Mike Bobo’s playcalling didn’t do his young QB any favors
Aaron Murray did get to use his running ability a bit more Saturday. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
We talked here earlier this week about Georgia’s game against Arkansas as something of a test for Dogs offensive coordinator Mike Bobo.
Well, it was.
And he failed.
Yes, there were defensive lapses Saturday that the Razorbacks capitalized on, including biting on that play fake on Arkansas’ first score, but thanks to too many three-and-outs again this week the Georgia D was on the field entirely too long to try and keep a high-powered offense led by a talented QB like Ryan Mallett in check.
And showing a lot of grit the Dogs did battle back from a 24-10 deficit to tie it up 24-24 with 3:55 left in the game.
But after a fine defensive series got the ball back for Georgia and the Dogs had moved to midfield thanks to runs by Washaun Ealey and Carlton Thomas, the bizarre playcalling by Bobo that had plagued them all day reared its ugly head again.
Third and 4 and rather than a quick slant pass across the middle, or sending Ealey or Thomas wide, or rolling Aaron Murray out with the option to pass or run, instead Bobo sends all the receivers at least 20 yards downfield and has his QB standing back there way too long. The result is a sack that took Murray’s helmet (and nearly his head) off and the Dogs let a chance to win the game get away from them.
I’ll grant Bobo that Murray has a tendency to hold on to the ball too long in some situations. As Bobo said after the game, “We need to work on getting rid of the ball a little bit quicker.” But that’s to be expected of a redshirt freshman and Bobo knows that. So why put Murray into those situations?
And the play of Georgia’s offensive line continued to fall short, with run blocking up the middle virtually nonexistent and Murray’s protection falling apart too often.
But time and time again Saturday, Bobo showed a lack of a short-yardage game outside the red zone. On an earlier third and 1, Murray was sacked waiting on receivers to get open on long routes. All they needed was 1 yard and he’s looking to throw long??!!
This wasn’t a great defense the Dogs were facing in Arkansas, but at times Georgia made them look that way.
Yes, the Dogs missed suspended ace receiver A.J. Green on some plays, but especially in the second half Dogs receivers, including Kris Durham, Tavares King and the little-used Israel Troupe, came up with clutch receptions.
And because of the poor line play, the running game was inconsistent, though it occasionally showed flashes of what we had expected.
I’ll also give Bobo credit for at least loosening the reins on Murray and allowing him to take off with the ball, which resulted in Georgia’s first touchdown. But where were the tight ends for most of the day? Why didn’t Georgia make more use of the screen and quick hits over the middle?
And there was the predictability factor again in Bobo’s playcalling. When fans in the stands are consistently calling out what the Georgia play is going to be before the snap, you know your offense has a problem.
And I hate to say it, but I think that problem is Mike Bobo. Absent the superior talent of playmakers like D.J. Shockley, Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno, who made Bobo look good in the past, he is revealed as a rather pedestrian offensive mind.
I’ll have more on Sunday, but for now, have at it. …
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612 comments Add your comment
BDAWG
September 18th, 2010
7:30 pm
Mark Richt is a joke and so is Bobo. Bobo wasn’t a good QB in college, what made Richt think he was ready to be a OC. He sucks and it is time for him to go, and if Richt can’t fire him and assume the OC duties then I hope McGarity is looking for his replacement. We as UGA fans deserve better than what we have seen the past 3 years. We will be lucky to keep the recruiting class we have much less sign any big time recruits. This is a joke and we have turned into the joke of the SEC. Great guy Richt is, but now that Donnan’s recruits are gone he can’t coach his way out of a paper bag. We suck and there is no other way to put it. We have great talent, but no one to coach them at a high level. Hell, even Tennessee looks better than we do. Even Vanderbilt looks good. We don’t want to hear anymore excuses. It’s time to turn the page and close the chapter on this book. We will be lucky to win 3 games this year with this sorry excuse of a coaching staff. Bobo should be terminated now for his sorry play calling and Richt is just as much to blame because, again he will not make the decision to fire him.
BulldogsRock
September 18th, 2010
7:30 pm
Bill, You hit the nail(s) on the head. Bobo was awful. The 3rd & 4 play call was the worse; that failed 1st down conversion seemed to take some air out of the dogs. He’s going to get Murray killed. If most bulldog fans can see Bobo’s deficiencies, why can’t a “head coach” not see it. Richt may take himself down by continuing to stick with Bobo.
tommy wright 3rd
September 18th, 2010
7:34 pm
look uga does’nt need to fire coach richit he just need to overhaul his offensive coaching staff but when a.j. green gets back it should and will help he will. but if georgia goes 7-5 or 8-4 richit has to change his offensivw staff.
BDAWG
September 18th, 2010
7:34 pm
Dawg’, out! You will wake up one day. This the same sorry BS that we have listened to for 3 years. Other programs have a freshman QB and they still play at a high level. Defense is going to take time but, the offense is being led by a talented QB. Unfortunately he can’t call his own plays, he has an ididot that does that. WAKE UP!!!!!
phil
September 18th, 2010
7:35 pm
BDAWG-True! But Bobo is UGA family, and family don’t get rid of family.
Delbert D.
September 18th, 2010
7:36 pm
Bobo’s going to get himself killed with that head-butting stuff. Maybe the Percocet had something to do with the play calling.
augusta dawg
September 18th, 2010
7:36 pm
I HAVE BEEN SAYING FOR 3 YEARS NOW THAT BOBO WAS NOT A SEASONED OFF. CORD. COACH…..ONE NOTCH ABOVE MARTINEZ……HE HAS BEEN A POOR QB COACH AS WELL AND SHOULD HAVE WON MORE WITH STAFFORD AS QB. FIRE HIM AND SEARLES AND BRING IN SEASONED SEC COACHES….RICHT BETTER WAKE-UP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ARdawg
September 18th, 2010
7:36 pm
tommy wright
You should avoid the kool-aid
BDAWG
September 18th, 2010
7:40 pm
One player does not make a team. Mark Ingram was out 2 games and UA just kept right on rolling. That’s called top rated recruiting and top rated coaching. That’s Richt faught if he gets fired, because when he overhauled the defense, he should have overhauled the offense. Bobo has been a screw up every year he has been in charge of the offense. Perfect example, when Applewhite was screwing up UA offense, Saban noticed immediatly that he needed a change and that only lasted a year. Make changes in a timely manor and keep on moving. Nice guy finish last and personally I want to win.
BDAWG
September 18th, 2010
7:41 pm
Well Phil, UGA will be at the bottom of the food chain for a long time.
wizerd43
September 18th, 2010
7:41 pm
Mike LEACH,lets go get him.That will put excitement back in UGA!!!!!!!
john
September 18th, 2010
7:42 pm
Georgia just sucks!!!!!
The Ghost of Wally Butts
September 18th, 2010
7:43 pm
Aw, now, now, Bill, I saw some good things today on the UGA side of the ball….
…we are very good at jumping up and beating ourself on the chest over just about any play, even one where we give up big yardage….
…we continue our outstanding sideline dancing, led by none other than Mr. Hit and Run himself, Ealey, jumping up on the bench and just having some fun and not worrying too much about a 24-24 game….
…we’ve raised the “Bacarri Rambo hit, then fail to wrap up” tackle atempt to a true art form…
…So looks like we are well on our way to victory over…..uh…maybe Idaho State.
smart like a Fox
September 18th, 2010
7:43 pm
where is MR…we’re gonna win em all ..”MARK IT DOWN” ?
saban
September 18th, 2010
7:45 pm
Good work ladies. I thought you would get beat by 30.
Maybe I was thinking about Mississippi State.
phil
September 18th, 2010
7:46 pm
BDAWG-I agree with you. Other coaches will come and go. But Bobo is looked at differently.
smart like a Fox
September 18th, 2010
7:46 pm
hey does anyone know if LaLU has plans for next sat? we could look good and get back on track all in one game.
john
September 18th, 2010
7:46 pm
I can’t wait until next week to hear you Georgia fans complain.Perhaps you don’t have a very good team.
Dr M
September 18th, 2010
7:47 pm
I’m skeptical that a lot of the hysterical comments above are for real. Be that as it may, the new D and new QB are coming along. Is Bobo that bad? I’m not enough of an expert to call it but with AJ on the field, I think we win. So, I’m bummed that we let Arkansas off the hook after a great comeback but I’m looking for continued improvement.
BDAWG
September 18th, 2010
7:48 pm
augusta dawg, if anyone has noticed its not just Bobo and Searles, our receiver don’t know how to seperate from the defenders and our RBs look like crap. Not top rated RBs, very overrated. That is the great Georgia talent. Try recruiting from around the country, not just the state of Georgia. We need to replace all the offensive coaches and we need to find some that know how to recruit because its apparent that the recruiting pholosophy is not working. We only have 3 subpar RBs and with the way we are playing, there’s no way in hell we will ge Crowell and if we do we need to bring in more than one RB.
BulldogsRock
September 18th, 2010
7:49 pm
UGA needs to show a NEBRASKA game film to its team. I just watched them whip Washington. They play well, kick butt…and act well. It’s called discipline and keeping things in perspective. I’m tired of seeing D players act like they scored and they’re in the NFL, after making a tackle at the line of scrimmage…I’m tired of watching WR & RB’s act like they’ve scored and they’re in the NFL, when they pick up a 1st down…I’m tired of the personal fouls (no matter what the other team is does), taunting and numerous of penalities. I don’t care if players on other teams do it and “it’s part of current American culture” or some kind of crap like that. CMR, who’s in control?
Macclenny_dawg
September 18th, 2010
7:49 pm
I couldn’t agree more with you BIll!! Bobo doesn’t need to go he needs to get back to coaching the qb’s!! He is over his head trying to coach the qb’s and offense!! He was a good qb coach!! Our problems with Richt started when he left calling the plays!! With Bobo coaching the qb’s and Richt back to doing what he does best calling plays and Murray we would be a BEAST!!! I am sure some of you fans will think Bobo is no good but remember when he was a qb coach he had Green ready to play as a freshman!! He had Murray but he wasn’t ready why??? Because he was trying to run the offense and trying to coach the qb’s!! Demote Bobo back to qb coach where he will have our qb’s ready and Richt get back to doing what you do best call the plays. YOUR JOB DEPENDS ON IT!!!
Dr M
September 18th, 2010
7:50 pm
Oh, and Mallet is an outstanding QB (as was Garcia). And we held their ground game in check all day. The season can still be salvaged if we improve steadily. So don’t go hysterical if you actually are a Dawg fan (as I doubt the authors of many of the troll comments are).
And Another Thing.....
September 18th, 2010
7:50 pm
Scott Howard & Chuck Dowdle are to Larry Munson & Loran Smith…..
…what Jimmy Carter & Barack Obama are to George Washington & Abraham Lincoln.
banditdawg
September 18th, 2010
7:52 pm
Washaun missed his blocking assignment that killed the game winning drive for Geogia and that was not the first block he missed today.Don’t they teach these prima donna runnig backs to block? Georgia’s coaching stinks!
rcgator
September 18th, 2010
7:53 pm
All this slamming of Bobo is silly, Richt as HC is responsible. Keep it together Dawgs, its a long way until next year and this season is in the toilet after just three games. Makes being a Gator in Atlanta that much easier.
Stanfield
September 18th, 2010
7:54 pm
I agree 100%. When the game is on the line and you need four yards why risk running a 20 yard pass route. BOBO (BOZO) needs to follow Martinez!! Time to get rid of him and find us a true offensive coordinator. Too predictable. And while Im venting, why can we not get good production out of our offensive line? Lack of coaching maybe? Bottom line: Its time to do some more changes to put a better team on the field!!
jack bull
September 18th, 2010
7:54 pm
its kinda funny, my headline would read “Young QB doesn’t do Bobo’s play calling any favors”…
not impressed with young Aaron whatsoever. i thought i heard all summer long how accurate he was. BS!! under throws here, over throws there. heck, a bunch of “who/what was he throwing that too”…I agree with Fran Tarkenton, H Mason may need to be given some PT…
and i knew we would have some mix ups with the D, but TWO easy walk in touchdowns,,,NOT GOOD…oh yeah, how many times did Mallet get sacked today??
justbob
September 18th, 2010
7:56 pm
Lost the line of scrimmage battles. Poor pass defense and tackling. Murray throws a poor deep ball – missing open receivers long AND short, though at least the short balls were caught by excellent receiver adjustments. Maybe game experience fixes this in the future. I hope so.
BulldogsRock
September 18th, 2010
7:57 pm
BDawg is right, One player doesn’t make a team. AJ will not be there next year. UGA doesn’t get the talent to compete with UF and UA and others at that level…and now they’ve dropped back to the mid to low of the SEC pack.
gomdawg
September 18th, 2010
7:57 pm
I LOVE MY DAWGS ,THIS HAS GOT TO BE THE WORSE TEAM WE HAVE HAD IN 5 YEAR .I’M THROUGH WITH DAWGS PARTY’S I TOLD MY FRIENDS I WOULD HAVE A PARTY NEXT SAT. NITE AND IF ANYONE WANTED TO WATCH THE GAME I WOULD IN THE BED ROOM.
Chris S
September 18th, 2010
7:58 pm
I’m sick of hearing about Bobo’s playcalling as the issue. If the offensive line doesn’t block, it doesn’t matter what plays you call. Same thing happens when receivers drop passers (’06-’07) or your QB makes bad throws (’09). Bobo may be to blame as the head guy on offense, but UGA’s offensive struggles over the past five years have come down to either talent or execution.
jax jim
September 18th, 2010
8:00 pm
BOBO is a BOZO!! The entire offence was clueless.
Delbert D.
September 18th, 2010
8:02 pm
Why would anyone want to hire Mike Leach? You can just buy the copyrighted DVD set and books on his “System.”
P.S. The Hoover High School PDF is downloadable from the web for free. That’s the spread system that Hutson Mason ran at Lassiter HS.
jack bull
September 18th, 2010
8:03 pm
we’re gonna have a hard time winning games if we have to score 30+ pts a game..
Right On Time
September 18th, 2010
8:04 pm
People often say we have too much talent to lose like this, these players are too good for that…
Perhaps these players are just overrated.
The backs look soft and slow, they dont make a cut and run with authority.
The line would have trouble opening a hole against South Gwinnett.
The defense can’t tackle. (they sure did facemask, though)
The qb overthrows, underthrows, holds the ball too long.
Blitz pickups are routinely missed.
Receivers or lineman routinely move in critical situations resulting in a 5 yard penalty.
Linebackers look slow and soft.
Lots of these players behave like they are Miami 86′ but play like Duke.
We appear to be in the middle of an unfortunate trifecta of subpar players, subpar coaching and subpar play calling.
SoccerDawg
September 18th, 2010
8:04 pm
I have had it. Season ticket holder since 1986. I am selling my tickets. Won’t be back this year. I was asking all game where was the tight end? Why can’t we cover a crossing route? It simply is not good enough. I am not going to waste my time and dollars to drive 110 miles to Athens to watch it. No more excuses. It simply is not good enough.
John, the real UGA fan
September 18th, 2010
8:04 pm
With the offensive line playing like it is, Murray is going to be hurt!!!!!!!!!
i truly think the O line is the biggest problem!
Dawgkicker
September 18th, 2010
8:06 pm
Someone called for more use of Logan Gray. I am sorry, he just ain’t fast enough. We need more speed. Why do we keep using slow receivers like Gray and Durham when we have speed of King, Troupe and Brown?
Where is special teams coach
September 18th, 2010
8:06 pm
Hey, somebody tell Mark Richt to, #1, HIRE a special teams coach. Your special teams look like sandlot players. Of course, it wouldn’t help much with your situation at Georgia deteriorating every game. I remember when Georgia had a coach Griffith. When the team took the field, they were immediately 2 TD’s down. If Richt stays there, we’re headed to that situation again.
Right On Time
September 18th, 2010
8:07 pm
I wonder if the new AD will put feelers out for Barnett at TCU or Petersen at Boise…
Richts win totals on a graph looks like the last few years of my 401K, very unfortunate.
Boo Boo's boo's from Sanford Stadium.
September 18th, 2010
8:07 pm
Maybe UGA should hire the clemson coach. He really coaches his players up and they are kicking auburns @$$ right now
SAMMY DAVIS, JR
September 18th, 2010
8:09 pm
OK, I’ll say this: I haven’t been on a ‘FIRE BOBO’ banwagon, but I did agree that Martinez needed to go (about 3 yrs before he did), and I know that Grantham needs the opprotunity to get this style players in there –the taller, bigger players–NFL types like Saban recruits. Martinez’s ‘D’ was ranked among the bottom in the SEC & Nationally. Now, back to Bobo –our ‘O is now among the bottom feeders in the SEC & probably nationally; the problem is that Bobo works from Richt’s playbook, and I don’t think Richt is incline to call plays again full-time (and be a head coach), and I can’t see him hiring an offensive cord. that has different plays than what he likes to run, so at this point I really don’t know what to think. I hate to think that Richt could loose his job over this mess, but I do know that if he can’t get things back on track & get UGA back in the hunt for SEC Championships every year that he will be gone eventually. I like Richt, and I hope he corrects this in a shorter time than he did the Defense –because I don’t think he will have 3 years to do it. Another scary thing I think about is recruiting; for the most part Richt & Bobo have gotten the players they have gone after, and they have all been highly ranked recruiting classes –much higher than Scouth Carolina & Arkansas, so go figure where the problem is….
Boo Boo's boo's from Sanford Stadium.
September 18th, 2010
8:12 pm
Dabo Swinney was instrumental of bringing CJ Spiller to Clemson. This guy is a coach not a CEO like Richt.
Delbert D.
September 18th, 2010
8:12 pm
Murray did have some hard hits. Tough kid; need to see some more toughness from the tailback in pass blocking. May have to design a set with one of the FBs in that position.
ryan
September 18th, 2010
8:14 pm
Hey how about on Halloween we go throw eggs and throw TP on Bobo lawn .
DOGGIE IN NC
September 18th, 2010
8:14 pm
And what has happened to our all american punter. Shanks, short kicks, and line drives are not cutting it. And this off. line is not even top ten in the sec! Good grief! At least they made the game interesting at the end, even if they did blow it with bad play calling and lousy defense. OH WELL – GO DOGGIES!
ga gator
September 18th, 2010
8:15 pm
Sat in my normal section 219 with my lady friend and I must disagree about Bobo. The offense scored 24 points without the Defense getting a turnover on the #12 team in the country with a Redshirt Fresh QB. Dawgs blame it on Bobo all you want but Grantham is all bluster with no talent. 3 busted coverages in the first 3 games. And Lakatos I thought was a great DB coach. The only thing wrong with the Offense is the O-line. People thought it would be the best in the conference, it was only the most experienced. It might also help if Bobo was in the press box.
rilo
September 18th, 2010
8:17 pm
This game is the summation of why Bobo must be let go. I honestly never thought he would go so far as to blame his quarterback. The offensive game plan for this game was to dominate the line with the ground game and through play-action set up the pass. However, that play action took WAY to long to develop and it wasn’t fooling the Arkansas D. Whenever they ran play action, Murray had one second to look down the field and throw to no open receivers. the last play we only needed 4 yards…yet all of Murray’s receivers were 20 yards down the field. Is that Murray’s fault too? When we did go Shotgun…Murray was right on the money. Bobo has shown me all I need to know now…He’s got to go!
Delbert D.
September 18th, 2010
8:18 pm
King, Troupe and Brown were all 4-stars. What did they get, 1 catch each?