Ranking SEC football coaches: Who’s the most irritating?
Given that SEC football coaches have long had the capacity to rankle — remember Jackie Sherrill? Charley Pell? Tommy Tuberville? — you wouldn’t have thought one offseason could wreak so much havoc in the venerable league’s pecking order. Well, you’d have been wrong. Here’s the new world order among SEC mentors, ranked from least irritating to most:
12. Bobby Johnson, Vanderbilt. Everybody likes him. Even rival coaches like him. Except when they lose to him and his intramural team. Then they hate him for getting them fired.
11. Rich Brooks, Kentucky. The only nettling thing about Daddy Rich is that he’d pretty well convinced UK grads — full disclosure: I’m one — he was a lousy hire, whereupon he takes the Cats to three consecutive bowl games. Which means we geniuses were wrong. Geniuses hate being wrong.
10. Gene Chizik, Auburn. The only folks who seem to have a problem with G-Chiz are the Auburn people who can’t believe he’s their head coach.
9. Dan Mullen, Mississippi State. Just got to Starkville. Hasn’t done anything or said anything to rile anybody. (Unlike another newly minted SEC coach.) Doesn’t matter. He came from Florida, which means there has to be something objectionable about him.
8. Houston Nutt, Ole Miss. Arkansas fans hate him for leaving Fayetteville and turning around and beating the Hogs, but that’s what they get for demanding to see his text messages. Other recruiters are mad because he signed 37 players this spring, 12 above the presumed limit. I like him because he’s the only coach in the country about whom you can write, “He’s a certifiable Nutt,” and not be sued for libel.
7. Bobby Petrino, Arkansas. In any other conference, leaving one team the day after a game and showing up in a different time zone that night leading goofy cheers would make you the biggest irritant hands-down. In the SEC, it doesn’t even put you in the barrel’s bottom half.
6. Steve Spurrier, South Carolina. The Evil Genius seems benign and toothless in his new environs. It’s clear he’s not going to win anything of note with the Gamecocks, and the folks who used to cringe at his every utterance can now just ignore him. It’s sad, really. Kind of like seeing Willie Mays stumble in center field as a Met.
5. Mark Richt, Georgia. He’s a famously affable guy, but more and more he’s trying to have it both ways. He tried to pass off a season that began with his team ranked No. 1 and ended in the Capital One Bowl as a rousing success. He has also fallen into the trap that snared his former boss Bobby Bowden — espousing morality but seeming to tolerate misdeeds among his players.
4. Urban Meyer, Florida. Gets decency points for not getting into a spitting match when the new Tennessee coach called him a cheater. Loses decency points for those timeouts he burned against Georgia. Still, he has taken his second BCS title with a surprising amount of grace, especially for a hated Gator.
3. Les Miles, LSU. On the one hand, he has a sense of humor and uses the English language with a definite flair. On the other, his teams have won two Chick-fil-A Bowls by the aggregate score of 78-6 and tried three fake kicks in the second halves of those games. That’s low, Leslie.
2. Nick Saban, Alabama. Because he makes all that money. Because he wins big. Because he never smiles. Because he never sleeps. Because he’s Coach Satan.
1. Lane Kiffin, Tennessee. He thinks the way to win is to talk trash and recruit hard. If your record as a head coach was 5-15, you’d think that, too. But he has already frosted so many people — including some who work in his athletics department — that he’d better win big immediately or he’ll be gone by 2011. Which would be unfortunate. We in the South need to hang on to Li’l Kiffy. He’s the greatest villain since Spurrier sank his fangs into Ray Goff.
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216 comments Add your comment
Max Sizemore
February 26th, 2009
7:45 am
Mark, you normally do a fine job on everything you write, but this one looks like you threw it together because you had to have something for the hated blog (and, because it was so far off, you knew people would take it seriously and there would be lots of responses). Saban No. 2 because he wins and makes big money? That’s all you got? My recollection on those fake kicks by Miles were that the games were not out of hand when they occurred (the guy’s a hoot, anyway). You’re right on Kiffin, of course, but how Meyer is not No. 2 is beyond me. Richt ahead of Spurrier? I think I’ll stop right there.
RAMBLE ON!!!
February 26th, 2009
8:18 am
Good article Mark, the coaches are irritating and the fans are obnoxious. Do you think the fans make them irritating?
I look forward to an article on who has the most obnoxious fans. I know, that’s a tough one, but that’s why you get paid the big bucks.
dt4c
February 26th, 2009
8:21 am
Seriously? Coach Richt “tolerates” misdeeds of his players? HTH can you ascertain that? GA punishes its players waaaaay beyond anyone else in the SEC. These are teenagers that are held up as idols by everyone they come in contact with including you. They deserve a firm hand but that doesn’t mean destroying their lives because of a bad decision. There should absolutely be no tolerance for DUI but the other alcohol offenses committed by UGA players last year were handled correctly and IMO somewhat too severely considering the culture that exists on ALL college campuses. Do you have or have you had teenagers? If you have then you know how difficult it is to fight the culture. As a parent, or a surrogate parent which today’s coaches have to be you just do the best you can to teach them right from wrong and to not over react when mistakes are made. The media may scream for blood, or say a team is “out of control” but the coach knows these kids and treats them like they are his own. He knows whether or not these kids are really bad kids or just normal kids making bad decisions. He does the best he can to correct and improve the kids lives. Until you walk in their shoes, try a little harder to understand.
David
February 26th, 2009
8:21 am
I think it’s hard to put a guy at No. 1 that hasn’t even coached a game in the SEC yet. He had his comments towards Meyer, yes, and they were certainly inappropriate. But to label somebody No. 1 who made one or two bad remarks over a guy that has made remarks and been a complete jerk with no sportsmanship during the games (Les Miles) is a bit ridiculous.
Mac
February 26th, 2009
8:37 am
Lame Kitten is hands down No. 1. I hope the real coaches in the SEC (meaning every one but him) hands him his @#% every game for the two winless seasons he lasts on Rocky Top.
Richt should be tied with Bobby Johnson.
Terrible Truth
February 26th, 2009
8:38 am
Too bad Tubby Tomerville isn’t still around, that stupid smirk he walked around with would have at least put him in the top two. That last line was hilarious! Spurrier was the red haired kid in “A Christmas Story” and Ray Goff was a composite of all the terrorized kids.
leland
February 26th, 2009
8:42 am
Dear Mr. MB–you put Kiffin at #1 because of your out-of-control envy over Layla. Your pal, Leland
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
8:53 am
Dear Leland: I put Kiffin No. 1 on (de)merit, I’d like to think. Always a pleasure hearing from you, though.
AJC Lover
February 26th, 2009
9:13 am
Again – Sports writers at the AJC taking a shot at The University of Tennessee.
Mark Bradley goes fishing. « Get The Picture
February 26th, 2009
9:17 am
[...] Bradley’s value system, but all I can say is that anyone who can generate a list ordering the SEC coaches by level of irritation and rank Mark Richt as more irritating than Steve Spurrier really can’t expect to be taken [...]
Kiffin is the Man
February 26th, 2009
9:18 am
Once again the AJC gives another boost to the Kiffin Q Rating. UT can just farm out the football media guide to the AJC this season. It’ll give you guys some much needed work, and provide the most thorough coverage possible for a team 200 miles away.
newman
February 26th, 2009
9:20 am
It’s amazing you try and dock Urban Meyer points for the timeouts considering the competely disgraceful display of sportsmanship that UGA showed in their end zone dance the previous year…Also the only reason UGA fans or others find Urban Meyer irritating is because he beats them and wins titles, you guys would do backflips if he was your coach and accomplish the same things at your school…Sour grapes that’s all. FYI as well Mark Richt is WAY TOO high on this list. He should be #11 or #12.
Kiffin is a baffoon
February 26th, 2009
9:23 am
Too funny all these Vol fans think any press coverage of Kiffin is good or that in someway it means he will win games…A few years from now when you guys run him out of town for losing to UF, UGA, Bama, LSU and others in the SEC you will see how embarrassing this guy has been all along…
Drew
February 26th, 2009
9:24 am
You would think writing about this stuff all the time you could come up with something better than this. Spurrier before Richt? Richt tolerating misdeeds of players? He punishes them more than anybody. Tell me someone who is more strict than Richt!
Freehawk
February 26th, 2009
9:26 am
Mailed this one in. The Sports section today was embarassingly thin; a small town paper does better. An article that says AJ Green has gained a few pounds? You guys ought to be ashamed.
PTC DAWG
February 26th, 2009
9:27 am
Honestly, this is a goofy list. Why not list their winning percentage…but that would actually mean talking about how good of a Coach they actually are. Or might have taken you a little time in preperation/research. The stuff that passes off as columns these days can boggle the mind.
Capstone Report » Most irritating coaches
February 26th, 2009
9:30 am
[...] Who are the most irritating coaches in the SEC? Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution shares his thoughts today at AJC.com. [...]
GTJacket
February 26th, 2009
9:40 am
As much as people dog this list, I think its pretty accurate. I know people want to saint Richt, but he’s got his flaws like everyone else. Remember the bench clearing into the endzone against UF? That is why Urban called the timeouts. Do not, as a Georgia fan, sit on your golden thrown thinking you’ve done no wrong. All that being said, I saw Richt speak at the Wesley at UGA and he is a good man a strong Christian both of which I strongly admire.
buckblue
February 26th, 2009
9:41 am
The trouble with being a good sport is that you have to lose in order to prove it……
WHM
February 26th, 2009
9:43 am
Actually Mark, Auburn folks are pretty happy with Coach Chizik.
brewdawg
February 26th, 2009
9:44 am
Mark Richt at 5? I’m stunned. Nearly as much as when the Smoltz article came out. He loses points for the endzone celebration, and for going to the well once too many times with the Blackout. But he’s still the classiest coach in the country hands down. Has he ever said anything even remotely controversial regarding another team, coach, or player? Doesn’t every recruit talk about what a great man he is, whether they choose UGA or not? He’s so irritating that Rodney Garner turned down a very significant raise basically because he loved the values of the man he worked for. And how does he rank behind Steve “It’s not like we beat some big, powerful team” Spurrier?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
9:53 am
I know, I know. But what fun would it be for Georgia people if I ranked Richt 12th?
Bow Wow
February 26th, 2009
10:07 am
Richt is a hippocrate.
OZZFEST
February 26th, 2009
10:10 am
**As much I love the Dogs and HATE THE GATORS, Urban is the class of the SEC. Two titles, PERIOD. Richt has just been steamrolled. I remember the article in the AJC the day after Georgia beat LSU in the 2005 SEC Championship game annointing “RICHT AS THE NEW KING OF THE SEC”. We will be the 2nd place team in the East as long as Urban resides in Gainesville. Ugh!**
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
10:13 am
Does that mean Richt took the Hippocratic Oath?
TommyP
February 26th, 2009
10:16 am
You struck out on this article, Mark.
It seems when I talk to opposing fans, they always say how they hate Georgia but not Richt.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
10:18 am
And here I heard Georgia fans were ready to fire Richt because he wouldn’t fire Willie Martinez.
Marsh
February 26th, 2009
10:27 am
Why does Meyer get brownie points for letting his AD do his whining for him?
Billy
February 26th, 2009
10:32 am
Spurrier’s not as bad in his old age, so now the “honor” goes to Urban Meyer. He just whines and complains about everything! But, it sounds like Lane Kiffin will be taking the top spot before too long. Hasn’t even coached a game yet, and he’s already breaking rules, making accusations, and pretty much ticking off everyone else in the SEC.
Big B CH 99
February 26th, 2009
10:37 am
Kiffin should be up close to # 1 b/c he’s just pissing everybody off, but Les should be at # 2, he’s one of the least classy coaches I’ve ever seen, he loves to try & run up the score, fake kicks in the 4th up by over 20 pts, & it sounds like its not the first time he’s done that. The big reason that everyone hates Urban & Saban is b/c they win big.
Petrino should be much higher than 7, he’s about as dis-loyal as it gets, I wonder if he’s already interviewed for another job, he probably did that the day after taking the Ark. job. I’m a die-hard Jackets fan and would have pulled for UGAy over Bobby, I can’t wait to see him come to Athens, he might need extra security, considering most UGA fans are Falcon fans on Sundays.
matt
February 26th, 2009
10:39 am
David-Kiffin is #1 because of the reason you already stated. He hasn’t coached a single game yet and he’s done nothing but stir the pot and talk $hit!!!
I’m a dawgs fan and I have no problems with Urban Meyer. He recruits speed and has the confidence to coach them up (I absolutely love that approach, seeing as how speed never slumps). He’s aggressive. His coordinators are agressive. He runs the score up because he understands that “style points” count, and he hardly ever loses a game he shouldn’t. His team takes care of business 9 out of 10 Saturdays and they usually look good doing it. He also coaches in the toughest confernence in the country. Can anyone say any of this about Richt and UGA????
Dawg97
February 26th, 2009
10:40 am
Mark, you are obviously just writing this column to get blog entries from what will soon be IRATE Georgia fans. The idea that Mark Richt is “more” annoying than Steve Spurrier and that Urban WHINER isn’t in the top2 (minimum – he’s #1 to me and the coach I most hate all time) SHOWS that you’re trying to piss off Bulldog nation and get responses. And I’m biting by responding to this insane drivel you call Journalism.
Urban WHINER wrote an entire book about himself (EGO is through the proverbial roof) and WHINED about Georgia’s 1 end zone celebration which Richt didn’t call for the whole team. You also conveniently leave out the fact that Meyer ran up the score a lot (especially this season) and not just the Georgia game. His worst offense…the Kentucky game, where the Gators, up by 58 points, brought Tebow out – throwing no less – in the 4th Quarter.
But you can sit here and say that pathetic and arrogant Urban Meyer is only one spot better than one of the classiest men ever in college football, Mark Richt? Yeah, Bradley, another typical column where you draw the ire of Bulldog nation. You and Terrence Moore. Same act.
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
10:40 am
Richt getting caught in a trap like his mentor Bobby Bowden? Gave his heart to Christ, 2nd winningest coach in CFB history. His protege’(Richt) turned his life over to the Lord and is now one of the top coaches in CFB and runs a clean program and graduates his players.
Sign me up for that trap………
BTW, Spurrier will always be #1 on that list.
As far as the fans listing:
1.) Florida
2.) Tech
Everyone else is miles behind in obnoxiousness.
Too Easy
February 26th, 2009
10:45 am
GTJacket: Man, we HAD forgotten about the bench-clearing event. So THAT’S why Urban called timeouts. THANK YOU so much for reminding everyone. What insight. What value to the conversation. Thanks for keeping up with UGA.
ThaMan
February 26th, 2009
10:45 am
Urban whines about everything? How many National Championships does he have?
Happy Gilmore
February 26th, 2009
10:47 am
Mark Richt seems like a nice guy. I’m just sorry he
apparently thinks only black athletes can play the game. I think Utah proved differently in their game with Alabama.
Slobber
February 26th, 2009
10:47 am
DawginLex,
Graduates his players?? Are you serious? Knowshow, Stafford, Asher (no tackle) Allen….
Funny!
ThaMan
February 26th, 2009
10:47 am
DawginLex – what’s your buddy Lex’s last name?
Too Easy
February 26th, 2009
10:51 am
Slobber=Moron. How is that under Richt’s control? Let’s see: degree now or NFL $$$$$$$? Will you give Richt credit if they come back later and matriculate? You won’t, but that’s not under his control, either?
Popeye
February 26th, 2009
10:52 am
Richt is annoying!!!!! At least with Dooley when he was plastering goodness all over the wall you could see the twinkle in his eye saying how do you like this weeks fairy tale. Richt, I think, believes his tales??????
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
10:56 am
The gradualtion rates for UGA since Richt has been there are FAR better than the rates under donnan, goff and Dooley. Those are facts.
To the personal attacker, I live in Lexington, KY you idiot.
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
10:57 am
sorry, it’s graduation………..
TYPO
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
10:58 am
On a personal level, I like Mark Richt. But I also like Les Miles, and Urban Meyer was nice enough to me when I spoke to him outside the Cobb Galleria back when. Heck, I even kind of like Bobby Petrino. (I know — that makes me an army of one.)
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
10:58 am
anyone who calls himself “Thaman”, probably doesn’t need to try and make any gay references or jokes……………………..
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
11:02 am
Now, now. Let’s keep this discussion on the erudite level to which we’ve become accustomed.
OhioDawg
February 26th, 2009
11:06 am
February must be the most frustrating month for sportswritwers as well as fans. The mere existence of this column is exhibit “A”, so you don’t lose points in my book. In fairness, you probably should have emphasized that there is very little correlation (and even less causation) between being an irritant and being a winner. John Woodens are hard to come by, but they exist – in pretty high numbers. Building character may be what you harp on when you lose, but kids usually put more stock in what they get from their coaches than they do in what they get from their parents. Personally, I’d just as soon have my kid model himself (or herself) after Mark Richt as anyone I can think of. Several of the others come close. After all, you don’t get to call yourself a Head Coach in the SEC without being very good at what you do – period. Or at least not for very long. I’ll reserve judgment on Kiffin for the moment, but he has started out with somewhat the air of a professional wrestler, hasn’t he?
Good Riddance
February 26th, 2009
11:12 am
” I know, I know. But what fun would it be for Georgia people if I ranked Richt 12th?” That swarmy response is the WHOLE reason that Bradley wrote this journalistic piece, to get under the skin of UGA fans. Congratulations Mark, great job. The demise of the AJC is on the horizon. It’s just a matter of time. Better freshen-up that resume.
Bamafan
February 26th, 2009
11:14 am
Boy Blunder is going to be the biggest idiot to try to coach at UcheaT in the last 50 years!! He remains of Ears Whitworth the worst football coach in the history of Alabama football. He won
4 games in three years and guess who replaced him the greatest college football coach of all time
Paul Bear Bryant!! Vols fans ran Phat Phil off for this village idiot and now UcheaT is the punch line
for a lot of jokes!! GO BAMA ROLL TIDE FROM THE GREAT MOVIE CRIMSON TIDE!!
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
11:16 am
Sorry, got carried away. I still stand by my statement about graduation rates under Richt and that will be proven as those stats are released. Bottom line for me is if I had a kid who could play D-1 football, who would I want him to play for and Richt is at the top of that list. Spurrier is at the bottom…………………….
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
11:18 am
No apologies necessary, DawgInLex. You’re an A-level poster, and your contributions are always welcome.
rhynster
February 26th, 2009
11:20 am
hehe, it’s like kicking an ant hill when it comes to college football fans.
Look at everyone scurrying out in a frenzy.
DawginLex
February 26th, 2009
11:22 am
Mark,
You may have been right about ol’ billy Clyde. I sure don’t want Tubby back and I do blame him partially for the UK mess but Billy clyde is perplexing. He told Tom Leach last night that “you are asking a bad question” when asked why he took Meeks out in the 2nd half.
stay tuned
GaCracker
February 26th, 2009
11:22 am
Who cares? What a stupid ranking!
navairmike
February 26th, 2009
11:24 am
Numbers 2, 3, 4, and 6 all have National Championships. Enough said…
Jimmy Sessions
February 26th, 2009
11:24 am
Spurrier#1,Richt near the bottom,but he needs to get a hold on the dicipline of the team.No more Soldier Boy played before games.
bill_in_atl
February 26th, 2009
11:30 am
This is the best you can come up Mark? It’s no wonder newspapers are going out of business when they are willing to pay folks to write something like this.
GATORZONE
February 26th, 2009
11:37 am
That’s Soulja Boy!!! Crank Dat during your next BLACKOUT!!!!
Just look at the National championships. Who cares what other fans think about their coach?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
11:38 am
On a Thursday in February; having written about the Braves for a solid week; with Tech and Georgia both having terrible basketball seasons; with the Hawks having been out of town since the all-star game; with the NFL draft two months away … I’m actually pretty happy to have come up with this one, Bill. But thanks for asking.
MegaT
February 26th, 2009
11:38 am
I would put Nick “I’m not going to Alabama” Saban at the top of the list. Urban Crier as second since since he likes to run to his AD to do his dirty work for him. And, Richt third now that he has assumed the Fulmer mantle as the coach with loads of talent but tends to always come up short in the end. At least Phil got one National Championship to his credit. Go Vols!
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
11:40 am
You forgot the other reason $aban is #2. He is a bold face liar. Of course Urban should be tied for second there for a number of reasons. Kiffin wants to be #1 and for some reason I think he would be happy with your call. Can’t call him Coach K that ones taken. Maybe Coach Special K.
Intramural Team Is Aggressive
February 26th, 2009
11:44 am
Not blowing Vandy up more than they actually are, but that’s pretty disrespectful. Vandy is a much improved program from the years before and it’s come from good scouting and hard work, certainly more than the football factories that everyone else seems to jump on.
Cutler was no intramural player, Earl Bennett was no intramural player, D.J. Moore was no intramural player, Hunter Hillenmeyer was no intramural player. These are guys who are pretty good but got their chance because Vandy gave it to them and every other program didn’t. Ask South Carolina if they would have liked to have DJ Moore in their defensive backfield.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
11:45 am
You’d expect Coach Satan to lie, wouldn’t you?
Oh, and I don’t know what to think about UK hoops, DawgInLex. I thought Meeks’ shot against Florida had turned the season, but last night sounded pretty awful.
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
11:51 am
Mark, just curious as to which players Richt failed to appropriately discipline for their trangressions? Got any names or crimes that went unpunished? I don’t recall seeing any felonies in the news. I don’t know if DUI is a felony or not because I have never been caught. I mean I never drink and drive.
JaxGator
February 26th, 2009
11:58 am
Dawg 97
Does your intense dislike of Coach Spurrier and Coach Meyer have anything to do with the fact that both of them have beaten your Dawgs like the biggest drum in Dixie. Spurrier, at Florida, beat your Dawgs 10 out of 11 games; he also put more points on the Dawgs at Sanford than any team has,1995. Meyer is 3-1 against the Dawgs and totally humiliated the Dawgs in Jax. Richt learned from Meyer that paybacks are hell.
GATORZONE
February 26th, 2009
11:58 am
Zoo, what reasons for Urban being #2? Because he beats UGA most of the time? Or because he runs up the score? Polls have proven that is necessary.
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
12:02 pm
Intramural, as Colorado coach Dan Hawkins likes to rant “this is deevision wun foootbaaalllll…..”
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
12:08 pm
Gatorzone, part of it. but UF doesn’t need to run up the score to get ranked higher that’s just a fact. Nope Meyer isn’t the only UF coach to beat the bulldogs in the past two decades so that wouldn’t be a legit reason in my book. You guys have a nice run going on us, congrats for that. One of the main reasons he needs to be up there is leaving Tebow in the games way too long. Especially during his Heisman winning season. Padded a lot of stats that year. Lose four games but hey my guy is going to win the Heisman padding stats against lesser opponents. For example, the Vandy game. 5 rushing Td’s from less than 5 yards out or there about. No wonder he was hurt when we beat him.
Chip
February 26th, 2009
12:11 pm
Why did I immediately think of most obnoxious sports writer?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
12:11 pm
See, that was kind of a little joke. When Vandy did away with its athletics director, the line around the league was that the Commodores were retrenching to become an intramural program. Obviously they’ve been winning their share of games since, so think of it as a little joke and also a big compliment.
Huh?
February 26th, 2009
12:12 pm
Wow. DUMBEST…COLUMN…EVER. Congrats Bradley.
bull-gator
February 26th, 2009
12:13 pm
Kiffen is irritating numbers 1 through 12. What a P.R. nighmare that punk is. You cant spell STUPID without UT. Also, three timeouts are categorized under “paybacks are hell” and “revenge is a dish best served cold”. I don’t think we’ll see another mass celebration on an initial touchdown in a game for a long, long time.
John
February 26th, 2009
12:18 pm
I don’t see how Saban is number 2. He does not complain, make excuses, is not preachy, and does not call out other coaches. You might not like him, but I don’t think irritating is the right term. Meyer is very irritating because he whines so much.
timthebrave
February 26th, 2009
12:18 pm
Bobby Petrino at #7….I hate that guy…What a slimeball. At least he’s a quitter and I only have to see him when he gets beat down by the dawgs every few years. The falcons are a lot better without him.
1a. Petrino
1b. Kiffen
3. Meyer
4. Spurrier
5. Saban-only because he ditched the dolphins like he did
I like the other coaches just fine except when they play the dawgs. I can’t get mad just because they beat us
timthebrave
February 26th, 2009
12:19 pm
Only the first 2 are scum bags in my opinion
timthebrave
February 26th, 2009
12:20 pm
Only Petrino and Kiffen are bad representatives of their schools in my opinion
Tom Davis
February 26th, 2009
12:23 pm
Mark,
Spurrier did not “sunk his teeth”. He sank his teeth.
Intramural Team Is Aggressive
February 26th, 2009
12:25 pm
Point taken. And actually a funny one now that I see the perspective you’re coming from.
NC Dawg
February 26th, 2009
12:34 pm
I would shift Meyer to 3 and Miles to 4.
JaxGator
February 26th, 2009
12:42 pm
Mark,
Thanks for this article;it has provoked much discussion. Thank goodness for the AJC; it has the best college football coverage in the country. Our lcal rag,the Times-Union does not have much college football news since the Jags came to Jax. Would you not agree that fans perception of another school’s coach is proportional to their won-loss record against that particular coach? Vince Dooley was a classy coach, but we Gators disliked him because he beat us so often. We thought Ray Goff was a fantastic coach.Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
Monroe Dawg
February 26th, 2009
12:50 pm
What is a “hippocrate”?
brian
February 26th, 2009
1:05 pm
Interesting you call Meyer out for calling those time outs, but no mention of Richt allowing his players to charge the field the year before. Richt is the most annoying and I can’t wait for the Gators to win by 39 again this year.
bill_in_atl
February 26th, 2009
1:15 pm
I like you Mark and I appreciate your work, but that’s a weak excuse. There are plenty of folks that would LIKE to keep reading stories about the Braves right now, as the FIRST DAY OF GRAPEFRUIT LEAGUE play was yesterday and there are LOTS OF QUESTIONS about who will make the team and how the Braves might fare against their competition this year.
As to your point about UGA and Tech having awful seasons on the hardwood there are still personalities to interview and speculation about the direction of the programs to consider. College baseball is underway and UGA and Tech both have good teams and lots of unknown and interesting stories.
Also, the Hawks are having their best season in more than a decade while the Falcons are preparing for an (always critical) draft. Tiger is back playing after 8-9 months off. Lots of interesting stories in sports to write about and this is what you come up with.
This story smells of someone who was mailing it in. I thought you were better than that. (Honestly it’s a compliment. I wouldn’t bother to write such things to certain writers.)
ziggytheguns
February 26th, 2009
1:24 pm
I can’t believe Urban Meyer loses points for the timeouts against Georgia. 2007’s shinanigans had to be responded to and calling unnecessary timeouts at the end of the game to drag out UGA’s misery was the classiest way to handle it in my opinion. It didn’t by far make up for what Georgia did.
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
1:30 pm
Monroe Dawg, hippocrate is a crate that you can ship hippopotami in.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
1:31 pm
Bill, I appreciate your interest. But not every column is intended to do the same thing: Some are informational, some are news-driven, some are out-and-out rips. You can’t write the same thing every time because nobody wants to read the same thing every time.
This one was intended to entertain and (perhaps) enlighten. I’m sorry if you weren’t entertained, but it’s like the old NBA ref Earl Strom once said of his calls: “Some they like; some they don’t.”
P.S. I’m writing about the Hawks for Saturday. Hope you like that one more.
ziggytheguns
February 26th, 2009
1:35 pm
Please tell me where everyone gets that Urban Meyer whines too much. Is this just a carry-over from the Steve Spurrier days? I don’t think Urb has anything to whine about, given 2 NC titles in 4 years. Seems to me Urban catches a lot of crap for stompin mud holes in teams arses. Doesn’t anyone find it interesting that the least annoying coaches are the ones that also win the least amount of games???
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
1:35 pm
Oh, and thanks, JaxGator. And thanks to Tom Davis for the correction, which has been made. I usually don’t whiff on words — numbers are a whole ‘nother matter — but I did on that one.
Spike
February 26th, 2009
1:36 pm
Spurrier behind Richt? Come on Mark. That is pretty lame.
ziggytheguns
February 26th, 2009
1:39 pm
Hey Mark, why does Dan Mullen get a knock just because he’s from FLORIDA?
jayna
February 26th, 2009
1:43 pm
I thought Mark Richt handled the offenses well last year. He took his time, but kept the kids from playing while he made up his mind. All of you who are think he is not hard enough, either did not go to college, or forgot what it is like in college. How many of you did not commit many of these offenses or worse. What was your punishment? Did you get splashed across the papers, loose your scholarship, get kicked off the team? Did Momma and Daddy just fix it and hopefully some lessons were learned. it is part of growing up, too bad these kids are having to do today when laws are tougher and they get all the media on them too. They can be targets for some forms of trouble which is not always fair either.
Crib Notes : Maker’s Mark Targets Michigan Fans « Blog Ten - A Big 10 Football Blog
February 26th, 2009
1:47 pm
[...] Lane Kiffin hasn’t even coached a game at Tennessee and he’s already the most annoying coach in the conference. Way to go, Lane. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution] [...]
CurlyHeadedDevil
February 26th, 2009
1:53 pm
I’m reminded of Spurrier’s response as to why so many non-Gator fans hated him. “If they like you, they usually are beating your team.”
volLaw123
February 26th, 2009
1:55 pm
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that “Lame Kitten” is probably the gayest/most retarded nickname SEC fans have come up with in a long, long time.
RxDawg
February 26th, 2009
1:59 pm
Will check back in 6 months to read what else you have to say. Maybe you will have adjusted to your new medications by then.
Ranking the SEC coaches: Who is the most irritating - VolNation
February 26th, 2009
2:16 pm
[...] Ranking the SEC coaches: Who is the most irritating I thought this was pretty good. And at least we are No. 1 in something Rating SEC football coaches: Who’s the most irritating? | Mark Bradley [...]
ziggytheguns
February 26th, 2009
2:26 pm
volLaw, That’s because Lame Kitten is the gayest/most retarded coach to enter the leage in a long, long time.
Dorsey Hill
February 26th, 2009
2:50 pm
Name some tolerated misdeeds or do you think that using “seeming” means a feeling that may be baseless but is close enough for you to be journalism?
ilovekiffin
February 26th, 2009
2:58 pm
yes!!!!!!!!!
ilovekiffin
February 26th, 2009
3:01 pm
timthebrave, there is no way were giving up our number one spot to petrino, so what hes a quitter, what else do you expect. the falcons aint ever going to win nothing!
Jim
February 26th, 2009
3:22 pm
Mark Richt at #5……………what????? Id have Urban Meyer as #2 and Spurrier as #3 on my list.
tdawg
February 26th, 2009
3:24 pm
Mark- this was pretty weak! Richt above Spurrier? You have just lost all accredibility!
Jim
February 26th, 2009
3:24 pm
and how are there Kiffin fans……….. and they act proud that he is irritating. Thats ignorant. A good coach just wins…….. Kiffin sounds like a moron even when he isnt spouting off about other coaches/teams.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
3:33 pm
I never thought I had any accredibility to begin with. I’m not sure what accredibility even is.
JenniferGO Dawgs
February 26th, 2009
3:35 pm
Mark Richt even listed is a joke to me , but Spurrier behind him is plain out insane!
Preston
February 26th, 2009
3:40 pm
I believe that all players that make it to the NFL should be left off the list of players who don’t graduate because it makes the program look worse than it is. Who wouldn’t leave early to chase millions? At least show both stats: one with a total list with an asterisk by the players making money in the NFL and one with only the players that just couldn’t make the grades. Is there any way we can get those stats Mark?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
3:43 pm
I’m not sure such a database exists, but I’m in agreement that guys who leave early to ply their trade shouldn’t be counted against a coach’s graduation rate. Paul Hewitt can talk for hours on the subject, and I understand why: If you’re recruiting the best athletes and they’re good enough to play professionally, how exactly have you failed as a coach?
Preston
February 26th, 2009
3:50 pm
Precisely Mark! As far as the most liked/hated coaches in the SEC, I’d have to say that, personally, Spurrier is still the evil one and Richt is the most loved. But of course I’m biased as a Dawg fan. Kiffin hasn’t been around long enough to count. If he gets his butt handed to him, he’ll be insignificant. If he wins and continues to talk so much trash, he’ll be despised.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
3:52 pm
If Kiffin wins, he’ll be Spurrrier-in-the-’90s x 10.
BB
February 26th, 2009
3:55 pm
SEC Coaches formerly coaching in the NFL:
Spurrier (WAS) 12-20
Petrino (ATL) 3-10
Saban (MIA) 15-17
Brooks (STL) 13-19
Combined: 43-66
Sounds like a truly identifiable measure of collegiate success to me! Bill Belichick would’ve only been able to squeeze one more win out of the craptastic Oakland Raiders than Lane Kiffin.
Can the 5-15 argument be put to pasture?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
4:00 pm
Good research, BB, but here’s another name for you — Blanton Collier. Coached at Kentucky in the ’50s, never won much and even had Shula and Arnsparger and Schnellenberger and J.D. North on his staff. Went to the Cleveland Browns and won the 1964 NFL title by beating the Colts 27-0. (Gary Collins caught three touchdown passes.)
Preston
February 26th, 2009
4:01 pm
For me to really dislike any coach, he has to make direct, negative comments or perform unsportsman like acts against the Dawgs. Spurrier has done this. That’s why I’m loving his non-success in Columbia. I really don’t dislike Meyer because of the timeouts. I believe he had to do something to appease the gator fans because of the endzone celebration the previous season. I’m not saying that Richt told the entire team to storm the field because that’s definitely not the case. I’m merely saying that if it were the other way around, UGA fans would have wanted Meyers head. Meyer got Richt back simply by winning the game big and prolonging the agony. I blame UGA’s coaches for allowing a team to beat them as badly as they did with so much hype going in. Maybe UGA will return the favor this year. I hope so!
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
4:04 pm
Mark, really? You think Kiffin could do that math?
Spurrier should be ranked higher if not for the joke in SC. Telling recruits ” I will be here until we accomplish something..”
Somebody should tell Steve that his insurance doesn’t cover those electric scooters or hip replacements.
SEC lunchtime links: Quarterback job open at Auburn
February 26th, 2009
4:04 pm
[...] Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution rates who are the SEC's most irritating coaches. Tennessee's Lane Kiffin is No. 1 and Alabama's Nick Saban is No. 2 on his [...]
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
4:08 pm
I wonder how much longer Spurrier will be at South Carolina. I’d say two years more, tops.
Oh, and thanks to Gdawginkalamazoo and Preston for hanging in there with me today. Your patronage is much appreciated.
Russ
February 26th, 2009
4:11 pm
Hey Bradley – How about giving us the NFL records of the other SEC Coaches. I’ll do it for you;
Spurrier (WAS) 12-20
Petrino (ATL) 3-10
Saban (MIA) 15-17
Brooks (STL) 13-19
Combined: 43-66
Case closed!
Preston
February 26th, 2009
4:11 pm
No problem Mark. Your articles are always the best the AJC has to offer. Keep up the good work.
Smyrna Man
February 26th, 2009
4:17 pm
Really Lame article Mark… Oh how the Jawjaw faithful forget how Urban Cryer called two timeouts to rub their blowout in
GATORZONE
February 26th, 2009
4:19 pm
Mark, I agree. Spurrier will retire for good within 2 years.
GATORZONE
February 26th, 2009
4:21 pm
Smyrna Man it’s Jawja, not JawJaw….
Why do you think Urban “Cryer” did call those timeouts?
Most UGA fans remember why.
DawgGirl32
February 26th, 2009
4:37 pm
Mark- Who thought of your “About Mark Bradley” section at the top? It kinda makes you seem a little…well…crazy.
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
4:37 pm
No problem Mark. I have to get my Bulldog fix. Being a Bulldog in Michigan I quite often get confused for a Green Bay fan who wears funny colors. Should have been outside enjoying the rain because it will turn into snow tomorrow. I am looking forward to Stafford being drafted by Detroit. Imagine Reggie Ball and Stafford on the same team.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
4:40 pm
DawgGirl, that would be me. I figured: Why deny the obvious?
Ed
February 26th, 2009
4:47 pm
Let’s see…Richt suspends troublemakers left and right and has kicked off a few of the hard cases, and he “tolerates misdeeds?” He’s tolerant by Bobby Knight standards, perhaps.
Meanwhile, Urban Meyer runs up the score on outmanned opponents, cries in public, and let’s a starting safety play the week of his felony arrest, and the worst thing that can be said of him is that he called some late timeouts once?
Makes sense – in Bizarro World.
As for Saban, what many of us find irritating is not that he “wins big” but that he gets full credit for his good years but absolutely no heat for his mediocre years, of which there are quite a few. The man is made of Teflon on the strength of a 9-2 season at MSU (which probably saved his job) and a split MNT at LSU. Other than that, his resume’ is dotted with 4, 5 and 6 loss seasons.
I don’t know how much of an irritant Les Miles is, but the man has a MNT despite never finishing with better than a 2-loss season. That’s hard to do. Ask Mark Richt and Tommy Tuberville. Irritating, but not really his fault.
As for Kiffin – he has to win something to be more than a minor annoyance, much less #1 on the list. That’s demonstrated by your low ranking of Spurrier, who at one time would have been easily at the top of the list but is now just an amusing old grump who’s good for an occasional zinger or two.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
4:59 pm
Ed, I can — and have — said worse things about Urban Meyer, but for some reason I’m feeling kindly toward the hated Gators. Maybe because I appreciated how they took that Ole Miss loss and played like mad thereafter. That was impressive. I wasn’t sure they had it in them, but they sure as heck showed me.
Kiffin is a baffoon
February 26th, 2009
5:04 pm
Some of you are so clueless spouting off your delusional lines about Meyer and running up the score or whining.
Fact 1. Tebow and most of the florida starters barely played in the 4th Quarter in 11 of the 14 games UF played this season.
****DAWG 97**** Get your facts straight….Tebow played all of 2 minutes in the second half vs. Kentucky and didn’t even throw a pass.
Fact 2. If your team could run up the score you would have no problem with it, especially when it’s necessary in a year like 2008 where there were 6 legitimate teams that could make claims to play in the BCS title game.
Fact 3. Mark Richt, Les Miles, Nick Saban etc… have all had multiple games that were extremely lopsided
Fact 4. Urban Meyer DID NOT write “Urban’s Way” and he was asked about how he felt about the UGA celebration and he answered honestly. If Mark Richt were asked about how he felt in the same situation I sure would hope he used it as motivation if I were a UGA fan.
Fact 5. Urban Didn’t say one-word in response to Lane Kiffin’s FALSE ACCUSATIONS. In fact he went directly from his NSD press conference to Ohio for 2 weeks to be with his father who is in a tough battle with Cancer. And T how is the UF AD standing up for him letting his AD fight his battles. That is the WAY it SHOULD be done and you should expect that type of support from your AD. Especially the guy who built the best Athletic Program in the SEC which is a FACT that Florida is winning 18 of the last 21 SEC All-Sports titles.
Just goes to show most of you will go to great lengths to exagerate and outright make things up to try and demean a coach that does everything you wish your coach could.
Mark Richt is a GREAT COACH and an even better person but don’t fool yourself if you wouldn’t easily trade his personality for a fiery coach that is driven to win and accomplishes what Meyer has in a such a short time.
Jack
February 26th, 2009
5:20 pm
Go Kiffin. You gotta start with a #1 somewhere. We love all the attention and can’t wait till we are #1 in the SEC. It’s not an overnight fix, but the 2009 class was a good start. Go Vols!!!!
ZDog
February 26th, 2009
5:27 pm
Hmmmmm, I agree with just about everything you said KiffinBaffoonGuyPerson:
1. I don’t think I would trade Richt for any other coach at this point, though I do think that Meyer is an outstanding coach and I hope he leads UF to a great season in ‘09 (say…12-1 & #2 BCS ranking?)
2. You mispelled 1 word and made up 1 new word entirely…..sorry, I just have this THING about spelling!
LMAO
Good article, good response, it’s tough on a CFB fan in February…
Huh?
February 26th, 2009
5:28 pm
Has anyone mentioned the late field goal that Meyer called against Miami? I guess the Canes must have done something horrendous to get his panties in a bunch too. He’s such a swell guy and all. No way he does something completely classless like that unless they deserve it.
joe
February 26th, 2009
6:20 pm
Glad Lane Kiffin has made such a splash in your mind, Bradley, after just a few months on the job. Let’s all hope that he sticks in the side of grand ole UGA for many many years both on the fielf and off. Yes, he will take some lumps in 2009, but 2010 looks to be a turnaround year for UT. Oh, 45-42. woof.
Matt
February 26th, 2009
7:13 pm
Hmm. Saban at #2. just because he wins, makes good money, and “doesn’t smile.” Yeah agreed people hate his guts but he is not the 2nd most “IRRITATING” guy in the league. People hate him because of what he did in Miami and because he is a good coach! he brought alabama back up after Dubose, Shula, oh and of course the most popular Mike Price led us into complete utter dissapointment. He has has 2 full years of recruiting at Alabama. Cough cough, number 1 class both years. Just because hes a good coach, makes money, and wins does not make him irritating. I had no respect for u to begin with Mark, this list is terrible. Start looking for a new job now. You SUCK at writing! my 5 year old niece could write better sports articles than you.
Gen Neyland
February 26th, 2009
7:13 pm
Kiffin hasn’t led the Vols through the ‘T’ and he has already taken Saban’s #1 spot. I got a feeling we’ll be out of the running for the Fulmer Cup, too…
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
7:22 pm
Thanks, Zdog. We aim to please. Sometimes, anyway.
CHARLES BARKLEY
February 26th, 2009
7:28 pm
MB you are just stupid, just stupid for putting Mark Richt before Steve Spurrier the dumba** cock. Lebron James is Stupid. These UGA boys haven’t done anything wrong this year. Mark Richt is a 9 or 8 at least, GO DAWGS!!! I’m Charles Barkley and I approve this message.
The Fight Realtor
February 26th, 2009
7:53 pm
Mark, I still break out in a cold sweat when I think of how the fortunes of two football programs changed in 12 months, when UGA hired Goff in 1989, and then UF hired Spurrier in 1990.
In the previous 25 years, before Goff came on board, Florida had beaten Georgia a grand total of seven times. Florida had never won a national title. They had never played for a national title. They had never won an SEC title. Georgia had won six SEC titles in the previous 25 years. Georgia had won a national title less than a decade before.
Since the hiring of Spurrier and Goff, Georgia has won three times in 18 attempts at Florida. Georgia has two SEC titles. I’m not even sure how many Florida has, but it’s at least eight. Florida has played for four National Titles since these hirings, and they’ve won three. Georgia has not come close to playing for one.
Goff and Spurrier are both long gone, but these two programs were irrevocably changed because of these hires.
And the terrible news is that Mark Richt can not beat Florida. Unfortunately, we at Georgia are going to have a John Cooper/Lloyd Carr decision to make in a couple of years — Do you keep a guy that wins a lot, but who absolutely can NOT beat the most important team on your schedule?
gdawginkalamazoo
February 26th, 2009
8:09 pm
General Neyland, I would bet that Kiffin has led at least the potential recruits through the T in Neyland. You know, with fog machines going and all that. Screaming Urban is a cheater over the PA while wearing his orange “I hate grandmothers” T-shirt.
Ted Striker
February 26th, 2009
8:11 pm
Contrarian view on Saban: Doesn’t run his mouth, doesn’t disparage opponents. Has changed jobs, but in coaching that’s staying a step ahead of the hangman. (OK, Saban’s cautious — he stays 8-9 steps ahead). Schools are no better. Tuberville, Fulmer, Croom, and Tommy Bowden were all shown the door last year while working under recent contract extensions.
Bonus — the real reason Alabama collapsed at the end of last year. It had nothing to do with Saban or the current team and had all to do with karma. God never forgot the way fans treated Curry after a 10-1 start in ‘89.
Wonder what the Zooker thinks about Auburn’s and Tennessee’s hires. He was 23-14 at UF, reviled as the devil from day one, and two schools hire coaches with a combined record of 10-34. Anyone else feel some late arriving karma coming for Florida?
(Sometimes it just takes a while)
Meyer: Refers himself in 3rd person, looks like a constipated Mike Shanahan, is “friends” with Bill Belichick. Whatever. Anyone “friends” with Belichick – who doesn’t own a personality and won’t spend the money to rent one – has an irritation gene somewhere in his DNA. “Timeout, FLORIDA.” Classy. More karma coming.
S.E.C. fan
February 26th, 2009
8:18 pm
Tha mutts don’t like any coach that whips their butts. As far as Mark R. He’s a good man and a good coach. But I’d bet a million if he lets those north ave. bumble bees kick his mutts butts again. The howling and whinning will start and all those loyal Coach Richt fans will call for his head.
Dan Dawg
February 26th, 2009
8:35 pm
Mark, you are getting to be as bad as the editorial board of the AJC and Terrance Moore. They write anything but do not provide facts to back up any of their claims. Where did you get this information? If you are going to make claims such as this, provide FACTS. Or is this your personal opinion? If it is, just keep it to yourself and stick to the reporting scores, statistics, schedules, etc.
coachgb
February 26th, 2009
8:37 pm
come on now, Bradley and Moore must be the same person, or was it just a really bad day!
Dan Dawg
February 26th, 2009
8:46 pm
Both of them think they are Furman Bisher or Grantland Rice. They are as nuts as the editorial board at the Atlanta Urinal an Constipation.
Zach
February 26th, 2009
8:56 pm
Mark-great work. This is hilarious. I have enjoyed reading your witticisms since I moved to Atlanta in 1984!
FloridaDawg
February 26th, 2009
9:06 pm
Urban Meyer is #1, Kiffin does not rank..hasn’t played a game, who cares, toss Spurrier, Miles and Saban in a bag….all about the same.
Now Richt…he is aggravating only in that he thinks or states that we had a great year.
No we didn’t…we didn’t beat the #1 whiner…Urban Cryer
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
9:11 pm
Thanks, Zach. I arrived in 1984, too. Almost 25 years ago to the day.
Dawg Tired
February 26th, 2009
9:13 pm
Mark – I certainly agree with Kiffin being the current leader in irritation rank, but I get the impression more each day that he may not understand exactly what he’s doing. Hard to disagree on Saban. e Petrino, in light of his obvious lack of character, seems like a less capable Saban. It seems just as obvious to me that Richt is the classiest coach hands down. Oh, I fully understand why the Florida crowd is mad. They apparently just can’t accept that his idea was for the players in the game to celebrate – not those on the bench. Plus that happened early in the game and resulted in two penalties – punishment enough. It was not a direct insult to the other team (which is also true of most excessive celebration penalties). Now, calling the time outs was something I would expect from Meyer – therefore, it did not bother me (49-10 bothered me) – I simply thought, “How predictable” and “Consider the source.” However, after further reflection, my view is it his prerogative to call dumb time outs if it makes him fell better. Certainly, it had no positive motivation behind it. The Dawgs celebration was to motivate them – and it did. So at least it had a purpose other than being a jerk. Spurrier is not even irritating any more. In fact, he’s pretty funny.
I would simply rank Kiffin, Saban and Petrino as being tied for the most irritating award. Meyer would be mildly irritating, but pales in comparison to the top three. All the rest seem ok to me.
The most irritating SEC coach in my memory bank? That would be tie between Spurrier when he was at Florida and Donnan when he was at UGA. Spurrier for obvious reasons. Donnan because he was such an embarrassment to the school I root for. I just can’t forget that post game interview after we beat UT in Athens at night on national TV. It was all about him – not the team. So very embarrassing!
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
9:30 pm
Postgame was not Jim Donnan’s best time. I remember him snapping at Loran Smith for asking about cramps after the Dogs beat South Carolina, and I personally witnessed him yelling at esteemed former colleague Matt Winklejohn after the epic four-overtime victory at Auburn.
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
9:33 pm
As for who’s the best-looking coach … I try not to venture into people’s appearances. Everyone is beautiful, I always say.
ZDog
February 26th, 2009
9:56 pm
Hmmmm, I thought you were around a little before ‘84? Who used to have the curly hair, you or Barnhardt?
Mark Bradley
February 26th, 2009
10:05 pm
Curly hair, you say? Why … I believe that was …
Yours truly.
tennezz
February 26th, 2009
10:10 pm
You say richt is the classiest coach in the sec, I`ll take your word for it, But he is the worst coach. With all the talent ga. has, he has never won the national championship, or even come close! Vandy`s coach could win it with georgia`s players!
JMO
February 26th, 2009
10:23 pm
Great blog Mark and mostly because you stayed with it.
Agree with the Intramural program; they get the most for their buck!
Richt can’t possibly be ahead of Steve.
Keep it up.
Meow
February 26th, 2009
10:33 pm
Bobby Johnson is definitely the classiest coach in the SEC.
Randy
February 26th, 2009
10:43 pm
Mark,
Thanks for writing about college football at this particular time of year. There is a bit of a lull now, and personally I’ve read all I want about Frenchy. And whenever I think vile thoughts about Urban Meyer, I remember how he left Notre Dame twisting in the wind, and I can’t help but smile.
cj
February 26th, 2009
11:19 pm
Personally, I love that UGA haven’t realized that Richt is the second coming of Fulmer, except without a Nat’l Title.
“No way!” they all scream. Get back to me in 4-5 yrs boys.
USAF dawg in Iraq
February 27th, 2009
12:20 am
Mark, I see one common denominator in the photo on the front page; they ALL have their big mouths open and not a D@MN thing worth listening to is coming out. I think you’re exagerating Coach Richt’s moral blinders JUST a tad. Most schools have those kinds of problems. Georgia is just more open and forgiving of kids being, well, KIDS. Otherwise GREAT article.
DBCOOPER
February 27th, 2009
12:23 am
Got a UT fan friend. He gets so upset when the media talks about Kiffin. It’s like Kiffin is their little retarded cousin, they need to stick up for. Any person with a brain can see the guy is so far out of his league and over his head it’s ridiculous. I think they have rallied up there because they have no choice. The “we bought it, we own it” mentality. Phat Phil has to smile every time the idiot opens his mouth.
Kyle
February 27th, 2009
2:31 am
Mark,
Re Mark Richt, you criticize his handling of player discipline. Understand there is a difference in treating everyone equally and fairly. It would not be fair to my oldest child if I required her to have the same bedtime as her brother who is a toddler. Trust that Mark Richt and his coaching staff knows his players and they are handling discipline matters fairly and appropriately and that much of that activity is not transparent to the public nor should it be.
Thomas Brown
February 27th, 2009
4:39 am
Who is the Most Irritating AJ-C “Sports- Writer” ?
Terrence Moore because he is a Racist, while AJ-C turns a blind eye to it.
Mark Bradley because he parts his hair in the middle, talks about how great the ACC is, and knows nothing about anything except for Kentucky Basketball.
Tony Barnhart because he thought he was so great, as he pompously carried himself, trying to talk about college football about which he knows nothing. All he ever was was an erstwhile fan of Tar Heel state basketball.
Chip Towers because the AJ-C tells us he is our UGA beat-writer, yet he never has had any article on the Front Page of even the Sports Section; and, because he is lazy because he is wholly unable to either know what the news of the day is as it relates to Bulldogs, or because he is told by his Sports Editor (Flagitiously Rotating Nincompoops) to just try to put a spin on everything Bulldog to appease the 29,000 Georgia Tech alumni in his readership when there are a third of a million UGA alumni instead who buy his papers.
Jeff Schultz because he is toothless sitting there collecting his Atlanta paycheck in this horrid economy while the former Gator cannot bring himself to say what is true about the game in Jacksonville Florida every year when next year is year 20 and UGA has won but 3 in the two decades and counting.
Honorable Mention to :
Mark Schlabach who before Chip Towers took his put crap on UGA angle to every article he posted.
Carter Strickland for his Clifton Geathers Cheap Shot which got him fired.
hop
February 27th, 2009
7:07 am
what a nutty survey,especially rating the ole ball coach over richt, what a joke, i know your subscriptions are continuing to fall,but how desperate can the ajc be?
King Gator
February 27th, 2009
8:04 am
Who cares if your coach is a pain in the arse. We had Spurrier and now have Urb, oh yeah and 3 National Championships since ‘96! Go Gators!
» SEC links: Most irritating football coaches John Clay’s Sidelines
February 27th, 2009
8:24 am
[...] In the AJC, Mark Bradley ranks the SEC’s most irritating football coaches, 1-12. [...]
Mark Bradley
February 27th, 2009
8:52 am
Thanks, Randy. Thanks, JMO. And that’s one thing about me: I might be an idiot, but I’m a persistent idiot.
Eric
February 27th, 2009
9:25 am
It’s a tie: Number one is Satan, Oscar Myer, LezzyLee and Houston’s Nutts. Everyone else is somewhere else on the list.
Kiffin may get last laugh! - VolNation
February 27th, 2009
9:51 am
[...] Here’s another post. This one comparing the SEC coaches as to who is most irritating…. Rating SEC football coaches: Who’s the most irritating? | Mark Bradley [...]
BeachGaBulldog
February 27th, 2009
10:08 am
Urban Crier, NO CONTEST! He is the most CLASSLESS coach by far, not only in the SEC, but in the country. Kiffin is just an idiot. GO DAWGS!
The Real List
February 27th, 2009
10:08 am
Starting with most irritating, my list 1. Steve Spurrier, Urban Meyer, Nick Saban, Lane Kiffin, Les Miles, Houston Nutt, Bobby Petrino, Mark Richt, Rich Brooks, Bobby Johnson, Dan Mullen, Gene Chizik
Chris
February 27th, 2009
10:15 am
Urban’s timeout during the GA game to score could be taken as payback but the timeout against Miami to kick a field goal and improve the score from 23 to 26 points? That’s rank man. The fact that he refers to himself in the third person throughout his autobiography begs the question ‘is the religious thing sincere or did he just skip the humility portion’?
SEC links: Most irritating football coaches | MrSEC.com
February 27th, 2009
10:20 am
[...] In the AJC, Mark Bradley ranks the SEC’s most irritating football coaches, 1-12. [...]
81Dog
February 27th, 2009
10:22 am
Mark, you’re an insightful writer most of the time, but I didnt realize you were also a master fisherman. When I saw Coach Richt ranked ahead of Bobby Petrino, I thought, sheesh, but when I saw him ranked ahead of Steve Spurrier, I thought maybe Terence Moore had hijacked your byline in another attempt to generate page views.
Steve Spurrier could be more obnoxious in 30 seconds of standing still drinking a Gatorade than Mark Richt has been in his whole life. I can see where opposing fans might find Coach Richt annoying in some ways, but more obnoxious than Spurrier? Is this your April Fools Day column one month early?
I really do enjoy your column, even when I disagree, but this one is hilarious.
VOLS 4ever
February 27th, 2009
10:22 am
Why are Georgia fans and writers so concerned with Lane Kiffin if he is going to fail like they say he will? Oh wait I know….. UGA is going down this year. UT’s defense will be even better than its top-5 rating last year and the offense can’t be worse. AJ Green and Marlon Brown are great but who is going to throw to them? I know Eric Berry is going to give Marlon Brown a nice “Tennessee Welcome” this year just like when he knocked out Knowshow Moreno last year.
Seriously though, If “lame kitten” as ya’ll say isn’t going to make a great coach, then why are there articles created every day on this site concerning tennessee.
Mark Bradley
February 27th, 2009
10:33 am
Thanks, 81Dawg. I like to think of myself as the Gallagher of sports writing.
Matt
February 27th, 2009
11:40 am
It’s not Les Miles’ fault that the ACC cannot compete with the Fighting Tigers of LSU. One thing you did not point out, is that in those games, LSU played just about everyone on the bench. It seems that if blowout wins are what makes a coach irritating, in your eyes, then Urban Meyer should be #1 on the list, who would run up the score on the School for the Blind and Mute (who I think are actually on UF’s schedule next season…)
I love the hate towards LSU though. Keep it up. Les will keep on winning and keep on being irritating and funny.
tiger12
February 27th, 2009
11:48 am
This article is laughable. Richt above Spurrier? Are you sure Terrance Moore did not steal your laptop?
JC
February 27th, 2009
11:51 am
Null, your list is hilarious. Especially the Gus Grissom comment!!!
As for this quote a page or 2 back:
“I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that “Lame Kitten” is probably the gayest/most retarded nickname SEC fans have come up with in a long, long time.”
Actually I prefer Loud Queefin.
BigMike
February 27th, 2009
12:00 pm
Mark, Lame Kiffin, and Gene Chizik ought to be #1 and 2 based on the fact, alone that they bring those terrible records to “the” premier college conference in the USA. Saban, well everybody hates the guy because he makes his own rules, and they conform to them, without even knowing.
BR
February 27th, 2009
12:01 pm
Winning two titles has ZERO to do with class. Mark Richt has more class in his pinky than Urban Crier does in his whole body.
Kiffin is ranked #1 because he hasn’t even coached one game yet at TN and is already running his mouth (and with that pitiful record!)
Spurrier should be #2 or #3–definitely in front of Saban and Richt.
B
February 27th, 2009
12:04 pm
Urban Meyer fits in perfectly with those arrogant, obnoxious fans at UF! I couldn’t have picked a better match myself!
Who’s The SEC’s Most Irritating Football Coach? | MrSEC.com
February 27th, 2009
12:13 pm
[...] rest of Mr. Bradley’s rankings lay out as follows (you can read his rationale by clicking these pretty red words):1. Lane Kiffin2. Nick Saban (I think that’s a bit high.)3. Les Miles (Is he [...]
Pitbull
February 27th, 2009
12:22 pm
Good job, Mark. However I would move Mark Richt to number 7 and Bobby Petrino to number 5.
As I have said many times colleges cannot monitor athletes’ behavior 24/7 and we only read about UGA athlete transgressions in the AJC.
Where was the story on the UF player currently accused of multiple felony rapes?
Where are the stories on all the other athlete arrests in the other SEC and ACC schools? Do they not hit the wire for the AJC to pick up and publish?
Bobby O'Shea
February 27th, 2009
12:38 pm
Arguing that Vanderbilt is an “intramural team” is as ridiculous as it is inaccurate. Perhaps the Commodores won’t ever compete for the SEC title, but there have been more than a few teams that have faced Bobby Johnson’s squad over the past few years and lost to said IM squad. Also, I seem to remember something about winning a bowl game this year.
What is it about Vanderbilt that makes them an intramural team: The fact that they have academic standards? That they expect their student athletes to attend class? Or that there is an expectation that they might actually graduate?
In the same post that derides Richt for “tolerating the misdeeds” of his players, you insult the Commodores and declare them “less than” for being good collegiate citizens and doing things “the right way.” Having never read your stuff, I can only speculate that at some point you’ve hoisted yourself atop your (virtual) soapbox and lamented about the shortcomings of big time college athletics and how it’s too much of business and schools only pay lip-service to academic and character standards. If that’s the case, than you are a hypocrite. If not, you’re not paying attention, which given your ranking of Steve Spurrier as only the 6th most annoying coach in the SEC is a distinct possibility.
Mark Bradley
February 27th, 2009
1:02 pm
As I explained a page or two back, the “intramural” line was a reference to what a lot of folks around the league said when Gordon Gee dumped his athletics director — that Vandy had decided to play intramural sports instead. And nowhere did I insult the Commodores for being good collegiate citizens. If you divined that by reading between the lines, you read so far between the lines you saw something that wasn’t there.
dandyvandy
February 27th, 2009
1:53 pm
vandy is an intramural team? is that why they beat georgia three years ago and should’ve won two years ago as well as last year? those were all close games.
JC
February 27th, 2009
2:17 pm
Houston Nutt – you couldn’t be more wrong about why the Arkansas fans hate him. And his University issued cell phone is public property and falls under the FOI Act. If he has communications he doesn’t want made public he should be smart enough to use his personal cell phone and not get mad at fans that investigate his mis-use of University property and mis-management of the program he is in charge of.
This Ain’t Intramurals… | MrSEC.com
February 27th, 2009
2:20 pm
[...] is declaring a jihad on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Bradley for his quip that Vanderbilt is an intramurla football team. His “witticism” comes from a post ranking the most annoying coaches in the SEC which [...]
Mort Merkel
February 27th, 2009
2:42 pm
The Tennessee fans are hilarious with their cry, “We’re getting talked about.” Yeah, you are. Nationally, people are talking about how immature, dumb and classless your new coach is. Congratulations on the bad publicity. Ask Adolf Hitler, Pol Pot and Michael Vick if any publicity is good publicity?
Headlinin’: Brian Butler, probed | Boobs and More
February 27th, 2009
2:46 pm
[...] last year, is outgoing USC safety Kevin Ellison actually getting a little slower? … And the AJC goes bottom of the barrel, but, yeah, I clicked on it. You got a problem with [...]
Pol Pot's ghost
February 27th, 2009
2:47 pm
Hey, dude, don’t rank me with that little fool.
DawgGirl32
February 27th, 2009
2:53 pm
Wow, Mark, people just really aren’t getting your “intramural” joke.
rhynster
February 27th, 2009
3:42 pm
FWIW, I thought the ranking was pretty accurate.
In fact, I’d go even further and say Spurrier could be even closer to the bottom.
Irritating? Heck, I just want to give the little fella a big hug and tell him it will all be OK.
Mark Bradley
February 27th, 2009
4:31 pm
Thanks, Rhynster. Thanks, Pitbull.
And DawgGirl32, I’d always thought Vandy folks were famous for their sense of humor. LIve and learn, huh?
Link: The SEC's most irritating coach?? - TideFans.com
February 27th, 2009
5:01 pm
[...] SEC’s most irritating coach?? http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-bl…st-irritating/ __________________ yes, I have all my teeth and I am not married to my sister! Thanks, [...]
Rick Childs
February 27th, 2009
5:11 pm
I’m a Vol, Kiffin’s out of control.
Mark Bradley never had an original thought in his sad little life. Go ride a garbage truck and be useful
Why you gotta say that? « Football on the Brain
February 27th, 2009
5:29 pm
[...] Why you gotta say that? Why you gotta say that???!! [...]
Jack
February 27th, 2009
5:42 pm
Most irritating overuse in southern sportswriting: Vanderbilt and the word “intramural”. It’s not cute and it’s very insulting to the kids that play there, including 20 plus Georgia natives that receive scholarships to play and excel in that program. I wish sportswriters would get a little more original and stop this repetitive garbage. A stupid term used over 6 years ago and people are still using it. Get some class already.
81Dog
February 27th, 2009
7:09 pm
Mark, do not demean yourself by calling yourself the Gallegher of sports writing. That’s a silly comparison. It’s not like you use props (unless your goal here was to rub several UGA fans together and see if you could start a fire). Now, if you considered yourself the Carrot Top of sports writing…..
I’m kidding. I think you’re immensely talented, and usually entertaining. This was, perhaps, not your finest moment, but never fear. Even Bruce Springsteen cranks out a “Nebraska” once in a while.
Mark Bradley
February 27th, 2009
7:13 pm
And here I always considered “Nebraska” a brave (but perhaps flawed) experiment. Sort of like this column.
I appreciate the patronage, 81 Dog.
Julian
February 27th, 2009
7:32 pm
This was really lame.
Robert
February 27th, 2009
8:02 pm
Coach Nutt was booted from Fayetteville, which is somewhat different from having simply “left Fayetteville”. And if that cost Arkansas a game against Ole Miss, then I don’t think you’ll find many Arkansas fans who were surprised or who mind paying that price, because most believe that a Nutt-led Ole Miss team could beat Arkansas every year and still not be as successful as the Hogs year in and out.
Speaking of Nutt, I’m so confident that Ole Miss will fail to meet expectations next year that I’d be willing to bet my house on it. As always with Nutt, Ole Miss will win and lose games that it shouldn’t next year, but lose the game that really matters (unless Ole Miss fans consider that game to be in the egg bowl.) Coach Nutt is the master of surprising upsets, but an absolute failure when it comes to games that actually matter.
I’m not sure if SEC fans understand this, because they expect Arkansas to be over-matched in big games, so it’s not surprising when they lose again to Florida in the SECC. But that’s not what Arkansas fans expect and it was part of the reason why Coach Nutt was released of his duties. If you want to upset the SEC’s upper tier programs, then Coach Nutt is your man. But you’d better find someone else if you want to win a conference championship.
DawgsRule
February 27th, 2009
8:45 pm
1. Urban Whiner
2. Nick Saban
3. Lane Kiffin
UGA players and coaches already have Oct 31 circled on their calendars. They’ll remember those 2 late timeouts called by meyer to rub in that 49-10 blowout. It’s payback time on Halloween baby!!!
Vandywill
February 27th, 2009
9:34 pm
Ok,so being called an intramural team is a “joke.” Kinda like the joke about growing watermelon on the White House lawn that forced a California mayor to resign. We at VU are a “minority” in the SEC being a private school and expecting our athletes to dare to graduate.
Hey, this “joke” is politically incorrect. In fact it meets the definition of a “hate” crime. Can we proceed with prosecution, or at least an apology and a resignation. There is no defense for a “hate” crime.
Mark, be glad we do have a sense of humor. Being called “intramural” gets old, especially with the implication that placing the athletic department under the academic hierarchy represents a de-emphasis of major intercollegiate athletics at Vanderbilt. The truth is the exact opposite. We are an integrated whole. Our recent success in multiple sports attests to that fact.
JustCallMeChamp
February 27th, 2009
9:39 pm
Well Mr Bradley, if you can measure the success of an article by the response it generates, this is a GREAT discussion! I’ve enjoyed reading every opinion and angle! Here’s the bottom line though…with the exception of KIffin almost ALL of these coaches have had GREAT success at some time in their careers and the SEC cannot be matched for the quality of HCs. Love them or hate them but when I look at names like Nick Saban, Les Miles, Urban Meyer, Steve Spurrier with National Championships and it’s like a who’s who list of college coaches. And guys like Mark Richt are not far behind. If you a rival and you aren’t beating them, it only natural to despise them. As a Florida fan of many years, I can still vividly remember my dislike for Vince Dooley because it seemed we could never beat that guy! We Florida fans HATED how he would always criticize his own team and talk up the Gators and then commence to beating the tar out of us! But at the end of the day in our innermost thoughts, we knew it boiled down that he was just a great coach. ALL we ever wanted to was beat those Bulldogs! Ironically years later I had a chance to meet Mr Dooley at SEC meeting in Florida and I have to say, the man is a class act and I even congratulated him for all those years he whipped up on us! lol And now a days…well now a days I think of Coach Spurrier and Coach Meyer and Tim Tebow…and I just have to pinch myself.
Bill
February 27th, 2009
10:00 pm
Spurrier is not near through. He’s got players now. Let’s see what happens in the next 2 years. They will be very good soon.
Mike
February 27th, 2009
11:25 pm
What a waste of time the only this that is irritating was reading this garbage!
Bulldawg Billy
February 28th, 2009
9:05 am
Spurrier will always be a world class WHINNER!!!! RICHT better get his groove on soon or his stock will follow the dow jones.
This Guy
February 28th, 2009
5:21 pm
Let me get this straight: “decency points” are deducted from Urban Meyer for completely legal gamesmanship in response to an act of unsportsmanlike conduct not only tolerated but ordered by Mark Richt…whose act goes unmentioned?
Mark Bradley
February 28th, 2009
10:57 pm
Thanks, JustCallMeChamp. And that’s kind of the point: In the SEC, even the low-profile coaches are high-profile. That’s not the case in, say, the ACC.
crack for lindsey
February 28th, 2009
11:24 pm
Hey, what is Spurrier’s record vs. Richt since he became a cock? Don’t let up on ole Darth Visor just because he doesn’t whup your butts every year anymore. The shame and humiliation of that 11-1 run should stick in your doggy craws until the day they plant you under the hedges. As for Urban Meyer, who already has more National championships than Vince Dooley (HA!), keep hatin’, pups. We’ll give you plenty of reason to in the future. Before Meyer leaves, we will wrench the all-time series lead from your bloody, broken jowls. Please, move the series to home and home, so we can score fifty in Sanford sandbox AGAIN. We want to blow you out like last year in front of your grandmothers, your players’ mothers, Hershel Walker, and Dooley. Hey, I still haven’t seen pix of your Preseason National Championship trophy!
Thanks for putting the hate back in this series, Mr. Richtum. It was sad to watch the mongrels fall down our list of rivals behind Auburn and, dare I say it, Ole Miss. Beating UGA has gone from a given to a priority. Well, it’s still a given, but we enjoy it much more.
We own you and you know it!
Aubie the Tiger
March 1st, 2009
12:17 am
MB, how can you say the only people that have a problem with Gene Chizik are the Auburn fans? Frst of all, Auburn fans remember Chizik from his prior tenure at Auburn and like him and are glad he’s the coach (with the exception of Barkley). Secondly, all I’ve heard from the media is criticism of Chizik since he was hired. The local atlanta sports radio stations spent hours claiming the hire was racist. I think you have it backwards.
However, if what you really mean is that you like him and think he will do a great job, then we are in agreement.
Ian Viola
March 1st, 2009
3:14 am
I have no problem with Urban Meyer he never is the one to start anything and when he does say something to retaliate his team always backs it up on the field
Dee Harlin
March 1st, 2009
1:57 pm
“Except when they lose to him and his intramural team.”
That’s a really old and unnecessary jab by a really old and unnecessary sportwriter.
richard
March 1st, 2009
3:14 pm
If you going to include Kiffin’s record in the NFL then why not include Spurrier’s, Petrino’s and Saban’s?
Doug Smith
March 1st, 2009
10:22 pm
If you think Kiffin is irratating now, wait until he starts owning the SEC. Go Big Orange!
Sam Floret
March 16th, 2009
11:19 pm
Because Saban wins big? Just how big does he win? Five years at LSU, one with less than three losses. One good year at Alabama after a disaster year. No great years at Michigan State. Why do you and others continue to perpetuate this myth? Check out the man’s record.
Marcus Monk's Car for Sale and Other Hodge Podge Links | Razorback Expats
March 25th, 2009
2:31 pm
[...] * This is almost painfully old news at this point (i.e., from last month), but there’s a new entry in the never-ending series of ways people like to rank the SEC coaches: an Atlanta columnist has rated them on who’s the most irritating. [...]
Marcus Monk’s Car for Sale and Other Hodge Podge Links | MrSEC.com
March 25th, 2009
5:20 pm
[...] * This is almost painfully old news at this point (i.e., from last month), but there’s a new entry in the never-ending series of ways people like to rank the SEC coaches: an Atlanta columnist has rated them on who’s the most irritating. [...]
jealous much?
July 31st, 2009
5:50 pm
of course kiffin is #1 on your list. his wife is smokin hot and your wife is a fat tub.
Crib Notes : Maker’s Mark Targets Michigan Fans « Blog Ten – A Big 10 Football Blog
August 1st, 2009
1:36 pm
[...] Lane Kiffin hasn’t even coached a game at Tennessee and he’s already the most annoying coach in the conference. Way to go, Lane. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution] [...]