Georgia Bulldogs sharply focused on 2012 football season
Sorry for the delay in getting some of this out to you guys. Hope you saw my STORY and BLOG from the Pigskin Preview on Tuesday at the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon. If not, you can read them HERE and HERE. Meanwhile, here’s more of what was said from the UGA contingent at the Pigskin Preview down in Macon yesterday:
JUNIOR QUARTERBACK AARON MURRAY
On walkon FB Merritt Hall, who is listed as starter heading into summer camp . . .
“He’s a crazy dude, that’s for sure. He reminds me of somebody like Ben Jones in that he’s just a crazy football player that’s dirty and ready to put his head in the pile and just knock people around. That’s the kind of fullback that you want, somebody that’s not afraid of contact, who’s just going to fill that hole and get it open. Whatever linebacker shows up first, he’s taking their head off. I’m excited about it him. I know we have some other guys, Zander [Ogletree] and the guy who just got here who’s a freshman [Quayvon Hicks]. Hicks is a really good looking fullback, too. So that’s going to be a good competition.”
On college football playoff . . .
“I think it’ll be fun. I know I probably won’t be around to be a part of it, but I think it will be fun for players and fans and teams, too. Maybe a team that had one loss against a pretty good team that might think their national championship chances are down the drain, now they’d be able to play in the playoffs and have that second chance to compete for a championship. So I think it would be a lot of fun and the fans would enjoy it more games and more big-time games between big-time teams.”
On concussions . . .
[Knocks on wood window frame] “I have yet to have a concussion in my career. One time in high school I felt a little woozy after a play, but I don’t know that it was a concussion. Nowadays they consider any dizziness a concussion so it might have been a small one. But to my knowledge I haven’t had one. . . . Any kind of head injury is a pretty big deal and you don’t want to mess around with that. But our doctors to great job. If anybody has any kind of symptoms of any kind of thing like that, they hold them out and make sure they’re completely ready to go before they put them back in for contact.
On whether coaching staff has advised him to run less . . .
“They never told me to stop running. They told me to be more cautious and be a smarter run, I guess, as far as getting out of bounds or getting down and saving my body. I don’t know what my problem. I just really enjoy contact. I grew up playing defense, so I think I just missed all the hitting. I definitely think it’s something I need to work on this offseason. Maybe get out to the baseball field and work with some of the baseball players how to slide properly.”
On whether he thinks Malcolm Mitchell will play any wide receiver this season . . .
“I hope so. This summer I know Malcolm will be out there. He’s already been out there working with us. He’s always out there, whether he’s playing DB or receiver. . . He just goes back-and-forth. I know he’ll be ready no matter what. He still knows the plays still and will run all the routes in the offseason. He knows the yardage and the cuts. He’ll be ready, offense or defense.”
SENIOR SS SHAWN WILLIAMS
On if he likes the preseason top 10 national ranking . . .
“I try not to pay attention to it because everybody expects you to win each and every game anyway. The only way you can take care of that is to take it one game at a time because we know nobody is going to take us lightly. We’ve got to go out and win one game at a time and take it one week at a time and quarter by quarter.”
If he thinks Mitchell can play both ways . . .
“I feel like he can do it. He can come in and play wherever we need him. There’s going to be a lot of guys moved around, so he’s got to be able to play wherever for the betterment of the team.”
On playoffs and changes in college football . . .
“You can’t pay too much attention to that stuff because football is always going to be football. You can’t be worried about what happens if you lose a game or anything like that, so you just have to go out to win and worry about that when the time comes. . . . I just hope Georgia’s in the mix if it ever comes around.”
GEORGIA COACH MARK RICHT
On ball security issues with Aaron Murray . . .
“We talked about it on the way down here. I asked him, ‘what are the three biggest drive killers in football?’ Of course the first thing he said was turnovers. I said right. Shawn helped him out and said penalties and I said right. Then the third one he said ‘knowing what to do’ and we call that missed assignments. If you don’t turn it over and you don’t have many penalties or missed assignments, you’re going to move the ball and you’re going to score. If you have any combination of those three, you’re going to punt or turn it over and make life miserable for everybody. Players can control all three of those for the most part. That’s Murray’s job to make sure we’re not turning the ball over and we’re not in the situation where we don’t know what to do or get penalties. We talk about it. In his defense, he had a couple of tipped balls and some things he couldn’t totally control. But he knows. He knows his job is crucial in regard to respecting and protecting the football. I think we all learned from our experiences.”
On potential of Shawn Williams . . .
“I think [All-American] is a very realistic goal for him. Why? Because he’s about 6-1 or 6-2, 220 pounds and can run like a deer. He’s physical, he’s got good ball skills, he knows the system and he wants to be good. He has become quite a leader for us.”
On possibility of one day playing Georgia State . . .
“That’s certainly a possibility. I wouldn’t count that out. Lately it’s kind of been unwritten rule that we play Georgia Southern every four years, though I don’t think there’s any contract that holds us to that. I mean, I don’t even know how far out we’ve scheduled, quite frankly, on the out-of-conference games. I know we’ve got to wait to see how many conference games we play and all that. But I think that would be a possibility.”
On getting ready for season . . .
“You always just have to pray that guys stay healthy throughout camp. It’s a contact sport, it’s a physical game and guys do get banged up. Hopefully there will be nothing serious.”
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
115 comments Add your comment
Buzz 2011
June 14th, 2012
6:37 am
Can the Dogs win six games this year? They should start that Houston Mason kid at quarterback. That little Murray is worthless….
WDE
June 14th, 2012
7:04 am
Buzz 2011 I plainly remember that “worthless” Murray beating hell out of the Bugs…..twice so far.
Matt in ATL
June 14th, 2012
8:01 am
Based on Aaron’s quotes (and I’m a fan of Aaron), he’s had several concussions. He will be well-served by a publicist in his professional career.
Matt in ATL
June 14th, 2012
8:05 am
WDE, wherever you are, ditto!
Crap
June 14th, 2012
8:14 am
‘Way back up to Grantham’s the Man: How did you see Henry play against Buford “in the playoff game”? Henry’s from Florida.
And, regarding Henry: The statement he released should be required reading for all high school recruits. Would’ve been nice if he had had his own counsel before HE committed.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
8:44 am
Oh, I think that Saban is a lot” “nicer” or caring about his kids when it’s appropriate than you seem to think. And I would bet that you would not find anybody who is actually around Richt on a daily basis to agree that he is not hard working, or doesnt have a backbone. Even his handling of his staff, which folks use as an example proves he is willing to do what he think needs to be done. the timing and process might differ, but he certainly would , has , and will, fire anybody if he thinks its the right thing to do. Or dismiss kids from the team. Quicker than most, obviously.
I understand that you were talking “perception”, but I don’t beleive that recruits and players really buy into the internet versions of those coaches, when they have direct personal contact to know the realities. If perception was what really matter to prospects, there is certainly plenty of talk out there that Saban would thrown them under the bus in a heartbeat if he thought the 86th guy on his roster could run.000seconds faster than them, right?
You say that folks calling Richt soft hurts him, but folks calling Saban a bald face Liar doesn’t hurt him? Or the rumor that he is leaving Alabama for the next better job year after year after year.
Dawg Fud
June 14th, 2012
8:47 am
Fredi Gonzalez should contact Mark Richt and hire him as a consultant. He could learn much from Mark’s mystifying ways of keeping a job while not meeting expectations…
Ole Big Dawg
June 14th, 2012
8:51 am
We are the Georgia Bulldogs….expectations are to be in Atl each and every year with the opportunity to compete for Championships!!
Matt in ATL
June 14th, 2012
8:52 am
CMR keeps his job because he is a very decent, caring, honorable man that I, for one, am glad represents the University of Georgia. Yes, he needs to win, but that is why he can get through the rough spots as compared to Jim Donnan. That said, time to win.
See Rock City
June 14th, 2012
9:34 am
AltamahaDawg,
You are going to blind with all that hatred against Alabama, funny how this blog has been circumvented by comments and turned into a ‘Bama bashing thread.
Nobody in their right mind would willingly choose to believe anything you say about our program. school and lastly; football team.
Keep thy witty & keen insight for the peanut gallery, and other such lemmings.
We have not met on the field in almost 4 years running now, did that last loss set the current events in motion? I must ask; is this the reason why the ‘dawg nation barks so loudly to the West now. Have the wagons circled Athens with Muschamp in Gata-land, VanGorder in Auburn, Dooley in Knoxville, and the Old Ball coach right next door.
The last thing you dogs need to be doing is worrying about ‘Bama, but yet it is your obsession…
Top Recruit
June 14th, 2012
9:38 am
Murray. If you have played in the SEC as much as he has the past 2 seasons and high school ball, and you do not understand that a QB impacts turnovers, penalties, and assisnments…I’d say you have a big issue between your ears. And if I’m Richt and Bobo, we are standing on each side of his head yelling that in. Murray is to self-centered and immature. And possible just not a bright, savvy kid on the field. Another South Carolina game like last year will see a shift. Time this QB started playing smart…no more South Carolinas, LSUs, and MSUs.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
10:26 am
Rock City. Next time try reading what I said. Or was it your point to dispute me against me defending Nick Saban for what I clearly said was false internet chatter perceptions? As I do all the time. Hard to say, because half of your post was gibberish. DA.
Crap
June 14th, 2012
10:29 am
All Saints: Provide proof of ’sleazy practices’. Otherwise, your opinion matters not at all and you are wasting your and our time. Waiting…
DawginLex
June 14th, 2012
10:47 am
I’m not buying into any hype but i do have HUGE expectations for the Dawgs in 2012
no more excuses
time to win
RedandBlackDAWG
June 14th, 2012
10:48 am
Ole Yeller DAWG,
What is one of the most turnover laden plays in football, besides the long ball pass? It is the run back of a punt or a kickoff return. The upside is it can produce good field position and scoring at times, but the greater potential is it can provide a fumble or penalty and give you poor field position to start your offense. There are also a whole lot of penalties from the receiving team. The punter is trying to keep the ball in play and hopefully, his coverage team will do the job. Last year, UGA had one of the worst punt coverage teams in the country probably. Normally, UGA would have had a lot more of the really fast guys on the field to cover kicks, but lack of depth at a few critical positions made that impossible. This year, UGA has sufficient depth to put a few of the burners on the field that know they can get to the runner and you will see much better kick coverage and increased penalties by the receiving team, trying to block these guys.
DawginLex
June 14th, 2012
10:49 am
Who is obsessed?
a Dawg talking about the Dawgs on a UGA blog
or
a bammer updyke TROLLING daily on a Georgia newspaper blog
?????????????
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
10:55 am
appearnlty ole yeller believes that Punt returner compile big stats from never touching the ball.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
10:58 am
DIL, just another nouveau riche Bama fan trying to feed his own ego.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
11:07 am
It also help “keep away” if you don’t have to punt the ball 8 times. I suppose we could have sent a note over the the LSU bench and asked them if they could tell thier guy Mathieu to pick a spot to stand and stop moving around back there.
UGA Insider
June 14th, 2012
11:10 am
These comments from AM really concern me….. What mostly concerns me is his health. If he doesn’t learn to slide or get down someone is really going to hurt him. After all, last year he took some of the most vicious shots I have ever seen. How he got up is a testimony to his toughness but one day it may catch up. The fumbles due to scrambling were the difference in the LSU, USCe and almost UF game. AM scares me when he takes off because I know he won’t slide and a LB will light him up. Must protect ball better!!!
cdpridg
June 14th, 2012
11:15 am
Folks would be amazed at the trailer ridden living in the state of TN that are bandwagon bammers. Even as far north as Nashville there is as much if not more Bammer gear that Vols…unreal
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
11:18 am
You are combining two distictly different situations there, but we get the point.
59bulldawg
June 14th, 2012
11:47 am
Richt’s 3 biggest drive killers: 1. turnovers, 2. penalties, 3. missed assignments. Hmmm! I wonder where he’d put poor play calling?
mike
June 14th, 2012
11:48 am
UGA NATIONAL CHAMPS 2012-2013 !!!! GOOOO DAWGS!!!!
Homepage | MrSEC
June 14th, 2012
12:23 pm
[...] 11. Georgia’s players are sharply focused on the 2012 season. [...]
ozzfest
June 14th, 2012
12:35 pm
ALL YOU FELLOW DOGS WHO KEEP THINKIN’ WE ARE ARE GOING TO HAVE A GREAT DEFENSE BETTER LOOK AT THE TEAMS WE WERE PLAYING WHEN WE RACKED UP THE IMPRESSIVE STATS LAST YEAR.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE “#4 DEFENSE IN THE COUNTRY” AGAINST BOISE, CAROLINA, LSU AND MICHIGAN STATE??
I WAS AT ALL FOUR OF THOSE GAMES, AND TO ME…IT LOOKED LIKE WE SUCKED ON DEFENSE!!!….BEWARE!!!
Ole Yeller Dawg
June 14th, 2012
12:43 pm
@AltamahaDawg: Exactly why “big stats compiled all season long” a coach should have told Drew Butler to kick the ball out of bounds! Especially in a championship game at the end of the first half! Especially after Honey Badger or Honey whatever (@WDE, my Bad) burned them on the first punt! Not Once but Twice, we tried to kick the ball over Honey Badger’s head! I am sorry but this is playing to the other teams strength! I ask you, what would of happened, before the half, if Drew kicked the ball out of bounds around the 50 yard line?
I love Coach Richt, even believe in Bobo(sometimes)we are all humans, we make mistakes! “Let’s learn from our experience” It’s a coaches job to identify the strength of the other team and TRY to keep the ball away from that strength!
By the way, AltamahaDawg, your air stinks down there, somebody is passing bad gas!
@WDE: Thanks for kicking me, right between the pockets, calling me a bug!!! I thought WDE stood for War Damn Eagle?
Tide Rising
June 14th, 2012
1:36 pm
And now I see that UGA’s top recruit for 2012-a 5 star running back has decommitted from UGA after spending a couple of days with Saban over at Bama. No question about it. Saban rules over Richt with an iron fist. If he wants a top level recruit from Georgia he will simply take him. As for the kid can you blame him? Would you rather win championships or play on a team that was no better than the 5th best team in the SEC last year?
CDAWG
June 14th, 2012
1:58 pm
When Aaron was talking about Malcom Mitchell and he says he still knows all the plays…..everybody knows the plays.
WDE
June 14th, 2012
2:05 pm
Ole Yeller Dawg , well I have to say I’m sorry I really thought your “Honey Bear” comments were yet one more Bug being cute…sorry fellow member of the Bull Dog Nation.
WDE
June 14th, 2012
2:06 pm
Oh and for the last few years WDE has been stolen by the Auburn fans…for much longer they have been my initials .
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
2:07 pm
Drew Butler was standing in his own end zone. And you think the obvious call was simply “kick it out of bounds at the 50. Well yea, Can’t argue with that. Maybe tuck it and run for a TD would be the only one better.
I just guessing here, but I bet the staff told him: Concentrate on Handling it cleanly, and getting it out of there. I think you are drastically overestimating the control of distance, and direction, in that situation, from the sideline.
And just for the record, he had NOT just burned us, we downed the first punt, and Beckham fielded the second punt for a few yards. Nor do I believe that it being the CG really dictates that call. Its right or wrong in week 4 or week14.
And you glossed over my point that If THAT were so obvious, WHY would other teams have kicked “to him” so many times. Or kick “to” Greg Reid, Or Maze, or Joe Adams? Or Boykin? How about Arenas a couple of years back. Obviously a dangerous PR . 41 times coaches told thier punter to kick the ball right at him.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
2:15 pm
I ask you, would you have been supportive of the outcome IF Butler had kicked it OOB at our 30 yrd line, giving LSU a short field just before the half?
That seem to me to be as much more likely of an outcome when you ask your punter (with his heels on the back line) to angle it “towards” that direction, as a Guy returning it 62 yrds.
RxDawg
June 14th, 2012
2:27 pm
It was pretty neat to see a little “coach speak” from Richt on the drive killer segment. Richt is always very reserved with that and it’s rare to get a glimps into it. We all know it’s there though. Thanks for that Chip (and Richt).
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
2:31 pm
Yea, I was thinking how cool that car ride would have been too.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
2:33 pm
Althought it’s not clear if coach was actually at the wheel (of his Ford F-150 of cource), when he was talking about drive killers!
lol
June 14th, 2012
2:35 pm
Rankings
http://espn.go.com/blog/sec/post/_/id/44750/ranking-the-secs-football-facilities
RedandBlackDAWG
June 14th, 2012
2:57 pm
Lol,
Exactly what has this article got to do with how UGA is going to be this year or how focused they are on 2012. Perhaps if you could offer something of value, when it came to commenting on an article people wouldn’t so quickly identify you as a troll.
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
3:09 pm
Would help to not identify yourself with a teenage girl text acronym too. Or maybe that was suitable.
ARdawg
June 14th, 2012
3:57 pm
Troll Rising
If you had paid any attention you might have noticed Henry is from Florida. If the kid wishes to go to Bama, good luck to him. It won’t make a dimes worth of difference if he is a Dawg or a Sabanite at the end of the day
LakeDawg
June 14th, 2012
5:09 pm
Go Michigan! Beat the Crimson Necks!
Ole Yeller Dawg
June 14th, 2012
6:02 pm
@AltamahaDawg: In my books, the 30 yd line beats a touchdown all day long! The Honey Badger fielded the punt at LSU’s on 38 yd line and returned it 62 yds for a TD! The momentum of the game changed at that very moment, in fact the whole dam broke loose, our player’s started to play afraid and gave up 21 points in the 3rd quarter alone!
The football should have been kicked out of bounds around midfield to keep it away from the Honey Badger. The guy had an uncanny ability to return punts for TD’s. He did it the week before against Arkansas!
“The honey Badger will always take what he wants” if you put the ball in his hands!!! Not Once but Twice!!!! (He returned the other punt to the 4 yd line) Coaching error! Sorry! It’s the coaches responsibility to control the game, and that was not done in this situation!
I know, Two dropped passes (King, Mitchell) that could have accounted for 14 points – A.M. with two interceptions and a fumble (miserable day)
Let’s all “learn from our experience” Coaches and players a like – Don’t kick the ball to the ” Honey Badger” so simple a fifth grader could get it right!
@WDE: you’re cool brother! (*_~) DGD
Andy
June 14th, 2012
7:26 pm
Isn’t it about time for the Dawg fans to pick the Dawgs the pre=season National Champion ?
AltamahaDawg
June 14th, 2012
8:14 pm
I can count maybe 5 or 6 statements that you have used in the defense of this argument that are just plain factually and logically incorrect, BUT your hindsight is spot on. Not very impressed with your use of geometry or statistics either.
I’ll leave it at this: there is a reason that you have never seen what you suggest in a college football game.
The Tide is Rolling and Nothing can stop it
June 14th, 2012
9:05 pm
It’s not hard to stop Kentucky…
kybodawg
June 14th, 2012
10:18 pm
gosh darn. sorry bama about kem-d. if you think thats bad wait till foster flips to auburn. guess saban doesnt walk on water after all.
bitter dawgggs fan/insider
June 14th, 2012
10:32 pm
TOWERS IS A PUZZZY———–M.C—-RULES
Ole Yeller Dawg
June 14th, 2012
11:30 pm
How about this: The Dawgs were 112th rated team in opponents punt returns #100th team in kick off returns. Their special teams were ranked at 72nd while LSU was ranked 3rd in the nation!
My Bad, Honey Badger fielded another punt on LSU’s own 36 yd line in the 3rd quarter and returned it 47 yds to UGA’s 17 yd line not the 4 yd line like earlier stated.
My point is do not play to the other teams strength – by trying to out kick the Honey Badger we played right into his game and lost the game!
Call it hindsight but these stats will predict what will happen if you keep kicking the ball to the Honey Badger!
Coaching error!
Does anybody smell sulphur?
Steamer Lane Bulldog
June 15th, 2012
7:06 am
Henry may still sign with UGA. And we have had some walk on full backs really contribute, in past seasons.
I will take a diamond in the rough who really wants to play. Than some highly rated player with no heart, any day of the week.
AltamahaDawg
June 15th, 2012
8:08 am
The discussion was never how bad our special teams were. Now you are just morphing the argument.
Now IF you want to talk about how in the world you let that guy get so far downfield, miss so many tackles, fine. I agree completely.
BUT Your case that somehow the coaching staff should have known the outcome of those plays and punted out of bound 8 times is just not logical. And then you used several totally factually incorrect point to back it up. And I am not talking about mistaking the yard marker, I am saying points that were just flat wrong. I saw a repeat of one right there.
Let me ask you this. Did you have any problem with the “strategy” of other 6 punts?
(No idea what sort of clever lil putdown you thought the sulfer comment was. I assume you are talking about the papermill in Jesup? Not only do I not live anywhere near that, or the fact that its not sulfer, but that odor last about a about a 1/4 mile on a 137 mile river, so if that’s your take on the Altamaha, you are looking pretty ignorant)