Grantham regrets choke sign: ‘Sometimes you get caught up in heat of moment’
(Updated 7:15 p.m.)
ATHENS – Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, caught on camera making a choking gesture toward Florida’s kicker near the end of last Saturday’s game, expressed regret about the incident Tuesday.
“As a competitor, sometimes you get caught up in the heat of the moment,” Grantham said. “I wish the situation hadn’t happened.
“It was a tough, hard-fought game. They won it, and I’m ready to move forward and finish out the year strong.”
Grantham said he has talked with Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity and coach Mark Richt about the incident, “and we’re ready to move forward.”
Asked if he feels that he owes an apology to the Florida kicker, Chas Henry, Grantham said: “I’ve kind of basically said what I’m going to say.”
Earlier Tuesday, at his weekly news conference, Richt also addressed the Grantham controversy.
“I’m aware of it, and I would just say that emotions run high,” Richt said. “People do things they probably wish they didn’t do. I think that was what was being communicated. I don’t think he’s necessarily proud of it. We’re just going to learn from it and move on.”
A screen shot and video from Florida sports cable network Sun Sports showed Grantham making a choke sign – grabbing his neck with his right hand several times — before Henry attempted a 37-yard field goal in overtime.
Henry, a Dallas, Ga., native, made the kick to give Florida a 34-31 victory.
In an interview on CBS after the game, Henry said: “Some of [Georgia's] coaches on the sideline were over there giving me a little grief, saying I was going to choke.”
Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray, asked about the controversy Tuesday, said he hadn’t seen the video but had heard about the matter.
Grantham “was probably just like the rest of us, just hoping [Henry] missed the kick,” Murray said. “I don’t think it’s anything too much to get worked up about. It’s not like he charged the field at the kicker and tried to do something to him. . . . I think people are trying to make too big a deal about it.”
McGarity discussed the matter with SEC commissioner Mike Slive, according to UGA spokesman Claude Felton. “To the best of our knowledge,” Felton said, “the SEC is not pursuing anything on that.”
Durham likely out
Georgia wide receiver Kris Durham likely will be sidelined for Saturday’s game against Idaho State but should be available for the Nov. 13 game at Auburn, Richt said.
Durham suffered a bruised lung as a result of a fierce hit on a second-quarter catch against Florida. He returned to the game in the third quarter.
“I was a little upset because at first [doctors and trainers] told me I wasn’t going to be able to go back in,” Durham said Tuesday. “I mean, I wasn’t hurting. Well, yeah, I was a little sore, but that’s nothing.
“The only thing that really scared them was when I started kind of coughing up a little blood. But I felt fine. I could take deep breaths. They listened to my lungs and to my heart and took some vitals. I felt like I could play, so they allowed me back in. … I was very, very grateful for that because it was my last go-round against the Gators.”
Commings’ misplay
Among the Georgia players second-guessing themselves for misplays against Florida: cornerback Sanders Commings, who attempted to scoop and run with a first-quarter Florida fumble inside the Gators’ 10-yard line.
“I wish I would have just fallen on the ball now,” Commings said Tuesday. “It would have given the offense great field position to score, but I guess all I can do now is learn from it.”
Richt said the rule of thumb is to simply jump on the fumble “if there are bodies around” or to scoop and run with it “if you’re out in space.” He said Georgia twice Saturday tried to scoop-and-run with fumbles that should have been jumped on.
The Gators recovered the fumble that eluded Commings. It proved to be the first play of a 91-yard drive to the game’s first touchdown.
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752 comments Add your comment
Shankit
November 2nd, 2010
4:03 pm
ga gator
Your comment about getting bitten by
a Dawg on the leg in 1969.
What a coincidence, that game wound up
in a tie also. 13 – 13 if I recall.
Sad, no playoff that year, and it cost
ya’ll the SEC title. No wonder ya’ll
hate us.
SadDawg
November 2nd, 2010
4:03 pm
Right, Charlotte Dawg (see my Who damn cares post @ 2:58).
Mr Small, only a techie would talk about penises on a football blog. Maybe you should see someone about that size envy. Jeez.
True DAWG fan
November 2nd, 2010
4:04 pm
ga gator amen brother…..you had a game which both teams wanted,we made a ton of mistakes…but we played through all of them unlike other UGA teams that just fold up..we could of easily let the db score on that pick…but king ran the length of the field and pushed him out at he one.That kid just like all of the kids for both teams left it all on the field,I hate either school had 2 lose,they both deserved to win. GO DAWGS!! but both programs are playing way below there standards period!
SadDawg
November 2nd, 2010
4:08 pm
Again, why are the only ones shrieking about this, other than the AJC, the techie girls? Wasn’t the kicker a UF player?
True DAWG fan
November 2nd, 2010
4:08 pm
whatever
If a UF Coach had done the choke
November 2nd, 2010
4:09 pm
All you Georgia trailer park red necks would be crying up a storm..
snapshot
November 2nd, 2010
4:12 pm
mtn mutt, I see you are not very much on sportsmanship.
ga gator
November 2nd, 2010
4:13 pm
Since I go to all of the UGA home games, I hated for Murray and some of the other Florida boys on the team, but still with what this Florida team has had to go through since last Jan, I agree with Meyer that it was one of the programs most important wins of all time. That should tell you of the respect he and most true Gators have for Georgia.
snapshot
November 2nd, 2010
4:14 pm
YOU TYPE IN ALL CAPS to.
Buckeye
November 2nd, 2010
4:16 pm
Repeat after me……”We’re going to the Birmingham Bowl! ” Bruce has already made reservations, right Bruce?
Shankit
November 2nd, 2010
4:19 pm
Buckeye
After your game with Iowa, I guess we will
see you on TV at the Outback Bowl, getting
your usual whipping by the 3rd place SEC team.
Bad Dawg, Bad Dawg
November 2nd, 2010
4:23 pm
I can’t believe these posts “what’s the big deal”. It’s just another poor example coming out of Athens. Sad, very sad.
Bruce Murray
November 2nd, 2010
4:26 pm
Anyone who cannot see what’s wrong with a Defensive Coordinator giving the choke sign to an amateur player and yelling to the player that he’s going to choke, is an idiot. Period. Dude makes 750 large a year. The kid is an amateur athlete. This guy is the kind of guy who gives collegiate sports a bad name. Probably went after refs in his kids pee wee game too.
.. Choking Hazard ..
November 2nd, 2010
4:29 pm
The Dawgs ………CHOKE…….every year in Jacksonville.
Pope UGA XXIII
November 2nd, 2010
4:29 pm
Of what relevance is this to anything ??
Didn’t seem to be anything wrong with the Florida coach acting
up on the sideleines in previous games
Red-N-Black
November 2nd, 2010
4:29 pm
collegeballfan
November 2nd, 2010
2:16 pm
“GT Alum – you shouldn’t and you shouldn’t be on Bulldog discussion either.”
This is not a “Bulldog discussion”. It is a sports fan discussion. All are welcome, Dogs, Jackets, Gators, Vols, Fighting Irish – well maybe not Fighting Irish – lets don’t push this thing to far. But the forum is not owned by the Dogs but by Cox Enterprises.
Just saying.
You are just to stupid to get the meaning, and just like my Daddy alway’s said: You just can’t fix stupid.
Shankit
November 2nd, 2010
4:30 pm
Grantham will be all right, so long as he
don’t start wearing a visor.
gbal
November 2nd, 2010
4:31 pm
Bruce – A coach showing emotion is not a bad thing – We could expect them all to be like CMR I guess
F.A Grantham
November 2nd, 2010
4:32 pm
I said it once I will only say this one more time. I was making the choke sign at the FLA kicker meaning I WAS GOING TO CHOKE THE LIFE OUT OF HIM IF HE MISSED THAT KICK!!! F.A. was ready to get his grub on. What do I care about a bunch of rednecks that were stupid enough to pay me 750,000.
j$dawg
November 2nd, 2010
4:33 pm
Good game to Florida. Hard fought by both teams.
The only ones that seem to be bothered by this are the writers and fans who support GT.
I don’t know what it is with GT. They are more concerned with what GA is doing than their own team.
I was watching the GA/CO game at a local sports bar and as GT was making a come back on Wake Forest, the GT fans didn’t even pay attention to the GT comeback. They were too busy cheering for Colorado.
Too funny!
but running the team into the end zone is ok
November 2nd, 2010
4:33 pm
let’s face it – when you are 3-18 against your opponent, class and poise go out the window
GT's A Joke
November 2nd, 2010
4:33 pm
Bruce Murray:
“Probably went after refs in his kids pee wee game too.”
I don’t know about Grantham but I routinely go after refs in my kid’s pee wee league. I sent threatening texts to one guy and tackled another and gouged him in the eyes but I don’t use the “choke” sign, I just wait until after the game and choke him on the way to the car.
Just joking.
atl xmen
November 2nd, 2010
4:35 pm
i vote who cares aswell and its no big deal… hope he does it next time he gets a chance. it works sometimes..: )
i love the passion he shows and i love the coolness richt shows. a great mix
Shankit
November 2nd, 2010
4:36 pm
Apparently Bruce Murray ain’t got no kids
that play Pee Wee football.
gatorpop
November 2nd, 2010
4:37 pm
CMR says he expects the best conduct out of our players but then it is excusable and ok for the coach to be a jackass and get caught at it…I really expected CMR to care a little more about such unsportsmanlike behavior.
Ha
November 2nd, 2010
4:38 pm
Typical classless losers at ga. That is all you are. Losers living in the past, still hanging on to 30 years ago with dirtbag criminal players and scumbag coaches. You deserve all the self inflicted negativity you get.
You want Class?
November 2nd, 2010
4:38 pm
How about reinstating a player that told his ex: “Time to die biotch!” just in time for a rivalry game? That’s sad. Unfortunately, a choke sign, not a throat slashing sign, is viewed as over the top. The hypocrisy is overwhelming. The pussification of this country continues.
wildbill
November 2nd, 2010
4:39 pm
Xmen, CMR isn’t cool, he’s asleep at the wheel.
Coach
November 2nd, 2010
4:41 pm
was choking himself with his hand because he couldn’t reach far enough around with his foot to kick himself in the a$$ for accepting a job at a program that is obviously headed into the toilet
bullochdog
November 2nd, 2010
4:42 pm
I just hope this is one more THING that contributes to the firing of CMR this season! UGA fans and alumni deserve a top notch, elite coach. Mark Richt is not and will never be a championship level coach.
Dawg_Mike
November 2nd, 2010
4:45 pm
This is such a non story-
This is big time college football, not pee wee league.
Have we reached my projected over/under of 25 yet for number of blog topics about UGA/FL ?
looks like we are hitting the over.
Twisted
November 2nd, 2010
4:47 pm
Some of you on this thread are so stupid it is pitiful. First of all, the Meyer timeouts weren’t last year…get a clue. They were 2 years ago. And they were in direct response to the orchestrated celebration penalty from the year before….so UGA coaching started it all. Only difference is calling timeouts is legal and not a penalty and what UGA did was not. And for those mentioning the eye-gouge, well that was national news and the player got suspended. What is happening to Grantham for breaking the NCAA Code of Ethics (several items relate specifically to precisely what he did)?
Dawg 75-76 and Mtn Dawg are as clueless as humans come. If Grantham was my coach I would be totally embarrassed. And trying to justify bad behavior by citing poor behavior of others is a loser’s national anthem.
What now?
November 2nd, 2010
4:51 pm
It’s sickening for a coach to act this childishly. Grantham should be fired.
Mobile Dawg
November 2nd, 2010
4:52 pm
Sorry Dawgs, there’s no place in college athletics for that kind of unsportsman like conduct. CTG just withdrew his resume for the Interim Head Coach position.
Fan-attic
November 2nd, 2010
4:55 pm
Enter your comments here
Ethics? We dun need no steenking ethics!
November 2nd, 2010
5:01 pm
What is happening to Grantham for breaking the NCAA Code of Ethics (several items relate specifically to precisely what he did)?
Absolutely nothing. That’s Richt’s way.
There’s a reason why UGA is called The Cesspool of the South.
Ron Burgundy
November 2nd, 2010
5:04 pm
In other news, UGA is like school on Saturday, no class.
Billy Jack DAWG
November 2nd, 2010
5:04 pm
MTN. DAWG AND WHAT # AQRE YOU
Kyle
November 2nd, 2010
5:04 pm
Only a Democrat would be worried about a cut throat gesture because they don’t want to hurt anybodys feelings. Wimps. Hopefully they will get the big cut throat starting at 7 tonight.
oh my
November 2nd, 2010
5:04 pm
too funny. i really don’t give a rat’s a$$ that he did it. who cares? i know Florida fans don’t, Georgia fans don’t. only idiots who care are loser Tech fans. good thing i have many Tech fans that aren’t as$holes like those on this blog or i’d really hate Tech. As it is now, tech is just a team we beat every year.
Billy Jack DAWG
November 2nd, 2010
5:05 pm
EXCUSE THE TYPING ERROR SHOULDE BE WHAT # ARE YOU
oh my
November 2nd, 2010
5:06 pm
For the record, Spikes suspended himself for 1/2 game. Get real.
gatorboy62
November 2nd, 2010
5:08 pm
Ah DAWGS fans….your coach choking, running onto the field, etc, etc.
All that can be said is 18 of 21….not bad, ha!
oh my
November 2nd, 2010
5:08 pm
most of the critics are just hypocritical. get over it and get a life. oh, that’s right, most
tech fans have no life that’s why they are on here.
“punch in the mouth”, yeah that’s classy. of course b/c cpj said it, it was a “joke”. fu
The Ole Ball Coach
November 2nd, 2010
5:09 pm
Kill Football kill It, I mean Stop this game at once. Good Lord move on…..Nothing to see here.
Mark Richt
November 2nd, 2010
5:09 pm
Richt: Hey good game Gators, nice kick by that Gator punter. Let’s go pray in the middle of the field because it is just a game and we are all brothers in Christ…Gators and Dawgs
Grantham did wha? Oh well, we all do things that some of us may feel like we really wish we didn’t do. Not saying Grantham or I am sorry. I am just saying.
Bullpups and Richt are hypocrites and sore losers. What are they teaching those kids? Oh right, nothing.
Jason
November 2nd, 2010
5:09 pm
It may have been stupid and childish, but Aaron Murry is right. Jeff (and others) have been making way too big a deal out of this. And Jeff may say that this is not about political correctness, but it really is. If anything, Jeff should be whining about the foul language (that is prevalent throughout our society) rather than the choke sign.
Hey gatorboy
November 2nd, 2010
5:10 pm
gatorboy, you have no class. was that really needed? you are the typical jacka$$ fan that makes people hate florida, and i went to UF
Twisted
November 2nd, 2010
5:10 pm
oh my,
wrong..the UF coaches extended Spikes suspension to a full game. Get your facts right – chump.
AUTiger89
November 2nd, 2010
5:10 pm
Georgia? Florida? neither one are relevant so it really doesn’t matter. Hope you Dawg fans stick with your man Richt. He is an absolutely pathetic coach and will never see another SEC championship game unless he buys a ticket or watches it on TV. Mediocrity=UGA