Heat Check: Hot ‘Dogs face a warm swarm of Yellow Jackets
This was the one time the Mark Richt-coached Bulldogs didn't beat Tech. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
Given that this is Thanksgiving week, our Heat Check begins about where you’d expect.
GEORGIA: Will play for the SEC title. Could play for the BCS title. First, however, the Bulldogs must win the state title. This hasn’t been much of an issue for Mark Richt — he’s 10-1 against the North Avenue crew — but the one blip (in 2008, in case you’ve forgotten) was monumental. Barometric reading: Remember when we wondered if things would ever again get really good for this coach at this school? Richt’s team has a chance to finish all drills.
GEORGIA TECH: Will play for the ACC title, thanks to Miami’s decision to remove itself from postseason play. For a team that wasn’t sure it could wangle even a trip to Shreveport, that’s a nice bit of rallying. Barometric reading: Chances are, Tech will be an underdog — the opening line for this weekend favors Georgia by 14 points — in every game from here on, but any team coached by Paul Johnson has the potential to be a mighty live ‘dog. No pun intended.
THE SEC: Forget having no team in the BCS title game. If Southern Cal beats Notre Dame and Florida beats Florida State, the only league that matters will again have two of its members, one of whom didn’t even win its division, playing for the national championship. Barometric reading: Things always break the SEC’s way. Does anybody not understand that?
THE ACC: Could have a 6-6 team (er, Georgia Tech) play for the conference title. Could lose Maryland to the Big Ten, which would be a major blow for a league that believed it had solidified its future by adding, sort of, Notre Dame. (Update: According to ESPN, Maryland has indeed voted to leave the ACC.) Barometric reading: Only the SEC get all the breaks all the time. Does anybody not understand that?
FALCONS: The halting victory over Arizona did nothing to quell any doubts. Still couldn’t run the ball, and this time Matt Ryan had a tough time throwing it to the right team. And now a trip to play Tampa Bay, which has won four in a row, awaits. Barometric reading: The Falcons are still positioned to be the NFC’s top seed, but they’re starting to look a tad seedy.
HAWKS: Fought through the stomach flu and a West Coast swing to come home at .500, which isn’t half-bad. Barometric reading: Don’t be surprised if this team gets hot. Only one of its next eight games will come against an opponent that currently holds a winning record, and seven of those eight will be staged at Philips Arena.
GEORGIA HOOPS: Mark Fox’s Hounds had an awful week, losing at home to Youngstown State and Southern Miss, neither of which is a basketball power on the order of, say, Indiana. Barometric reading: At 5:30 p.m. tonight in Brooklyn, the Bulldogs will meet the real Indiana, ranked No. 1 in the land. But there’s precedent at work — Chaminade did once topple Virginia and Ralph Sampson.
GEORGIA TECH HOOPS: Managed fewer points against Presbyterian than the football Jackets scored against the Blue Hose. Still won, though. Barometric reading: Are about to embark on a long road trip — three games in an Anaheim tournament, followed by a stop in Champaign, Ill., to meet the Illini in the ACC-Big Ten challenge. If Tech is still unbeaten after all that, Brian Gregory and his men will be on to something.
BRAVES: Signed Gerald Laird, free-agent catcher, to replace David Ross, free-agent catcher. That’s a slight net loss, but Laird is something of the new Eric Hinske — he keeps showing up in the World Series. Barometric reading: Pretty sure there’s a bigger move than Gerald Laird to come.
Further reading: Can Tech ruin Georgia’s season? It’s possible. But probable?
By Mark Bradley
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134 comments Add your comment
Ed
November 19th, 2012
11:58 am
“Goldenrod is clearly a troll. I don;t know why anyone gives him the attention he so desperately craves.”
True. Ironic, but true.
NCDawg
November 19th, 2012
11:58 am
Goldenrod… man it must be great being able to leave reality behind! No way the Dawgs overlook Tech. I don’t name scores but I think you will be crying pretty hard. UGA has the most potent offense you have seen all year and your miserable defense will not be able to stop them. Look for a replay of “We run this state”. Only it will be worse this time. So live in your fantasy land for another 5 days.
Paul in NH
November 19th, 2012
12:42 pm
UGA has the 2nd best offense GT has seen all year.
Ed Pilcher
November 19th, 2012
1:05 pm
Vad Lee plays well……In the (snicker) All Cupcake Conference. He’s about to face his first real team this week.
MFranklin
November 19th, 2012
1:26 pm
Credit where and when it is due; MB, your assessments on UGA and the Falcs are pretty spot-on this week.
To be honest, the Dawgs worry me more than the Falcons. Anyone can have a really bad day and Matty just showed he can’t walk on water, either. But… he is unshakable even on those really gawd-awful ones and practically unbeatable on anything better. Murray isn’t there yet… he (and we Dawg fans) desperately need the O-line to show up and the receiver corps to avoid KFC before the game.
Patched Tire On I-95 in Jacksonville
November 19th, 2012
1:30 pm
Congrats to Tech on their ACC championship game appearance
I mean what a joke just like their 1990 National Championship game against #17 ranked Nebraska in the Citris Bowl
beanster
November 19th, 2012
1:49 pm
It will be interesting to see how many more Tech fans are willing to travel to Charlotte than to Athens. No hot dog and Coke promotions but I see they do have $25 seats available.
gt4ever
November 19th, 2012
1:54 pm
Oh to be a delusional Dawg fan…. Yes, your team is better than ours on paper… But hey, you have NOT beat anybody this year… Your schedule has put you in a position to be in contention for the SECEC but once you play a real team, you will LOSE… Unless Alabama has another brain fart, as they did with Texas AM, you have NO chance! Matter of fact, if you find yourself looking past GT Saturday, you could very easily lose against GT… As bad as our Defense is, and it is REALLY bad, our offense can score on your pitiful defense. Here is hoping that you are looking forward to playing Alabama and have already marked our game as a gimme…
gt4ever
November 19th, 2012
2:05 pm
@patched tire…
Yeah, that Joke of a team routed your beloved dawgs… and they were the BEST team in the country that year.. Period..
NCDawg
November 19th, 2012
2:09 pm
gt4ever… SC, UF, and Vandy would beat Tech. Maybe even Tenn since they can score points. And there you have it. SC and UF would pound the snot out of Tech. We will see how Moobs Johnson’s gimmick offense fares against a defense that has two weeks and a live game worth of experience against the triple option. That offense works only when the opponent hasn’t seen it recently. It is very hard to simulate but the Dawgs played a Ga Southern team that I think would beat Tech. Their defense is better. Sure it probably be a 49-45 type game but that 49 would belong to Ga Southern.
Pray your defense plays out their minds because otherwise it will be ugly.
GeoffDawg
November 19th, 2012
2:11 pm
gt4ever, a real team? You mean like when Florida was undefeated and ranked #2? I agree though, on paper, tech’s not much of a “real” team.
gt4ever
November 19th, 2012
2:25 pm
@NCDawg
Yes, here is hoping that your team is thinking about Alabama. Yes, UGA should and probably will win on Saturday… But it will be anything but a cake walk… Easy to say that SC, UF, or Vandy would beat GT… I don’t agree, but that shouldn’t be surprising to anyone… If our Defense comes to play on Saturday, we will win… The odds of our defense coming to play is, well, not likely, but anything can and usually does happen. Especially when you have a team that thinks they are BCS national championship material… I mean, come on, even the lowest Bull dog IQ’s realize that this team is not the same caliber of Alabama and LSU…
Alphare
November 19th, 2012
2:40 pm
What’s the difference between Tech and UGA? Not much: both gets in conference champ games, and both get killed in them.
Concerned
November 19th, 2012
2:42 pm
I hear a lot of barking from the fan base that actually returned tickets to UGA due to lack of interest in this game. Worst fan base in America. Maybe if we gave them free hot dogs and a coke they would reconsider!!!
Can Tech ruin UGA’s season? It’s possible. But probable? | Mark Bradley
November 19th, 2012
2:44 pm
[...] Further reading: Heat Check – hot ‘Dogs face a warm swarm of Yellow Jackets. [...]
gt4ever
November 19th, 2012
2:48 pm
@concerned
Returned tickets have a LOT more to do with not having to put up with drunken Red necks than disinterest in the football game. Your right,,, UGA has the WORST fan base in the country. Period. Classless, drunken and basically obnoxious.. Especially if you lose…
gt4ever
November 19th, 2012
2:51 pm
kinda like your defensive coordinator…
ARdawg
November 19th, 2012
3:28 pm
gt4ever
Your team lost to MTSU. Yes, Vandy, KY, will beat you
StingerSplash
November 19th, 2012
5:05 pm
Southern Cal, minus Matt Barkley, is not beating Notre Dame. Unless Marqise Lee is throwing the ball to himself, the Men of Troy are not beating the Irritated Sons of Erin.
Speaking of irritated … you don’t think Herr Saban and his Imperial Crimson Stormtroopers aren’t going to be a little bit irritated coming into the Dome to play Georgia?
Georgia fans can talk about winning out all they want. They very likely will beat Tech (much like Southern, can’t stop the pass). But they want no part of a mad Alabama and they want no part of a Notre Dame team that really does have a magnificent defense, which they won’t get to go up against anyway.
GT Rich
November 19th, 2012
5:51 pm
A strong 9-2 GT team ranked in the top 10 overlooked a weak 6-5 UGA team in 2009 and paid for it with a close loss. UGA is now in that same position. Vad Lee’s passing ability could tip the scales in a shoot out. I’ll be rooting for an ACC hat trick vs the SEC on Saturday!!
heeldawg
November 19th, 2012
6:03 pm
@What will really be funny: Your scenario is impossible. The SEC Championship game runner-up cannot fall further than the Cap One/Cotton Bowl tier. It’s an SEC rule. So if Georgia beats Tech and loses to Bama, they’ll probably be in the Cap One Bowl, with the biggest payout of the non-BCS bowls. And if Tech beats FSU and goes to the Orange, that payout might be enough to get your athletic department out of the red. Meanwhile, the Dawgs will post yet another ~$70 million dollar athletic department profit. The money ain’t all of it–especially if you’re not broke.
I suspect Tech will show up and give the Dawgs their best shot. I suspect the Dawgs will do the same with Tech. I do NOT think that either team will look past this game–there’s too much at stake. And unless Georgia self-destructs, they will win by 10-15 points–but it will be close at halftime.
UGA OWNS gtu
November 19th, 2012
6:18 pm
gtu is EMBARRASSING and PATHETIC. They don’t even belong on the same field as UGA.
UGA OWNS gtu… always have, always will.
BigJim
November 19th, 2012
6:27 pm
Mark Richt: 3-15 against ranked teams, since 2009. And that’s why we’re in the crappy Capital One Bowl every single solitary year!!!
UGA OWNS gtu
November 19th, 2012
6:37 pm
We’re simply better than gtu. Period.
UGA OWNS gtu… always have, always will.
BILL KING
November 19th, 2012
7:14 pm
JUST WIN BABY !!!!!!!!!!!
Wal-Mart Retards
November 19th, 2012
8:48 pm
45-42 again!
GT13
November 19th, 2012
9:00 pm
to everyone saying GT doesn’t deserve to go to the championship: if duke beats miami this saturday, GT is alone atop the coastal
UGA OWNS gtu
November 20th, 2012
10:26 am
It’s time for your annual BEATDOWN gtu!
BWAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA
realist
November 20th, 2012
1:43 pm
georgia should win georgia should have beaten sc do you really want a national chapionship with a 35-7 defeat on it?????/ yes?no?
realist
November 20th, 2012
1:43 pm
georgia should win georgia should have beaten sc do you really want a national chapionship with a 35-7 defeat on it?????/ yes?no?
realist
November 20th, 2012
1:43 pm
georgia should win georgia should have beaten sc do you really want a national chapionship with a 35-7 defeat on it?????/ yes?no?
Brainiac(Dawg for life)(CMR fan for life)(J Jones for Heisman)
November 21st, 2012
10:42 am
@ Woodstock gt:(8:50 am post)
Damn good post bro but it is to be expected from all these mama’s boys/girls !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It maybe the BIGGEST event of weeks of “computer time” for these Single Digit IQ children!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eric C.
November 21st, 2012
1:15 pm
It’s official…Weatherspoon is back!
goodsport
November 24th, 2012
1:34 pm
Slamming a football player to the ground looks cheap on UGA. I guess that since they are playing St Marys School for the blind near the end of your patsy schedule ,its ok . U A B will stuff you while you try to body slam in that game.