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
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521 comments Add your comment
DanTheDawgFan
November 23rd, 2011
10:48 pm
TampaGator. I’ve been DantheDawgFan for the past 10 years on Rivals. I don’t post here much. We’ll get back to hating your booger eating Turds next year. Go away!
terrorist roommate
November 23rd, 2011
10:51 pm
anybody got a used Keith Brooking thong i can buy for our next dorm room tickle pile?
Smitty
November 23rd, 2011
10:52 pm
A rivalry is only a rivalry when the other team wins every once on e while. But this is getting boring for Georgia fans. come on tech make this a rivalry again……. But Lenard’s loser Georgia tech
Smitty
November 23rd, 2011
10:54 pm
Come on Tech….make this a rivalry again not boring….
Smitty
November 23rd, 2011
10:55 pm
Lenard’s loser Georgia Tech
THWG
November 23rd, 2011
10:57 pm
THE WORLD IS A BETTER PLACE WITHOUT LARRY MUNSON. REST IN PAIN
Cdpridg
November 23rd, 2011
10:57 pm
Hey nerds..this is not an academic message board. This is a college football topic and one on that level that you pathetic rejects compete on absolutely positevly no level whatsoever. Recruiting, players, coaching, mascots, band, stadiums, co eds, tailgates, conferences, traditions…nothing! I could go on and on! Stick that in ya pipe and smoke it insect man
Smitty
November 23rd, 2011
10:59 pm
Only a classless act would say something negative about Munson….so you must be a Tech fan for sure…
Smitty
November 23rd, 2011
11:03 pm
THWG……You stepped over the line
ARdawg
November 23rd, 2011
11:18 pm
Well, the rednecks, the trailer parks and Walmart cracks have gotten old for the Nerds so now with the Munson derogatories. Really? Thats too low for even a tech fan. That can’t be a tech fan can it?
ARdawg
November 23rd, 2011
11:19 pm
Way over the line. Not even a Tech fan would do that would they? Really?
THWG
November 23rd, 2011
11:22 pm
truth hurts sometimes, doesn’t it smitty?
Cdpridg
November 23rd, 2011
11:49 pm
As classless as the head mans inferiority complex at the bug school. Lumpy is the perfect coach for the wussies. Funny thing about these blogs is that you seldom see a bug man disrespect a Dawg fan or anybody or anything related to the proud University of Georgia in real time….the bug man knows his place within this states borders!
Tech Engineer
November 24th, 2011
12:35 am
The Dawgs have good athletics in the defensive line; but in defending the triple option, they have to be good decision makers. That’s why Tech will gain 350 yards on the ground to go with 150 through the air.This game will be a nail biter decided by turnovers.
rightofcenter
November 24th, 2011
12:36 am
dawgfan: “Am I missing something?” Yes. A penis.
cdpridg
November 24th, 2011
12:45 am
Tech Engineer……You are up against the 4th ranked D in the nation…Huge D line…fast and physical linebackers….you will not do much offensively and this will not be a nail biter. This is year 2 in Granthams D. Realization will set in come Saturday just after noon within the walls of the joke.
Smitty
November 24th, 2011
12:52 am
THWG ….not a tech fan…just an a hole
Chan Gailey's Revenge
November 24th, 2011
12:52 am
When did UGA win a National Championship prior to (and since) Herschel???
Smitty
November 24th, 2011
12:53 am
True Tech fan would have more respect….
Smitty
November 24th, 2011
12:57 am
I am not a Tech fan but do respect their tradition…..
Yellow Fuzz
November 24th, 2011
5:00 am
lol
gtguy
November 24th, 2011
6:08 am
my guess is that of all the MUTT fans in the state of Georgia,proud as they are of their dawgs,nine out of ten doesn’t know how to get to or never been to or will ever go to Athens,Georgia the marketing department is a pied piper for sure
NATIVE SON
November 24th, 2011
7:18 am
Nice article to get the temperature up Mark. My take this year is if Tech keeps it close the first half; woe to Ga. the second half. I’m pretty sure we can “engineer a victory after taking their best shot”
Peace from the most Native
Big time???? NOT!
November 24th, 2011
7:19 am
Four tickets, four hot dogs, four cokes.
Give us your lunch money nerds!
Woofy One
November 24th, 2011
7:57 am
I wish I had known about the Walmart comments last night. I ate dinner in the home next door to Coach Paul Johnson and might have gone over to ring the doorbell and ask for points.
THE DUDE
November 24th, 2011
7:57 am
ONCE AGAIN LET ME SAY IT IS SO CLEAR WHO tech REALLY IS. LET US START WITH THE GEORGIA PLAYER THAT FLUNKED OUT OF GEORGIA AND GRADUATED FROM tech. also THE FAMOUS CORNERBACK EX; DRUG DEALER WHO WAS NEVER THROWN OFF THE TEAM OR OUT OF SCHOOL. YES THAT IS WHO tech REALLY IS.
dirty dawg
November 24th, 2011
8:04 am
I noticed that Walgreen has Dawg wearing apparell on sale-sweats 2 for 5$. Makes great stocking stuffers. Is there any chance tyhaty the Dawgs will suit up in their Jetson outfits? They look so sexy.
Keniboy
November 24th, 2011
8:07 am
Ugh takes tech with both tailbacks tied behind their backs.
dirty dawg
November 24th, 2011
8:08 am
It is going to be fun watching the Ga Defensive Linemen (400lbs average) trying to get out of the way of viscious chop blocks. They remind me of the Clemson linemen of yesteryear-fat and so out of shape they couldn’t get out of their own way. I’ll take 295 pound fast lean and mean anyday.
Keniboy
November 24th, 2011
8:09 am
Scholastically speaking, my daughter net to uga and three friend went to tech, unable to get in ga. Hmmmmmm
Danny Overstreet
November 24th, 2011
8:15 am
What does the crowd yell when the Tech cheerleaders run onto the field? “How bout them dogs?”
GT
November 24th, 2011
8:37 am
The game has changed so much through the years. Up to the 80s these players came through and were really part of the school and later part of the community. Taz Anderson, Billy Payne, John Dewberry, Hershel Walker, now they are just hired guns. None of this on the field demonstrates what is in the classroom for either school or the school’s community.
ARDawg
November 24th, 2011
9:15 am
Dawg fans – don’t let these Tech dorks fool you. A full 99% of them end up drawing pretty pictures on Autocad in some dead end job like Milton from Office Space (Mike Duke notwithstanding) mumbling to themselves about their red Swingline.
Their worst nightmare is a Georgia grad with a great job and a social life, while they sit in the dark and troll naughty websites at home alone on a Friday night with a box of Kleenex.
Here’s my good deed for the Holidays – an open invitation to any Tech dork who will be at home alone for the game can come join me and my hot blonde wife at our house on the golf course to watch the game in style. No – no sobbing, I know it’s generous. I’m just a sucker for a hard luck case with bad acne.
Happy Thanksgiving, Dorks!
GO DAWGS!!!
macrotech
November 24th, 2011
9:22 am
Yup, Mark…about sums it up! Happy Thanksgiving to all!!! Looking forward to the game….GO TECH!!!
chase
November 24th, 2011
10:04 am
yeah TECH is a “Rival” to Georgia…..in much the same way a BUG is a “rival” to a winshield!!!!!!!!!!
chase
November 24th, 2011
10:04 am
windshield that is……..thats what I get for being a smartass
Cobb Dawg
November 24th, 2011
10:05 am
If you were throwing a dinner party, who would you rather have; a room full of Tech, or UGA grads. I think we all know that answer.
Cobb Dawg
November 24th, 2011
10:11 am
Gold & White posted:
November 23rd, 2011
12:10 pm
“Terrific article, Mark! But notice you still haven’t answered whether the news article posted yesterday about Mark Richt willingly leaving UGA after this season has any merit. In case you lost the link…
http://www.gamingtoday.com/articles/article/33523-Georgia_football_coach_Mark_Richt_rumored_to_be_leaving”
My reply:
Anything’s possible. But the article lost me when it said that Bobo was considered a candidate to replace CMR. That ain’t gonna happen. Plus the article is very sketchy and does not begin to name ANY reputable sources. Seems like some programs invented it as a recruiting tool to me.
GT
November 24th, 2011
10:19 am
Dawgs are blowhards and are overrated like every season. GT wins this one and then UGA gets crushed by LSU. Can’t wait…..
UGA
November 24th, 2011
10:21 am
I must admit, our team is pathetic. I mean…we really haven’t played anyone that’s any good and the teams we have beaten are a combined 3 – 2000, so the SEC is down this year. I am worried about the Tech game and believe we go down….then we get beat into oblivion by LSU, then we lose the bowl game, then we are losers like we all know we are… I just hope I don’t have to ride the scooter to the game.
Dawg Whisperer
November 24th, 2011
10:30 am
I grew up a GT fan but I detested advanced math classes and became an avid dawg fan. I graduated UGA in ‘75 and since that time I’ve been blessed many times over in my spiritual, personal life, and career. I’m thankful (it’s Thanksgiving) for my Dad (God rest his soul) for funding my way through matriculation at UGA from which I have benefitted immensely.
The truth is that people either take advantage of the God given opportunities given them or waste them. There is a place for both GT and UGA in their respective academic and sports arenas, and each have earned my respect. While I hope UGA prevails on Saturday, fans for each school should demonstrate class and appreciation for the players that have dedicated much time and energy in their preparation for this game.
tech hater
November 24th, 2011
10:37 am
Hey GT Bob, If winning or losing the GA game is not a big deal to the tekkerheads, why do you have rings made up with the score of the game when you win once a decade. I don’t recall the dawgs ever caring to that extent!
junkyarddawg
November 24th, 2011
10:55 am
For years everything in the locker rooms at Grant Field was covered withe stenciled letters GTAA (Georgia Tech Athletic Association) In the glory days of the Junkyard Dawgs during a pregame speech Coach Erk Russell took a pieces of chalk and rearranged the letters on the board, and thus was born GATA “Get After Their A$$” We did that day and have been ever since. GO DAWGS, GATA!
rugtowndawg
November 24th, 2011
11:02 am
$2.2 Mil. per year is too much to pay a coach for a HIGH SCHOOL OFFENSE!
GT is a 4th rate high school team
November 24th, 2011
11:08 am
And will forever be. Happy Thankgiving.
GT is a 4th rate high school team
November 24th, 2011
11:09 am
Happy Thanksgiving, I mean.
dap01
November 24th, 2011
11:13 am
Tech fans DONT care about football as much as UGA fans. They never sell out a very small stadium. UGA always sells out. UGA fans have to donate to even have a “chance” to buy season tickets. There is never a game at Tech that you simply can not walk up and buy a ticket. There is never a game at UGA that you can walk up and buy a ticket. To say as this article says, that Tech fans care as much is silly and even unprofessional.
And CPJ is a jerk. He is scarcastic. He also is two faced individual, he belittles a recruit who visits another college after committing to Tech but he also has recruits visit Tech after they have already visited someone else.
Paul in NH
November 24th, 2011
11:14 am
Mark
Nice article – I agree with most of it. Perhaps GT isn’t UGA’s biggest game, but Donnan didn’t lose his job for losing to UF or AU.
Paul in NH
November 24th, 2011
11:28 am
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!
—-
Worst I have seen are Clemson’s purple and orange and the awful black and orange Tenn wore in a game a few years ago.
BS Patrol
November 24th, 2011
11:44 am
Can someone tell me why there is no Furman Bisher column?