Practice report: TB Isaiah Crowell in line to get start in opener
Walking wounded: NG John Jenkins (66) and SE Marlon Brown couldn't practice Tuesday due to injuries. (Photo by Guy Prokay/DawgTime.com)
ATHENS – Isaiah Crowell doesn’t know whether he will start at tailback in Georgia’s season opener against Boise State, but he probably won’t know what to do with himself if he doesn’t.
“I haven’t ever not started,” Crowell revealed Tuesday after practice.
And when he says ever, he means it.
The true freshman from Columbus said he started as a safety on defense in his first game as a 6-year-old little leaguer with the Eastway Cherokees. By Game 2, “Coach Buckner” (Crowell couldn’t recall his first name) came to his senses and moved Crowell to running back. And Crowell has been toting the rock with the first team ever since.
Of course, Georgia coach Mark Richt famously hinted on national signing day that Crowell could start his first game. “I wouldn’t be shocked to see him running that rock in the Dome against Boise State on the opening play if he does what he’s supposed to do,” Richt said last February.
At this point it seems likely that could happen. With just 10 days remaining before the Bulldogs face the No. 5-ranked Broncos in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta, Crowell is solidly the No.1 tailback. Never mind that it’s by default.
Last year’s leading rushers Washaun Ealey and Caleb King were unable to stay with the team and junior Carlton Thomas is suspended forf the opener. And as of Tuesday evening, converted tailback Richard Samuel is still slowed with a strained quadriceps muscle and Crowell the majority of snaps with the No. 1 unit ahead of Ken Malcome and Brandon Harton.
Nevertheless, Crowell insists he’s neither hopeful nor expectant when it comes to taking the first snap on offense on Sept. 3.
“Starting is not a big deal to me,” he said. “I just want to do whatever I can do to help my team win.”
At this point, Crowell’s significant contribution is a more of a need than a wish for the Bulldogs. And a first-year starter in a first game against a Top 10 opponent is problematic.
“He just hasn’t experienced enough of the situations that are going to come down the pipe,” Richt said. “Has he had a chance to see every blitz against every protection that he needs to understand? The answer is no. In theory, you take mental reps and try to give him as many situations as possible. We haven’t given him every single scenario yet. But before these next 10 days are over, we hope to make sure he’s got enough to feel comfortable.
“The good news is he’s picking up things quickly and he doesn’t shy away from any kind of contact.”
For his part, Crowell appears to be holding cool and steady. He said he gets nervous before games but not the “throw-up-in-the-trash-can” kind of nervous. And claims he is largely unconcerned with how he does in his first game.
“Doing whatever I can do, going 100 percent every play and helping my team win, that’s my goal,” Crowell said. “Really nothing about yards or touchdowns. I’d like to have a lot of yards or a lot of touchdowns. But if it doesn’t happen I just want my team to come out on top and win.”
Here’s a link to video of Crowell’s entire interview Tuesday at DawgTime.com.
Let the games begin
Georgia will take its first major step toward game preparation on Wednesday when it holds a “dress rehearsal practice game” at Sanford Stadium. Richt said the workout will be 90-95 percent scout work, with the No. 1 offense and defense going against scout teams simulating Boise State and a lot of scripted situations.
“We’ll play a half of football,”Richt said. “We’ll get our pregame ready, go into a coin toss and we’ll actually name captains by then.”
The Bulldogs have an ideal situation for simulating Boise State’s offense. Left-handed quarterback Michael Tamburo – a transfer from Boise State – will simulate the Broncos’ heralded, left-handed quarterback Kellen Moore.
Georgia practiced for only an hour Tuesday in shorts and helmets to rest up for Wednesday’s work.
Injury report
Two new players were among the injured players dressed in green jerseys on Tuesday. Fullback Bruce Figgins was sidelined with “a pulled muscle” that Richt described as “not too serious.” Also, tailback Carlton Thomas, who is already out for the opener due to suspension, was sidelined to give a chronic ankle injury rest. . . . Starting split end Marlon Brown (ankle) and backup nose guard John Jenkins (hamstring) remained sidelined.
Samuel practiced in a green jersey but his mobility was clearly still affected as he ran and walked with a noticeable limp. . . . Freshman flanker Malcolm Mitchell (hip) was able to return to practice in a limited capacity but is expected to be close to full speed for Wednesday’s workout.
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551 comments Add your comment
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:07 pm
Tampa, I can only lead you to the facts. What you do with them is up to you. I gave you the website of the most respected linesmakers on planet earth, they supply all the casinos with the initial lines.
But if you prefer “how stuff works”, go with it. Ignorance is bliss.
The gambling public is dumb. They bet on the home teams. They bet on the teams they know. They bet on the teams they like. All of these skew towards UGA. But the linesmakers said BSU by 7.
You should put your team pride aside and bet with your brain for once. Root for UGA but bet on BSU. Especially at -3. Sure upsets do happen, but the the odds are on BSU covering 3 easy.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:08 pm
@BigTimeTechFan — And they say there isn’t a drug problem at GT .. please, they had a HORRENDOUS recruiting class. Not a big secret there (ranked number 42 in the country by scout.com and 41 by rivals.com) .. they may actually be the first team in history to not even be able to get the Heisman Awards ceremony on their dorm room TV.
BigTimeTechFan
August 24th, 2011
4:10 pm
Who has the better QB Boise St or Stanford?
Will Zach Mettenberger start against Oregon?
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:11 pm
Tampa, if you think that Professional gamblers have already placed money on this game, you are silly. They might drop some small $ here and there, but the big money would never come in this early. Too much can happen between now and the game.
kb
August 24th, 2011
4:11 pm
@Bigtimetechfan, What sport did just have one of the best recruiting classes in the country?Girls cross country? It certainly wasn’t football , rated 8th best in the ACC and you think it was one of the best in the country? Vad Lee the QB out of North Carolina? Not even rated as a QB by most services had, 2 SEC offers , to play WR. I get it , your trying to be funny.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:13 pm
Good job GT .. you posted a link to LVSC .. great job .. now anyway, not that I haven’t seen this site before, but you, oh virgin gambler, were probably looking long and hard for that one.
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:13 pm
yeah kb, maybe if we had top 10 recruiting classes like UGA, we’d finish…. 6-7 last year? HEE HAW
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:15 pm
Okay Tampa, if you actually heard of LVSC, you wouldn’t be spouting incorrect garbage about gambling lines.
You’re better at spinning than mark richt. Maybe not.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:16 pm
a gambler is a gambler is a gambler .. they ain’t exactly betting to pay the bills. Again, not enough UGA fans to move a line by 3-4 points even if every one of them dropped money.
Gatormeat
August 24th, 2011
4:17 pm
crowell won’t hit 50 yards against that Mighty Gator defense and georgia’s 3-4 defense will be no match for the Weiss schematic advantage. The game will probably get out of hand early
Dacula 1995
August 24th, 2011
4:18 pm
GT Joe….haha and you had to cheat to get there! haha
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:18 pm
If you had a clue, you wouldn’t be thinking the oddsmakers are all that in terms of sports knowledge. They HOPE to beat the general public 11-10 through out the year and know that their ability to stay profitable depends on long term staying power. That’s why the casinos are the biggest ones out there. They can take hits 3 weeks in a row and still make a ton on week 4
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:23 pm
Tampa, once again you have no clue.
oddsmakers don’t care about beating the public. They are just supplying the lines. BOOKIES want to beat the public 11-10.
It’s above you. Just forget we had this conversation.
kb
August 24th, 2011
4:25 pm
gT Joe, Georgia sucked last year, but it was only for 1 year not decades like tech. Think PJ will be coaching in the Southern conference of Big Sky in 2013?
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:28 pm
GTJOE – “The gambling public is dumb. They bet on the home teams. They bet on the teams they know. They bet on the teams they like. All of these skew towards UGA. But the linesmakers said BSU by 7. ”
Wow, let’s try this one ..
http://knolt.com/how-sports-betting-lines-are-determined/
Then maybe you will understand that the betting “public” was probably leaning more BSU which is why they moved the line down to 3 to even out the action. These guys don’t care about the game, they care about the cash.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:30 pm
So, if an oddsmaker doesn’t care about beating the public and let’s say over a period of time they don’t. How long until their services aren’t used any longer by the book makers?
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:35 pm
an oddsmaker doesn’t care about beating the public cause they don’t have a dog in that fight. They just set a line that casinos/bookies use. What those casinos do with it (like moving the line) is up to them.
LVSC is probably judged on whether or not their lines, over the long haul, results in a 50-50 split between the favorite and underdog (at their original line, not the final line that bookies create).
GT Joe
August 24th, 2011
4:39 pm
Put it this way, if LVSC had BSU by 7, then:
1. BSU is a big favorite in this game according to the most respected and powerful linesmakers in the world.
2. Taking BSU at -3 is an absolute bargain bet.
BigTimeTechFan
August 24th, 2011
4:40 pm
Dude, have you not seen Tech recruiting class, they are all big time HS players, check out Tyler Marcordes, dude runs over people. Not invited to camps, Army All-Star game, Rival/Scout 5 star, but a great player, coaches say he’s better then Javonne Clowney
BigTimeTechFan
August 24th, 2011
4:42 pm
Vad Lee voted best QB and player in the state of NC by football coaches, they said he was better than Christian LeMay.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:47 pm
Hey BigTimeTechFan .. check this out from scout.com
TE NR (Not Ranked) Tyler Marcordes
(Normal Community West HS)
Normal, IL 6-4/225/4.70 Committed to Georgia Tech
He was a 2 star TE on scout.com
And please get Jadeveon Clowney’s name right
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
August 24th, 2011
4:49 pm
Well the goodtimes are about over for the dogs because now the talking comes to and end and yes the team actually has to play. Tune in again next season for the best football team in America the UGA Dawgs…(from March until August). keep on smiling smiling…yeah keep on smiling.
suwaneedawg
August 24th, 2011
4:50 pm
Big Tme Tech Fan, you will be begging for a new coach at the end of this season. Johnson will be taking his offense to some D II or III school after he lives off the payout to leave GT. Personally, I hope he is around for a while.
TampaDawg
August 24th, 2011
4:51 pm
BigTimeTechFan has to be being impersonated .. no homer advertises a 2 star as a 5 star .. and the only people hyping Vad Lee on scout.com is, well, VAD LEE .. go figure.
UGA '05
August 24th, 2011
5:02 pm
GT Joe has no life. He’s been on here all day. What a loser.
Ray Goff
August 24th, 2011
5:12 pm
Better hope he don’t get hurt. Them Awbun playas will hit ya.
Druid City
August 24th, 2011
5:30 pm
Why is it that Georgia Tech men come in as 2-star recruits and go out as 4-star players and Georgia men come in as 4-star recruits and leave as 2-star players?
Something must happen to them.
kb
August 24th, 2011
5:37 pm
bigtime, Lee was 3rd ranked qb out of NC last year, only 2 offers from SEC schools tell you about all you need to know. Tech starting lineup is talent poor I guarantee you any freshmen that was worth anything would be starting.Pre season all ACC 1 player and he may be the only player on offense that would play elsewhere Uzzi. On defense you have 1 linebacker Attachou that show s promise, the DE cross looks like he may be good and Johnson from you defensive backfield looks to have some potential, outside of those not much. This is what all tech fans have been waiting on PJ with his players.No depth at all, because of previous years recruiting fiascoes. Pj coaching in the Big Sky in 2013.No flames just facts.
DirtyDawg34
August 24th, 2011
5:49 pm
UGA players going on to nfl since 2000 (57) GT (34) so the comment from druid city makes no sense at all
DirtyDawg34
August 24th, 2011
5:58 pm
Wow where did all the tech fans go,oh they must be watching the 2008 game again.
Bob
August 24th, 2011
6:08 pm
Sure hope Jenkins can play. His picture makes him look like a cross between Fat Albert and Brer’Bear.
ugajb
August 24th, 2011
6:12 pm
Wasn’t Ken Malcome a heavily recruited rb? I’ve always heard he was very good. I was actually surprised when they red-shirted him. Maybe he was injured or just not ready. I’m not sure. I just think we’ll be surprised when he gets a few carries under his belt.
DirtyDoo34
August 24th, 2011
6:13 pm
UGA players getting arrested since 2000 (78) GT (12). UGA dominates again.
Bob
August 24th, 2011
6:15 pm
@ugajb…correct, he was injured; at times during his Jr and Sr seasons. The real reason he was offered and signed was a knee-jerk reation to mack Brown’s commit to UF. Both were slightly above average RBs at best.
Annie in Summerville
August 24th, 2011
6:17 pm
Crowell will be the biggest bust in UGA history. Genius Mark Richt recruited a player with some on-field talent, but with all the off-field problems of Ealey and King.
I’ll give Crowell two years at most before he’s dismissed. You’ll see.
Annie in Summerville
August 24th, 2011
6:22 pm
UGA players getting arrested since 2000 (78)…
That’s the biggest single reason why any school with a shred of integrity would have sacked Richt years ago. It’s just one of the reasons why UGA is known everywhere as The Cesspool of the South.
kb
August 24th, 2011
6:40 pm
Annie, That’s the best you’ve got? Take the tired North Ave. BS elsewhere.
DirtyDawg34
August 24th, 2011
7:28 pm
9 out of 10
bitter smurff-ett
August 24th, 2011
7:40 pm
what happens when we paint the ga.dome field —-BLUE—-will be easy to track down them
————————-red uni’s————-yaaaw————hahahahahah
——————–sorry got to go—– picking tattttters.
bitter dawgs fan
August 24th, 2011
7:44 pm
@annie—-please close your legggs, im in calhoun and i can smell you
——your late for your 2nd shift job at wal-mart——–bamma fan
Sanders
August 24th, 2011
8:47 pm
@GT Joe
Boise is winning in Vegas? I guess there’s no point in playing. Vegas can’t be wrong. Right?
RedandBlackDAWG
August 25th, 2011
12:42 am
GT JOE,
When Tech. plays teams of the caliber that UGA plays in a given year and then, UGA and Tech. end up with the same record, perhaps then they might be equal except for the fact that Tech. will lose to UGA, like they have quite often. The ACC doesn’t come close to the level of competition that the SEC provides so it is a mute point.
GO DAWGS and GATA
Thomas Brown
August 25th, 2011
2:24 am
GT Joe August 24th, 2011 9:47 am
LOL, silly mutts.
“GT and CPJ AVERAGED like 35 pts/game on UGA”
I know right ? That really explains your 1-9 record vs Mark Richt, now, doesn’t it
GT Joe ?
Thomas Brown
August 25th, 2011
2:31 am
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/playersearch?SCHOOL=Georgia+Tech
Druid City August 24th, 2011 5:30 pm
“Why is it that Georgia Tech men come in as 2-star recruits and go out as 4-star players and Georgia men come in as 4-star recruits and leave as 2-star players? Something must happen to them.”
28 Georgia tek NFL players to 45 UGA NFL players. 62 percent of the number of UGA players Georgia tek has in the NFL today. True indeed, you do better at THAT than you do beating Mark Richt at 1-9 only eleven percent. Such a scream seeing Georgia tek post on UGA blogs. Please come back.
IC Rules
August 25th, 2011
9:32 am
IC’s going to run all over Boise St.’s weak D—look for 150 yards easy!!! Ga rolls: 38-13!!!!
AFDawg
August 25th, 2011
5:20 pm
Word out of Boise is that BSU is going to run the hurry-up offense against us. I hope the UGA coaching staff uses the last scrimmage to prepare for that and also have their rotations worked out to perfection to keep fresh players on the field.
JoJo
August 25th, 2011
6:13 pm
Boise Who? How many scholarship guys did any team in the SEC lose to B-team Boise? I heard that the Sec is looking for a few good teams, and the SEC didn’t invite B-team Boise. I wish Boise would comeand play in the SEC. Boise has two games in the season, the one team that is average on their schedule, and a BCS Bowl game because B-teamers have beaten so many ranked teams. Every blind squirel finds a nut. If the B-teamers players in the Sec, they would be no better than Kentucky. If B-teamers palyed in the Sec, they would be 7-5 or 8-4 if they played Tech. It is a shame when a team has only two games all season long. I would like to see them play Alabama, LSU, Geoargia, Florida, etc. week after week, but there are no tampons in Football.
bozo the clown
August 25th, 2011
8:28 pm
Its whip ass time or shut up!!!!
Fat Dawg
August 26th, 2011
9:39 am
relax–the dawgs are going to beat boise like a rented mule–this Dawg D is mean and nasty–boise will have trouble even moving the ball. Dawgs 30 boise 9! Bet the house.
UGA Smacks The Smurfs
August 26th, 2011
10:31 am
Same ole same ole
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syu8jx_BA94