OK, so what happens with Richt if UGA loses in Starkville?

Quality-of-life-wise, it would behoove this man to win next week. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)

Quality-of-life-wise, it would behoove this man to win next week. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)

Not to say I’m smart or anything, but the Georgia season has played out the way I figured: Win, loss, loss. (No, I wasn’t so all-seeing as to know A.J. Green wouldn’t have played a down.) I also had the Bulldogs winning eight of the next nine games and finishing 9-3, which I do believe will occur. That said …

The Mississippi State game has long seemed to me the pivot point of Georgia’s season. It’s a game UGA should win, but it’s on the road in a different time zone, and strange things can happen in the realm of the cowbell. And today I pose the musical question: What happens if Georgia doesn’t win in Starkville?

Nothing much, I submit, but I’m willing to concede I might be in the distinct minority. Opening the SEC season 0-3 hasn’t happened under Mark Richt — to be accurate, the Bulldogs have never before been 0-2 in league play under Richt — and would loose all manner of outcry from the masses. Greg McGarity, the new AD, wouldn’t join the chorus, but even a new AD couldn’t help but note the furor.

I say again: I think Georgia is going to be fine. This is a young team with a new quarterback and a new defense that faced two very difficult early games without its best player. I find no dishonor in either defeat. And I expect these Bulldogs will tame the maroon Bulldogs on Saturday in Starkville. But I’m pragmatist enough to grant that this could get ugly if UGA doesn’t.

992 comments Add your comment

Gators 17 Dawgs 3

September 19th, 2010
11:15 am

BeerDawg

September 19th, 2010
11:07 am
John P, True. It’s easy to hate on Urban Meyer. There’s actually an SEC team that has more discipline problems than UGA…and that’s saying a lot

YOU BOTH ARE WRONG, Florida’s has had 30 arrests in 6 years, if I’m not mistaken, the dawgs have had 30 in 3 years, PLUS an AD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Remember Mr red panties————have you boys never heard of “the pot calling the kettle black.”

HitaSingle

September 19th, 2010
11:15 am

I always thought Derek would be the next coach at LSU.

brocky

September 19th, 2010
11:16 am

from a Hog fan. I know you’re disappointed in your coach this morning, but from the outside lookinng in you’ve got one of the best coaches in college football. What’s his average wins per season? Around 9 or 10 isn’t it?

HitaSingle

September 19th, 2010
11:16 am

Well it has been fun. Have to go eat!

DamntheButcher

September 19th, 2010
11:17 am

GA OL is awful. They couldn’t block a fat woman from getting into the outhouse that had just eat a pound of X lax.

5150 P.O.A.D

September 19th, 2010
11:17 am

I think I just heard Mike Bobo unsheathing his Katana in prepration to commit suicide and save Richt’s job for at least 1 more year.

Concrete Pete

September 19th, 2010
11:17 am

Dr. Phil you are well informed, sir. A welcome relief to the rants of many on here

Letthefunbegin

September 19th, 2010
11:17 am

Thank you Mark Richt!!!! Now Goodbye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hire Kirby Smart Please before he goes elsewhere!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ponte Vedra Dog

September 19th, 2010
11:17 am

HitaSingle, the only tough one they have lost recently is against Alabama last year. Beating UT at UT is not a given any year. I would take their results any day of the week.

Da'Quan MindGap

September 19th, 2010
11:18 am

That’s a false argument Ponte Vedra Dog. How many Meyer’s and Saban’s are out there? Look at Virginia Tech this year… they were a top 10 team to start the season and now look at them. Look at OU, ND, FSU, Miami, UT… there a ton of programs that are under performing and having problems. If we fire Richt, who do we get, huh? We’d have to start over again and Saban and Meyer will still be in the SEC. You people have your heads inside your colons.

Question...

September 19th, 2010
11:18 am

What makes anyone think Smart or Muschamp is the answer. Just because they played for UGA doesn’t mean they are qualified candidates. Neither of these guys has proven anything as a head coach and you want them to take over the program. You people claim to hate affirmative action, yet you’re quick to replace Richt with an unproven commodity just because of their association with the university. The hypocrisy is laughable.

DamntheButcher

September 19th, 2010
11:19 am

brocky!!!!! You can’t count Richt’s record when Saban was in the NFL and Meyer was in the WAC. What is Mark Richt’s record in the SEC the last 4 years?

Gators 17 Dawgs 3

September 19th, 2010
11:20 am

Ponte Vedra Dog

Good for you , a realist dawg, get new coach and the players will play much better

bobo hater

September 19th, 2010
11:20 am

I’ll say it again….get rid of BOBO, he is awful

Ponte Vedra Dog

September 19th, 2010
11:20 am

Da’Quan MindGap, Richt has peaked in my opinion. There’s no fire. Hell, I think Dan Mullen would be better. Why can’t we find the next Meyer?

Andy in Blairsville

September 19th, 2010
11:20 am

UGA can’t even beat SC and Arkansas for crying out loud and UGA will be lucky to play in the Tampax Bowl like they played in last year.

UGA and has a HUGE fair-weather fan base who will demand Richt’s head at the end of this season and the only thing that *might* save Richt is a win over Floriduh, but the odds of are slim at this point even taking into consideration Floriduh isn’t exactly great this season but unlike UGA they are improving with each game.

DamntheButcher

September 19th, 2010
11:21 am

Question… Smart or Muschamp may not be the answer and we wouldn’t know that until they are given a chance. What we DO KNOW is that Mark Richt is not the answer.

Ted M

September 19th, 2010
11:21 am

yeah but that fat lady is highly motivated.

Ponte Vedra Dog

September 19th, 2010
11:22 am

DamntheButcher, Amen!

lawzoo

September 19th, 2010
11:22 am

I’m ready for basketball season and to watch ‘Em court dawgs in action at the elegant Stegeman Autotorium. Won’t be any Lattimores or Mallets there.

Ted M

September 19th, 2010
11:24 am

If the Dawgs beat the Gators…

Letthefunbegin

September 19th, 2010
11:24 am

Richt should Kiss Brian Vangorders arse for the first 2 SEC Championships! Without him he would not have a championship period!!!

Bama makes our program look silly………..

hey taxpayer....

September 19th, 2010
11:24 am

you need a bit of a history lesson maybe you can fine a urine stained book in your library…..

ronald regan deregulated all the banks etc back when he was president.

the first housing crisis happened during the 1990 savings and loan crash. that is the same time that YOUR most recent presidential candidate almost went to prison along with his partner.

the whole problem with this market is that it was de reg u lated. get it nitwit? the pubs love deregulation….. and waging wars that they borrow money to pay for,,,,,,, and giving all OUR money to the rich.

if your a bitter little man you need to look in the mirror cause your kind helped put the republicans in power for 32 of the last 42 years ya DA, its the folks in power that mold the laws. are you really that stupid. if your a republican i would say you are.

get back to me when you can tell me what relevance 28:1 and 900:1 have.

ill nary hear a peep from you again.

DamntheButcher

September 19th, 2010
11:24 am

I don’t know how much money the guy at Oregon is making or Jim Harbaugh is making but I think either of them would be a good choice. Although I think Harbaugh may go to the NFL when given the chance. I don’t think the spelling of Harbaugh is correct but as Clark Gable said “frankly my dear I don’t give a damn”

Munson's Toupee

September 19th, 2010
11:25 am

What Would Damon Do?

DamntheButcher

September 19th, 2010
11:26 am

Well I gotta get outta here. It’s about time for the strip clubs to open and I gotta get a front row seat.

Zerevan

September 19th, 2010
11:27 am

Kirby Smart…well he is that..He is not leaving Bama for UGA

mark richt

September 19th, 2010
11:28 am

i can see tuscaloosa from my front porch

Mike

September 19th, 2010
11:29 am

Mark Bradley:

Let’s say you’d been voted the top 10 journalist 6 out of 9 of the past 9 years and your newspaper had been among the top 10 most profitble in the country for the last 10 years. Yet, in 2010, you had an off year. What would happen, if that were true?

Andy

September 19th, 2010
11:29 am

When is the Dream Team going to show up!

Corey

September 19th, 2010
11:32 am

Just want the team to be competitive, no blowouts like last season. So far, so good. Big improvement in that category, that’s all I’m looking for with a fresman QB. I’m a realist in a world of illusionary pundits.

BeerDawg

September 19th, 2010
11:32 am

Fl 17-UGA 3, sorry, my bad

Several with good points. Everything about Al I’ve heard is that Saban runs the WHOLE show. So is Al excellent defense b/c of Smart or Saban? I’m bettin Saban.

As for Muschamp, his D seems to show fair number of lapses too, and I’m pretty sure Mack Brown lets him run the show.

Of the other option, Petersen of Boise has the resume, but can a WAC coach compete in thr SEC? Urban Meyer made the transition quite well.

It’s all fantasy anyway, doesn’t seem like UGA has the finances to make the change

taxpayer obviously

September 19th, 2010
11:32 am

listens to rush limbaugh to enhance his political IQ

mark twain

September 19th, 2010
11:34 am

ONCE AGAIN WILL YOU MORONS LEARN HOW TO SPELL, NOW GA NEEDS TO RETURN TO THE SILVER HELMETS, AND SILVER BRITCHES. DOOLEY WOULD NOT CHANGE WITH THE TIMES, NEITHER WILL RICHT. THE FORMATIONS TELL YOU WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO DO. WITH NO BLOCKING, WHERE YOU GONNA GO. IT IS COACHING PERIOD. SABAN CAN COACH, IF YOU CANNOT THEN YOU DO NOT PLAY FOR HIM. LET US GET BERNIE MADOFF OUT OF JAIL AND TELL EVERYONE HE WILL CHANGE THE PROGRAM AT UGA TO BECOME WINNERS AT LEAST AT THE BOX OFFICE. WE WILL BE LUCKY TO WIN 1 MORE GAME THIS YEAR. RETURN TO THE YEARS OF THE SILVER BRITCHES. MY RIVERBOAT IS GOING TOWARD THE ROUGH WATERS.

john p

September 19th, 2010
11:34 am

Gators 17 Dawgs 3 and BeerDawg thanks for the comments!; I agree that Urban Myer knows how to win and he has the dogs number, but I really would like to see at least competitive game this year?! When is Georgia going to settle down and play the fundamentals of Football again? UGA has confused players on almost every down now! That is a coaching problem and it’s got to be corrected quickly or the death spiral will continue!

DawgByte

September 19th, 2010
11:35 am

According to Richt after we lose a game or two each season…”We lack depth”; Defense is inexperienced; too many injuries on the offensive line; etc. Now Mark…you are saying we are too young! Tired of the excuses!!! I would fire the employee that never reached the goal I had set who continuously gave excuses. Fact is we have the most experienced offense ever under a Richt team and still can’t win games except the cupcake one. Believe last year Tech in Atlanta lost several offensive linemen and they simply plugged in backups and kept winning. Auburn is playing with an inexperienced QB and they are winning. Alabama has 9 new starters on Defense and they are winning. Fact is they all have better football coaches. When will we get a coach that is truly gifted? We have the resources to get the talent if only we had the right man.

Hog Fan

September 19th, 2010
11:35 am

The Ga Team that was playing in the Fourth Quarter scared me.Tradition gets recruits,wins close games and the FAN loyalty/involvement clearly fired up the players at the end.To see all this negative talk about your so called” Thug Players” and bad OC is really sad. Players have been getting arrested/in trouble since the 70’s. Georgia Fanatics just used to cover it up. Good ole boy stuff is harder to do now days. Win or Not, Calling Players “THUG” for posing after that GREAT HIT is ignorant. If this is about kids/character why is winning everything so important? You have a GOOD COACH,GOOD TEAM. STOP WHINING….

Concrete Pete

September 19th, 2010
11:35 am

WE NEED A NEW STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING PROGRAM! Please guys, listen. It’s obvious that we get physically beaten up front, and we miss tackles and give up extra yardage after contact. That’s brut strength, which we need to improve on. BUT, the effects of a top notch strength program that very few realize unless you actually played the game at a high level is that the team is built from January until August, in the weight room, on the track, steps, etc. If kids buy in, and truly give 100% to the conditioning program and assuming the program is the best it can be, below no other team, the kids will not jeopardize themselves or the team, because they have paid such a great price.

Kids will not act foolish in public, risking arrests, jail time, and suspensions that will damage the team and themselves individually. Why? They have invested a great price. On the field, kids will not make careless and selfish mistakes such as dumb personal fouls (We had KEY 15 yard penalties in each of the last 2 games). They will do their job on every play, and not try to be a make a selfish play, ultimately resulting in a big play for the opposition (see winning TD yesterday). If a kid is 100% invested in a program, resulting from giving his all in the off-season, he’s mentally prepared and soesn’t make the careless errors like jumping offside, lining up wrong, or forget an assignment.

Overall, the strength program is the boot camp. it gets the players prepared for the mission. We are lacking a good boot camp, our players are not prepared. It’s not Bobo, Grantham, hell it wasnt even Martinez. Richt however chooses the strength coach and OK’s his methods so he is 100% at fault for not having the kids physically and mentally prepared.

suwaneedawg

September 19th, 2010
11:36 am

I was posting way back in April that those of you that thought this team would win the east were crazy. This team basically started over again with its defense and and its offense. You factor in a redshirt fresham at qb and losing your best weapon to start the first 4 weeks and what did you expect? Not to mention the fact that 2 of our first 3 were against ranked teams with experience at key postions.
As far as the defense goes, any team that starts the 3-4 defense for the first time is going to struggle. it is a defense that you have to have the right people in key positions like nose tackle and olb’s. We are giving the qb to much time to throw the ball and the underneath is to exposed. I have the faith that Grantham is going to turn this around in the next 2 games and the faith that we will bring in the right recruits for this scheme.
I was dissapointed in our loss yesterday but, I took away a good feeling about or qb who was without his go to guy. That being said, #16 & #12 stepped up and played well. We have one more game without Green and we will win this coming Saturday in Starkesville. For those of you screaming for Richt’s head and wishing Willie was back, I have two simple questions. You think Smart is better then Richt and have you watched Oklahoma’s defense play this year? Air Force put up 24 yesterday and Utah shredded their secondary. I think I will stick with Grantham.

Ryder Trucks to Richt's

September 19th, 2010
11:38 am

It is time to back the moving trucks up to the Richt house. “Hey, New A.D.— do WHATEVER is needed to bring in Muschamp.”

Delusional Dawg

September 19th, 2010
11:39 am

Let me be offensive coach. On the latest version of NCAA 11 for XBOX 360 I have led Georgia to 5 consecutive National Titles while having the most prolific offense ever. I average 84 points a game. I had 3 1000 yard rushers and four 1000 yard receivers plus my QB had close to 6000 yards passing and 73 TDs. He also had 15 rushing TDs. I am an offensive genius!

mark twain

September 19th, 2010
11:39 am

HEY TAXPAYER LEARN HOW TO SPELL REAGAN, AND YOU THINK YOU KNOW IT ALL.

Al

September 19th, 2010
11:41 am

When we made the call to Florida State and asked permission to speak with coach Richt regarding the UGA job he was calling plays for the offense and lighting up the scoreboard. My expectation was that he would bring that offensive prowess to Athens and call the plays. Instead he wants to be the “CEO”…well this isn’t Coca Cola…..call the plays Mark!!

Andy in Blairsville

September 19th, 2010
11:42 am

About the only thing that might save UGA’s season now would be if a truckload of “The Clear” from BALCO showed up in Athens this morning.

defense wins championships

September 19th, 2010
11:43 am

Mr McGarrity …..Dawgs are “in the hunt” for last place in the SEC right be hind Vandy !

BeerDawg

September 19th, 2010
11:43 am

HogFan, I agree with you that calling our players thugs is not helpful. What I have a problem with is all the antics UGA players do after a routine play…that suggests a lack of discipline on the part of the coaches. You just do not see much of that with Saban’s team.

Yes, we have a pretty good team year after year. But what this fan base demands are championships

taxpayer

September 19th, 2010
11:44 am

hey red panties -

Save your attempt at circular logic for someone else, you weenie-a$$ed liberal. Franklin Raines, Barney Franks and Chris Dodd should all be someone’s butt-buddy by now in jail – oh I forgot, Barney already has his.

Cajun Trash

September 19th, 2010
11:44 am

uga players are too worried about the cameras. image. showboating. most uga teams are too. watched the softball team last year. embarrassing. focus on your job on the field and not the tv cameras or the crowds.

The Mortician

September 19th, 2010
11:45 am

What would happen if UGA lost to Mississippi State? For starters, my business would skyrocket.

Don’t underestimate just how bad the maroon Bulldogs are. Outside of Alabama (and maybe Florida by season’s end) it’s a very very very down year in the SEC—and even at that, it’s still the best conference in America which tells you as a whole college football has no great team this year save for the Crimson Tide.

Given my profession, I know what dead looks like. Georgia ain’t quite there yet. But I will stay on standby just in case.

R. Azorbach

September 19th, 2010
11:45 am

Seeeeoooooowwweeeeee! Loved the hogs domination of the dawgs…in Athens at that! Bogus called back punt return for TD and some other “homer” calls and the dawgs still couldn’t win! Love that it was close in the end. Dawgs thought they were gonna get lucky…then….WHAM! Down came the Mallett on they head! Love it….Seeeeeeoooooooowwweeeeeeeeee!