Notebook: Richt laughs at label of ‘Hot Seat Bowl’ vs. Ole Miss
ATHENS – Georgia coach Mark Richt laughed Tuesday when he heard some media members were referring to Saturday’s game against Ole Miss as the “Hot Seat Bowl.”
“I knew that would happen,” Richt said, chuckling as he shook his head. “That was pretty easy to predict. You’d think they could have thought of something better than that. I think a couple of kindergartners could have figured out that one.”
But Richt wasn’t laughing when the subject turned to his colleague, Houston Nutt. What Richt has endured is nothing compared to the slings and arrows being aimed at the Rebels’ head coach this week.
In the wake of last Saturday’s 30-7 loss to Vanderbilt, Nutt was subjected to a Sunday morning meeting with Athletic Director Pete Boone. Boone followed that up by appearing before Nutt at his weekly press conference to discuss the state of the football program. Advertisements calling for his ouster were placed in five Mississippi newspapers as well as the Memphis Commercial Appeal. And nearly every question Nutt has fielded since Saturday has to do with his job security.
“I hate that for anybody,” Richt said. “. . . I don’t think anybody enjoys another guy going through something like that. We all know that we are pretty darn good coaches, and there’s 12 of us in the league and somebody is going to have a good year and somebody is going to have a bad year.”
Nutt, 53, left Arkansas to take over at Ole Miss four years ago. He won nine games each of his first two seasons but is 5-10 since. But it was the meek manner in which the Rebels went down at Vanderbilt that so incensed the Ole Miss masses.
“Anyone who was disappointed on Saturday, you can multiply it 99 times for me,” Nutt said. “It all starts with me. I appreciate Pete Boone meeting with the staff and myself and I appreciate what he did the last 24 hours. But now the bottom line is it’s up to us as coaches and players to do our job.”
Aron White gets national award
Tight end Aron White knew he was coming to Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall to have lunch with a bunch of children who were being rewarded for doing the right things. But he didn’t know the kids were there to honor him for his good deeds.
“I was really shocked,” said White, who was named one of 11 FBS players nationwide named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team on Tuesday. “They tricked me into coming over here to eat lunch with some kids who were doing really well and being kind. They had made a banner for me and knew the whole time. Then Coach Richt came in and announced it. Nobody told me. I was definitely caught off-guard.”
The fifth-year senior from Columbia, Mo., already received on undergraduate degree and has a lengthy resume of community service contributions, including volunteering at Camp Sunshine, Kudzu, the Boys and Girls Club and Habit for Humanity; visiting patients at Egleston Children’s and St. Mary’s hospitals and classes at local elementary schools; and leading an MLK Day Service.
“It’s something I’m very, very proud of,” he said of the Good Works award. “It’s probably the most prestigious award I’ve ever received.”
More opps for Mason?
Richt stopped short of saying it had reached a point of critical mass where the Bulldogs had to find a way to play both Hutson Mason and Aaron Murray a la David Greene-D.J. Shockley. But the coaches clearly like what the sophomore quarterback is doing and have no reservations about putting him in games.
“Right this second that’s not something I would want to comment on,” Richt said. “We haven’t really gone further with that discussion, . . . talking about Mike Bobo and myself. But Hutson is practicing well and he’s playing well and he really runs the system well and he’s earned playing time in my mind. How we’ll manage that, I’m not ready to make any promises I can’t keep.”
Mason, a sophomore from Marietta, had created a buzz well before making his first appearance of the season against Coastal Carolina last week. Coaches and players raved about his play in preseason camp. Mason was 6-of-9 for 68 yards and a touchdown in less than a quarter of play.
But Aaron Murray is the unquestioned leader of the team. He has completed 63 percent of his passes for 672 yards and 9 TDs and 2 interceptions in three games.
Tyson back from ‘non-injury’
Why DeAngelo Tyson missed last Saturday’s game is unclear but, whatever it was, it wasn’t for an injury. At least that’s what Tyson said on Tuesday.
“I didn’t have an injury,” said Tyson, who Richt said missed the game with a back injury. “I was just told I wasn’t able to play because of what was going. Buit I’m doing whatever I need to get back on the field.”
Asked if it was a disciplinary situation, Tyson said: “Unh-uh, ” as in the negative.
Asked if he’d be good to go this week, he said: “Um-hmm,” as in the affirmative.
In any case, Tyson said he will play Saturday versus Ole Miss. The senior from Statesboro started the first two games of the season at the defensive end opposite Abry Jones and is second among defensive linemen with 7 tackles.
Injury report: Rambo hurt
Starting free safety Bacarri Rambo had to leave practice with an injury Tuesday and came back wearing a green, non-contact jersey. Rambo, who knocked himself unconscious with a game-saving hit against Auburn in 2009, was having his head area examined by a trainer. Defensive backs coach Scott Lakatos didn’t know what the nature or extent of the injury was but expects Rambo to play Saturday. Also, three-way threat Brandon Boykin left the practice briefly to have his right ankle wrapped but returned.
Meanwhile, junior split end Marlon Brown is “questionable to doubtful” to play Saturday due to a sprained right ankle that sidelined his last weekend. As a result, true freshman Malcolm Mitchell is slated to get his third start of the season. Richt was hopeful that offensive lineman Kenarious Gates (ankle) will be back to face the Rebels. He was able to practice with the second-string line on Tuesday.
They said it
“They’re going to be wounded and mad. But we’re wounded and mad, too.”
– Richt
Etc. . . .
Center David Andrews played the best of the three true freshmen offensive linemen on Saturday, Richt said. Tackle Watts Dantzler and guard Hunter Long were the others. . . . Coaching great Jack Harbaugh attended Georgia’s practices and spoke to the Touchdown Club of Athens on Tuesday night.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
345 comments Add your comment
JRW7
September 20th, 2011
11:21 pm
After the last 2 seasons, how can there be any CMR KOOLAID drinkers left?
Cali Dawg
September 20th, 2011
11:23 pm
Why do we see so much “If I was a UGA fan…”, “You Dog fans…”, “If Richt was my coach…” on the blog.
Why are you people so interested in UGA? Why do you read and post on the website so often? I find it very interesting. Maybe because I have no interest in stories about or givingan opinion on any of our rival blogs?
Skokie Dog
September 20th, 2011
11:31 pm
Richt can AFFORD to laugh at his predicament. He gets paid, win or lose. My problem with his performance is that he’s no longer worth the high salary. U.Ga. could easily find qualified applicants to take our team to six-win seasons for way less than $3 mil. per year. I don’t think that Dan Mullen or Kirby Smart is the answer to the question, who should be our next coach? We need to find someone like Fitzgerald at Northwestern: devoted to the program and his players, team-first attitude, and happy to be doing his job.
dawgtimer
September 20th, 2011
11:32 pm
Hairy Nuts, Why would Richt want to come to Columbus ,except to recruit.You did mean Columbus Georgia ,didn’t you ?
Kyle
September 20th, 2011
11:38 pm
Jake, Joe Cox was undefeated in high school….look how that worked out. Murray has an insane amount of leadership and he is still learning. Let the kid grow up. Mason has played in two situations: 1) When we play a crappy team and we have 100% chance of winning, or 2) When we are in a game that is already over and he is playing the other team’s scrubs.
There is no reason that Mason should play….if Murray played w/ the O-Line Stafford had, he would be amazing! Chill out, breath, remember the fact that its a game, and enjoy life.
Javaris C.
September 20th, 2011
11:43 pm
I really enjoyed the GT game from my cell last Saturday. Any word when Reuben H. will get here? I need a new celly. My current celly is using my sphincter for target practice. Go TECH!
Valdosta Dawg
September 20th, 2011
11:43 pm
KeepMarkRicht.com
PigIron
September 20th, 2011
11:45 pm
Cali Dawg
September 20th, 2011
11:23 pm
Why do we see so much “If I was a UGA fan…”, “You Dog fans…”, “If Richt was my coach…” on the blog.
It’s called train-wreck syndrome. Innocent bystanders just can’t help staring at the grisly scene.
I know what the hell I'm doing okay?
September 20th, 2011
11:45 pm
I’m leading this team down the toilet and refuse to make any substantial changes when they need to be made. I can’t fire a guy with 5 kids to feed. I’m going down with the ship.
PigIron
September 20th, 2011
11:46 pm
You can bet it’s happening on Ole Miss sites as well.
PigIron
September 20th, 2011
11:48 pm
The interesting thing about the Hotseat Bowl is that the losing Head Coach is likely to be fired first, which ironically gives an advantage to the losing team, since they get the first shot at hiring a replacement coach.
Guess it works sort of like the NFL draft.
soothsayer
September 21st, 2011
12:00 am
First off…I guess “Jake” from page 1 is “jake mason”.
Second…you would laugh it off it too if you were making 3 million a year.
The bigger question is what if somehow Ole Miss jumps up and bites back and beats the Dawgs…doubtful but what if? What would Richt say or would he laugh then?
Throw me a bone
September 21st, 2011
12:05 am
ALL ThE MURRY HATERS SHOULD LAY OFF, HES NOT PAYTON MANNING ACCURATE, NUT WHO IS? HES NOT A TOM BRADY DECISION MAKER, BUT WHO IS?… ALL I KNOW IS HES A LEADER AND A GRITTY WARRIOR WHO I WANT IN MY FOX HOLE. THE LOSING IS ATTRIBUTED TO MORE THAN JUST MURRAY!
STAFFORD WASNT CLOSE TO THE LEADER THAT AARON IS AND DO ANY OF YOU REMEMBER MATT ROUTINELY OVERTHROWING RECIEVERS BY 10+ YDS AND THROWING INTO DOUBLE COVERAGE EVERY GAME.
NOT TO MENTION 31-0 AT HALF AGAINST ALABAMA, BEING SHALACKED AGAINST UF, AND LETTING GA TECH COME BACK! STAFFORD WON MAYBE 2 BIG GAMES IN 3 YRS. ALING WITH ONLY USING UGA TO GET TO THE NFL. I HEARD NONE OF YOU SCREAMING FOR JOE COX, SO WHATS THE DIFFERENCE NOW?…. JUST CURIOUS
Throw me a bone
September 21st, 2011
12:15 am
My point: murray is already a better college qb and 10 times more efficient than stafford, with half of the arm that stafford had… Stafford had too many overthrows and picks and no 1 wanted him gon so why aaron.
Be careful what you wish for! Mop-up duty for mason is nothing compared to the pressure of being a fulltime starter in the sec, like murray. Cox played good in mop up situations and we all saw what happened when the pressure was on…… Mason just might be the next joe cox. U never know!
Really????
September 21st, 2011
12:19 am
Jake – Really man? You do realize they were playing Coastal Carolina right? Not to bang on Mason, because I think he has some skill, but to yank your starter over your back up lighting it up against a FCS school is kinda…well…STUPID!!!! Let’s settle down and let the season play out a little bit. We are about to rip off quite a few wins, then you and every other mad fan will finally step back from the ledge.
Throw me a bone
September 21st, 2011
12:20 am
My point: murray is already a better college qb and 10 times more efficient than stafford, with half of the arm that stafford had… Stafford had too many overthrows and picks and no 1 wanted him gon so why aaron.
Be careful what you wish for! Mop-up duty for mason is nothing compared to the pressure of being a fulltime starter in the sec, like murray. Cox played good in mop up situations and we all saw what happened when the pressure was on…… Mason just might be the next joe cox. U never know!.
jones
September 21st, 2011
12:54 am
they could start jesus at qb and bobo and richt would mess it up
bugsquacher
September 21st, 2011
1:14 am
there are a lot of coaches out there that could provide 7 or 8 win seasons for much less than Richt is making………why doesnt UGA save the money and get one of them……
AJ
September 21st, 2011
1:46 am
Thank you Strange Murphy. These people are a bunch of idiots. Georgia fans don’t deserve Mark Richt. Where’s the shame in losing to the #4 and #10 teams in the country? At least he has the balls to play these people. This rag of a newspaper is hyping Tech for beating up on high school teams. As for Murray, I didn’t see him give up 45 points against S.C. When you put up 42 you’ve done your job.
Tech Guy
September 21st, 2011
3:02 am
Richt loses and laughs. Paul Johnson wins big and immediately starts coaching better blocking, tackling and execution. Does anyone besides me see the contrast?
Joe
September 21st, 2011
3:07 am
Two questions about Newton, Tebow,and Moore. What kind of offensive line did they have? What kind of Defensive team did their team have????? Actully three….What kind of offensive coordinator did they have?? and another,,, How many fifth year seniors did they have????
Joe
September 21st, 2011
3:16 am
Cox was not given any mop up duty after Stafford got established. The only time he graced the field after the win vs ole miss was his fifth year senior year….Mop up duty is not experience…Richt did not give him mop up duty because UGa substituted the defense when the game got out of hand then the other team would score and make it close and Stafford would be put back in and Cox never got on the field in any significant pressured experience. Example was the GSU game. GSU scored three TD’s vs the defense and came within 13. Stafford never was substituted and then UGA ran the ball and ran the clock until they scored going back up by 20….That kind of thing happened several times those years.
Dirty Dawg
September 21st, 2011
3:36 am
Richt was absolutely right to react to the infantile ‘hot seat bowl’ characterization of this game the way he did. Someone here commented that some of Georgia’s coaches should have their ‘heads examined’…well I say that there are any number of, so-called, sports writers that need to have their entrails examined and even more here that are suckin’ Georgia fans that have the arrogance to talk as if they actually know something about this sport – whataya got, some fantasy football team so you think you’re a GM or an AD or something? Of course there are those that only get their enjoyment by tearing down others – that’s pretty much called sadism – but then when I think of how I’d like to be the one to ‘expose those entrails’ then maybe, when it comes to dealing with you trolls, I’m pretty much a sadist too…get ready cause you got a ‘guttin’ comin’ before this season is over.
As for the QB situation, young Mr. Mason will get his chances to show if he’s a better QB than Aaron Murray – times’ll get tough during games, Murray could be injured, who knows, but it he, Mason gets the job done he’ll get more chances.
Stinger2
September 21st, 2011
4:36 am
Typical blog responses from the group of unrealistic UGA fans. One difference though, they seem to be dividing their negative and critical comments between Murray and the coaches more equally.
UGASlobberknocker
September 21st, 2011
5:00 am
Anybody who thinks Mason should be starting over Murray knows not a thing about football talent. Murray will play on Sundays, Mason will be a very successful businessman.
Itiswhatitis
September 21st, 2011
6:13 am
What would be so damn funny is if CMR was fired and ended up at Ol Miss. or Tenn. and came in and whipped the dogs every season. I wonder what all the JAWJA people would say then?
Cmon man
September 21st, 2011
6:16 am
Working for the ajc must be the easiest job in the world all you do is copy and paste articles from the pay sites I read this same article yesterday. Come on ajc lets be original!
Richt Rules!
September 21st, 2011
7:07 am
Richt will beat ole miss, miss state and Tennessee and keep his job—mark it down! He should get a long term contract extension or other schools will try to hire him, like ole miss.
raymond
September 21st, 2011
7:12 am
If Im Richt and in the hotseat he is in, the last thing I want to do is start hiding things from the media.
John Galt
September 21st, 2011
7:14 am
Jake, don’t go away mad, just go away…..
Nub
September 21st, 2011
7:18 am
What isn’t funny is being in the cellar ….. Laugh on…. Will the athletic association be laughing when the cash flow takes a hit….. ?
Nub
September 21st, 2011
7:22 am
As far as all of the yeckies on our blog …. To be expected when average attendance at bobby dump is 20,000 … Thus closet dawgs dressed in red and black!!!!
bubba4dawgs
September 21st, 2011
7:27 am
Thanks for the info, Jake! Too bad the idiot naysayers can’t read! Notice that Richt is ahead of Saban and Spurrier. Hmmmm!
Beast from the East
September 21st, 2011
7:32 am
Nice to see that Richt finds the situation amusing. From most of what I hear from the Dawg Nation, they do not concur.
Wednesday morning buffet | Get The Picture
September 21st, 2011
7:57 am
[...] guess the local media is getting bored with hot seat talk. Now, it’s on to ginning up a quarterback controversy. Share this:TwitterEmailStumbleUponRedditFacebookPrintDiggLike this:LikeBe the first to [...]
dostadawg
September 21st, 2011
7:58 am
Jake— How do you know, along with everyone else, that Mason would not have committed turnovers against South Car. Do you have a magical crystal ball??? It’s real easy to sit backl and point fingers after the fact. Murray is our QB and one of the leaders of this team.
Jake
September 21st, 2011
8:05 am
Mason deserves a chance to lead this team. If Murray’s so good, why can’t Murray beat a SINGLE winning team (0-8 vs. winning teams). Murray’s ONLY wins are against teams like Coastal Carolina. Murray was the BIGGEST reason why we lost to SC & UF: 3 to’s vs. CC, 4 TO’s vs. UF. UGA was LAST in TO margin against ranked teams in 2010. Guess why? Murray lacks poise, he overthrows, he fumbles and throws too many picks in big games, and he ALWAYS finds a way to LOSE against WINNING TEAMS. 0-8 vs. winning teams, all we need to know about A. Murray.
roughrider
September 21st, 2011
8:18 am
Mason appears to have more poise than Murray.
David
September 21st, 2011
8:20 am
Finally…Mason will hopefully get a chance…..like it or not- Murray gift wrapped 21 points for SC…..this is an all sec QB??????????????????????? I think Murray needs to know he will sit when he makes bad decisions……that can only make him better. When the game is on the line we need a QB/leader that gets us thru….not one that fumbles instead of taking a sack…..not one that tosses an interception in overtime……..not one who mishandles the handoff to a freshmen…….and not one that has YET to beat a winning team………sorry Aaron- you proclaimed yourself the leader of this team- time for you to stop puting your mates in a position to lose games…
Ghost of Herb Brooks
September 21st, 2011
8:31 am
Great talent at QB can be a curse and a blessing at the same time but it’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it. That’s the issue here at UGA. Aaron Murray is a very talented QB with great leadership skills BUT I’ve often wondered if he’s the RIGHT QB for our pro-style offense. Let’s look at the tale of the tape:
OL average height: 6’3.5”
Murray: 6’1”
Mason: 6’3”
As a drop back passer Murray would have issues seeing over the OL so strategy suggests that he should be in the Shotgun to compensate for the height issue. As a matter of fact his high school ran a spread offense with him taking 95% of his snaps from the shotgun. Mason, by way of comparison, also ran a spread offense in high school taking the majority of his snaps from the shotgun formation; however, the “X Factor” would be height. Mason is 6’3” which is an advantage for up field vision. On paper neither man is the “right” player for this offense but Mason get’s the nod for his height. From what I have seen from both QB’s two things stand out which separates the two:
Decision Making
Accuracy
Murray simply holds the ball far too long in given situations; hence the high sack numbers against him. Spurrier pointed this out and the ESPN game day guys dogged him for it. That has been the universal knock against him and for some reason he has not improved from his freshman year. Mason, consequently, seems to make quick reads and gets the ball away very fast al la Kellen Moore. He is significantly more accurate with his throws and excels in the short to medium routes. He has excellent touch on his long throws also.
In the wings is Christian Lemay who’s 6’2” and is very mobile. When you look at his tapes you see he’s been under Center, in the Shotgun and has ran the option on occasion. Of course he’s going to be Red Shirted this year and by all accounts from the spring and Pre-Season needs some tuning up. Is he the “right” player for this offense? Time will tell.
Mason seems to be the “man in the middle”. CMR and CMB are not going to bench Murray in favor of Mason regardless of the situation barring injury. Lemay already seems to be the “golden” child in the wings so where does that leave Mason? I believe that Mason will transfer after the season; he’s simply too good to play second fiddle to Murray or Lemay. Look for him [Mason] to either do the JUCO route back to FBS or to a prolific passing team in the FCS.
Too much talent can be as a bad as too little. Georgia’s coaches and recruiting people need to focus on the “right” players for our schemes rather than the “best” so-called players as related by the talking heads at recruiting services.
If I were CMR I would start Mason against New Mexico State later in the year and see how he really does when the team and game are his to run.
JB
September 21st, 2011
8:35 am
A new staff= the QB position wide open for 2012. Best man plays.That hasn’t always been the case with Richt, at every position.
NextCoachPlease
September 21st, 2011
8:38 am
I will be laughing when they FIRE his sorry butt and bring in a great coach by the name of Coach Jim Tressel. Thank you very much!
Tom
September 21st, 2011
8:41 am
Why didn’t the staff let Deangelo know he was injured?
DawginLex
September 21st, 2011
8:47 am
Most popular guy on any campus or on any NFL team?
The backup QB
I do think hutson has earned some series with the first teamers in a meaningful situation.
Pretty good problem to have but also dicey. Will Hutson be willing to redshirt next year with the hop of starting in 2014 as a senior? What about Christian Lemay? That young man and his father won’t let him sit for 3 years.
I still like the idea of playing 2 right now. You have to be able to manage it. Bobo?
If Murray gets hurt, we do have a solid backup
Cmon man
September 21st, 2011
8:52 am
is it ever a day when you so called fans arent complaining about something? Each week this team has improved in some phase of the game. Its 9 games left and they are about to get into the meat of their sec schedule instead of you so called fans crying how about you stand behind this team. Better yet go cheer for tech, or bama or fla. I bet 98% of the people on here dont have an ounce of athletic ability in their body but they are trying to tell these guys how to do their job. Uga has the worst fan base in america I hate to admit this but I give tech fans credit you rarely see them throwing their players under the bus no matter how much they suck can you so called uga fans say the same
bitter grantham
September 21st, 2011
8:55 am
murry walks a thin red line—————eyes are now on him 24/7———kellon moore exposed him
PigIron
September 21st, 2011
8:56 am
@Cmon man
You must not have been around during the waning days of the Chan Gailey era.
RxDawg
September 21st, 2011
8:57 am
I know that everyone’s favorite player is always the backup QB… but I really do love everything (which I ackowledge is very little) I’ve seen from Mason. At least we know if Murrary goes down we’ve got someone that can step in.
DC
September 21st, 2011
8:58 am
AU is doing it with Trotter and a mix with Frazier…Sometimes if you have two quality guys you have to do it…work on some schemes..never know what might happen from game to game with injuries etc..
DAWGMAN
September 21st, 2011
9:01 am
Don’t know why some of you would be satisfied to win 9 a year. Most old timers get acid indigestion at the thought.
Getting the team ‘up and running’ a third of the way into the season with the unreasonable expectation of winning 9 is a fine example of delusional thinking. Georgia is a basement dweller in the conference.
The military uses a term,command and control, to let everybody know who is responsible and accountable for different parts of a mission. The unit commander may have to delegate authority for different portions of an operation, but the unit commander is, in the end, accountable and responsible for the overall success of the mission. The buck stops at the commander’s door. The commander cannot announce that the first battle doesn’t count, and bring the troops to battle unprepared to win. The commander can’t watch his troops give away the second battle at the last minute, and not chew nails by the boxful. What are the replacements going to take from the commander’s reactions to defeat? Do the troops have respect for, and confidence in the commander? Or do the troops know that the commander has low expectations of them and himself?
The troops may have whupped some Coastal Carolina butt last weekend, but the troops still know that not much will be expected of them as long as this commander is at peace with himself. This commander just may toss in a loss to Old Miss just to help their guy be at peace with himself. Peace is good. Conflict is bad. Being the best you can be is overrated. It is so passe’. Everybody gets a medal. A little wine, some crusty bread, some stinky cheese, and a flashy medal.
The higher command at GHQ are rubbing their greedy hands over increased revenue with conference expansion. Increased revenue is now the mission. Nothing else matters. Higher command is at peace with themselves too.
Me, I got acid indigestion.