Richt was right: UGA is ‘knocking on the door’ of greatness
Noted critic Mark Richt gave Georgia's clinching of the SEC East two thumbs up. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
Mark Richt called this shot. Speaking in Tampa on the first day of 2012, he said of his Georgia Bulldogs: ““We’re going to be knocking on the door of the greatest success you can have in college football, and if you knock long enough, you’ll eventually break through.”
Some folks tittered, noting that Georgia had just lost the SEC championship game by 32 points. A day later, when the Bulldogs (and Richt, too) messed up every which way in blowing the Outback Bowl to Michigan State, the tee-hees became hardy-har-hars. A team that had gone 0-4 against ranked opponents would go on to achieve “the greatest success you can have in college football”? Dream on, brother.
Eleven months later, the dreamer awakes and smells a heady blend of coffee. If the Bulldogs beat Georgia Tech on Saturday, they will stand on the cusp of the BCS title game. Granted, they’ll face a massive impediment in Alabama (presuming it beats Auburn, which it will), but still: For the first time since Richt took up residence in Athens, his team has a clear path to the national championship. Which only lends greater resonance to the second half of that January pronouncement: “If you knock long enough, you’ll eventually break through.”
In 2002, when the Bulldogs went 13-1 and took the school’s first SEC title in two decades in Year 2 under Richt, a BCS title seemed this reborn program’s manifest destiny. But LSU beat Georgia twice in 2003, and Tennessee upset the Bulldogs in Athens the next year, and Georgia’s 2005 SEC champs had two losses in a year when being undefeated wouldn’t have been enough, what with USC and Texas, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, staying unbeaten until they met in the Rose Bowl.
Manifest destiny hadn’t yet manifested itself, and after a decade on the job it wasn’t clear that Richt would take a team beyond an SEC championship. Which isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, but when five different SEC schools were taking BCS titles while Georgia was stuck on 1980, it was possible to ask if Richt’s moment had passed without ever arriving.
Twice his teams had come close. The once-beaten 2002 Bulldogs finished third in the BCS standings, behind unbeatens Miami and Ohio State. In 2007 Georgia stood fourth in the penultimate BCS rankings and saw No. 1 Missouri and No. 2 West Virginia lose … but somehow the Bulldogs dropped to fifth. The voters’ apparent rationale: A team that didn’t win its conference shouldn’t be allowed to play for the national title. (Not that it stopped Alabama last season.)
The 2008 Bulldogs of Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno and A.J. Green were ranked No. 1 in preseason but got little right. A slew of summer arrests left Georgia reeling before the team held its first practice, and the bubble burst on an awful night in Sanford Stadium that saw Alabama lead 31-0 at the half. That team would lose only three games, but they were epic failures: The drubbing by Alabama, the 49-10 flop against national-champ-to-be Florida and Richt’s only loss to Georgia Tech, a 45-42 game the Bulldogs led 28-12 at halftime.
The next two years were a clear retreat. Georgia went 8-5 , then 6-7. The program that once could beat anyone anywhere closed 2010 by losing to Central Florida in the Liberty Bowl on a day the Bulldogs couldn’t manage a touchdown. The 2011 season began with losses to Boise State and South Carolina, and there was no guarantee Richt would be coaching this team in 2012. But Georgia started winning and, benefiting from a soft schedule, claimed the SEC East. Then it lost emphatically to LSU and egregiously to Michigan State, and it was hard to know what to think. Were the Bulldogs back? Or had they just gotten lucky?
Even this season, there were times we wondered. The 35-7 loss at South Carolina was one of the worst performances by any Richt team, and the halting victory at Kentucky wasn’t much better. But then Georgia went to Jacksonville and upset its nemesis, and everything changed. For the first time since 2007, this coach and this program had won a game against an opponent of consequence, and today the Bulldogs are 10-1, ranked No. 3 in the BCS standings with a date against No. 2 surely upcoming.
Twelve years on the job, Richt finally has Georgia in position to play for a national championship. All it has to do is win these next two games. Asked Wednesday on the SEC conference call how it felt not to need any outside assistance, Richt ducked the question: “I’m not going to make a comment on it. I’m focused on trying to beat Georgia Tech.”
It’s possible Georgia could lose to Tech, and the Bulldogs will be an underdog against Alabama. But even if this season doesn’t end with the Bulldogs hoisting the crystal trophy, the dreamer has already been proved a prophet. His team is indeed knocking on a door that has been closed to Georgia for three decades. His team is three games from glory.
By Mark Bradley
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441 comments Add your comment
Nativebird
November 23rd, 2012
9:07 am
Wow. Uh…ok…Mark Richt: The Knut Rockne of 21st century. “greatness”? Really? So Mark Richt is some overlooked, under-respected guru of college football coaching for all these years right, is this what you are saying? Is “greatness” really a word to attach to a single team that wins something big in a single year? Isn’t “greatness” something bigger, like a clearly better team than ALL the rest…or a prolonged string of championships in a row? Should we really attach this word to just winning a championship in a single year…and in not so an impressive manner? C’mon. Look if Georgia wins it all, hey kudos…well done…congrats….enjoy it…nice job….well deserved. But ” greatness”? Uh no.
Game Changer
November 23rd, 2012
9:21 am
Just win
A lost to Ga Tech and or Alabama in SECCG would prove to be a 2012 failure in the program once again. The good, we beat Florida, nothing else to hang your hat on.
Discount DoubleDawg
November 23rd, 2012
10:44 am
Losing to tech would be the only thing that could make this year a definitive failure… Losing to bama would be very disappointing, but I am just not seeing that as a sign of failure. Sure bama slipped up against A&M but most people would still agree they are probably the best team in the country (hence, why they would be a touchdown favorite against Notre Dame)…
Now, I do think we can beat them and we should give it all we’ve got to do so. We should prepare and play lights out. If we do, we certainly have a shot.
alpha male
November 23rd, 2012
11:23 am
Losing to techisa sign of failure.
Stinger 2
November 23rd, 2012
11:28 am
Not a single person including MB knows if UGA is great or not until after the BCS game if they get there. If not, they are not great with two loses (AL/SC). They will give
us our annual drubbing unless GT gets very lucky and UGA gets very unlucky.
That said, if UGA does win the NC with only one loss, I will congratulate them and say they were a very good team. A great team would have gone undefeated.
Sloppy
November 23rd, 2012
12:21 pm
Fatdog
You are Hoping and praying Saban will leave. That will be the only way Richt is relevant again.
Get new material and move along back to your trailer park.
Sloppy
November 23rd, 2012
12:23 pm
Discount
Very good comments and very realistic. Good luck next weekend.
Gamecock
November 23rd, 2012
12:25 pm
We walked all over the dogs. They were a pushover. Tech should win as these dogs have no bite.
Chuck J
November 23rd, 2012
12:34 pm
UGA teases it fanbase again. Once again Saban and his team will hoist the crystal football. UGA will play a decent game against the tide but turnovers and penalties will kill them. Go ahead and get your tickets to the capitol one bowl. Maybe next year.
I have to agree
November 23rd, 2012
12:47 pm
ha ha, gotta love all of the UGA fans making international news with their moultrie ga black friday stampede. but hey, what do you expect from a fan base who make animal noises to celebrate their team and thinks the top universities in the nation are judged on where they are on the ap top 25.
what a bunch of mouth breathes.
Discount DoubleDawg
November 23rd, 2012
12:54 pm
Good luck to you as well, Sloppy.
Sven Ottke
November 23rd, 2012
1:26 pm
Best of luck to the Special Admits vs. Tech tomorrow.
Georgia’s seniors determined live out script they wrote back in January | UGA sports blog
November 23rd, 2012
2:13 pm
[...] Bradley: Richt was right about Dogs ‘knocking on door’ of greatness [...]
Game Changer
November 23rd, 2012
4:55 pm
Sven ottke — UGA has alot of players visiting, commited and currently playing that should not be enrolled at UGA. Having a player that was declined by Auburn academically, then be offered by UGA should be the last straw. I hope that the new UGA President demands our football players and all athletes not require special admittion. We have some players currently that do not even attend class this semester knowing they are done at the end of this season with any college schooling or elgibility, if we are fortunate to win two more, hope they will still be able to play.
Schadenfreude
November 23rd, 2012
5:01 pm
Really Alabama fans? Come back when you’ve qualified to play in the SECC game. I mean, I know you think you can beat NFL teams and all, but you do actually have to play and defeat Auburn. Sorry you weren’t good enough to clinch a spot in the SECC game early…like UGA did.
Discount DoubleDawg
November 23rd, 2012
7:38 pm
CPJ was right: Georgia Tech is knocking on the door of ___________?
A.) Obscurity
B.) Mediocrity
C.) Supreme under-achievement
D.) Failure
E.) Acceptance of all the above
Strat Cat Dawg
November 23rd, 2012
7:43 pm
People who think Alabama will blow Georgia out haven’t looked closely at our personnel on D. Either team could win but I like Georgia’s chances.
Cloudodust
November 23rd, 2012
8:43 pm
Ahh, the hammering on Bama being weak by not securing a early playoff spot in the SECCG in what can be construed as undoubtedly the best division not only in the SEC but the nation is a mistake. Their hurdles are leaps and bounds greater than Georgia’s has been this season and that builds character fighting through adversity. Yeah, I’d watch that over-confidence until Dec 2 Sunday morning around 1AM. Then if you’re SEC Champs, have a celebration.
Mike
November 23rd, 2012
9:37 pm
Love all these articles about the great UGA team and the suddenly-genius, Mark Richt. When they get blown out in the SEC championship game…..or choke against GT, the “we told you so” crowd will be back. Including the author of this article
.
Realist
November 23rd, 2012
10:06 pm
UGA is in the seccg due to an incredibly easy schedule. So they win one big game against a ranked opponent for the first time in 5 years. So what? Florida committed 6 turnovers in that game.
Does any realist really believe UGA can beat an Alabama team that has not only won the majority of but been in huge game after huge game for the past 5 years? I just can’t see it. Bama is used to being in these huge games. They’ve been there before and their talent is unquestioned even if Tam pulled a big upset. I just can’t see Georgia lining up man to man and whipping a team like Alabama. Can you?
Realist
November 23rd, 2012
10:08 pm
strat cat dawg,
Georgia’s personnel on defense. Please! Bama has the best O-line in the nation with 3 possible first round draft picks including the returning Outland trophy winner. You’re drinking koolaid if you think Georgia can line up head to head and beat Alabama at the point of attack. It aint gonna happen.
boykin
November 24th, 2012
1:14 am
Cloud_ who did Bama play that has you in a tizzy““““““““`?
GameTime
November 24th, 2012
8:21 am
C’mon Mr. Bradley, you can do better than this. This is a really stupid article. Most coaches would have been comfortable with that statement having just played a weak SEC schedule and facing an even weaker 2012 schedule. UGA played the easiest schedule of any SEC team. Played no western division contenders and had tough out-of-conference foes in Buffalo, Florida Atlantic, and Georgia Southern. You make it sound as if Richt is some great prognosticator. I guess the days of good journalism are gone. Certainly not going to find anything at AJC.
juice sourcer
November 24th, 2012
9:08 am
Greatness…really? I didn’t see greatness in Columbia…I saw pathetic….I haven’t seen greatness with this cupcake schedule…..I haven’t seen greatness with a schedule that didn’t have one non conference difficult team, I don’t see greatness anywhere. I didn’t see greatness against a Florida team that cant score points on anyone, I see a good team with a ridiculously easy schedule. That’s all I see.
LSU 42, UGA 10
November 24th, 2012
9:12 am
So, according to Georgia fans, Georgia Tech sucks worse than any team in the NCAA. It is absolutely the worst. In fact, so bad that it’s the reason Georgia is the top university in the nation in academics and GT is the worst.
So GT is baaaaad.
Yet if UGA beats the worst team in the land, it’ll be heralded as the biggest win ever and the reason that Georgia should skip the SEC championship game and national championship game and be given the BCS trophy right now. And oh send 3 or 4 of the Georgia players to the Heisman. Let them tie in votes, that way you have 4 Heisman trophy winners from Georgia!
It’s hard not to step in the crap that is the ajc georgia fan blogs.
I wish we had beaten Alabama, I’d love to see if we could improve on our 42-10 championship game.
LSU 42, UGA 10
November 24th, 2012
9:18 am
The lesson we’ve learned from the 2012 Georgia Bulldogs, do everything you can to have an easy schedule. Make sure the SEC doesn’t schedule you to play the two best teams in the nation that happen to live on the western division and own 4 BCS National Titles. Plus Auburn owns one, you realize Auburn owns a BCS National Championship and you don’t? I bet that makes you more mad than anything.
I think ESPN’s Cowherd recently said, they’d take the SEC over every conference in the nation, then he corrected himself and said he’d take the SEC West over every conference in the nation. He is probably spot on.
I don’t doubt you’ll win today, but I’ll cheer for GT anyways. I love the shots of your fans in the stadium when you lose and I couldn’t begin to imagine the anguish if you lose to… the most obscure, mediocre, supremely under achieved, fail, and accepting of failure team ever.
Aw man, it’d be a cherry on top.
zeke
November 24th, 2012
9:25 am
If they would just stop recruiting all those criminal thugs they might have a chance! OOPS! That team from Columbia, no not Missouri, South Carolina, showed the fallacy of these remarks! UGA looked like some middle school team against the Gamecocks!
harleyman
November 24th, 2012
9:30 am
I love hearing all this crying all the way from La., Bama, Tech. Man, is it loud. Anybody got any pacifiers? ROTFLMFAO.
Stewie
November 24th, 2012
9:55 am
Mark, are you just pandering to the Dog faithful or do you really believe if you tell a half-truth enough times it eventually becomes accepted?
Of course I’m referring to the comments about 2007, and in particular your statement “the voters’ apparent rationale: a team that didn’t win its conference shouldn’t be allowed to play for the national title.”
What you and most others who follow this line of thought conveniently omit is that the team’s that jumped the Dogs that year did so BECAUSE THEY WON AN ADDITIONAL GAME AGAINST TOP 25 COMPETITION. Sorry about that.
LSU went from #7 to #2 by beating #14 Tennessee (who, btw, had whupped UGA earlier), putting LSU at 11-2 while UGA sat at 10-2.
Va Tech went from #6 to #3 by beating #11 Boston College. VT stood at 11-2, UGA at 10-2.
Oklahoma went from #9 to #4 by beating #1 Missouri. OK stood at 11-2, UGA at 10-2.
So it’s not just that UGA didn’t win it’s conference, it’s that it didn’t get that extra win, unlike the teams that leap-frogged them. If you can’t understand that 11-2 is better than 10-2, well, then you can keep on repeating your half-truth about 2007.
Discount DoubleDawg
November 24th, 2012
10:04 am
LSU 42- you guys looked sharp yesterday against a tough arkansas team… nice work, you should be proud.
John Boehner's Tanning Bed
November 24th, 2012
11:15 am
Alabama is going to beat UGA by 21 points.
Doc Dawg
November 24th, 2012
11:52 am
Back to the original statement. I’ll believe it when we don’t get run out of a conference title game or lose to some opponent from a moribund conference in a 2nd tier bowl game. Until then, I’m not buying in.
Schadenfreude
November 24th, 2012
1:31 pm
Man, what a bunch of crybabies on this blog… I guess the haters are always going to hate…Goooooooo DAWGS!!!!! Next up….the SECC game and the SEC West champion…then the NC…jealous, haters? hahahahahaha
Schadenfreude
November 24th, 2012
1:34 pm
Ah…the best time of the year…2nd half of the UGA/Tech game…the only time the tech noobs ever shut their mouths. Let’s all enjoy this.
Georgia’s seniors determined live out script they wrote in January
November 24th, 2012
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[...] Bradley: Richt was right about Dogs ‘knocking on door’ of greatness [...]
Richt was right: UGA is ‘knocking on the door’ of greatness – Georgia – Dawg News
November 25th, 2012
10:17 am
[...] is the original post: Richt was right: UGA is ‘knocking on the door’ of greatness ← Back to Home Tags: blowing, bulldogs, dream, georgia, georgia bulldogs, greatest, [...]
OrlandoDawg
November 25th, 2012
1:30 pm
Let the Big Dawg Eat!
To Tell the Truth
November 26th, 2012
10:03 am
Yeah, the big dawg will be able to take a hot dog bun and scoop some of Bama’s S$&T and take a big bite out of it after the Tide blows them out in the Dome!!!!
GA NC, yeah right. LMAO!!!!
UGA isn’t just playing a team – it’s facing the Alabama aura | Mark Bradley
November 26th, 2012
2:02 pm
[...] as the Bulldogs’ most significant game since Herschel Walker split for the USFL. Any program in search of ultimate validation must get past Saban and his minions. The past five national titles have been taken either by [...]
tsunamibulldog
November 26th, 2012
9:06 pm
seems just win everyone realizes mark richt is our permanent coach, some bozo pops in with fire the bum. look we are here….it took alotta work by the richt staff to get the right players with the right schedule to give us our shot, its up to uga dogs(team) peroid. bama couldn’t be more defeatable than right now…vengance for the blackout defeat is reason to want it and there are alotta amature mistakes being made in the sec west….everyone on the team and staff can taste it….it is their time.
(PS) the nation is upset about the schedules of the sec fcs games as cupcake, what they really are upset at are how the sec teams use these games as polishing scrimmages, replacing the practice time limited by the ncaa and if you notice the lesser teams(fla) have problems getting their scores or holding down the opponents scores (see oregon kan st. w.va.) this is where the separation starts.
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