Another black day in Jax reveals UGA as second-rate
One is hunting a third BCS title; the other isn't bowl-eligible. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
Jacksonville — The game was a total loss, but the lesson imparted need not be. After yet another lost Saturday in Duval County, this much is beyond dispute: Georgia is no longer a major player in its division, let alone the nation.
Mark Richt began his somber media briefing by saying, “Well, here we are again.” And there they were, lopsided losers. It was 49-10 last season and 41-17 this time, and for all the good work Richt did in the early part of this decade, he and his program have been lapped by Urban Meyer. And Richt, once so clever and driven, seems to have run out of ideas.
He tried the color-scheme gimmick Saturday, presenting his players with black helmets after they’d warmed up in the usual red headgear. The upshot of this was to make Georgia look like an Arena league team and to cow the nation’s No. 1 team not one whit. After 11 1/2 minutes, the guys in the orange hats led the guys in the black hats 14-0.
“It’s not the helmet,” safety Reshad Jones said. “It’s what inside the helmet.”
Well, yes. With an extra week to prepare, Willie Martinez seemed even more witless than usual. As bad as the Gators’ first two touchdowns were, the third was an affront to everything Red and Black. Facing third-and-3 at the Georgia 23 with 1:32 left in the half, Florida ran a simple option. Tim Tebow faked a handoff and burst up the middle. He scored the touchdown that put him ahead of the hallowed Herschel Walker without being touched.
“They’re a good team,” said defensive end Justin Houston. “But it seemed like every time we made a bad play, they capitalized on it.”
In the first half Georgia had eight penalties. In the second it had four interceptions. If it was to have any chance against the Gators, it had to play a clean game. Instead it authored another in a series of messes.
If we’re to believe recruiting rankings, the gulf between Georgia and Florida shouldn’t be so pronounced. But Saturday was another installment of men against boys, and it called to mind the barb Steve Spurrier sunk into Ray Goff in this stadium 18 years ago: “Georgia gets all these players — I don’t know what happens to them.”
Players go to Florida and get, to invoke another Spurrier-ism, coached up. Players come to Georgia and are left to their own devices. Martinez is a substandard defensive coordinator, and no other position coach can be said to have done fabulous work. (Unless you count Kevin Butler, who isn’t a coach but who did sire the prodigious punter Drew Butler.)
Said Richt: “We’re 4-4 this season. I don’t think it’s an indictment of the program. I think it’s an indictment of where we are this year.”
Except Georgia has underachieved three times in the past four seasons, and as Richt himself noted Saturday: “There’s no guarantee of a bowl. The question is, will we play a game when we don’t do something that hinders us from being the best we can be?”
The Bulldogs have never lost more than four games under Richt, but they’ve never been 4-4 under this coach, either. Regarding possible changes, he said: “It’s not good to make decisions within minutes of an emotional game. You’ve got to settle your mind and settle your spirit, and then see where you are.”
As darkness fell on Halloween 2009, Georgia was again where it has been too often. The program that has all the resources was left to wonder why it has fallen so far behind Florida. And the ugly truth has never been more apparent: Florida might or might not have better players, but it absolutely has better coaches.
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1,165 comments Add your comment
fcmr
November 1st, 2009
9:53 am
Georgia Bowl only in YF mind. Nice rings by the way.
mike addington
November 1st, 2009
9:53 am
Go get Van Gorder as the head coach.
Daaaaaaaaaaaaaawgs
November 1st, 2009
9:53 am
delusional, pathetic fans, unimaginative, lack of discipline on the field = mediocrity at best.
how bout dem daaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwgs, sic em, woof woof, LOL
Super Dog
November 1st, 2009
9:53 am
Black helmets great idea
Bud
November 1st, 2009
9:53 am
Hey Dawg Killer … You there? Are you hiding in the closet?
Richard
November 1st, 2009
9:54 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDOy-RMIpF0
Carl Spackler
November 1st, 2009
9:54 am
Heard they tried put in some of the new “freshman” players and they refused to go into the game…they said this game was such a “PIG” that they were afraid to get the swine flu
Bud
November 1st, 2009
9:54 am
Enter your comments here
Claude Felton
November 1st, 2009
9:54 am
Memo to Coach Richt:
What do you want me to do with the two dozen giant photographs of Urban Meyer calling time out against us last year?
We could save the posters for starting fires, but I guess we already have plenty of kindling from the playbooks that were tossed out.
Claude
PS: I arranged for a dance instructor so that our guys would not look silly next year.
Buck in Valdosta
November 1st, 2009
9:54 am
well at least the phillies lost
SEARCH
November 1st, 2009
9:55 am
Pat Dye is younger than Joe Paterno and a GEORGIA GRAD.
banditdawgg
November 1st, 2009
9:55 am
Two weeks to prepare. Enough said there has got to be some coaching changes at the end of the year or CMR will never win any menningful games in the future. There no dicipline on this team what so ever. I see only one more possible win this season.
G. Tampa Bedwetter
November 1st, 2009
9:55 am
Markie, take your sorry a$$, your even worse coaching team, your hokie gimmicks; your “watergirl” and go back to Florida.
Dalton Dave
November 1st, 2009
9:55 am
Dawgs are pathetic, plain and simple. CMR had two weeks to prepare and the result was predictable.
fcmr
November 1st, 2009
9:56 am
Yellow Fuzz nice win, too bad no one saw it. You’ve got a good team but a lousy fan base. Season ticket packages are still on sale at TECH, check the website nerd. Even the tech blogs this morning haw about 100 comments after their big win. No one including you even go to games. You’ll be represented at the acc championship game in Jax by the players, parents, athletic department staff and a handful of fans. Every one else will be hoping they get invited to the Bowl game.
Mark Richt
November 1st, 2009
9:57 am
ATTENTION FANS
IM NOT FIRING ANYONE SORRY
I HAVE PUT TOGETHER THE RIGHT STAFF AT UGA
WE WILL BACK TO A TOP LEVEL PROGRAM NEXT YEAR
THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT
Snoop Dog
November 1st, 2009
9:57 am
Yea
heyberto
November 1st, 2009
9:57 am
I get why people are upset.. that was the case going into this game. I don’t get why anyone is surprised at the outcome based on how our season has gone. We performed just like I expected.
Snoop Dog
November 1st, 2009
9:58 am
I said yea
Dawgs in Trouble
November 1st, 2009
9:58 am
When I grew up we all me at St. Simons and had great oyster roasts at our beach house. UF was a joke and the beat down was systematic. Come back and Party at Poor Stevens all night long…
This team and leadership is a joke. Mike Adams is a joke. Vince Dooley was a gentleman of the best sort but he would not stand for all this lethargic, moronic mentality that is taking place in Athens now.
My how the mighty have fallen…..You know God took out King Sol in order to make room for David when the time came……
NXS
November 1st, 2009
9:58 am
For You Fuzz…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLHxKeDeonk
Robert Fields
November 1st, 2009
9:58 am
Embarassed isn’t enough negativism about our program! As head coach, you have to make difficult decisions, decisions that affect peoples’ lives, but decisions that have to be made. With that in mind, I’ll trade all of Richt’s TRICKS for these TREATS:
1. FIRE WILLIE MARTINEZ (NOT AT THE SEASON, THIS AFTERNOON);
2. DEMOTE MYSELF TO OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR;
3. HIRE WILL MUSCHAMP AS HEAD COACH (AT WHATEVER IT TAKES);
4. DEMOTE BOBO TO QUARTERBACKS COACH;
5. HIRE KIRBY MOORE AS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR (AT WHATEVER IT TAKES).
The lost revenue of buying out or paying contracts for inept coaches will be far exceeded down the road with wins, an ecstatic fan base and donations. For me, 2009 is my last. After 30 years, I’ve had enough. Sometimes you just have to “man up” and abandon the downward spiral. This program has been in decline for the past 5 years, regardless of the records. Therefore, I’ll use my GEEF and season ticket monies to finance my campaign for the Tennessee House of Representatives, District 57, thank you very much.
StraightJacket
November 1st, 2009
9:58 am
What the program needs now, more than EVER, is STABILITY!
STABILITY is what builds a strong, solid program.
Coach Ricked neeeeeeeds to sign BOTH Coach Bozo & Coach Willie “Vodka” Martini to long term contracts. ONLY THEN, can the dawgs continue to sign the 4 and 5 Star talent the program needs to prosper in future years.
I IMPLORE ALL dawg fans to be PATIENT! We have everything we need ALREADY in place!
-SJ
reasonable
November 1st, 2009
9:59 am
I doubt Richt reads these things but here goes;
An Open Letter to Mark Richt:
The program is in a shambles and has show signs of slippage since 2005. Recognize that and take your actions on that fact. Finishing number 2 a couple of years ago in a down year among other teams (national champion lost 2 games) masked the blow out loss at Tennessee and the earlier loss to South Carolina.
2. Quit the gimmicks, go back to fundamentals, blocking, tackling, discipline, etc: The gimmicks are a joke – see Tebow’s who cares comment before the game.
3. Replace your DC, a true executive and head coach would have done so after last season. Realize that if your DC stays, its you who will go after next season. He has had ample time to prove his mettle and has failed miserably. I have never seen a more poorly coached defense. Further, let the new DC pick his assistants. Also, never hire another close personal friend or family member. As one who knows, firing folks is hard enough, don’t make it more difficult through personal considerations.
4. Revamp your recruiting and refocus on Georgia as the base of your classes. In your first years that seem to be your approach. Over the last few years, your staff seems to have looked and relied more on out-of-state recruits. That does not mean passing on superior talent such as A.J. Greene, it does mean building the base of your class in state and locking other programs out of the top in-state talent. Mark Bradely is right – if our recruits are as good as advertised there is no way we should be this bad – so either our recruits are not that good or our coaching staff is that bad. Attack both possibilities.
5. Revamp your physical fitness program, way too many players are getting hurt and some of this is probably due to poor conditioning.
6. Look at retooling your offensive schemes. Modern SEC defenses are overpowering your predictable schemes.
7. Get more physical, this has been a long term problem that goes back to the early days. Part of the problem with the offensive line is lack of a physical get after them attitude. As for the defense, why be labor the obvious lack of physical play.
8. For position coaches, don’t assume that if you played and coached that you should be able to coach any position. Why do you have a former receiver as running backs coach and why allow last years’ running backs coach to coach receivers? Even more glaring, why did you hire Kirby Smart, a former Georgia all SEC safety and now Alabama DC, as a running backs coach a few years back?
9. Put your loyalty to the school, the program, and the players, and not the coaches. They are paid (adopt the Kifflin approach and pay even more to get the best) to perform, if they don’t get rid of them.
10. Do not ignore or discount the alumni and fans as you have done this year with such silly comments and nostrums on honor and being in the arena when confronted with their anger. They indirectly pay your salary and know way more than you give them credit for. They know something is very wrong in Athens and will not long stand for a stay the course attitiude and a we know better than you posture.
To Mark Bradley – I would amend your comment to be that Mark Richt has been a good coach – faced with need for staff changes and firing a close personal friend, will he continue to be or will he, like other former Bowden assistants, fail this acid test. Rumors are abounding everywhere that he promised the young defesive back recruit from Florida, who was worried about the status of the DC, that WM was not going anywhere. If that is true and WM stays, Mark Richt can no longer be considered a good head coach. After all, the classic definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
CMR
November 1st, 2009
10:00 am
OK fans.. You get your wish. I am out of here. I resign. Good luck with the talentless group of slobs I have left behind for you. I shall now go to Tuscaloosa and coach the long snappers under the expert tutelage of King Saban with the hopes of possibly moving back to Georgia to help Bill Curry with the Ga State program in a few years!
yarddawg
November 1st, 2009
10:02 am
Leave Coach Mark Richt alone, he is a good coach, and a good man. Now he needs to look at his coaching situation at all of his coordinator positions no doubt.
Michael
November 1st, 2009
10:02 am
One of the saddest things was seeing Joe Cox on the sidelines. I think he knows he will never play in anymore football games. I don’t think he is that bad but he was not bought along quickly enough and he is unable to adjust fast enough. Coaching staff rode on the back of some good players last few years and have gotten lazy…Gotten tighten up-Get some fire in the Belly.
Well, after this UGA/UF display... - Page 3 - TideFans.com
November 1st, 2009
10:03 am
[...] [...]
Frogger
November 1st, 2009
10:03 am
Hey Tampa Gator, you forgot one other stat on Spikes. He also got an eyeball from Georgia’s RB Ealy. Class act he is.
As far as looking at Oklahoma and USC also losing and comparing the Dawgs to them we must remember that those 2 teams have won a Natl Championship of late. We cannot even mention the bulldogs in the same breath as USC and the Sooners.
Richt should get another year if he gets rid of Willie. No more years if he don’t. Chris Peterson from Boise State would come to Georgia in a heartbeat. Muschamp or Strong would also take the position. You can’t win without a good D and we have not had that for at least 4 years.
Mark Bradley
November 1st, 2009
10:03 am
For those inclined, here are my 5 reasons (plus one) the loss to Florida was even worse than it seemed.
banditdawgg
November 1st, 2009
10:04 am
bradley your a joke!!!!!!
GaGator
November 1st, 2009
10:04 am
ANOTHER TIDBIT FROM THE ORLANDO SENTINEL
It seemed only appropriate that for the first time in Georgia history, the Bulldogs came out Saturday wearing black helmets with matching black pants. It was the perfect attire for a funeral. And, yes, Tebow performed the eulogy.
It went something like this:
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today with empty hearts and tearful eyes to mourn the death of a once-proud rivalry. As we lay the casket into the ground here on the forlorn shores of St. Johns River, let us bow our heads, pray and say goodbye to Florida-Georgia.”
You know the rivalry is dead when Georgia has to resort to changing its color scheme in a futile attempt to change its mojo. The Gators, of course, paid as much attention to Georgia’s headgear as they would to Charleston Southern’s footwear.
Super Dog
November 1st, 2009
10:04 am
Black helmets and pants
Will be on sale at the Athens Goodwill store
First 50 people to buy a black helmet or pants recieve a free
“We will work on penalties and tackling next year t-shirt”
mcconnell
November 1st, 2009
10:04 am
BullDawg….yes…we have a DC and OC that would not hold those positions with any other SEC team…agree…
We have become the N.C. State of the SEC!
Also..when I evaluate the penalties and all the “arrest”…it reminds me that you can’t spell….THUGS without UG! How’s that for being dead on?
Greg
November 1st, 2009
10:04 am
Dick Bumpas at TCU is DC but Gary Patterson runs defense.Donnan’s teams never had many penalties and even though a lot of rumors very few arrests for off field incidents.
Brock
November 1st, 2009
10:05 am
NXS- 193 yds in the air and Nesbitt has better pass rating than any bulldog qb this yr. I think gt found it.
Rich
November 1st, 2009
10:05 am
Disiple, it will reduce turnonvers and penalties.
Kennesaw Dawg
November 1st, 2009
10:05 am
Damon Evans, how much would it cost to buy out Richt’s contract? Can we start a collection?
BDAWGNATION
November 1st, 2009
10:05 am
If i hear or read one more thing ab UF’s savior quarterback breaking Walkers record i might lose my mind and end up in jeanshorts, T-bag is good, VERY good, for college… but he is not even in the same league as HW, not by a long shot….. and i hope y’all enjoy getting to run your mouths, bc it wont last much longer, when I was is school at UGA we couldnt find a UF fan, so i cant wait until the RECENT tide shifts again….
browndog
November 1st, 2009
10:05 am
The UGA players didn’t go to Jax intending to lose. They were out played by a much better team with better players. Coaching is an issue but how many UGA players, other than A.J. would be starting for UF? It all starts with talent and just maybe UGA has a lot less than we thought.
Dawgs73
November 1st, 2009
10:06 am
Another year of absolute embarrassing play and we had two weeks to prepare…ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! The bottom line is Mark Richt is not getting the job done. He is the CEO of this program and he has made some woeful coaching decisions. He hired his buddy Wille Martinez to take over after Van Gorder left. That was clearly a decision that was not made on statiscal merit. He hired Mike Bobo to be his offensive coordinator when there were clearly better options available. Richt does not like being overshadowed by his coaches and if given the decision, he will keep this same staff in place next year and beyond.
I hate to say it, but it’s time for Damon Evans to put pressure on Mark to make changes (at both coordinator positions). If he denies Evans request, then it’s time to move in another direction with another coach.
wandldawg
November 1st, 2009
10:06 am
Well, you can say a lot about the poor performance. Sufficed to say, we aren’t very good. I will leave that to others. But now, however, we are failing at even the things we can completely control, ie. what uniforms we wear. That black helmet get up was ridiculous. Not only did it scream of desperation, going back to failed ploy that didn’t work last time against Bama, it was just plain ugly. For most of my 40 years, Georgia football is/was winning, silver britches and the red helmets. Not anymore. Like running the ball and tough defense, you can add uniform choice to the list of traditions we have discarded. The combined result: a mediocre ACC, Pac-10 type outfit. As a CMR supporter, it really troubles me. The decline that began in the 2nd half of the Bama game last year has begun to accelerate. CMR won’t be our coach in 4 years.
G8TR
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
I don’t understand. I thought the difference between the two programs was having an open date before the UF game.
j
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
“One of the saddest things was seeing Joe Cox on the sidelines.” That is what happens when you place an albino in the hot sun.
for those of you asking richt to fire his staff what you are forgetting is that he knows these people. Who is he going to replace them with?
Strangers? Why would any successful coaches want to deal with the ugag fan base?
Frogger
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
It is sad about Cox. The reason he wasn’t brought along fast enough is that the Dogs cannot put a team away. If we could ever get a big enough cushion then the younger guys could get some playing time. Our Defense prevents this from happening. The only time our backups play is when we are so far behind there is no hope of winning. We see the position that Grey was put in yesterday. Did he gain anything from that. I think not.
Dawgs in Trouble
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
What in the world was up with the “Grambling” Helmets yesterday. Their is no historical reverence their to draw from. One could have sent the team out in old traditional garb but I am glad they didn’t, this team does not deserve to wear it.
Look at Tennessee now and look at our house keeping…..Why I am having to say this, is the most appalling thing in itself.
Mike Adams won’t leave….The Token Athletic director won’t leave and Coach Richt won’t do anything.
Maybe since our season tickets just keep shooting through the roof, we should just just leave for awhile until some of the above gets taken care off.
Every border state and our state has a better program than we do now…..When has that ever been spoken before? the 1950’s maybe…… Tommy Tubberville please answer your phone calls!
What tha
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
I read this stuff every Sunday morning, I really don’t understand UGA fans. They seem to have some insane notion that by complaining constantly about the coaching staff they can cause changes in those positions and yet the very next Saturday, they fill the stands with 92,000+ people who actaully believe this program is going to change! Halarious! Damon Evans laughs all the way to the bank with all your money (so does CMR) and nothing is going to change until that does. If you go to a restaurant and have a bad meal, you don’t keep going back. That makes you the idiot.
You guys need to grab reality. The University of Florida has established one of the premier athletic programs in the country (check the Sears Cup standings). They do what is neccesary to have winning programs in all areas. Why does that fact bother UGA fans. If you blindly support the product that Evans and CMR are selling, then you should not complain. Georgia has lost 17 out of the last 20 years because UGA fans believe that is good enough. Gator girl is right. Georgia has had a tradition of mediocre coaches and the tradition of supporting them until its to late (Goff, Donnan now Richt).
Mark Richt realizes that he is entrenched at Georgia. Because of that, he has lost his ability and desire to coach up these athletes like he did in the his early years at Georgia.
Bama DAWG
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
***** FIRE RICHT!!!! WE WANT JON GRUDEN!!!!! ************************
John
November 1st, 2009
10:07 am
I think all this Black is to appease the hoods that are left with do it yourself attitudes. Remember Alabama last year, another blowout. Try to control your playes coach or be gone.
Yellow Fuzz
November 1st, 2009
10:08 am
Just in case you have not noticed, I have no life!
I constantly post on the UGA articles simply because there is nobody posting on the Tech articles.
I’m gay, and really am confused about the way you all play the game of football. I do enjoy the clothes your team wears. I love your color scheme changes!