Fan talk: Can a true UGA fan ever pull for Tech against anybody?

Ben Jones celebrates Georgia's 2009 win over Tech at Grant Field. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)

OK, here’s your quickie post-Thanksgiving summation of Georgia vs. Georgia Tech:

In-state rivals. Nation’s No. 2 rushing offense meets No. 2 rushing defense. Uh-oh, triple option. Cut-blocking. Who can play tailback? Which Aaron Murray shows up for this game (the one who tore Auburn apart or the erratic one against Kentucky)? Will the Jackets continue to put it on the ground? What about Harton and Malcome? Will the Dogs be looking ahead to the Dome? Does anyone other than the Tech band still play the Budweiser theme?

Bottom line: If Georgia wins the turnover ratio, Georgia wins the game.

Now, before you tuck into another one of those turkey sandwiches, let’s get to some Junkyard Mail. …

Jackie Grimes writes: I know you’ve made it pretty clear over the years that like most Georgia fans now you can’t stand Georgia Tech. But have you never rooted for the Jackets at any time? Not even against Notre Dame in 1980 when Tech tying the Irish elevated the Dawgs to No. 1?

I have to admit I’ve always relished the irony that the Jackets were responsible for the Dogs first topping the polls in 1980. But, no, I didn’t root for Tech to win that game. I didn’t pull for the Irish to win, either. I was too fixated on what was going on in Jacksonville. But the end result, a tie that helped Georgia, couldn’t have been more perfect. I’ve actually never rooted for the Jackets. I know a lot of Georgia fans of my Dad’s era pulled for the Jackets except when the played the Dogs, but I never could contain the rivalry to just one week. To me, the perfect day is a Georgia win and a Tech loss. Any day. Any sport.

In reply to my list earlier this week of favorite Georgia wins over Tech, Jon from Savannah writes: Thanks for the memories. To this day, I still look for the long ball on the opening play of the game like the one in 1981 to Lindsay Scott. Too sweet of a memory.  One of my favorite plays of all time. And Reggie Ball. No Georgia fan can forget him.

Ah, Reggie Ball. The gift to Georgia from Chan Gailey that just kept on giving!

Timothy Hyman wrote to share his favorite Georgia-Georgia Tech memories, which included this: 1997 in Atlanta. I was at the game with my Dad in the Tech section. He went to Tech and worked there. So [we] were in enemy territory. Tech scored to take 24-21 but Bobo led UGA down the field. On fourth down Tech called for pass interference after they thought they had stopped us. Bobo throws touchdown to snatch victory when everyone thought we had lost. [I was] jumping up and down in a sea of gold. The looks on everyone’s faces around us … priceless.

A great day, for sure.

Scott Watson writes: Bill, I believe the team should wear something Saturday on the jersey or helmet to honor Larry Munson. He would hate it, but I think it’s the thing to do. We need to also honor him by totally demolishing Tech. Your thoughts? And Walker Garrett adds: Wouldn’t it be cool if the Dawgs wore jerseys with “Munson” on the back of all them, as a tribute to Larry! [The way the military] academies wear USA, Honor, Bravery, etc. on the back of their jerseys.

I definitely think the Dogs should honor Munson and Mark Richt has indicated that they will, with some sort of decal on the helmets. What it will be, they haven’t said. I’ve heard speculation ranging from Munson’s initials to a cigar to a microphone. But I know what I think would be perfect for the decal: a hobnail boot!

Justin Cade writes: Bill, I’m going to my first game at Tech this Saturday. Assuming you’ve seen the Dawgs at Bobby Dodd before. Are you aware of any decent pregame activities in the area? Are any of the local establishments relatively Dawg-friendly? Thanks for any advice you (or any of the other readers) might have. Go Dawgs!

I don’t really know of any pregame activities. After the 2009 game, I did really enjoy seeing the glum faces on all those Tech fans on the walk back to the MARTA station. As for the most Dawg-friendly place to grab a bite around the Joke by Coke, I’d say the Varsity would probably be your best bet. You’ll probably see as many folks there in red and black as in Tech colors.

UPDATE: Just got word of this today: The crew from “1980 Dawgs” will once again be joined by Georgia football legends Scott Woerner, Rex Robinson and possibly other members of the 1980 team at the Varsity on North Avenue before and after the game on Saturday, where they will be meeting fans, signing copies of “1980 Dawgs” DVDs and talking Georgia football. That’s Saturday, 9 a.m.-11:30 a.m. and right after the game for two hours.

David writes: Can anyone tell me why the cutoff for orders to the SEC Championship was last week before they even beat Kentucky? And why season ticket holders were not even notified? UGA has lost a supporter.

I’d have to say your devotion to UGA wasn’t very deep if that’s all it takes to lose you. But to answer your question, they offered Bulldog Club members (Hartman Fund donors aka season ticket holders) the chance to place orders for SEC championship tickets in advance (just like they do with all the possible bowl destinations) in order to be able to process them quickly once it was official. And if you’re a season ticket holder and you didn’t get either an email (several, actually) or something in the mail, then you ought to check with the folks at the Bulldog Club office in Athens and see whether they have your correct contact information. By the way, on Wednesday they announced the Hartman Fund cumulative contribution cutoff points for the 16,000 tickets Georgia is allotted to the SEC game. All contributors who ordered with a cumulative score of 100,000 and higher will receive up to 6 tickets. All contributors who ordered with a cumulative score between 52,500-99,999 will receive up to 4 tickets. And all contributors who ordered with a cumulative score between 12,050-52,499 will receive up to 2 tickets. UGA faculty, staff and students also were eligible for tickets, depending on various priority factors. The tickets were put into the mail Wednesday via the U.S. Postal Service.

Brian Cheshire writes: Hey Junkyard, I was just wondering if you have heard anything about Coach Richt stepping down after this year? If so why is he telling these recruits (Theus, Marshall) he is going to be there?

You’re referring to the rumor reported this week by GamingToday.com that claimed Richt would voluntarily leave Georgia at the end of the season. I put no credence in the report, which cited “sources in the South Carolina/Georgia area.” Hmm. South Carolina? Think anyone there might want to manufacture a rumor about the coach of the team that aced out the Gamecocks for the SEC East? The report, which didn’t have any credibility to spare, pretty much veered off into fantasy land when it said that the top candidates to replace Richt were Mike Bobo and Derek Dooley. And when Richt was asked this week on local radio whether the rumor was true, he indicated he wants to coach about another nine years and isn’t looking to leave UGA.

Charles from Albany writes: Bill, I was thinking about this after the weekend upsets. If instead of UGA playing Boise State in the opener, [they had gone] ahead with playing and beating Louisville, where do you think we would be in the discussion of one-loss teams playing for the BCS Championship? Love the Blawg.

Thanks. If Georgia had not lost to Boise State and was the SEC champion then, yes, I think a one-loss UGA might well have made the BCS championship. But no use thinking about might-have-beens. As it is, if Georgia wins out and is the SEC champion, the conference likely will get three teams into the BCS.

Tyler Knight writes: Bill, what are your thoughts on Ken Malcome? When he runs, he looks like a legit running back. I know he had the bad fumble, but he looks much more like an SEC running back than Brandon Harton or even Carlton Thomas. I think we should have given him more playing time.

You generally win playing time in practice and Malcome obviously did not impress Georgia’s coaches as much as Richard Samuel or Thomas did. From what little I’ve seen of him running, I’d say he had the potential to possibly be as useful as Samuel, assuming he could hold on to the ball, but he hasn’t developed the consistency the coaches were looking for. If he sticks around the program, who knows?

Finally, Brett Lassiter writes: Blair Walsh’s field goal game went into the tank this year, practically forcing the offense to make more plays in the clutch (not that UGA Nation preferred FGs to TDs). What I have noticed, though, is that his extra point game has still been pretty much dead center. What do you think are the chances that Blair has been throwing FGs in order to get the offense to do more?

A lot of folks love conspiracy theories but I’m not seeing Walsh on the grassy knoll in this case.

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— Bill King, Junkyard Blawg