Preview: Georgia’s ‘bus’ rolls on seeking 9th straight victory vs. Kentucky
Three storylines
Bus rolls on. The Bulldogs (8-2, 6-1 SEC) arrive at Saturday’s game against Kentucky (4-6, 1-5) having won eight straight games since dropping their first two to No. 5 Boise State and No. 10 South Carolina. The winning streak has been made possible, coaches and players say, by the team adhering to the its credo this season, “Get on the Bus,” as in “get on or get off because we’re rolling on.” That attitude has put Georgia in position to clinch the SEC East title and championship game berth with a victory.
Senior Day. Twenty-four players and four student managers/assistants will be recognized in Senior Day ceremonies before Saturday’s game. Among the seniors that will be playing their last games between the hedges are six starters: offensive linemen Justin Anderson, Cordy Glenn and Ben Jones; fullback Bruce Figgins; defensive end DeAngelo Tyson; and cornerback/kick returner Brandon Boykin. They’re 32-17 over the past four seasons.
Mark Richt’s milestones. By all accounts, a victory today will go a long way toward assuring that Mark Richt will continue as Georgia’s head coach past this season. Richt has just two years remaining on his contract after this season and was not extended coming off his first losing season last year (6-7). A win today would give him his fifth shared or outright SEC East title in 11 seasons and fourth championship game appearance. As East champs, UGA almost certainly will extend Richt’s deal after the season. With 105 wins in 141 games, he would remain third in winning percentage (.745) among active FBS coaches with more than 100 games experience, behind Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops and TCU’s Gary Patterson.
A Georgia win would . . .
Clinch its first SEC Championship Game berth since 2005
Be the 33rd for the Bulldogs’ senior class.
A Kentucky win would . . .
Be its third in last six games vs. Georgia and second in row in Athens
Keep an eye on …
For Georgia: Brandon Boykin. The senior cornerback from Fayetteville will be starting his 35th game for the Bulldogs – tops among defensive players – while also returning kickoffs, punts and taking occasional snaps on offense as a running back or receiver. He already owns the school record with 2,469 yards in kickoff returns and, with 30 yards on Saturday, will move to second all-time in the SEC. He needs 250 yards to run down Florida’s Brandon James as the league’s best ever.
For Kentucky: CoShik Williams. The 5-foot-9, 178 pound junior tailback from Hiram has provided a spark in the Wildcats’ running game after a pair of fellow Georgians – Josh Clemons and Raymond Sanders – went down with injuries. In the past four games Williams has averaged 86.3 yards rushing and scored two touchdowns.
The numbers game
4
Georgia’s national ranking in total defense
9
Wins in a row should Dogs beat Kentucky, most during one season since going 11-0 in 1982.
27
TD passes so far this season by QB Aaron Murray, a school record
179
Yards TB Isaiah Crowell needs to become the 12th UGA player to rush for 1,000 yards and only true freshman other than Herschel Walker.
The history book
Series record: Georgia leads 50-12-2, including 24-4-2 at Sanford Stadium
The last time: On Oct. 23, 2010, in Lexington, Ky., Georgia tailback Washaun Ealey set a school record with five rushing touchdowns and Brandon Boykin added a 100-yard kickoff return as the Bulldogs overwhelmed Kentucky 44-31 in Commonwealth Stadium.
The bottom line
A 30.5-point favorite, Georgia (8-2, 6-1 SEC) should win easily to clinch its fifth SEC Eastern Division title under head coach Mark Richt and earn its first berth in the league championship game since 2005. The Wildcats (4-6, 1-5) rank 109th or worse nationally in six statistical categories and are coming off a 38-8 loss to Vanderbilt while the Bulldogs are among the top 10 in five different categories. Expect a big day for quarterback Aaron Murray and the Georgia defense.
– Chip Towers
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177 comments Add your comment
headley lamar
November 18th, 2011
4:35 pm
Another 10 years of Richt is PERFECT for DAWG Nation!!
I agree. He has won over 100 games in 11 years and the SEC East 5 out of 11 times.
9-1 vs Tech and winning records vs every SEC team not named Florida.
Let the good times roll !!!!!
JAWJeRDAWG
November 18th, 2011
4:43 pm
Still@theBAR
See you’ve haven’t dropped the ‘Kool-aid’ mantra quite yet, but some of we UGA faithful are now thinking that glass has been measured and served!
Good luck to GT against Duke. Get ‘ur done!
Wish I could make it to the UGA / GT game, but some lingering spinal problems just won’t let me travel.
If you get a chance pre- or post-Duke game, hoist one for me and remember that not all Dawg fans hate the Bees; we just like to win that one game when we play you!
.. Go Dawgs!
GayDawg
November 18th, 2011
4:44 pm
I LOVE bees…so precious…and sweet like me!
Still@theKool-aidBAR
November 18th, 2011
5:05 pm
JawJe…………back problems are terrible. Will you have to have surgery to correct of can you have surgery? Well, try to protect it and take the good pills. LOL.
azdawg
November 18th, 2011
5:19 pm
Dawgs lose a lot of experience w/those graduating starters, especially on the OL. Tyson will also be missed as well as Boykin. No telling what Juniors might bolt for the NFL which would hurt even more come next season. Hope they all stick around cause if they do GA will have a good nucleus of returning starters for 2012 season. GO DAWGS.
Jborodawg
November 18th, 2011
5:22 pm
JAWJeRDAWG, Nov 18th@ 3:37 pm. Agreed. Fans should stay to the end, give encouragement to the team as they exit; take in the Redcoat Band’s lil concert.
Like you, I also scroll right on down past any all caps post. I’m leaning toward the same action with schizoid Thomas Brown, and his many monikers….because it’s the same old stuff about the last two years and this year’s weak sked. Just too teejus.
Hope your back gets better.
I’m a true believer in taking any opponent seriously. I’m a believer in not looking ahead, etc. That being said, I really, really want to see H. Mason play all of the fourth quarter…or more against Kaintuck. To me it was near absurd having Murray in there even in the third quarter. Mop-up duty in the fourth was nothing; no real game experience gained.
ZinoDawg
November 18th, 2011
5:25 pm
Looking forward to an easy victory over the toothless Cats, then it’s off to North Avenue. I can’t wait as I will be one of the THOUSANDS of red clad Dawg fans invading that dinky a$$ stadium!
Go Dawgs!
ZinoDawg
November 18th, 2011
5:35 pm
Hey Kool-aid – I’m on here all the time. Problem is I have a job so I am usually buried on page 6!
I am in Section 219 – Row 35. I will be the “drunk obnoxious GA fan” drunk on Bloody Mary’s!
Long live Stub Hub!
Hurt Kurbstreit
November 18th, 2011
5:36 pm
Just “Get on the Bus Gus”. Or else make a new plan Stan.
Had to say it.
1969 Graduate
November 18th, 2011
5:58 pm
Can’t see the Bulldogs taking this game lightly, or any of the remaining games. They’ve simply got too much to prove.
Kentucky, on the other hand, has sometimes played us a lot tougher than it looked like they were capable of, so we might have a more challenging game than the odds makers think. I doubt it, but it could happen.
I think this Bulldog team is on a roll, but I also think we’re not quite as well tested yet as a lot of people seem to think (the Kood-Aid crowd).
Of course, I’m certain we can beat anyone, if we show up, play our best, aren’t shot in the foot by a coach, and don’t make stupid mistakes. Not every team can win even getting everything right, but I think this Georgia team can.
Let’s win out, and beat the West’s representative team, and win the bowl game, and end up in the top five. Wouldn’t that be cool!
Go, Georgia Bulldogs.
Doggie
November 18th, 2011
6:19 pm
No way the dogs lose an ounce of focus.. They smell it.gettin better every week. GO DAWGS
JAWJeRDAWG
November 18th, 2011
6:44 pm
Still@theKool-aidBAR
The pain meds and steroids have offered little relief; thanks for the well-wishes!
MRI this AM showed surgery needed. Don’t know when it’ll be, but if I’m not blogging on here for awhile, you’ll know why; simply because I just won’t be able to sit here and blog.
I’m gonna try my best to keep up with all the blogging, though! Y’all stay classy, now! …
No matter the outcome of our remaining game’s win or loss record, I’m still be proud of UGA and how the coaches, team, and fans have come together to get us where we are now.
Have a good weekend, all. .. Go Dawgs!
Dawg48
November 18th, 2011
6:57 pm
@ JAWJeRDAWG
Hate to here your having the back problems, hope things get well for you soon so tou will be back in the classic city in 2012 hunkering down one more time!
autotrader
November 18th, 2011
6:58 pm
Are the dawgs gonna be on TV, or will I have time to sell some cars?
JAWJeRDAWG
November 18th, 2011
6:58 pm
Jborodawg
5:22 pm
Thanks, to you, too! .. Go Dawgs!
JAWJeRDAWG
November 18th, 2011
7:01 pm
Dawg48
Really looking to 2012. I should be much better by then, and it really should be a good year for UGA football!
Go Dawgs!
Dawg48
November 18th, 2011
7:05 pm
Yes sir!!!
flo-ri-duh
November 18th, 2011
7:10 pm
If Georgia gets a comfortable lead expect Crowell and Mitchell to take a seat on the bench. LSU has the toughest schedule in the SEC and they still have Arkansas. Just come out of this with a win and no serious injuries.
SuperQueerDawg
November 18th, 2011
7:13 pm
HEyyyyyy. After we stick it in KY (with ky brand of course), a bunch of us are heading out for pizza and then heading over to the toolbox. Some of you strapping lads should come join us.
Saban
November 18th, 2011
7:20 pm
One step closer to a 50 point beatdown in the SEC championship game and a loss to the sisters of the poor bowl classic in Shreveport.
Life is good. I beat LSU for another national championship and Richt gets a contract renerwal for 10 years for winning 8 games.
mediocrity and Athens, just seem to go together.
Still@theKool-aidBAR
November 18th, 2011
7:22 pm
JAWje………….I had some rods in my spine years ago. Good Luck with surgery and best wishes. I rarely don’t have some back pain still. Be Blessed and I hope it goes great and you never have pain again.
SuperQueerDawg
November 18th, 2011
7:24 pm
Heyyyy. Just because we can’t win a title with top recruiting classes doesn’t mean we aren’t a good team. We have more 10 win seasons than any other team in the nation over the last 10 years. #1 preseason rankings count for something! Downtown athens has one of the hottest gay scenes in the country. Very open to young men wanting to experiment.
Go dawgs! Woof!!!
Still@theKool-aidBAR
November 18th, 2011
7:33 pm
SQD actually Virginia Tech has more 10 win seasons I do believe. like 18 of the last 19 years.
kb
November 18th, 2011
8:02 pm
Still more like 8 years counting this one,
kb
November 18th, 2011
8:04 pm
Thats 8 in a row. Very little to show for it. 1 BCS win . but a good sound program.
Mark Richt
November 18th, 2011
8:19 pm
I can’t wait to go on a cruise once I finish this season and get my contract extended. Next year I guarantee you a 5-7 record, and will have my extension built where I can’t be fired. LOL I’ll take it all the way to the bank, and you will have me another glorious 5 years. LOL!!!!! Zippity Doo Da….Zippity A….O my what a wonderful day….Mr. Blue Bird on my shoulder……..
bitter dope smoking running backs
November 18th, 2011
9:11 pm
shout out to TURD ROLL—-AKA—–TOLIT BOWL TIDE—————–bamma looooser
——————enjoy watching THE BIG DAWGS —in the —BIG SHOW—-elephant fans
—————————————-dawg eat dawg
bitter dope smoking super ga_y bamma fans
November 18th, 2011
9:18 pm
we will give you a stroke for good luck dawgies——go aHEAD and lick me dog
——————-i love jaw–jer men———my favorite man is turd roll—–big gut great job
————————-he is a WAL-MART MAN————-JUST LIKE SABAN
—————i am a serious BUTT KISSER———–go tide—-give a dawg a bone
ARdawg
November 18th, 2011
9:26 pm
Saban
Heh heh. Georgia is one step closer and Bama is another one farther. You exude vile jealousy. Relax, it’s only a game that your boys can’t reach.
ARdawg
November 18th, 2011
9:27 pm
JAWJeDAWG!
You get well friend also, get you a laptop…..L
Bicurious Bulldawg
November 18th, 2011
10:40 pm
If we win there will be some amazing gayness down at the toolbox tomorrow. I am hoping to come away with a victory so that way headley lamar will be gentle with me tomorrow. He was a rough rider after the boise loss. GO BULLDAWGS!
We Have No Class
November 18th, 2011
11:03 pm
But we don’t care.
? Mysterion ?
November 18th, 2011
11:16 pm
The SEC East is about as good as the WAC.
Still@theKool-aidBAR
November 18th, 2011
11:19 pm
OSU is going to lose? Pretty good game.
Dawg48
November 18th, 2011
11:24 pm
@ still
Do you think the bama fans are happy right now?
11-3
November 18th, 2011
11:38 pm
24 Seniors 32-17 over their last 4 seasons.
8-5 per season average over their last 4 seasons.
24 Seniors does not a young team, make.
11 wins and not 1 will end up this season in top 25.
Isaiah Crowell says he is injured, again.
He’s always saying or doing, something.
2005 was 7 seasons ago when last we won SEC.
End up # 3 SEC in every poll that year, 2005.
Only other 2 years we beat team who ended up top 10, # 5 SEC in every poll both 2001 (4 losses) and 2006 (4 losses.)
Mark Richt’s best seasons are when we had easy schedules
2002 lost to unranked Florida, only 1 other SEC team Coaches’ Poll Top 25 was 4-Loss Auburn.
2007 lost to unranked 6-6 South Carolina not even in a bowl game and blown-out by a sorry vols’ team 2007, beat NO team finishing up top 10 – while LSU beat two (2) teams finishing up top 10 in 2007.
2011 played 11 teams who we’d beat, not 1 of which ends season top 25 in any poll at all whatsoever – includes 11th in a row lousy bowl opponent for Mark Richt.
I predicted this season 100 % totally correctly, exactly to the tee 11-3; while you’ll are so giddy about it; yet, I said 11-3 and will have beat NO ONE.
Mark Richt in his 11 years has Lost 17 games to teams, not 1 of which ends up top 25 without their win over Mark Richt.
Mark Richt in his 11 years has beat teams finishing top 10 a grand total of 3 times out of 13 games. Those 3 years, he Lost 4 games, he Lost 3 games and he Lost 4 games. He ended up the # 5 team in SEC in every poll 2001, # 3 team in SEC in every poll 2005, and # 5 team in SEC in every poll 2006. Those are the only 3 years he beat a team who ended up in the top 10. This season LSU already has 2 such wins over Oregon Consensus # 4 and Alabama Consensus # 3. Mark Richt has no such wins. Played those games and added them to his LOSS total against teams who ended up top 10 all 11 years and 10 such Losses to his only 3 wins.
Seriously, 32-17 for 24 Seniors 8-5 per season average all last 4 years, and we are absolutely just awesomely great ?
Aaron Murray for Heisman with his 0-7 record his ENTIRE CAREER against teams who ended up top 25. While running up his stats vs cupcakes.
DISNEYdawgs.com
Did I mention we are going to get our hats handed to us by LSU ?
Sorry, forgot – this is the AJ-C where all the bloggers ONLY want to allow any post that is just only ON THE BUS. (By the way, it seems that the AJ-C allows you to post whatever you want to post whenever you want to post it; but, heaven forbid someone might come in here and look at 32-17 over the last 4 years 8-5 per season average for 24 Seniors and say EXCUSE ME – this is Georgia.
Bicurious Bulldawg
November 19th, 2011
12:11 am
I thought all dawg fans enjoyed bicurious activities and stalking athletes? Headley, Jmar can you clarify? You told me it was alright to let you lick mayonnaise off my giggly bits while we looked at recruiting rankings together.
Dream Big Dawg Fans!
November 19th, 2011
12:21 am
Dream big for a few minutes UGA fans…What if everyone in front of us loses out, similar to 2007. Boise loses again. Okie State loses to OU, then OU loses the Big 12 championship game. Oregon loses to USC this weekend, sending Stanford to the PAC 12 championship, which they lose. Auburn beats Bama, Arkansas beats LSU, UGA beats Arkansas in the SECC. LSU vs UGA for the National Championship……Crazier things have happened
Bicurious Bulldawg
November 19th, 2011
12:57 am
“Dream big”
That is what I tell myself before letting jmar99 and headley penetrate me repeatedly. We give the true meaning to the game corn hole.
We plan on playing several rounds together tomorrow.
Go dawgs!
Diehard
November 19th, 2011
5:33 am
11-3- I see you changed your handle from Thomas Brown but we still recognize your loser posts. Epic fail.
Confused
November 19th, 2011
5:54 am
Is the SEC East this bad where Georgia may become the SEC East title holder or has Georgia improved that much? Seeing Alabama and LSU play on several occasions this year also I would think the Dawgs would be dismantled in a SEC title game but has UGA Pres. Michael Adams and company finally started a fire under their coaching staff that said prepare this team or your out of here?
bubba4dawgs
November 19th, 2011
6:38 am
If he doesn’t take himself out of the game too much, Crowell might have his sites on breaking 1000 yds. for the season. It would be good to see him take it to the house on a long run today! GO DAWGS!! Good Luck, Seniors, and thank you for your exciting play!!!!
Toccoa
November 19th, 2011
6:58 am
Why is anybody talking about Alabama maybe going to the championship? Don’t they need to be SEC champs to be considered? That’s what all the talking heads said about Georgia back in ‘07 when they were ranked ahead of LSU before the SEC championship. OH, but I forgot, it’s Alabama. Silly me! If Georgia wins the SEC they won’t even get talked about. LSU had 2 losses!? Oh well, another unfair championship, what else in new.
Homepage | MrSEC.com
November 19th, 2011
7:09 am
[...] 6. A win today would clinch Mark Richt’s fifth SEC Eastern Division title. [...]
We Have No Class
November 19th, 2011
7:25 am
Toccoa
November 19th, 2011
6:58 am
Why is anybody talking about Alabama maybe going to the championship?
Because Alabama is the #2 team in the BCS poll.
Don’t they need to be SEC champs to be considered?
No.
That’s what all the talking heads said about Georgia back in ‘07 when they were ranked ahead of LSU before the SEC championship.
No, it wasn’t. Only Georgia fans thought Georgia “deserved” anything special for their performance in 2007. Nobody else even discussed the possibility of them playing for a championship at all.
OH, but I forgot, it’s Alabama. Silly me! If Georgia wins the SEC they won’t even get talked about. LSU had 2 losses!?
LSU had two close losses in OT in 2007. They won their division and won the SECCG. Georgia, on the other hand, lost to a South Carolina team that finished the season 6-6 and then went on to be absolutely dismantled by Tennessee, who finished the regular season as the undisputed SEC East Champion.
Oh well, another unfair championship, what else in new.
There’s nothing new in Athens. Still a bunch of whiny, delusional losers. Same as always…
ole yeller
November 19th, 2011
7:52 am
Everyone is on the Bus except “OL” Dallas Lee & “RB” Richard Samuels III. I think the Dawgs Will be fine. This Bus Stops in Atlanta.
Niceville Dawg
November 19th, 2011
8:04 am
With the Okie St. loss Alabama appears to be in the 2 spot,depending on the events of the weekend.And no,there is no rule that says you have to win your conference,or even your division for that matter.If the almighty computers spit out LSU vs Bama,thats what we get…..Either way,another SEC title.Let’s just hope the Dawgs can derail the plan.
Burma Shave
November 19th, 2011
8:25 am
Dawgs are on track
To win the East
But in the Dome
Tigers will feast
BURMA SHAVE
Joey
November 19th, 2011
8:37 am
Burma Shave’s rhymes
Are funny, that’s true
But in picking winners
He doesn’t have a clue . . .
Joey
November 19th, 2011
8:50 am
No Class, you gave yourself away, techie.
UGA’s prospects of “in or out” were discussed for a week on ESPN, even though we didn’t go to the SECCG. Mostly because of a high ranking, and the fact that we had won 6 games in a row (the longest streak of any team in the Top 25), including blowouts over UF, AU, and GT.
Many sportswriters wrote about the fact that UGA and USC were playing better than any of the top teams.
UGA wound up with a final national ranking of #2 .
Your attrempt at history revisionism is pathetic.