Who’s really getting no respect?
Steve Spurrier leaves field after defeat. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
Despite the closeness of Saturday night’s win over the Gamecocks, I think most UGA fans expected the Dogs to at least hold steady at last week’s No. 21 ranking in the polls, if not rise a notch or two. And we weren’t alone. Sporting News college football columnist Dave Curtis had predicted the Dogs would rise in the poll. “The Dawgs are a shaky squad bound to lose a couple more. But SEC wins are gold in the eyes of voters,” he wrote Sunday.
Instead, Georgia dropped two spots to No. 23. First impression of many at that news is that the voters just weren’t impressed by Georgia’s play against South Carolina.
And maybe that’s it, though that’s not really logical. I mean, the Dogs defense may have given up a lot of points, but they mostly were field goals thanks to good work in the red zone. Plus Georgia’s offense and special teams put up 41 points against what was considered one of the better defenses in the SEC. And the Dogs had two of the SEC’s players of the week in Brandon Boykin and Clint Boling. Usually, that kind of stuff is gold with the pollsters.
So why did the media poll drop Georgia? Could it be at least in part a reflection of the level to which Steve Spurrier has sunk in their eyes? Does beating the former Prince of Evil no longer count for much?
And then there’s our opening loss to Oklahoma State. When they were Top 5, it didn’t look so bad. But Houston revealed the former media darling Cowboys to be not so great after all. So our loss to them now looks pretty mediocre.
Not to worry. The polls tend to be pretty volatile the first half of the season and don’t really mean much right now. If the Dogs notch a few more wins, they’ll rise pretty quickly (though, let’s face it, Georgia won’t really be much of a factor in the rankings this year unless it wins the game no one expects it to win).
What do you think? Is the two-position fall a commentary on how unimpressive the Dogs’ win was … or on who they beat? Or should we even care?
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Guides
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2011 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
96 comments Add your comment
Cuz
September 14th, 2009
2:03 pm
I guess we are the Rodney Dangerfield of College football this year.
Pago Flyer
September 14th, 2009
2:08 pm
The DAWGS are just an average football team, even though we always have a Top Ten recruiting every year!!!!
Wiley
September 14th, 2009
2:11 pm
They think Stephen Garcia sucks, and he looked good against your defense. Tech moved up because Clemson is a team with alot of talent. Stop Crying about it. The polls dont matter anyway unless you have a shot at the National Title….and UGA has no shot.
merbertmoover
September 14th, 2009
2:16 pm
im hungry for sum bacon baby, u know what sayin? them hogs gonna be scared like a mouse in a mudpie, u know what im sayin?
Gary
September 14th, 2009
2:17 pm
Actually UGA moved up in the coaches poll from 21 to 20. The AP writers won’t have their act together for another 2-3 weeks when some separation is done. Some teams moved up when really their play would dictate otherwise.
coach smith
September 14th, 2009
2:18 pm
The Coach’s DID NOT DROP UGA….
Georgia MOVED UP from 21 to # 20 in the Coach’s poll (the only that matters)
Only the questionable agenda drive AP moved the Dawgs down for a win but moved UNC up for a 2 point win over UCONN on a last second Safety
Bill
September 14th, 2009
2:20 pm
When I saw that Georgia was dropped a couple of places, my initial response was that the voters have little respect for South Carolina.
L-Dawg
September 14th, 2009
2:21 pm
GLORY GLORY TO OLE’ GEORGIA!!!!
LOVE TO LOVE MY TEAM AS OPPOSED TO HATE/ENVY ANOTHER!!!!
GO DAWGS!!!!
5 DAYS TIL WE STICK IT TO ARKANSAS!!!!
Cuz
September 14th, 2009
2:23 pm
Arizona State vs UGA game on ESPNU. What the heck is ESPNU?
At least we don't have to play on Thursday night to get exposure.
September 14th, 2009
2:26 pm
<————————————
ESPNU=ESPN + University
Danga
September 14th, 2009
2:27 pm
I think Wiley has a point even though I think he may be overstating Clemson’s talent level. The rankings matter very little for this team right now. What matters right now is that they are 1-0 in the SEC, and that they get better every week. You can see the talent come out in explosive plays only to be wiped away a play or two later by a turnover or a penalty. If they can start cutting down on the errors this team will be a force to be reckoned with by the end of the season.
MIKE ON LAKE HARTWELL
September 14th, 2009
2:32 pm
i believe UNC dropped 5 spots from #19 to #24 with their win at
Connecticut. so it could be worse.
just win the games and dont worry about the polls, dawgs.
Barnacle Bill Bavasi
September 14th, 2009
2:34 pm
Folks aren’t UGA believers anymore for whatever reason. Something that used to tick me off is that years after Tennessee ceased being a national power, it would take a three-game losing streak to move them out of the Top-10.
JB
September 14th, 2009
2:39 pm
We laid an egg on the press last year. They( ALL national Press) put us on a pedestal last year and we fell on our face. Yes, I know MOST programs like Tech would kill for TEN wins, but The Bama game and Florida blow out and the self inflicted loss to a weak in State ACC team has put us in a bad light. We need more than our Rep to get us back. We need to play lights out football. Anyone see that happening this year ?
Cuz
September 14th, 2009
2:40 pm
I think the U in ESPNU stands for Unappreciated.
Eric C.
September 14th, 2009
2:43 pm
The 4 pt win and narrow escape at the end over SC shouldn’t have been a surprise to voters…must have been the OSU tarnish that dropped the Dawgs in the AP, which has gotten more liberal in recent years…remember their crowning of USC vs LSU in 2003-04.
Wow, last year’s game against AZSU was plantinum – ABC 800 pm, Musberger and Herbstreit – now this season it’s stuck on ESPNpU???? The scenario is obviously different this year, but if this is a result of the SEC network, then to he!! with the SEC network.
Denver Dawg
September 14th, 2009
2:44 pm
I will apologize to NO ONE for an SEC win – PERIOD. I have been following the Dogs since the ‘74 Tech game, and had never even HEARD of “win but drop in the polls” until the last couple of years, and it always seems to bite us! What is that s^&t? Tech almost blows a 24-point lead to an unranked Clemson team, and their teenager coach, in an ACC game, and goes UP in the polls, while we beat a Heisman Winner and Hall-of-Fame coach in an SEC game, and FALL in the polls? Something’s not right…
JB
September 14th, 2009
2:45 pm
Before Tech folks pulls their panties out the crack, I saw a Tech team almost lose at Home, on National TV, to a Very, very poorly coached Clemson team. Needed a horse shoe from a Ref to pull it out. 12-0. Never happen. Hell; I’m encouraged about the Dawgs play’em.
The Lone Tumpeter
September 14th, 2009
2:45 pm
Maybe other teams deserved the spots more than us? I don’t know why they dropped us but it really doesn’t matter. Just win em one game at a time and we will end up where we need to be. Dawg fans should know, it’s not where you start but where you finish.
RedandBlack
September 14th, 2009
2:46 pm
Coach Richt’s Bulldogs had their chance to perform on a national stage two weeks in a row. Coach Bobo and Coach Martinez have laid an egg in both games. The Dogs are loaded with talent, but they are NOT being coached properly once they get to Athens. Under performance, inconsistent play calling on Offense and Defense, plus more penalties equals inconsisent performance with the outcome of the game.
The players are hanging in there and playing their tails off. However, they need coaching to bring out development and performance. CMR really needs to adjust the play calling and then ultimately, his coaching staff. Come on Coach. Make the right calls. Go Dogs!!
DawginLex
September 14th, 2009
2:53 pm
red and black,
I’ll give you the egg laying for WM but good lord, Bobo called one of his better games in recent memory. 2008 LSU was better and the 2nd half of the VT bowl game in 2006 was about equal. The only thing I saw that made me mad was not running on the last drive on their 15 yard line. That led to the backside hit and fumble by cox that Thomas recovered. Run it 3 times there and I believe we score a TD.
I don’t get the lack of discipline on D. I can understand the bend but don’t break philosophy but dumb penalties are a sign of a lack of discipline.
guy
September 14th, 2009
2:54 pm
whats so hard to understand? you lost badly to a supposed ‘top 5′ team last week who then got obliterated by houston, thus your almost respectable loss gets downgraded to bad loss, and you fall in the polls.
bug
September 14th, 2009
2:57 pm
Tech is 2/0… Y’all try to keep up (you still #2 in the state!)
McDawg
September 14th, 2009
2:57 pm
win and it won’t matter-according to all the bloggers we loose again this week-prefer to be underrated than overrated
you can be loose, but you cannot loose
September 14th, 2009
3:02 pm
.
Tech alum
September 14th, 2009
3:08 pm
You UGA fans are always too sensitive about your ranking. It doesn’t mean squat this early in the year, and the same goes for Tech. If we show up Thursday night and play like we have the first 2 weeks, we won’t be in the top 25 long.
I think both UGA and GT should just be happy with the W and be hopeful that they can work out the kinks so that they can make a statement against a team that gets more respect. UGA has got loads of talent and I’m sure they’ll be hitting on all cylinders by the time they play us.
Its kind of sad to see all of the doom and gloom surrounding both programs when they’re both coming off conference wins against rival teams. Lets not go jumping off any bridges yet!
lawdawg(wsoh)
September 14th, 2009
3:09 pm
WHO CARES!
59bulldawg
September 14th, 2009
3:11 pm
I’ve got the mean dawggone low down Willie can’t make adjustments or coach worth a crap blues.
Habersham Dawg
September 14th, 2009
3:18 pm
Win and the polls will straighten out. Lose, and the polls won’t matter. Let’s see how the Dawgs do against the hawgs on Saturday and how the Bees do against Miami on Thursday.
gdawginkalamazoo
September 14th, 2009
3:23 pm
The OSU loss to Houston caused the problem. I think SC goes on to have a good year (make a bowl) (make a bowl game, not a bowl in art class).
Nothing against SOS everything to do with OSU. Drop by proxy loss is what I would call it.
Just keep winning baby and everything else will take care of itself.
Shane
September 14th, 2009
3:24 pm
Why do people lose sleep over these silly polls. They don’t mean anything. Just win the games and let the pieces fall where they may. The polls are there for tv ratings and bar discussions. The only poll that means anything comes out on January 11th after the BCS title game.
Hunting Dawg
September 14th, 2009
3:25 pm
Georgia does not deserve any respect until they step up and play to their potential on a CONSISTENT basis. UGA may win 10 games a year but typically there is general disappointment in how UGA wins 4 or 5, maybe more, of them each year. Saturday night was another example of how UGA was almost outcoached and outlpayed, yet again. I hate to say it but it was a lucky win.
How long are we going to settle for eeking out wins that should be definitive and demonstrative of the skill set of the players that are recruited annually. They’re supposed to be top 10 talent if you want to attach any merit to the recruiting polls.
I certainly love the Dawgs but frankly I’m growing very tired of the upper level mediocrity,with some luck thrown in, that is exhibited for the better part of the football season, year in and year out. Yes, most programs would be very happy with 9-10 win seasons but is Georgia like most programs or do they truly strive to be among the best.
The coaching on the sideline leads to the execution on the field. Analysts say that Georgia does not execute. Do we need to look at the coaching? OCMB, DCWM and yes, dare I say, CMR? Yes!!!!!
I think CMR is a fine, fine, individual and a good coach who wants the best for the players that he recruits. I think that is very important and admirable but he needs to light a fire under somebody’s keester and wake this program up. It may be his own that needs to be lit up and maybe he needs to stop being the consumate gentleman and coach with a little more edge. There was a brief exhibit of that in 2007 when the whole team took the field in the Florida game. The gist of all that is that he didn’t mean for the WHOLE team to do it, just the offense. A misinterpreted directive fired up the whole team for the remainder of the season and led to a #2 ranking. We need to see more directives like that and win in a more decisive manner on a consistent basis.
We will then get respect and we will once again be relevant to the college football world.
Wow, can’t believe I went on a rant like that!
Go Dawgs!
Mikey
September 14th, 2009
3:25 pm
The U over the bugs Thursday night by 2 TD’s.
The media :
September 14th, 2009
3:28 pm
Coach Gundy, is it true that your players goy caught up in the lofty air of a number 5 ranking and took Houston too lightly?
Coach Gundy- THAT AINT TRUE !!
Mikey
September 14th, 2009
3:28 pm
Good one Coach Gundy !
Spike
September 14th, 2009
3:31 pm
SCrew the polls. Just win and they will take care of themselves. Lou Holtz can bite me!
William
September 14th, 2009
3:34 pm
The reason they dropped in the poles is WILLIE MARTINEZ! With Willie, UGA makes less than average offenses look BCS bound. If you like a loser because he is wearing your kind of shirt, then you are a happy puppy. CMR reminds me of an old saying “the good die young”!
Shane
September 14th, 2009
3:34 pm
Oh and to Bug who stated that UGA was #2 in the state behind Tech. I got news for you brau UGA could go 0-12 and would still be #1 in this state. I know it kills you that you will always be #2 but you will be.
P.S. Not everyone has the pleasure of scheduling that powerhouse Jax. St every year.
P.S.S. 4 tix 4 hot dogs 4 cokes for $4 dollors. Pleeeease come to our game so we won’t embarrass ourselves on ESPN with an empty stadium.
wardamneagle
September 14th, 2009
3:35 pm
BK-
You’re a damn fool. Georgia dropped in the polls because they should have lost that game. SC did everything in the power to give it away with the refs helped…two TD throws called back, blanket penalties…etc.
Georgia will be out of the top 25 after this next week.
Shane
September 14th, 2009
3:36 pm
i was kidding about my last comment. i’m a fat redneck p.o.s.
Spike
September 14th, 2009
3:37 pm
HuntingDawg.. Don’t feel badly. Your comments are right on.
Spike
September 14th, 2009
3:37 pm
HuntingDawg.. Don’t fell badly. Your comments are right on.
RAMBLE ON!!!
September 14th, 2009
3:37 pm
JB wrong on every account, again.
William
September 14th, 2009
3:40 pm
Hunting Dawg
September 14th, 2009
3:25 pm
You point real good! You got the problem treed! Good post.
gdawginkalamazoo
September 14th, 2009
3:42 pm
wardamneagle, glad to see you guys back running smack it has been awhile. Now go beat somebody so that we know you are for real.
Tech alum
September 14th, 2009
3:43 pm
Shane, nice comment about us playing Jacksonville State. Did you happen to notice the Tennessee Tech game on your schedule?? Don’t be stupid and act like you guys don’t ever have any cupcake games on your schedule. You have em every year.
PMC
September 14th, 2009
3:44 pm
It’s all meaningless at this point. If they win games they’ll rise eventually.
Sanford Drive
September 14th, 2009
3:45 pm
Why WOULDN’T we drop a few spots? Frankly, I think the number 23 spot is pretty friendly considering we lost to OSU (who apparently sucks) and we won against a mediocre South Carolina team. Whoop-A-Dee-Doo!
Eventually, we’ll drop out of the top 25 altogether, so I wouldn’t really worry about it.
reebok
September 14th, 2009
3:49 pm
Tech fan here. I don’t think your team should have dropped in the polls…a win over a conference rival shouldn’t hurt. That being said, polls don’t mean squat this time of year. If you find a way to beat LSU and Florida, rankings will take care of themselves. In the meantime, good luck against Arkansas and we’ll see you on The Flats in November!
reebok
September 14th, 2009
3:49 pm
But by the way, Okie State is a pretty bad team.