Heat Check: The Falcons are warming up; Tech has the chills
Rookie Jacquizz Rodgers is offered a different point of view. (AP photo)
Our weekly Heat Check begins with a team that won a warm and fuzzy game in the warm and fuzzy city of … Detroit? (Just between us, sometimes these heat metaphors can get a bit strained.)
The Falcons: When they were trailing the Panthers a week ago, it was possible to look ahead and wonder if this gifted team could be 3-6 come Nov. 13. Not possible now. The Falcons are 4-3 with two bye weeks upcoming — one where they play nobody, the other where they travel to Indianapolis, which has become nobody without Peyton Manning — before they hunker down in the Dome for a three-week homestand. Heat Index: For a team that hasn’t hit full stride but has the worst of its schedule behind it, this is suddenly a hot commodity.
Julio Jones: He was supposed to be the missing piece. He has missed two games due to injury, and his team is 2-0. It was 2-3 with him playing. Heat Index: A hot rookie is in cold storage, and his team seems better for it. I don’t understand it, either.
Georgia Tech: Paul Johnson’s offense gained 768 yards and scored nine touchdowns in four quarters against Kansas. It has managed 507 yards and mustered three touchdowns in eight quarters against Virginia and Miami, neither of which is any great shakes. Heat Index: When you’re hot, you’re hot. Tech was, but now it’s not. And the schedule just gets tougher.
Georgia: It’s headed to Jacksonville. Bulldog fans love going to Jacksonville. Then the game begins, and they love it no more. But this year — stop if you’ve heard this a time or two — might be different. Heat Index: Georgia has won five in a row; Florida has lost three in a row. But last season the Bulldogs entered on a three-game run and the Gators on a three-game slide, and guess who prevailed.
Mark Richt: Should Georgia win Saturday, there’s a chance — a chance, I say — we won’t hear the words “hot seat” mentioned in connection with Mr. Cool again this season. Heat Index: Every Georgia-Florida game is huge, but for this coach, this one might be the biggest yet.
The Braves: They have a new hitting coach. He’s Greg Walker. He’s not to be confused with Harry (The Hat) Walker, who was a hitting coach of some renown and who starred as the manager of Jim Bouton’s Houston Astros in “Ball Four.” But I digress. In even bigger news, the Braves announced their new hitting coach will have an assistant. Heat Index: Guess Larry Parrish was pretty hot item if it takes two men to replace him.
The Hawks: They’re locked out. The sale of the team hasn’t been approved. Games have been canceled and Josh Smith hasn’t been traded and Zaza Pachulia is about to go play in Turkey, and you know what? I haven’t heard anybody say, “Boy, I miss the Hawks.” Heat Index: Indifference can be the coldest cut of all.
By Mark Bradley
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205 comments Add your comment
Steveo
October 24th, 2011
9:08 am
Falcons….hey could use your # 2 and #3 running backs a little more….Jacquizz and Snelling had great runs when they TOUCHED the ball….you are beating Turner to death…he will be laike a dead mule by the end of the season….
Panther Student
October 24th, 2011
9:09 am
Can’t wait to pound Southern on our way to the FBS.
Kirby Smart
October 24th, 2011
9:11 am
Can we talk about how great I am?
Big Dog 98
October 24th, 2011
9:13 am
Tech is a LOSER.
GT will finish 6-5 for the season.
Bishop Eddie Long
October 24th, 2011
9:14 am
GT is going downhill.
Meanwhile the Dawgs and Falcons are improving.
The GSU with 6 Rings
October 24th, 2011
9:15 am
Panther… at least beat an FCS team this year… you would get blown out by our offense.
JoeFann
October 24th, 2011
9:15 am
STRETCH–As an alum (but a DAWG fan,) I should point out that it was Georgia State University while the second GSU was still GSC. Facts suck, don’t they?
Go Dawgs (and Panthers!) (Oh yeah, go Eagles, too!)
Go Panthers!!
October 24th, 2011
9:19 am
Georgia State just knocked out an FBS transitional team over the weekend.
60 scholarships > 85 scholarships.
Funny math, but for some reason that’s how it added up on Saturday.
Recognize, Mark, recognize!!!
Joe Tess Fish House
October 24th, 2011
9:21 am
Did Perrier Jerry even make the trip? What a waist of a draft pix.
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:22 am
“FBS Transitional Team” … I guess you can hang your hat on something.. lol.. and Clark Atlanta…hahahaha
Larry
October 24th, 2011
9:25 am
Good work, Mark!
Let’s just hope the Falcons take care of business in Indy…”should win” games on the road to a team that was just humiliated always scare me more than others for some reason. Perhaps it is because the Falcons so often play up or down to their competition and rarely put a team away by the third quarter.
Johnny
October 24th, 2011
9:25 am
To all of the Detroit fans. You have Megatron, we have Optimus – Grimes!
AP
October 24th, 2011
9:29 am
Oct. 29 in Jax is Mark Richt’s hot seat game. Win, tensions ease and hopefully the team continues this win streak, albeit with less than stellar play. Lose, he’ll have to win out to save his job because 8-4 or 7-5 should not do it!!
Don’t mean to beat a dead horse but IMO the Boise State game was senseless to play. Too much risk with not enough reward if you won. I’m afraid it may prove out.
Ga Tech is what it is, a good football team that against a team with good athletes is a toss-up to win. You will always be around 7-8 wins, congragulations! Everyone expecting more than that is crazy!
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:30 am
Panthers should shut up… you are 2-5 with crap wins. Nobody cares about a 2-5 team.
court
October 24th, 2011
9:30 am
No one will miss the NBA? PLEASE!!! They have the biggest stars out of all sports whether you want to admit to it or not. Baseball sucks and hockey is for everyone north of DC…
Go Panthers!!
October 24th, 2011
9:32 am
GoDawgs. Do you even know what that means? I tried to spell it out for you in the next line, in case someone didn’t get it. I’d expect a UGA grad to be smart enough to appreciate it, so that likely makes you a sidewalk fan. Next time you’re in Wal-Mart, pick yourself up another $5 UGA hat. It’s best that you take all precautions to avoid any more of your brains from leaking out.
ramblingbuzz
October 24th, 2011
9:33 am
The GT team will not quit on the season despite all the predictions of impending doom. They can get hot just as quickly as they cooled off. GO JACKETS!!!
Go Panthers!!
October 24th, 2011
9:33 am
GoDawgs took two semesters at Gainesville College and now believes himself the proud standard bearer for all things UGA. Please stop embarrassing all the intelligent people that actually went to school there.
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:35 am
Go Panthers… you must be an unapologetic, arrogant, inept fan. Did you understand that? Your team is a joke!
ramblingbuzz
October 24th, 2011
9:37 am
It ain’t how you get knocked down that matters, it’s whether you get back up that counts. GO JACKETS!!!
Walking with a Panther
October 24th, 2011
9:38 am
Hey GoDawgs, you want to talk about nobody caring? You’re looking up our record so I guess you do!
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:39 am
You must think that 2-5 makes you legitimate, and notice how you went to the educational side of a school when you can’t even defend your athletics.
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:40 am
Go back to your Occupy tents, while the big boys go play real football. Okay? Thanks!
Go Panthers!!
October 24th, 2011
9:40 am
GoDawgs. Sounds like you’re having fun randomly flipping through the dictionary. Did you find some big words? That’s a good boy. Would you like a treat? A pat on the head?
Now your next project should be finding some words that actually fit logically into your conversation.
GT Dude
October 24th, 2011
9:41 am
Hate to say it, looks like my jackets were pretenders
Tevin looks like a different QB, doesn’t know when to pitch and passing is just dreadful
Clemson looks like it will a spanking, hope we can hold them to under 40
GoDawgs
October 24th, 2011
9:43 am
There you go again… not talking about foobtall.
DP
October 24th, 2011
9:44 am
Mark, the answer to your confusion about why the Falcons are 2-3 with Julio Jones in the lineup and 2-0 without him seems fairly obvious to me. After trading up to draft Jones, Smith and Mularkey somehow envisioned this Falcons offense as the reincarnation of the Kurt Warner Rams “Greatest Show on Turf” team. It was probably an overreaction to the beating from Green Bay in the NFC championship game, but unfortunately Matt Ryan isn’t Aaron Rodgers and the Falcons offensive line doesn’t pass protect as well as Green Bay’s.
Through the first 5 games the Falcons abandoned their balanced offense of the last couple of years and threw the ball on 66% of their plays, which I believe was either the highest or second highest percentage in the league. Unfortunately without the running game to keep defenses honest they couldn’t protect the passer. Ryan rarely had time to throw and even when he did he seemed to be looking for the rush. Given the regression of Roddy White this year to our new Michael Jenkins and the absence of Julio Jones in the last 2 games, Smith and Mularkey were forced to go back to a more balanced offensive attack. In the Panthers game the Falcons ran the ball 35 times and threw it 22. In the Lions game the Falcons ran the ball 31 times and threw it 35. So in 2 games without Julio Jones the Falcons have run the ball 66 times and thrown it 57, versus 34% run and 66% pass in the first 5 games.
By running the ball more, the Falcons increase their time of possession and reduce the number of plays opponents run, taking pressure off the Falcons suspect defense.
Julio Jones’ hamstring pull may have saved the Falcons season by forcing the coaching staff to go back to a balanced offense.
GT Dude
October 24th, 2011
9:45 am
As for the NBA, in a country of 300 million citizens I am guessing there are maybe 1 million passionate fans, 5 million that care a little, and the the rest of 294 million counldn’t give a rat’s arse if the they ever played another NBA game.
Sonny Clusters
October 24th, 2011
9:46 am
The Braves better hope Greg Walker is the next Stinky Wintes. Watching some of the batters in the World Series makes us realize what terrible at bats the Braves were taking all year. Save for McCann and Freddie and the Buck Commander the whole team was a mess at the plate. Even Bourn’s average suffered when he got here. After the EPIC collapse maybe Walker can come in here and get their attention.
dean
October 24th, 2011
9:47 am
I hope the news from Suwanee about Ovie is not what I fear.
How many others thought, “Oh no. Ryan is gone 6 to 8 weeks.”, after seeing that bending of the ankle in slo-mo?
Jacquizz’s determination to get that last first down yesterday was inspirational.
GA will beat FL by 17.
The Hawks. I don’t really care. I don’t know anyone who cares.
The Braves will not finish 162-0 next season. And in the 60-70 games they do lose, I’ll get to come here and read “FIRE EVERYBODY” comments.
ABOUT TO BE 18 OUT OF 21
October 24th, 2011
9:49 am
yes, the two times of the year for dogs fans to get excited. preseason, when they think they’ll compete for the national title and the week before the Jax game, when they think they have a chance of winning. better pick on Ga Tech – more your speed.
Sonny Clusters
October 24th, 2011
9:49 am
Mark, any news from the Double Dime? We was wondering who shot what.
StateSucks
October 24th, 2011
9:54 am
2-5…CAA door mat.
StateSucks
October 24th, 2011
9:59 am
Even with Tech away… Georgia bye…your attendance at homecomming was TERRIBLE. This state does not need you stinking up our Capital.
Mel
October 24th, 2011
10:04 am
Georgia will lose, Tech will squeak by.
annoyingfans
October 24th, 2011
10:06 am
all these annoying falcon bandwagon jumpers r out in full force and after packer game it was oh no we r 8-8 at best…now its we r rolling and we have tiebreaker over philly and detroit…remember though u dont have it over tampa and chicago right now slow down falcons alot of football left and another thing falcons do u wear black helmets or red…ur uniforms look like oregons go away falcons
doc
October 24th, 2011
10:06 am
ed, i am sure cpj thought that while he was at southern and look where it has gotten him now, recruiting the same caliber of players to play his system because he can coach em up to the level that is necessary. i hope the light goes off in him to realize that it is different even if you say it isnt so. the problem now isnt the system as it is about getting the talent to compete at the level he is at. it worked well with gailey’s talent not so well with cpj talent the last two years. he may need to get a recruiter that has recruited high talent and can pick em better.
i said it last week, beware duke.
again mark, your mind changed saturday, though it took a beating to finally succumb to the obvious. you do need players, not just a “superior” coach. folks forget that dodd too had the years like braine said was going to be “standard good” at tech from ‘54 on except the anomaly of his last that lost to a poor uga team and was blown out in the orange bowl. i grew up on the flats and some things dont change.
Ted M
October 24th, 2011
10:18 am
Clemson will be favored by 14 and will win by 21.
GUNGA DIN
October 24th, 2011
10:18 am
who misses the NBA? the players are mostly nothing but tattooed thugs who would be in jail if some idiot owner wasn’t willing to pay them a ridiculous salary just to play a game!! maybe the owners will wake up and realize that none of these thugs are worth millions of dollars. let them go sit in their soon to be foreclosed on mansions and ride around in their hip hop cars. maybe their bling will sell for enough to by the christal and hennessey.
Looks Good on Ya
October 24th, 2011
10:20 am
I hope the Hawks fail, or leave Atlanta. Had the Thrashers had anywhere near the commitment and resources afforded the Hawks, we wouldn’t need NHL Center Ice, or tickets in Gwinnett, to watch professional hockey. Mark Bradley, Kasim Reed, Atlanta Spriit….you all deserve the worst case scenario.
Ted M
October 24th, 2011
10:22 am
Wow Clemson is only favored by 4.5…thats the lock of the Century.
KB
October 24th, 2011
10:23 am
MB – it’s an easy explanation on Julio Jones. With so many great receivers we went away from the run and got pass happy. We’re only good on passing when we have the play action to base it on. That’s finally showed up again. It was good Julio was out for awhile so we could remember that. I still think we’ll be better when he gets back though. We just can’t forget to keep letting Turner do his thing.
Dogs Win Big!
October 24th, 2011
10:25 am
Florida’s terrible this year, Ga’s on a roll—the Dawgs can finally beat fla easy and win the east! Mark this down–UGA will upset alabama in the SEC title game. They are overrated and the Dawgs are on a mission!!
sliderule
October 24th, 2011
10:26 am
Tech fan here. I have several concerns about CPJ, but what seems totally unbelievable is the atrocious play of our special teams for several years, and all of CPJ’s years. A small sample of that is the kick-off returns. How can a head coach just ignore week after week of bad decisions? Makes you wonder about other areas of our game.
StateSucks
October 24th, 2011
10:28 am
Ga State…2-5 and over hyped!
Burdell 90
October 24th, 2011
10:28 am
Birmingham Jacket….CPJ is the special teams coach and yes, he needs to give it up and hire a specialist for that position!
Paul in NH
October 24th, 2011
10:32 am
GT certainly has problems on offense at the moment but saying changing the system will make a difference is a stretch. GT ran a pro-style offense in 2006 with an RB who now plays for the Cowboys and the best WR in school history and this resulted in ZERO TDs against Wake Forest.
Delbert D.
October 24th, 2011
10:33 am
I would watch Occupy Wall Street throughout the winter and spring rather than the NBA.
skip
October 24th, 2011
10:34 am
Hey Bradley, didn’t you predict a Tech win over Miami? Here’s my prediction: lose to Clemson and Va. Tech, win vs Duke, lose to Georgia and lose to whoever they play in the Toilet Bowl. And I’m a Tech fan.
Delbert D.
October 24th, 2011
10:35 am
I would rather watch 82 reruns of the GOP debates than the NBA.