Georgia, Vanderbilt coaches discuss postgame skirmish
NASHVILLE – Forget Georgia-Florida, Georgia-Auburn or Georgia-Georgia Tech. The new white-hot rivalry for the Bulldogs may be with Vanderbilt.
Players and coaches had to be separated following the Bulldogs’ hard-fought, emotional 33-28 win. The game wasn’t decided until Vanderbilt tight end Branden Barden of Lincolnton, Ga., was corralled at the Georgia 16-yard line as time expired.
Immediately afterward, a skirmish ensued between the teams that appeared to be mostly yelling and gesturing and little actual physical confrontation. Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham was a central figure in the fray.
Grantham pretty much refused to comment directly what went on with Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin at the end of the game. All he would say and kept repeating was, “I love our players. I’m going to stick up for my players. Everybody’s competitive.”
Franklin was a little more telling with his comment: “We just had a tough, emotional game and some things were said that I didn’t think were appropriate. I went to find Coach Richt and didn’t find him, so I found one of his assistant coaches and it didn’t go well. We’re not going to sit back and take it from anyone.”
Franklin said he eventually found Richt.
“I explained to him what happened,” Franklin said. “That’s for me and Coach Richt to deal with. Hopefully we’ll learn from that experience. Those things happen.”
Replays after the game show Grantham screaming at Franklin in the middle of the field as the players from both teams stood across opposing lines separated by coaches in the middle.
Grantham was reprimanded by Richt last year when he made the choke sign toward Florida kicker Chaz Henry as he prepared to make a game-tying field goal attempt to send the game into overtime. Henry made the kick and the Gators went on to win.
Georgia was called for three personal foul penalties in Saturday’s game and Richt clearly wasn’t happy with the way his players or his coaches acted at the end of the emotional contest.
“I don’t know exactly what happened. Maybe TV picked it up and we’ll get a better view of what was going on. But we are grown men and we need to act that way. But we’re also competitors and we all have emotions and xometimes when you get a little fired up it’s hard to keep from getting in some kind of jawing contest.
“I’ll say this: There were times when I was ashamed of some of the choice things that came out of my mouth during the game. So I’ve got to be disciplined, too.”
On the fracas between the two teams at the end of the game, Richt said:
“I don’t know for sure what heppened. I’ve heard a couple of different sides of the story. It’s hard to know which one is 100 percent the truth. But the bottom line is when the game is over the game’s over. You shake hands and you be thankful for the victory. Just like at the end of a play. When a play’s over, it’s over. Go to the sideline. We didn’t do a very good job of that at times.
“It was heated. It IS battle. It’s not war with real bullets but it’s a war in a sense and it’s very physical. Tempers do get flared up. I don’t mind our blood getting hot but we have to be able to get excited or maybe even angry but not foul.”
Georgia was penalized 11 times for 89 yards in the game and generally played sloppy and without poise. When the Bulldogs were trying to salt the game away in the fourth quarter, they threw an interception, lost seven yards and had to punt on one possession, and finally had a punt blocked on its last possession.
Georgia senior punter Drew Butler should probably go down as the hero of the game. After the punt was blocked by another Georgia native — wide receiver Udom Umoh of Fort Valley — Butler managed to gather his wits quick enough to haul down Umoh at the 20 after Umoh had scooped up the ball.
After an illegal substitution penalty, the Commodores got off two plays before the game ended. The first was a pass in the end zone that bounced off the hands of receiver Chris Boyd, another Georgia native, from Roswell.
Said Grantham, whose unit gave up 349 yards to Vandy: “The bottom line is we stopped them three times in the fourth quarter when they had a chance to win the game.”
Said Richt: “I think Vanderbilt did a fantastic job. They were inches from winning the ballgame.”
Tailback Isaiah Crowell did not play the entire first quarter. Richt said it was “just a situation where it was a coach’s decision not to play him.”
Crowell. finished with 35 yards on 10 carries. He did not play late in the game because of the wrist injury that has plagued him the last three weeks, according to Richt.
Here’s some video of Coach Franklin’s postgame news conference:
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667 comments Add your comment
Doyle Rainey lives
October 16th, 2011
12:32 am
Hey, Nebraska, you would never UGA ,lose by 28 to Wisky either. Moron.
rational
October 16th, 2011
12:33 am
fan, regardless of who instigated it, you saw how Grantham reacted and how everyone around him acted after he reacted. What could have possibly been said for Grantham’s actions to have been appropriate?
JimmyT11
October 16th, 2011
12:33 am
Who’s coaching the special teams?! Whoever it is needs to be fired. Kickoff cover gives up a TD, blocked punt, missed field goals, fake punt for a first down and eventual drive for TD. HORRIBLE special teams!!!! It’s definitely a pattern….
TOOD was the one that did not start this Vandy's coach did
October 16th, 2011
12:34 am
rational, TODD was the one that he went after not the other way around… I was at the game
Rocktown Dawg
October 16th, 2011
12:34 am
Im a new fan of Grantham…. Bobo u suck
Keith Stone
October 16th, 2011
12:34 am
What the hell has Nebraska got to do with it?
Matthews Dawg
October 16th, 2011
12:35 am
Rocktown Dawg….if the line doesn’t block, it’s hard to run! We threw a ton of quick passes trying to get them out of blitzing all night.
SenoiaDawgs…So CMR should make comments about things he doesn’t know the entire truth about and just stick up for whomever and then if the truth comes out that he was wrong and it’s our fault, it looks even worse. The no comment would have been best IMO. The one thing you can’t say about CMR is he has no class, you didn’t say that above but others have.
We won ugly, but it’s a win and time to get ready for UF! We win ugly everytime in Nashville! Look back over the last few times!!
Go Dawgs!!
huh
October 16th, 2011
12:37 am
Despite my Nebraska comment getting censored:
I think it’s hilarious that the post-game debacle was instigated by COACHES. Nice leadership.
Not.
Nice
October 16th, 2011
12:38 am
Grantham is an idiot…period. You don’t behave that way ever.
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:40 am
I’m sure UGA fans are going to try to figure out some excuse that they can rally around to apologize for Grantham’s actions.
Here a tip….don’t. Nothing could be said bad enough to cause a near riot at the end.
azdawg
October 16th, 2011
12:41 am
For the love of God can’t GA find another RB to replace IC instead of Samual? Please, put malcome in the darn game. He cannot do any worse than Samual especially in that final offensive series. Samual was walking wounded in there. We’ll never win the east much less the sec w/the coaching staff of Bozo and Richt. And for crying out loud, why did it take 3 1/2 qtrs for the DC to figure out a 5 man front to stop Vandy’s RB’s and QB scrambling for 1st downs! This GA team is not ready for prime time.
CLASSLESS. UNDISCIPLINED. SORRY.
October 16th, 2011
12:41 am
Beans, you wrote: “Sportsmanship is for losers and communists”
My rebuttal?:
“Character, in the long run, is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike.”
— Theodore Roosevelt, American adventurer and 26th president (1858-1919)
“Society’s demands for moral authority and character increase as the importance of the position increases.”
— John Adams, American Founding Father and second U.S. president (1735-1826)
A grown man screaming at teenagers for his shortcomings in what was a VICTORY shows a huge lack of character and class. It’s no wonder UGA can only beat winless teams
rational
October 16th, 2011
12:42 am
“rational, TODD was the one that he went after not the other way around…”
My point is that it doesn’t matter who started it. They clearly showed on TV Grantham acting like a maniac, getting incredibly heated, putting his finger in the other coaches face, etc. This caused chaos around both of them. He could have said something back and walked away like 99% most people would do. He chose to turn it into something bigger.
bill
October 16th, 2011
12:43 am
billy johnson, before you make yourself look more like a fool, read the article before you start posting on the blogs. Coach Richt compared football to war.
fan
October 16th, 2011
12:43 am
The grownman was Vandy’s coach yelling at GEORGIA’s player. Our coach was yelling at Vandy’s coach. Your argument makes no sense
Gridiron dawg
October 16th, 2011
12:43 am
Good win. Unfortunately, we are about even with vandy vs. Bama, lsu, arky. Hopefully we will turn it around next couple of years. Grantham was just mad his troops played a poor game and his coaching adjustments were horrible. I hated seeing him lose it, especially getting in the face of vandy tight end. Vandy coach was pointing across field at our player, but tg got in the face of vandy player. Poor sportsmanship, fans can call it energy and fire, but it is not class. Florida has scored one touchdown last 3 sec games. Any bets, Rainey and demps all of a sudden find loads of running room against todd’s schemes.
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:44 am
Fan…nobody knows what really happened. Don’t start spitting out “facts” before you have them. Again, there is nooooooooooo proof that Franklin was yelling at a UGA player.
Steeledawg
October 16th, 2011
12:45 am
Why no 10 second run off when Vandy had substitution foul with 7 seconds left?
We didn’t play very well or poised for that matter, but I will take the win. Let’s get rested, refocused and get after the Gators.
5 Time National Champs Nebraska
October 16th, 2011
12:46 am
Hey Towers, how about getting rid of the childish posters who insult instead of discuss.
I asked this from you before, then I got banned.
Typical UGA behavior.
fan
October 16th, 2011
12:46 am
Yeah but clearly grantham was yelling at Vandy’s coach…not a player…argument still makes no sense
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:47 am
Of course Grantham was yelling at Vandy’s coach…in fact, I believe that if he had a gun, he would have shot Vandy’s coach. It was embarrasing seeing Grantham go postal.
Matthews Dawg
October 16th, 2011
12:47 am
Classless… you were great with you comments until the very last sentence! Then you just proved you are a hater!!
Maybe with some of you watched a different game than me…I don’t think we blocked worth a flip tonight!! Samuel couldn’t run and neither could anyone else most of the time. Maybe I’m wrong, but they Vandy defense was pouring in all night!! Someone tell me if they saw it different! So, blaming Bobo for everything, i don’t think is right. Again, we did throw a lot of quick slant passes to get them out of or try to get them out of blitzing all night.
Special teams were not special at all!! It about cost us the game! Go Dawgs!!
cmlsounds1
October 16th, 2011
12:47 am
If Vandy has any guts, the Georgia DC will be arrested for assault.Richt has no balls if he does not fire this piece of crap. Makes the entire program look like punks
rational
October 16th, 2011
12:49 am
“Why no 10 second run off when Vandy had substitution foul with 7 seconds left?”
Because the clock was already stopped because of the change of possession. There is only a run off if the penalty occurs when the clock is running.
memphisdawg
October 16th, 2011
12:50 am
I just watched the Vanderbilt coaches post game press conference and it seems like it was sour grapes that sent him out there to “address Coach Richt about Williams (number 36)”. What a douche. Everyone knows a coach takes the Vandy job to hope it is a stepping stone job to a real program and he is not doing any favors by whining when he loses. This guy will be delivering pizzas in three years.
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:51 am
Memphis…I just watched it too…but I apparently didn’t hear the same thing you did. Sour grapes?
bill
October 16th, 2011
12:52 am
steeledawg, they only run off 10 seconds if the clock is running when the flag is thrown. The clock was stopped due to the change of possesion, so no clock was run off.
Genesis
October 16th, 2011
12:53 am
The Dawgs needed a game like this to show themselves who they really are.Keep winning and improving every week.
Mad Dog One
October 16th, 2011
12:55 am
That was a p@#$ po#@ game if I ever watched one. Had family over had to hold my language down almost had a stroke. MIKE BOBO CAN’T CALL A GAME WORTH A D@#$. There that felt good. If CMR can’t back his players and coaches don’t expect htem to play for him. Crowell needs to grow up. After saying that we need to play under control or fla. will kick our a$$ again and I think we all are tired of that $#$&. As always GO DOGS & GATA
Fired Up
October 16th, 2011
12:56 am
CTG is the man! Love the fire! You folks talking smack about “oh, it’s just Vandy…how could you look so stupid…we are aweful” are blinded by your own fantasies about what football really is. Do you really think teams that are bad at one point in the season are always bad? Have you ever watched an entire football season in your life? This Franklin dude seems like a hell of a coach. His team is improving. They fell short tonight, and he was mad. He was mad at what he thought were cheep shots by UGA. He obviously blames that on CTG because he made sure to talk in his press conference about his “tremendous respect” for CMR, overly so. He no doubt was going to give CTG a piece of his mind. This is not unlike when a baseball manager yells at the umpire for five minutes about a call he thought was bogus. It will never change a thing that has happened. The only difference is that CTG doesn’t have to stand there and take it like some first base ump. He was standing up for himself, his players, and UGA’s place in the college football world. The day a UGA coach lets some Vandy coach, or any coach for that matter, talk to him like he is his daddy, that is when you should be upset. What was he supposed to do? Say “Whoa, man. This hostility is uncalled for, and you should really take a minute to calm down. I don’t think you really mean what you are saying.” Or what about “You know, you’re right. My players had no right to play the game the way they did. Do you think you could come over for an ice-cream social and enlighten them on the proper way to play defensive football? That would be a real help.” Point being, you don’t walk across the field to challenge a man unless you expect things to get ugly. That’s football. No fantasies. CTG is a man. I’m glad he didn’t back down, I’m glad no players for either team were involved (no suspensions), and I’m glad everyone will be talking about it for the next two weeks. This team needs to know that they have someone in their corner, no matter what.
Mudcatjoe
October 16th, 2011
12:56 am
Grantham is low class trash! Richt needs to fire him immediately. He has been causing trouble with his mouth for two years! Another cheap win for those lucky Bullpuppies!
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:57 am
Fired Up…what Grantham did made UGA look stupid. His actions were uncalled for. Period.
just sayin
October 16th, 2011
12:57 am
“I don’t know exactly what happened. Maybe TV picked it up and we’ll get a better view of what was going on.
Two were the result of retaliation hits after late hits from Vandy. The other was Geather’s reaction to the Vandy center rolling up on his legs from behind, 10 yards down field from the line of scrimmage.
Overall the refs did a poor job of keeping these late hits under control. The fact the retaliation seems to get penalized 80% of the time is poor officiating. Maybe all of these should be reviewed by the booth and the penalty administered to the guilty party.
Matthews Dawg
October 16th, 2011
12:58 am
Mad Dog…did you think we blocked well tonight? If you did then Bobo called a bad game, if you think we didn’t……? We did score 33 points. We didn’t play well on both lines of scrimmage I thought.
I understand about the stroke…I had 10 heart attacks!!
freshd
October 16th, 2011
12:58 am
need to rehire coach fabris to coach special teams over whoever coaching the team now. I will even put up with his directional kickoffs too. something is wrong with walsh because his kickoffs are landing on the five and ten yard line.
memphisdawg
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
Fired up. Preach on brother. You got it exactly right. Except when the game is over and whether you win or lose you shake the opposing coaches hand and move on. It’s called sportsmanship and this Vandy coach showed little.
Fan
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
I was at the game and now understand why georgia players act like they won world war iii after making a standard tackle…..todd grantham. Imagine if they could act like that DURING the play instead of after it.
just sayin
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
cmlsounds1
October 16th, 2011
12:47 am
If Vandy has any guts, the Georgia DC will be arrested for assault.
You stupid SOB, who did he assault?
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
Just sayin…where were you last week when “un”Boykin played dirty??? Were you too busy still being mad at Fairley from last year? Don’t be a hypocrite.
Mad Dog One
October 16th, 2011
1:00 am
I think the vandy player was getting between TG& vandy’s big mouthed coach. TG would rip his head off and $@#@ down his neck.
just sayin
October 16th, 2011
1:00 am
Fan
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
I was at the game and now understand why georgia players act like they won world war iii after making a standard tackle
Does that explain why the Vandy “players” were taking cheap shots after the whistle? It was very clear on TV.
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
1:00 am
MemphisDawg…did you think Grantham showed sportsmanship?
just sayin
October 16th, 2011
1:01 am
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
12:59 am
Just sayin…where were you last week when “un”Boykin played dirty???
Name the play.
And Fairley is carrying Staffords jock in Detroit. ROTLFMAO…..
Matthews Dawg
October 16th, 2011
1:02 am
Fired Up…. I think you are spot on with your comments! Things change week to week in football and some weeks teams don’t play well and the other plays out of their mind!! We have always had trouble with Vandy in Nashville.
But, those are great comments!
cmlsounds1
October 16th, 2011
1:02 am
Just sayin
I guess white trash can ‘t afford a TV so you didn’t see what happened
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
1:02 am
Brandon “Un”Boykin is as cheap as they come.
just sayin
October 16th, 2011
1:03 am
Here It Comes
October 16th, 2011
1:02 am
Brandon “Un”Boykin is as cheap as they come.
Name the play or STUF. boy.
cmlsounds
October 16th, 2011
1:03 am
Just sayin
I guess white trash can’t afford a TV
memphisdawg
October 16th, 2011
1:04 am
Here it comes. He stuck up for his team and his coach. He did not start that incident. Your ‘man’ did.
Matthews Dawg
October 16th, 2011
1:05 am
MadDog….I think you are correct about the Vandy player getting in between the coaches. If you look closely, CTG is looking around the player all the time. I think we are the only ones who are making something out of nothing!