Walmart shoppers! Here’s the scoop on Tech and UGA fans!
Sometimes Tech folks feel overshadowed. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
In years past our annual look at Georgia fans vis-a-vis Georgia Tech has been offered in the spirit of good clean fun. This year, for the sake of novelty (and also because even I’ve wearied of Willie Martinez), the idea will be to help these two neighboring-but-different groups actually understand one another.
And then we’ll all join hands and raise our voices in a spirited rendition of “I’d Like To Teach the World to Sing” and toast one another with Coca-Cola products, and by the way: Did you know Georgia fans refer to Bobby Dodd Stadium as “The Joke By Coke”?
But enough! No more gags from me this year! Instead I offer the observations gained from dwelling among Tech and Georgia folks these past 27 years, eight months and 18 days.
• Tech fans care just as much about football as Georgia fans. This may come as a surprise to those Bulldogs backers who are forever mocking the attendance at Bobby Dodd Stadium. (For the Jackets’ mammoth Thursday night clash against No. 10 Virginia Tech, attendance was announced at 50,140 in a facility that seats 55,000.) But counting heads isn’t necessarily a measure of passion.
Tech’s enrollment is roughly 20,000 — Georgia’s is 35,000, by the way — and a goodly percentage of those students will take their degrees and move elsewhere. (This isn’t to say that no Georgia grad ever moves out of state. Even Lewis Grizzard moved to Chicago for a few months.) But studies have shown that there are more Auburn grads living in metro Atlanta than Tech alums.
Numbers-wise, Georgia is always going to win. That doesn’t mean Tech folks don’t care. They do. Just ask any alum what he/she thinks of a Tech uniform that doesn’t feature the color gold. Or get one going on Bill Lewis’ 2 1/2-year reign of error.
• Just as Tech fans hate being hit over the head with attendance figures, Georgia fans hate hearing about Jan Kemp. When John Davis was a Tech lineman back in the ’80s, he told me this joke: “How do you get a degree from Georgia? Drive by campus and roll down the window.” And there was a time, let’s stipulate, when UGA wasn’t exactly a school of renown, and the Jan Kemp trial only underscored the notion.
But that was then, and under presidents Charles Knapp and Michael Adams the University of Georgia has become a place of pride and achievement. No, calculus isn’t a requirement for every UGA undergrad, but the academic missions of the schools are rather different. Georgia is a broad-based state university; Tech is, duh, a technical institute. Not everyone wants to be an engineer. Just because your diploma is from UGA doesn’t make you a comparative moron.
Not that Tech folks are eager to concede the point. On his Tuesday night radio show, Tech coach Paul Johnson took a call from someone who began barking. Said Johnson: “He just got off from Walmart.” (FYI, the CEO of Walmart is Tech grad Michael Duke.)
• When Tech fans speak of football tradition, they think first of Bobby Dodd. He was everything a Tech fan wanted in a coach. He was smart and his teams played precise football and he won a lot of games and he, not incidentally, beat Georgia eight times running. But that was in the ’50s, and those were different times: College football wasn’t yet a billion-dollar industry driven by TV and recruiting wasn’t a cutthroat nationwide competition.
Reasonable Tech fans — and Tech fans, by and large, tend to be reasonable — cannot envision their team ever again beating Georgia eight times in a row. (Since 1977, Tech has beaten Georgia eight times total.) In their heart of hearts, Tech fans would be satisfied with winning one of every three against their bitter rival. Not coincidentally, Johnson is 1-2 against Georgia.
• When Georgia fans speak of tradition, they think first of Herschel Walker. Yes, the Bulldogs were winning SEC and even national championships and turning out famous players (Sinkwich, Trippi, Tarkenton) long before landing the kid from Wrightsville on Easter 1980, but the Era of Herschel propelled Georgia from the ranks of perennial Southern power to something bigger. By every measure, those were the three greatest years in Bulldogs history.
That said, those three seasons skewed some Georgia fans’ view of their program. Two decades would pass before Georgia won another SEC title. Mark Richt has taken two conference titles and three division championships and his teams have finished in the top 10 five times, but Georgia hasn’t played for a national crown since 1982, and five different SEC schools have finished No. 1 over the past 13 years. UGA fans are still waiting their turn, same as they await the Next Herschel.
• Georgia is Tech’s biggest game of every year. Chan Gailey got fired not because he had losing seasons — he didn’t, not a one — but because he was 0-6 against the Bulldogs. And it’s undeniable that the words “To Hell with Georgia” are sung the loudest whenever “Ramblin’ Wreck” is played.
• Tech is Georgia’s biggest game only when Georgia fans are scared they might lose. This isn’t such a year. Georgia has won its division and is going to play LSU or Alabama for the SEC title next week. Georgia has, to borrow another Johnson line, bigger fish to fry. Which is the primary reason Georgia fans should be wary of Johnson and his team.
By Mark Bradley
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
521 comments Add your comment
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:07 pm
(Oh..and Redneck aficionado and author of numerous redneck dictionaries is an esteemed alum of GT, so…GT fans….If you attend or attended GT, you MIGHT be a REDNECK)
Riddle
November 23rd, 2011
1:08 pm
What do Bulldogs think Cheerios are?
Donut seeds.
Riddle
November 23rd, 2011
1:08 pm
Why did the Georgia fan keep a coat hanger in his back seat?
In case he locks the keys in his car.
Soon to be SEC East Champs
November 23rd, 2011
1:08 pm
JB….what will UGA fans be thinking about after we kick your arse on Saturday?
Riddle
November 23rd, 2011
1:09 pm
Did you hear about the Georgia fan that broke his leg raking leaves?
He fell out of the tree.
H-Town Dawg
November 23rd, 2011
1:09 pm
It’s hard to determine which is the bigger joke: Tech football or Bradley desperately trying to make Yech’s program and fanbase sound legitimate. Come on Nerds, sing us the Budweiser song again! lol
GOD DAWGS!!
JB
November 23rd, 2011
1:09 pm
Hey Riddle….waiting on the short bus to take you home? Those post from you keep the “nerd” vision alive for us.
Riddle.
November 23rd, 2011
1:09 pm
A Georgia fan ordered a pizza and the clerk asked if he should cut it in six or twelve pieces.
“Six, please. I could never eat twelve pieces.”
dawgfan
November 23rd, 2011
1:10 pm
Here is the typical life cycle of a Georgia Tech fan:
1. Run your mouth in February about how recruiting doesn’t mean anything and all those stars and rankings are meangless because UGA hasn’t won 5 national titles in a row;
2. Run your mouth in August about how overrated UGA is and how they will choke;
3. Run your mouth the whole season about how UGA hasn’t played anyone and the SEC is overrated;
4. Puff your chest and act tough because you rushed for 300 yards on Duke/UVA/Maryland, etc.
5. Rurn your mouth the week before the UGA like it is Tech that has won 9 of the last 10 instead of the other way around;
6. Predictably lose to UGA like clockwork;
7. Pull excuses out of your backside for loss and talk out of other side of your mouth to say that UGA should beat Tech because of all those 5 star recruits we get.
8. Lose bowl game and claim its meaningless because you lost it.
9. Cry like a little girl for a couple of months.
10. Repeat.
That’s the way its been for several years now. Am I missing something?
GTBob
November 23rd, 2011
1:11 pm
Tech fans care just as much about football as Georgia fans.
No they don’t and it’s not even close. The reason UGA exists is football and very few UGA fans are even capable of thinking of anything else. When the season ends what will GT fans do? Watch basketball. What will UGA fans do? Monitor their twitter feeds in hopes of new football recruiting info.
WnE
November 23rd, 2011
1:11 pm
“Tech’s enrollment is roughly 20,000 — Georgia’s is 35,000, by the way — and a goodly percentage of those students will take their degrees and move elsewhere. (This isn’t to say that no Georgia grad ever moves out of state. Even Lewis Grizzard moved to Chicago for a few months.) But studies have shown that there are more Auburn grads living in metro Atlanta than Tech alums.”
_________________________
This is a very weak excuse Mr. Bradley.
ND is still around 10K students and is much smaller than GT, but they sellout an 80K Stadium and could probably sellout a 95K Stadium if they had it.
The REASON that is a weak excuse is that Colleges rely on “sidewalk alums” to actually sell out their games, GT’s problem is that GT and their SMUG, ARROGANT ways are not conducive to growing a sizable sidewalk alumni base that can sell out Games in FB.
At any rate a College with 20K students in a Metro Area of 5.8 Million should be able to sell-out a 55K Stadium EASILY.
GT Fails miserably at that because they spend too much of their time telling everyone else how much better they are than everyone else, just like Coach Fish Fry’s snarky comments.
Riddle Jr.
November 23rd, 2011
1:11 pm
How do you keep a Georgia fan busy?
Write ‘Please turn over’ on both sides of a piece of paper.
john
November 23rd, 2011
1:12 pm
Can any of ya’ll imagine this game being the opener for both teams…played during Labor Day weekend? The summer-long buildup?
That would be awesome! Get the game played and over with.
Soon to be SEC East Champs
November 23rd, 2011
1:12 pm
Nice try Kelly….UGA fans know that GT is just better. It really gets under your skin.
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:13 pm
I love Kelly’s post. He or she spends an entire paragraph talking about academics only to conclude they don’t matter. Someone make that make sense.
Soon to be SEC East Champs
November 23rd, 2011
1:13 pm
Kelly…we are just better.
Another riddle
November 23rd, 2011
1:13 pm
Do you know why they put artificial turf down at Grant Field?
So the GT cheerleaders couldn’t graze.
GO DAWGS!!
JB
November 23rd, 2011
1:14 pm
dawgfan, #11………..We’re Tech and we are above the fray of football. We have lives and careers and contribute to the Arts and society and football is for you rednecks at UGA who live for this crap and think it’s important.
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:14 pm
Were you planning on plagiarizing all of Ken’s post, WnE. Any thoughts of your own on the matter?
riddle #3
November 23rd, 2011
1:15 pm
95% of all coeds are beautiful…………the other 5% go to Tech.
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:16 pm
Hey Riddle….waiting on the short bus to take you home? Those post from you keep the “nerd” vision alive for us.
He’s just proud he mastered the most difficult keyboard function, the ctrl/c ctrl/v tandem. Don’t mind Rid…just showing off for us.
I love Kelly’s post. He or she spends an entire paragraph talking about academics only to conclude they don’t matter. Someone make that make sense.
That would be insightful if I were the one injecting academics into the conversation. I’ll play by the rules you make. And win. Just like UGA does, pretty much every year against GT.
DawgInaTruck
November 23rd, 2011
1:17 pm
Dawgfan, you didn’t miss a thing. You summed it up perfectly.
The heck of it is most of us don’t pay atention to Tech until the week of the game (you must win a significant number of games prior to Thanksgiving for this game to truly matter outside of bragging rights, etc.) but most Tech folks spend all year hating us and following UGA athletic developments as closely as we do.
I’ve never understood that.
dawgfan
November 23rd, 2011
1:17 pm
You are right JB. I forgot #12 also:
Pretend that losing to UGA doesn’t destroy your soul and change the subject to academics as much as possible.
PerroGrande
November 23rd, 2011
1:17 pm
George, read Schultz’s column. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what he is saying, and that is the same thing GT Joe and some others have been saying here. The SEC East is overrated, the Dawg players are good, but no better than ACC players. He may be right, but talking about stuff like that during game week will be turned against you. Read Richt’s praise of GT and Johnson if you want to see a stark contrast between smack talk and disrespect vs class and respect. The problem with calling the barking wonder a retard from Walmart is that is the same thing the GT Joe types are saying here. Maybe Johnson is GT Joe! It reveals an attitude of disrespect that will be communicated to the Dawgs. Just isn’t smart coaching imo. Have a good TGiving George.
BILLY JACK
November 23rd, 2011
1:18 pm
Dawgfan that is perfect description of a tech nerd-it happens every year.Any team humiliated like they have been this decade and still talking smack is incredible.
john
November 23rd, 2011
1:19 pm
WnE: You seem to forget the BS of this non-story the local media is drumming up over some STUPID UGAg caller barking into the telephone also hurts the perception of GT from the public at large. This whole episode is just another example of the local media having their noses so far up the rear-ends of UGAg, they can only smell poop.
GTBob
November 23rd, 2011
1:19 pm
Pretend that losing to UGA doesn’t destroy your soul
This is a good example of the difference between a UGA fan and a GT fan. A loss in football is actually capable of harming the life of a UGA fan and they think that is normal and applies to fans of other teams.
Arno
November 23rd, 2011
1:19 pm
Yeah well, at least PJ apologized. If everyone on these blogs (including me) apologized for the stupid things they said, the internet would crash. Good game on Saturday.
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:20 pm
Hold on, Kelly. Let me see if I have this straight. You play by the rules someone else sets but conclude at the end you don’t want to play by this rules? Sure, that makes sense.
GTBob
November 23rd, 2011
1:21 pm
No comment. Just want to see if I can get past the filter for once.
JB
November 23rd, 2011
1:22 pm
Could NEVER imagine Mark Richt calling a Tech fan “heckler’ calling his show and calling the caller a retard and joke about his lack of success in his working life…..Never. He apologized, but I’m sure not on his on. Ask the NCAA the MO on this guy. He march’s to his own tune.
DIT
November 23rd, 2011
1:22 pm
@Riddle
My 2nd grade daughter comes up with more mature jokes than you. What a sad life you must live.
Eisendawg
November 23rd, 2011
1:22 pm
Mark, I think it would be neat to do a column, or survey, on what are the most “God awful” team colors out there. I think most would agree that yellow or orange would be at the top of the list!
IlliniDawg
November 23rd, 2011
1:24 pm
True story: I took my 12-yr-old son to his first UGA-Tech game at Bobby Dodd Stadium, and we sat amongst a sea of red and black. The guys in front and beside me were dressed in camo and overalls and spent the entire game swearing like sailors and taunting the Tech players mercilessly. Most of the comments were totally crude and inappropriate – but funny as hell. My son got an education and some entertainment.
Then, when I asked the guys when they went to UGA, telling them that I was there during the Herschel years, the guy next to me said, “I didn’t go to Georgia.” I then asked, “okay, so where did you graduate from?” And he said, and I quote word for word… “oh hell, I didn’t go to no college”! I laughed my ass off!!!
Sure we may have a lot of dumbass trailer-park fans, but we have a helluva lot of fun. Suck it Tech Nerds!
chas jacket
November 23rd, 2011
1:24 pm
The retard remark was wrong, but anyone over 40 has probably used it in the past, doesnt make it right and i’m glad we are more sensitive to those with disabilities today. PJ apologized – rightfully so, time to move on. PJ is an earthy type, but I think his visit to the Maryland lineman at Grady says more about his character than one slip up. I also recall him defending richt earlier in the season saying it was crazy that fans wanted him gone after all he had done for uga. Enough said. Go Tech, THWG !
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:24 pm
He compared Orson Charles to Bruce Allen, one of the three best TEs in the country and Jarvis Jones to Quentin Coples (sp?), one of the three best DEs in the country. On what planet considered smack talk?
I have said many times I think GTJoe, m, yellowfuzz, etc are clowns. I’m glad we agree.
Happy Thanksgiving to you, too.
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:25 pm
but conclude at the end you don’t want to play by this rules?
Not, that’s not what I concluded. I pointed out that the rivalry is based around a football game, not a Battle of Mathletes. What I DID show, however, was that being 25th is a far cry from being 1st, 2nd or even 3rd…and that I’m not sure what the fuss is about with GT’s academics. Again…I didn’t insert academics into the conversation, but rather merely replied to the insertion. That’s different. Someone with your reasoning skills can certainly see the difference, correct?
DawgInaTruck
November 23rd, 2011
1:26 pm
In all honesty, CPJ shouldn’t have to apologize for the retard comment; it was a harmless remark on his own radio show. If he had made disparaging comments about someone who was obviously mentally or emotionally challenged that would be a different matter. Some guy snuck past the station “filter” and was rewarded with the enjoyment of barking at him (how many of us will ever get the chance?) and some smack talk ensued. Thats all, end of story.
timthebrave
November 23rd, 2011
1:26 pm
A big Georgia Tech fan goes to a sports bar in Atlanta to watch his favorite team play, bringing his dog with him. As usual, the Yellow Jackets are getting slaughtered, with the other team racking up score after score while Tech don’t register a single point. Finally, late in the game Tech kicks a field goal. The dog jumps on the bar and starts dancing and doing the moonwalk.”Your dog’s as big a fan as you are, I see,” the bartender says. “Does he do that every time Tech get a field goal?” “Sure does,” says the fan. “Wow,” says the bartender. “What does he do when Tech scores a touchdown?”
“I don’t know,” the fan replies. “I’ve only owned him for three years.”
GTBob
November 23rd, 2011
1:26 pm
dawgfan, are you admitting that losing a football game can actually affect your soul? This is what is sad about UGA and SEC fans. Their life really is impacted significantly by the athletic performance of 18 year olds.
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:29 pm
In all honesty, CPJ shouldn’t have to apologize for the retard comment; it was a harmless remark on his own radio show.
I agree…all this apology stuff in our culture is very strange. The fear of judgment is only moral inertia. Say what you think and move on. So what if Paul Johnson dipped in a dry well for some sort of “snarky” comeback. Once again, proves only that those aligned with the yellow and black are unimaginative, stale and cliched.
DawgInaTruck
November 23rd, 2011
1:29 pm
Bob are you coming to our fish fry? C’mon dude, be a nice guy.
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:30 pm
You lost me, Kelly. I can’t follow your reasoning.
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:30 pm
I’m not surprised.
George Stein
November 23rd, 2011
1:31 pm
Neither am I. It was pretty poor to start with.
DIT
November 23rd, 2011
1:32 pm
I agree on a few comments on CPJ:
1) He should not have to apologize for his retard comment.
2) He has no class.
3) Speaks before he thinks.
No comparison when it comes to who the most class between the two coaches. I would have to say that is probably the only thing that tech & UGA fans can agree on.
DIT
November 23rd, 2011
1:34 pm
Good grief Mark how many of my posts are you going to block? They have been very civil towards both sides. I guess I have to post nasty posts before they get on this blog.
PerroGrande
November 23rd, 2011
1:34 pm
George, go read Richt’s remarks about Tech and Johnson and you will see the difference. I can paste them here if you would like. I can help Johnson with a little softer response for next time: hello, bark, bark, hello, Russ, is that you…sorry I don’t speak your language, see you Saturday, boy…next call please. Calling Dawg fans retards from Walmart isn’t going to help Johnson’s cause, or Tech’s either. What if Richt started saying some of the lines you read here from our anonymous, internet tough guys…you guys would go nuts. Maybe we should keep Johnson and Grantham apart. When CPJ starts calling our players retards, I fear Grantham’s response! I’m kidding of course. Surely GT Joe, I mean Coach Johnson and Grantham can behave.
DIT
November 23rd, 2011
1:34 pm
Figures……
Kelly
November 23rd, 2011
1:34 pm
Only if you’re incapable of understanding simple logic.