A.J. Green’s goal? ‘Just to be an All-American.’ Then what?
(Updated 11 p.m. Saturday and 9 p.m. Sunday. A roundup of the weekend in UGA sports events has been added below.)
ATHENS — Let’s start with three morsels from a chat with A.J. Green:
– On his personal goal for the 2010 season, Georgia’s star receiver said: “I was just talking to Coach Richt, and it’d be nice to be an All-American. I believe if I would have stayed healthy [last] year, I’d have gotten that. So that’s my goal -– just to be an All-American.”
– As for Georgia’s quarterback competition, Green said: “I’m just going to work with whoever the quarterback is and try to make them better, try to make them look good and try to do everything I can do to help the offense out.” He did sort of marvel about the fact that in his third season at Georgia, he’ll be playing with his third starting quarterback. “I never thought I would have three different quarterbacks,” he said. “All through high school, I had the same quarterback.”
– So, a reporter asked facetiously, does that mean Green will stick around for a fourth season in 2011 just to have a chance to play with the same QB two years in a row? “I don’t know, man, I don’t know,” answered Green, eligible to enter the 2011 NFL draft. “Just whatever happens.”
———————————-
Grantham
Talking about the hectic pace of his new job, defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said the coaches basically are working half of each day on recruiting and the other three-quarters of the day on football.
“So that’s really more than a day, right?” he said. “Basically, we’re working a day and a half in a day.”
The math is fuzzy, but you get the idea.
————————————
Wide receiver Kris Durham, an education major, is doing his student teaching this semester at Oconee County Middle School.
Yes, the kids there quickly recognized him as a Georgia Bulldog.
“They figured that out after about the first 20 minutes,” Durham said.
He’s teaching Georgia history, will graduate from UGA in May, will be working on his Masters during his final season with the Dogs in the fall and plans a career as a coach and teacher.
“I’ve been blessed by having so many good teachers and coaches,” he said.
Durham sat out last season after shoulder surgery and looks forward to being back on the field for spring practice. “I’m just hoping I’m not as rusty as I think I’m going to be,” he said.
—————————————
The competition for the starting quarterback job officially opens Thursday with the first session of spring practice. How long the competition will last is very much up in the air.
“We [coaches] talked about that today,” Mark Richt said late Friday, “and I said, ‘If we think we have an outright No. 1 [by the end of spring], we’re going to say it. If we don’t think so, we won’t.’ I don’t feel a need to do it; I don’t think it’s a must. But if someone separates himself and deserves to be considered the starter by the end of that time, we’ll do it.
“But I think it’s going to be hard to make that decision after spring, I really do. We might be able to say who’s No. 1, who’s No. 2, who’s No. 3, but even if a guy is No. 1 at the end of spring, I don’t know if I could just sit there and say he’s going to be the starter.”
—————————————
FRIDAY UGA SPORTS ROUNDUP: The No. 5-ranked gymnastics team defeated No. 10 LSU 196.575-196.050 at Stegeman Coliseum. The GymDogs remained unbeaten at home (4-0). Check out an AJC photo gallery here. . . . The baseball team routed Stetson 12-2 in the opener of a three-game weekend series at Foley Field. Winning pitcher Justin Grimm allowed two hits in 5 2/3 innings, leaving with an 11-0 lead. . . . . . The softball team won twice, beating Iowa State 8-0 and Charleston Southern 6-2 in the first day of the Georgia Softball Classic. Sophomore pitcher Erin Arevalo got the win in both games.
SATURDAY UGA SPORTS ROUNDUP: The men’s basketball team held on for a big win over Florida at Stegeman Coliseum. See full story here. . . . The baseball team scored two runs in the eighth inning to beat Stetson 9-8 at Foley Field. The Dogs won despite a huge day by Stetson second baseman Robert Crews, who hit three home runs. Georgia scored its first seven runs with two outs. . . . The softball team won two more games in the Georgia Softball Classic at the UGA Softball Stadium, beating Iowa State 11-3 and St. John’s 6-2. Georgia will play South Alabama for the tournament championship Sunday afternoon. . . . . The men’s tennis team opened its outdoor season with a 7-0 win over East Tennessee State at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. . . . In track and field, Tommy Barrineau won UGA’s first heptathlon title at the SEC Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Georgia is in second place in the men’s team competition and in ninth place on the women’s side heading into the meet’s final day Sunday. . . . The No. 1-ranked equestrian team defeated South Carolina 13-6.
SUNDAY UGA SPORTS ROUNDUP: In track and field, sophomore Torrin Lawrence won the 400-meter dash at the SEC Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., with a meet-record time of 45.10. Lawrence, who already owned the third-fastest collegiate indoor time in history, now has the fourth fastest too. Georgia finished fifth in the team competition on both the men’s and women’s sides. . . . The softball team defeated South Alabama 4-1 to win the championship of the seventh annual Georgia Softball Classic at the UGA Softball Stadium, with sophomore pitcher Erin Arevalo once again getting the win. For the tournament, Arevalo made three starts and two relief appearances, went 5-0 with a 0.00 earned run average, and struck out 31 batters. She has a 43 1/3-inning streak without allowing an earned run, dating back to Feb. 19. . . . The women’s basketball team defeated Arkansas 69-48 on Senior Day in Stegeman Coliseum. Senior guard Ashley Houts had 15 points. . . . The baseball team completed a three-game sweep of Stetson at Foley Field, winning the series finale 7-5. Right fielder Peter Verdin had three RBI, including a two-run homer. . . . The equestrian team defeated Baylor 13-6 at the UGA Equestrian Center.
————————————
Wondering who’s playing where in the football team’s new 3-4 defense? Click here.
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
139 comments Add your comment
Gay-turd = yellow fuzz
February 27th, 2010
8:37 pm
Can smell him a mile away
Louie
February 27th, 2010
8:40 pm
jackhammer . 8;00 is now 8:40
We must be where we are supposed to be.
Ineed an answer!
Hosee
February 27th, 2010
8:43 pm
They bought all them little stores, raised the prices high as h… I’m gonna get me some picket signs.
gwite
February 27th, 2010
8:53 pm
Did anyone take the time to completely read what A.J. Greene actually said, instead of immediately jumping to hone in on one seperate morsel of his words to criticize?
bravebob
February 27th, 2010
9:15 pm
seems to me if u work half the day recruiting thats 12 hrs
so 3/4 of the rest of the day is 9 hrs so he sleeps 3 hrs
THE YELLOW SWARM
February 27th, 2010
9:17 pm
BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB
UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444
555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
4444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
THE YELLOW SWARM
February 27th, 2010
9:18 pm
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED
AJ Green
February 27th, 2010
9:34 pm
AJ is one fine young man. Please lay off the kid with the criticism. He was hurt in 09 and would have been AA w.o. injuries. HE IS AT the level where the individual awards are meaningful and in winning them, he will elevate UGA.
Come ……………these guys all get mis quoted or taken out of context. Give him a break. After all, Hershal went to the pros after his 3rd year. Come on ………………….so would we all.
Gooooooooooooooooooo Dogs
The WARNING
February 27th, 2010
9:37 pm
The Tech warning is so pathetic. The jellowed jacket is 1-8 and 4-16 over like 20 years with UGA so any warning out to be that they are planning on suicide. HAHAHAHAHAH
There goes Caleb. Wooooooooooooooooooooosh. There goes Waushuan ……………woosh.
AAAAAAAAAAAAHAHHAHAHA 30-24 and in November y’all and your bad legged, Crippled Qb will be crying. Josh’s back up Qbs would not start at Samford or Millsaps College.
AltamahaDawg
February 27th, 2010
10:30 pm
gwite, you must be new around here. The folks would carve out a single word if they thought it would help them pretend to be an expert on what everybody else thinks.
Reptillicide
February 28th, 2010
4:35 am
Did St. Simons die and come back as Gator Nation?
BuLLdawg
February 28th, 2010
4:36 am
by
Dawg Tired
February 27th, 2010 10:33 am
“I’m amazed at the folks who know more about football than Coach Richt and Coach Bobo. I can tell you that these guys do know what they’re doing, and they are doing it in the toughest football conference in America and have done it well, appearing in the SEC Championship game on a regular basis.”
END B.S.
Is that why Coach Richt and Mike Bobo are :
1-3 vs Florida the last 4 years
1-3 vs the vols the last 4 years
2-2 vs Kentucky the last 4 years
Start Caleb King 4.8 ypc not Washaun Ealey 5.8 ypc
Started Aron White until 12th game of 13-game season because White made 3 catches all of his freshman year, while Orson Charles had 23 catches his freshman year.
Can you remind me please the folks who have lined up trying to hire away Coach Richt or Mike Bobo ? Oh, no one, I see.
Which one was the genius who had Aaron Murray throw his arm out before last season, setting him back another year, after his injury coming into college of a broken leg.
10-10 vs SEC East alone the last 4 years
2 passes thrown to Branden Smith all season long last year
2 passes thrown to Marlon Brown all season long last year
14 rushes Moreno per game vs Alabama Georgia tek and Florida 2008
# 56 nation # 5 SEC Rushing Offense with Knowshon Moreno 2008
# 84 nation # 8 SEC Passing Offense with Matthew Stafford 2007
Redshirted Washaun Ealey until 3rd Quarter 5th game 2009
Redshirted Knowshon Moreno so we saw him only 2 years, gone.
Joe Tereshinski III Starter 2006, Joe Cox back-up # 2, Stafford 3rd Depth Chart
tony
February 28th, 2010
6:52 am
Does Mr.Richt have anything against Aaron Murray? I think the man is losing his mind if he can’t see that Aaron Murray is the best qb on that team. WAIT A MINUTE! This reminds me of the DJ Shockley and David Green situation. Since David Green was taller Mr. Richt decided to let Green be the starter eventhough DJ Shockley was more athletic. I’m 100% sure that if DJ was name the starter instead of Green we would have won a National Championship and 3 or 4 SEC Titles. Imagine DJ running the offense when VanGorder was the DC.
Look like history will repeat itself. Since Mettenberger is taller than Murray, clueless Richt will go with him. LOL! Mr. Richt is going to look like a real fool when Aaron Murray end up being the starter after we being saying all along that Aaron Murray is the better qb. Mr.Richt’s inept decision making is the very reason why the dawgs havn’t gotten to the BIG DANCE. We lose the state’s top recruits for that same reason. It took the man 5 seasons to realize that he needed a better DC. That’s sad.
This is what I see. Despite Richt’s inept decision making, Aaron Murray and Mr.Granthan are going to make him and his mediocre OC look like geniuses.
Louie
February 28th, 2010
7:49 am
Well, where do I start.
jackhammer, REAL disappointed in you last night, son. You were on the WRONG page.
Let’s look at the time AND date. Check back on this page to see when I was calling you out.
Now, why be worried about naming a starter in the spring. That could change like the wind with 3 qb’s at any time, especially seeing how GREEN ALL 3 ARE !!!
Like I said before, you need 2 hats. One to put it in, the other to cover it up.
STILL ..
LATER..
( Change the subject now, ok )
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
8:15 am
”Woke up this morning tasting Jim Beam, holding the answer to some ol’ boys dream!”.
SickandTired
February 28th, 2010
8:32 am
Makes perfect sense to use Matthew Stafford as an example for Green. He stuck around just long enough to get a check and then hit the road. Party boy, Me Player, punk that will get nothing accomplished in Detroit. AJ you gotta be smarter than that…however, there is no chance that he’ll play 4 years in Athens….none.
poopdawg
February 28th, 2010
8:42 am
Mr Tucker, the headline should read ” A.J. Green’s PERSONAL goal?” Forget about writing another line in the blog to clarify. I find it hard to believe this was an incidental error. This kid took the time to talk to you and you put a negative light(making him appear selfish) on such a class act. Why would any Dawg let you interview them in the future?
Big Bad BEE-lieve
February 28th, 2010
8:45 am
November
Nuff said
45-42
Mike
February 28th, 2010
8:48 am
I wish CMR was working even 4 hours a day to make this program better. He’s the one that needs to be burning the midnight oil. I remember a few years ago reading an article about Joe Gibbs (in his heyday with the Redskins) actually sleeping in a cot at the Redskins training facility. Compared to Sabin and Meyer, CMR is about 6-8 hours behind every day. Some advice for AJ – you don’t have to pursue a football goal, if you show it on the field, the goal will come to you. I heard the defensive players are excited about the “new” defense. Thing is – doesn’t matter what defense or offense you run, if players don’t make plays, it don’t work.
poopdawg
February 28th, 2010
8:50 am
SickandTired, Stafford has got about 43 milion things($) guarenteed accomplished. Quit begging A.J. he nor Stafford are selfish.
Big Bad BEE-lieve
February 28th, 2010
8:57 am
Like I said
Nuff said
45-42
Porty
February 28th, 2010
9:22 am
TIm, it’s okay for a guy to have a personal goal of winnning an SEC division title, an SEC title and a Nat’l Title (not that any of those will happen). This is the problem at Georgia. Too many “me’s.” That and a lack of discipline.
dear UGA98
February 28th, 2010
9:54 am
“a degree should mean something” – it does in quality schools, just not the SEC. Would you turn down millions of dollars to stay at UGA for a year and risk a career-ending injury? A UGA housing degree should earn you $40k a year. You’d need to work 25 years to earn a lousy million dollars.
AJ Green could command 5x that in a signing bonus.
some of you dawg fans are really hilarious
bill_in_atl
February 28th, 2010
10:00 am
I think Murray may have been the guy LAST year but his shoulder tendinitis made the decision for the coaches to stick with Cox. Mett clearly wasn’t ready last year and Gray simply isn’t the answer apparently.
Murray will be the man this year and considering the 10 starters returning that include a very solid running game, the best WR in America and perhaps the best group of TEs,
Dogs will surprise a lot of people in 2010.
Yellow Fuzz
February 28th, 2010
10:09 am
Prediction on Dwyer
1. Selected in first 2 rounds
2. Finalist for NFL Rookie of the year.
3. Pro Bowl by 2nd season.
4. Great role model for entire playing career.
5. Retires wealthy
6. Gets his Tech degree by age 40
7. Represents a Fortune 500 company and draws an NFL pension his entire life
8. Probably helps coach his son’s youth teams
9. Gives enormous ammount back to his community
10. Helps recruit the state for Tech.
DOUG
February 28th, 2010
10:20 am
Green will have a big year if he stays healthy. Rookie QB always needs a go to guy. AJ and Durham will be there.
As far as him staying for four years….Not a chance. He has not had an easy life and with the threat of injuries why stay? I would leave the first chance I got.
Joe Gator
February 28th, 2010
10:37 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSnew1PIYqk&feature=related
Surprised Bobo/Cox didn’t try this last year
GoDOGS
February 28th, 2010
10:50 am
Louie, you do realize what a pathetic loser you are, right? You have such a woody for UGA it is sickening. Fricking pervert!
BAMA STAN
February 28th, 2010
10:57 am
Hey Joe Gator. Hahaha. Two things. One, someone would have likely clipped 50 yards behind the play calling it all back. Or Two, the obsessive celebration penalty that followed would have had them kicking off from their 20 yard line. The other team would have answered in 3-4 plays tops. But like you, I’m supprised they never tried it.
UGASlobberknocker
February 28th, 2010
11:32 am
It is nice to have a top drawer journalist covering the Dawgs. I must be old as dirt, because I can remember when Tim Tucker was one of the best BASEBALL writers in the country. What was that, Tim, the 50’s?
Louie
February 28th, 2010
11:44 am
Well, where do I start.
jackhammer, STILL disappointedson.
To godogs, well never mind.I don’t argue with ignorance.
Be in and out today.
Hope we change the subject.
STILL… OH YEAH..
Tim Tucker
February 28th, 2010
11:49 am
UGASlobberknocker: Thanks for the kind words, and for reading all these years. It was the ’80s. You and I must have been really young back then, right?
dan
February 28th, 2010
12:15 pm
EX Georgia Fan
“Georgia’s problem is they have more players eyeing the Combine than the SEC championship game.”
That attitude reflects leadership my friend. When you have an Head Coach who is no longer hungry, Assistant Coaches who are idiots, and when you have to carry the ENTIRE offense for the first 8 games because you QB sucks and because your OL and running game decide not to show up until the 9th game of the season: Wouldn’t YOU want to leave early for the NFL draft too!! You think any of these guy have ever cared about getting their ” Housing” degree from UGA?? Get real pal!
Look at from AJ’s perspective: If he leaves he’s likely the top WR in the draft. After this year, he’ll have caught balls from Stafford( a 1# draft pick), Joe Cox( who sucks), and a rookie QB this season. In addition to his physical skills, he brings tons of intangibles like being able carry an offense and be the go to guy in the 4th quarter. Teams look for such things. Honestly, after seeing AJ play last year, I feel he’s more NFL ready than Stafford or Knowshon were at this stage in their careers, and those guys were very good! The Dawgs aren’t likely to be a National Tile contender anytime soon, so I wouldn’t blame him for leaving early.
Fox trumps Richt, makes SportsCenter “Top 10″ with trick shot | UGA sports blog
February 28th, 2010
1:31 pm
[...] Click here for more UGA notes, including a chat with A.J. Green, a visit with a football player who’s student-teaching this semester and a roundup of weekend results. [...]
Ex Georgia Fan
February 28th, 2010
1:40 pm
dan,
That’s why I am no longer a Georgia Fan. I got tired of all the “next year” and “this year” and “next year” and “this years”. I’m a 1983 grad but just couldn’t stand the roller coaster ride anymore. I have more important things in my life now.
I will say that I am encouraged with the new defensive staff and over all fan optimism. But I still don’t see the Junkyard Dawg mentality and over player achievement that I saw back in the 70’s and 80’s. Not even close.
I hate Alabama but love the mind set that Saban was able to institute over there so quickly. And I hate Alabama fans but respect the 95,000 that “showed him the money” by attending his first spring game. I still marvel at that!
That’s the way I remember it at Georgia back in the day, but I don’t see it any more. Again, not even close.
Dawg Nation
February 28th, 2010
1:51 pm
Ex Georgia Fan:
I see where you are coming from. It’s been tough on this 76 grad the last few years as well. Like you I respect what Saban did in a short time at AL and believe our coaching staff will do similarly over the next 1-4 years. They are competitive and professional and will move Heaven and Earth to correct last season and any complacencies that developed before that. I look for the Junkyard D to return next fall and beleieve the O has a few cans of pay back to open up as well.
GT Rich
February 28th, 2010
1:52 pm
Oh, I just want to cry (and be held).
GT Rich
February 28th, 2010
1:53 pm
Ditto for Dawg Nation. Pass the Kleenex.
Louie
February 28th, 2010
4:39 pm
jackhammer, go to the top page son.