Richt: Dogs’ lack of effort at times last year ‘embarrassing’
Mark Richt continued his spring speaking tour Thursday night in the town that’s been the site of his greatest frustrations, addressing a couple of hundred of the Bulldog faithful at the Marriott in Jacksonville.
The Florida Times-Union was on hand and reports the UGA head coach didn’t mince words in talking about his team’s lack of effort at times last season. The Dogs lost some games, he said, because the other team played harder. “That’s embarrassing,” Richt said. “It’s our shame and it’s my fault. We’re not going to let that happen again.”
While Richt told Dogs fans in Savannah earlier this week that “I don’t feel any pressure” coming off a losing season, he at least admitted in Jacksonville that the pressure is there. “There’s always going to be pressure in this type of job. There’s pressure every year.”
Talking about opening the season with the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, Richt seemed to embrace the challenge he faces with the idea that the bigger the risk, the bigger the payoff.
“Boise State is a not a conference game,” he said, “but it’s a big game for the University of Georgia. To have a season like we just did that was so far below what we are used to and what’s expected, we needed this game. Boise State is the winningest team over the past 10 years. If we can battle with them, we can make Georgia very relevant again nationally.”
Of course, the subject came up of whether the transition from Urban Meyer to Will Muschamp at Florida means this might be the year to get the rivalry with the Gators back on an even keel.
“Any year would be a great year for us to do that,” Richt said. “It’s always a huge game and a game that’s talked about a lot, especially in this town. You hope to perform well as you get to that game, so that it’s extremely meaningful.”
Indeed. When it comes to assessing how well Georgia needs to do this season for Richt to keep his job, you hear a lot of folks say nine wins … or eight if one of them includes Florida.
What do you think? If Richt manages to start out on a winning note against Muschamp, does that buy him another loss elsewhere? Is the Florida game in a class all its own in terms of importance to Richt’s future, or should it be viewed as just another SEC game?
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346 comments Add your comment
Reality
April 22nd, 2011
2:35 pm
DawginLex,
Dont try to rationalize not going in 2005 by comparing it to 2007. We all know the Mad Hatter has sold his soul to the devil for some kind of freakish luck. LSU should not have been there that year either.
DawginLex
April 22nd, 2011
2:36 pm
Until we get a playoff, the whole thing is a crock anyway.
Reality
April 22nd, 2011
2:36 pm
Thats right they were getting waxed but made a comeback. They still lost and you think they deserve a shot at the national title
GatorDave
April 22nd, 2011
2:36 pm
It is so much fun to me on a dreary Friday afternoon reading Dawg fans trying to convince themselves they will have a good 2011 football team. Must be from smelling all the Easter egg dye in the kitchen.
UGA FRIEND
April 22nd, 2011
2:38 pm
I think the question Bill asked is would a win against UF give CMR room for another loss in its place. Maybe I did not get it right. But whatever he meant with such a type question at this point seems irrevelant and plain silly.
Regardless of what he writes about UGA football, Bill knows that there are some true Dawg fans out there
who can be stirred up at anytime to respond negatively about Mark. Obviously this is what Bill wants and gets more hits for his blog. He also knows there are many more trolls who will do the same.
These media guys will write anything when they have nothing good or new to say.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:38 pm
REality. who died and left you King of what should have beens and nots. Unless you reveal your team, you are dancing without music, or a fool. Easy to be Oz from behind the curtain. Go away and go back to Oprah
DawginLex
April 22nd, 2011
2:39 pm
SEC champions the last 5 years got to play for the title.
Under the current crappy system, that is how it is. We didn’t get to be part of the crappy system in 2002 and 2005.
Gatordave, why don’t you tell me how many all you can eat buffets Weis is going to destroy this year? Notre Dame thanks y’all every day for taking him. Your jorts must be on too tightif you think florida is anything more than a 7 win team in 2011.
War Eagle
April 22nd, 2011
2:41 pm
Hey Bill, i know your dislike for Cam Newton and Auburn, but Tigers got a commitment from top rank QB in the country Wednesday. Zeke Pkie, 6-6, 220, his father Mark Price played at Georgia Tech and Buffalo Bills for 12 years…
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:41 pm
Florida. Going pro set with no QB and no proven tailback. Whew! Are there any TE’s on that roster?
Beast from the East
April 22nd, 2011
2:43 pm
DawginLex,
UGA Insider is full of it. He always claims to have some inside story which never pans out. The only thing he ever said that was halfway true was about Auburn being “exposed” on HBO. Anyone could have said that as it was about a week from hitting the masses. No way McGarity tells any coach that of the start out 0-2 they’re fired. No way.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:44 pm
War Eagle, we signed a pretty good class ( as did you guys) and nobody outside of our fan base cares.
Big Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:45 pm
Coach Richt has 2 wins and 8 losses lifetime against the Gators, totally unacceptable by anyone’s standards. This entire season and this year’s Florida game especially should be about developing an overall winning attitude and getting the program back on track. One win over the Gators is a start, but hardly defines you as successful. When the players and coaches start caring again, working harder again, thinking smarter again like a Georgia team typically does, then you’ll have reached the goal. It seems they are making the right strides, but time of course will tell. As everyone knows, talk is cheap. It’s results that count.
To admit there was a lack of effort ...........
April 22nd, 2011
2:46 pm
UGA man here. Class of 71 & 73. I am retired from many, many years of hard work in imports with a sales and marketing career. A NYC Madison Ave Man, if you will.
If I ever heard my men, or if I ever told my mentor as a young sales man that I simply lacked effort when compared to others, would have gotten me fired or I would have fired my salesman for that.
Folks ………….. we knew C MR lacked the fire in his belly and his boys could sense it and so, they played to that level of uninspired coaching, beyond a uniform change here and there.
Oh well ……………… 10-2 with a Florida win will keep him around. He has lost that fire. He needs to win 10 and resign. I have heard enough. IS that what we get with his $3.5 million pay scale????
GO Dogs.
Beast from the East
April 22nd, 2011
2:46 pm
War Eagle,
Mark Price played for the Bills for 12 years? I didn’t know that point guards played in the NFL.
Dirty Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:47 pm
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/football/news/story?id=6403943
Even as a huge dawg fan…some of the truths of this article are hard to deny.
Everyone have a safe weekend, happy hour slowly approaches!!
Go Dawgs!!
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:47 pm
Beast. You are correct. Imagine hiring the NEXT guy after that classless move. He may be Lame duck by mid season, but when they agreed to let him have 2011, they will let him have it.
Again, I would bet my house that doesn’t happen.
bjohndawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:48 pm
Just win the whole damn thing.
Dawg Tired
April 22nd, 2011
2:48 pm
Embarrassing is one way to describe it. As a former coach, I will only say that when a player fails to put forth maximum effort he should not play anymore that game – period. Experience teaches that he will play harder or quit the team. Either one works for me.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:50 pm
Big Dawg……You are correct. Getting to the dome goes through Jacksonville, and we ain’t getting it done. Having someone else do something so we can get to the dome impresses no one.
barneyb
April 22nd, 2011
2:52 pm
Coach Richt and his entire staff is also to blame for the lack of effort. I fear 2011 will be more of the same…sure hope I’m wrong
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:52 pm
It’s hilarious to hear that Richt admitted that he did not motivate or discipline his football team last year and let other less talented teams win because they played harder.
Do you believe him when he says that he isn’t going to let that happen again?
If you do, my question to you is why did he let them do it last year? Can he accept his three million dollars in salary for self-admitted incompetence?
What has changed? Oh, it’s because he’s not feeling the heat, huh? Do you want a head coach that only gets after it when he feels the heat on his own tail?
Bulldogs, better smart up… We’re being scammed by da Preacha Man.
Matt
April 22nd, 2011
2:53 pm
JB- going to have to agree to disagree. 8-4 with losses to Boise, S.C., UT, and Fla (sub Tech in for any of these) and he’s gone. He can’t continue to lose the big games and beat Vandy and La Lafayette every year. Hell Vandy and UK aren’t even gimmes anymore.
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:53 pm
If George Patton were Mark Richt, we’d all be speaking German today.
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:56 pm
If Douglas McArthur were Mark Richt, we’d all be speaking Japanese today.
Beast from the East
April 22nd, 2011
2:56 pm
“Big Dawg……You are correct. Getting to the dome goes through Jacksonville, and we ain’t getting it done. Having someone else do something so we can get to the dome impresses no one.”
JB,
Usually you’d be correct with that statement but this year it goes through Columbia (aka “The Screen Door to Hell).
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:57 pm
Matt, we actually agree, but you nor ain’t calling the shots. My point was/is I don’t trust Adams with our football program like I don’t trust Obama with our Country. And it’s not about liking Richt. He a great guy. Read some things about our program on a National level. It ain’t pretty. And All they are going on are facts and what they see.
DMR
April 22nd, 2011
2:57 pm
The wins and losses are always at the front. However, Richt lost control of this team last August when he didn’t drop the hammer on Ealey for disobeying a direct order from his coaches. Richt made individuals more important than the team. When there is no discipline, no real accountability, and no sense of urgency, plus some lousy play calling in certain situations, it was a recipe for disaster.
If you know football, then you know your going to win some and lose some. Richt hit the nail on the head. Richt’s job should be in jeopardy ONLY IF HIS TEAM GETS OUTWORKED AND OUT-HUSTLED. Looking at last year, you could see it happening.
Losing Sturdivant or someone getting injured are not things Richt can control. Attitude, sense of entitlement for playing time, whatever…those are the things Richt needs to focus on; the rest will take care of itself.
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:58 pm
If Norman Schwartzkopf were Mark Richt, we’d be praying on prayer cloths pointed toward Mecca today and our women would be covered with black sheets.
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
2:59 pm
If Vince Dooley were Mark Richt, Herschel Walker would have played football at Florida or Alabama.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
2:59 pm
IF Obama was Mark Richt, we would be sending half our fans to Grant Field to fill that place up….LOL….share the wealth.
Beast from the East
April 22nd, 2011
3:00 pm
DMR,
Good post. Meyer had some of those same issues last year. You could tell his heart was not in it. Not sure if Richt was struggling with that, as well, but the lack of effort when they got down to quality teams was apparent at both schools.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
3:00 pm
No snoop, Herschel would have been a tightend
GDAWG65
April 22nd, 2011
3:00 pm
Richt has talked long enough. Its time for him to act.
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:01 pm
Good catch, JB! I stand corrected.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
3:02 pm
If Oprah was Mark Richt, I’d have a new car
LakeDawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:02 pm
If I’m AD, CMR must get 9 wins and beat Fl. If he doesn’t beat Fl., he must win 10 games and the SEC East.
Cigar Guy
April 22nd, 2011
3:03 pm
Here across the pond, we expect Coach Richt to go undefeated
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:03 pm
If Mark Richt were a UGA Alumnus, he would want to fire da Preacha Man.
LakeDawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:03 pm
If I was JB, I would pray for a brain.
Idiot watch
April 22nd, 2011
3:04 pm
whats more embarrassing it Mark Richt’s underachieving or blaming others for his poor coaching, lack of ownership.
Youve probably heard this so much you are immune to it….top5 talent…another disappointing season!
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:05 pm
LakeDawg, you’re in the tank. No wonder you’re a lake dawg…
JB
April 22nd, 2011
3:06 pm
Now Lake Dawg, Really?
Idiot watch
April 22nd, 2011
3:07 pm
Mark Richt kick off his leadership of the 2011 season by blaming other for what is his. Wheres the Ownership you expect from a leader?
LakeDawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:07 pm
Hey Snoop, better in the tank than all up JB’s Ass.
JB
April 22nd, 2011
3:08 pm
Wow lake Dawg…………..Out of beer?
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:08 pm
I’ll take your word for that one, Lakedawg…
JB
April 22nd, 2011
3:09 pm
I’m out of here. A grumpy drunk just showed up.
Dawg Gone
April 22nd, 2011
3:10 pm
JB in my earlier post the trollers I was referring to would be Idiot watch and his ilk.
G8R GRAD
April 22nd, 2011
3:12 pm
” . . . CMR must get 9 wins and beat Fl. If he doesn’t beat Fl., he must win 10 games and the SEC East.’
It’s nice to be important!
Snoop Dawg
April 22nd, 2011
3:13 pm
Snoop says let’s cut our losses now. Let’s fire Richt and Bobo, put Grantham in as interim coach, let him hire a good OC, and see how she goes…