Archive for December, 2011

DE DeAngelo Tyson (L-R), LB Michael Gilliard and OLB Sterling Bailey all had to watch practice from the sidelines Friday due to injuries. That's OL Xzavier Ward in the background. (Photo by Chip Towers)

TAMPA – Upon further review, Georgia’s John Jenkins said Friday he’s definitely coming back for his senior season.

The 6-foot-3, 351-pound noseguard has waffled about whether or not to turn pro after his one and only season with the Bulldogs. He requested an NFL draft evaulation earlier this month and said earlier this week he was going to give the pros serious consideration.

But then Jenkins said before Friday morning’s practice he’d decided he’d definitely remain a Bulldog another season.

“That’s where I belong, I belong at Georgia another year,” said Jenkins, a six-game starter this season. “I believe at the end of next year I’d have no choice but to be ready.”

Jenkins said he had not yet received his draft grade back from the NFL’s advisory board. But he said didn’t need …

Continue reading NG John Jenkins changes tune, says he’ll definitely return for senior season »

TAMPA — Headed over to the “Debartolo Team Luncheon” at the Tampa Convention Center shortly. Both teams will be present, along with some of their fans.

Afterward a number of players from both teams will be available for interviews. The Bulldogs return to practice at the University of Tampa this afternoon. I’ll have some reports later this afternoon.

Yesterday afternoon and evening, Georgia and Michigan State players got the royal treatment at Busch Gardens. The Bulldogs danced with belly dancers and hand-fed giraffes at the park’s expansive Serengeti wildlife exhibit. They also got to ride some of Busch Gardens’ world famous coasters, including the gargantuan ShieKra. Nothing like seeing muscle-bound football players scream like little girls!

Told of photos that show his mouth agape in terror, linebacker Christian Robinson laughed. “Actually, I was just yawning,” he said. “I was just very tired. I wasn’t actually scared at all.”

Eventually ‘fessing up, Robinson explained: “The …

Continue reading Bulldogs mixing pleasure with business during Outback Bowl (UPDATED) »

TAMPA — If Georgia does not repeat as Southeastern Conference Eastern Division champions in 2012, it will not have the schedule to blame.

The SEC on Wednesday finally released its new football schedules for next season and the Bulldogs made out well. They dropped the Oct. 6 game at Alabama and picked up a road game against new conference member Missouri in Columbia, Mo., on Sept. 8. Meanwhile, UGA’s traditional SEC opener against South Carolina was moved back to Oct. 6. That game will also be on the road, as originally scheduled.

The only other change for the Bulldogs was their game at Kentucky, originally scheduled for Oct. 13, moves back one week. That will eliminate what was originally an off week before the Florida game. However, the Gators also lose their off week before playing the Bulldogs, so neither team has an advantage.

Georgia’s non-conference opponents of Buffalo (Sept. 1), Florida Atlanta (Sept. 15), Georgia Southern (Nov. 17) and Georgia Tech (Nov. 24)  remain …

Continue reading SEC drops Bama, adds Missouri for UGA’s new 2012 schedule »

TAMPA — Back at my room after Georgia’s first Outback Bowl practice. Will be posting some reports later this afternoon. For now, here’s what you need to know:

1. Tailback Isaiah Crowell is “feeling under the weather,” according to coach Mark Richt, and was standing on the sidelines and not participating, at least for the open part of practice early on. His left ankle apparently is not an issue and he will be able to play in the game.
2. Richt said Ken Malcome enters the week No. 1 on the tailback depth chart but that it’s “a highly competitive situation” with Richard Samuel (ankle) coming back and Crowell and Carlton Thomas healthy. “I hope Ken hangs on,” Richt said. “That’d be good for him.”
3. Speaking of Samuel, he was practicing full speed and appeared pretty agile. Said he’s eager to get back on field after being sidelined since the last play of his impressive effort against Florida.
4. Wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell acknowledged there has been some kind of preliminary discussion …

Continue reading Isaiah Crowell ‘under weather’ for Georgia’s first practice in Tampa »

Greetings from Tampa. Or, more accurately, Indian Rocks Beach. That’s where I’m staying this week.

Brought the fam and found a great deal on a condo on this little strip of beach just south of Clearwater and Sand Key. So while I’m shuffling between football practices and news conferences and luncheons covering the Bulldogs this week, at least my wife and son can enjoy some sand and surf.

Getting here was no small task. I don’t know how many Georgia fans are making the hike down here — the Bulldogs sold out of their 12,500-ticket allotment and many more are supposedy coming in addition — but if you’re driving, be sure to allow yourself some extra time. I left mid-morning Monday and, , including a stop for gas and one short stop for a quick meal, it took us 10 hours to get here. Normally it should take 7 or 8. About the time I saw my first column of brake lights I remembered an old vow to never travel the day after Christmas.

Construction along I-75  in South Georgia — hasn’t …

Continue reading All Bulldogs present, accounted for in Tampa for Outback Bowl »

NOTE TO READERS: Sorry for the lack of updates lately but I’ve been enjoying some vacation time heading into the holidays. A shorter, more condensed version of the following Q&A is running in the Sunday edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, but I figured I’d offer the unabridged version for the patient and loyal visitors to the UGA blog and give you one last forum for comment before I arrive in Tampa on Dec. 26. In the meantime, I’ll be hanging with the family for the holidays. Best wishes to all of you and thanks kindly for making this a regular stop.

Q&A WITH LINEBACKER JARVIS JONES

Christmas is a time for giving and receiving gifts. But where the Georgia Bulldogs are concerned, Jarvis Jones has been doling out presents all year. The sophomore linebacker from Columbus by way of Southern Cal has been a dominating force for one of the Dogs’ most dominant defenses. He has racked up 69 tackles along with an SEC-leading 13.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss. He needs just …

Continue reading Q&A: Jarvis Jones just trying to seize the moment and enjoy his time with Dogs »

Mark Richt has given more than $60,000 of his own money the last three years to current and former staff members when UGA's athletic administration refused to step up with compensation. (UGA photo)

ATHENS – Mark Richt’s generosity and compassion toward his staff has landed the Georgia football coach in hot water with the NCAA.

Richt made personal payments of more than $25,000 to coaches and support staff due to what he perceived as inadequate compensation for those individuals. Richt’s actions were determined to be secondary violations of NCAA rules regarding supplemental pay, according to a recent NCAA review of an lengthy internal investigation conducted by UGA.

According to those reports, obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution through the Freedom of Information Act, Richt paid former recruiting assistant Charlie Cantor $10,842 over an 11-month period through March of 2011, former linebackers coach John Jancek $10,000 in the summer of 2009 and $6,150 to director of …

Continue reading Monetary gifts from Richt among secondary NCAA violations reported by UGA »

Isaiah Crowell hasn't done much for Georgia since his 132-yard rushing effort against Auburn. He has had 26 yards on 12 carries in the three games since. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)

Q&A WITH ISAIAH CROWELL

With 29 more yards rushing, Isaiah Crowell will have turned in the best performance by a freshman tailback since Herschel Walker had 1,616 in 1980. Crowell currently has 847 yards, 28 behind Thomas Brown, who had 875 in 2004. Crowell was named SEC Freshman of the Year and a Freshman All-American. Yet he’s vilified on blogs and in fan forums and was actually booed in the SEC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome. The frustration over Crowell is everyone can plainly see his first season at Georgia could have even more glorious. Suspensions, injuries and a general inability to stay on the football field for expended periods of time makes it seem his was only a part-time effort.

On track for a 1,000-yard season, an ankle injury limited Crowell to just 26 yards on 12 carries …

Continue reading Q&A: Crowell happy with season, wants to be ‘more accountable, responsible’ »

ATHENS – Georgia backup quarterback Hutson Mason said he is seriously considering transferring due to a lack of playing time behind starter Aaron Murray.

Mason, a sophomore from Marietta, said he would prefer to remain at Georgia — “I love this place even more than I expected,” he said – and would consider taking a redshirt year next season to put a year between him and Murray.

In any case, Mason said he will have to make a decision after the Bulldogs’ season is completed with the Jan. 2 Outback Bowl against Michigan State.

“I’ll just try to sit back and get away from the every day stuff and people telling me what I should do,” Mason said. “I’ll go home after the bowl game and talk to my family and talk to people I look up to. I talked to D.J. Shockley. He’s somebody who has been very valuable to me. I’m just trying to look at it from every angle. I ponder on it a lot and it’s extremely tough.”

Mason (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) signed with Georgia in 2010 after becoming the …

Continue reading QB Hutson Mason considers transfer due to lack of playing time »

ATHENS — There was not a ton of news to be found Friday at Georgia’s Outback Bowl media briefing at Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall, but a lot of interesting commentary and discussion. We determined that tight end Orson Charles, saftey Bacarri Rambo and quarterback Aaron Murray (yes, you read that right) turned in their paperwork to be evaluated by the NFL for the draft. We also learned that outside linebacker Jarvis Jones did not fill out said paperwork. He’s sticking with his earlier declaration to return next season, despite multiple All-America awards and the becoming the SEC sack leader.

I’ll have more details in a later report but, in a nutshell, it seems as though Charles and Rambo are really struggling with their decisions. Murray, eligible to be drafted as a redshirt (or third-year) sophomore, said he’s not really contemplating an early leap at this time but was just curious to see what NFL scouts  had to say about his game and how it might eventually translate to the …

Continue reading Charles, Rambo struggling over NFL early-entry decisions »

Demetric Evans and his wife Dr. Aungel Evans pose after UGA's graduation ceremonies Friday at Stegeman Coliseum. (Photo provided by Demetric Evans)

ATHENS — For years Demetric Evans has talked the talk. Now he’s ready to walk the walk.

The graduation walk, specifically.

It has been 11 years almost exactly since Evans last attended classes at UGA and played football for the Georgia Bulldogs. A defensive end, he bolted town immediately following his senior season and spent nine years playing ball in the NFL. But since leaving Athens in December of 2000, Evans vowed to return one day to walk in graduation ceremonies.

Today, Evans will be in Stegeman Coliseum along with nine other current and former football players, 27 student-athletes overall and more than 1,700 fellow graduates to do just that. Evans has earned his UGA degree in child and family development from the College of Family & Consumer Sciences.

“It’s something I always expected to do, but it’s a good thing I’m …

Continue reading Former Bulldog and NFL player Demetric Evans ready to walk the walk »

Georgia tight end Aron White displays good hands, passing a Bloomin' Onion while holding ribs as quarterback Aaron Murray looks on Thursday at Outback. (UGA photo by Steve Colquitt)

ATHENS — Just back from an Outback Bowl luncheon over in Athens. The local franchise on Atlanta Highway hosted the entire football team and support staff to a late lunch of Bloomin’ Onions, salad, ribs, shrimp, steak, chicken and lobster tail. It really is quite a sight to observe the likes of John Jenkins and Cordy Glenn sit down for an all-you-can-eat, meat-fest. Rumors that the event put the restaurant out of business proved unfounded.

Meanwhile, with final exams now behind them, the Bulldogs returned to practice on Thursday for their first of a dozen or so workouts before their Jan. 2 Outback Bowl date with Michigan State. It has been nearly two weeks since Georgia’s humbling 42-10 loss to No. 1 LSU in the SEC Championship Game, so it took a while for the Dogs to get back in the swing of …

Continue reading Bulldogs resume practice, ready to feast on Outback Bowl opportunity »

ATHENS — I’ll be writing more about this later but I figured I’d go ahead and share the information with you.

Twenty-seven UGA athletes will be graduating with degrees on Friday. Among those will be 10 football players.

To me, their stories are always the best to tell. Some of them are finishing up at the end of their playing careers, like Justin Anderson, Bruce Figgins and Trinton Sturdivant; some have more time to play, like Richard Samuel; and others have been coming back to complete degrees after playing pro ball.

No matter which, they’re all happy endings and I think we all enjoy those.

Like I said, I’ll profile one or two in the next day or so. In the meantime, here are the names of UGA student-athletes getting their sheepskins this week. Congrats to all.

Football players

• Justin Anderson, Ocilla, Ga., Housing
• Nic Clemons, Griffin, Ga., Child and Family Development
• Candler Cook, Atlanta,Ga., Management
• Eric Elliot, Kennesaw, Ga., Risk Management and …

Continue reading Ten football players among 27 athletes graduating from UGA »

Linebacker Alec Ogletree (9), here with fellow 2012 returnees Jarvis Jones (29) and Cornelius Washington, could be Georgia's next All-American on defense. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)

Georgia currently is slated to return 17 of 22 starters from this year’s 10-3 squad when it defends its SEC Eastern Division championship next season. That’s obviously a big reason for optimism.

That nine of those starters will be back from one of the nation’s stingiest defenses is cause for excitement. That the three losses on offense are all on the line is cause for concern. The Bulldogs also will be completely revamping their special teams, with the graduations of punter and holder Drew Butler and place-kicker Blair Walsh. That will be no small undertaking.

Of course, it’s all relative. One must also consider that South Carolina, which beat the Bulldogs 45-42 in Athens and ultimately knocked them out of the Capital One Bowl, also returns a lot of starters. The Gamecocks will have 16 starters …

Continue reading 2012 depth chart has Georgia looking again like an SEC contender »

In case you didn’t catch it ( I didn’t as I was on a farm in Blythewood, S.C.), senior Ben Jones was the big winner at the Bulldogs’ annual Senior Gala awards banquet this past Saturday night at the Classic Center in Athens. He took MVP honors and also was named permanent team captain. Interesting to note that Isaiah Crowell, The Associated Press SEC Freshman of the Year, did not receive any awards, but his cousin, Quintavius Harrow, did. Here’s what individual awards were handed out (the Governor’s Trophy for beating Georgia Tech was also presented):

• Vince Dooley Most Valuable Player of the Year Award: C Ben Jones, Sr.
• Most Valuable Offensive Player: QB Aaron Murray, So.
• Most Valuable Defensive Player: LB Jarvis Jones, So.
• Most Valuable Special Teams Player(s): P Drew Butler, Sr.; LB Kosta Vavlas, RFr.
• David Jacobs Award (for courage, spirit, character and determination): G Chris Burnette, RFr.; LB Alec Ogletree, So.
• Permanent Team Captain: C Ben Jones, Sr.
• Offensive …

Continue reading UGA’s Ben Jones racks up at Bulldogs’ Senior Gala awards banquet »

Georgia football coach Mark Richt expressed Saturday his gratification over UGA’s desire to extend his contract and intimated that, contrary to reports in Texas, he did not speak with Texas A&M about its coaching job.

“I’ve said many times Georgia is the place I want to be as long as Georgia will have me. That has never changed,” Richt said in a statement. “And it’s gratifying to know Georgia wants me.

“I have not talked to any other school about a job, nor do I have any interest in doing so. My interest is having a great recruiting year and start building toward next season.”

A report Friday in the San Antonio Express-News and Houston Chronicle, citing an unnamed source, said Richt was “in the mix” for the Texas A&M job. The papers reported Saturday that Richt declined A&M’s job offer.

UGA athletic director Greg McGarity met with Richt on Friday to open discussions about extending the coach’s contract, which has two years remaining. McGarity said the …

Continue reading Richt: ‘I have not talked to any other school about a job’ »

Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity met with football coach Mark Richt on Friday to formally open discussions about a contract extension.

McGarity said further talks will be held, perhaps next week, but that UGA and Richt are in agreement on the central point: “He wants to be our coach. We want him to be our coach.”

McGarity added: “There’s really no need to speed through anything right now because he and I are in a good place.”

Richt has two years left on his existing contract, but his job appeared in peril when the Bulldogs opened this season with back-to-back losses to Boise State and South Carolina. A 10-game winning streak and SEC East championship removed Richt from the much-discussed “hot seat” and all but ensured a contract extension.

The McGarity-Richt meeting came on the morning after rumors and reports surfaced that Texas A&M was targeting Richt for its coaching opening. McGarity said the timing of the meeting was unrelated to that speculation, …

Continue reading McGarity opens contract extension talks with Richt; again denies A&M rumors »

What coaches and players were saying after Georgia Tech’s 68-56 victory over Georgia  in Athens on Wednesday night:

Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory:

“I was 10 years old when that [Tech's last win in Stegeman Coliseum] happened. I told our guys that on Monday. Now, there were some [years] in between we didn’t play down here. I didn’t tell them that, you know. I just wanted our guys to understand that one of the things that is unique and special about Georgia Tech is the great tradition we have. There’s a lot of great players who have worn that uniform and never won down here.  Part of our process in getting it back on track is doing some special things, and tonight was special. Our guys will be able to say they broke the streak,  and they will remember it forever. And I know the guys who wore the uniform before tonight, they’re proud of the way our guys played. Irregardless of whether we won or lost, we played the way Georgia Tech is supposed to play in terms of great …

Continue reading Tech 68, UGA 56: What they were saying afterward »

Greetings from Athens. Once again, it’s Georgia vs. Georgia Tech — this time in hoops. Eleven days after the rivals met in football at Bobby Dodd Stadium, they’ll convene tonight for the 188th time in men’s basketball. Tipoff is 7 p.m. at Stegeman Coliseum, where Tech hasn’t won in 35 years. Tickets are available. The game will be televised on Fox Sports South. If you missed it, here’s a preview of the game from today’s AJC:

State of the teams

Tech was picked to finish 10th in the 12-team ACC and Georgia eighth in the 12-team SEC — prognostications that reflected two programs in transition. Georgia lost last season’s two leading scorers and rebounders, Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie, to the NBA draft, and other than a pair of senior guards the Bulldogs have a young team that coach Mark Fox labeled “as green as the New York Jets.” Tech also lost its top scorer and best player, point guard Iman Shumpert, to the NBA, and the Yellow Jackets have no seniors on the roster except …

Continue reading Dogs vs. Jackets tonight in Athens »

Georgia and Michigan State, both with 10-3 records and losses in their conference championship games, will meet Jan. 2 in the Outback Bowl in Tampa.

The matchup was set Sunday, one day after Georgia lost 42-10 to No. 1 LSU in the SEC Championship game and Michigan State fell 42-39 to Wisconsin in the inaugural Big Ten title game.

Georgia was among three SEC teams, along with South Carolina and Arkansas, that were in the running for the Capital One, Outback and Cotton bowls.

Orlando’s Capital One Bowl, which had the next choice of SEC teams after LSU and Alabama were tabbed for the BCS national title game, selected South Carolina. The Gamecocks (10-2, 6-2 SEC) finished second to Georgia in the SEC East, but defeated the Bulldogs 45-42 in Athens on Sept. 10.

The Outback and Cotton bowls, equals in the SEC’s bowl pecking order, were next in line to make selections from the league. The Outback preferred the East team (Georgia) and the Cotton the West team (Arkansas).

The …

Continue reading UGA vs. Michigan State in Outback Bowl; homecoming for Murray, Charles »

Greetings from inside the Georgia Dome, where it is 72 degrees and sunny even in here. It’s so bright and clear outside it’s actually shining through the off-white teflon roof. Too bad they don’t have an outdoor stadium today.

OK, let’s go ahead and get it out of the way. I’ve already seen Isaiah Crowell today, dressed out and warming up with the rest of the Bulldogs. Whether he actually plays or not I cannot tell you for certain. I asked UGA publicist Claude Felton just 45 minutes ago and he did not know, referring instead to head coach Mark Richt’s statement Friday that it would be a “game-time decision.”

It’s almost game time, so I guess we’ll find out soon enough.

For what it’s worth, Richard Samuel was not warming up with the backs.

Perhaps just as important is the health of starting defensive end DeAngelo Tyson. His availability was in question all week with an ankle injury that knocked him out of the Georgia Tech game on the first series. But he was moving around pretty …

Continue reading Isaiah Crowell dressed out, Bulldogs ready for LSU »

Former Georgia quarterback D.J. Shockley thinks the 2011 SEC Championship game against LSU is setting up much like the 2005 title game did. (AJC photo)

Former Georgia quarterback D.J. Shockley looks at this year’s SEC Championship matchup and between the Bulldogs and No. 1 LSU and can’t help but think back to six years ago when he was getting ready for a similar game.

In 2005, as now, the Bulldogs were the SEC East champs and the underdog team (though not by two touchdowns like they are this year). Georgia was ranked No. 13 and the Tigers were No. 3 and everybody was talking about how an SEC championship victory might get LSU into the BCS national championship game against Southern Cal or Texas.

“It’s kind of strange it’s so much alike,” said Shockley, who’s living in Atlanta and still playing football. “LSU is so highly ranked right now; they’re supposed to be so much better than Georgia; Georgia’s not supposed to have a chance. It’s the same scenario, the same story we heard …

Continue reading D.J. Shockley says similarities are uncanny to ‘05 SEC game »

Former Georgia quarterback D.J. Shockley, star of the Bulldogs' 2005 SEC Championship victory, does volunteer work in the CHRIS Kids Facility in East Atlanta on Thursday. (Special photo)

Long after their Georgia football careers ended, a group of former Bulldogs are still doing good works for the SEC.

Brothers Matt and Jon Stinchcomb, both All-American offensive linemen while at UGA, teamed up with former quarterbacks David Greene and D.J. Shockley, defensive lineman Quentin Moses and defensive back Kelin Johnson to represent Georgia as part of the third annual Allstate SEC Good Works Day in Atlanta on Thursday. They joined representatives from other SEC schools to help out with several community service projects in East Atlanta.

Working in conjunction with the SEC and Hands on Atlanta, the initiative benefited CHRIS Kids, a local organization that provides safe and stable living environments and offers mental health services for children and families. The Georgia players, …

Continue reading Several former Bulldogs still doing good work for the SEC in Atlanta »

ATHENS – University of Georgia President Michael Adams isn’t generally known for his sense of humor. But he can provide an unexpected “zinger” on a moments notice.

Asked at his monthly cabinet meeting on Thursday about the contract status of head football Mark Richt, Adams said, “If we win Saturday he’ll be back and if we lose we’re going to fire him.”

He was joking, of course.

Richt has 2 ½ years remaining on a contract that pays him close to $3 million annually. There were questions about his long-term future as the Bulldogs’ coach when the team followed last year’s 6-7 record with an 0-2 start this season.

But Georgia has since won 10 games a row and clinched the SEC Eastern Division Championship. The 14th-ranked Bulldogs (10-2, 7-1 SEC) play No. 1-ranked LSU (12-0, 8-0) in the SEC Championship on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Now that he has led the Bulldogs to their fourth SEC Championship game and seventh season of 10 or more wins in 11 seasons as Georgia’s coach, a contract …

Continue reading UGA president predicts extended tenure for football coach Mark Richt »

Establish some semblance of a running game, throw the football, stop the run, win the turnover battle, stay loose. Those are the keys to Georgia being able to pull off an upset over No. 1-ranked LSU in the SEC Championship Game, as I tell CineSport’s Noah Coslov.

Continue reading Video: Loose, confident Georgia team ready to take on No. 1 LSU »