The Hot Button: Will UGA win a BCS title under Mark Richt?
What once seemed inevitable remains an unanswered question. In 2002 or 2004 or even 2008, Mark Richt was primed to guide his program to a national championship. But he’s about to enter his ninth season as Georgia’s coach and the Bulldogs haven’t gotten there yet, and only once in 11 years has the BCS title been taken by a coach who’d been in place that long — Bobby Bowden of Florida State in 1999.
That Richt is a good coach is beyond dispute. He has won at least 10 games in six of the past seven seasons. He has led Georgia to three SEC East titles and two conference championships. He recruits at the highest level and just saw two Bulldogs taken among the top dozen in the NFL draft. Georgia has finished in the top 10 of at least one major poll five times and in top five twice. But it hasn’t won, or even played for, the BCS title.
Last season was supposed to be the breakthrough. Georgia had finished No. 2 in the AP poll after the 2007 season and was ranked No. 1 last August. It wound up 10-3, and if ever 10-3 could be considered a rank disappointment this was the time. At season’s end the coach made much of the 10-win season in light of so many injuries — and the Bulldogs did have a bunch — but for the first time under Richt it was possible to look on UGA and think, “That team wasn’t very well coached.”
And now Richt has a new quarterback (and figures to have another new one in 2010) and his team has been given almost no chance to win the East, where Florida reigns, and the question occurs: Have we seen the best of this gifted coach? Or is Richt, who has done much already, capable of more?
To be fair, Richt hasn’t failed so much as he has been unlucky. LSU won the 2003 BCS crown with one loss a year after one loss cost Georgia a berth in the championship game. LSU won the 2007 title with two losses after emerging from a league that also housed Georgia, which likewise had two losses. Sometimes you have the right team at the wrong time.
Loading ...But last year’s glaring issues — the rash of penalties and the defensive collapses in Georgia’s three losses — have made some among us wonder if Richt is too nice to finish No. 1. He has vowed to be stricter regarding discipline this time, and it must be noted Georgia didn’t face the same problems with players being arrested this summer as last. And he has promoted John Jancek to co-defensive coordinator alongside Willie Martinez, whom Richt has never once criticized.
Still, it’s worth noting that Steve Spurrier needed six seasons at Florida to win a national championship, and it didn’t happen until he hired Bob Stoops from Kansas State to coordinate the Gator defense. And Mack Brown took Texas to the BCS title in his eighth season in Austin only after importing Gene Chizik from Auburn to lead the Longhorn D. Something similar might need to happen for Georgia and Richt to take the final step.
But would Richt, for whom family and fraternity are of massive import, ever demote or fire Martinez? Is keeping a longtime friend who’s a solid coach — solid as opposed to inspired — more important to him than taking a risk that might (or might not) lead to a greater reward?
We know Mark Richt can coach football. What we still don’t know after eight years of watching is whether he’s pragmatic enough to be a national championship coach.
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446 comments Add your comment
Red Stick
July 30th, 2009
8:09 am
Hey, St. Simons…..(((((38-3))))), now make a ring for that game….HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
LoelGator
July 30th, 2009
8:12 am
Chances are he will not win a title, the odds for any school is very low. Even Florida this year is not likely to go undeated. They didn’t last year either. There are so many factors. To go through a full season undefeated then the league championship game always against a powerhouse, then a BCS championship against another powerhouse. All teams will probably lose somewhere, then after that the chips have to fall in place.
RAMBLE ON!!!
July 30th, 2009
8:12 am
No Herschel and no development studies degrees, means NO CHANCE!!!
Paul Johnson will win 2 before the fleabags fire Richt.
ladyluckjc
July 30th, 2009
8:14 am
co-coordinators? genius. the last co-coordinator team i remember was AU 2003 when it took them 3 games to score the first touchdown.
Gen Neyland
July 30th, 2009
8:14 am
If the measure of a coach is defined as winning BCSNC’s, there is only 1 great coach each year. Will CMR ever bring a Crystal Football to Athens..? Ask Lady Luck.
SatchelBuzz
July 30th, 2009
8:15 am
Interesting article on CMR. Here’s the point that you should touch on concerning UGA under Richt. They enjoyed there collective initial success in the SEC East during a time when both Florida and UT were in a down cycle. Georgia folks have a difficult time acknowledging this fact. The truth hurts.
rok dawg
July 30th, 2009
8:17 am
Mark:
In 2008, UGA had the 4th toughest schedule in America per Phil Steele. Combine that with the 7th most starts lost to injury (44) again per Phil Steele and a -3 turnover ratio isn’t it a miracle that Georgia won 10 games?
So what will happen in 2009? Here are my thoughts.
First, not much help on the schedule – still ranked the nation’s 7th toughest, but we drop Alabama and replace them with Arkansas, we have South Carolina, Kentucky and Auburn all at home instead of on the road. On the negative side, we have to go to Kiffenville, Vandy and Tech. And instaed of going to Arizona State we go to T-Boones new place. But don’t forget that little week off UGA has before the WLOCP. All in all, a slightly better schedule than last year, but still one of the toughest in the land.
Now on to injuries. You shouldn’t make light of the devastating impact injuries had on the ‘08 DAWGS. Sturdivants loss before the 1st snap was crippling as was the loss of Owens on the 8th snap of the first game. Your best offensive and defensive linemen gone before the season starts. Who could absord those blows (Alabam couldn’t win one game without their left tackle). UGA also lost Washington at middle linebacker for the year and basically lost Ellerbe for half the year. Defensive ends? Pretty much the whole crew was lost for all or part of the season. Back up saferties? same story. And on offense, after losing Sturdivent, UGA lost his replacement Vance half way through the season. Later, Anderson was lost for several games and Chris davis was playing hurt all year. Both tight ends were injured almost all season (catching only 4 passes), and the starting fullback missed the first 5 games and never was the same. Many of these players were seniors. The list of inhuries goes on and on. It had a huge impact on offense, defense and special teams. For 2009, what are the chances UGA will suffer the same level of injuries? Very slim.
Now on turnovers. UGA sucked in 2008 with a -3. In 2007, UGA was +9. I can guarantee you UGA will have a poitive turover number in 2008. This will have a major positive impact on the defense.
Now on to penalties. No matter what, it is going to be better than 2008, perhaps much better.
Now on to special teams. They also were substandard in 2008. But with almost everyone healthy plus an inflx of fast freshmen to help out and perhaps a stronger leg to kickoff, this phase of the game will also be better. This will have a big impact on the starting position on both sides of the ball.
All in all, I’s willing to bet this is no worse than a 10 – 3 team. And a week off before the Florida game sure will make that one interesting. I wonder if any of the Georgia players remember the two times out called late in the 4th quarter by Urban to rub our noses in it? I know most DAWG fans do!
National championsip? Probably not this year. But soon.
gtfanfrom1951
July 30th, 2009
8:18 am
Hey Mark do you ever wonder if the Tech & Dawg fans even read the article? That they just trash each other. O well Coach Richt is a very good football coach and a Christian gentleman. As far as winning BCS its like a beauty contest on who gets in the title game.
hoopdog
July 30th, 2009
8:18 am
every one of you posters on here who post….then wait to read another post..then post again….are a bunch of no life tools.
follow the money trail
July 30th, 2009
8:20 am
Gator Bait- yeah winning the SEC championship is usually the first goal since winning it will be the determiner of who gets in the national championship.
If we have a crappy defense, Damon Evans will fire Martinez, Richt won’t have to.
honest_abe
July 30th, 2009
8:20 am
richt is one helluva coach and i’m glad he’s the coach at georgia. he’s the perfect man for georgia and anyone who thinks we can do better is delirious.
is he too nice? i don’t think anyone can be too nice. its called class people. richt just doesn’t see the point in embarrassing 18-21 year olds. when the game is in hand he calls off the dawgs. unlike a certain coach in gainesville. if that means uga can’t win the bcs in the current format so be it. at least uga can be proud of its coach as a man and a human being.
bravesfan
July 30th, 2009
8:21 am
More of the hard-hitting journalism we’ve come to expect from Mark Bradley. This is a completely irrelevant column. There are a ton of GREAT coaches out there that will never win a national championship. The odds are stacked against a coach the minute the season starts. To say Richt is “too this” or “too that” is grasping at straws. Georgia is in the toughest conference in the country, and they don’t have the built-in advantage that Ohio State and USC do by playing in weak conferences and only having to win a couple of tough games. Anytime an SEC team wins a national championship, it’s a heck of an accomplishment. Georgia has done just fine since Richt came to town. To think that Georgia could do better otherwise is foolish. Are they better off than they were with Donnan or Goff? Sure they are. To be mentioned among the elite is all Georgia fans could ask to be. Eventually, the chips will fall Georgia’s way.
Now, will the Braves ever win another World Series title with Cox? Hardly.
bali smith
July 30th, 2009
8:22 am
I would love for Georgia to win 10 bcs championships as long as coach Richt is at the helm. I think he is a man of character and I still like the way he runs his organization.I agree that last year the Dogs did not look well coached and seemed to lack disipline. Hopefully we will see Georgia play a better brand of footballthis season.
John Jancek and Mark Bradley: enquiring minds want to know. « Get The Picture
July 30th, 2009
8:23 am
[...] Jancek and Mark Bradley: enquiring minds want to know. Jump to Comments Mark Bradley keeps bringing up the subject that John Jancek was named co-defensive coordinator in the [...]
Brandon
July 30th, 2009
8:24 am
We are not going to win the BCS title as long as Martinez is DC, because there will always be at least two or three games a year when his Plan A does not work and we all know he has no plan B.
saint simons lover
July 30th, 2009
8:26 am
i am breaking up with you saint simons. you can’t satisfy a squirrel. maybe you can paint it silver and use it as a kick stand. it would have to be a mighty small bike though.
athensdawg
July 30th, 2009
8:28 am
To quote an orator from aincent Rome…..”There must be a vast fund of stupidity in human nature, or else men would not be caught as they are, a thousand times over, by the same snares…..”
Mark Bradley
July 30th, 2009
8:28 am
I say it again: Willie Martinez isn’t a bad DC. His numbers tell us that. But the three breakdowns last season were un-Georgia-like, IMHO.
bravesfan
July 30th, 2009
8:31 am
Mark, I’ll say it for you. Willie Martinez is a horrible defensive coordinator. I fear the posters ahead of you are correct. He’s a very weak link in the chain.
BDAWG
July 30th, 2009
8:31 am
THWG-YOU my friend, are the idiot. Yes, I am saying that if Georgia had of beaten FLA in 02 we would have been in the NC game. An undefeated team from the SEC or one from the Big East (Miami at the time) or one from the Big 10? You’re a d**n idiot. You call us the Wisconsin of the south and you are a Tech fan?! Pretty comical. When success is measured by having an 8 win season and beating your rival once in 8 years makes you this proud and obnoxious you should need to either reevaluate your situation or keep your pie-hole shut till your mighty Jackets are relevant. All Gt is is the Vandy of the Acc
god and greyhound
July 30th, 2009
8:32 am
Bok, being in the oh so tough sec hasnt stopped uf from winning 3 times or lsu twice.
snapshot
July 30th, 2009
8:36 am
There is not such thing as national champions in college football. Under the current system it is impossible to crown a NC team. Mark Richt would be more successful at FSU. BDAWG, if frogs had wings they would not bump their butts when they jump.
AthensGA
July 30th, 2009
8:37 am
Nice guys finish as the 1st loser. Until we reincarnate Herchel it ain’t gonna happen. Lets see how coach myer does without Tebow. Probably about as good as Dooley did without Walker. 3 SEC’s in 25 years. Welcome back to mediocrity Dawg fans.
Gary
July 30th, 2009
8:37 am
I am more concerned about SEC titles. We have to figure out how to turn the story with Florida back into our favor. If we cannot get through that program more than twice every 17 years we will not have a shot at the title. Saying that, I love what we have now. We are a strong team in a the best conference and we give our rivals hell. It makes for great football for the fans. You have to be proud to watch it. Imagine being a USC fan where two games a year matter and none are in conference and you have to import two big wins every year. Not sure how they sell tickets for that show other than city poplulation. NC or no NC, I will keep driving to Athens for the great football they keep putting on the field.
Phil
July 30th, 2009
8:42 am
No – MR is too soft, not tough enough or demanding enough on the players or the coaches!
Mark Bradley
July 30th, 2009
8:42 am
Georgia is one of the 10 best programs in the land. That’s beyond dispute. My question is: Five years ago, weren’t we assuming — I know I was — that the Bulldogs would move into that upper upper tier alongside Texas and Oklahoma and Ohio State and Southern Cal? (Then again, five years ago Urban Meyer was coaching Utah.)
saint augustine
July 30th, 2009
8:42 am
((( 49 10 ))) hahaha
DawgFan
July 30th, 2009
8:43 am
Anyone else noticed that when Georgia defeated LSU last year, by a margin of 14 points, the Dawgs were trying to figure out where they screwed up. But when Tech defeats Georgia by the same 3 point margin that they defeated Gardner-Webb, then loses by 35 to that same LSU team Georgia beat by 14, Tech treats it like a BCS Title.
Saint Simons
July 30th, 2009
8:45 am
Lets talk about tight ends, my favorite position on the team.
SEC4Life
July 30th, 2009
8:47 am
There’s no doubt that Coach Richt is a good coach, but as long as UGA continues to recruit DB’s and LB’s that are 5′11” and under, their defense will continue to keep them out of the BCS conversation. For the past four or five years UGA’s defensive recruiting scheme as appeared to value speed over size, and this has been their achilles heel. How many times did we see 6′1” and taller WRs and TEs outplay UGA DBs last year. The Ga Tech game only exposed what had been obvious all year. Guys like Champ Bailey and Rennie Curran are exceptions to the rule b/c even though they were relatively small for their positions, they could inflict maximum pain at a moments notice. The key to improving UGA’s defensive woes can be summed up in two words: size and discipline.
JT
July 30th, 2009
8:47 am
If Georgia does not want Richt Miami will gladly take him. Canes have a horrible coach in Randy Shannon. Hurrican fan.
TampaGator
July 30th, 2009
8:48 am
At the end of the 2007, Georiga without a doubt had the best team in America. No one could have beaten that team in January of that year. They were rolling on both offense and defense and had total team chemistry. Too bad they did not get a chance to play for the national title that year. They derserve to be there. It will happen again in the near future I am sure. Richt is now focused on not only getting top notch talent, which he is, but on building the team approach it takes to win it all coming out of the SEC…he has seen the light by what he has witnessed down in Gainesville (what team chemistry and team focus can do).
blackhawk
July 30th, 2009
8:48 am
Super B – Coach Martinez is the DB coach! This is kind of like the Braves discussion about not winning enough WS titles. I would rather be good every year and have a chance to win it all than to be mediocre most of the time. UGA has a chance every year. Maybe one day it will happen
chazzo
July 30th, 2009
8:49 am
Great article. Where do you come up with these penetrating questions? Nobody has discussed this all summer. The answer is YES.
PMC
July 30th, 2009
8:51 am
He is doing absolutely everything he can really. Look at the BCS talent gap between Florida and Georgia. Georgia is 4th in the nation in BCS recruits Florida is #1. They produce almost twice the talent we do in state.
Georgia has been right where they need to be several years they just either made thier mistake at the wrong time or were unlucky with injury. Mark Richt is the best head coach UGA has ever had. Yes he’s better than Dooley… Dooley had Irk Russell and Herschel Walker. This staff has done an excellent job they just need to get a year where they have the QB they need and the lines healthy. They are as good at the skill positions as anyone else in the country.
Mark Bradley
July 30th, 2009
8:51 am
These penetrating Hot Button topics are the product of brainstormin’. Thanks for asking.
dawes
July 30th, 2009
8:53 am
your tech fan think your will beat ga four in a row i got some swamp land for sale
DawgFan
July 30th, 2009
8:55 am
Mark – Within two or three years Urban Meyer will be coaching at Notre Dame and Florida will drop back out of the stratosphere and back to the real world with the rest of us.
Plus, you have to remember that a one-or-two-loss season in the SEC is the same as undefeated in any other conference.
Simple Simons
July 30th, 2009
8:57 am
Momma,Saint at the computer again
dawes
July 30th, 2009
8:57 am
you canse your will never have richt because georgia won,t let your have him
Dawgs73
July 30th, 2009
8:58 am
Mark, you are correct when it comes to Richt. He is undeniably a very good coach and an even better human being. His weakness is his blind loyalty to certain coaches (Willies Martinez) and sometimes players. He suffers from what I would like to term “Bobby Cox disease”. He is paid at a very high level and Richt needs to start making some tough decisions (or they will be made for him). It’s quite clear that the Dawgs were almost a great defense under previous DC Van Gorder (now with Falcons) and probably would have progressed to the next level under him (National Championship). Willie is neither progressive or good enough to take UGA to the next level (which has been quite clear for a few seasons now). I believe part of Richt’s major weakness(es) is that he doesn’t want to be upstaged by one of his assistants. Ultimately, he will have to hire himself an upgrade at the coaching position before UGA is to reach the pinnacle of college football.
Jim
July 30th, 2009
8:59 am
Mark Richt is a great coach who can , and will win the BCS. It is always easy (and cheap) to hit a guy who has yet to do something. Richt has a record at UGA that most coaches, schools, and fans would kill to have. Just take a deep breath and relax – he is a Winner.
Original Dawgs
July 30th, 2009
9:00 am
7-1
The Alpha Male
July 30th, 2009
9:01 am
Bradley, you’re a shmuck. Tired subject, ridiculous rhetoric, pointless debate. Richt is one of the best in the nation. Pull your head out of your arse.
the real Old Gold
July 30th, 2009
9:01 am
He better do something over there in Athens. 1980 was almost 30 years ago.
dawes
July 30th, 2009
9:02 am
dear mr athens ga georgia not back to mediocity you need your head check by a brain doctor
Butts' Mirror
July 30th, 2009
9:03 am
6
ATL GATOR
July 30th, 2009
9:04 am
Never!! Doesn’t matter who is coaching them but especially not an ex FSU coach.
Dawgs
July 30th, 2009
9:04 am
caleb king will lead us to glory!
SEC4Life
July 30th, 2009
9:06 am
Am I the only one who’s nervous about Joe Cox as our starting QB?