As he exits UGA, Adams should rename stadium for Dooley
Vince D. and Mike A., good buddies of long standing, share a hearty laugh. (AP photo)
Michael Adams is set to leave the University of Georgia in June 2013, which would mean he’ll have outlasted Vince Dooley by nine years. In the overheated summer of 2003, it wasn’t clear who would lose (or win, depending on your slant) the race to be last out the door.
At an institution of higher education, there was little edifying about their bitter struggle. Dooley, the athletic director, wanted to stay a little longer. Adams, who could never give a compelling reason as to why Georgia needed a new AD, wanted this one gone. Two smart and powerful men were reduced to bickering over half-years.
Dooley loyalists rallied, and such was their outrage that it seemed possible the president would be forced out before Dooley. But Adams managed to hold his job, mostly because he was, as a college president, delivering the goods. Dooley left quietly on June 30, 2004, to be succeeded by Damon Evans, and the bizarre saga reached its end.
Dooley lost his job but claimed overwhelming victory in the court of public opinion. He stamped himself as the wronged party, and when he gave the nod for his supporters to cool it — the 2003 summer convocation of the Bulldog Club of Greater Atlanta had been an embarrassment of pro-Vince overkill — he came away as statesmanlike. In the years since, Dooley has taken solace in having weakened his nemesis on campus and off. (If not for the memory of the Dooley feud, Adams might have received greater consideration to succeed Myles Brand as NCAA president.)
To say that the two men hated one another would not be overstating. Dooley considered Adams a meddler and a hothead, and Adams resented Dooley for trying to use a moment of presidential weakness — the AD asked for a contract extension not long after Adams had run off football coach Jim Donnan — as personal leverage. To suggest that either man has forgotten, much less forgiven, is a stretch.
Asked by colleague Chip Towers for a reaction to Adams’ announced departure, Dooley offered this beautifully meager kiss-off: “First of all, I commend President Adams on his retirement, his service and his contributions to the University of Georgia. I do believe it is time for a change and I look forward to the Bulldog Nation uniting under new leadership in the near future.”
Note that commendation for Adams’ “retirement” came two spots ahead of any note of his “contributions.” Note also that “time for a change” came in Sentence No. 2.
Dooley has always taken pains to note that Adams’ doctorate is in political communication, as if the only game the president had ever mastered was one that valued style over substance. But here’s where Dr. Adams can spring the ultimate bit of political jiu-jitsu: As a parting gift, he can name the football stadium after his adversary.
There were those of us who believed that should have happened a decade ago, but there was no way Adams would grant that favor at a time when Dooley’s forces were trying to get him fired. But now it’s 2012, and there could be no gesture more statesmanlike that this.
The school did affix Dooley’s name to the facilities on the southwest corner of campus in 2008, but that was thin gruel: It involved little more than transporting a statue someone had already made and holding a dedication ceremony on the morning Georgia played Tech. (Further indignity: Tech won the game.) Asked back then about naming the stadium for Dooley, Adams sniffed that the stadium “already has a name.”
But few Bulldogs fans would recoil at the notion of Sanford Stadium becoming Sanford-Dooley Stadium. (I’m of the opinion that “Dooley-Sanford Stadium” would sound funny. But maybe that’s just me.) It would be the right way to honor the greatest figure in the school’s athletic history, and it would be the right political move for a president who hasn’t always been seen as presidential.
Honoring his enemy would be a way for Adams to show that, this once if not always, he’s capable of being the bigger man. It would enhance Dooley’s legacy, but it would burnish Adams’ more. If this president left today, he’d be known as the guy who was right on academics but wrong in his handling of a popular AD. If he leaves after renaming the stadium for that AD, he’d become the guy who, in his final act, was wise enough to admit he’d gotten one big thing wrong.
That would, as even Dooley would be forced to admit, be one heck of an exit line.
By Mark Bradley
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529 comments Add your comment
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
3:47 pm
“Bama, USC, Notre Dame and USC have HISTORY of winning Championships UGa doesn’t. ”
Notre Dame hasn’t won one since 1988. USC had theirs taken away a few years ago. Yes, I see what you mean but even those teams had key players.
Dawgmom
May 4th, 2012
3:47 pm
Lifelong Dawg fan, UGA alum and mother of a current member of the Redcoat Band. This is ridiculous. It should stay Sanford Stadium and the team should just play ‘tween the hedges. The field doesn’t need a name. Everyone knows the name Sanford Stadium and (with the exception of the lady on ESPN) know where the Hedges(not bushes) are. Dooley was a good coach and had some good seasons. They weren’t great until Herschel. I was at UGA during the Herschel years and they were great. Have no problem with changing the name of the press box to honor Larry Munson but leave the stadium alone.
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
3:48 pm
Buckeye
Let us all know when O State can beat an SEC in a bowl game without cheating. HAHAHAH
Tom
May 4th, 2012
3:49 pm
I love Ga football, but things changed in Athens in the spring of 1981! Shouldnt Erk Russell get more credit for his contribution to Dooleys 201 wins! When people talk about Dooley, its short, but when people talk about Erk, people are talking about a LEGEND! Dooley turned his back on UGA in Dec of 1980 when he flirted with Auburn and their vacant coaching position! It was on the eve of the national championship game with Notre Dame and there is Vince only thinking of himself and not his team,the university, or the Bulldog nation!!! Erk should have been named head coach! Thats what everyone wanted! People rallied around Erk and Ga was ready to whip the Superdome floor with the fighting Irish!! But soon after, Erk leaves, starts the football program at Ga Southern and wins 3 National Championships within 8 years! Vince became the AD in 81 and he made sure in Jan of 1989 when he steps down from coaching that Erk wouldnt take the job! Then Dooley hired,of all people, Ray Goff, a Ga man who would become the butt of all Steve Spuiriers jokes! (To me, Spuirier looks like George Jetson!) I believe Dooley knew the well was dry and nobody(esp Erk) wasnt going to make him look bad or tarnish his reputation at UGA! Erk would have changed Bulldog football forever! But all we have now are memories from 1980, and we have watched other universities like Miami, Florida,Florida State,Nebraska(which I liked under Tom Osbourne) and many more become what UGA should have if only Dooley would have not returned in 1981 and Erk would have become head coach! Out of 201 wins in Vinces career-120 of them belonged to Erk Russell and his Junkyard Dawg,GATA,Big TEAM little me Defense! Coach Russell left his mark on this bulldog fan, just like he left his mark on our program! 32 years later and I still think about him when I think about football! Erk Russell Field at Sanford Stadium sure sounds great! Erks name casts a larger then life shadow to true Ga fans! He was never head coach and Dooleys name would be right there with Ray Goffs and others who were mediocre if it wasnt for ERK! To out going President Adams, AD Greg Mcgarity and the Bulldog foundation- please give the proper credit were credit is long,long overdue! People will forget Dooley! Most fans today dont remember him-But nobody has forgot ERK!
kingdaddy
May 4th, 2012
3:55 pm
Buckeye
When you finally figure that out, will you then tell me what Ole Miss means???
Buckeye
May 4th, 2012
3:56 pm
Braves fan,
Can’t argue facts though I’d rather support Tressel for lying about tattoos than Bobby Petrino’s antics with the co-ed.
meh
May 4th, 2012
3:56 pm
Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium
harold
May 4th, 2012
3:56 pm
DOOLEY WAS AN ABOVE AVERAGE COACH THAT JUMPED UP TO WIN THE SEC EVERY NOW AND THEN LIKE FULMER WHO WAS 152-52 AT TENNESSEE. ACTUALLY FULMER HAD A HIGHER WINNING PERCENTAGE THAN DOOLEY.
DOOLEY WAS NO GENERAL NEYLAND—-BEAR BRYANT—OR NICK SABAN! OUTSIDE OF THAT LITTLE RUN FROM1980-1983—–HE NEVER DID THAT MUCH—AND DURING THOSE YEARS UGA NEVER PLAYED ANYBODY.
HIS WIFE IS NUTS. HIS SON CAN’T COACH. HE WAS AN ABOVE AVERAGE COACH BUT A VERY NICE GUY.
kingdaddy
May 4th, 2012
3:59 pm
Buckeye
Would you rather have a donut or a doughnut? How about a Dawgnut???
garydawg
May 4th, 2012
4:00 pm
Don’t hold your breath….
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
4:04 pm
what is a………….DWAG? I saw 1 dwag fan at the MSU v UGa Outback Bowl.
MFB
May 4th, 2012
4:07 pm
PULEEEAAASSSEEEE! LET DR. STEADMAN VINCENT SANFORD’S REVERED MEMORY REST IN PEACE. DO ANY OF YOU PEOPLE REALLY KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE HISTORY OF SANFORD STADIUM? PROBABLY NOT EVEN MARK BRADLEY!!!! TRY GOOGLING AND FIND OUT SOMETHING ABOUT HIM AND THE STADIUM BEFORE YOU EMBARRASS YOURSELF BY WANTING TO CHANGE THE NAME OR CHEAPEN IT BY ADDING TO IT.
Evansdawg
May 4th, 2012
4:09 pm
I like “Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium.” It will always be Dooley’s field!
Simon Bar Sinister
May 4th, 2012
4:10 pm
Dooley already has things named after him, and I know Georgia fans who do not want the stadium name changed.
Dooley did two great things at Georgia: recruit Herschel Walker and hire Mark Richt. The very good thing he did was hire Erk Russell. Everything else was just slightly above average: his record, his recruiting, his coaching. The “Good old days” started when Herschel showed up and disappeared when Walker and Russell left the school.
MFB
May 4th, 2012
4:12 pm
Enter your comments here
Oconee
May 4th, 2012
4:13 pm
PLEASE!, Do not change the name of the stadium to Dooley. I have never understood the adulation of him in some quarters.. I despise the way in which he talked about upcoming games in his mealy mouthed way. What possible justification is there for changing the name of the stadium?
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
4:16 pm
“Can’t argue facts though I’d rather support Tressel for lying about tattoos than Bobby Petrino’s antics with the co-ed.”
Either way OSU is still on probation.
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
4:18 pm
“Can’t argue facts’
No. No, you can’t.
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
4:19 pm
“I saw 1 dwag fan at the MSU v UGa Outback Bowl.”
What’s a dwag? Is that a dog fan is drag?
steve dunbar
May 4th, 2012
4:25 pm
Vince Dooley’s athletic program was responsible for the Jan Kemp affair and Fred Davidson paid the price. Dooley’s schedule, year-after-year, consisted of Kentucky, Mississippi, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Clemson, Vandy, Tulane. Only once and a while did Georgia play Alabama or Tennessee. Automatic seven / eight wins every year over marginal teams. First black player to graduate was Walker in the early 1980’s, no one in the 1970’s. Dooley’s people were talking to Auburn about Vince becoming Athletic Director (Vince didn’t talk, but his people did). When does the 15 minutes of fame end.
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
4:28 pm
steve dunbar you can’t do simple research I guess. Walker left as a Junior. PROOF to your stupid statements.
Rampdawg
May 4th, 2012
4:29 pm
Hmmm, don’t know what a dwag is, but a Dawg fan is someone who is celebrating on the saturday after Thanksgiving.
HOW ‘BOUT THEM YELLER JOKETTES!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
CEPH
May 4th, 2012
4:31 pm
Two words, “HELL NO” I only wish he would take Dooley and his loud-mouth wife with him!!!!!
Whopper Dawg
May 4th, 2012
4:31 pm
Not holding my breathe on this one. I think Adams would rather cut off his right hand.
Colin
May 4th, 2012
4:33 pm
No more tributes to Dooley. The university has given him enough. Lets remember this is the same guy who admitted to almost leaving the program to go to another SEC program (Auburn) and who considered leaving to run for senator. No more tributes to the guy. Keep the stadium name the same as it has been. This idea of making the university campus a tribute to Dooley is absurd. He was more than adequately compensated for the services he provided to the school. The University of Tennessee has already honored him by allowing his overmatched son to ruin their football program.
Braves fan who gets annoyed with Mark Bradley
May 4th, 2012
4:33 pm
“but a Dawg fan is someone who is celebrating on the saturday after Thanksgiving.”
And then crying after when they get beat down by the SEC West.
Rampdawg
May 4th, 2012
4:35 pm
Hey Steve Dumbar, you forgot to add Ga. Tech on there. That’s what made it easy.
Pope UGA XXIII
May 4th, 2012
4:35 pm
I, for one, want to make sure that our outstanding President,
Michael Adams, is duly honored for his many “contributions” to
our athletic program such as Jim Harrick & A D Damon Evans.
Given the additional Saturday game day stress he has helped
bring about as regards parking and tailgating, I would like for us
to install a large number of Michael Adams porta-potties around
the campus with his picture located at the bottom of the bucket.
That will allow thousands of UGA alumni, supporters, & friends
to adequately express our true feelings about “Mr Wonderful”.
If I can land this concession, I will be wealthy by halftime of the
Buffalo game !! G O D A W G S !!
CEPH
May 4th, 2012
4:35 pm
Dooleys record against teams that he played with a 50% or better winning record was one win in three tries.This is for his entire career folks! If you don’t believe it chech it out!!!!!
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
4:35 pm
steve dunbar………………..read
http://www.georgiatrend.com/November-2005/Breaking-The-Color-Barrier/
Rampdawg
May 4th, 2012
4:37 pm
But not by the team just west of us. The Jokettes.
Kevin
May 4th, 2012
4:37 pm
Please join….Dooley Field – https://www.facebook.com/groups/225993967412656/
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
4:38 pm
CEPH check it out?
cut & paste a link or the PROOF to what you are saying.
myside
May 4th, 2012
4:39 pm
Please don’t mess with the name of Sanford Stadium. Vince Dooley was a
great and loved football coach and I think he deserves to be honored by UGA with something that is his singularly instead of giving him a share of one that already exists that honors Mr. Sanford.
Good But Not Great
May 4th, 2012
4:42 pm
Dooley had as many 5 or 6 win seasons as he had SEC titles. He was a solid coach who had some nice seasons, some mediocre seasons and a great three year run because one of the best players in college football history was born in Georgia. I wouldn’t consider him to be a “legendary” coach. Bryant, Schembechler, Osborne, Hayes, Neyland, Wilkinson, Rockne all won more than 75% of their games. Dooley won 69%. Like I said, a solid coach who had some memorable seasons, but certainly not one of the elite coaches of the game.
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
4:43 pm
Kevin………..that is a funny photo of Dooley and the team. That would be a photo of just the Walk-ons today.
lol
May 4th, 2012
4:50 pm
LOL! I love the caption!
Fred
May 4th, 2012
4:53 pm
No, no, no, no. no, no, no, no, no. no, no, no, no, no. no, no, no, no, no. no, no.
I love Coach Dooley but our Stadium has a name, a name that it has had since 1929. I am sick to death of the hyphenated stadium which has its grass named after a third person, and so on into infinite silliness. I am sick to death of driving along the highway and seeing a sign with some jackleg state bureaucrat’s name on every damn brige, exit, culvert, or blinking barrel-light. I am sick to death of every damn street in Atlanta now being either Peachtree-something or named after a city council person. I hate Hartsfield-Jackson (which would be Hartsfield-Jackson-Campbell by now if not for the whole federal crime thing).
The name of the stadium is Sanford Stadium. Enough said.
Fred
May 4th, 2012
4:58 pm
Just remember the last time you went to a game at Auburn where Mr. Hare was bumped for Shug Jordan, and the grass was named after Pat Dye, a guy who once got so drunk that he took off his pants and lost them in Lake Martin. Tech demoted Mr. Grant. Some things just shouldn’t be changed. Whatever became of Ashby Street, Gordon Street, Ivy Street, Cain Street, blah, blah, blah. For gosh sakes, there is a sign on I-85 that says “Alan Jackson HIghway.” Really, ALan Jackson Highway????? The Billy McKinney overpass over 285 on what used to be Bankhead Highway which is no longer Bankhead HIghway.
Enough!!!!!!
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
5:01 pm
FRED you are DU.B…………read about GRANT FIELD. How was Mr. Grant Demoted? PEOPLE it is so easy to do a lil research before you show what a Du b Dawg you are.
Pitbull
May 4th, 2012
5:09 pm
They should rename the toilets in Sanford Stadium and call them all a “Michael Adams” as in “Man, that hot dog went right through me and I almost messed in my pants before finding a Michael Adams to go to.”
Or bettter yet “Watch my seat cause I have to go take a Michael Adams.
Whiznot
May 4th, 2012
5:21 pm
Great idea. Three-Yards-And-A-Cloud-Of-Dust Stadium has a nice ring to it.
Better idea. Name the stadium for Erk Russell.
Snoop Dawg
May 4th, 2012
5:25 pm
Renaming our beloved Sanford stadium is the most assinine statement that Mark Bradley has conjured up. He isn’t deserving. Except for an upset over Alabama and a gift from God named Herschel Walker, he was average, average, average.
What is wrong with maintaining a little tradition. Sanford Stadium shall it always remain! And, please no hyphenated names in the future, either….
Surely there is no support for this within the Bulldog Nation.
Snoop Dawg
May 4th, 2012
5:26 pm
Michael Adams’, Greg McGarrity, and Mark Richt photos should be glued to all toilet seats in Sanford Stadium.
Snoop Dawg
May 4th, 2012
5:27 pm
oh yeah, don’t forget that football genius Mike Bobo. He’s gonna get picked off by another school soon!!!
LOL
Phil Underwood
May 4th, 2012
5:29 pm
Sanford Stadium is too branded. I love, no it would be better to say, LOVE, Coach Dooley. I wish there were something along this line that could be done, but I am not sure this needs to happen. You have Sanford & Butts-Merhe taken. There needs to be a Dooley-something. But it reminds me of Jordan-Hare which is like Hartsfield-Jackson….too much and diluted.
Mrwndw
May 4th, 2012
5:30 pm
What happens when coach Richt passes Dooley in wins (halfway there) and brings a National Championship to Athens? Totally possible with the track he’s on. Never have liked naming stadiums after people unless that person is an extreme icon.
I dropped my fried twinkie
May 4th, 2012
5:31 pm
pitbull……..dawgs prefer the stairwells in the library and student center
Snoop Dawg
May 4th, 2012
5:32 pm
I just read the article again. Completely nauseating. This completely zeroes Mark Bradley out as a credible UGA journalist. Must be on the Dooley payroll.
YoMama
May 4th, 2012
5:32 pm
Get a friggin life, folks.