No guarantee, but Richt sees possibility of ‘tremendous’ season
Bacarri Rambo drew praise from Mark Richt for the speed with which he picked up Georgia's new defensive scheme. (Associated Press)
College football head coaches have to walk a fine line when talking to booster clubs.
On the one hand, the fans who gather in the spring and summer to hear the coach preview the forthcoming season are looking to get revved up.
But there’s always the danger of getting expectations too high, as Jim Donnan found out when he said before the 2000 season, “I’ve been waiting 55 years to be the head coach of a football team that has this much potential. And I guarantee you that we’re going to get it done.”
Mark Richt usually is a bit more circumspect, sort of in the Vince Dooley mode, though he did fire up one booster gathering earlier this spring by saying, “Are we going to beat Florida? You’re dadgum right.” To be fair, of course, he didn’t say it would necessarily be this season.
Richt walked the line on Wednesday night when he talked to the Georgia Bulldog Club in Albany. As reported by the Albany Herald, the coach said he believes that if his coaches can sign all the “Dream Team” in-state talent they’re after, those players will win a national championship before they leave UGA. As for the coming season, Richt said, “I think a lot of the ingredients are there for a tremendous season. We’ve just got to go out and do it.”
So, no Donnanesque guarantee, but a pretty optimistic outlook.
In other comments to the Albany club reported by the Herald, Richt said he nearly tried to hire Todd Grantham as defensive coordinator a month earlier than when he finally did make the offer. But, he said, “I’m not sure we would have gotten him then. I’m not going to say why, but circumstances changed.”
Discussing some of the southwest Georgia players on the team, Richt offered a couple of appraisals that should ease the minds of folks worried about the Dogs’ retooled secondary. He praised safety Bacarri Rambo, who said he might have picked up Grantham’s new 3-4 scheme the quickest of the defensive players. “He’s got a great understanding of what to do.”
And he said he thought cornerback Vance Cuff “was the most improved player in the spring. He’s fast —might be the fastest guy on the team.”
As for quarterback Aaron Murray, Richt kept expectations in check in Albany. He said he wants the redshirt freshman to have a “healthy respect” for the ball (don’t turn it over like Joe Cox, in other words). His advice to the inexperienced Murray, who has 10 returning offensive starters around him: “You don’t have to be the hero.”
An enthusiastic but safe outing for the coach, I’d say.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
237 comments Add your comment
KimZ's Package
May 27th, 2010
5:15 pm
Bulldog59 check the Clarke county website with all the UGA MUG photos. hahahahah looks the same to me.
GaGator
May 27th, 2010
5:36 pm
Does Richt think this is 2008 season with a #1 pre-season ranking–ups.
that didn’t work out too well.
Actually, even Richt’s very best teams lose to the Gators, both the 2002 and 2005 SEC champions lost to the Gators————-just be happy winning 1 out of 7 games.(that would
include this years loss, to put the dawgs at 3 for 21)
bugsquacher
May 27th, 2010
5:38 pm
Bryan, you’re an idiot.
Coach Small Johnson
May 27th, 2010
5:57 pm
Start Beating FL Richt
Then you can talk about expectations
Reality Check
May 27th, 2010
6:09 pm
Embracing the truth for most Georgia fans usually involves letting go of many delusions. Quotes like this are perfect examples: strongest most athletic OL in the country, deepest most talented stable of running backs in the country, running back by committee, the 3/4 is a superior defense to the 4/3, a tremendous season ahead. Nobody serves up the optimism better the Dawg writers and noone laps it up any faster than Dawg fans.
tremendous’ season
Pre-season Dawg fans
May 27th, 2010
6:15 pm
Talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk……….
Post-season Dawg fans
May 27th, 2010
6:17 pm
Walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk……………….
Billy Jack could fight
May 27th, 2010
6:17 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpkSqtDtZS4
one-eyed jack…..I’m not red headed nor do I have freckles
HOTDAWG
May 27th, 2010
6:36 pm
The spell checker named TRUTH recently caught a crucial spelling error in one of my on-line comments. He quickly and accurately noted that “intertainment” is actually spelled “entertainment.”
Since he (or she?) has apparently had English at the Atlanta Trade School, AJC blogs will no doubt be scrutinized with a careful eye. I’ve had my admonishment. It’s someone else’s turn to take a reprimand! Bill King, you could be nest! Oops!
Hypocrite Mark Richt
May 27th, 2010
6:52 pm
and dumb redneck Georgia fans been playing that same broken record forever.Stop talking about it, do it mutts!!!!
Gillislee
May 27th, 2010
7:06 pm
This is a funny one :
“Not only can we compete with Florida, all signs point to our domination of Florida. We’ve got the best freshman quarterback in the country a great O line, 5 star backs and a new built defense which will easily be one of the top 10 in the country next year. You need to brush up on your facts.”
chazzo
May 27th, 2010
7:07 pm
I don’t see anyone talking NC except the naysayers who want to say we’re talking NC in May. Winning the East is possible. A 10 winner is possible. Beyond that we will see. Of course, none of what we schmos talk about here or what Richt may talk about on the booster circuit amounts to a hill of beans. Do you guys honestly think that the players are huddled around their laptops, hanging on every word of this blog? It’s got nothing to do with it. We fans like to talk about our team even in May. A few low rent chumps from other schools talk smack. That is all.
Gratefuldawghead
May 27th, 2010
7:12 pm
GO DAWGS!
BEAT FLORIDA
May 27th, 2010
7:33 pm
last year’s UF-UGA game:
Tebow/Cooper-2 TDs-14 points gone: 27-17
Tebow running-2 TDs-14 points gone: 17-13
Brandon Spikes-INT TD-7 points gone: 17-6
Cox/Moore-TD 7 points gone: 10-6
those are all playes who are gone thus their points are gone and subtracting those the final score is 10-6 UGA
its simple mathematics my friend
Greensboro News & Record
May 27th, 2010
7:43 pm
………….NESBITT for HEISMAN………..
BEAT FLORIDA
May 27th, 2010
7:46 pm
as a player myself I can vouch that no matter what the preseason says the expectations are that inside the locker room and in preseason workouts and practices the goal for all 120 football teams is this: WIN THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.
right now as we speak, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia Tech, and all others’ coaches are feeding to the players that the only acceptable goal is the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP yet 119 of them will be singing a different tune at the end of the year. so Florida fans, Alabama fans, Tech fans, and all others, THAT is why UGA fans like myself ask for and expect championships EVERY SEASON. because the ONLY acceptable goal is a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.
minnesota dawg
May 27th, 2010
8:51 pm
SEC Championship is either Georgia or Florida vs. Alabama or LSU. Don’t be surprise if Auburn sneeks in.
Time
May 27th, 2010
8:59 pm
I see the Techies still have nothing better to do than come to UGA blogs and pretend like they matter. Let me remind you clowns, Tech had it’s one in every ten years good season, best they’ll have for a while. While UGA had a down season. And you still got beat. You’re going nowhere, the wishbone has been exposed now that people have had time to prepare for it. You won’t even finish in the top half of the ACfreakingC next year. Book it.
And kudos to Richt for putting the goal where it needed to be all along. Winning a NC. The talent is there and with a new DC and no more soft zone coverages all the time, they’ll be much better. Murray will be solid and any QB with a reciever like AJ Green has the opportunity to have a monster season.
??????????
May 27th, 2010
9:04 pm
BEAT FLORIDA – This comment is exactly why UF fans do not take UGA seriously. Probably the dumbest comment I have ever read. Please tell me you weren’t being serious. I guess you could have made this same ignorant statement 17 out of the last 20 years….right? Or did Tebow play all 17 years and NOW that he is finally gone UGA has a chance? You guys are Preseason SEC & National Champs every year, so that is something to be proud of.
last year’s UF-UGA game:
Tebow/Cooper-2 TDs-14 points gone: 27-17
Tebow running-2 TDs-14 points gone: 17-13
Brandon Spikes-INT TD-7 points gone: 17-6
Cox/Moore-TD 7 points gone: 10-6
those are all playes who are gone thus their points are gone and subtracting those the final score is 10-6 UGA
its simple mathematics my friend
waiting moderation
May 27th, 2010
9:08 pm
No way we will ever win a NC with CMR. No way in hell. I’m sorry Buck and Hershel are all we have at the point.
ugafan
May 27th, 2010
9:10 pm
all you low down sorry losers that type on here that aren’t uga fans can shut the heck up this is none of your buisness. and this does not go to the one that aren’t uga fans that wrote something good on here about georgia. oh yeah this will be your buisness when uga plays you. GOT THAT?
TigerT
May 27th, 2010
9:22 pm
Does “tremendous season” mean UGA will eke out a win over Kentucky?
Richt is drinking the kool aid again if he really believes this bunch of drunks and miscreants will threaten Florida and Alabama for the SEC title.
Bulldog59
May 27th, 2010
9:24 pm
chazzo….well said. 6-2, winning the East, 10-2 overall. Attainable goals for us. 10-2 doesn’t put us in the BCS Title hunt, but it’s a big step in the right direction.
Delusional Dawg
May 27th, 2010
9:28 pm
7:33 post by “BEAT FLORIDA”…beyond dumb.
Bulldog59
May 27th, 2010
9:34 pm
KimZ, watch the video first. Surely you don’t rate underage drinking the same as the blatant THEFT committed in this video.
Isn’t this the same kid that was involved in the armed robbery fiasco at UT? The only difference here is, he didn’t have a gun this time.
By the way, when UT turns over their students and/or athletes to local authorities for prosecution for underage drinking (as UGA does) then you have a comparison, right now you don’t.
Tom
May 27th, 2010
9:34 pm
CMR should speak along the coastal area too! As far north as hilton head to jacksonville!
BS Patrol
May 27th, 2010
9:39 pm
ugafan,
How did you get on line from your cardboard box?
Kramer
May 27th, 2010
9:54 pm
Hey fellas. That Tebow pic is still staring us in the face each and every time we sign on to this link and if I’m not mistaken, that story is a month or two old. A little help here.
Bulldog59
May 27th, 2010
10:00 pm
Kramer….I don’t know why they don’t get the message.
jojatek
May 27th, 2010
10:02 pm
Richt is sounding a little desperate right now, but Bulldog nation will believe anything at this point. Bottom line: He’s got a freshman QB and a new DC who will be working with the same overrated, underachieving talent that will lose to Tennessee (yes, Dooley’s Vols will take that game) and Florida. The final nail in the coffin, however, will come between the hedges in November, where Tech will avenge the cheap shot on Nesbitt in Atlanta last season and win comfortably, sending Richt into early retirement and Paul Johnson to his second BCS bowl game and another step toward the return of Tech football to national prominence…
Tru Dat Dawg
May 27th, 2010
10:22 pm
Whoa! Way too much Gloom and Doom. We have a great Head Coach and Staff. BAMA STAN thanks for the good word! I am a true DAWG BELIEVER! WE will be back on track and better this year….GO DAWGS!
Delbert D.
May 27th, 2010
10:23 pm
“its simple mathematics my friend”
Well, the premise is pretty strange. The absence of scorers from a team from the past affects the reality of a future game without considering all components of the future teams and the game situations.
I’d say that is more than mathematics my simple friend.
BamaBill
May 27th, 2010
10:25 pm
It’s unreasonable to expect the defense to be outstanding, or even good. Any time you bring in a new system on offense or defense, there are growing pains-sometimes severe. The offense has a chance to be good, but if Murray doesn’t step up and do much better than he has shown so far the the Dawgs are in for a long year. Defenses will stack the box and make him beat them through the air.
As far as a “Dream Team” recruiting haul, it could happen (but I doubt it), and unless CMR and staff start coaching up a “team” then it doesn’t matter who is signed..
I
chazzo
May 27th, 2010
10:33 pm
Tiger T,
Everyone better watch out for UK. Granted the Dawgs gave away a stout victory over the Cats last year by turning the ball over four times. But, UK is a team that can beat you if you take them lightly. UF has them between UT and Bama. We’ll see.
Bulldog59
May 27th, 2010
10:41 pm
chazzo, UF would be a HUGE victory for the Joker, if he can pull it off.
As for UK, we both know one team that will not take them lightly in 2010.
BS Patrol
May 27th, 2010
10:54 pm
BEAT FLORIDA,
I have had more calculus than most Ph.Ds. But by your logic there must be something below ‘rithmatic.
BTW, where did you learn that stuff? ga? You might have played pee wee.
Bulldog59
May 27th, 2010
10:56 pm
Bama Bill, you should “dream” on with your predictions. UGA must be doing something right. How else do you explain all of the attention from all of the fans of our competition? Seriously, I read, but certainly don’t waste my time commenting on articles about other SEC teams.
I truly believe, in December 2010, a lot of UGA-haters will be drinking a big tall glass of SHUT THE HELL UP.
Chuck Uga
May 27th, 2010
11:00 pm
Florida will not win the SEC East. Close, but won’t win it. Their schedule is too difficult. So Georgia or South Carolina will win the East, and you have to believe it is Georgia’s to lose because SC also plays a very tough schedule. Georgia could lose to Florida yet again and still win the East. I’ll say this, I would not want to play Georgia, Florida OR Alabama at the end of this season. All three are going to be better by then. Jury is still out on Auburn and SC. Arkansas is also a mystery, but not going to be surprised if they win the West and freak out everyone. Arkansas will likely beat Georgia in Athens if I had to point to one game that sneaks up on the Dawgs. The one game that I HOPE is a blowout 9and could be really ugly) is the Tennessee win.
Crimson Crush
May 27th, 2010
11:01 pm
Big LOL at the guy who said Jawja would run through the SEC and National Championship for an undefeated season and the start of what he termed a “USC” style run . He has certainly bought lock ,stock and barrel into the “Dream” part of Richt’s equation
I too expect a “USC” style run from the Dawgs as long as Richt is allowed to hang around Athens . Of course the USC I am referring to is located in Columbia
Crimson Crush
May 27th, 2010
11:12 pm
[b]Bulldog59[/b]
[quote]UGA must be doing something right. How else do you explain all of the attention from all of the fans of our competition? Seriously, I read, but certainly don’t waste my time commenting on articles about other SEC teams. [/quote]
Let me clue you in … fans of other programs usually end up here because they are following the flood of high profile recruits their schools are taking out of the state .
I wouldn’t read about or remotely care about a word printed on this left wing rag of a newspaper if Saban wasn’t cherry picking the state talent . I’m sure that is equally true for many Gators as well
savannadawg
May 27th, 2010
11:28 pm
Look. Murray will be fine. It’s going to take some luck in certain situations to go undefeated. But, it can be done! Richt and Bobo have to stop calling plays that are too conservative and get a bit more aggresive. They think too much some times and don’t let nature take its coarse “so to speak”. Perfect example was with M.Stafford. The guy had more ability w/ the football than T.Tebow had in his pinky. Why we didn’t kill UF while he was with us will make your head spin if you think about it too long. UF would have never been able too figure me out if I was the coach and had that talent. But give Meyer credit. He didn’t have too think too hard when it came to us. He knew what we were bringing to the table. To whip someone you have to know them. It’s called homework, not preaching. CMR has got to get his priorities in the proper order when it comes to the profession he has chosen. i love what he is doing for young men with needs, but football in the sec is it. Passion is it. God never said, “don’t be passionate”. CMR can say what he wants. But this team will go how He wants it too go. Period. He is the Capitain of the ship. It took five years to see that CWM was not the guy he should have had as DC. Lets hope this is a well learned lesson, because 10 years in there are no more excuses that can be used.
Clarification
May 28th, 2010
12:34 am
UGA is not going to win the division with a freshman QB and a new defensive scheme. This is probably an 8/9 win regular season. Let Murray take his lumps, let the defensive changes settle into place, and make a real run in 2011
mark
May 28th, 2010
12:52 am
chuck, how can you say that florida will not win the sec east??? especially when florida has had the number 1 recruiting class the past 2 years…… florida is reloading, not rebuilding
For what its worth
May 28th, 2010
4:19 am
Mark, Don’t think for one minute that just because Florida’s had the number 1 recruiting classes the last two year that there is not going to be a decline in your team. Yes, you have the same position coaches, but any time you have a turn over with a coach that’s as good as Charlie Strong its going to make a difference, so don’t be surprised if your number 1 recruiting classes don’t live up to expectations.
For what its worth
May 28th, 2010
4:28 am
Florida though they were going to go undefeated to, but they had their butts handed to them by Alabama and that was with Charlie Strong and company.
Delusional Dawg
May 28th, 2010
5:30 am
Unfortunately, if the Dawgs go 8-4 or God forbid 7-5 again this regular season, that supposedly “Dream Team” of recruiting will become the “In Your Dream Team” and a literal nightmare. If there were further staff firings (see:Mike Bobo), guys like LeMay could decide to take their skills elsewhere. And you can bet that if that happens then the Richt talk will heat up dramatically and create doubts for 2011. That would set back recruiting and the program that much more and allow Florida to put even more space between them and the East as I don’t see Tennessee doing anything for a couple of years. South Carolina will be the wild card in the East this year…maybe.
chazzo
May 28th, 2010
6:50 am
Crimson Crush,
It is funny how sheepishly quiet and humble you Bama fans were before Saban got there. Certainly there is a rich history there, but there were several years of moving vans between NCs for you guys. The thing is my Bama friends were a lot more tolerable before Saban. Just remember, it all comes back around. It all comes back around.
Stanfield
May 28th, 2010
6:51 am
How about this? WILL SOMEONE FROM AJC PLEASE GET TIM TEBOW OFF, I REPEAT,OFF OF OUR SPORTS PAGE PLEASE?!!!!!!!!
chazzo
May 28th, 2010
6:57 am
People are right to point out the Frosh QB and new D. It is important to keep things in perspective. The most important thing is that we support our team through thick and thin one game at a time. I think 10 wins is achievable. I also think that UF, having a tough schedule, a Head Coach on Xanax, a no name DC, and a new QB … well let there expectations be through the roof. Go Gators. Brantley is incredible. The talent pool is unheard of. The Gators will win the NC in 2010. In fact, the NFL will then invite them to play in the Super Bowl afterward. They are so good, that everyone down there should spend the whole summer smoking Gainesville green. Bama, too, those guys don’t need to practice anymore. Let’s just give them the Crystal and not play any games.
chazzo
May 28th, 2010
6:58 am
their, darnit.