Logan Gray still might be fielding punts? Really!?!
If Logan Gray isn't the starting quarterback, he'll likely remain Mr. Fair Catch. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
Punt returns were an up and down thing last season for the Dogs.
While Prince Miller was always a threat to break a long one and did just that a few times, Georgia spent a good portion of the season not even trying to return punts, sometimes even sending backup quarterback Logan Gray in to fair catch when he wasn’t backed up deep in his own territory. And everyone in the stadium knew Gray wasn’t going to even attempt a return.
Will we see improvement in that aspect of the game in 2010? Hard to tell from the way Mark Richt was talking Tuesday as spring practice resumed in Athens.
On the one hand, Richt indicated that speedy but undersized Carlton Thomas, who is working No. 3 at tailback behind Caleb King and Washaun Ealey, is likely to be used on both kickoff and punt returns. That sounds like a great move, as Thomas is most dangerous in open space.
But at the same time, Richt said that if Gray doesn’t win the starting QB job, he’ll likely be back there again fair-catching punts. “When we’re backed up and you’ve got a guy at his heels on the 10-yard line to decide should I field it or let it go, he did a very good job of that last year, and that’s kind of a hard thing to teach,” Richt told reporters.
As Seth Meyers might say, really, Mark Richt? Really!?!
I’m with the Senator on this. There isn’t anyone else on the roster other than one of your quarterbacks who can judge when to catch a punt and when to let it roll? Or wave his hands over his head and cleanly catch the ball?
On top of that, Richt said of Gray: “I’m not counting him out for any other special teams, either. Just depends on how this QB race goes.”
That should be a troubling thought to anyone who paid attention to Gray acting as the safety on the Dogs’ woeful kickoff return team last season. When the other guys were breaking a long one, as happened all too often, Gray was usually well out of the play. Which is just as well as he didn’t show much in the way of tackling skills. Not that you’d expect him to. He’s a quarterback!
Even with Jon Fabris gone, the thinking still seems kinda fuzzy in Athens when it comes to special teams.
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88 comments Add your comment
AltamahaDawg
March 17th, 2010
3:49 pm
Bill, Bill, Bill. can’t let it go can you? One of the more accross the board solid special team programs in the SEC in for a decade now, with rare isolated issues, and you still accuse Richt of ignoring it.
Camden Mark
March 17th, 2010
4:39 pm
How can you bad mouth a kid for doing whats asked of him?
I take it you don’t think much of Logan?
college is forever
March 17th, 2010
4:40 pm
http://www.collegelunchboxes.com My ham and cheese felt like royalty being transported in my UGA classic tin lunchbox until I woofed it down it three bites, then it felt like a yellow jacket.
Go Dawgs!!
Dawg 39
March 17th, 2010
4:44 pm
Except for the kick off coverage team we have been one of the best special teams team. That problem will be rectified this year. Special teams will be a Dawg strength from now on.
Gratefuldawghead
March 17th, 2010
4:46 pm
I would love to see Logan play tight end or come out of backfield and catch some passes.
yeehaw8687
March 17th, 2010
4:48 pm
If we move Gray to reciever he might have a bad habit of throwing his hand up before he catches the ball!!!
Move Over
March 17th, 2010
4:59 pm
Honestly, I think you’ll see the exact same thing from Gray this year as we have ever since he’s been at UGA. A bunch of standing around with a headset on, maybe go out there and fair catch a punt every now and then. A punt returner he’s not so I don’t know why anyone, including himself, is wasting time with that bit. He’s a serviceable QB, but nothing to write home about. Murray is light years better in my opinion and I believe he’ll win the starting job. No offense to Logan, but personally I think polar bears have a better chance of surviving on the Masai Mara in the hot Kenya sun than he does to nail down the starting QB spot.
bruce mac
March 17th, 2010
5:24 pm
Some of this and some of that. Maybe here maybe there. Unbelievable. Good thing we didn’t go out and hire a real big time Special Teams coach. We will continue to be less than we should be on Special Teams. A loss here and a loss there. Who cares, we can always play in the Chik Fillet Bowl.
TampaDawg
March 17th, 2010
6:09 pm
Some of these comments about Murray being injury prone are killing me. What is it based off of?? He broke his leg his senior year of h.s. came back and led his team to a state championship that same season. He had tendinitis last yr for a little bit. I don’t feel like those 2 injuries constitute labeling this kid “injury prone”. Trust me, the kid is a baller and will do whatever it takes to win. That’s who we need leading our offense at UGA. GATA!
Logan's the bkup
March 17th, 2010
6:15 pm
The remarks about Met is how much he has improved, his decision making, his footwork, him having a better grasp on the playbook, etc. With that verbiage being thrown around, it sure doesn’t sound that Met is ready as of yet. The guy played under 3 or 4 coaches/systems in H.S. and didn’t have a chance to be proficient at any of them. Maybe in another year, or maybe the coaches are holding out against all hope that he’ll speed up the learning process by the fall. If Gray was the backup last year, then he’ll probably is going to be the backup this year, or until Met can stand on his own. Sounds like it’s Murray’s job to loose.
layinlow
March 17th, 2010
6:36 pm
Is this head coach brain dead? I mean, I’ve never seen a head coach who was so apathetic towards special teams. Has Richt not seen what guys like Beamer have done on special teams. How many close games have the Hokies turned into wins with big special teams plays? Hire a freakin special teams coach and put some damn emphasis on that faze of the game!!! I used to be a big Mark Richt fan but any coach who under values special teams or any other part of the game just doesn’t get it. Richt’s first few years in athens were inspiring and the Dawgs played with an edge but that is now long gone. What happened? Richt just seems to be to passive to be a big time SEC coach.
The Watergirl
March 17th, 2010
6:41 pm
Enter your comments here
The Watergirl
March 17th, 2010
6:44 pm
Really Coach we can’t teach one of our speed guys to stand on the ten and if the ball is over your head let it go!! We need to recruit smarter athletes if we can’t get someone to understand
My question is what about the times when Logan was in there fair catching on the 50
DawginLex
March 17th, 2010
7:07 pm
The first time we put someone else back there and he fumbles inside the 15 yard line and 2 plays later they score, you will all be clamoring for Gray to be back there.
It’s about protecting the football and VALUING IT!!
Should be the theme for the entire 2010 team given the fact we threw a gazillion interceptions last year.
11-3 GT
March 17th, 2010
7:31 pm
………..Josh Nesbitt for Heisman………..
redblack&blue
March 17th, 2010
8:32 pm
ugagrad04, No you are not the only fan who worries about next season. There are just two many unanswered questions. We have some good talent returning but we also lost some talent. And QB is a big queston. Look at the rest of the SEC and there are teams that are getting alot better.
Buckhead Bulldog
March 17th, 2010
9:11 pm
Who keeps saying he needs to be on the field at all? Seriously, has anyone actually SEEN any of this “great” athletic ability in person or just read/listened to the media hype? It could be true but I sure as heck have not seen anything other then one long bomb in the G-Day game last year. Who says he is better then the other guy that was recruited for that position in the first place? Something does not add up for me with this cat. Where is all of this “We HAVE to get Logan on the field…get Logan in…Logan, Logan blah blah etc.”. What the heck is that all about? Not to knock the kid, and I hope I’m completely wrong, but he hasn’t done jack from I’ve seen. Granted, what I’ve seen has been limited to G-Day, a few reps at QB, and a few fair catches in games so I’m hoping there is something going down on the practice field that we ain’t seeing. There is a reason I’m in the stands and not on the field coaching, so could someone explain the fascination with this kid?
SOUTHGADAWG88
March 17th, 2010
9:38 pm
What is the problem?If the kid is not the starter at QB play him where he can contribute.For the record about the UGA terrible special teams..the KR average was one of the best in the country,the punt return unit was one of the best in the SEC,we lead the league in touchbacks on KO’s ..the problem was the KO COVERAGE UNIT SUCKED!That’s it..we have two of the best kickers and the premiere kick returner in the SEC in Boykin…so ease up on all the terrible special teams play please!
Mountain Dawg
March 17th, 2010
10:20 pm
I, for one among many, will be glad when the egotostical Mr. Gray is gone. It seems that hardly a day passes that we are not burdened with yet another episode of his yanking the coaches chains about something. I’ll never understand wny they put up with it. He obviously is not talented enough to play ANY position no matter where he is tried. I had hoped we would spend Spring practice working on our many glaring deficiencies and trying to improve instead of trying to jam this square peg into a round hole. He is nothing but a distraction and a hindrance to our progress.
BT
March 17th, 2010
10:40 pm
GET THIS GUY SOME REPS AT RECEIVER!
HE IS NOT OUR QB!
HE IS NOT NOR WILL EVER BE A THREAT TO BREAK OFF A PUNT RETURN!
I DON’T LIKE THE FACT THAT HE WANTS TO WEAR FLASHY CLEATS LIKE HE’S DEON “PRIMETIME” SANDERS!
IS HE A QB, A LEADER, OR JUST SOME OTHER “ME” ON A TEAM OF “ME”S?!
TAKE A LOOK AT THE LACK OF DISCIPLINE, THE DREADS, THE DIFFERENT PAIRS OF SHOES ALL OVER THE TEAM!
AltamahaDawg
March 17th, 2010
11:00 pm
THANKS for saying that Dawg 39. Been saying that myself, a lot. I will tell you though, you can point out how really good our special teams have been, and nobody will argue with you. Yet somehow its still quite popular to moan about how horrible they have been.
dawgfan
March 17th, 2010
11:01 pm
I don’t see a problem. The guy is a great athlete. He’s just not starting QB material. If he isn’t on special teams he’ll be riding the pine. His talents will be wasted. That isn’t good coaching.
Logan Gray was never going to be our starting QB in a million billion years. That should have been obvious the first time he took the field to return a punt. Now its looking like back up QB might not even be an option. So let’s just let him hold a clipboard on the sidelines instead of doing something he is very good at like fielding punts? Uh. Okay.
Class dismissed.
AltamahaDawg
March 17th, 2010
11:08 pm
And on the subject, why exactly is it a problem for Logan Gray to field punts in certain situations? Or in this case, practicing. The fact that it is unusual to have a back-up QB doing that would tell you that he must have demonstrated an unmistakable ability to do so.. I guess I missed the actual case against it.
AltamahaDawg
March 17th, 2010
11:13 pm
I just scanned up and saw a couple of “we have terrible special teams” and “Mark Richt doesnt care about it”. I am hereby open and willing to listen to any rational proof of that being remotely true……Begin.
AltamahaDawg
March 17th, 2010
11:50 pm
And its a pretty easy task to look up the names of the players that UGA does put on its special teams squads, and categorizing them as a bunch of walk-on is just plain uninformed.
UGA was 4th in punt return average in 09. Better than UF. Bama was #2 but only 5 yards better and one whole TD, hardly won them the NC. (and worse than UGA in KO coverage fwiw)
KO return was actually a far worse area for UGA than punt return last year, and dont tell me we didnt have our fastest, best atheletes back there fielding those.
Oh yea, #1 in the SEC in punt return the year before. Yes better than UF who got all the praise, including from many UGA fans who have fooled themselves into believing that Urban knows something Mark doesnt about special teams. UF special teams have been no better than anybody elses on the whole under him.
#3 the year before that
#2 the year before that
#3 the year before that
#1 the year before that
#1 in punting this past year, better than both UF and Bama.
Alway in the upper if not the top spot in punting
ALways has one of the best kickers in not ony the SEC, but the nation
This is a coach who spent a scholarship to make sure he signed THE #1 kicker in the nation, and the spend ANOTHER scholarship just to back him up. Who else has done that?
RED DOG 77
March 18th, 2010
12:28 am
SOGADOG……..What gives you the idea Aaron Murray is injury-prone? Broke his ankle in his senior season in HS, came back that same year to win a state championship ! Mabe got a little too excited his redshirt F season, threw so much, he got tendonitis ! Hell I got tendonitis bass fishing ! As far as I know, the trainers have him squared away on his throwing , and he is fine. So how does that make him injury prone? Tell us all, or just tell me, but……….pray tell ! Regards, RED
southside dawg
March 18th, 2010
8:27 am
They don’t call special teams “the suicide squad” for nothing. All it takes is one cheap shot to put your guy out for a season. Putting one of your qb’s out there is nothing but asking for trouble.
Shoes!!!
March 18th, 2010
9:15 am
Yes! THE SHOES!!!! Look at all of the different pairs of shoes the “team” is wearing? They’re like Solid Gold dancers out there!
This is a disgrace! A total disgrace!
WonderDawg
March 18th, 2010
9:39 am
So Carlton Thomas cannot be taught the rules of receiving punts around the 10 yard line? I didn’t realize it was akin to rocket science …
gary
March 18th, 2010
9:48 am
Pretty sure we lost the kentucky game because of special teams.
baddog
March 18th, 2010
9:57 am
Are we the only team in football that has their QB as a punt returner(fair-catcher)? How embarrassing! Put someone back there that can break one! Surely we have a fast, good hands DB or WR that can handle that duty instead of our most experienced QB?
robodawg
March 18th, 2010
9:57 am
AltamahaDawg has a good point — kickoff returns were far worse. Those fumbled kickoffs were disastrous.
Still, it was disappointing to see Prince Miller underutilized when he was a proven asset on punt returns. Also, if you’re going to field a punt at the 10 or 12, if you have a guy who can bust it out past the 20 that REALLY helps your offense out with starting field position. We lost the field position battle way too often this past season. And starting inside the 15 further handicapped our offense and made us way too predictable.
DawgsForever
March 18th, 2010
10:15 am
Sounds like Gray will definitely not be playing QB….any doubt would not issue such statements.
DawgGirl32
March 18th, 2010
11:31 am
I don’t really get what the big deal is about this. If Gray isn’t playing QB, and from the looks of it, he’s not, then get him on the field any other way. If that means “returning punts”, so be it. Logan Gray wasn’t the problem on special teams last year….our poor coverage was. I have faith that Coach Belin will fix that.
G
March 18th, 2010
9:35 pm
CMR addressed this in his PC today after practice. Just RELAX.
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