Richt: ‘I think we’re a team that is on the rise, but we’ll see’
After losing two games to highly ranked opponents, then winning one over an out-manned opponent, Georgia now enters the grind of its SEC schedule.
Saturday’s game at Ole Miss will start a stretch of four SEC games in four weeks for the Bulldogs, all but one of them on the road.
It should be a revealing patch of schedule.
“The thing I like is, we’re a team that is getting better as we go,” UGA coach Mark Richt said Sunday evening. “We do have a lot of room to grow yet. The last couple of performances, minus the huge mistakes, four or five plays that really got us [against South Carolina], I felt we were making a lot of progress. As you watch tape, it’s still pretty obvious we’ve got some youth and inexperience that still needs to improve.
“Overall, I think we’re a team that is on the rise, but we’ll see,” Richt said. “We’re going to play that first SEC game away from home and get a better feel for what kind of progress we have really made.”
That game is at 12:21 p.m. Saturday in Oxford, Miss., against an Ole Miss team that has the same record as Georgia (1-2 overall, 0-1 SEC) but is coming off a particularly dismal defeat.
While Georgia reveled in a 59-0 victory over Coastal Carolina in Athens, Ole Miss suffered through a 30-7 loss at Vanderbilt -– the Rebels’ ninth loss in their past 10 SEC games and the Commodores’ largest margin of victory over an SEC opponent in 40 years.
Ole Miss’ starting quarterback, Zack Stoudt, was poorly protected by his offensive line and threw five interceptions. The Rebels’ defense allowed Vanderbilt to rush for 281 yards.
For Georgia, the trip to Ole Miss is followed by league games at home against Mississippi State on Oct. 1, at Tennessee on Oct. 8 and at Vanderbilt on Oct. 15. Then, following an open date, the Bulldogs face Florida in Jacksonville on Oct. 29.
“There’s a sense of urgency in that if we want to stay in this Eastern Division race we’ve got to win,” Richt said. “Right now we’ve lost control of our destiny in this thing [because of the loss to South Carolina], but there are so many more games to played. Our goal is just to win our first Southeastern Conference game this year, period; that’s all we’re worried about right this minute.”
His players’ confidence seems high despite the losses to Boise State and South Carolina.
“I think we’re ready to get back into SEC play and get going again,” quarterback Aaron Murray said. “We have a lot of guys playing great football right now, and we think we can play with anyone.”
The confidence, Murray suggested, stems not so much from the rout of Coastal Carolina, an FCS opponent, but from the 45-42 loss to South Carolina the week before and the Bulldogs’ belief they would have won handily if not for three turnovers and a fake punt.
To succeed in SEC play, Georgia will need to minimize turnovers and, according to Richt, improve defensively inside its 20-yard line.
“The one area where we’ve just got to get better as we get into more of the Southeastern Conference play is red-zone defense,” Richt said. “We just have not done a great job there yet, but that’s going to be a point of emphasis to see if we can force some field goals instead of some touchdowns when people do happen to get in there.”
Except for the continuing absence of starting inside linebackers Christian Robinson and Alec Ogletree with foot injuries, the Bulldogs appear to be relatively healthy.
Richt said Sunday that he hopes backup tailback Richard Samuel, who sat out the Coastal Carolina game with a heel injury, will be able to play this week. Richt also expects wide receiver Marlon Brown and offensive guard Kenarious Gates to return from ankle injuries and possibly defensive end DeAngelo Tyson from a strained back.
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400 comments Add your comment
OLD Dawg
September 19th, 2011
9:44 am
Bama Jama… Spurrier made the ” SWAMP “… that was years ago.. it is the DUMP.. now.. better to spend quality time watching ALL the games.. on TV..
Mobile Dawg
September 19th, 2011
9:45 am
Columbus, have you posted in the past under Prozac Dawg, you seem to have OD on the meds brother. Enthusiasm is one thing, you sound more like you’re trying to convince yourself of the Dawgs greatness.
gt4ever
September 19th, 2011
9:47 am
Highly ranked opponents my ARSE…. Navy almost beat SC, and Boise State toughest game will probably be the one against UGA….. UGA has NOT played anybody yet….. Period!
Prozac Dawg
September 19th, 2011
9:54 am
@Mobile Dawg
Columbus is not me. Meds are under control here and looking mostly to the future. I will still enjoy this year’s games though. I did want to increase meds after Murray’s fumble last week.
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
9:59 am
Tevin Washington is NOT a Heisman contender. He gets yanked in the 3rd quarter because our games are blowouts, so he will never get the numbers.
But Tevin is better than Nesbitt. He was recruited for this offense, not Nesbitt.
Tech will be favored in every game for the rest of the season. If we do our job, we will be in a BCS bowl.
JackDennis
September 19th, 2011
10:00 am
Dawg fans. STILL the most delusional in the SEC.
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:01 am
Navy absolutely EXPOSED SC, and UGA in the process.
Tech hangs 50 on SC easy. and CPJ will show no mercy against UGA, he will hang 60 on UGA.
If he keeps Tevin in against Kansas, Tech scores 80.
deaddog
September 19th, 2011
10:02 am
Does Richt have eyes?
DEAD CAT BOUNCE
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:02 am
Tampa: If you can hang 66 on a BCS AQ team, with your QB on the bench with 2 minutes to go in the 3rd, you are a REAL team.
I guarantee that UGA doesn’t hang 60+, or even 50+ on vandy or ole miss.
768 total yards on a BCS AQ team, you should be afraid.
JB
September 19th, 2011
10:05 am
GT Joe….cool it and play a real football team first. Yes, the wins and stats are great, but what would people be saying about Georgia if after week one we opened with coastal carolina and were playing the band by middle of the third quarter 59-0. Why, we would sound as foolish as you I’m afraid.
WDE
September 19th, 2011
10:06 am
@GT Joe how many top 25 teams that mighty mighty bunch of yours played so far…thought so…beat some body..hell play somebody and then brag……..oh and it’s a beautiful morning the sun is in the sky, the birds are singing, and the Bugs are still on probation..enjoy your day…and by the by we would LOVE for your bunch to be undefeated when we play….taking your ACC “titles” is always a lot of fun.
TampaDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:11 am
Is that your new catch phrase GT Joe? “Hang”??? Anyway, this is the same Kansas team that won just 3 games last year, one against CPJ and GT. And I’ve got gt4ever up there talking about UGA hasn’t played anyone because Navy almost beat USCe, yet the “toughest” game on the GT schedule thus far is a Kansas team that let Northern Illinois “hang” 42 on them and if not for a TD with 9 seconds left, would have lost the game outright. Yeah, your “hang” 66 thing doesn’t look that impressive now.
THE Dixie Redcoat Band
September 19th, 2011
10:13 am
Did somebody say FSU and UGA will swap?
1eyedJack
September 19th, 2011
10:15 am
GT Joe, you’ve played two scout teams and an also-ran. Noise proves nothing. Often a hen who has merely laid an egg cackles as if she laid an asteroid.
RedandBlackDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:17 am
I am still trying to figure out how everybody says Florida is back. They have two RB’s that are their whole offense. No outstanding Wr’s and a QB that is pedestrian at best. They beat a Tenn. team that doesn’t have a running game and with one of their only two WR’s that could make a player injured, had no offense to speak of at all. Bray is a good athlete but just like any other QB, give him happy feet, and all bets are off.
SC is 3-0 I will grant you, but they can be beat. SC is Lattimore and their big receiver if you give Garcia a lot of time to find him. Give Garcia happy feet, and all bets are also off as to where he slings the football.
THE SEC East is three teams rebuilding in UGA, Tenn. and FL. and one slightly ahead of those three in SC. Vanderbilt does have a 3-0 record, but considering the quality of their opponents, Ole Miss. included, is it any more legitiaimate than say, Ohio State that was 2-0 and couldn’t handle a Miami team, that has numerous problems, Of the three rebuilders, UGA is the only one of the three that has skill players at every position, to make a team. Inexperience and some thiness at key positions is hurting UGA right now, but they are starting to grow up pretty fast. We have young receivers, a terrific RB, a good QB, and the line has improved much since the opening loss. I am still no fan of a hurry up offense, simply because if you have the skill players on your offense, short huddle or not, you should be able to match up against the guys across from you and execute the plays anyway. Not to mention the fact, that UGA’s hurry up, at half speed is not catching anybody sleeping on the defense. It is the old mano on mano theory. If you can beat me bring it on. I might know you are going to bring your RB on a slant, but I can’t stop it.
Those that say Hutson Mason should be the starter based off of mop up time, against a inferior opponent that at that point was beaten physically and mentally, don’t understand the game. Murray still knows the offense better, and has the confidence of team mates and coaches. He needs to settle down a little bit, and I would like to see him take off swometimes but I think the coaches are trying to keep him from running a lot, for fear he will take off too soon, and not allow the the reciever to get into his route. He needs ro stay as the NBR. 1 QB, unless the other QB’s on the roster can beat him out in performance when real games are played.
The defensive line seems to be another concern but I believe they are doing exactly what a 3-4 line does. They are occupying the front 5 of the offense, allowing the LB’s and safeties to make sacks and put on the pressure coming fgrom the outside. Our LB’s are fast and pretty good on tackling, but so far, they seem to be getting bottled up coming into the backfield. I think the DC needs to let them go and blitz more but the front three are doing their job. Just don’t give up the middle by blitzing too much. A stop at the line of scrimmage is just a few yards short of being as good as a sack or a stop inthe backfield. A NT in a good working 3-4 defense doesn’t record many sacks anyway, he clogs up the middle and that is what they are doing. It is a matter of numbers folks. If you have three occupying five on the line, and even if the other team goes with a two TE set or keeps the FB in to do nothing but block, the defense should be able to take that advantage and use it. The DC will have to work on his blitz packages more, but overall the defense is coming right along.
GO DAWGS and GATA
Day of the Triffids
September 19th, 2011
10:19 am
Georgia Tech alumni and fans have lives that don’t depend entirely on what a bunch of kids does on Saturday afternoons. College sports are fun to follow, but the biggest reason for going to college is to get an education.
UGA fans don’t seem to care about anything but football, and they don’t care if their players are enrolled in silly majors that no parents who are paying the bills would send their kids to UGA for. The very few football and basketball players who graduate have no job opportunities and end up unemployed or working in menial jobs that hardly require a college degree.
Georgia Tech is a real school with serious academic standards, and that includes scholarshipped athletes. UGA has a long history of being a drunken party school, where parents send their kids for an easy degree, even if the degree itself is worthless.
Jan Kemp exposed the obscene sleazy crap going on at UGA with athletes being enrolled in courses a ten-year-old kid could pass. That was almost three decades ago, and nothing has changed. If anything, the abuses are more blatant today. Way too many illiterate morons are being recruited, and the very high arrest rate shows clearly that Richt does not care if his players have any morals or character.
The bottom line is that most Tech fans have very good jobs and productive lives that don’t depend on Tech’s football record for their happiness in life. It would be great to beat UGA more often, but when you put scholar-athletes up against bozo-athletes, it’s usually no contest
FLA DAWG
September 19th, 2011
10:20 am
Richt looks pudgey and discontent.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm, …………kinda reminds me of Coach Fulmer who did so well then flopped.
Of course the difference is the UT Administration unloaded the guy before he could do more damage.
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:20 am
JB: you should cool it and BEAT a real team. Beat an FBS team (GT beat 2). Sure, you’ll beat ole miss and vandy (both are worse than Kansas this year, FYI).
Kansas is a .500 team this year. Count on it. Will UGA beat a .500 team in FBS this season?
FLA DAWG
September 19th, 2011
10:25 am
Day of Trif,
It’s a good thing GT Fans do not rely on their college football athletics for enjoyment as they’ve nothing to enjoy from it.
As far as employment is concerned I picture successful GT Engineering Grads using their computers to do nerdy things for a company owned by a UGA Business Grad.
In fairness I want to say that I’ve always respected GT because no matter how badly the bees are being beaten they players never quit. I wish I could say that about my Dawgs. Lastly, it wouldn’t surprise me if you guys end up beating us this year. But since you have no interest in college football it won’t matter to you right!?
WDE
September 19th, 2011
10:26 am
@GT Joe answer the question how many top 25 teams has your bunch played? And from what I’ve seen so far Vandy just might take your guys..they are 3-0 and have played just as tough of a schedule so far as you have.
DJ Dawg
September 19th, 2011
10:26 am
GT Joe look at the top of the page it says UGA sports!! Find you own blog,but you probably cant because no one cares enough to talk about yall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:29 am
DJ, I’m talking about UGA football… and how they are gonna get whooped this year vs. Tech.
Here’s another statement about UGA football: Mark Richt is BACK! Great win against that elementary school from South Carolina, the Chantiqueers I think?
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:30 am
We beat a high school team Saturday
Nice practice would have served more
OleMiss is bad but it is at Oxford at 11:30 am CST.
Will we be up?
I think we will win and we should win big but history says it will be close.
The game of Richt’s life(again) is versus MSU at home the next week.
Lose that one and I think he is done.
St. Richt
September 19th, 2011
10:31 am
Where are all of the ACC haters this week? Where have all the “A-She-She” people gone?? SEC is a 2 horse race between LSU and Alabama. Hard to swallow I know, but the ACC has much more depth top to bottom this year. Not sure Georgia can beat Vandy. Its amazing all of the kool-aid drinkers are back on here after beating Coastal Carolina. Wow, impressive. And Richt says you’re getting better, so it must be true.
FLA DAWG
September 19th, 2011
10:33 am
DawginLex,
I agree. Saturday was a controlled scrimmage. The UGA Scout Team would have given a better game.
I saw parts of the MSU / Auburn Game and I can tell you Miss State can play ball this year.
Yep, if Richt loses that one he is toast (of course everyone said he’d be fired if he lost the first two opening games!)
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:35 am
MSU is not very good. They are on par with Auburn, who got beatdown by Clemson, a mediocre ACC team.
If UGA can’t beat MSU at home, Richt is ancient history. And UGA fans love history.
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:36 am
i don’t think he will be fired during the season but I do think the results will get the decision made behind the scenes.
Bill King has said that McGarity has too much respect for Richt to make him a lame duck during the season.
ST RICHT
Please show me something in my comments that indicate “kool aid drinking”?????
I didn’t go to Tech so I’m not as smart as you so maybe you see something that I don’t?????????
Beast from the East
September 19th, 2011
10:37 am
“I am still trying to figure out how everybody says Florida is back. They have two RB’s that are their whole offense. No outstanding Wr’s and a QB that is pedestrian at best.”
RedandBlackDawg,
No, UF is not “back”. “Back” would be a NC contender, but you wouldn’t know anything about that. By the way, that pedestrian QB has looked better than Murray so far this season (see the 3 TO’s against USC), and the UT team you dismiss so easily may very well stomp a mudhole in the Dawgs up in Knoxville. Dismissing your foes before you play them is a foolish thing to do.
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:37 am
Clemson is mediocre? You already know the results of the rest of their season?
Auburn is young. That was a good win for Clemson We all expected Auburn to go 6-6.
St. Richt
September 19th, 2011
10:38 am
DawginLex, thanks for being the voice of reason here. My Jackets will get the first real test this Saturday against UNC. Kansas looked more lost than Western Carolina did on Saturday, but I’m starting to feel a little better about our QB. Cautiously optimistic over here..
JB
September 19th, 2011
10:39 am
Tech is pitiful. First, Gt Joe lives on our blogs to tell us how wonderful his team is, rather than ” share the good news” with his other 5 to 10 bloggers on the Tech boards. Then we get an essay from a Tech “it” just to busy with a wonderful life but finds time to come on here and amuse itself with the wonderful virtues if everything Tech. They are really Nerds.
Furman Bishop
September 19th, 2011
10:40 am
Same old BS as always. FL will probably win the east. Richt will be 2 and 9 vs UF. He’ll luck and bumble his way to 8 and 4 and go to a nothing bowl. McGarity, who ia a white version of Damon Evans, albeit with better morals, will come up with some flimsy, pathetic excuse to keep Richt around for another year, and the Richt fanatics who are emotionally attached to Richt will be happy and once more predict better things in 2012.
FLA DAWG
September 19th, 2011
10:40 am
Miss State and Auburn and Clemson are not great teams but they can execute plays most of the time.
This cannot be said of The Dawgs under Richt, Bobo & Grantham.
Besides, it certainly does NOT take a great team to beat our Dawgs!
St. Richt
September 19th, 2011
10:41 am
I think Clemson looked a lot better than a mediocre ACC team on Saturday. Their problem is that they’re too bipolar- you never know what you’re gonna get. I think they had a little extra motivation with Dabo having played at Bama. But watch, they’ll come back and lose to some bottom tier ACC team now. It does seem they’re catching FSU at the right time, though, after they got beat up pretty good against Oklahoma. For any doubters, the Sooners proved they are the real deal IMO.
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:41 am
Tech has played no one but they have sure beat the living crap out of all 3
UNC will be a test but I still think Tech will win
Clemson and VT will be the toughest but VT can’t score.
Miami at Miami might be tough just because of being on the road and the athletes they have.
Who knows with us? We could go 10-2 or 5-7.
DJ Dawg
September 19th, 2011
10:41 am
GT Joe real dawg fans are not thumping our chest about this win! It was expected just like when we play yall !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Matty Lou
September 19th, 2011
10:42 am
Publix is having a BOGO sale on Kool-Aid today. Good time for the delusional dawgtard fans to stock up.
Beast from the East
September 19th, 2011
10:42 am
I cannot believe the people putting down UF, UT, MSU, Auburn or even Ole Miss. UGA COULD very well lose to any one of them or all of them. UF, UT and Auburn have every bit as much talent as UGA…..if not more. MSU proved last year they coud beat UGA. Ole Miss may be in desperation mode to try and save Nutt’s job. You folks are crazy talking trash when your first win in 9 months was against Coastal Carolina. Try a little perspective, will ya?
ARdawg
September 19th, 2011
10:42 am
Looking ahead just a bit, Florida looked pretty dadgone good against TN. Mediocre offense sans two players but pretty stellar on D. The nerds and Paul manboobs Johnson even had an impressive showing. Vandy isn’t an automatic win especially, the way we’re playing. Running the table will prove mighty difficult. If Richt can settle in and coach his way through it, I would be impressed. I wish I had confidence in him.
Missy ST is a good D but lacks any potency on offense. No air attack and other than Relf not threat in the running game. TN is still a wing and a prayer and their best player is out for the year. Da’Rick with decent hands isn’t enough to make Bray a legitimate threat.
Just beat the team in front of you Coach and you should run the table. I think our players are able, are our coaches being the question.
TampaDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:42 am
Day of Trif – “Jan Kemp exposed the obscene sleazy crap going on at UGA with athletes being enrolled in courses a ten-year-old kid could pass. That was almost three decades ago, and nothing has changed. If anything, the abuses are more blatant today. Way too many illiterate morons are being recruited, and the very high arrest rate shows clearly that Richt does not care if his players have any morals or character.”
————————–
1. You obviously don’t know that the Jan Kemp case was truly about. It was about assisting in grades in the English program. Bad? YES! But see number 4 before you righteousness kicks in.
2. http://stanford.scout.com/2/952555.html … In case you wanted to compare graduation rates of the two respective football teams in question.
3. You have nothing to say about the character of the kids that leave UGA after 4 years with CMR. You just make statements that are opinionated with a lack of facts to go with it. This is the very definition of ignorance.
4. Whose school of choice is on probation? That’s right, GT for all of their “we care about academics and not football” crap.
5.
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:43 am
Matty
didn’t you bag my groceries Saturday at Publix?
TampaDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:43 am
5. Show me where GT has some stellar clean program …
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:44 am
JB: I am on here because it’s way more fun over here. More controversy and action.
It’s hard to have debates on the tech blogs because we are destroying every team we play.
GT Joe
September 19th, 2011
10:45 am
Tampa, who cares about probation. Still bowl eligible, so who cares.
And don’t confuse taking some free clothes for academics.
DawginLex
September 19th, 2011
10:45 am
Harold
1.)Drop the all caps
2.)Take all of your meds
3.)Richt won’t get fired during the season
Carry on
FLA DAWG
September 19th, 2011
10:45 am
Everyone seems to be leaving out South Carolina.
They are 3 – 0. Their win against Navy may not have been impressive by the score but if you saw the end of the first half you know why Spurrier has the title of Evil Genius.
His use of the clock and his ability to have his players execute against a Navy team that is not bad was absolutely masterful. The field goal just before half time put them up by 3 and they won the game by 3.
I don’t know if they can beat UF but Spurrier knows how to win with probably the best talent he has ever had at SC.
TampaDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:46 am
Yeah, I think UT got exposed a bit this weekend. One receiver going down is bad and I feel for that guy because he is nothing short of super talented. But if losing a WR causes your ENTIRE team to take a dive then there are bigger problems. They can’t run the ball for nothing and that will be their achilles heal this year.
RxDawg
September 19th, 2011
10:48 am
“We are generally regarded as one of the worst fan bases in the country (and that’s not a new thing).”
Actually that’s not even close to being true. That’s just Tech and other rival fans running off at the mouth. UGA’s fans are regared as some of the best in the country. The most loyal and dedicated.
You want some crappy fans? Take a look at Miami. Both NCAA and Pro.
JB
September 19th, 2011
10:48 am
And I can’t think of a single recent Georgia Athlete ” accused” of murder, just say’n.
Beast from the East
September 19th, 2011
10:49 am
“I don’t know if they can beat UF but Spurrier knows how to win with probably the best talent he has ever had at SC.”
FLA DAWG,
If you can’t stop Lattimore, then you can’t beat USC. It’s really that simple. I’m not looking forward to the trip to Columbia. Hopefuly, Garica will toss us about 5 picks. That 60 foot “jump shot” against Navy was a riot!