Alas, Georgia’s coaching is no longer championship-caliber
It was another hair-raising loss for UGA and Mark Richt. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
On Oct. 27, 2007, Knowshon Moreno scored to give Georgia a 7-0 lead against Florida, prompting the Bulldogs’ semi-planned and twice-penalized on-field celebration. What you knew: Georgia won that day 42-30, marking the only time Mark Richt’s team has beaten Urban Meyer’s.
What you didn’t know: The day of the Gator Stomp marked the first and last time — in six tries, mind you — a Richt team has taken a lead on Meyer’s.
As disheartening as Richt being 1-5 against Meyer is, the repeated failure to nose ahead even 3-0 is more alarming. It’s a direct reflection of coaching, or the lack thereof. Rule 1 in the Coaching Manual: Get your team ready to play. Sad to say, the Bulldogs under Richt are rarely ready.
Say what you will about Meyer, but the man can coach. His work against Ohio State in Glendale, Ariz., in January 2007 was the greatest coaching performance the BCS title game has ever seen, and his work against Georgia on Saturday was no less inspired. In Jacksonville he took the demonstrably lesser team — anybody see an A.J. Green or a Justin Houston or even an Aaron Murray or an Orson Charles among Gators? — and wrung 450 yards and 34 points from it. Meyer tried everything. Richt’s team tried running the ball on second-and-10 in overtime.
The best you can say about Richt’s coaching is that his players didn’t quit when they fell behind. That’s surely because they’ve had so much practice: Georgia hasn’t led in any of its four SEC losses. South Carolina and Arkansas took the ball first and drove to touchdowns. Georgia took the ball against Mississippi State and went three-and0ut; on Saturday Murray threw an interception on the first snap.
We once considered Richt a splendid gameday coach, but that time is gone. Georgia was 52-13 in Richt’s first five season, reaching the SEC title game three times and winning it twice. It’s 42-19 since. Not coincidentally, Richt’s decline dovetails with Meyer’s rise. (Although it must be noted that Richt has a losing record against three Florida coaches: He was 0-1 against Steve Spurrier, 1-2 against Ron Zook.)
There’s still great talent at Georgia — the old Spurrier knock on Ray Goff now attaches itself to this coach: “Georgia gets all these players; I don’t know what happens to them” — but the coaching has fallen below SEC standards. If we’re looking for the sea-change game, we need underscore Sept. 27, 2008, the night Nick Saban and Alabama came to Athens and not only jumped ahead but led by 31 points after 30 minutes.
Back to Saturday: The Bulldogs got the ball to start overtime, which means the worst they should have done was gain no yards and let Blair Walsh try a 42-yard field goal to put them ahead. Instead Murray threw the ball into stacked coverage and saw the Gators nearly end the game without having to play offense. Murray has had a terrific freshman season and had a fabulous second half, but in the season’s biggest moment he made the one play a quarterback cannot make.
That’s what Georgia under Richt has come to do: It makes the one play to lose a game, as opposed to David Greene throwing to Verron Haynes in Knoxville or to Michael Johnson in Auburn. (Or even Matthew Stafford throwing to Mikey Henderson in Tuscaloosa.) Georgia under Richt has become the toothless tiger — the team everyone respects but nobody fears.
Richt’s 10-year body of work stands as a mighty argument for administrative patience. More current events suggest the Richt of 2010 isn’t the Richt of yesteryear. It took four full seasons under this coach and defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder for Georgia to lose 10 games. The Bulldogs lost five times last year, changed defensive coordinators and have already lost five times this.
And now Richt’s gifted Bulldogs have fallen to the worst Florida team Meyer has fielded. In a year where the SEC East was ripe for a young team to rise up and march to the Georgia Dome, that team will not be Mark Richt’s. He’s no longer a championship coach. Dating back to Nov. 29, 2008, his Bulldogs are 13-11, which means he’s barely even a winning coach.
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1,352 comments Add your comment
kgtech
October 31st, 2010
2:51 pm
UGA—- You Ruin this state!!!! LMAO
TampaGator
October 31st, 2010
2:51 pm
SEC FACT FINDER….
No…..I do not think Florida could beat either Alabama or Auburn this year….without a lot of luck. The situation at QB for the Gators….prevents them from being consistent on offense. The 3 headed QB worked this weekend and might get the Gators by against SC….and that is a BIG “might”…..Brantley does not fit well into the Gator offense. When they ran the I formation a couple of times…he look comfortable and effective…..but he looks out of sorts running plays and very uncomfortable passing with no backs in the backfield. When they hold a back to block….he shows more concentration and is far more effective in stepping up and throwing an accurate ball….which he did several times against Georgia yesterday. However…..he does not read blitzes well and panics when teams blitz…and is overall ineffective at the leader of the offense. I wish Trey Burton was a good passer….if so….the Gators would be a threat to win the SEC this year. But help is on the way in Jeff Driskell. He is perfect for the spread. But it will take him a year to figure it all out…probably…although he says he plans on being the starter at QB for the Gators next year. He is a super talent….and I must say….has a lot more skills and potential than Aaron Murray….from what I saw yesterday. Murray is talented…..but he does not have a strong arm….and makes too many poor decisions. Too bad he selected Georgia over Florida. He fits very well into the Gators offense….the same offense he ran in high school. Bad decsion on his part….but we are glad he made that decision now….since Driskell is coming to G’ville and would not have it Murray was in G’ville….and the same for Trey Burton. It all worked out for the Gators…..
…..also…..think Orson Charles would have scored more than one TD playing the H-back postion at Florida….probably 10 by now. One….that is 1….so far for Georgia this year. Think he might want to go back and recommit to the Gators…I think both would.
not a party
October 31st, 2010
2:53 pm
I’m Not a UGA fan or a FLA fan. They should stop approaching this game as a party and bring the game back on Campus maybe the out come will change.
Monkey Monkey on Mark Richts Back
October 31st, 2010
2:54 pm
Rating the Coaches in the SEC, NOT the talent but how they get their players to compete, run a top program, recruit, and graduate players.
Saban
Meyer
Spurrier
Mullen
Chizik
Miles
Phillips
Petrino
Richt
Nutt
Dooley
Caldwell
The jury is still really out on Dooley, Caldwell, Phillips, but they have kept lesser talent than their counterpoints in some really tough games all year.
How would you rank the SEC coaches?
Herschel Talker
October 31st, 2010
2:54 pm
MB:
So since you’re saying that Richt and his colleagues are no longer championship caliber and since we UGA fans deserve to have championship caliber coaching, are you advocating the Richt needs to be fired?
HT
idiots gone wild..
October 31st, 2010
2:54 pm
This may be the worst article you have ever written Mark. A game this close is nearly always decided by a lucky bounce. And I know all about ifs and buts. Georgia player falls on the fumble instead of trying to pick it up, Georgia is first and goal and there is at least a 10 point swing in the score. That he didn’t do it is not CMR’s fault and if he does do you write this article? I know, I know he didn’t and you did.
TampaGator
October 31st, 2010
2:56 pm
also……how good is Trey Burton….a 3-star recruit!!! Wow…at least two more years of watching him run from the wildcat….catch passes from the H-back and slot positions….running and blocking from the FB spot….etc….this kid might be the best overall athlete in the nation….and….outran the entire…fast….Georgia defensive backfield for a critical TD yesterday…..man….what a find….and only a 3-star find coached up by one, Urban Meyer and friends. Gators…loaded for years to come. And a talented spread QB on the way….SWEET> SWEET.
Dawg The Mediocrity Settler
October 31st, 2010
2:56 pm
’m Not a UGA fan or a FLA fan. They should stop approaching this game as a party and bring the game back on Campus maybe the out come will change.
screw that. The #1 party school in America never lets the outcome of a game get in the way of tailgating
bigdsel
October 31st, 2010
2:57 pm
UGA gave the game away. murray had his worse game of the year, Defense had to try to stop the gators after we threw 3 picks and had a fumble by Murray. we could have easily won the game if we didn’t make mistakes and didnt loose the ball. IF the gators threw three picks and their QB fumble the ball, UGA would have won. But thats football. I dont see murray having another bad game like that one. Hes a fighter and will fight til the end. thats why we came back and almost won. If Murray didnt throw that last pick uga would have won because our d stop the gators. It was just a matter of time for Chaz to hit a winning field goal. Its just sad that it came against us.
kgtech
October 31st, 2010
2:57 pm
Lovin all the lame UGA excuses,typical.
Time to go crawl back under your dreaded
rock.
Hey Cobb Daw
October 31st, 2010
2:59 pm
Just curious, sniff any good butt holes lately??
johngaltjkt
October 31st, 2010
3:00 pm
A stopped clock is right twice a day and so is this article. As a fan of another SEC team I hope Georgia keeps Reverend Richt
Supes
October 31st, 2010
3:00 pm
No, someone will draft that THUG Rambo….if Greg Blue can somehow latch on with the Minnesota Vikes…anything’s possible.
If, and If there is an NFL lock out next year…A.J and Justin Houston stay in school…who knows.
Still though…problem is on the sidelines…wearing a headset and sunglasses….it doesn’t matter.
SEC Fact Finder
October 31st, 2010
3:00 pm
Tampa Gator..
I heard the Driskall name for a couple hours yesterday before the game and they think he will step in like Tebow did his freshman year and sooner or later take over at the QB position. Many Many people were singing his praises in the booth media area yesterday. The other big topic was could UGA land the Crowell kid from Columbus Georgia and many thought he was not going to attend UGA while others think he was a lock to attend UGA.
Floirda did many things well yesterday and with all the shifting it forced the defense to shift as well, that can be good and bad. Glad to see the H-BACK shuttle pass back in UF’s arsenal. Hernandez abused teams the last three years with that wrinkle.
kgtech
October 31st, 2010
3:01 pm
Hello bigdsel,but you did not win and I bet he will have many more bad
games this season starting with Auburn and ending with TECH.
TampaGator
October 31st, 2010
3:02 pm
Monkey…
I would put Mullen just behind Meyer right now. He has turned the MSU program around in less than 2 years without even having all his players to do it.
….and Dooley will move up fast when he has a couple of more recruiting years under his belt. He is an excellent coach and a very good recruiter. Give him time and the Vols will be singing their stupid song loudly again….with a pride….if he does not head to Georgia next year.
….and Joker Phillips….now that is a coach Georgia might consider if Richt leaves for the better program in Miami and Dooley does not come down from Knoxville to replace Richt.
Miles is an idiot….although a very lucky idiot.
And lets wait and see what the Auburn coach does after Newton leaves. He got terribly lucky by signing Cam. Cam makes any team a contender. Wow….I would like to find that guy who sold Cam that computer….although that is not why he left Florida….Tebow was.
JB
October 31st, 2010
3:02 pm
@2:12 SD Dawg says ” firing Richt would be a big Mistake”………….. I wonder how Auburn is feeling this morning year two with their new man. 9-0 and number one in the BCS, just say’n.
Bama made a move. Auburn made a move. Tennessee made a move. Miss. State made a move……..And here we sit.
back atcha
October 31st, 2010
3:02 pm
The AJC used to have Championship columnists in Jesse Outler and Furman Bisher, but alas their writers are of championship quality no more…
SaffronGator
October 31st, 2010
3:03 pm
Steve – is your last name Addazio by any chance? – if you are, enjoy this win, because you are going to be back in the ditch again when the Seminoles kick your ass this year. Hopefully your last regular season game as a Gator.
Have you lived in Florida a long time? Typical Georgia homer! It affects the Dawgs, so it must be SOOOO important to the Gators. Sorry to say – FSU is the game for a Florida Gator for many reasons. For the players, many of them played ball together or against each other in high school, and when they play in college and go home to see mom and dad at the holidays for the REST OF THEIR LIVES, and are walking through the mall, they see each other and get a chance to gloat when they win. For the students, same thing – half the high school goes to FSU and half to Gainesville. When we are in school, we visited each other at the home field each year and the team that loses is potentially scarred for life. I have my kids’ godfather and godmother visiting from Florida this week. They are Noles and they are already licking their chops to be able to rub it in this Thanksgiving. Florida-FSU is a much more personal experience and the memory or winning/losing big games lasts a lifetime. The Seminoles are still smarting from losing the national championship to Spurrier-Wurffel. It has been going our way for awhile, but things will be much more even going forward. I would rather beat FSU and miss the SEC championship any year than lose to FSU – and if we lose to the Seminoles we aren’t playing for a national championship anyway. Plus, only a Georgia fan would assume the Gators must beat Georgia to get to the SEC championship game. Since when? SEC championships are nice, but nothing is better than beating the Seminoles and their damn chop. Trust me!
John Langley
October 31st, 2010
3:05 pm
UGA is pathetic. Uf owns the East and just watch….Tennessee will be back in 2012 too. We are screwed. Oh well, it is what it is.
The Ole Ball Coach
October 31st, 2010
3:05 pm
Proud the Dawgs played hard and could and should have won……. Turn overs the difference…
Monkey Monkey on Mark Richts Back
October 31st, 2010
3:06 pm
FOR ALL OF you UGA fans who think this program is in the top 40 in the nation:
Just one thing:
You have about 364 more days of Florida Gator smack talk and beating on their step brother.
You have about 315 more days of South Carolina smack talk and beating on their half brother.
You have about 25 more days till you can either smack talk on GT or crawl under a rock for a year off without a bowl game while GT gets theirs by beating you. Will that happen, well we will know in a few weeks. It could be a long winter, spring and summer for UGA fans.
TommyGator
October 31st, 2010
3:06 pm
Mark, you should learn NOT to pick UGA in this game. I know you are a notorious UGAn homer, and that your feelings are hurt because you predicted a doggie win in this game….as you do most years.
It’s a low blow, though, for you to blame Richt for your failure as a prognosticator!
Mike Bobo 17 INT
October 31st, 2010
3:07 pm
What else is new, I have been hammering on this since CMR was hired, but no one will listen. Look, it is partly CMR’s fault, but most of the blame is top down. UGA never had the correct AD to lead them in the correct path.
Everyone was in love with Dooley and it was an automatic that he get the AD job, but he botched the Goff and Donnan assignments, and recently it appears he botched the CMR deal also. However, when you look closer you can see that politics and Dolley drove this program in the dirt.
Bobo cannot be fired because he is practically Dooley family, so that is the third rail. It took years for CMR to unload Martinez, and he was not the third rail, but considered family by CMR. Now you have CMR who made some changes, a staff that is finally making some improvements, and the media is hammering on them, which proves the media often has no idea.
Look, I loathe this program more than anyone else, but I give credit where credit is due and the Dogs made some serious improvements on Saturday and I think CMR saw it, thus the confident smile on his face. Sure, cough another up to Florida, but CMR sees his defense finally taking shape, which is the nucleus of any championship program.
My desire is not for the Dogs to fail, but the hammer on this program until they start to get things right, and I believe they are finally headed in the right direction. If UGA upsets Auburn, then the media will be back on the UGA bandwagon, but that is a tall order.
CMR will be back next year and has been given a pass this year since this is considered a rebuilding year, however, he will be grilled over the next few years if the program fails to improve. Keep in mind there are plenty of schools that would land CMR, including Miami and FSU if UGA custs him loose, and do you really want on him on the other side of the ball?
roota4au
October 31st, 2010
3:07 pm
and what have you seen from uga this year that would make any uga fan believe they would beat Auburn…A sorry UF offense went for 450 yards and 34 pts. Auburn may put up over 600 yards and 50+ points..
JB
October 31st, 2010
3:08 pm
Monkey, it’s never a long off season for us…..Being a Gator, Vol, or Cock would make life not worth living, not a long off season. Rather be Average and a Dawg, trust me.
kgtech
October 31st, 2010
3:08 pm
Hello dawg fans,should of and could are two different
occurences. They lost,get over it and be prepared to
have it handed again to you by the war eagles and
bees.Shreveport is waiting if you are lucky.
Falcon 34
October 31st, 2010
3:08 pm
This blog is so disjointed and filled with way too many simplistic and juvenile attacks against one another. Re: Richt getting another year to prove himself is not a basic black and white issue. There are good arguments on both sides. How about some rational and civil thoughts from both sides.
Does Richt Deserve Another Year?
Yes
Richt has earned it from the “overall” record he has produced and perhaps make a few more changes to get back to credible (2005 was a long time ago and 2007 was the exception, not the rule).
No
Georgia simply is one of the least competitive teams in the SEC and has been for a long while. UGA gets great recruits and has tons of talent and just cannot cultivate that talent. Stafford, Moreno, and Massaquoi = 0 SEC Championship. The Florida Gators lose players, one of the best players to ever play the college game, multiple coordinators, 3 game losing streak, one of weakest teams in a decade, blows a lead, and still finds a way to win. Richt probably will get another year, but those in staunch defense of him don’t get to complain one d@mn bit when we see yet another season of middling, underperforming, and undercoached team. Answer this question, besides Tech last year (a fairly inconsequential win pertaining to the season as a whole), when was the last time Georgia won a REALLY big game? He’ll get another year, but should he? The risk is certainly there if we make a change this year, but the percentage seems to be a little higher for teams that have the cajones to actually do it.
Good
1) Florida firing Ron Zook after only 3 years = Urban Meyer, 2 NC’s and 2 SEC’s
2) Alabama firing Mike Shula after going 8-0 the previous year = Nick Saban, 1 NC and 1 SEC
3) Auburn firing Tommy Tuberville = Chizik, #1 in Nation and 9-0 (Albeit only 2nd year)
Bad
4) Tennessee firing Fulmer = A much improved (and confident team) under Kiffin until he screwed them. Again, the notion to make a change was not the issue, only with who they hired.
5) Ole Miss firing Cutcliffe after their best year ever = Obviously poor decision
Mixed
6) Arkansas firing Houston Nutt = one of their best coaches in their history for Prictrino. Mixed at best right now, but generally are playing better and have chances to win big games
7) Miss. State firing Croom = even though this was obvious, still looks to be working out pretty well right about now.
Muschamp or Smart may not be the best choices, but it would be hard to argue they wouldn’t at least have our guys prepared to play Florida. Muschamp and Smart both beat Florida at respective schools. I’m sure we’ll get the “it’s Saban’s defense…yada-yada-ya.” The same could have been said about Saban learning under Belichick. Huge risk? Sure, but just because we take it doesn’t automatically mean we’ll end up like Tennessee……unless we hire Lane Kiffin.
Laffin at de dawgs
October 31st, 2010
3:09 pm
The dawgs suck. You guys can’t beat a lousy gator team on a 3 game loss streak while you’re on a a 3 game win streak. The best thing for the gators is for UGA to keep Richt for 10 more years so Meyer can put UF on top in all time wins. That will happen much sooner with Richt in place than firing him and hiring someone better. Please, please keep Richt! hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahaha!
SaffronGator
October 31st, 2010
3:10 pm
Monkey Monkey on Mark Richts Back
A pretty impressive list of coaches in any order. Glad Kiffin didn’t last – he would have brought down the average.
GSU Eagle 91
October 31st, 2010
3:10 pm
If UGA had won the game in OT, all we would be hearing is “Go Dawgs…Woof Woof…” People…you were one play away from WINNING the game!
I have NEVER seen a contingent of fans that jump OFF of their team’s bandwagon like UGA fans do…
Go ahead and get rid of Coach Richt…I hope the next Ray Goff is hired….
Dawgs will be 6-6 after losing to Auburn, and beating a lousy GT squad…..
JB
October 31st, 2010
3:11 pm
proud of our Dawgs…..Game could of gone either way.
TampaGator
October 31st, 2010
3:11 pm
SWC FACT FINDER….
Florida got a very good RB last week as well from just south of here. I recently saw him play in person (lots of free time as a recent retired person)….and came away very impressed with his quickness and ability to make people miss. Not real fast…but fast enough. Runs with strong leg power too. And maybe Mack Brown will figure it all out by next year too. But I think he transfers to another school. He doesn’t seem to be a good fit with the Gator coaches (not coachable) and other players at the moment. Thinks too highly of himself….from what I hear. Like Dominique Ealey and Joshua Shaw….both 5 star recruits who don’t seem to like the “you have to earn it” approach to play set down by the Florida coaches.
Opps….she is finally ready to leave now. Have a nice day.
SEC Fact Finder
October 31st, 2010
3:14 pm
Tampa Gator..
That Blakely kid is a hoss from Bradenton( Manatee) I did a game last year when he was a junior, he is another Lattimore style back who is hard to bring down.
JB
October 31st, 2010
3:14 pm
TampaGator, go away, beating us is not a big deal, why blog…..go celebrate….
kgtech
October 31st, 2010
3:16 pm
GT eagle 91. Lousy TECH squad.
You have no history and knowledge
to judge any football team.
Bama is going to waste to like
a yard dog. 72-7. If you are lucky
Get a life and go back to your intramural
flag football.
stendek
October 31st, 2010
3:17 pm
CMR’s heart is in this…Well said Cobb Dog. Have known thisa for years. Hurting Bulldog Nation. Legalized larceny. Best. STENDEK
Dazed and Confused
October 31st, 2010
3:22 pm
It will be interesting to see what Adams will do. As long as Richt was winning, donations from fat cats rolled in, and Adams could entertain the most corrupt governor in the history of Georgia and cronies in the Legislature in Romanesque style. Starting last year, donations diminished, and now they have all but dried up. Richt is nothing but a puppet, who recruited problem children and bent all sorts of rules to keep them eligible. The program has disintegrated from a lack of discipline. Georgia fans can expect at least another year of Richt being “proud of his team, because they didn’t give up.” Perhaps a new governor will can the pirate Adams. Short of that, expect more of the same.
5 stars equals 5 losses
October 31st, 2010
3:23 pm
you all want another coach? I bet when they come to each of you and ask you for a donation to help pay off the $9 million to fire CMR and his assistants, you willl all scatter like the wind, hypocrites,…..
South Georgia
October 31st, 2010
3:23 pm
What do you know about coaching? It is simple. Our redshirt freshman qb played like a freshman. That is not a coaching problem. We have the bye week next year. Perhaps by then you and schultz will find a new punching bag besides richt and uga.
Not Ready for Prime Time
October 31st, 2010
3:24 pm
Serious Dawg fans need to start organizing and demanding that Richt be fired. Otherwise, sports writers will be asking the same question this time a year from now.
Richt represents mediocrity. Saban and Meyer represent excellence and championships. Richt simply isn’t in their class, nor will he ever be. Richt would have to be incredibly lucky to win the division, and the odds against him winning the SEC championship would be at least 50:1.
Those are the simple facts, and there’s no amount of enthusiasm or cheerleading or Top 5 recruiting classes that can get around it.
As they say in poker, “Read ‘em and weep.”
5 stars equals 5 losses
October 31st, 2010
3:24 pm
because you same people have hailed CMR for years, your coach has a locked in contract…going to make him a rich man and UGA a poor university, good luck with that
Dawg man
October 31st, 2010
3:25 pm
Yea, but in the next 4 years, with all these “superstars”, we are getting, we are going to be National Champs every year—-get the trophys ready!!!!!
South Georgia
October 31st, 2010
3:26 pm
We have a young team who will continue to get better. All the bandwagon fans need to man up and be real fans and admire a team refusing to quit. We are on the right track.
We'll Still Beat Tech
October 31st, 2010
3:26 pm
We’ll still beat Tech We Smoke This State
CrackDaddy
October 31st, 2010
3:28 pm
Run Mark run! And don’t let the door hit you in the arse as you leave.
Dawg The Mediocrity Settler
October 31st, 2010
3:29 pm
.It is simple. Our redshirt freshman qb played like a freshman
oh, bullsh!t. being a freshman had nothing to do with it. being a mediocre at best talent had everything to do with it
Smarty Pants
October 31st, 2010
3:30 pm
UGa football is a disgrace to Southern football.
Steve "The King" Spurrier
October 31st, 2010
3:30 pm
Fairbanks-Crofoot-Henry continue the Florida tradition. It’s not a rivalry if one team refuses to field a competitive squad every year.
Hairy Dawg
October 31st, 2010
3:33 pm
The problems is the stinky players. We goning needs some talent and then make them win or caste out the chaf with no talents. Coach Richt is Christians and know to do this to get it done. Then we paid back the smart mouth arrogants backside Myers.