Five Favorite Bulldogs in the Pros
Fran the Man. (Minnesota Vikings)
Let’s talk about Dogs in the pros.
A lot of UGA fans follow Bulldog players’ NFL careers closely and no doubt will be tuning in to the Pro Bowl this weekend, where Champ Bailey of the Broncos will be representing UGA. (Jon Stinchcomb of the Saints also would be in the game but he’s on a Super Bowl team.)
The list of other Bulldogs who’ve been selected for the Pro Bowl in the past includes, among others, such names as Broncos Super Bowl MVP and noted Chunky soup fan Terrell Davis, Rodney Hampton, Garrison Hearst, Len Hauss, Jimmy Orr, Mo Lewis, Guy McIntyre, Richard Seymour, Charley Trippi and Bobby Walston. And I’d long forgotten this, but in his very brief pro career with the Falcons, kicker Bobby Etter actually made the 1970 Pro Bowl.
(That also brings to mind probably the most unlikely Bulldog to grace an NFL roster: Ray Jeffords, who was a basketball player for the Dogs that the Falcons decided to draft as a tight end in 1968 for unfathomable reasons. Ah, Falcons draft history!)
Anyway, while on the subject of Bulldogs in the NFL, I thought I’d offer my highly subjective list of all-time pro Dogs. I don’t know if I’d classify them as the “best” so much as my “favorite” Bulldogs to play pro ball.
1. Fran Tarkenton, a fellow Athenian and one of only two Dogs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (the other being Charley Trippi, whose playing days I’m too young to remember).
2. Jake Scott of the great undefeated Dolphins team. Another product of the Athens YMCA, too.
3. Bill Stanfill, also on that Dolphins team.
4. Hines Ward, Steelers Super Bowl MVP.
5. Herschel Walker, whose combined rushing numbers for the USFL and the NFL (13,787 yards) would place him fifth on the NFL’s career rushing list if the USFL yards were counted (which they aren’t).
There’ve been a lot of other great Dogs in the pros. Who are your favorites?
BULLDOG BITES
Following up on Friday’s discussion about how UGA fans feel about Derek Dooley coaching Tennessee and his father’s mixed emotions about seeing his son go up against the Dogs, Vince Dooley was in Albany for the Quail Unlimited Celebrity Quail Hunt and told the Albany Herald that he doesn’t think he’ll attend the Oct. 9 home game between Georgia and his son’s Vols. “I’ve really decided now that I will sit home and watch the game,” he said. “I think that I’ll be a little bit of a distraction going to the game, so I’ll watch it at home on TV.” … UGA football historian Patrick Garbin notes that 118 years ago on this date UGA played its very first football game, a 50-0 victory over Mercer, attended by a crowd of 1,500 at what eventually became known as Herty Field in Athens. We’ve come a long way since then.
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232 comments Add your comment
Brian in Athens
January 30th, 2010
3:47 pm
All this nonsense about Hershel not being productive in the NFL is a joke. He had the most productive career of any Bulldog in the NFL ever, just look at the numbers and make an argument why not.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_National_Football_League_all-purpose_yards_leaders
In 12 NFL seasons, Walker gained 8,225 rushing yards, 4,859 receiving yards, and 5,084 kickoff-return yards.[11] This gave him 18,168 total combined net yards, ranking him second among the NFL’s all-time leaders in total yardage at the time of his retirement; as of the start of the 2007 NFL season, ten years after his retirement, he still ranks eighth.[12] He also scored 84 touchdowns: 61 rushing, 21 receiving and two kick off returns for touchdowns.[11] Walker is the only player to have 10,000+ yards from scrimmage and 5,000+ return yards (all of which were on kickoff returns). He is the only player to gain 4,000 yards three different ways: rushing, receiving, and kickoff returns. He is one of six players (Jim Brown, Lenny Moore, Marcus Allen, Marshall Faulk, and Thurman Thomas) to exceed 60 touchdowns rushing and 20 touchdowns receiving. Another NFL record he possesses is that he is the only player with a 90+ yard reception, 90+ yard run, and a 90+ yard kickoff return all in the same season (1994). He is also the only player to record an 84+ yard touchdown run and an 84+ yard touchdown reception, in the same game (December 14, 1986). That same day, he had 100 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving. Walker is currently ranked eighth all time in all-purpose yards with 18,168, despite spending his first three seasons in the USFL.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
4:20 pm
“UGA is clearly as good or better than any SEC team over last 9 years.”
LSU, FL, Alabama all have National Titles in the past 9 years. UGA has…….ZERO.
TN, Alabama and Auburn have all gone undefeated in the last 15 years.
UGA has gone undefeated…………ZERO times since 1980.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
4:22 pm
Hines Ward hands down, is the greatest UGA football player of all-time. Yeah, Herschell won the Heisman but didn’t do anything great in the NFL.
Hines Ward played almost every position at UGA and gave 110%.
I absolutely despise UGA but I LOVE Hines Ward. Great player and great person.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
4:25 pm
“I was merely stating FACT …not arguing. How does a list of FACTS constitute an argument?”
FACT: UGA has not come close to winning a national title since 1980.
Only 6 schools have gone undefeated in the past 30 years.
Auburn-1993, 2004
Alabama-1992, 2009
UT- 1998
UGA-1980
I would put 2004 Auburn numbers up against LSU, FL, UGA, Alabama and TN national title teams.
tenn. junkie
January 30th, 2010
4:30 pm
1980. ga. 1998 tenn. 2005? lsu. 2009 2007 fla. auburn recently i know. see y ga sucks. 30 yrs is a loooooooooooooong time. a lot longer for you guys. i wouldnt know. and being in top ten is great but its like a virgin dating a quadlapedric. sucks dont it?
tenn. junkie
January 30th, 2010
4:32 pm
no response? understand. and i have bad spelling! ga sucksssssssssssssssssss.
RomeDawg
January 30th, 2010
4:33 pm
Gotta love some Hines Ward! Each play is played like it may be his last. I also like Todd Wheeler. He was a center at Georgia and the Saints and was one of the last captains for Dooley. He also went to my high school and came back to coach there. Good Guy!
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
4:36 pm
tenn. junkie
Auburn actually claims 4 national titles including 2004. Why not? Bama claims 13 even though 5 of those were questionable.
HUNKER DOWN
January 30th, 2010
4:47 pm
Wow! That is a tough question. Fran Tarkenton was childhood hero of mine. Great scrambler and ball player but never won a Super Bowl. Herschel is, well Herschel. Only a handful of rb’s in his league and I agree he never received due credit in the pros. Jake Scott was the ROnnie Lott of his era and would flat light you up. He was a wr nightmare when they heard him coming. Guy McIntyre who was the cornerstone of the 49er’s all those years protecting Montana and winning Super Bowls was about as good as you get at OL. Hear some much about Stanfill when talking about the greats but don’t recall maybe before my time not sure. But my vote would have to go to HInes Ward. Super Bowl MVP and big time player on the biggest stage!
patrick
January 30th, 2010
4:51 pm
Dan……..Ummm you are a moron. The 12-1 was PREBOWL record. They dont invite you or consider you to a NC Game AFTER YOU GO TO A BOWL. Come on man
Mr. Poynter
January 30th, 2010
4:53 pm
1. Jim Murray
2. Red Smith
3. Damon Runyon
4. Tom Boswell
5. Bill King ( Yoo Hoo!! , Blogger BBQ Saucer, More puddin’ maam? Turnip seedin’).
6. Nope to #5
patrick
January 30th, 2010
4:59 pm
smash……UGA had same record when they won the SEC title in 2002 as Fla did in 2006/8 when they won the SEC title. But UGA had the misfortune (luck) to have that record in a year that had 2 other teams with undefeated records.
But finished 3rd.
UGA finished 2nd in 2007. So second is not even sniffing a title? You are moronic
MountainDawg
January 30th, 2010
5:05 pm
1) Fran, 2) Patton, 3) Hoage, 4) Stanfill, 5) Kevin Butler.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
5:08 pm
“UGA finished 2nd in 2007. So second is not even sniffing a title? You are moronic”
Look retard, UGA in 2007 DIDN’T WIN THEIR DIVISION, DIDN’T WIN THE SEC AND LOST TWO GAMES.
HARDLY “SNIFFING ” A TITLE. MORON.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:08 pm
Dan….smash…..
Other than NC games that are voted on and are mainly by popularity or when you last lost or whether you are lucky or unlucky enuff to have one loss when 2 or more teams have zero losses name a SEC team with a better record than the one posted below. I will wait.
Vs. SEC foes: 43-22
Vs. Top 25 foes: 29-18
Vs. Top 25 foes away from home: 18-12
Vs. Top 10 foes: 8-6
Vs. Top 10 foes away from home: 8-6
In postseason games (bowls and championships): 9-3
In games decided by a touchdown or less: 34-14
Record at home: 47-9
Record on the road: 27-6
Losses to unranked teams: 6
Top 25 finishes: 8
Top 10 finishes: 6
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:12 pm
and oh by the way moron….Oklahoma didnt win their division but got VOTED into the NC.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:14 pm
Hey smash……………I guess OU didnt sniff a NC WHILE PLAYING IN ONE! After not winning their division? There are morns that get by with being morons becasue they dont print moronic stuff on a blog and their are morons that EXPOSE themselves by posting moronic stuff on a blog. Guess which you are.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:16 pm
Hey smash……………I guess OU didnt sniff a NC WHILE PLAYING IN ONE!….. After not winning their division? There are morons that get by with being morons because they dont print moronic stuff on a blog and there are morons that EXPOSE themselves by posting moronic stuff on a blog. Guess which you are.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
5:16 pm
“There are morns that get by with being morons becasue they dont print moronic stuff on a blog and their are morons that EXPOSE themselves by posting moronic stuff on a blog. Guess which you are.”
1: Calling someone a moron when you yourself can’t even spell makes you…….a retard.
2: UGA didn’t win their division, their conference and lost to two bad teams that year.
3: LSU won their division and won the SEC.
4: You suck.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:18 pm
smash……still waiting on the better record.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:18 pm
I corrected the spelling.(done by typing to fast). You cant correct being stupid.
South GA Dawg
January 30th, 2010
5:20 pm
Where are you putting Royce Smith, the great lineman, Terry Hoage and Andy Johnson?
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:21 pm
Still waiting on the better record.
And oh by the way…..LSU lost 2 times during a UGA 7 game winning streak to end the season. LSU lost its last regular season game clearly UGA was the better team. Also, the VERY NEXT year UGA hung 55 points on them with basically the same players from the year before.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:22 pm
OWNED
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:23 pm
SMASH………………STILL WAITING for the SEC team that has a record better than the one I posted about UGA over the last 9 years.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:27 pm
OK I will repost the record at UGA under Mark Richt. Feel free to find a better record and let me know. lets focus on actual records not BCSSNC popularity lucky to get into BCSNC one game playoffs.
Vs. SEC foes: 43-22
Vs. Top 25 foes: 29-18
Vs. Top 25 foes away from home: 18-12
Vs. Top 10 foes: 8-6
Vs. Top 10 foes away from home: 8-6
In postseason games (bowls and championships): 9-3
In games decided by a touchdown or less: 34-14
Record at home: 47-9
Record on the road: 27-6
Losses to unranked teams: 6
Top 25 finishes: 8
Top 10 finishes: 6
Fact:………UGA was 12-1 in 2002 (prior to bowl selections)
.
Fact ………Fla was 12-1 in 2006 (prior to bowl selections)
.
Fact ………Not UGAs fault there were 2 unbeatens that year. “unlucky”
.
Fact……….Not Flas credit that there was only one unbeaten in 2006. “Lucky”
.
Fact:………Luck not merit had more to do with Fla getting invited to the BCS than whether Fla was more deserving to go to a NC with identical records.
.
Fact:………No SEC team has ever lost a NC game and if UGA would have been invited nothing indicates that it would have been different
.
Fact……….UGA has 2 SEC titles..same as Fla in last 9 years and equal wins over all.
.
Fact……….UGA has been ranked more times top ten in last 9 years than any SEC team.
.
UGA 90 wins in 9 years no other SEC team has more.
.
UGA has 2 SEC titles…same as Fla
.
UGA has won 4 str8 bowls….more than any other SEC team.
.
UGA has won 11 of last 13 bowls…more than any team tied with LSU and more than FLA
.
UGA has won 8 or more games in last 13 years…more than any other team.
.
UGA has been ranked more times in top ten than any SEC team over last 9 years.
.
UGA is clearly as good or better than any SEC team over last 9 years. Only a fool or a fan of the mythical BCSNC selection process (non playoff) would think otherwise.
.
PERIOD.
2 times finished in the top 3
3 SEC Championship Appearances
2 SEC Titles
3 BCS Bowls
2 Sugar Bowl wins
90-27 record over 8 seasons – 79% winning percentage (one of only 7 in the history of college ball to
have ever accomplished this)
4 str8 bowl wins
7-2 in bowls (big games)
Mark Richt coached QB coach for Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke = 2 Heismans; Head Coach for David Greene = all time winningest college QB until Colt McCoy this year); and coached Matthew Stafford = very rich #1 draft pick)
No Probations
He has my respect.
Period.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
5:29 pm
how long should I wait for the SEC team with a better record? Oh I know…..WHEN THERE ACTUALLY IS ONE!
Diggity Dawg
January 30th, 2010
5:31 pm
1. Hines Ward 2. Hines Ward (Yes, that was intentional. Agree with everything positive that has been said about him. 3. Kevin Butler 4. Terrell Davis 5. Herschel (Sorry, the USFL was a great story in its day, but it put him behind for the rest of his career.))
Bill King
January 30th, 2010
5:33 pm
South GA Dawg:
It was only my top five so I couldn’t mention everyone, but a lot of other Bulldogs, including Andy Johnson (my old junior high and high school classmate), would definitely make it on a longer list.
Bill King
January 30th, 2010
5:41 pm
Dawg stuck in Bham:
Yes, Hines Ward made the Pro Bowl 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005. The names I mentioned were not an inclusive list of those who had been in the Pro Bowl. There’s a bunch more.
And, of course, Hines did make my favorite five.
pat daug
January 30th, 2010
5:43 pm
and the only undefeated team in 90 was………
Dawg
January 30th, 2010
5:53 pm
Thomas Davis!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
5:58 pm
“STILL WAITING for the SEC team that has a record better than the one I posted about UGA over the last 9 years.”
And………..ZERO National Championships in the last 9 years.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:01 pm
patrick
Do you even realize that NO ONE gives a crap about UGA except UGA fans?
No one is college football talks about UGA except for the fact that they lose to TN and FL on a regular basis.
Fact: UGA has not come close to playing for a national title since 1980.
Fact: UGA has not been “screwed” out of playing for a national title since 1980.
Fact: FL OWNS UGA!!!!!!! TN OWNS UGA!!!!!!!
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:04 pm
“and the only undefeated team in 90 was………”
There were no undefeated teams in 1990.
GT didn’t go undefeated. They tied one game with Duke……………….
To go undefeated, a team has to WIN every single game.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:05 pm
“how long should I wait for the SEC team with a better record?”
You mean like FL 06, Fl 08, LSU 03, Auburn 04, Alabama 09?
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:07 pm
“David Greene = all time winningest college QB until Colt McCoy this year”
LOLOL!!!!!
Colt McCoy is a MUCH better QB than Greene. As is Tim Tebow, Sam Bradford, Matt Leinart etc……….
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:10 pm
“UGA has been ranked more times in top ten than any SEC team over last 9 years.”
How many times has UGA been ranked in the top 10 in 9 seasons?
Auburn finished in the top ten twice in 9 years.
Florida finished 3 or 4 times in the top ten in 9 years.
LSU has finished 4 times in the top ten in 9 years.
Alabama has finished 3 times in the top ten in 9 years.
How many has UGA finished in the top ten in 9 years?
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:26 pm
UGA finished 6 times top ten in last 9 years. Duh
2001 uga #22
2002 UGA #3
2003 UGA #7
2004 UGA #7
2005 UGA #10
2006 UGA #23
2007 UGA #2
2009 UGA #10
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:30 pm
actually that was supposed to be 2008 at #10. typo
dawgonit
January 30th, 2010
6:32 pm
Mo Lewis!!!! That was a football player. And a Dawg that not many people ever talk about.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:33 pm
So thats 6 times. However, the 2008 team finished 10th in USC today/coaches poll but 13th in AP. Which (I know you cant count so I will help you out) is 5 times AP….. 6 times coaches poll top ten. MORE THAN ANY OTHER SEC TEAM!. Now I am still waiting for the SEC team with a better statistical record over the last 9 years. Shall I have to wait for long?
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:34 pm
in “USAtoday/coaches poll”"
dawgonit
January 30th, 2010
6:36 pm
Smashmeesha doesn’t care about UGA football. He just reads every post on the Dawg blog. And by the way, even though I’m a dawg fan, a tie does not keep you from being undefeated. Being defeated keeps you from being undefeated. Duh.
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:42 pm
dawgonit……I know….I just like exposing idiot haters.
Smash…still waiting…..should I order pizza? It may take you awhile…or forever since there is not a SEC team with numbers that are better than UGA over the last 9 years. “Gump your a god dam genius”
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:42 pm
patrick
2001 uga #22
2002 UGA #3
2003 UGA #7 WRONG!!!! UGA ranked 12
2004 UGA #7
2005 UGA #10 WRONG!!!!! UGA ranked 12
2006 UGA #23
2007 UGA #2
2009 UGA #10 WRONG!!!!! UGA was not ranked.
2008 UGA ranked 13th.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:43 pm
“Smashmeesha doesn’t care about UGA football. He just reads every post on the Dawg blog.”
I just have fun debunking idiotic UGA claims.
Smashsmeesha Bobeesha
January 30th, 2010
6:45 pm
“Smash…still waiting…..should I order pizza?”
Well, you do deliver pizzas, so go ahead for all I care.
By the way, you have the WORST grammar. That is a true sign of a UGA fan. Bad grammar and bad language.
dawgonit
January 30th, 2010
6:46 pm
Smash, that says a lot about the life you live. That is a worthy goal. One that I too would be striving for on a Saturday night. Congrats!
patrick
January 30th, 2010
6:47 pm
hey moron….i CORRECTED IT… it was a typo…notice the 8 and 9 is next to each other and my fingers merely hit the wrong key. AND 2008 UGA was ranked 10th in the poll that your precious BCS uses.
! not even a minute after. But even WITHOUT 2008/9 UGA was ranked top ten 5 times……STILL MORE THAN ANY OTHER SEC TEAM. Jesus you would think after getting EXPOSED time after time you would go to a corner and cry.