:01 pm
DAMON HAS GONE FROM BOX TALK TO BEING A BLEEDING HEART LIB.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
9:01 pm
“The last times Tech and Auburn met TECH kicked your butts and Reggie Ball was our QB.”
Nothing like living in the past, loser. I’ll wave to you from Glendale!
Apostle
December 31st, 2010
9:01 pm
Bulldykes,I think the Dawgs are losing because of THE CHOSEN ONE.When he is booted out in 2yrs they will win again.Or when hell freezes over!
Letterman85
December 31st, 2010
9:02 pm
Loyal dawg please go read some history books. Hitler only loved himself.
Nick Fairley scares dawg fans
December 31st, 2010
9:02 pm
“The last times Tech and Auburn met TECH kicked your butts and Reggie Ball was our QB.”
And that has what to do with Auburn being 13-0 and Tech being 6-7?