Returning defensive starters put UGA in strong position
Shawn Williams says all the juniors on Georgia's defense will be back next season. (Brant Sanderlin / AJC)
If defense wins championships, as the saying goes, then the latest reports out of Athens mean Georgia should be looking good this coming season.
First, Bacarri Rambo announced that he would be returning for his senior season at UGA rather than enter the NFL draft and now fellow safety Shawn Williams is saying he’ll be staying at Georgia and that he believes “everybody will be back” on defense.
That would mean nine of the regular starters will return from a group that finished the year ranked fifth in the country in total defense, with only departing seniors Brandon Boykin and DeAngelo Tyson missing.
The good news was topped off with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham shooting down return-to-the-NFL rumors by issuing a statement Wednesday that he wants to be at UGA “a long time.” Grantham said he was speaking up “because of the terrific recruiting class we are assembling and the juniors that have communicated to me their desire to come back to Georgia.”
Sure, there’s always the chance someone could change their mind before Sunday’s NFL deadline, but Williams’ statement has to be considered a pretty good indication of what the players are saying to each other, so it looks like Mark Richt’s program has so far weathered the postseason draft period pretty well.
Yeah, it would have been great to have tight end Orson Charles back, but of the two players considered most likely to leave for the pros — Charles and Rambo — losing the defender would have been a bigger blow to the team’s prospects for 2012.
Of course, the defense certainly can’t do it all. The UGA coaching staff still has a lot of issues to address on offense and special teams before we can say the Bulldogs are ready to compete with the likes of Alabama and LSU.
But, as we saw during the Matt Stafford-Knowshon Moreno era, you can have an all-star offense and still not win a championship if your defense isn’t getting it done.
Aren’t you glad those days appear to be past us?
Got something on your mind concerning UGA athletics or a question for the Junkyard Blawg? Send it to junkyardblawg@gmail.com.
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162 comments Add your comment
Leroy1970
January 12th, 2012
10:50 am
First?
icedawg
January 12th, 2012
10:59 am
A strong plus having most of the defense back intact. At least we’ll be in most of the games. The offense is the killer. Whether it’s the offensive players or coaches they stunk it up in the had to have games. When Murray is good he’s real good, when he’s bad he’s real bad. Almost non-existent run blocking and therefore no running game. We’ll need a stable of running backs because they’ll all be crushed if they play next year like this past year. And Bobo would be better just to randomly select plays, like roll the dice, then people might not know what he has called.
40Watt Dawg
January 12th, 2012
10:59 am
Love Coach Grantham. Coach Richt knows what he is doing, it just took some time to reload. After all the questions we had last year, I feel confident they’ll get the OL, running game, and Special Teams issues fixed this year.
sogadog
January 12th, 2012
11:03 am
The defense is set, to win a championship the Dawgs will have to rebuild the O line and establish the running game.
bill arp
January 12th, 2012
11:05 am
Now, as long as everyone would end their love affair with A Murray, we could be in a serious position to make a run at it. Even with a great defense, when your QB is throwing pick 6’s and fumbling deep down in your own territory, there’s just no way.
Which I think is a major reason why we get the play calling that we do! Murray’s got to be held accountable.
McDawg
January 12th, 2012
11:08 am
D
kydawg
January 12th, 2012
11:09 am
“Grantham said he was speaking up “because of the terrific recruiting class we are assembling”…well that sure sounds interesting…must be some silent “commits” out there.
Vance Duly
January 12th, 2012
11:11 am
If I were Coach Richt, I would have our offense and defense scheme against each other, with the goal being for Coach Grantham to pick apart Coach Bobo’s playcalling, so that Bobo might move beyond his repetitive weaknesses. To compete, we must have a better offensive line than the past several years. But, Bobo needs to improve as a playcaller if Georgia is ever going to have a legit shot at a BCS title. I would hope that they already do this during the off-season, but I doubt that they do. Our defense MIGHT be good enough next year to get us CLOSE to the title game, but a predictable, overly conservative, “play not to lose” offense is not likely to work well against a team like USC, Oregon, Oklahoma St., etc. …GO DAWGS!
You can't hold me back
January 12th, 2012
11:17 am
Congrats to Orson Charles. You deserve a chance to show what you can do at the next level
Bipolar Dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:18 am
Bill King, most of our players are not ready for pro level so, they might as well stay put and help us win bcs game.
chilidawg
January 12th, 2012
11:19 am
Defense will win them for us if the offense will stop the red zone turnovers.
HOP
January 12th, 2012
11:19 am
Murray is a is a good kid,but he makes too manny mistakes . he has too many turnovers and that has cost uga from being an elite team.
I wish Richt would open up the competition in in the spring for qb.
it would help us with the offensive since we have so many other options.
SSIgator
January 12th, 2012
11:20 am
“it would have been great to have tight end Orson Charles back”
Why? Murray the Midget Hardly ever threw him the ball when it really counted. You just can’t beat that tailback run up the middle from the I-formation.
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:27 am
I love coach grantham, and richt should be kissing his feet for saving his job. The defense is going to be scary next year. Grantham has these boys playing with heart, intensity, and swagger. This is what the dawgs have been missing since 2005. All these juniors coming back show that they love playing for ctg. Things are looking up in Athens and I can’t wait to make a run next year. Now lets just close this years recruiting class strong. We really need Coradelle Patterson and Todd Gurley/Mike Davis to sure up things of the offense.Go Dawgs!
GATA
Destin Dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:27 am
Junk Yard dawg defense is BBBAAACCCCKKKK !! can’t win without a dependable QB… Richt Help !!!
Destin Dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:30 am
open up QB. competetion.. LeMay, Mason, Nick Marshall was a great H.S. QB too.. no seniority system for Murray !!
Destin Dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:32 am
Murray is a roll out passer.. scrambler.. not a pocket passer.. throw to TE. for a 10 yard 1st down etc. ball possession passing game !!!!
Spanky
January 12th, 2012
11:32 am
Has anybody heard anything about Christian LeMay? He shot down transfer rumors, so he must be under the impression that he sees playing time,…and what about this Bauta kid?
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:39 am
I believe that Lemay will get some snaps next year and will be 2nd on the depth chart. Everything I have read about Bauta is impressive. He is a very intelligent hard worker. I think you will seem him in some goal line situations running the ball.
Michael
January 12th, 2012
11:44 am
What is wrong with you people? Murray is an All-SEC caliber quarterback. One of the best in the country, and could go down as one of the best–if not the best–to play ‘tween the hedges. You are all insane.
As for quarterback situation. Mason is seeking transfer, mainly because he knows LeMay is the heir apparent after Murray. That’s why we saw LeMay redshirt. He’ll have two good years with us after Murray leaves. Bauta will likely play as an athlete somewhere, as will Nick Marshall.
Fridawg
January 12th, 2012
11:50 am
Enough with the Murray hating. He’s a great SEC QB, and set all kinds of records with an offense that you guys think is pathetic. The REAL issue is the OL. Straighten that up, and we’re golden. We’d be able to run the ball with our growing stable of high quality backs, and we will protect Murray. Defenses already have a hard time game-planning us. Fix the OL, and we’ll be unstoppable.
Old Dawg
January 12th, 2012
11:51 am
Can’t wait to see another year of great defense between the hedges!
1997Alum
January 12th, 2012
11:55 am
I am all for each play being assigned a digit then a random number generator on a calculator calling plays next year!
UGA 4 LIFE
January 12th, 2012
11:57 am
I wish Mike Bobo will enter the nfl lol
WillyWonkaDawg
January 12th, 2012
11:57 am
Against ranked teams, in SEC:
Grantham’s D was 11th in defensive scoring points allowed
Also, just overall red zone defense was AMONG THE WORST IN THE NCAA:
allowed scores 27 out of 29 times in red zone (116th ranked)
allowed 21 td scores out of 29 red zone trips (worst in NCAA)
Taco Meat
January 12th, 2012
11:59 am
Bottom line is if we don’t win it all next year, then we never will in the Richt era. We will never have this much returning talent (and depth) on both sides of the ball again.
WillyWonkaDawg
January 12th, 2012
11:59 am
Murray committed 9 turnovers in 3 of the 4 losses (3 against Mich St, 3 against LSU, 3 against South Carolina).
Murray got WORSE at ball protection with experience (14 interceptions, 5 fumbles).
If not for Murray, Dawgs go 12-2 in 2011.
DAWGS forever
January 12th, 2012
12:10 pm
Thankful for coach TG and the juniors staying. Has the look of a GREAT D next year. Thanks Bill for some good insight of the juniors staying.
Who are some of the players that red shirted that look to be real play makers? Kind of like Jarvis Jones. All the talk was how he would disrupt the O while he was on the scout team while redshirting.
Are there other freshmen who redshirted that look to take the next step that soon? I like the sound of Lemay.
I’m sorry but all this talk from commentators and some fans of Murray being great is over hyped. He might be good but no way is he great. He does become careless with the ball at times as noted in this blog. He makes many mistakes that cost dearly.
Let’s finish this recruiting class strong and get ready for championships a coming. Go DAWGS!
Nom Nom Nom Chuck's Taylor, or Norris if he is avaliable
January 12th, 2012
12:14 pm
“Bottom line is if we don’t win it all next year, then we never will in the Richt era. We will never have this much returning talent (and depth) on both sides of the ball again.”
AMEN. Murray the midget needs to study a clipboard some, let another kid get his shot. Those turnovers he commited DOOMED us in our losses. That and the genius playcalling.
Anybody going to miss the shotgun-draw plays for no gain this offseason? Boy, I sure am.
Thank God for CTG….and I am sorry in advance for the offense gassing you in the first half and then having the audacity to implicate you stepping up in the red zone.
Other than that, 2012 looks peachy.
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
12:17 pm
willy wonka… When you have no running game you have to rely on your qb. When you have no running game you become one dimensional like we were vs. every good defense. When a defense can just pin their ears back and rush the passer you put way too much pressure on your qb to make plays. With that being said Murray had one of the best years in school history at UGA. WONKA when you develop some football knowledge you can post again, until then go troll on your on blog. Wait 10-1.
GATA
Starring Kam Fong as Chin Ho
January 12th, 2012
12:18 pm
@ willewonka, and LSU was ranked 100 in red zone. Go back to the chocolate factory with your stupid mean nothing stats.
Columbus Dawg
January 12th, 2012
12:22 pm
Murray does not make the bad decisions when he has protection, and I believe he will benefit from UGA’s new look OL for 2012. I am not going to berate players by name, but the line has been suspect for several years. I do believe Friend in his second year, given some new blood to work with will have the OL ready to knock some heads in 2012. More protection for Murray, coupled with some good run blocking will give UGA a real chance of running the table. Joe T needs to be the meanest SOB in Athens for the next few months!
Desert Fox
January 12th, 2012
12:23 pm
The offense is the anchor around the neck of this GA team. Can’t count on it in big games as shown in all 4 losses this season. Other than Boise game, the O gave games away w/TO’s and a little help from an inept special teams. If the dawgs can ever establish a running game it might wash some of Bobo’s (and CMR’s) predictable play calling. Bobo’s not going anywhere so the dawgs need to offset those bone head plays on O w/run blocking that is better than what we’ve seen over the past several years. That won’t happen overnight so why not take a page from the Malzone playbook and work in some of his Off plays to confuse the D. They worked in the AU bowl game and looked good in the GA game where their TE scored. The Bobo playbook has no imagination and relied too much on running plays that were snuffed at the LOS. If you can’t open holes then try something different. The passing game will not bail you out all the time especially if the opposition knows your OC has no imagination and apparently has no plays that might fool the opposing D. If Bobo has to be the OC, then change the playbook some to include other plays then up the middle fizzlers.
uncle kirk
January 12th, 2012
12:29 pm
Hey willie, other teams were only in the red zone 29 times? What is our ranking on only allowing teams on the red zone 29 times. and the defense only gave up 17 points to USCe. but only a troll like you would count that against the d.
Preston
January 12th, 2012
12:33 pm
They better get a consistent offense that’ll keep that defense off the field a lot and keep them fresh.
icedawg
January 12th, 2012
12:35 pm
Murray haters? I think not. We’re just calling it like it is. He might have good stats in every department but winning the big games and the championships he has not. Just saying. When he has to deliver he has delivered to the opposing team and given them points and we’ve lost. It has happened enough that it is a pattern. David Greene did not turn the ball over like this. He won the SEC Championship. The other DAWG qbs on championships teams had minimal turnovers.
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
12:37 pm
icedawg… David green also had a stout running game and an incredible line. Just saying. When we find a line to protect murray and a running back that doesn’t cry after getting hit watch out.
Mike
January 12th, 2012
12:40 pm
I agree 100%. I would rather have a defense playing top notch, which is exactly how Richt made his mark at UGA with Van Gorder. You have to play defense in this league if you want to win it. However, you can offset that defense with an offense and special teams that make absolutely killer mistakes. UGA would have been better off lining up and taking a knee three times, then punting out of bounds vs the killer mistakes Murray, the offense, and special teams coverage made last year.
To be fair, its not Murray’s fault. Murray was forced into far too many long yardage situations with a line that doesnt block very well. Bobo needs to be a lot more creative this year in order to avoid the long yardage. Use the TE more in the middle of the field. Use the FB more. FB and TE used to be staples in UGA’s offense. FB screen or out in the flats…TE over the middle…quick handoff to the fullback…all staples of early Mark Richt teams that have disappeared recently.
Real Talk
January 12th, 2012
12:44 pm
Murray is NOT a championship caliber QB. You can put 2 losses on him just from this past season.
Go Dawgs!
KB
January 12th, 2012
12:45 pm
williewonka is the handle for today, same guy post same drivel everyday under different hand. He full of meaningless stats and Murray bashing , Murray must’ve screwed his girlfriend.
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
12:46 pm
Arthur Lynch break out player of the year next year. Watch out for Quayvon Hicks to start as a true frosh at FB. Dude is a beast.
GATA
Real Talk
January 12th, 2012
12:49 pm
Passing over the middle (for 4-8 yards) won’t happen as long as Murray is QB. The kid looks so rattled in the pocket. I laugh when people complain about Orson not getting enough touches, and it is somehow Bobo’s fault. (most te routes are drags or hooks across the middle.) The QB throws the ball, and Murray is looking anywhere but the middle of the field.
CHDawg
January 12th, 2012
12:56 pm
There is irony in some of these departures. For instance, most Gator fans were thrilled when Tebow elected to stay. However, one of his backups–Cam Newton, was ready to start or move on. Would he have stayed at UF if Tebow had gone pro? Maybe, and maybe not–due to his troubles. But if he had stayed and played, the Gators might have won the NC a couple of times more. As great as 15 was in college, Newton might have been even better. Point is, you never know how well the next guy will play. Lynch looked great to me in both of the last two Gdays, but particularly two years ago; he is a load to bring down, and it isn’t easy. He also is likely a much better blocker than OC. Rome has awesome genes (I’m dating myself here). So as much as we all love OC, Lynch and Rome could actually fill that gap just fine.
True Dawg
January 12th, 2012
1:00 pm
need to demote Bobo and try a new OC
RP
January 12th, 2012
1:04 pm
I am no fan of Bobo, but i also dont think he’s that bad. It’s hard to look like a genius playcaller when you have absolutely zero running game and the D knows it.
CHDawg
January 12th, 2012
1:06 pm
JMO, but Murray’s line is the problem, not Murray. They gave up an astronomical amount of sacks and TFLs this year–just terrible. The fact that Murray is very quick, elusive, and he has good peripheral vision actually gave UGA good offensive stats, despite the intense pressure! We could have had about thirty more sacks with a less mobile QB, and we were already 97th out of 120! The intense pressure would have affected most other QBs a lot more, imo.
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 12th, 2012
1:15 pm
AM IS NOT THAT GOOD…HE MADE HIS MISTAKES AT THE WORST TIME AND THE WORST PLACE…A GOOD QB WOULD HAVE JUST ATE THE BALL OR THREW IT AWAY.
b-ham dawg
January 12th, 2012
1:15 pm
CHDawg… Well said. Completely agree
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 12th, 2012
1:16 pm
UGA wins 10 straight easy cupcake games this year with Joe Hamilton QB’ing this years team…well, maybe not Joe.
KB
January 12th, 2012
1:19 pm
Icedawg,Murray is a very good QB, . there is room for improvement. Obviously you have forgotten about Greenes 2003 season. 13 tds 11 ints on the season.Yes Greene has won an SEC championship game , he also lost one and threw a pick six in a 34-13 loss to LSU, Hopefully Murray gets a second chance next year.
monty
January 12th, 2012
1:22 pm
Murray is short, I believe about Drew Brees’ height. But Brees has something Murray hasn’t had the luxury that Brees has, 2 all-pro guards opening up some passing lanes and running lanes. Be nice if Murray had something similar. Murray’s problem in the Outback game were 1. an out pass was tipped and deflected to the CB and returned for 6, then 2. on a scramble to his right Murray thought the receiver was going to do one thing, come back towards Murray, and the receiver turned to go deep, interception. My guess is that the receiver made the wrong move, something they probably practice in scrimmage, if this happens then come back to me. I would say that Murrays problems come from 1. defensive pressure(lack of a good pocket and a couple of seconds to make a good read), 2. too many deep routes that take too long to develop(BoBo) 3. sometimes trying to do too much instead of throwing the ball away. Sometimes all these are inter-related. But I like him more than I ever did Stafford.
gbal
January 12th, 2012
1:31 pm
The predictable play calling contributes a lot to making our OL look bad. Teams know whats comming and load up.
Murray holding on to the ball at times – slow to read progressions and not willing to throw it away, contributes to making the line look worse at times.
Some say our heavy line is not mobile enough to get outside and block???
Murray doesnt protect the ball well at times- in big games with the 3 TO’s, but also Vs lesser teams – (Miss St.) as well.
At a minimum the QB competition needs to be opend up. no starter named until the first game.
Someone else might stand out. The OL might rally around another QB, OR it might make AM better and he makes the necessary improvement.
Id rather not have the big STATS and win the tough games than end the season saying we have the leading SEC QB.
Just a hunch that another might have better toughness.
UGA Alumnus
January 12th, 2012
1:34 pm
@WillyWonkaDawg
January 12th, 2012
11:59 am
“If not for Murray, Dawgs go 12-2 in 2011.”
Murray also threw for 35 touchdowns. So you could say “If not for Murray we wouldn’t have won any games.”
Jeff Paulk
January 12th, 2012
1:40 pm
And whatever became of Ulysses Norris?
CHDawg
January 12th, 2012
1:42 pm
Good points, all. UGA ranked 97 of 120 on sacks and 112 of 120 in TFLs. Our line was close to the worst in D1 in both categories. Total offense, otoh, was 39 of 120. That tells me our position players made up for a lack of blocking. Sacks would likely have been at the bottom without Murray. Monty, one thing I would like to see UGA do differently next year is utilizing Murray’s scrambling gift. The pat answer is always come back to the QB when he is scrambling, but had King broken upfield on that play, the DB would have had to honor it. Blocking the guy was about the worst thing he could have done. Hindsight is 20/20, but Murray is a good scrambler, and we ought to spend a lot of time thinking about how best to use that–especially in light of the youth in our line.
RedPantsDawg
January 12th, 2012
1:51 pm
Give Murray an OL that can block for him and a running game to run the clock and I don’t think anyone will have a bad word to say about Murray. It is hard to play QB in the SEC when the offensive line breaks down and you have to pass every down because you don’t have dependable running game.
TossSweep
January 12th, 2012
2:04 pm
Can we get a new OC and have Bobo coach the QB’s, please! Hopefully Greg Mac can force this change for CMR to follow! I hear the Boise State OC will be available.
JB
January 12th, 2012
2:17 pm
If Richt/Bobo would call our games like two years ago when we were behind 2-4 TD’s all the time, they would be shocked at the results. ALA Chip Kelly…..turn’em loose.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
2:17 pm
You might as well randomly select plays if you are going to be trotting out walk-on diminutive Running Backs. You can also randomly select any OC out there, and not improve more than a few drives, perhaps steal a game here and there, until that gets fixed.
JB
January 12th, 2012
2:18 pm
TossSweep……………..The OC from Boise just got hired by Florida…….
KB
January 12th, 2012
2:20 pm
Right Gbal, Murray 2nd team all SEC , no coach in their right mind wouldn’t name him as the starter.Let Lemay show what he can do and give him a couple of series per game like he did with DJ.
JB
January 12th, 2012
2:20 pm
Without a running game, we go10-2 next year….with one, we’d go 11-1…..maybe 12-0…….. But we will be dissed like Auburn was a few years back. Our weak schedule won’t allow us to move up in the polls past 4th-5th at best.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
2:27 pm
I hope we are more predictable in our play calling next year. The better team are. You just have to be able to do it. It’s really that simple.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
2:37 pm
That’s not really such a clear cut comparison. AU started out in 2004 very low ranked based on a very disapointing year before, and took half a year to climb into the top 10. There were just undefeated teams that started and stayed ranked higher.
If Georgia goes 12-0 they will be ranked as high as anyone, (depending on who else is)
SOS has very little bearing on the human vote IF they are playing well, and the computer polls are not that big of a factor.
OldFan
January 12th, 2012
2:38 pm
I’ll buy the great defense, and I’ll even take it that Murray is an SEC top tier QB (even though that means he’s better than he plays), but without some dramatic improvement in the O-line and a complete reworking of special teams, we’re still losing to ranked teams next year.
bruce mac
January 12th, 2012
2:41 pm
Would all of you idiots quit presuming the strength of schedule for 2012. You have no idea how good Auburn, Florida, Tennessee, Missouri, GT, etc. will be. If all you had to do was look in the rear view mirror to predict future results I would all be a millionaires living in Vegas. It doesn’t work that way, lets wait and see how it plays out.
Jerry Blooger
January 12th, 2012
3:05 pm
On ANY board trolls SUCK
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
3:12 pm
Plus if they go 12-1 losing the SECCG, rankings will be…..just rankings. Go 13-0 and I doubt anyone has them #5. Unless there are 4) other 13-0 conference champs out there that looked fantastic all year long, and that ain’t happening.
KB
January 12th, 2012
3:14 pm
Bruce mac, I agree everyone says we have an easy schedule but Auburn and Florida have the players to be good, I am not sure about Mizzou, Tenn. with bray, and the wide receivers returning will be able to score points , but I think tech will be pretty much on par with the previous 2 years , little talent and overrated coaching.
KB
January 12th, 2012
3:20 pm
I hope we have a kicker next year that can make field goals, All the complaining about the Murray and the oline etc., but no one mentions our Field goal kickers left 52 points on the field. if dawgs would’ve had a decent Fg kicker the close games wouldn’t have been close and we may have won 2 others.Nothing more deflating to a team to work and get into position to score and not come away with points. Walsh had issues this year that no one could’ve seen coming.
old dog
January 12th, 2012
3:25 pm
As previously stated…..our o-line needs help! We look pretty good in the 1st half of the SEC championship game, then when folks figure out (what took ‘em so long) that we don’t have ANY KIND of running game they can concentrate solely on stopping the pass game. This limits Bobo’s play calling (or anyone elses.) Of course we need a consistent tailback who is bigger than Mrs. Richt, or has an IQ above the average active rock, but we still cannot run block on better teams. Until that happens, we will beat the bad teams and lose to the good ones. You gotta run it in the SEC. Football (still) is blocking and tackling!! Thank goodness for our defense! They will make errors as will all human beings, but not as many as our o-line!
JB
January 12th, 2012
3:25 pm
Bama closing in on 31st commit today…..4 to go
JB
January 12th, 2012
3:26 pm
dead on old dog. We laugh at Tech for not being able to pass…..We literally have NO running game.
robodawg
January 12th, 2012
3:35 pm
That much returning talent means the defense should only get better. And a great D will keep you in a lot of games.
441North
January 12th, 2012
3:36 pm
I love CTG’s statement. Most of our rising seniors on defense will be playing in the NFL someday. We are LOOOOOOAAAADED on that side of the ball. Now if CMB can take his head out of his rear end, we might make a run next year. G A T A
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
3:39 pm
Is that what Saban’s presser was for? To announce what players have been selected to have medical ailments?
TossSweep
January 12th, 2012
3:39 pm
DAMN! Looks like it’ll be another sub 10-win season.
KB
January 12th, 2012
3:48 pm
Depth on the Oline and consistency at RB will do wonders for Georgia running game.I think dawgs will be ok in the backfield. Will Beard be able to contribute immediately?Will Ward and Long be healthy? will Houston be eligible? Will De Bell and Dantzler step up? Is Theus ready for SEC play? Lots of ???? for the line.
Lakedawg
January 12th, 2012
3:55 pm
Playing at Missouri, Carolina, Florida, Auburn, will all be tough tossup games, Dawgs will have to have great games to win those four. Rest of schedule should be winnable, but on a given day/
Lot of bodies for Oline, coach Fried got to get best 5 ready and backups, which we did not have this year. Burnette, Gates, Lee, Long, Houston, Dantzler, Ward, Andrews, Theus, Brown, Pyke, and hopefully Young.
Lakedawg
January 12th, 2012
3:56 pm
Forgot Debell, and Beard, that makes 14-15.
Bean Counter
January 12th, 2012
3:58 pm
I believe that Bobo’s nonuse of Orson Charles was a big contributor in Charles’ decision to leave. Bobo never got the tight end involved in the offense. Bobo would continually put us in situations where we were third and long. As a result he would call a long developing pass play and would have to keep Charles in to protect the quarterback. We quit throwing screen passes, when used correctly they slow down a rush.
The biggest improvement we could make on offense is to put someone other than Bobo in the OC position.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
4:15 pm
Not counting those 45 beans.
Coastal Dawg
January 12th, 2012
4:15 pm
Coach Grantham is the first coach that brings the results and passion attributed to Erk. Give him a check and let him do his thing.
Please open up the QB competition and let some of the others play. It was a shame this past year when Mason sat on the sidelines with a big lead in the 2nd half, just because one time at…..band camp (one time in the history of NCAA football, a team came back and beat someone with a 28 point lead…..It was probably us when we started playing not to lose and got too conservative with about 35 minutes left to go in the game.)
Coastal Dawg
January 12th, 2012
4:22 pm
When you must make a first down to seal the game, I agree it is not best to run a 150 lb. back into a talented and athletic D1 defensive front. At least find a way to get him outside.
KB
January 12th, 2012
4:25 pm
Bean counter, It may seem like Orson wasn’t utilized but he set a school record for yardage at TE and tied the career record for TDs. Not bad for someone that was under utilized.
KB
January 12th, 2012
4:31 pm
Only 6 TE in the country had more yards than Charles and only 5 had more receptions.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
4:41 pm
We only had 3 games in which we had big 2nd half leads. Mason played in 2 of them. The last one was Auburn.
Dennis
January 12th, 2012
4:48 pm
Is offense dead in the SEC? It would appear.
ANYTUI
January 12th, 2012
4:48 pm
Enter your comments here
Dennis
January 12th, 2012
4:51 pm
I thought Saban’s presser was to announce that He will not be hiring an offensive coodinator. He will concentrate all his efforts on defense. Run three plays, punt and let his defense rule.
ANYTIME, you have...
January 12th, 2012
4:51 pm
…a coach, at any leve,l deny interest in another job or that he is “staying put” is as good as gone – book it! Remember Nick “I am the coach of the Miami Dolphins” Saban and his “comments” (or, really, no comments); and how about whenever an owner gives the old “vote of confidence” – yep, Grantham, is as good as gone – it is just a matter of where he lands…
Joey
January 12th, 2012
5:11 pm
JB (2:17), we saw some of that vs SC this year. 42 points, all by the offense, vs a 11-win, Top 10 game.
He only turns the O loose when we get two scores down.
I’m worried about the special teams. If he couldn’t correct things from Sept to Jan, with players at practice, how’s he gonn fix them before Sept?
Joey
January 12th, 2012
5:14 pm
top 10 team
Orange11
January 12th, 2012
5:15 pm
Solution to stop Murray’s turnovers. Give him a jeep to drive up and down the field. That is the only way to stop it.
Orange11
January 12th, 2012
5:16 pm
Okay, maybe a Ford truck.
JDawg1785
January 12th, 2012
5:25 pm
Georgia is a decent offensive line and kicking game away from being a very solid team next season.
DAWGS forever
January 12th, 2012
5:38 pm
BREAKING NEWs…. Saban to the Raiders
Will
January 12th, 2012
5:46 pm
Hey you bunch of dumb masses. Murray will be 1st Team All-SEC after next season. You naysayers just don’t know anything about football.
Bill
January 12th, 2012
6:05 pm
Survey
Who is the dumbest? (No particular order)
A. Bill King
B. Matt Chernoff
C. Jeff Schultz
D. Chuck Oliver
E. Sports Blog Readers/Writers
F. Mark Bradley
G. Too close to call
GulfShoresDawg
January 12th, 2012
6:08 pm
Living in GS, AL…I am looking for the days like 2008 when we beat Auburn, Troy and Bama…we own the state of Alabama!!!
Mr. SEC
January 12th, 2012
6:27 pm
Michael, you are smoking crack!
Get rid of Bobo, make him a QB coach, get a good OC, CMR grow some balls!
The outcome, you win SEC Championship
UGA '05
January 12th, 2012
6:42 pm
you guys are saying it and not realizing it. i’m not a big bobo fan, but his play calling did improve this year from last year. However because of the inconsistencies on the o-line and the rb’s, he was limited to what he was able to call. The pieces are all there, but every coach has to do their part to make it fit. I’ve never said these words before. Stop blaming bobo. Hold everybody from players to coaches accoutnable. We were two dimensional at times during the season and that’s when we played horribly. Bobo made good calls at times but then when the o-line and rb’s started up with their problems the playcalling was limited.
UGA '05
January 12th, 2012
6:43 pm
sorry should read “we were one dimensional at times and that’s when we were played horribly.” when we were two dimensional we played great.
UGA '05
January 12th, 2012
6:47 pm
I will admit, it was pretty stupid not to pull murray after all his pick 6’s. He is good but there comes a point in time where you have to challenge the kid.
GulfShoresDawg
January 12th, 2012
6:52 pm
Just read this…see how LSU and Bama win…over recruit, over enroll,
Daniels told MaxPreps today that Miller was set to enroll early at LSU. However, the day after the BCS title game, LSU told Miller that it only had five scholarships available and seven players enrolling early.
LSU asked Miller’s father to pay for the spring semester, which prompted Miller and his family to explore other options.
UGA '05
January 12th, 2012
7:04 pm
You think Bobo told the receivers to drop those two potential TD passes in the 1st quarter of the SECCG? NO! Think about it. That’s the players fault. If those two passes were caught, then we probably would of won the SECCG. The momentum would of been entirely ours. Now special teams… IDK why the hell we punted straight to the honey badger
DAWGLIFER
January 12th, 2012
8:06 pm
Fire Mike Bobo! And all is well. I don t know if I can withstand seeing another draw play called or a run with no blocking from the shotgun. What happened to the toss sweeps and power dive plays? A blind man could call better plays than Bobo the clown.
artful codger
January 12th, 2012
8:07 pm
very few dump passes to the FB this year
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
January 12th, 2012
8:18 pm
After 32 years you guys are still talking the talk but really UGA minus old #34 is Ga Southern in red and black! I just Bama gets back to Atlanta and you talking dogs get there as well for this time Nick will not call of the Tide and beat the living sheet out Richt. Mizzou will beat your ash right off the bat and I can wait to see the meltdown!!! According to you folks every player on the roster is all world when in fact half of them are the best friends of averge players but that is just the way the preacher man recruits. I come to this site for entertainment and you folks never fail. You top the stupid auburn fanbase and that my friends is not a compliment! Go ahead and run that mouth because you do that very well.
Nick Saban never sleeps and UGA will never beat Bama as long as Saban is the Man. 31-zip at the half in the blackout!!!!! LOL…
Bill
January 12th, 2012
8:24 pm
Stupid is as stupid does…. Keep posting, you idiots.
homerville
January 12th, 2012
8:37 pm
Homers that believe Richt is gonna suddenly morph into some type of Saban next year or beyond is like waiting for the first snowfall at the Equator.
AltamahaDawg
January 12th, 2012
8:42 pm
Joey, you address the ST issue in Feb. You fill out your roster. We starter the season 15 players short of teams like (fill in blank).Tha’ts back up LBs, RB, FB, DB. The guys historically that make up the coverage teams. So it’s simple, either put a fair number of walk on on the team, or ask your starting LB to sprint the field 6-7 times a game, and then go play full speed with no relief.
They had little way to” fix” it during the season. Roster was set. Other than tweek some formations.
Dawg48
January 12th, 2012
9:19 pm
Wet Willie!
Stupid is as stupid does Gump!
Richt has beat saban at bama!
I guess your just a bandwagon bama Gump!
RamboDog
January 12th, 2012
9:37 pm
Wet Willie is just a F…A..G and I’ll kick his arse if he tells me where to meet him. Redneck Bama fans make me puke…don’t make me pound you into a grease spot.
LakeDawg
January 12th, 2012
9:43 pm
While I love what CTG is doing with the D, until CMR commits to having a physical running game it won’t matter. No chance to beat LSU, Bama unless that happens.
BiggdawgK
January 12th, 2012
10:09 pm
That is great news but no big surprise. These guys are poised to make a run at a Championship both a SEC and BCS.
Where are all the bama boys and techies that were swearing they had inside info that all those guys were leaving? I guess they are all sad little liars huh?
BiggdawgK
January 12th, 2012
10:11 pm
Bill King do you know Chris Starrs who writes for several papers in Georgia? You favor him a bit.
UGA FRIEND
January 13th, 2012
4:59 am
I continue to be amazed at how the so called UGA fans bash Bobo, CMR and Murray. It seems like they should be happy with the 10-4 season and realize UGA cannot win every game.
Neutral
January 13th, 2012
7:36 am
I have several friends who say Kirby Smart has made contact with the Falcons. Anyone know more about this?
dan
January 13th, 2012
7:45 am
@ UGA Friend
No I’m not happy with an 10-4 season when one of those losses was to a Michigan State team. It’s not about how many games the Dawgs won last year. It’s could they have done better with what they had. And the answer, yet again, is year.
Sorry I’m not buying the UGA talk. That ship has leaked far too many times for me.
I like Mark Richt and he has represented the university well. However, someone is going to have to explain to me how his teams NEVER seem ready for the big stage. Why do good teams dominate the Dawgs? There is more going on here than just coordinators. There are deeper problems with team philosophy and execution, and that falls on the head coach.
Dawg fans have to be honest with themselves. Where things currently stand,the Dawgs are a second tier team that is simply not in the same conversation with the elites of the game. They are not one player or one coordinator away from competing. There are issues with the infrastructure of this program that need to be addressed in order for them to move forward.
dan
January 13th, 2012
7:46 am
*Yes instead of Year. Damn phone. lol
ole yeller
January 13th, 2012
7:48 am
Fix Murrary big game jinks, fix Bobo’s play calling. everthing else fall into place.
Fair and Balanced
January 13th, 2012
7:59 am
Coach Fox needs to produce. 3 years and no improvement, demands some attention. Ga may be the. Weakest team in the SEC this year.
O CORD!
January 13th, 2012
8:19 am
What did Matt Stafford-Knowshon Moreno do in our biggest games of 2008? (Bama & UF) We did not then and do not now have an O Cord.
AltamahaDawg
January 13th, 2012
8:26 am
No, we are not one player away from the top teams in the SEC. But they are a few players (lost) away from not quite being them either, and that will happen. And we were maybe 2-4 players away from being a team that would have won probably 2 of those 4. I could name 1 player right now that should have been here that I believe would have made a big difference in the season.
Why we don’t have that 1, or 5, or 15, is a very legit question, but nobody in the SEC is trully that far out of reach from the several teams running second fiddle.
vadawg
January 13th, 2012
8:46 am
talent returning…..YES………Offensive line?????????
Please Stay
January 13th, 2012
9:00 am
On behalf of the SEC EAST, I hope the entire UGA coaching staff stays intact!! Keep underacheiving w/ top talent.
Guess why many UGA players aren’t heading to the NFL early? They aren’t coached up to showcase their skills.
Please stay….for a loooong time!!
Texas Dawg
January 13th, 2012
9:16 am
@KB….Murry is a good QB against weak teams….please look at what he done to loose games against…Fla last year….Sc this year….Mich ST this year……he does not….I repeat not look good in high profile games……his fumbles…and Int…are directly linked to losing alot of our “big” games? I believe any of our QB can “pad’ their stats against weaker teams ….my 2 cents…
tell me again
January 13th, 2012
9:40 am
Murray is a good QB – people are right when they say the lack of a running game greatly hindered him this year – but – here’s the rub on Muuray – he has yet to bring us back and win a big game – he almost had that moment against Mich. St. – almost. He needs a game like the hobnail boot game that Greene had against Tennessee to get over the hump and show he can be a game winner when it’s all on his shoulders. Until he does that, some of the question marks surrounding him are sadly valid. He is a talent – no doubt – but, he can’t have games like the ones he did agains SC and LSU and expect to get the kudos, that otherwise, his stat sheet shows he should be getting. Stats are meaningless when the end result is a loss – that’s the bottom line. Win ugly or win pretty but WIN.
TheTruthHurts
January 13th, 2012
10:00 am
Well, here we go again. Rationalizing how UGA will win the “big ones” next year. Hope springs eternal, but hope can’t make up for the fact that Richt is the head coach. As long as Richt hangs around don’t look for any SEC championships, much less a BCS bowl. After a couple more years of mediocrity, maybe McGarity will finally wise up and figure out what it’s going to take to make UGA a legitimate player in the SEC again. Don’t hold your breath though. It looks like it’s going to be a long dry spell.
WDE
January 13th, 2012
10:04 am
@tell me again I sorta count the win vs UF this year, we were down what 14 and Murray lead us on to victory..and make no mistake beating UF this year was big.
DawginLex
January 13th, 2012
10:05 am
Bill
January 12th, 2012
6:05 pm
Survey
Who is the dumbest? (No particular order)
A. Bill King
B. Matt Chernoff
C. Jeff Schultz
D. Chuck Oliver
E. Sports Blog Readers/Writers
F. Mark Bradley
G. Too close to call
H. a person who puts up a poll on a blog
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 13th, 2012
10:17 am
Who is the dumbest? (No particular order)
1)
DAWGINLEX
1A)
ALTAMAHA DAWG
G-Dawg
January 13th, 2012
10:32 am
Can we talk football? And not about idoitic things? Slow reading for a friday!!!
DawginLex
January 13th, 2012
10:41 am
UGA fan…not fanatic
Get back to the grill. Aren’t you on onion rings today?
Don’t burn mine this time either
goldwreck
January 13th, 2012
10:44 am
I’ll rephrase my comments since they were purged.The point I was making is AJ McCaron is a redshirt sophomore just like AM at Georgia.He continued to improve as he had coaching and an offensive coordinator that changed things up to help him out.Murray and his nervous feet have not improved and he is also a redshirt sophomore.How do players react to pressure? Coaching does matter.McCaron is the quarterback at Alabama for those that don’t recognize his name.
WDE
January 13th, 2012
11:14 am
@goldwreck Murray tossed 35 TD passes this year…that sort of is improvement…and the lack of a running game the last few games hurt his performance..just to be fair. Can he improve more I think so, but he did improve some this year.
AltamahaDawg
January 13th, 2012
11:15 am
Well then sport, I’m sure you can easily illustrate how something(s) I said was ” dumb” then. Or at least incorrect.
AltamahaDawg
January 13th, 2012
11:18 am
What did Alabama “change up” to make McCaron better?
hotdog
January 13th, 2012
11:24 am
I’m not the biggest fan of Bobo’s play calling but when it works everyone is fine. When it doesn’t everyone screams. I’m sure all the LSU fans are questioning their OC after the NC loss so it comes with the job.
Spike 80DF
January 13th, 2012
12:00 pm
this is just like the Stafford/ Moreno days except the shoe is on the other foot. Back then soft willie couldn’t hold teams under 35 a game but now that CTG has the defense rolling we can’t score points without superstar’s running the plays.
expect another 10 win season but no way this coaching staff EVER wins the NC….
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 13th, 2012
12:03 pm
dawginlex, get back your boyfriend and give him a happy ending!!!!
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 13th, 2012
12:04 pm
like shooting fish in a barrell with you retards
DawginLex
January 13th, 2012
12:08 pm
UGA fan…not fanatic
January 13th, 2012
12:04 pm
like shooting fish in a barrell with you retards
*************
Can’t spell and calls us retards?????
You are so easy to destroy.
SSIgator
January 13th, 2012
12:13 pm
“Returning defensive starters put UGA in strong position”
Probably so, but with Mark “I can win games – just not big games” Richt and his sidekick Booboo running the show on the offense, the best that might happen will be a repeat of last year. UGA – home of the occassional ten win season, but no titles.
AltamahaDawg
January 13th, 2012
12:55 pm
No, what would be like shooting fish would be to point out the inaccuracies in somebodies post that you think is “dumb”. I can’t remember a single time you could do that.
I like Georgia. You like Georgia. (let’s assume)
I would like to see them win more games. You would like them to win more games.
I see areas that Georgia is weak. Let’s assume you have some specifics.
I post what things we need to improve. Let’s assume you think in those terms as well.
So how am I more “dumber” than you?
Eddie Haskell
January 13th, 2012
1:02 pm
They’ll be in a great position to get their @ss kicked by Bama
CHDawg
January 13th, 2012
1:10 pm
Homer wrote: “Homers that believe Richt is gonna suddenly morph into some type of Saban next year or beyond is like waiting for the first snowfall at the Equator.” Google Cotopaxi–snows all the time on the equator. Richt might well have won it all in 07, 08, and 11, if we had a great O line. We have had a weird series of issues there, and I am sure CMR is moving to fix it. I wish they would plan new packages to deal with the reality that our line has problems, but I wouldn’t trade CMR for CNS, and I wouldn’t trade Murray for McCarron.
AltamahaDawg
January 13th, 2012
1:23 pm
Looks like UT’s defense just got a little better.
Chris Snow
January 13th, 2012
1:24 pm
A few on here made excellent points about the run game. As bad as many fans (even me at times) like to complain about Bobo, we NEED a solid running back. The recruits are looking good.
bwell
January 13th, 2012
1:39 pm
Bill,
I agree we needed our defense guys to stay for another year. Which is great. Now if ga study tape during the off season> (The Nat’l C’ship game) on how to play defense football for 60mins and not 30mins (SEC C’ship game) then the sky is the limit plus it seems like we are picking up the slack on offering early to recruits (2013) class. Which will bold well for us for next yr.
UGA fan...not fanatic
January 13th, 2012
1:50 pm
your easier gay boy, who care about spelling on a blog. Now go tell your Mommy you are being picked on. Maybe she will let you suck her old dry teets.
Dominating Dawgs My Arse
January 13th, 2012
1:59 pm
Good defense?
First we need a good coach. We are doomed with Richt and Bobo.
Chris Snow
January 13th, 2012
2:22 pm
Just picked up Gurley. Our RB situation is looking better and better.
abbe
January 13th, 2012
5:36 pm
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zbulldawg
January 13th, 2012
6:47 pm
I Love it when a plan starts coming together ! Adding depth to the “D” Running backs & got Will Freind guiding the OL !! Let the BIG DAWG EAT !!!
Jborodawg
January 13th, 2012
8:17 pm
These comments sound familiar. Fill in the blanks with CMR or CMB or Murray….
“…I’m a big___________ supporter, as I believe he brings many wonderful qualities (honesty, integrity, professionalism, loyalty, judge of talent and recruiting) to his position as head football coach. However, I think he really needs to work on his approach in terms of the hiring and more importantly releasing of asst coaches as a business and not a personal decision. This approach may also need to be tweaked with regard to whom he decides to play at key junctures in the football games. I applaud his loyalty as a very positive character trait, but I’m afraid he sometimes overdoes the loyalty…”
“…common sense would tell any coach to go to PLAN B. And I’m willing to believe most coaches even have a PLAN C just in case. Yet, as the whole country saw, __________only used PLAN A. Was he that scared or what? We were flat out outplayed and outcoached….”
“…The one point I agree is on the adjustments part. I would have like to see misdirection plays which I don’t think they tried one….(the OL looked RUSTY as a vacation cabin outhouse door) and trying to figure out if the OL could block anyone. Not only was the QB situation bad but the OL wasn’t giving RBs any holes at all and the WRs weren’t getting open…”
“…Why in the world isn’t________allowed to throw over the middle except for very deep passes? He completes as many passes to defenders as he does to receivers…if you can’t understand that, you need to follow soccer or something because quite frankly, everyone else I talk to says exactly the same thing…”
“…The defense did enough to win if the offensive game plan included adjustments. ______just doesn’t know how to make adjustments during the game…”
“…the players gave up, pure and simple. You could see it on every players face…”
“…Why in God’s name did________not give_________a chance to turn the game around? It was obvious that at best__________ was having an “off” game! Why not bring in a different style of quarterbacking? It defies, in my opinion, explanation as to why_______ was left in. What I saw last night in terms of allowing______ to remain in the game defies rationality.__________ places all his eggs in the one basket…”
UGA fans on the AJC after the MSU game? Nope. It’s LSU bloggers after the Bama game. Played for the NC and ready to fire Miles and assistant coaches. Actually, it could also be bloggers for Texas or Okey or FSU or…..
T D
January 13th, 2012
9:34 pm
RING TEAM IS THE 2012-13 BULLDOGS. DAWGS HUNKER DOWN FOR THE CRYSTAL TROPHY. GOOOOOOOOO DAWGS SIC’EM WOOOOOF WOOOOOF WOOOOOOOF
T D
January 13th, 2012
9:39 pm
Keith Marshall, John Theus, Jonathan Taylor, Jordan Jenkins, Todd Gurley and all new Dawgs, bring in the rest of the Ring Team Recruiting Class if 2012. You fine young men will leave with Rings. Just Win Baby. Take no prisoners, have no mercy, spare no spirits. Crush your enemies, celebrate your victories, polish the crystal, design the Rings. Yeah Baby!
T D
January 13th, 2012
9:40 pm
“G”
Vampire Bill
January 14th, 2012
12:07 am
Why would you ever run Crowell off tackle with a gimpy ankle? Or do it 3 or 4 times with no results?
ole yeller
January 14th, 2012
7:44 am
The “O” line will be better in 2012 Coach “F” has a very good core of linemen coming back. The Freshmen coming in are very good, good enough to start. So, don’t feel sorry for coach “F” and the “O” line they will be fine. Now, this will make the “RB” better with or without :”IC”. If all “RB” are on deck with the new guys coming in, lookout.