It’s the week for ‘burning questions’
With the SEC Media Days come a host of beat writers, columnists and bloggers offering what they see as the “burning questions” about the coming season. Of course, most of those questions won’t be answered at the media fest, aside from those about whether Lane Kiffin will act up or any public spats will break out among the coaches.
Those are fun to read about, but they don’t have much bearing on how the season turns out (aside from the way you’ll probably see the Gators still calling timeouts and throwing for the end zone at the end of their game with Kiffin’s Vols, even if they lead by three or four touchdowns).
There are burning questions about the 2009 Dogs, but we won’t have answers until they have at least a couple of games under their belts. But while many in the media have put Georgia’s quarterback play at the top of their burning questions, I don’t think that’s a primary area of concern. Joe Cox should do fine, barring a meltdown by the offensive line. And I hope Logan Gray gets a chance to add a different dimension, especially in the red zone.
No, these are the questions that most concern me and other fans I’ve talked with:
Will Georgia have more of a pass rush than last season? That’s the biggie. An effective rush disrupts both the passing game and the running game and creates the chance of more turnovers. David Hale of Bulldogs Blog cuts through all the positive offseason talk and takes a hard, somewhat pessimistic look at Georgia’s prospects in this area and the need for help from the linebacker corps in establishing a pass rush. Fingers are crossed big-time on this one.
Will the defense be improved fundamentally? Blown coverages and poor tackling were a recurring problem last season. The D looked a lot better in the bowl game, despite being given lousy field position several times by a faltering offense. They looked, in fact, like they were playing for their coach’s job. That might not be a bad mindset for the entire season.
Will special teams play, especially the kicking game, improve? We’ve talked at length about the kickoff problems, but there’s more to it than that. We need to be able to count anything less than a 45-yard field goal attempt as a gimme. And new punter Drew Butler didn’t exactly wow fans with his kicks at the G-Day game. Georgia figures to be in a bunch of close games this year, and special teams might make the difference.
What about the running game? I don’t think it’s all that crucial that one of the tailbacks step up as the featured back, as long as Georgia gets enough production out of the running game to keep the defenses honest. Whether it’s Caleb King, Richard Samuel, Washaun Ealey or all three, the Dogs just need some consistency in the running attack. And while I don’t think little Carlton Thomas is an every-down back, it should be fun to see what he can do as the change-of-pace ball carrier.
Can the Dogs stay healthy? A freaky injury during summer workouts tends to make fans fret about whether Georgia’s incredible run of bad luck might continue. This will be especially crucial on both lines.
Finally, what about the intangibles like leadership? There were times last season when the Dogs seemed to get rattled early and had a hard time bouncing back from adversity. Players and coaches alike have pointed to a lack of on-the-field leadership and have indicated that’s been a major priority this offseason. But let’s face it, talk about renewed focus and buckling down is pretty much a preseason constant. It remains to be seen what happens once play has begun.
Those are my main burning questions about this season. What are yours?
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46 comments Add your comment
m
July 21st, 2009
2:20 pm
It’s 2009 and the CESSPOOL is still leaking all over Athens… and your wanting to talk about your lousy football team????
Get your priorities straight.
45-42…just the beginning.
JB
July 21st, 2009
2:25 pm
Cesspool……..been to the bathroom at Grant field lately ? also love the girders blocking your view…….. LOL………. can’t beat all the safe parking…………
mcdawg
July 21st, 2009
2:48 pm
who is going to cover Dez Bryant?
Gator Fan
July 21st, 2009
2:53 pm
1. No, UGA has no pass rush, Houston is out for like two games. They are going to struggle at DE, but be strong at Dt.
2. Possibly, depends if Curran is leading the defense, or Martinez. If Martinez is the one doing all the talking, then no.
3. yeah, special teams should be better. If Richt doesn’t panic and call onside kicks. Special teams should be fine. Field Goal kicker has a year under his belt, should be better from distance and in the clutch.
4. I think the dogs will be ok at running back b/c they have so many. Now as far as pass protection, well we all saw Caleb’s version in Jax. I think they will be fine running behind an experienced o line. I think UGA will be a ball control team, w/ the throws to AJ as often as they can. Running should be improved in quantity, but Moreno was a good showboater, but amazing RB, hard to replace.
5. I think they will, but if the dogs have arrest or injury problems, we could be going down the same road.
6. YES! Stafford and Moreno were selfish players who only wanted a paycheck. Did you see them get upset after the Alabama, UF or Tech Loss. No! Cox will be a great leader and decision maker not a cocky overpowering Stafford, who threw picks b/c his ego was too big. The dogs will be much improved getting rid of their “stars”. They need team players who hate to lose and motivate the team. Stafford was awful, Cox should be much better. Now as talent wise, we will have to see .
braveswin
July 21st, 2009
2:55 pm
m, 45-42 the alpha and the omega……….
GoBigBlue
July 21st, 2009
3:00 pm
m- you do realize that Tech has only beaten UGA once in the last oh… I don’t even care how many years it’s been. I’m a Northern Michigan transplant who moved here two years ago, and I’ve got to say, I’m tired of all these Tech fans acting like a 3-point victory was the football equivalent of the Second Coming. Get over yourselves. You beat Georgia. By three points. And you gave up 42 points in doing so. It’s not like you won the National Title, you merely beat a team with an incredibly ‘banged up” defense. Honestly, I look for the “puppies” (as you Techies are so fond of calling them) to regain dominance over the Yellow Jackets.
Cincinatti Bowtie
July 21st, 2009
3:02 pm
GoBigBlue…you just made me a huge Michigan fan, WELL SAID. F OHIO STATE!!!!!!!
Iceman
July 21st, 2009
3:04 pm
Very good, Big Blue. WSB
DawginLex
July 21st, 2009
3:08 pm
m the idiot,
You are too stupid or too drunk to realize that the GT campus is the cesspool of the south. Moron. The smell surrounding that hellehole is not all coming from the Varsity.
What bus line you gonna ship Johnson out on when Richt shuts him up?
m
July 21st, 2009
3:09 pm
JB…you need to get out a little more often…no girders blocking views.
45-42…glad it hurts so bad.
braveswin
July 21st, 2009
3:10 pm
m, figured I had better translate for the mentally impaired 45-42 the beginning and the end.
m
July 21st, 2009
3:11 pm
(you know the tune)
To helle to helle to helle with georgia
To helle to helle to helle with georgia
To helle to helle to helle with georgia
THE CESSPOOL OF THE SOUTH
Cincinatti Bowtie
July 21st, 2009
3:12 pm
m, you make me laugh.
lakerat
July 21st, 2009
3:21 pm
You dawg fans, of which I am one, obviously have not been reading elsewhere on the AJC about the big sewage leak in Athens that is being fixed as I type – that is why m brought up the “cesspool of the South” lyrics. So, get over yourselves and laugh at the reality of the situation, for, right now, UGA is what it is!
DawginLex
July 21st, 2009
3:23 pm
A sewage leak in Athens is just that, a leak. Tech is still the cesspool of the south.
M gets credit for being stupid. That’s all I will ever give him credit for.
Geez, JB...
July 21st, 2009
3:23 pm
…when was the last time you went to Grant Field – the girders of which you speak were removed when they downsized their stadium about 20 years ago!
Huh?
July 21st, 2009
3:24 pm
For the record, I would rather walk knee deep in raw sewage than be caught anywhere on or near Georgia Tech’s campus after dark. True story.
harry dawg73
July 21st, 2009
3:26 pm
What is with all the crime in and around Tech? Robberies, gun play, Reuben Houston and his drug charges, Joey Hamilton and HIS drug charges, that Frosh recruit of two years ago with RAPE charges. Wow ……….. talk about a cess pool. The right stuff. HAHAHAHA
Go Dawgs !!
PS How many times has tech defeated UGA in say 50 years? Hmm? 12? 14? That illustrates that there is 0 rivalry. Just another game for the DAWGS !!!
Disgruntled Dawg
July 21st, 2009
3:27 pm
The Real Question is can Willie grow hair on his head? He sure the hell cant coach defense.
Jasper Stanks
July 21st, 2009
3:29 pm
Hey yalls didnt knows that dem dawgs always stanks?
Okefenokee. Dawg
July 21st, 2009
3:30 pm
m, you are giving idiots everywhere a bad name.
DEATHVALLEY
July 21st, 2009
3:37 pm
I’ve been working on the railroad. Nice team song!!! Im surprised you dont sing about milking BULLS and getting with SHEEP in your song. Way to be original UGA.
Mikey
July 21st, 2009
3:38 pm
The only burning question I have is why a dumass like m is trolling a GA blog.
ghost dawg
July 21st, 2009
3:41 pm
M the begining of the end of one in a row, and the start of 10+ in a row for the dawgs. Show some never before seen class sewer scum and slink back into depths never to be seen until the new tech coach fuels you futile to become meaningful to the dawgs.
Roger Dorn
July 21st, 2009
3:41 pm
Does anyone know if Erin Andrews will be working the Georgia vs Georgia Tech game this year? If so let me know what hotel she is staying at. Go Dawgs !!
DEATHVALLEY
July 21st, 2009
3:46 pm
Don’t start naming resent arrests. UGA losses that argument or wins which ever way you look at it.
DamnGoodDawg
July 21st, 2009
3:49 pm
Sorry to disappoint you m. But it doesn’t hurt “so bad”. It’s really funny to listen to you dips act like you are dominant over the Dawgs. For criminy sakes, your stupid coaches gave the players rings for a 3 point victory in which your opponent scored 42 points. Don’t you people know how pathetic you sound? Geez! You geeks are pathetic!
GoBigBlue
July 21st, 2009
3:55 pm
Not a problem. These Tech fans think that one win is so fantastic, it really tells you just how miserable their program has been for the last few years. Then again, they are a sometimes decent team stuck in an always crappy conference.
Saint Simons
July 21st, 2009
3:55 pm
45-42!!!!!!!!!!hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Uncle Eddie "Nothing but the best"
July 21st, 2009
3:56 pm
Dawg fans:
Remember, Tech fans are bad at talking S%*$ because if has been so many years since they have had something to brag about. One victory in 8 years by 3 points. Wow! You nerds are pathetic.
The UGA vs. GT game has been nothing to look forward to for so many years due to lack of competition. I am excited to know that you will be our 5th toughest game.
Sanjaya and Adam Lambert love GT.
Roger Down – You have issues
GoBigBlue – Great comment
Taint Simmons got beat up again this weekend so he will be unable to join
Uncle Eddie "Nothing but the best"
July 21st, 2009
3:57 pm
I was wrong, “Taint Simons is back.” What a tool!
Roger Dorn
July 21st, 2009
4:00 pm
Tech Nerds…….Can any of you design a camera that will film through a peep hole?
Uncle Eddie "nothing but the best"
July 21st, 2009
4:06 pm
Roger Dorn: Give em the heater Ricky!
GoBigBlue
July 21st, 2009
4:10 pm
I just decided to check out the numbers, since Tech is so thrilled over their BIG 45-42 victory last November… and for Tech to even up the point differential since 2002 they would have to score 88 points against UGA this year. UGA has outscored the Yellow Jackets 206-118 since that game in 2002. I imagine there are Tech fans still upset about a 51-7 beating. I’m not saying, I’m just saying…
Saint Simons
July 21st, 2009
4:14 pm
Hey Bill…..I have a “burning question” Why does the stuff that comes out of my CESSPOOL burn so much?
m
July 21st, 2009
4:15 pm
Saint…..you know the answer to that one. Its because of all the tool tickle piling you have been doing over the years.
Hunting Dawg
July 21st, 2009
4:16 pm
M nailed the Athens community with the Cesspool call. It’s obvious that M is better read than a large majority of the Dog fans on this blog.
45-42 Beginning and the End – OK techies, that’s getting tiresome considering you blind pigs finally found an acorn.
Why would Techies hang out in a Georgia Bulldog blog? It’s a helluva lot better than a Tech blog!
Nice blog Michigan fan but the Big Blue still stinks.I’m not wanting to use harsher terms in a public blog. Go OSU! Got to love Woody Hayes punching a Clemson player.
I am definitely concerned with the defense and whether or not they are going to step up and play like they need to this year. Last year was one of the most atrocious displays of poor playing and lack of discipline that I have seen out of any team that had the level of talent that UGA did.
Bill, thanks for remembering the special teams as that was also quite a sore spot. The Dawgs will be in some tight games this year and we will need the Blairs and Butlers to perform at an exceptional level.
Would some of my fellow dawg fans start reading about what is going on in the world a bit more often so you don’t look like such buffoons to N. Ave. Trade School kool-aid drinkers?
Go Dawgs!
SAINT SIMONS LIVES IN MOTHERS BASEMENT
July 21st, 2009
4:39 pm
SAINT SIMONS You’re seriously on here and the Dawg blog every day trying this hard to make tech look bad? Quit with the 45-42.. I mean come on man. The game was LAST NOVEMBER. Isn’t it time to move on yet? Doesn’t it hurt a little less every day? Everyone on here should realize Saint Simon’s is a lonely Dawg fan who’s too scared to show who he roots for on a blog. What a total douchebag. CANT SAY IT BETTER SO I DIDNT….
snot bubble
July 21st, 2009
5:02 pm
Youn know how they flush thye toilet at Grant field? They un-dam the creek………..
BurningRedBleedingBlack
July 21st, 2009
5:08 pm
GT= ghetto!!!!! Hey i want a PHD in Drug dealing or drive byes, or pimping!! I love the location of your school what a recruit maggnet. WOW your stadium is so big….oops i mean tiny yeah tiny. Cesspool yikes you guys go to school in the biggest cesspool possible!!! Hows that air smell in the morning fresh downtown slumville
Denver Dog
July 21st, 2009
5:16 pm
Maybe some of the real Techies will come on this blog and tell those yahoos to get off again. m, is an embarassment to everyone, not just the Techies. It is really an embarassment to this paper which lets it continue to blog on these blogs. It is a real emabarassment, and I wish the team he favors a lot of luck in all its games next year except for the last one. Time for a new streak, but those Techies like m need to realize THIS IS NEXT YEAR
snot bubble
July 21st, 2009
5:28 pm
How do they flush the toilets at Grant field? They dynamite the creek……..
SuperB
July 21st, 2009
6:13 pm
I have never seen such jealous people as all the GTekkies who keep crowing about one game, a 45-42 one at that.They are setting a new standard– for inferiority complex!
With the athletes Georgia gets vs. GT, the dawgs will dominate them in most games.
Dawg Tired
July 21st, 2009
10:21 pm
Hey guys – don’t judge Tech based on folks like m. I have many very good friends who went to Tech. In fact, I often go to games with them. They are good folks. For many years my best friend and I always went to the Tech – Georgia game together. He pulled for Tech while I pulled for Georgia. Our friendship has never suffered. He’s a class guy who is embarrassed by the m’s of the world. However, he takes solace in knowing that the m’s of the world never attended Tech. They’re wannabes.
Now as for the blog – Bill you’ve hit the key questions. I think it will be a very interesting season as we see these questions answered on the field of play (another place the m’s of the world have never been). Personally, I’m with David Hale on the DE problem. Without good DE play, you just can’t play good defense. Look no further than last season, especially, the Alabama, Florida and Tech games. Now , I admit Florida had a great offense last year, but not as good as we made them look. The other two melt downs came against the less than stellar offenses of Alabama and Tech. Both looked unbelievably good against us – primarily, although not solely, because of poor DE play. Both of those offenses performed poorly against their bowl teams. Don’t forget that we scored 52 points against LSU (although the defense scored twice – I think). We’ll find out right out of the gate about the defense when we go to Stillwater. Several preseason magazines have OK State listed as the best offense in the nation. When you consider that Tech scored 45 points without a passing attack against us last year, and Alabama scored 31 in the first half with an average QB, the first game looks scary to me. Trust me, OK State has a better QB and perhaps the best receiver in country.
Bottom line: if our DE play is poor, it will be a difficult season.
chazzo
July 21st, 2009
10:57 pm
Wow. Deja vu all over again…. I feel liked we have been talking about these questions all summer.
Joe
July 22nd, 2009
9:47 am
M is an Idiot jackette. M…..please tell me about 1-7……please tell me about 51-7 (still stings hahaha)…M please tell me about who OWNS the series….M…..you really are a Idoit arn’t you???