Archive for October, 2011

Mark Richt wasn't giving anybody a thumbs three weeks ago. He is now. (Brant Sanderlin)

ATHENS – Sometime after Georgia won, South Carolina lost and Florida not only got boat-raced by Alabama but watched quarterback John Brantley get dragged off with a “lower leg” injury – team officials seldom get into specifics, less KAOS find out – Bulldogs coaches got busy texting this past weekend.

“Coaches started sending out mass texts,” tight end Aron White said. “They just told us to keep believing, that we have a lot of momentum, continue to build on it. This thing is still wide open.”

Georgia can’t completely distance itself from a 0-2 start. People keep records. But this team gets credit for not belly flopping into oblivion. The Dogs could have followed the white light and didn’t. Or maybe they just punched through the dirt from the grave site, like that final scene in “Carrie.”

Granted, the three wins have come over Coastal Carolina and the two …

Continue reading Georgia’s test: Winning (and not caving) at Tennessee »

Former Braves outfielder Jordan Schafer has bigger problems now than trying to raise his batting average. (AP photo)

(UPDATED: 1 p.m.)

The Braves traded Jordan Schafer to Houston despite believing he could still be a valuable part of their future because they were able to land a proven veteran, Michael Bourn, in return. But Schafer’s future just got a little more cloudy.

The Astros’ center fielder and former Braves’ top prospect was arrested early Tuesday in Tampa on a felony marijuana possession charge.

Schafer's booking mugshot in Tampa.

The St. Petersburg Times first reported Schafer was arrested at 1:59 a.m. at the address for The Cheesecake Factory restaurant. He was released from jail at 5:15 a.m. on $2,000 cash bond.

Schafer was found in possession of 25.9 grams of marijuana. In the state of Florida, more than 20 grams is considered a third-degree felony. According to the police report, officers conducted a traffic stop after smelling what seemed to be marijuana coming …

Continue reading Ex-Brave Jordan Schafer arrested on felony marijuana charge (UPDATED) »

The Falcons had a hard time stopping Tarvaris Jackson. What will Aaron Rodgers do to them?

SEATTLE – Power rankings don’t count for much in the NFL. So the Falcons need not worry about perceptions that their defense is a mess, their offense remains prone to hiccups and, worst of all, they just made Tarvaris Jackson look like Aaron Rodgers, which was believed to be scientifically impossible.

Also, it’s not well-timed, considering the real Aaron Rodgers returns the scene of his destruction next week. They can pray for an implausible personality switch and hope Rodgers, in warped symmetry, looks more like the typical Jackson next Sunday, but I wouldn’t count on it.

“We’ve got some problems to work out,” linebacker Mike Peterson said. “You don’t see us high-fiving each other.”

The Falcons won a game on Sunday, 30-28. Because the NFL is a league of bottom-line results, they can take comfort in that and not be concerned about a collective eye-roll from team officials …

Continue reading Falcons hang on but there are reasons to be concerned »

Matt Ryan had three turnovers (2 fumbles, 1 interception) at Tampa Bay last week. (AP photo)

SEATTLE — Let me start with the three highlights of my trip so far: great 1) great seafood last night at a Pike Place Market restaurant; 2) great coffee everywhere; 3) I got a hair cut by a girl named Sarah who used to be Sarah Palin’s hair stylist. (You’re torn, right? Do I make a Palin joke or a, “Schultz, you’ve got no hair to cut,” joke?)

Sent this out on Twitter and Facebook Saturday, but my Sarah of Loli Hair recently moved to Seattle from Alaska and comes from the same town as Palin. She said, “She’s a real sweetie.” Also said, “I don’t really agree with her politics.” Also said, “Almost everybody in Alaska is overweight because nobody walks anywhere. It’s too cold.”

Pike Place Market in Seattle, a must-see in Seattle.

So you ask: Why tell me about your adventures in hair design before the Falcons play a football game? Simple. It seemed less depressing. Also, it’s my blog.

I …

Continue reading LIVE BLOG: Falcons try to win a road game (and score a TD) »

Fredi Gonzalez and Frank Wren have a lot of damage to overcome. (Curtis Compton/AJC)

This has been, as a general rule, a pro sports market of misery and hangovers, not celebrations and … well, hangovers.

The Falcons lost an NFL playoff game in 1980, and it evolved into some perceived mutant voodoo curse for the next two decades. The Hawks last won an NBA title in an era of canvas high tops (1957-58), and when they were based in St. Louis. The NHL – two teams, come and gone (the first winning a Stanley Cup after it moved to Calgary).

Even when the Braves’ lone World Series title in 1995 is referenced, it’s usually with some verbal slap about 13 other Octobers when the team fell flat, fell short or outright imploded (1996 vs. the Yankees)?

It’s for that reason that Fredi Gonzalez, Frank Wren, Terence McGuirk and the corporate weasel owner behind the curtain should be aware of something: This city-wide vitriol that they’re hearing, seeing and feeling in the aftermath of a …

Continue reading It won’t be easy for Braves to turn fans back into believers »