Alas, fixing UGA will require more than a few Richt ‘tweaks’
"How the heck did we win that goshdarn thing, anyway?" (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
Looking lousy against Boise State was one thing. Looking good but losing anyway was, in its way, worse. After the Georgia Bulldogs congratulated themselves on their Great Effort against South Carolina, the thought occurred:
Does Nick Saban congratulate himself after losses?
There are two ways to regard the bizarre doings of Saturday night. Mark Richt’s sunny-side-up stance was to speak of his team having “all the ingredients” and just needing “to tweak a couple of things.” The burnt-toast way is to reference the scoreboard and note that, once again, Richt’s team did whatever it took to lose.
You don’t go from losing half of your past 30 games to winning championships by tweaking. If anyone should know, it’s Richt. The march to the 2002 SEC championship was fueled by the desire — Richt’s words — to knock the lid off Georgia football. (The Bulldogs had gone two decades without a title.) Knocking implies force. Tweaking implies rather less. For contemporary Georgia football, less cannot yield more.
Optimists among us will point to Isaiah Crowell and Malcolm Mitchell and Aaron Murray and Orson Charles and laud, as Richt did Saturday night, Georgia’s “talent base.” But the Bulldogs haven’t lacked for talent — not under Richt, not under Jim Donnan, not even under Ray Goff. At issue is whether Georgia again can learn to win, and that’s a whole ‘nother matter.
There’s a troubling label for what Georgia has become, and that label is “South Carolina.” For more than a century the Gamecocks would try very hard and stir deep passion but never quite get it right. How many times did Carolina play the Bulldogs off their feet and lose at the end? It happened in 2002, the David Pollack sack/snatch game that also featured two Gamecock fumbles on the goal line; happened in 2004, when Carolina led 16-0 but lost 20-16; happened in 2009, when it outgained Georgia by 119 yards but lost because Brandon Boykin returned a kickoff to score and because DeAngelo Tyson blocked a tying PAT.
There was no reason for Georgia to lose Saturday. Indeed, losing required real doing. More than just being fooled on a fake punt, Georgia couldn’t intercept a defensive end as he thundered 68 yards to a touchdown. It was bad enough that nobody blocked Jadeveon Clowney, far worse that Murray waved the ball and left it unsecured, thereby turning a sack into a sack, strip and score.
“We’re going to shake off the mistakes and become a very good football team,” Richt said, and maybe Georgia will. But I’m more skeptical after South Carolina than after Boise State. More and more, Richt bears the look of one of those coaches who can take his’n and lose to your’n and vice versa.
Loading ...Did the coach order Murray and Crowell to botch a handoff at a time when Georgia was poised to take a 27-14 lead? Of course not. But the worst possible play at the worst possible moment has become a Bulldog signature. Georgia should have beaten Colorado last season, but Caleb King fumbled. Georgia could have beaten Florida, but Murray threw into a throng in overtime.
Mathematically speaking, Richt was correct in saying: “We’re still in the Eastern Division race.” Having watched Richt’s team contrive to lose a game that would have been far easier to win, I can’t summon up much enthusiasm for math.
Sure, it’s possible Georgia could win the next 10 games and take the East. It’s possible Richt could not only keep his seat but cement himself in place. It’s also possible Georgia will continue to do as Georgia now does — lose most every close game — and Dan Mullen will be tapped to coach the Bulldogs in 2012.
Speaking of Boise, Richt had said: “When you play a team that’s used to winning and that knows how to win, it’s hard.” Georgia has become the kind of team that’s easy to play. An opponent needn’t do all that much — just hang around long enough for the Bulldogs to mess up.
By Mark Bradley
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639 comments Add your comment
Buckeye
September 12th, 2011
2:26 pm
dogs………….LISTEN UP! ALL IS NOT LOST………..
You are still in the “Others Receiving Votes” category!
TheAntiMe
September 12th, 2011
2:32 pm
There isn’t much motivation for your team if your head coach is going to praise you and take you out for ice cream regardless of how badly you lose a game. Being that Georgia gave SC 28 undeserved points, the losing margin of 3 was actually the equivalent of losing by 31 points but yet Mark Richt still is praising his team as if they had beaten the Green Bay Packers.
The Bulldogs need a coach who will actually get ticked-off at his players when they play badly so that they will feel that there is a good reason for them to play well. They don’t need a coach who sings Kum Ba Ya with the players after the game regardless of how badly they stink it up.
Uga2002
September 12th, 2011
2:35 pm
Young team? Was that a senior team last year that put up 6-7 season?
Dawgs Back!
September 12th, 2011
2:37 pm
The dawgs will be back! They will beat ole miss and miss st easy and upset Tennessee! Richt’s got a young team and it will take a few weeks for the offense to get in sync.
Not that difficult to sum up
September 12th, 2011
3:04 pm
MARK:
This article may have be revelent last week, but tweeking fits this week. Georgia out played SC from the kick-off. The effort was there this week…..major improvement shown. As much as I dislike GT and Pepper Rogers, this week fits his once used comment “you can have a great week of practice and game preparation, and an 18 year old kid lays the ball out on the turf and all of a sudden the coach is a goat”. I hate to lose as much as anybody, but when my teams puts out the effort they did this week I can accept losing a whole lot better. I wanted to see fire and improvement and that was accomplished. If this can continue, there is now hope for a decent season.
NewCoach
September 12th, 2011
3:12 pm
Hey Buckeye – dont be a jerk in here. You snot nosed punk kid representing a school that is going to get smacked so hard that when they wake up it will be 2013. If you dont understand something ask someone to repeat it in a different way. Doesn’t feel good to get bashed does it?
Hairy Dawg
September 12th, 2011
3:52 pm
Muschumps and Wise are a bunch of jort wearing losers that will be taking Gaytors back to Zooker days.
Muschumps knows first hand how Dawgs have better players but got robbed by refs. Now that Muschump became a traitor, refs know this and will start giving breaks to Dawgs with Gaytors losing. Soon fire-musch-wise.com web sites popping up for Gaytors.
College Football 2011 - Page 17 - JeepForum.com
September 12th, 2011
4:04 pm
[...] this year if it means a coaching change. Read Mark Bradleys column in the AJC, he said it best. http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/2011/09/11/alas-fixing-uga-will-require-more-than-a-few-richt... __________________ . "Is America ready for a real leader not just a reader?." _ Herman [...]
just like football
September 12th, 2011
4:19 pm
Tampa gator – it is easy to say ” our first half performance made me sick” just like it is easy to say you are stupid but just saying it does change a thing. I guess Florida’s first half made the coach sick and I guess you will remain stupid.
nick
September 12th, 2011
4:34 pm
just so you know mullen has 0 and 10 against sec west teams outside of Mississippi and just took MSU’s best team in the last 10 years to Auburn and played thier youngest team in 50 years and still lost, do we really see him as the savior.
MISTER Spurrier to you ...
September 12th, 2011
4:48 pm
Georgia always gets such great players, I can’t figure out what happens.
Alabama Dog
September 12th, 2011
5:16 pm
NOTHING can fix what’s wrong with this team!!! All talent-NO coaching!!!! Georgia outplayed Carolina and STILL LOST!!! I’m no mathemetician, but their defense has given up 80 points in just 2 games. That’s 40 points a game by my math. Dawg fans: forget about Kirby Smart. Georgia needs a PROVEN WINNER- NOT ANOTHER ASSISTANT- NOW!!!!!
DawgVoiceofReason
September 12th, 2011
5:48 pm
Alabama Dog,
Not only are you not a mathematician, you are not much of an observer either. The defense was only directly responsible for 17 points against South Carolina, not 45. The rest were scored on special teams and by turnovers (yes, one turnover did not immediately result in a score but put the defense in a next to impossible hole).
Uga2002
September 12th, 2011
6:00 pm
Pick someone other than zook. We lost to him 2 times out of the 3 he was there including our only loss in 2002. and he out recruited us.
Son of Roaring Dan
September 12th, 2011
6:01 pm
By and large, fans fire coaches — not sportswriters and not the administration. Once a coach loses the fan base, its just a matter of time. Based on the comments on here (once a poster trashes a coach they have a psychological investment in the coach failing) and the fact the game was reportedly not sold out, it appears that Richt has lost the fan base. Will take almost a miracle for him to survive.
DawgVoiceofReason
September 12th, 2011
6:16 pm
TheAntiMe,
Actually, you have that all wrong (backwards). The 28 points we “gave” USC was the equivalent of winning (actually a tie) by 25 points, and that’s not counting the points we might have scored had we not given the ball away. Think of it this way, it’s like spotting them 28 points and still having a chance to win the game.
Of course the only thing that ultimately matters for this particular game is the final score. But, what many people are doing is trying to analyze our performance and think about how we might do in future games if we eliminate most of the turnovers. If you believe it is possible to reduce turnovers (as I do), then it is realistic to be encouraged about the possibilities for the rest of the season. This is NOT being a “blind homer” or a “Kool aid drinker”.
DawgVoiceofReason
September 12th, 2011
6:18 pm
Son of Roaring Dan,
The South Carolina game was sold out. Sanford Stadium was packed with cheering Dawg fans. Who told you that it was not?
Loyal Dawg
September 12th, 2011
6:23 pm
It’s become obvious what the problem is at UGA. Richt’s stance (a correct one) on not oversigning may cost him his job. We awarded walkons eight scholarships this fall. I don’t think any other SEC gave out as many UGA except Auburn (and they lost a lot of players off last years team). Our problem for years now has been a lack of dept. Guys get injured and there is not as good a quality player to step in. We were in this same spot back in 2006-07 with OL. This year its the OL, LB’s and RB’s. Contrast that to Alabama. It’s amazing to me that when a player goes down or graduates; Saban has just as good a player to plug-in (and they are not a former walk on). This makes total sense now. It’s probably too late now, but CMR needs to change his stance and manage the scholarships better. Saban’s not doing anything illegal or breaking any rules; he’s just managing his scholarships better.
Loyal Dawg
September 12th, 2011
6:50 pm
It has become obvious what UGA’s problem is. Lack of depth due to CMR’s stance on oversigning. We awarded 8 walkons scholarships this year. I don’t think any other SEC team gave out that many scholarships except Auburn (who had a lot of Seniors last year). This has been going on for several years now. Back in 2006-07 we had major depth problems on the OL. This year it’s been OL, LB’s and RB’s. When one of our starters goes down, we don’t have as good a quality player to step in. Contrast that to Alabama. When they lose someone, they have another great player to plug in because they have more scholarship players for depth. It’s probably to late, but CMR needs to change his policy on “oversigning” and manage his scholarships better. Saban is not breaking any rules- he’s just managing the scholarships to his program’s overall benefit.
Loyal Dawg
September 12th, 2011
6:51 pm
Sorry for the double post there. The first one seemed to disappear into cyberspace for about 10+ minutes.
loel
September 12th, 2011
6:52 pm
Bradley,, don’t you know when to shut up. I would rather at this point take Georgia’s talent and schdule to the end of the season than have South Carolina’s talent and their schedule to end of the season. Georgia will finish ahead of Carolina in wins and will at the least tie for the eastern Championship. Freak plays don’t win in the long run and that’s what won for SC. Even Spurrier admitted that “sometimes you win games like this”.
01HAWK
September 12th, 2011
7:14 pm
For those who say PHILLIP FULMER and CMR are so much alike in careers………………………….FULMER WON A BCS CHAMPIONSHIP
Case CLOSED
gamecock79
September 12th, 2011
7:26 pm
I have sat here read every post on this article and still have not stopped laughing. UGA fans are delusional. They blame their loss on the fact that the gave the Gamecocks points. What in those furry little brains of yours thinks offense is the only thing that wins games. DEFENSE wins games and you ran up against Ellis Johnson’s defense on Saturday. The Gamecocks weren’t given anything, they forced those turnovers. It’s what good defenses do! The Gamecock D beat that pathetic excuse of an O-Line that wears the UGA red and black. I will be the first to admit that USC’s defense was not on top of their game but they didn’t need to be on Saturday. Anyone who thinks USC isn’t going to make a run for the SEC title this year had better think again. Spurrier has the best talent he has ever had. Even he has stated that even while at Florida he didn’t have this many playmakers. Make no mistake about it, he might not win every game this year, but he will coach these kids up and they will improve every week. Take that to the bank and deposit it.
Hairy Dawg
September 12th, 2011
7:26 pm
Very wise Loyal Dawg!
We used to be able to sign a ton extra and grayshirt them at Hargraves. However, Adams and his pointy heads put a stop to this, not Coach Richt.
Now when we get stuck with a bad player, we can’t cut him loose from his schollie and bring in more replacement talent from the rest of the team during the season or from the Hargraves practice squad in the off season.
This is the problem. Some 4 and 5 stars always will not pan out. Saban can cut his players that don’t pan out and bring in more talent. Adams and the pointy heads is keeping us from doing it.
Hairy Dawg
September 12th, 2011
7:36 pm
We ends up playing with 10 to 15 less players with talent that pans out than teams like Bammers. Instead of top talent we have to make do with walk on back ups because our schollie count is choked up with some players that was all-world in high school and then started stinking in college. This is not kiddie ball. When a player stinks he needs to be cut and free up his schollie for a better player as new recruit or Hargraves promotion. That is exactly how it works in the NFL. Cut the bad player and promote from the practice squad.
Alabama Dog
September 12th, 2011
7:48 pm
Dawg voice of reason,
While my math skills may not be all that, 80 points is 80 points-regardless of HOW they were scored.
J.T.
September 12th, 2011
7:53 pm
To be brutally honest, I blame Bobo’s idiotic playcalling to be THE problem at Georgia. THE PROBLEM. Somehow people don’t seem to see this. Do you realize UGA’s first few drives were full of running play after running play. None of them went for less than 3 yards. Then UGA gets into the redzone on 3rd down and 3. Signal Bobo to call a pass play to shake things up. Why revert to pass when the running game is clearly unstoppable? Somehow after those first few almost amazing drives, and solid D by Georgia, they were down 7-6. Bobo must get nervous and throw a coin when he enters the redzone. Georgia should have won that game 60-10.
Jared
September 12th, 2011
8:04 pm
I don’t think it needs to be about how good Georgia finishes. It is time for Georgia to get someone younger who can take over for a while. We do not know who will be available in the next few years but Kirby Smart is going to be a hell of a coach and we would be dumb to miss out on him now.
Ga > SC
September 12th, 2011
9:04 pm
Georgia got hosed by the refs the whole game—sc linemen were holding every play but never got called. Ga should have won and are better than usc. SC will lose 3 games—bank on it!
Dawg Fan
September 12th, 2011
10:10 pm
Really sick of the Mark Bradley and the AJC out to get the UGA coaching staff. I heard tonight how Tech was the only shining star this weekend. No one has even realized that they have played to 2 games because of the nursing homes they have played. Please if UGA were opening with 3 nursing homes you would be writing how horrible it is to schedule like this. Instead you are blasting UGA for playing quality opponents and losing…if you ask me I think you and Shultz should be fired and we can replace you with someone for Starkville, Gainesville that really wants to write about sports rather then pursue an all out assault on a program. You constant drum beating is doing nothing but hurting UGA and recruting for future years. Just let the Athens paper write about UGA and you can stick with Tech and GA STATE which is about the league you should be in.
Dawg Fan
September 12th, 2011
10:16 pm
Gamecock 79 your defence caused turnovers, we gave the other 2. You need to wake up and smell the barnyard my friend…the Dogs owned you and will finish ahead of you in the East by more than 2 games.
Bulldogs Monday: What They’re Saying About 0-2 Mark Richt | Athens Georgia
September 12th, 2011
10:24 pm
[...] Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Bradley: “Alas, fixing UGA will require more than a few Richt [...]
Toast Observation
September 12th, 2011
11:23 pm
Do you think that McGarity is familiar with Mullen’s work? Me thinks he is – just a matter if he can pry him loose when the time comes. You can bring fire and brimestone and some detail and be good, you can bring great detail and strength and be good (but light on the fire), but you can’t bring laid back and just ok coaching/detail and be good. If Richt wasn’t such a good man, he would have been gone after last year’s bowl game. Just an observer.
Loyal Dawg
September 13th, 2011
5:52 am
Hairy Dawg, it’s a hard truth. John Wooden once said “I’d rather have lots of talent and little experience.” Being deep with talent does something else for you. It creates competition and pushes the players that are no. 1’s. How is it that Saban has 7 players on defense that are highly rated potential NFL players? He’s not a better recruiter than CMR or anyone else. He does a better job of managing scholarships. We are totally at the mercy of how bad our injury situation is or academic casualities. It’s not the play calling or coaching. It’s our lack of depth due to not oversigning. Who’s ever heard of giving out EIGHT scholarships to walkons!!!
Alas, fixing UGA will require more than a few Richt
September 13th, 2011
1:57 pm
[...] [...]
First Time Poster
September 17th, 2011
12:38 am
Dawg Analysts: A Burning Question:
Why is there so little dissecting of what has changed with the UGA program since we used to play with intensity and some sense of this missing “discipline” I hear about every week from fans and the media? I kept looking at it, kept discussing with family members who are all FSU fanatics. What they said made me think, a lot: ” Mark’s path is so very similar to Bobby Bowden’s. Bobby lost Brad Scott as an offensive coach and almost simultaneously lost Chuck Amato…. He never recovered after losing his main O and D coaches… Did Richt lose some of his main coaches and maybe he hasn’t recovered?”
All of us know that, yes, we did lose Van Gorder. A fantastic D Coordinator/coach. But the thing we NEVER hear our fans or the media discuss is what seems to be missing on the offensive side of the ball since 2005 or 2006… and its the loss of a true hard nosed coach on the offensive side of the ball… Neil Callaway.
I spoke to a former baseball player for UGA who was working out in the weight room during this transition, and what he said seemed to completely enlighten me and complete the theory that I had begun to form. What he said, in a nutshell, was that the players were SCARED of Callaway and of Van Gorder. In the weight room, and everywhere else. Apparently, they were on a serious and strict weight room regiment. After these two coaches left, the change in the weight room and general demeanor around the game completely changed regarding the players attitudes. The players, in the weight room, did whatever they wanted to do. This baseball player said it was astounding, the difference. After the 2006 season, there was no one who intimidated the players on the offensive side of the ball.. certainly was not Bobo or Richt. And Van Gorder left at the end of the 2004 season. It is my theory that the hard nosed coaching, on the defensive and offensive sides of the ball, began to fade away in 2005 and 2006, respectively. The lack of it begins to explain our 2008, 2009, 2010, and now 2011 slide into mediocrity, and gives us the understanding that maybe Richt has NEVER replaced Neil Callaway, hence, our frustration of the inept level of play, but mainly the lack of intensity and leadership.
Most coaches never figure out how to replace great coordinators, and it is their downfall. We might learn from one coach who has done it over and over again, achieving success every time: Nick Saban. Hate to say it, yes, but he has put more successful head coaches out at D1 programs from his “coaching umbrella” than most coaches in the biz.
Bottom line: we all want Richt to win, to stay. My fear is that if he hasn’t replaced Neil Calloway in 5 years, then it could end up being his demise.
First Time Poster
September 17th, 2011
12:40 am
Dawg Analysts: Why is there so little dissecting of what has changed with the UGA program since we used to play with intensity and some sense of this missing “discipline” I hear about every week from fans and the media? I kept looking at it, kept discussing with family members who are all FSU fanatics. What they said made me think, a lot: ” Mark’s path is so very similar to Bobby Bowden’s. Bobby lost Brad Scott as an offensive coach and almost simultaneously lost Chuck Amato…. He never recovered after losing his main O and D coaches… Did Richt lose some of his main coaches and maybe he hasn’t recovered?”
All of us know that, yes, we did lose Van Gorder. A fantastic D Coordinator/coach. But the thing we NEVER hear our fans or the media discuss is what seems to be missing on the offensive side of the ball since 2005 or 2006… and its the loss of a true hard nosed coach on the offensive side of the ball… Neil Callaway.
I spoke to a former baseball player for UGA who was working out in the weight room during this transition, and what he said seemed to completely enlighten me and complete the theory that I had begun to form. What he said, in a nutshell, was that the players were SCARED of Callaway and of Van Gorder. In the weight room, and everywhere else. Apparently, they were on a serious and strict weight room regiment. After these two coaches left, the change in the weight room and general demeanor around the game completely changed regarding the players attitudes. The players, in the weight room, did whatever they wanted to do. This baseball player said it was astounding, the difference. After the 2006 season, there was no one who intimidated the players on the offensive side of the ball.. certainly was not Bobo or Richt. And Van Gorder left at the end of the 2004 season. It is my theory that the hard nosed coaching, on the defensive and offensive sides of the ball, began to fade away in 2005 and 2006, respectively. The lack of it begins to explain our 2008, 2009, 2010, and now 2011 slide into mediocrity, and gives us the understanding that maybe Richt has NEVER replaced Neil Callaway, hence, our frustration of the inept level of play, but mainly the lack of intensity and leadership.
Most coaches never figure out how to replace great coordinators, and it is their downfall. We might learn from one coach who has done it over and over again, achieving success every time: Nick Saban. Hate to say it, yes, but he has put more successful head coaches out at D1 programs from his “coaching umbrella” than most coaches in the biz.
Bottom line: we all want Richt to win, to stay. My fear is that if he hasn’t replaced Neil Calloway in 5 years, then it could end up being his demise.
Real Estate Lewes Delaware
September 17th, 2011
5:33 am
Chipper Jones continued to beat up on the Mets Friday night with a classic big fly solo home run onto the third deck club level in the eighth inning. It was Chipper’s 46th career shot in his 219th game against the Mets moving him into fourth on the list ahead of Hank Aaron who hit 45 in 188 games. Chipper’s immediately behind and may well catch Willie McCovey who really enjoyed Mets pitching hitting his 48 in only 192 games and Mike Schmidt who hit 49 in 268 games. Willie Stargell who hit 60 in 248 games is likely to remain the leader for a while. The active player with a realistic shot of catching Pops is Ryan Howard who has 31 in his 104 games.In contrast Eric Hinske’s homer in the ninth putting the Braves in front was only his second against the Mets and his first at Citi Field.Braves closer Craig Kimbrel set a rookie record for saves before the All Star Break with his 17th. John Paplebon has the major league record with 26 in 2006.Jose Reyes leads the majors in hits with 79; His 17 doubles is second – or I guess 7th since their are 6 players with 18 currently tied for first – on the doubles list and his disputed triple (replays clearly showed it was a badly missed call) brought his major league leading total to 9.
Big Bob
September 18th, 2011
5:38 pm
Hey Mark, you can have Dan Mullen. I will keep Mark Richt.