Q&A: Brent Benedict confirms dispute with Georgia’s new strength coach

It sounds like Richt and Benedict are handling things with as much class as possible, given the situation. I’ll give Benedict credit that he didn’t get into the details of whatever personal issues he had with Coach T. I do take issue with the timing of his decision to leave UGA, but I’m glad he’s not headed somewhere in the SEC. Time to close the book on this one.

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Well said, PBT.

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Good luck, Brent. Guess you still get to beat up Nerds, afterall.

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Goodbye… Now lets get ready for Boise

GATA

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I just hope Joe T’s S & C program is not based solely on “when I was playin ball, we did _________”. As a S & C guy, I see this a lot with “old school” coaches. Chances are they will be better conditioned because they won’t be training for a weightlifting meet like they did in the past. Bench pressing 500 lbs is great and all but when in a football game are you lying on your back and pushing something 1 time? Train them to be quick, agile, fast, explosive for a full football game. Not 1 rep.

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VinnyD…you are right. Last few years we looked great in the hotel lobby. Not so much after that. If Coach T is trying to get them “country” strong, I am all for it. That is the strength that matters on the field. Ask any player that has had to play the U Iowa. Strongest team in college football 4 out of the last 5 years. They are country strong.

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[...] Brant Benedict says he left Georgia because of Coach Tereshinski, but has no hard feelings about it. [...]

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Sounds like he couldn’t hack it. He was cleared medically to 100% participate and he wanted to still use his previous injury as a crutch to not 100% participate. I think he was given the ultimatum of “you are either all in or you’re not on the team” and he chose to walk. Sad because he was a great recruit on paper, but when push came to shove he crumbled… not what you would want in an offensive lineman.

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I am truly saddened to see Benedict leave UGA. He was a great “get” as a recruit, and appears to be a solid young man. His leaving will not help our offensive line depth whatsoever. His leaving, is not however, a great loss. To date, he has really never done a thing at UGA. The relationship has been completely one sided from a football standpoint. Richt is a great man for honoring the scholarship, and as the young man concedes UGA really assisted greatly in his rehab. It’s just unfortunate that things did not work out.

If he feels strongly that he has a pro career ahead of him and this is the way to pursue it, then good luck to him. On the other hand I applaud UGA for not letting one student’s feeling about how he should be coached upset what appears to be a new mindset with training.

No party is at fault here. Both should move on. I think many fans are a little put off, because this seems to be the story with so many of the highly recruited linemen we have had over the past 5 years. Great in high school, injured in college, and non-contributors to the program.

Ah well…..bring on Boise St.

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Dunwoody Joe, you lost me. A 19 year old kid leaves and suddenly ’something is not right inside this Bulldog program? Tell us, please, what makes you say that based on this article?

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Sounds like he needs to grow up. Coaches run the program- thankfully we did not give into this brat. I am sorry- his reasons just dont get it- what happens at VT when he decides he doesnt agree with something coach Beamer does??????? Good for CMR on this one- we need to get rid of players that think they can run the show.

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[...] Former Georgia lineman confirms dispute with new strength coach [AJC] [...]

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I am very tired of hearing about this kid. He has nerve damage that is not going to heal well enough for him to contribute and he is a huge ‘me guy’ that is only concerned about himself. His dad is even worse. Kids like this (and Dowtin, Caleb King, Ealey, etc.) are the reason UGA has been so bad the last few years. Good luck to him at Va. Tech and good riddance.

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Good luck to the young man.

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I wish I had a job like the ALC headline writer.

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I hope we are expanding the offense a little as to add some formations and plays to utilize some of the other athletes on this roster. I know Richt won’t stray far, but with limited PROVEN RB’s, it might give the other D something to prepare for and keep them a little off balance.

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He sounds like he consulted with a lawyer before he made this interview. He didn’t say anything that could be held against him down the road. It looks like he protected everybody. The kid is very bright.
Not buying the idea he wants to play at VT. He probably wants to play in the SEC and close to home.
Good luck to the kid and hope we hear from him in the NFL. Probably shouldn’t have ran this guy off.

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I’m all for the changes coach T has made, even with no real knowledge of them. I just know I’ve heard it’s totally changed and it’s more intense. I’ve seen all I want to see of our Dawgs huffing and puffing in the second half and being physically pushed around by the likes of Kentucky!

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Guess he doesn’t like working out like the big boys do.

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Mr.Benedict, you should know to never butt heads with someone who has the influence to have a relative start at quarterback against the Florida Gators, whose previous job was “punt protector.”

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I’m torn. Aparently the kid is a spoiled sissy and dont let the door hit you etc. But there are also aparently BIG problems in Athens. Too close to call on this one.

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Seems like this was handled about as well as it could be by all parties. Coaches did the right thing, school did the right thing and the young man handled it with maturity. Sorry it didn’t work out but it happens. Wish him luck at VT.

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mike @ 7:51……….Blog…. Defined as putting out a story or topic and have the readers of said story comment and give opinions of said story……………….Just for your information.

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I applaud the UGA coaching staff for sticking by their guns. The kid will probably be better off someplace else. I just wonder though if he will leave VT if he doesn’t like some aspect of the training program? I think his father influenced his decision a little as well. No matter where he goes, he will have to work hard to earn a starting spot. Good luck to him though. Both parties gained in this I think.

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Good move. IF he reacted soft ( to coach T)….he would of played soft. Good luck to him and VT

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Go Dawgs!

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Committment: I noticed in the article, Benefict spoke of committment to Virginia. I wonder if he will honor that committment? Wonder if someone makes him mad.

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Wish him the best…the kid is a class act. Hope he wins big against the team on North Ave. Go DAWGS!

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Tide Roll must of worked the late shift last night. He’s normally on here telling UGA how to manage their OL and who to sign.

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9 of 10 dogs smell. Live it every day. It’s not even a rivalry anymore, even with you guys having ” THE BEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACH IN AMERICA”.

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Did Coach Tereshinski work the poor wittle baby too hard? Here is a lolly pop now go play ACC ball.

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Glad you gone. What a wimp! Kids now a days don’t want to work hard for some reason.
You’ll fit in fine with Va Tech!

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We’ll find out soon enough if Coach T was the man for the job. I sure hope he is.

It does seem strange that he has been an assistant for many years and only now becomes a S&C coach.

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If you ain’t running some people off then you ain’t working ‘em hard enough.

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Oscar……….You’re kidding about Saban , Right? These kids come from the same gene pool. The State of Alabama is Sooooooooo in the tank for that football program that the cops by pass the “system” and take these kids directly to Saban and avoid the press. Do you think for one minute your little darlings don’t drink, chase women,stay out late, bump a another car with theirs, cheat on a test????? Do you really think that?

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When the kid signed our S&C staff consisted of 3-4 coaches, now we have eleven. Obvioulsy there is a much different environment in the weight room now.

CMR had been lobbying former AD Evans for additional funding to expand the S&C staff but DE wanted to win championships in multiple sports and instead spread the money around that way. Naurally, when McGarity got here he saw a big difference in our S&C staff relative to what he had at UF. Thankfully, CMR and our new AD see eye to eye on this and we now have a staff that equals or exceeds our SEC rivals.

Benedict may not be the last to decide our new, larger and better organized staff makes things “too tough”. If so, I’m not about to wsh ill will on a kid that age but I also won’t mourn his departure. We need kids who ae willing to sacrifice for the team, realize what it means to wear that uniform, and be proud to do so. If not, they need to play somewhere else.

Joe T and staff are gonna make ‘em work but, for those that do, it is really gonna be worth it.

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“Train them to be quick, agile, fast, explosive for a full football game. Not 1 rep.”

From what I understand, this is exactly what they are doing. Apparently the coaches didn’t like how the team fared in the 4th quarter. So they are training them to have more endurance and out last the other team during the 4th.

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Wonder why UGA gave this “wuss” a scholarship to start with. Did he not indicate some sissy tendencies? I guess he fooled all the people below but he didn’t fool Tereshinski.

High School: The Bolles School, coached by Corky Rogers… SuperPrep All-America and All-Dixie teams…PrepStar Top 150 Dream Team..Sporting News Top 100….Scout.com Four-Star Player, #89 Player in the Country, #10 OT in the Country, #29 Player in the South, #13 Player in Florida…Rivals.com Four-Star Player, #76 Player in the Country, #12 OT in the country, #5 Player in Florida…#19 in the ESPNU 150… Mobile Press-Register Super Southeast 120…selected to play in Under Armour All-America game…Missed part of senior season due to injury

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If Coach T uses the same techniques that George Mrvos used as the strength coach at UGA in the Dooley years, the strength on our offensive line will greatly improve. Remember how our lines used to open up holes for all the great RB’s during Dooley’s era…that’s because they trained under Mrvos.

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What a baby. Gators were not willing to waste schlorship ion him. Remember Muschamp knows coach T well.

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Clearly Benedict would still be at UGA if allowed to Rehab an additional year, as he’s able to do at Va. Tech. This is what happens when your talent evaluation and Philosophy toward certain athletes you recriut for your offensive line is so poor. You end up signing players (like most of those in this year’s 9th rated offensive line class in the Conference, per rivals), that have no business playing SEC football. The attrition created by these recruiting mistakes then results in an incredible lack of depth. This lack of depth then leads Richt and Bobo to try to create depth by pressuring your S/C coordinator (whom they control because he doesn’t belong in that position to begin with), to get the kid ready when they know he’s not. The results are a disaster. The kid is forced to come back too soon, thus aggrvating the existing injury (See Trinton Sturdivant), and ruining his future. Benedict and his Dad saw what the UGA coaches did to Sturdivant, and wanted no part of it. He was right to leave. His football future and physical well being was at stake.

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There is nothing else to say other than to wish this young man well. It is now a dead issue for UGA. MOVE ON, everyone. This situation happens at many many colleges and not limited to just a few. Ok, ‘Dogs…let’s work toward our first game and make the Bulldog Nation cheer again. Let’s see some good attitude for a change.

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Tide roll………Kind of like Bammer between Stallings and Shula I guess

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Why don’t the people who tout Richt’s 10 year won/lost record also tout the fact that Van Halanger was the S&C coordinator?

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Benedict has a special situation with his knee which requires special training protocols, just like any injured athlete. Let it go folks. Joe T is doing things like he did in 1983, but the game has changed, so the training needs to change. I heard they arent doing any explosive training, agilities or plyometrics; isnt that the “football training” he bragged about doing in December? But they didnt do it in ‘84, so they arent doing it now. Mat Drills were legendary because they were hard, and related to football. Now they apparently run distance all week long, what does that have to do with football?

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doubledown

One kid leaving because of differences with the S&C program does not equal everyone is running away.

King flunked out
Harmon flunked out
Ealey was asked to leave
Gray quit because he is delusional enough to think he is a college QB
Mett was asked to leave

The #5 rated recruiting class in the country just signed also doesn’t agree with your statement either.

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“Now they apparently run distance all week long, what does that have to do with football”…. Duh, conditioning… You know, play all 4 quarters and not running out of gas.

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My guess is this team rally’s tight and punch’s Boise in the mouth and wins. Go Dawgs

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If you’re not RUNNING a few off each year, then you’re not pushing them hard enough. I love what jt2 has done. Think about how jacked the players will be in the Dome in the first game. Boise State is gonna get their butts kicked over and over again. Hard conditioning makes players mean and grateful… especially mean.

Go Dawgs!!!

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I wish Benedict the best. Coach Joe T. is exactly what this program needed. Now we will find out who truly wants to be a Dawg and players that will put the program first.

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who cares

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Chop Block. You’re right. That’s EXACTLY what Chris Davis did to Trinton Sturdivant.

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In Tereshinski we trust… All of Richt’s other hires have turned out so well.

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The biggest surprise in the SEC this year. Georgia. The biggest disappointment. Alabama.

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st richt…………You being a Techie know so little about UGA football, other than losing to us every year.
Tereshinski was hired by Dooley……..a longgggggggg time ago.

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@9:24 HUH?

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Tide roll thinks we get a horse doc from our Vet school to look at our players……LOL………See Auburn for that.

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02 and 05 can be credited for two reasons. Van Gorder and a much softer SEC.

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Altamahadawg, the doctors seem up to date, the training not so much. Any injured athlete must do a workout that takes into consideration their injury. Like Murrays ankle last year, you think he was doing alot of jumping on it? No, they work around the injury while it heals.

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`
Coach Mark Richt
is doing a great job of getting rid of good players this year.
.

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I like getting rid of guys who can’t cut it. It’s about time we stopped babying these boys. The kid couldn’t stau healthy and it sounds like he didn’t want to work that hard to get back so we don’t need him.

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Focus on the great players in Athens this very moment busting it getting ready for the season. A lot of them that every elite SEC & ACC wanted. Go Dawgs

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I just love how Tide Roll comes on here and talks about UGA recruiting offensive linemen who have no business in the SEC. Well I hate to tell you, but most of the linemen UGA recruited and signed had offers from your beloved Saban. How do you explain that? Wait you will not explain it because people ask you numerous questions about your comments but you do not answer them Especially the one about Saban not recruiting Cam Newton out of Blinn JC. Instead he decided to stick with a noodled arm QB with zero athletic ability.

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Hell, better yet, how bout this giant Brantley at QB for Florida. He’s a stud.

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Richt wanted to play Cam Newton at Tight End.
UGA did not need him either.

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PT has always beein grueling. It is what it is. This kid has a wanna be daddy that instructs his kid in his every move. If Joe T yelled at his boy, then Daddy had to go there and get in somebody’s face. Afterall, Daddy played in the 8th AND 9th grade football.

I see this in Pee Wee ball, Little League and HS ball. Always a few parents around that are wanna bes and their boys are their ticket to greatness.

Good luck young man.

UGA man, class of 71 & 73

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WOW, gone with the wind. Richt said Cam Newton would have made a great tightend at UGA because there was no spot for him at QB at UGA.

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Sounds like Benedict and strength coach had a disagreement. Sounds like Benedict went and whined to Richt about this. Sounds like Richt stood his ground and backed his strength coach. Kudos to Richt!! Sounds like a prima Donna whinny kid – glad he didn’t come to UF!

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Thank you HH Gator.

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You know the kid’s problem could be part mental as well. He suffered a pretty bad knee injury and maybe just has it in his mind too much. It doesn’t help that his father probably prodded him on, thinking he is a pre-ordained all american either. I do think though, that he got a good deal at UGA. A couple of years of education, rehab and the school picked up the tab. I feel pretty confident that the doctors consulting at UGA would not let him do anything that would hurt his knee all over again. Before we all go calling the kid a failure and quitter though, let’s see how he does at VT. He now has another year to build strength in his legs before the pressure of having to perform on the field is upon him, so who knows where the kid ends up. Maybe he will not do any better there than at UGA, but the jury will be out for a year.

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Wish the kid nothing but the best……….Next.

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Dawgs, so explain to me “since you played” how you expect to be in shape and have stamina in the 4th quarter? From what your saying is you do not run long distances only 5-15 yards. I played the game as well (not on the O-Line). I interned at a legit D-1 football school and have seen what they do. Also worked FULL TIME as a S&C assistant at the D-2 level and I know what I am talking about. Heck I even have all the degrees to prove it. Guess what the offensive linemen at FSU do in the off-season? They have to run a mile everyday and turn in their times, to show they are progressing.

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Ealey and King were 90% of UGA’s rushing offense,
and now they are gone with the wind.

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As was Nesbitt and Allen for Tech. So. They’re gone also.

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Gone with the wind aka GT football program.

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I think it still comes down to having more time to recover. If he was not ready physically, or mentally, to contribute and work-out to the fullest this will give him another year to lick his wound before he can be judged as a player. He may never pan out as a college player, or NFL. He and his family are just doing what they can to get that NFL paycheck one day. Say all you want about how well he interviewed or spoke of the team and coaches, but they did more for him by giving him the chance to come and get the best rehab he could get. Seems pretty selfish to me to say “thanks for the free medical support, but I want another year of workers comp before I try to start work”.

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True is we are not as strong as several of the top teams in the SEC. It was very obvious when look at our success rate on short yardage situations, third and one, third and two, forth and one etc. overall team strength is a top priority and UGA has loss that over the past several years. The program is call strength and conditioning and they are not mutually exclusive, you want and need both. They best example overall is Alabama. I was in Alabama during the Shula era and although I liked Mike Shula, the Alabama team was soft and not representative of traditional Alabama teams. Under Saban Alabama is tough, hard hitting, well conditioned and STRONG. Running backs that are strong and break tackles, linemen that are strong, be it country or whatever. Aside from everything else if your physically strong, stronger than the guy across from you, your more confident and a better player. All of these things are important but you have to identify your weaknesses and set a program to improve. That’s what UGA did and I’m waiting to see the improvement on the field.

Go Dawgs.

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It seems the UGA coaches have more “issues” than the players.

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ATL, internship? Impressive. D2, more so. And exactly what has FSU accomplished running all those miles in the years since VanHalanger left? Exactly nothing. mediocre at best. You proved my point for me, thank you.

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You think college teams line up and run 400m sprints at practice? Have you ever watched football? Yes, we ran more than 400m, but not at one time. Shorter sprints, faster pace, less recovery is where stamina comes from.

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Bobo and the rest of the UGA coaches are the real spoiled brats making big money in the process.

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Dawgs, I can’t help but laugh at you. So what has UGA done under Van Halanger lately? I wouldn’t even say mediocre. Thanks you proved my point. But since you asked, when I was working with the FSU S&C in 2003 they went 10-3 and played in the Orange Bowl. Guess requiring your OL to run a mile everyday paid off.

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To: Gone with the Wind
Remember, the choice wasBruce’s, not Richt’s. CMR left the final decision up to him, he was not kicked off of the team. CMR is doing his job, “if you ain’t all in it, get out”!

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The kid is leaving a 6-7 Georgia team to play for 10-3 Virginia Tech..

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Hey ATL Sports fan…. about that FSU team. Isn’t that the one UGA beat down in the 2002 Sugar Bowl? Pretty sure that is the case. Great S&C you all had back then. Glad to see how well it did against UGA. Get out of here with your BS.

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Afhan Hound, Andre Ware must have not looked at our rushing stas for the past 6-8 years. I’ll give him the past two years but really dreadful for 6-8 years.

2004- 1882 yds
2005- 2108 yds
2006- 1656 yds
2007- 2305 yds
2008- 1928 yds
2009- 2093 yds
2010- 1854 yds

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NC Bulldawg- No, I was down there for the 2003 season and the 2004 Orange Bowl. Being a Dawg alum its tough to argue with other I guess UGA fans about what goes on in the program when Joe T knows what he is doing. You all have to understand Joe T is the S&C director. There will be a person hire for football only soon, probably after the season.

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The kid left, therefore, he must be soft, wuss, trouble, etc…. Hey, the kid is leaving, with class. Why all the judgments ? Some people gotta have a strong opinion on everything ?

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Dawgs, I am a UGA graduate and yes I was happy UGA beat FSU. All I am saying is the S&C coordinator noticed that the players (especially the line) were gassed late in games and he instituted them running a mile everyday from February through July and to submit their times. It worked well as their stamina and drive was there for the 2003 season. So was that a shot at me because I worked under the staff who was beat by the school in which I graduated from and was a baseball lettemen?

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Cry me a river.

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Well maybe the Trainers do talk to the Doctors when it comes to rehabing a player coming off of major knee surgery? Whatcha think?

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Nah Altamaha, the mechanics always know more than the engineers.

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Not tough enough, get on board or get out of Athens.
I am tired of whinning, quiting babies, no wonder we have not won anything the last several years.
Suck it up, rub some dirt on it, do the work, play hard, hustle and WIN.
Kids these days don’t want to work for it and earn it they want it handed to them on a silver platter when it is not they quit or flunk out.

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Dr. Don would be an engineer in the process. Theory Y, or theory X, CMR has been a theory Y coach, sounds like Coach T is running a theory X S&C program.

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The way I’m trying to look at it regarding Coach T is, he can’t be any worse than his predecessor. It does tick me off a little that Richt created an “administration job” for his unproducing pal, instead of canning him.

Probably even got a raise, like the RB coach, whose pupils couldn’t even pass block for Murray . . .

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I think if I where CMR I would have gone with the new philosophy in S&C. Time will tell if it will work,but I like the more scientific approach to it. I wonder exactly what about Coach Joe T and his philosophy sold Richt on hiring him?

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ATL sports fan, I was probably a little too loose in what I said. I believe he must have been talking about where UGa’s offense stood nationally. For most of those years it was way down in the 70-th, 80-th range. as I remember. He made a point of it on ESPN.

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[...] you missed Benedict’s Q-and-A with our Chip Towers, he acknowledged that “ personal issues” led to his decision, adding that, “It [...]

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UGA needs a professional strength coach and a veteran OL coach with proven success – not a strength coach that was doing something else last year (Tereshinske and a OL coach in training. That said; Benedict showed very little appreciation for what Richt did for him and NO loyalty to the program. A loser all the way around.

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I wish the young man well; however this explains why he left UGA and did not sign with UF. UF’s strenght coach Mickey Marotti is one of the most demanding in the US. He was the first coach that Muschamp decided on keeping when he was hired; in fact he mentioned Marotti at his opening press conference. Good for Tereshinski for sticking to his guns. Too many athletes are pampered and as much as I do not like Saban, the man puts up with 0 bs.

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Saban is a strict Theory X style coach. It’s his way, or the highway.

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What was so hard about the training? Read between the lines –it sounds like his knee wasn’t up to par & couldn’t handle the pressure of training hard. It’s good to know that these guys are training harder than they used to. If his knee couldn’t take the abuse in training, I doubt it will take it in playing the game –and if it did he would always be behind because of the lack of training. Anyway you look at it, it was no big loss.

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Question for all you DAWG fans: With all the attrition (that means players leaving), suffered along your offensive line (at last count, Tanner Strickland, Ben Harden, Jonathan Owens, Trinton Sturdivant, A. J. Harmon. Brent Benedict), can you guys even scrimmage ! ? The drop-off in talent and experience from your 1st team to 2nd team is incredible. And your 2nd team offensive line is physically in bad shape ( Long- missed spring, back surgery, Lee- asthma-like conditions) . You simply can’t afford risking any injuries to you starters by scrimmaging! What a program! You got SIX offensive coaches up there, including Richt, and you’re telling me no one could see this coming?

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One thing that we are all failing to mention…Joe T is putting a large emphasis on nutrition. The fuel that you take in will make or break you PARTICULARLY in the 4th quarter. If you put crappy gasoline in your car, it sputters and struggles. Guess what happens when you eat garbage like fast food and sodas to put on weight….

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I forgot Kevin Perez, sorry.

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S. Ga. Brave. I didn’t ask how many kids you signed or the staus of Mayes. I asked if dawg fans thought you could even conduct normal scrimmages due to the lack of foresight by your coaching staff that led to the incredible lack of depth on your offensive line. Since ya’ll refuse to answer (likely because it would force you to face facts about the shortcomings of your program, and dawg fans don’t like facts, ) I’ll answer. Hell No! ( I mean Heck, sorry Coach Richt) you can’t srimmage. You can’t risk it. All the talk about Joe T. and toughness and you can’t implement it on the field because you don’t have enough SEC caliber offensive lineman. What is this, Georgia State? Ya’ll are like a start-up!

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Charlie, UGA is in good shape with Harris and Theus. The rest will go elsewhere. If UGA can’t get Harris&Theus with the lack of depth on O.L., then there truely is something wrong in Athens. Felt good about Theus until i heard he might visit Texas. He was close to Searels, and if he had of stayed at UGA, Theus would have already committed to UGA. If he visits Texas, he might be gone also. You would think O.L. would be knocking the doors down to come to UGA with the depth issues, but that’s not the case. Don’t think this Friend guy can coach or recruit, just another terrible hire by Richt.

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Kid sounds soft… Glad he didn’t come to UF… No loss on UGA’s part.
I agree with BIG JOE.. Can’t handle training… can’t hold up in games.

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Bye Quitter

Maybe we should sign 50 Offensive linemen like Saban and Bear Bryant and then screw them over like they do/did as Tide Roll suggests.
Find an Alabama site to chat on, where you can talk about the latest tree poisoning technology and how to play alerbamy sports to get free textbooks for you and your girlfriend.

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tide roll,

They’ll be able to scrimmage. I believe there are only 5 offensive linemen on the field at a time, still. I could be confused, but that was how we lined up when I was playing in Athens a few years ago. There are enough bodies between the starters, backups, and redshirting guys to get things done in practice. The numbers that you like to whine to everyone about everyday, started being addressed with this last class. Do I think we should have a full compliment of OL guys, sure. But we can’t harp on the past. UGA signed 5 guys in the 2011 class, and will be bringing in 5 more this year. It takes time to get the numbers back to where they should be. But don’t let the facts get in the way of your slanted, trolling arguments. I choose to hope for good health and to see how things shake out on the field this year. You can wear your tin foil hat and preach doom and gloom to the bloggers all you want.

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we need John Theus to go ahead and commit….he’ll be starting OT from day 1 when he gets on campus. as everyone already knows if we stay healthly on the OL we’ll be ok but then next year we’ll be in the same situation with no depth on the OL……jeez.

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Why are we talking about some offensive lineman at Vatech anyway.

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[...] not sure if this has been posted yet, but an interesting interview with Brent Benedict about why he left UGA: Q&A: Brent Benedict confirms dispute with Georgia’s new strength coach | UGA sports blog [...]

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7576,

If what you say is true regarding the needs / recruits / personnel of the team- and I do not dispute it, then Richt could have another bad season and still be back.

ugh.

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When recruits want to come to the University of Georgia, they should:
A. Know who’s in charge.
B. Know what’s expected of them.
C. Know what the consequences of their actions will be.
Pretty simple, a theory Y coach can succeed in that environment, although most are X’s. Bumps in the road can be navigated using the “3″ very simple rules. Where Mark Richt get’s in trouble is allowing to much emotion to influence his decisions (my opinion).

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Richt stood by Brent when he tore his ACL,MCl and PCL. Most SEC teams would have not done that for Brent. I guess Brent was not as loyal to Richt as Richt was to him.

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More than half of the top O-linemen have not made any commitments. And of those that have, there is a disproportional few that have done so to SEC teams so far. I am positive the SEC on the whole will sign a monster class of linemen, in time (it’s July), and UGA will get thier share when it’s all said and done.

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Are you saying you don’t think the condition of our program is on the mind of the “potential signees” or recruiters from other schools? It won’t influence where a top prospect goes?

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Mobile Dawg I would think that the chance of immediate playing time would factor in more on a kids decision rather who the coach might be. Dawg Gone I agree with you about Les maybe being gone if they have another down year but I think that Saban has bought himself several years of cushion.

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I don’t know what’s going to happen to Les or Nick or Will. I know they have signed a grand total of 3 of 0-lineman between them so far.
So appearantly a class full of em by July is not the standard.

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Me, MD?
I absolutely think the condition of the program is an obviosuly factor in where kids sign, and the other schools use that.

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Perusing through the OT’s, OG’s, and C’s I see one out of the top 20 considering UGA. Numerous kids looking at AU, UA, and UF to a lesser degree.

ga gator, maybe I wouldn’t succeed as a coach, but those ME players can be weeded out during the recruiting process by following the three basic rules I spoke of earlier. You really don’t have to be a rocket scientest to succeed as a head coach. Gene Chizik doesn’t come across to me as particularly intelligent, but he’s surrounded himself with some excellent to good coaches.

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Well, they are in good company with most of the college football fans of today.

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@ga gator I agree about Saban just get a little tried of the “we demand championships” bull the Tide fans have been spouting the last couple of years.

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As long as Richt is studying cutting edge football, I wonder if he’s considered sending his recruiting “coordinator” to any classes focusing on the “psychological” side of the human being vs just the atheletic qualifications. Most of these guys came from the trenches themselves.

Of course this goes back to the engineering side, the mechanic doesn’t worry about the psyche, they just want to make sure the engine runs.

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Fla Dawg
A lot of our success this year will depend on the confidence our players show when the game is tied in the fourth quarter with 2 minutes left. I think we have the personnel to win 10 games. We just signed a great class that will help a lot this year.
Let’s wait until after Fall practice and see how many of the new class are ready to play and how the new S&C program has helped us handle the 4th quarter. We will know a lot more after the South Carolina game.I’m not making excuses but I think that South Carolina may have their best team in 15 or 20 year , this year. That will probably be our hardest game of the year. South Carolina always plays their best games early in the year before the lack of depth catches up with them.

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This kid obviously has class. He didnt go to Facebook or Twitter to complain like so many his age do. He did what was best for himself which is what he should do. He is a young kid with a lot of talent. I am really sad to see him go. I felt like he was going to be a beast for us but I guess I didnt realize how bad his knee really was. Best of luck BB.

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Seems like a good kid who may not fully appreciate the significance of a team and coach sticking with the original scholarship offer even after he so severely injured his knee in high school that his playing career was seriously in jeopardy. For a school to not back-off after such an injury is very significant. Fact is it now looks like a former 5-star recruit will never be able to be as good as he could have been without the injury. That is clearly not his fault. At the same time, he should have stuck with the school that stuck with him.

While I appreciate his refusing to bad-mouth UGA, his leaving is actually a stronger “bad-mouthing” than what he actually says. Actions speak louder than words. His actions clearly indicate he doea not fully appeciate the significance of UGA sticking with him after the injury. His leaving is wrong.

Obviously there may be deeper issues, but if he was not being asked to do things he was not physically capable of doing he should have stayed and been a man about it.

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I wonder if anyone besides me thinks that OL maybe the toughest positions to accurately recruit.
Reason I say that is in so many cases these are really boys in H.S and it takes 2-3 years in a lot of cases to grow into the men they need to be to play OL in the SEC. A lot can happen in that time. they are mostly still growing when they get to campus and then they have to mold and strengthen themselves, this is longer process when dealing with 6′4 and above 300lbers than say a cornerback or wide receiver at 6′ 190lbs.

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Hey look guys, it may be as simple as the kid having a personality conflict with Joe T. He “just didn’t like” Coach Joe and didn’t want to fit into the program. Both sides conducted themselves well and the kid gets to move on. Why not be classy in our comments?

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DAWG GONE,

I do agree with you that it is the toughest position to fill. The big linemen are almost always not appreciated but they are the position that holds a team together and does the true grunt work. If a RB is able to run successfully, it is because he has a line in front of him. Same holds true to a QB passing successful. Can’t be real accurate when you are running for your life.
Not so many years ago, the linemen had it pretty easy. Bulk up, be strong and get in fron tof somebody and keep him away from the ball. Now, the guard pulls, the tackle goes from one end of the line to another on plays, and occasionally, they even are pass eligible. The defensive guys they face now are almost always as big or bigger than them so they have to be strong. They must also react to a blitz and defend their territory. Not an easy job, with LB’s over 220 lbs. and darn fast.
Anybody that thinks the lineman’s job is simple is kidding themselves. It is tough in the trenches. Those talents do not develop over night.

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@RedandBlackDAWG good points..and it takes a while for a kid to grow enough to be able to compete with full grown men. It takes a lot of training to develop the kind of power top notch SEC OL guys have..and then you have to know the playbook.

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Well that’s that. i wish him luck. I think the S&C is headed in the right direction from what I hear from other players. I still think he did the program dirty. But atleast he is speaking with class. Maybe UGA will get to play VT sometime before he leaves. ” I ain’t mad at cha” but this is still gonna go down. If ya get where I’m goign with that.
Keep up the hard work Dawgs! This time of year is where champions are born. GATA GO DAWGS!!!

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The players are not slaves, you cannot beat them into shape. Everyone is a little different, forcing all into the same mold is a mistake, mark my words! Watch the injuries pile up this year.

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Something just doesn’t seem right at UGA to me! Too many players leaving. I don’t see that at Alabama or Auburn! Something aint right!!!

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Cannot take the heat …GET OUT OF THE KITCHEN>>BIG BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NEXT

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Quitting on the one school that stuck with you while your entire career was in doubt is not “classy.” It is actually “classless.”

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All laughable

30+ arrests in 4yrs
players quitting
dancing during the ballgames
players ineligible

Im begining to think Barney Fife is running this program

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Good Bye!!! waiting for Coach Richt to see if you can resolve your differences is a great indication of this babys true character. Like, I will ask Mommy becasue Daddy said no. VT deserves better, too.

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king troll——————benny arnold—————–looooser

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The dream team is melting-fast.

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got me a job at ———–savannah st————–hahahahahah

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Tony,
From what I’ve seen Coach T knows what he’s doing. The players are bigger. So yes he is qualified

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This is already in the rearview mirror, and fading fast. It was handled well. Enough said. Boise State coming over the horizon fast. Step up, Dawgs.

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The word I heard from someone who played at UGA recently is that Benedict wanted to train hard, much sooner than the staff would let him due to a shoulder injury. He didn’t like being “held back” from competing for a starting job. You can’t blame someone for wanting to be a starter, but what he’s doing is putting himself above the team…. you know, since UGA is so thin at OL. I don’t wish him any luck…..

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Good luck to Benedict and hope things work out ok for him. I am unimpressed with his inability to understand that he was at Georgia on a scholarship to play football and he was to do whatever legally it took to comply with the new standards at Georgia.

He would never had made it in the military or any big civilian organization that required compliance, dedication, loyalty and effort to be successful. I am proud of the way Georgia and Coach Richt handled this situation and believe that if what they are doing is successful you have a high probability of losing the one’s that are either physically or mentally unable to withstand high degree of effort and stamina.(ie: Coach Bryant/Alabama).

I do believe that the players that come out of this physical training and discipline will be better prepared, more confident and physically in great shape. What that may translate into is still too be seen.

I commend Coach T and his staff for taking on this challenge and have ever confidence it will produce positive results for both the players and the University. My hat is off to those that are up to the challenge and salute their tenacity!

I hope in the future a place on this staff can be found for other former Georgia players who love Georgia and understand the tradition and what it means. I am very happy to have in the place the coaching staff that’s in place and believe the University was really fortunate to get Coach Grantham and his staff (thanks for coming to Georgia).

The reason this not a lot about Benedict is simply because, he doesn’t really matter anymore to the season.What really matters is the one’s who are committed, staying put, and the in-coming class.

I believe Georgia will be better off weeding out the non-committed and non-performers. These people who aren’t able to commit and performs drag down those who are committed and performs. To people in the character and mindset of Benedict requires other players to constantly observe their ego’s and covering their a_ _ and it’s a drain on the players and coaching staff and not worth it.

GO DAWGS!!!!

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jason,

I agree with you. UGA or for that fact any other school needs players that will not, or can not put forth the effort to be successful. UGA gave this young man a scholarship when probably no other major SEC school would have, given his severe injury to his knee. It is really quiter simple. UGA stuck by this kid and the kid didn’t stick by his committment. It probably bopils down to what the doctors and Coach T. thought this kid should be doing and what he was willing to do. I am afraid no matter where he plays, in his mind, his knee is still injuried. he may never reach his potential but for sure, unless you are willing to push on, you never will. He is a big physical specimen of a OL but right now, he wants to do what he thinks is best for him. This doesn’t line up with what the professionals think, so he just decided to leave. Good luck at VT, because he will probably find it just as demanding up there. I think he had better be concentrating on his studies more because that education may just come in handy for him.

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As has been stated many times here, both UGA and Benedict handled the departure with class. Unless you personally know Benedict or Joe T, we’ll probably never know the exact reasons. Likewise, unless you’re a player or on the staff, we don’t know exactly what the S & C program is doing or not doing. Mat drills was “highly touted” for a while. I’ve read many at these blogs poo-poo mat drills and “Finish The Drill” as not getting the players in shape; but mat drills were held in February! They were more a mental toughness/team building exercise than for getting em in shape, although the drills were very tough physically also. Hopefully the new S&C regime will work…in the fourth quarter.

“Problems in Athens…with the program”, because we’ve had some attrition? No more than most other big-time schools. You can’t please all the people all the time.

The article is just an update for all who follow the Dawgs; inquiring minds want to know. But, as has been stated, time to move on and focus on Boise; and the players that we DO have.

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Anyone in the Bulldog Nation ever read the book The Junction Boys about how Bear Bryant ran his football camp when he was the coach at Texas A&M? Great book. Anyway, only about a third of the players that he inherited survived that summer. They went on to have a great year because they weeded out the lightweights and those left standing were strong and tight–a team. I wish that we had a coach like that, and Coach T might or might not have the right tack (good intent, problem is old vs modern techniques), but we all have to acknowledge that Mark Richt is no Bear Bryant. He isn’t even a Tommy Tuberville. So there’s little chance that any Richt team will start the season like the Junction Boys. Benedict was a a taker at the UGA–full scholarship, no play. I say let’s run off anyone else that doesn’t have the stomach for what it takes to win a championship–including the head coach Markt Wrecked.

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this football team needs an enema!

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We got used and he needed another year to recover. Did not want to put in the time it takes to be a man! I guess he had to blame someone and that someone is Coach T. No likes change because it creates more hard work and responsibility. What a shame.

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Most of these kids are recruited by assistant coaches and conditioning coaches. If a school is not loyal to these coaches, why should these kids be loyal to the school. That’s why these recruits should make their decisions base on the university, not just coaches.

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Come on guys, the kid had some differences and obviously both sides couldn’t agree on a solution. He made a decision to make a change, and left gracefully without trashing the coach (T) or the program. Keep in mind also, there’s a question as to if he will ever be able to play again.

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