Missing piece for Richt
Why is it that Mark Richt doesn’t get more respect?
ESPN.com recently released the results of its latest SportsNation poll on the current state of SEC football, and one thing that caught my eye was the response to the question of who is the best coach in the conference. You’d expect Urban Meyer, coming off his second BCS national championship at Florida, to top that list and he did, taking 51 percent of the 17,655 votes.
But who was next? Alabama’s Nick Saban at 22 percent, followed by LSU’s Les Miles at 15 percent. Then came Richt and South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier (whose best days are behind him), tied at 6 percent.
Looking just at the numbers, you’d think Richt might have done better. The guy has won two SEC championships in eight seasons at UGA, and with a won-loss record of 82-22, his winning percentage of .788 is fourth best in the country among active coaches. (Meyer’s overall winning percentage is .830.) Richt is one of only seven coaches in Division 1-A history to get 80 wins in his first eight seasons. He’s also the dean of SEC coaches in terms of longevity at his current school.
Saban has a winning percentage of .683, well behind Richt’s, and so far at Bama he has only an SEC West division title. At LSU, Saban won two SEC titles, matching Richt. But he also won a BCS national championship.
Miles, who was head coach at Oklahoma State before moving to LSU, also lags behind Richt with an overall winning percentage of .693. And he has only one SEC championship. But, again, he also has a BCS national championship.
And that, of course, is why Richt doesn’t get as much respect as you might expect from his won-loss record. He’s in a conference with coaches who have won three of the past six BCS titles, and he has none. It might not be fair, but until Richt brings one of those crystal footballs back to Athens, he’s always going to be considered not quite in the first rank of SEC coaches.
What do you think? Should winning a BCS title trump overall winning percentage? Are Saban and Miles really better coaches than Richt?
Elsewhere, it looks like the latest battleground for bragging rights among BCS schools is spring scrimmage attendance. Part of the Saban lore in Crimson Tide country has been the large crowds drawn to Alabama’s spring games since he landed in Tuscaloosa. Interestingly, though, Bama’s 84,050 for this year’s spring game was only good enough for second place behind Ohio State’s 95,722, an NCAA record according to SportsBusiness Daily. Third place went to Nebraska with 77,670, followed by Penn State (76,500), Florida (65,000), Tennessee (51,488), Michigan (50,000), Auburn (45,381), Texas (44,000) and UGA in 10th place with this year’s G-Day crowd of 42,458.
In UGA’s defense, it’s been noted that the Dogs have a tougher time than some schools in terms of spring attendance because of all the other sporting events going on in the state at the same time, what with pro sports and a little event called the Masters. But, really, does attendance at a spring game mean anything? (Folks on North Avenue, where their game only drew 8,500, probably would say no.) Is it indicative of the strength and fervor of a school’s fan base or just proof there’s not much going on in some areas?
Scheduling note: I’ll be gone on vacation for most of the next two weeks, but feel free to keep the discussion of all things Bulldog going in the comments.
Go Dogs!
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205 comments Add your comment
Rebel Rouser
May 18th, 2009
6:34 pm
Hey Doug…If my memory serves me right….he motivted his team to a victory over Florida in 07′ and hurt the Florida teams and fans feelings! Was that not a big game …Florida certainly acted like it was. They cried like babies to the media with thier coach faning the flames. How soon people forget!
Just because Mark Richt doesn’t rant and rave in public so the media and football morons like yourself see it and preceive it as good coaching does not make him any less of a coach than Urban Meyer.What would you want for your son….a coach that modivates by belittleing his players in public and constantly looking for media approval or a coach that takes a personal interest in the development and well being of each member of his team…… You wouldn’t know good coaching skills if they bit you on the a$$.
we had a great gameplan but failed to execute
May 18th, 2009
6:40 pm
aaah, but had they polled on gameplanning, coach richt would have won it hands down.
FL DAWG
May 18th, 2009
6:44 pm
Richt is a great coach, his record proves the point. Urban is also a great coach, as are Miles, Saban, Spurrier and several others in the SEC. The competition in the SEC demands great coaches if you are to compete year in and year out. Myer, Miles and Saban deserve credit for their accomplishments. I would put Myer on top with his two NC in his relatively short period. The SEC demands great coaches and the SEC is lucky to have coaches of this caliber. After Myer, I am not sure you can really seperate the others. Yes Miles has the NC and so does Saban, but what are their records against Richt(I confess I don’t know), but they can’t be “dominating” Richt. I am pretty sure Saban vs. Richt is about a split head to head and Miles Vs. Richt is pretty even as well. What you can say is in the years LSU and Saban won NC they had the better team. Especially Saban NC when at LSU. Overall, they are pretty equal with the exception or Myer.
Rusty Squidbillie
May 18th, 2009
6:45 pm
I don’t no much but i do no one thing: you caint get a good degree like my UGA Inglish degree or have a gud futball teem lessun yore futball stadiom holds at leest ninedy thuwsund! Dang, you caint evun lurn to reed an rite good. Go dawgs!
Sanford Drive
May 18th, 2009
7:00 pm
Rebel,
I also remember how the end zone fiasco (while excellent at the time) cost us a lot in 2008. I’ve never seen so many horrible calls from the refs in my life, and it happened all season long. Maybe I’m off base, but I think that endzone dance had a lot to do with those bad calls. Those calls cost us. I’m not saying we would’ve beaten UF by any stretch of the imagination, but bad calls can put a damper on momentum, which is a huge part of college football. I’m sure CMR won’t make that mistake again. UF is so disciplined; as much as we dislike them, you have to admire the way they run their football program. I’m not sure if it’s Meyer or Tebow, or some combination of both, but they’ve got a well-oiled machine down there. There’s not a huge disparity between the quality of players UF gets and the quality of the players that UGA gets. It is all about how you run the program. To me, Meyer has great ‘coaching skills’ and certainly has Richt beat in that area. 2 NCs in 3 years? Holy crap. You can’t deny the facts. I can’t stand Urban Meyer, but he’s a great coach. Period.
Not sure what Richt needs to do to beat that joker, Urban, at his own game, but he needs to figure it out. Quick.
dawgstephen
May 18th, 2009
7:06 pm
How long did it take Bowden to beat Miami regular and win NC?
How long did it take Mack Brown to beat OK regularly?
Peyton Manning NEVER beat the gators
No one questioned them!!! CMR is as good a coach as any in the conference. Shame on you Bill and anyone else who says nothing but NC’s count. Ohh nice job reporting on Jacksonville and letting us know that you havent EVER thought about the gators having a BYE before the UGA game…hadnt researched it. Do your homework before you try and be an expert. IM no expert, but at least i dont claim to be. Im kinda not liking you Bill. Not at all.
Gator Growl
May 18th, 2009
7:07 pm
Rebel Rouser…I would want my son to play for a coach that 1) Will be honest and fair 2) provide an enviornment that encourages academic achievement as well as athletics 3)maximizes his God given football potential 4)Has a genuine concern for my son as an individual and person. This is WHY Meyer is a GREAT coach, thank you very much. And if I’m relying on the coach to be some moral anchor or to teach right or wrong then I HAVE NOT DONE MY JOB AS A FATHER!
Dave
May 18th, 2009
7:24 pm
It really makes you wonder what seperates the really great coaches from the really good coaches(besides the records, of course). Someone earlier mentioned background and training. Wouldn’t it be interesting to check out the background, training or the college degrees of these coaches to see if there’s any relation to their success or lack thereof??? Anybody up for some research?
macrotech
May 18th, 2009
7:36 pm
CMR is a good man and has done a great job reinvigorating the dawg fan base… as a Tech fan, I think he SHOULD get greater respect, but recognize that he has done a good job of NOT being a lightning rod…for this, my respect for him is great! Rebel Rouser, WE DO HAVE A STREAK of eight straight wins against your pups. dd, you, obviously, HAVEN’T been on Tech’s campus…while fewer in numbers, we have a few attractive women…they’re just BRILLIANT! CMR will have the chance to earn a NC and all this talk will become mute! GO TECH!
Rebel Rouser
May 18th, 2009
7:44 pm
Hey Gator Growl…Your not getting sanctimonious on us are you? Are you trying to tell us that Urban is a saint?…..You’re forgetting that most of the players in the SEC come from broken homes… I’ll bet your athletes come from as many families without fathers as do Georgias…. Mark Richt takes a personal interest in each one he recruits and does not toss them aside if they stray while under his watch. Urban Meyer has been known to walk away from his athletes once they stray because he does not want to be personally attached to them. If you don’t believe it then why is it he is never quoted once his athletes get in trouble…he always lets an athletic department spokesman comment on all negative situations that occur with the football players under his watch….. and there have been many incidents that have gone unreported since his arrival.
Please your coach is far from great……the only thing great about Urban Meyer is his EGO! As far as academic achievement is concerned….
Georgia’s football program was recently reported to be #1 in the SEC in graduating its athletes….I believe that Florida was somewhere around 5th or 6th, which is average at best! Nice job Urban!
Encouraging your team to achieve academically and actually acheiving it are the making of a great coach? I’ll take Mark Richt any day when it comes to preparing an athlete for life after football. He also does a great job preparing his athletes to play on the next level as evident in the number of players that are drafted out of UGA each year. Florida doesn’t even come close…..gimmick football will only get you so far!
Mark Richt is a Hypocrite
May 18th, 2009
7:54 pm
Keep Richt and Martinez.UGA will never win a BCS Championship with those clowns..Just a notch above average program..as far as respect? Nobody respect UGA and your coaches.Even god and the referees don’t like UGA! Keep dancing in the endzone and to Souljaboy.
Ferndolin
May 18th, 2009
7:56 pm
Winning the BCS championship is as much about luck as it is tallent, and there is plenty of tallent at UGA, on the field and on the sidelines. A near miss here and there and a timely win by another team and you’re in the game. ‘Ole lady luck’ just hasn’t been there for the Dawgs. Hey, we play in freaking Jacksonville every year. Give me a break! If they want neutral field move it around. Spread the love, man. Don’t dis my man Richt. GO DAWGS!!
Urban Warfare
May 18th, 2009
8:15 pm
Rouser, I can answer some of your questions!..1) Meyer doesn’t make public coments in regards to players in trouble because it is against Florida statutes to do so…basically violates student privacy laws (applies to all students, not just football players). 2) Amoung top graduating rates in college football…2008 National Champ seniors top in the nation with 100% graduation rate. 3) During short tenure at Florida, Meyer has had 4 1st rounders in NFL draft including Jarvis Moss, Derrick Harvey, Reggie Nelson, Percy Harvin…Next question??? You just can’t argue with success my man, although you try.
Ferndolin
May 18th, 2009
8:20 pm
Urban Meyer is a tallented coach and a great recruiter. Florida gets by with a weak non-conference schedule. If florida plays some real tallent (Big 12, Pac 10) early, then maybe the real gators will show up in the heat of SEC battle. WEAK NON_CONFERENCE is Meyers calling card. Give me a break Warfare.
ReptilesRule
May 18th, 2009
8:21 pm
REBEL…Gimmick football??? Haven’t heard that one for a while, at least since the first Meyer NC! Nice try, please play again…
staff fan now
May 18th, 2009
8:25 pm
Hello Dorsey…how did that full stadium help the dogs last fall? On Dooley day?
ps…I like CMR.
Urban Warfare
May 18th, 2009
8:26 pm
Yeah you’re right about our schedule Ferndolin. We need to find a way to get Georgia off our schedule so we can upgrade…
DawginLex
May 18th, 2009
8:29 pm
No way Spurrier is even in the same breath with the top coaches today in the league. He is done. After NC State wipes the mat with them on opening night, watch for http://www.firespurrier.com to go wild. couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.
On to Coach Richt. If ya’ll don’t mind, I say we keep him. He is better than dooley who is the best we have had in 50 years. Do you want to go back to 6-6 or 5-7? Do you want to be fighting for 5th place in the East with Kentucky every year? 2008 was a down year just like 2006. We won 19 games those 2 years people!!!!!!!!!!!!
Let him leave and then you will realize what we have.
Ferndolin
May 18th, 2009
8:39 pm
Warfare. Really. So you don’t agree that FL non-conference is weak. The Citadel? Come on. All that does is pad numbers for all those 1st rounders you speak of. Among other things, I want to see Teebow cry!! once again at the hands of Georgia before he plays on Sundays. How about FL opening up with ASU or OSU. Not a chance. They are too sqeemish early in the season and don’t want to test their boys. I get it, lets just sneak up on the SEC and surprise ‘em, all heatlhy from not playing real football. I AM A GATOR HATER!!
The Truth
May 18th, 2009
8:42 pm
Hey Urban Warfare….Way to make up the graduating stats….I take it you only had 5 or 6 prople graduating in 2008 since all you Gator fans keep telling us is how young you are and “everyone” is coming back. As far as the NFL is concerned you don’t even place in the top ten in the total number of players playing in the league.Percy Harvin is a class act though…I guess when the coach told him to “get up” for each game he took him literally….Dink and dunk football might work in college but it does not work in the NFL….if you are an offensive player and want to make it in the NFL you need to play in a big boy system.As far as Meyer making comments about his players…I looked it up and there is no such statute in the state of Florida regarding commenting on an athlete in trouble with the law….nice try though…did you not think we wouldn’t check behind you? The problem with Florida fans is that they truly believe the world of college football starts with them…just remember when your golden boy leaves and you start to lose, everyone you talked down to while you were on top is going to beat you down as hard as they can…..and enjoy every minute of it.
Ferndolin
May 18th, 2009
8:45 pm
The Truth. You the man.
DawginLex
May 18th, 2009
8:49 pm
Any florida fan that doesn’t believe there will be a dropoff when Tebow leaves is either:
1.) Delusional
2.) an idiot
3.) All of the above
I have said it before, Tebow is florida’s Herschel. He is the ultimate difference maker. Brantley and others can have all the talent in the world but they aren’t Tebow. And yes, Tebow did help Leak in 2006. Don’t you remember Leak getting booed? No Tebow=No titles.
Urban Warfare
May 18th, 2009
8:50 pm
Or the woman.
ReptilesRule
May 18th, 2009
8:53 pm
Hey Delusional Dawgs, this is scary, isn’t it…Heeeeeeeeerssss Johnny! Ho-Hum, another couple of years of doggy training!
Ferndolin
May 18th, 2009
8:55 pm
Yes, Warfare. I should have been more gender sensitive. But the Truth is, FL will NOT repeat ‘09.
Gator Growl
May 18th, 2009
8:58 pm
Wahhh! Wahhh! Wait till Tebow leaves! Wait till Meyer leaves! Wait till we get the game moved! Wait till Martinez leaves! Wait till Aaron Murray starts! Wait till Richt grows a pair! Wahhh! Wahhh!
B
May 18th, 2009
9:01 pm
How many times has Tech beat UGA since Mark Richt was hired? 1!!! HAHAHAHHAAHAHAHA
Urban Warfare
May 18th, 2009
9:01 pm
Hey Techies…handle our lightwork…
The Truth
May 18th, 2009
9:01 pm
Hey Urban Warfare…Man or Woman….I’m The Truth ….and back in the slimy swamp you call your brain you know I speak “The TRUTH”. BEWARE OF “THE TRUTH”….it will eventually beat you down!
Urban Warfare
May 18th, 2009
9:10 pm
No what you need to do is go back to the Psych Ward my man (or is it my woman?). Your as close to the The Truth as an oil executive and just as slimy…And come on down to the Swamp…the waters fine…
S.E. Dawg
May 18th, 2009
9:22 pm
The people voting in the poll must be the same people that vote in the BCS standings. They rarely get it right.
The Truth
May 18th, 2009
9:27 pm
I can tell right now that you will be sweating out every game the Gators play this year…knowing that if they lose…you won’t be able to show your face in public for a long time….remember “The Truth” knows all and eventually wins out.
Since you know everything about Gator football you must answer one question for me.How are you keeping Lawrence Marsh in school….his grades were so bad in high school… Georgia,S.Carolina and Clemson didn’t even recruit him because he couldn’t get into their schools….but he got in Florida…how’d that happen? Someone once said if it smells fishy it must be fishy…or Florida.
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
9:35 pm
…”he should have fired somebody for the 3rd quarter against the trade school alone”…. Richt blames himself for that, as it was HE who made the decision to walk through drills rather than live tackling in practise for the last half of the season. That’s going to be awkward.
PTC Jacket
May 18th, 2009
9:37 pm
CMR gets enough respect for his position. I honestly think he gets a lot of publicity for having an outstanding winning percentage AND not winning an NC’s. Sorry, but in today’s world of college football, it’s about the now, and not the “who has been doing good in the past 8 years”. CMR is a great coach, don’t get me wrong, but he gets enough respect for what he does (and doesn’t do).
B:
How many times has UGA beaten Tech since CPJ was hired? None.
staff fan now
May 18th, 2009
9:51 pm
Mr Alt dog….I loved that third quarter!
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
9:59 pm
Worst 2 years totaled 19 wins. Great point DawginLex.
Still waiting an answer as to how so many Dawg fans know Nick Saban so well. “he doesnt except anything but perfection”. PLEASE! What, He said it while talking in third party about himself in an ESPN interview? Hasnt really worked very well, has it?
I think one of the things to note is that Coach Richt just doesnt pat himself on the back as much as some of the other guys do. But don’t try to read into who demands what behind closed doors, from a couple of sound bytes
Paddy
May 18th, 2009
10:05 pm
Meyer is not going anywhere. Where would you rather live, Gainsville,Fl or Notre Dame,In?
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
10:10 pm
Somebody was telling me yesterday, that he knows about what Richt “demands” based on what he said after a couple of closer than needed victories last year. Really? (as if anyone really know everything he said last year, and it’s always in context) He didn’t blast his team in the local media after the game. He didn’t throw his players under the bus publically, so he is just not insisting on perfection. geez.
Oddly when he did suggest last year, and as i recall he didnt offer it up, but was answering persistant questions about who he was going to fire midseason, that part of the equation was that player had to perform, along with his coaches had to put them into position, he got ripped in here for suggesting that his players could do any better.
frogator
May 18th, 2009
10:25 pm
Even though I’m a Gator grad I must admit that I like CMR as a coach and person. He’s got an incredible record on the field and seems to be a great person off the field. I don’t understand the UGA fans on this post that aren’t happy with him. So he hasn’t won a national title yet. I think we all understand that a lot of luck goes into that. See UCLA beating USC in ‘06. No way that should have happened. We (UF) got lucky there. In ‘07 UGA was unfortunate in that they picked the wrong day to lay an egg against UT. I have no doubt that UGA would have beaten LSU (without their starting QB) in the SECCG and then they’d be the ones that would have beaten the crap out of Ohio State for the NC.
So he’s only 2-6 against UF. He would be 3-5 if Shockley hadn’t got hurt (But then again, if Tebow wasn’t hurt in ‘07 he might still only be 2-6, but that’s not my point). My point is that we (UF) have been the best team in the country for 2 of those games, and the better team between the two of us in 3 other games. The only game I can think of that he should have won but didn’t was ‘05.
I believe CMR will win a national title in the next 4 years. Probably not this year, but it could be as early as 2010. You all should really hope that we (UF) wins it again this year because with every title an SEC team wins it makes it that much easier for everyone else in the conference. If we win it in ‘09 that will be 4 in a row for the SEC. Then in 2010 when we are in a rebuild/reload year, all you or any other team in the SEC will have to do is win the SEC and you’ll almost certainly be in the title game. I always want an SEC team to win it all. I was pulling for LSU big time in ‘07. I’ll pull for UGA when they get there. Not sure I’d pull for UT though. Kiffen’s a douche! True story: A friend of mine went to the supermarket to buy a douche. When she got home and opened the box……..Lane Kiffin was inside!
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
10:30 pm
Everyone deserves to enjoy 1 quarter every 8 years or so.
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
10:34 pm
frogator, hellooooo…trying to hate the gators here…you’re confusing us.
frogator
May 18th, 2009
10:39 pm
AltamahaDawg, sorry for the confusion. UGA SUCKS! Is that better?
AltamahaDawg
May 18th, 2009
10:43 pm
You bet your jorts.
Tide rising
May 18th, 2009
10:44 pm
I think just about everyone agrees that CMR is an excellent coach but there are 2 reasons why he’s not getting the full respect he deserves. The first is obvious. Fair or unfair the lack of a national title while the other aforementioned coaches have one is the biggest obstacle.
The other one that no one seems to be talking about or clued in on is his inability to beat his biggest rival the gators on a consistent basis. He is living in Urban Meyer’s shadow and if his futility against the gators continues another 2-3 years it will probably be his downfall. Even the most ardent CMR supporters have to agree that there are only so many losses you can have against your biggest rival despite his overall success.
He is a good man and an excellent coach but unless he can start beating the Urban legend on a more consistent basis.
CMR reminds me of Mack Brown at Texas. Nice guy, very well respected but never getting his full respect because of domination by his biggest rival and the lack of a national title on top of that. Mack Brown at UT was getting whipped by Bob Stoops at OU for the first 4 or maybe 5 years he was there from 2000-2004. Then he broke through in 2005, whipped OU and in the process won the national title. He has now won 3 of 4 against OU, the monkey is off his back, he has the full nationwide respect that he deserves, and he has teams that now are now consistently in the talk for a run at the national title.
Will Richt do the same?
Tide rising
May 18th, 2009
10:52 pm
frogator,
Good joke on Lane Kiffin. Now THAT is a guy who will never garner the respect of his peers or of the nation in general. He has managed to turn the entire fan base of the sec against him and is gonna take some serious beatdowns this year. I think he’s gone in 2 years and I certainly hope so. A big time program like Tennessee certainly deserves better than this azzclown.
Sanford Drive
May 18th, 2009
10:53 pm
Whether we like it or not, the bottom line is, people won’t give Richt any credit until he wins the crystal trophy.
Next topic.
BS Patrol
May 18th, 2009
10:58 pm
Swimmin’ pools, bowlin’ balls. Like I said before last season started, soft practices = soft teams. Way too many no-touch jerseys, doggies.
Rebel Rouser,
Revelation! The football coach doesn’t prepare these students for life. The school does. And in that vein, I think we all know which ones are serious about that.
dan
May 19th, 2009
12:03 am
Hey Gator Fans,
Congrats on beating UGA last season, but let’s have some perspective here, Your team is one season removed from losing to UGA, and you’re 3-2 versus the Dawgs the last 5 years. And except for the last two meetings, the games are usually pretty even match ups. You Gators act like you’re going to win the next 6 in a row, and I’m here to tell you that that is just not going to happen. UGA will get a few wins here and there, and don’t be surprised if this game this season is closer than you think, even with Tebow.
Chuck Uga
May 19th, 2009
12:05 am
Spring game attendance means nothing. UGA will never have 90,000 in the stands. Plus, injuries to so many players dampens the enthusiasm of traveling 3-5 hours to see the game.
As far as the Crystal Ball, as much as I hate to say it, Richt may or may not win a NC during his career in Athens. If he does, it will only be one title. Why? Because our schedule is always a problem. Florida, Auburn and Tech to end the year is a HUGE issue. Also, we’ve only beaten Tennessee and Florida in the same season ONE TIME in 20 years (1988). Circumstances play against us (UF up while Miami and FSU are WAY down), Auburn always plays well against us when they are a poor team, Tech is now a much better program than they were and the rest of the conference is LOADED with great coaches. We will make a title game by sheer luck…just like UF and LSU have done recently. I also am not completely sold on CMR’s staff. We will see what happens, but I think we can be very thankful that we are in the mix annually whereas before Richt we were not a serious contender.
In fact, don’t expect Saban to have the same degree of success at Bama as he had at LSU. LSU always had a much easier schedule because of the “placement” of key games on their schedule. Bama doesn’t have that luxury. Plus, Bear has been dead for years(!)
dawg fan that hates Kool-aid
May 19th, 2009
12:46 am
Richt will never win it all. Way too soft on the players and the coaching staff around him. He is a very good OC, but lacks the steel to make the tough decisions necessary to reach a MNC. VanGorder experienced this and read the writing on the wall,went back to coordinator.