Dogs can learn from Justin Houston’s NFL slide
One of Justin Houston's "poor decisions" might have been taking plays off. (Associated Press)
There’s a lesson in the Justin Houston story for his former teammates who remain in Athens, and not just the one about getting caught one toke over the line.
Houston’s surprising slide to the third round of the NFL draft, after being considered a consensus second-round pick and some analysts even speculating he could go late first round, would have been a real shock had it not been for the FoxSports.com report this week that he had tested positive for marijuana at the February NFL combine in Indianapolis.
After all, in his junior year, playing outside linebacker in Todd Grantham’s 3-4 scheme at UGA, Houston became a regular visitor to opposing teams’ backfield, racking up 18.5 tackles for loss, 10 sacks and 44 quarterback hurries, along with 38 solo tackles, 67 total tackles, forcing two fumbles, recovering a fumble for a touchdown and making an interception. He wound up all-SEC, made several All-America teams and was in the running for the Bednarik, Butkus and Nagurski awards. If he’d returned for his senior season, he probably would have been considered one of the nation’s premier defensive players.
All of that and only a third-round draft pick?
But while Houston seemed to be thinking of the failed drug test when he told reporters he attributed his drop in the draft to “some of the poor decisions I made,” there was another factor pointed out by ESPN analysts Todd McShay and Jon Gruden, who criticized Houston’s work ethic.
Working hard every day has made Orson Charles an MVP in his head coach's eyes. (Associated Press)
Both complained that, as Gruden said, Houston doesn’t “play hard all the time.” As McShay put it, “The problem is this guy doesn’t play every single down like it’s the last play of his career, which drives you crazy because he has so much potential.”
Actually, I’d heard UGA fans complain sporadically last season about Houston occasionally taking plays off — something that unfortunately has been a recurring problem for the Dogs over the past five years or so.
Perhaps it was the lack of conditioning that eventually resulted in an overhaul of Georgia’s strength program this offseason, but the Dogs have become known for sporadic effort. Even Knowshon Moreno, famed for popping up from a tackle and sprinting back to the huddle, seemed to take himself out of the game with alarming frequency during his time at UGA.
One encouraging sign for the coming season is that the Dogs have among them an example of the kind of player who draws comparisons with the legendary David Pollack, whose motor was never off. That player is Orson Charles, who’s even been known to take offseason early morning exercise with the ROTC cadets at UGA to improve his fitness and who Mark Richt praised recently as “the MVP of the entire spring.” Richt noted that, “Even wind sprints at the end of practice, he goes as hard as he can go. The last guy I can remember giving that kind of effort every play, every day was Pollack.”
So, sure, I hope current Georgia players take note of the fact that smoking an illegal substance can cost you professionally. But I think the greater lesson is that if you’re not playing every play like it could be your last (and ask Trinton Sturdivant, that’s a very real possibility), you’re not only likely to get beat, but someone at the next level is going to notice.
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133 comments Add your comment
12 Idiot Bammers,6 posts, 7 boxes of donuts Eaten
May 2nd, 2011
11:01 am
Reality says the 5 old geezers that eat at the counter every day for lunch at the Tuscaloosa Five and Dime and Corner Drug Store have voted Alabam national champions 42 times even though 35 of those times, they lost their bowl game and nobody rated them national champions that matter.
Yet Reality says Dawgs are dumb and delusional!!
You can’t make this stuff up
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
11:07 am
wde
Saban is still there, and so is the NC trophy.
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
11:09 am
12
I said dreamers and idiots. But you can add dumb and delusional, thank you.
12 Idiot Bammers,6 posts, 7 boxes of donuts Eaten
May 2nd, 2011
11:12 am
That Saban statue is on wheels
Somebody ask tide roll how clint boling got drafted since clint is white and only black roadgraders can play OL
wde
May 2nd, 2011
11:42 am
Reality did you guys get a discount on that trophy ? Seems like you could get a bulk rate at this point in time…didn’t you guys give yours self’s one last year too, or is ending up 4th in the West even hard for you guys to sell as another NC? And are you still on probation or not?
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
11:47 am
wde
How’s that 6-7 selling? LOL!
DMR
May 2nd, 2011
12:42 pm
Amy Lou, Danny, and Fredrick need to put their collective heads on their desk and take a nap. The majority of the players on Richt’s 85 man roster are not problems. Has he had a few that don’t do right? Yes. Now look at guys like Pollak, Bailey, Stafford, T. Brown, O. Charles, and even A.J. Green, who did something wrong, but man’d up and paid the price…unlike someone like say Jim Tressel.
Richt has some quality kids on this team. But leadership cannot just come from Richt; it must also come from the players on the team. Richt may have had some minor problems with kids, but I think he has moved his discipline and number of times he will allow them to overstep to an appropriate level.
If you are already predicting a kid like Crowell will get into trouble, you’re just grasping at straws. I think it says a lot about a kid who is 18 years old, who during a time when being pursued by every major college, kept as low a profile as possible, and stayed away from Facebook and Twitter. I think that shows a great deal of maturity. Give him credit.
12 Idiot Bammers,6 posts, 7 boxes of donuts Eaten
May 2nd, 2011
12:42 pm
and Dr Phil, you need to shutup too.
If Crowell signed with Bama, he would have been the second coming of Mark Ingram.
Just shutup
DawginLex
May 2nd, 2011
12:44 pm
amen to the above.
all these Bama trolls make this blog stink
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
12:57 pm
Nice—blocking my posts, now, huh?
wde
May 2nd, 2011
1:03 pm
Reality we really didn’t like 6-7 and I pray many of our opponents this year will pay for our dissatisfaction ..now about that probation where are we again?
It Ain't Rocket Science
May 2nd, 2011
1:06 pm
Sure seems like a lot of folks just come onto these blogs to post negative crap, whether or not it is even your team this blog is about. I don’t give a rat’s buttocks about Auburn, Florida, Alabama or any other school until we play them. I don’t bother with their blogs because their teams are not my problem or my concern. Im of the opinion that a lot of the clowns that come on these blogs to put down UGA, have nothing better to do in thier lives. Must be a lonely existence, if this is all you have to do. I am getting a little tired also of all these fair weather supposedly fans of the DAWGS. A true fan and supporter will stand behind his coaches and the team and realize that all colleges go through rough patches. The DAWGS are going to get it on again and make us proud.
DawginLex
May 2nd, 2011
1:19 pm
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
12:57 pm
Nice—blocking my posts, now, huh?
WE CAN ONLY HOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reality
May 2nd, 2011
1:23 pm
This blog has always stunk.
Dawg Gone
May 2nd, 2011
1:31 pm
Bill good article the current Dawgs could indeed learn a very valuable lesson from this. Justin best of luck going forward but please wise up the NFL won’t keep you if your not fully committed.
Contractor
May 2nd, 2011
1:58 pm
I’m so glad Orson is finally getting some publicity. The guy is always playing hard, and is a beast on the field. I have always wondered why he doesn’t get the ball more. Maybe he will rub off on everyone, and they will realize that it doesn’t take much to “want it”, just a little more determination and mind set. Way to go Orson, and I’m looking forward to seeing a very productive season out of you.
Snake Doc
May 2nd, 2011
4:14 pm
Dip Towers is a twit!
Questions for Tide Roll
May 2nd, 2011
6:31 pm
How is Georgia supposed to keep these guys in state if they don’t want to go to UGA?
Surely you are aware that you cannot force players to sign with a certain school.
You are supposedly a Bama fan, so why do you express such sorrow when Georgia doesn’t sign every OL in the state, yet I have not seen you express any remorse over Saban failing to sign Newton and Fairly, either of which would likely have guaranteed another NC.
So, did it upset you that Bama struck out on Newton and Fairly?
Still waiting on you to give one recognized recruiting authority who thinks Brandon Greene is a better prospect than John Theus. (Probably not a fair comment, since Theus is one of the elite linemen in the nation, while Greene is not at that level, though he does have potential.
Lakedawg
May 2nd, 2011
8:58 pm
Tide Roll forgets Bama offered Cordy Glenn, Bean Anderson, A.J. Harmon, Kolton Houston, Austin Long, Brent Benedict, scholraships but all signed with Dawgs. Tide Roll also missed out on Ben Jones, 2012 all-SEC center from Alabama and Kenarious Gates. They also offer 3 of the incoming freshmen that signed with Dawgs. Their midget coach is not getting all the OL prospects and Dawgs will have much higher rated 2012 OL recuruits.than Bama. Tide Roll can’t you comment on something else since this one has been old for quite a while.
truedawg
May 2nd, 2011
11:00 pm
What as a Coach are you supposed to do? who have a player that even without trying is the best player on the D. Do you bench him, hurting the teams chances of winning? keep playing him when he could hurt the team with the “cancer” attitude?
All teams have this problem, not just UGA. The problem is that when the player that isn’t giving 100%, is supposed to be a leader, and is one of the most talented players you have, it is very infectious. Others, see “he isn’t giving 100% and is playing every down, why should I ?” UGA has had that probllem with a few players. We haven’t had that type of leader at UGA step up in a a few years. I hope with Charles, Murray, Jones, to name a few we see a new player responsibilty for the team, and they hold each other accountable for there on and off field performance. GO DAWGS!!
one more thing..CMR is a hell’uva Coach!!
Still@theBAR
May 3rd, 2011
1:02 am
Houston learned from Q Carter that DOPE is GOOD and you can still get a NFL contract. He will get 1 contract and then USE the GREAT UGA degree he EARNED in 3 yr to to pay for all the Baby Mamas and the kids
Still@theBAR
May 3rd, 2011
2:18 am
Houston was wearing #42 for the smok’n reference. It was short for 420. All his buddies knew what it was standing for.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
8:32 am
The problems you cite in Houston are spot on, and unfortunately, systemic in Richt’s program over the last five or six years. Richt himself saying that Pollack was the last player he remembers working as hard as Charles says a lot. We know that every player won’t go 100% every single moment in practice nor even every single play in a game. But the fact is when you look at some teams with less or equal talent, they individually and collectively play harder and practice harder. Saban’s practices are intense, not just because he is, but because the players are (intense). There is an atmosphere of urgency there that probably makes it less pleasant to be a player but ultimately far more rewarding.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
8:36 am
Lakedawg: you make some good points about recruits Bama did NOT get, but do you really think over the next four years we will be better than Bama? AS a Dawg fan I want to think so, but intellectually I can’t honestly say we will. Just look at the last four years.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
8:39 am
Under the terms of the scholarship contracts, schools can require an athlete to take a drug test at any time. CMR could have tested Houston (and others) any time he dared, but then he’d have to bench him or else defy his own zero tolerance directives. Unfortunately, blissful ignorance and plausible deniability do not make for championship-calibre teams.
It Ain't Rocket Science
May 3rd, 2011
9:40 am
If this guy did smoke a little while in UGA and passed the test when they were administered, would there have been any reason to suspect him and therefore administer an out of cycle test? Did he show up for practice glassy eyed and tripping over his own feet? Did he just brag about using weed to all of his team mates and coaches and they buried it? I don’t think he is the brightest bulb on the tree, but I doubt he used it a whole lot in college. Why he thought he could use it just before the combine and not get caught is a mystery to me. I guess it was his way of celebrating the upcoming draft but it was sure a dumb move. To use his actions to once again, place the blame on everything on CMR is just as stupid as him using it prior to getting tested at the combine. I suppose some of you think he consulted with CMR and he told him that it was OK because he is a star. Get behind the team and the coaches and quit complaining all the time. The actions of this player were not the fault of CMR and the team as a whole, this guy did it on his own.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
10:11 am
And you clearly ain’t a rocket scientist. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I don’t blame CMR for Houston’s stupidity, but I do blame him for creating a culture that has allowed, and yes, even encouraged a PATTERN of such behavior over the past few years. Any one player at any time at any school will do boneheaded things, they are kids–spoiled kids–and that is what they do. But you CMR worshippers want to take one case at a time while you ignore the numerous, cumulative cases that indicate a big problem. See the Forest people, and stop trying to defend the trees one at a time.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
10:13 am
A UGA fan does not have to have Mark’s richt in his mouth be a true fan. Even fans need to be objective and see the big picture sometime. When fans don’t have a healthy perspective, then trees get poisoned, athletes get bribed, and worse, programs go down the drain. UGA is in grave danger of doing the latter….and we’ve been trending downward for half a decade.
Dawg'91
May 3rd, 2011
10:17 am
I don’t want Richt fired….he’s a good man and a good coach…but I do want him to assume more control and responsibility like he did in his earlier years. He is responsible for delegating authority, and we expect veteran coaches to delegate more and more duties and to take it easy themselves–that’s what most people do in their jobs. But when the duties aren’t getting done, then he has to make changes and sometimes that means taking control of it himself again until the program rights itself.
It Ain't Rocket Science
May 3rd, 2011
10:32 am
DAWG91,
Direct your insults at someone who really gives a damn about your obnoxious opinions. I have stated mine and if you disagree so be it. But, you have no right to try and inmsult me because this is one old man that has earned the right to my opinions and if you don’t like it, I suggest you complain to the editor or journalist of this blog. Until then, keep your stupid insults to yourself. By the way,; I am willing to put my education up against yours any day.
Matt
May 3rd, 2011
11:51 am
If you don’t think 2/3 of the leagues smokes and gets away with it you’re crazy. Nobody cares this kid smoked weed.
Tank Johnson takes plays off and he’s made plenty of money. Nick Fairley was accused of same thing and was still a 1st round pick. Not sure why he was so penalized.
shane
May 3rd, 2011
10:25 pm
what poor taste,low class comment for Bill King to make about TS. This kid is nothing but a class act during one of the most difficult times in his young life and this old a-s h-l- is publishing trash like this. croak old man croak!!!
nobody
May 3rd, 2011
11:57 pm
move Orson Charles to Tailback and together with the other Tight End at Fullback, we can have fun watching the running game again…