Vanderbilt’s James Franklin insists there’s no bad blood with Georgia

Vanderbilt coach James Franklin didn’t bite when asked by a reporter to comment on the “bad blood” between the Commodores and Georgia.

Franklin and Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham had to be restrained from fighting following the Bulldogs’ narrow 33-28 win in Nashville last October.

“We have tremendous respect for all the programs in the conference, all the coaches, all the players,” Franklin said. “Our focus is on South Carolina. That’s who we’re opening the season with and that’s all we’re really going to talk about. . . .

“I will tell you this: You play Vanderbilt, you better be ready to play from the beginning of the game to the end. That’s whoever it is.”

The Commodores return 17 starters from last year’s 6-7 team, which lost to Cincinnati in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. They open the season against South Carolina in Nashville on Aug. 30 in a Thursday night game televised on ESPN.

teresting to see in August how he’s throwing accuracy wise as he’s throwing over and over.”

MORE AJC COVERAGE FROM SEC MEDIA DAYS:

86 comments Add your comment

Buzzzzzzz

July 18th, 2012
6:47 am

The athletic history of UGA is full of so many sordid, sleazy incidents – dating back to Vince Dooley and continuing through Mark Richt – that it’s impossible to overlook. The school has come to stand for drunkenness and lawlessness, coddling of illiterate low-class athletes who should never have been admitted to college, and rampant cheating by coaches.

UGA, Mark Richt, and especially Todd Grantham are an affront and an embarrassment to all decent people in this state.

JB

July 18th, 2012
7:10 am

This game will need to be watched closely…and prepared for like Florida. They have 16-17 starters coming back and will have this game circled on their calendar. Dawgs better be ready.

Jimmy Crack

July 18th, 2012
7:10 am

Hey buz, GT would sell their geeky souls to have a rivalry of ANY KIND, but cupcakes just don’t generate enough emotion. Maybe yall can pick a fight with Duke.

Concerning UGA and Vandy, Franklin knows he stepped in it last year with Grantham, and he will see what he stepped in up close and in his face this season. Grantham won’t say a word publicly but in house he will have his defense in a payback frenzy for the game. I see a shutout at home.

JB

July 18th, 2012
7:12 am

Buzzzzzzzzzzzz…..at least we have never had a head coach of a visiting team have to wear a helmet for safety reasons to leave the field. In case you are not shaving yet, it was Bear Bryant. Tech is pretty low class….and who can forget pelting Notre Dame with fish on the sidelines.

JB

July 18th, 2012
7:16 am

Georgia Tech. A proud institution that’s been on probation most of the last 10 years.

Game Changer

July 18th, 2012
7:16 am

@7576

The UGA AD had the film of Vandy game and Florida game removed from then internet because of the embarrasment UGA players were bringing upon themselves and the program. IF or when UGA players are penalized and thrown out of the game in 2012 for such behavior, do not be upset at anyone but Mark Richt and Todd Grantham for contributing to the TH-UGA mentality.

Buzzzzzzz

July 18th, 2012
7:17 am

Georgia Tech has the nation’s highest average SAT score for football players, and also the highest average high school GPA.

UGA, on the other hand, has one of the very lowest SAT averages, as well as a very low GPA average. As a result, three-fourths of UGA players are “special admits,” when means that they can not meet the minimum educational and intelligence requirements for admission to UGA, even as low as that is.

Yes, it would be great if Tech was more competitive with UGA, but Tech fans are proud of our heritage of having intelligent, responsible athletes who go on to rewarding careers and contribute to society.

Contrast this with the very unintelligent dummies that UGA recruits. The 50 arrests over the last four years is proof enough, not to mention winning the Fulmer Cup. Most of these goons are tossed out after their eligibility is over, and many end up on welfare.

UGA is clearly just a football f-a-c-t-o-r-y dedicated to winning at all costs, and most UGA fans are okay with this, with no concern about the embarrassment this brings to the State of Georgia.

Mark Richt is the architect of this situation. As long as he is paid a huge salary, he will continue to recruit the illiterate brain-dead t-h-u-g-s who he thinks will win. Unfortunately for UGA fans, he’s not remotely in the same league with the top coaches in the SEC.

So the bottom line is that Georgia Tech – win or lose – does so with honor and integrity, while the lowlife punks, woman beaters, drug users, and drunks in Athens continue to embarrass us all.

Game Changer

July 18th, 2012
7:17 am

The 2010 florida game with sanders cummings be as dirty as it gets.

fairplaynot

July 18th, 2012
7:27 am

The Vandy coach is the smartest dummass in the SEC.

Game Changer

July 18th, 2012
7:34 am

@chiptowers

j jenkins elgibility for 2012 – summer class are done for the most part — word was he did not make it, just what did the coaching staff do to try and get him by where he will be elgible?

Come on chip towers, make it happen –

Jimmy Crack

July 18th, 2012
7:43 am

“So the bottom line is that Georgia Tech – win or lose – does so with honor and integrity, while the lowlife punks, woman beaters, drug users, and drunks in Athens continue to embarrass us all.”

Except of course, your honorable coaches, like Joe Hamilton and George O’Leary.

No Class

July 18th, 2012
8:03 am

Grantham is just another clueless clown who’s defense hasnt stopped any of the big boys. His inflated defensive stats have come against teams that are weaklings or mid tier SEC teams. Being restrained to fight the Vandy coach also show’s he has no class.

I am an IDIOT

July 18th, 2012
8:19 am

I have NINETEEN different Blog Handles. I CAPITALIZE nearly every LETTER of EVERy WORD that I TYPE for EMPHASIS. Why? Because I am OBNOXIOUSLY LOUD all the TIME. I Have never had a SINGLE CONSTRUCTIVE thought to add to ANY of the AJC Football Blogs EVEN though I spend nearly every WAKING hour of EVERY day playing TROLL on the UGA Blogs. Since NO ONE WOULD EVER PAY ATTENTION TO ANYTHING I SAY, I CAPITALIZE As MANY WORDS as I CAN in Hopes that Somebody pays ATTENTION to me. I am a TOTAL LOSER.

honor

July 18th, 2012
8:44 am

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzz….. last time I checked, Ga. Tech was on probation, for lack of honor and intergrity.

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

Joey

July 18th, 2012
9:06 am

I knew a little nerd back in high school who was drum major in the band, and finished 2nd in our class, and whenever there was a crowd around, endlessly bragged about his SAT score.

Nobody liked him, and he didn’t seem to notice.

I’ve got a feeling he is Buzzzzzzzzz . . .

Joey

July 18th, 2012
9:14 am

Hey Dixie Redcoat techie, funny that you bring up Boise St.

Boise is tech’s partner in crime – on 3 years Major NCAA Probation. Sound familiar?

Of course, this is Boise’s first, while tech has been on probation for what, a decade?

tech is an embarrassment to the State of Georgia.

Mista Coach Kline

July 18th, 2012
9:40 am

CTG and CJF are both good, if not great coaches, who acted like a couple of school girls after a very intense game. It’s time to move on people.

GeorgiaSucks

July 18th, 2012
11:16 am

Grantham is a moron. Franklin would have broken his neck.

Q

July 18th, 2012
12:44 pm

Aren’t we talking about Vandy? WTF? IT’S VANDY. There isn’t even blood, let alone bad blood. IT’S VANDY.

VU Fan

July 18th, 2012
1:09 pm

I have been to many VU-UGA games in Athens and have always been treated with the utmost respect. I can’t say that about all of the other teams in our conference. Vandy is just learning how to compete and we thank Coach Franklin for that. Yes, he has made some glaring mistakes, but he will learn from them. I sincerely hope that the game this year will not have any of the nastiness of last year’s game. Good luck to UGA this season, and let’s have a good, clean, hard fought game this year. BTW, the “ginger” lineman that had a large hand in that stupid stuff last year was kicked off of the team and is no linger enrolled at Vanderbilt.

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

dagnabit

July 18th, 2012
5:55 pm

The two dirtiest college football teams in the SEC are Georgia and Arkansas. Now that Petrino is gone, maybe the hogs will just play hard.

flatsdawg1

July 18th, 2012
9:11 pm

Don’t chuckle when I say this but Vandy is a good team they very nearly beat us and 4 other good teams last year, and I believe they will be even better this year, and grab a couple of upsets in the process, and they even have a small bunch of NFL caliber players. These guys have an awful lot of pride and play to the last down and always have, just sayin don’t sleep on these geniuses! I wouldn’t be surprised if they beat South Carolina given its their first game.

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]

Budlight Dawg

July 19th, 2012
10:47 pm

Ok.. we fear Bobo more than we do Vandy… nerds like tech… but go there just to play in SEC… Cause Bama, Florida, LSU, Auburn, Arkansaw, and Uga bypassed them.. Those players have bad a bad taste for everyone of those teams… Look at their tapes last year… Blocked pretty dirty.. Chop and Cut blocks, going for knees… Punks…. Losers…. No talent is my choice of word for them…Franklin is coching dirty reck ball…………

Budlight Dawg

July 19th, 2012
10:53 pm

Mr Dooley… ur not urrr daddy!!!!! Tenn will cont to get there butts kicked this year..Ur returning starters lost to Kentucky…. FLASH BACK!!!!! HOW DO U THINK UR GONNA IMPROVE? UR COACHING… LOLOLOL…. ID RATHER HAVE BOBO ANYDAY MY FRIEND… AND ITS NOTHING TO BRAG ABOUT! As long as Da Rick wears that orange… Those dawgs r gonna pound on u …

Budlight Dawg

July 19th, 2012
11:01 pm

we didnt need Nance Nash….. CMR wife gives our boys gatoraid….lol Sucks dont it DaRickiee boy… Coming from a winning highschool program to getting embarrassed weekend week out…. Should have been a Dawg!!!! What u gonna tell ur kids one day… “Oh, I went to the Vols to help out a friend, They sucked.. We lost most our games… I dont even want to show u any of my video’s…Our coach sucked….UGA pounded on me ” now thats what u will be thinkin when they ask…

Budlight Dawg

July 19th, 2012
11:05 pm

And to all these Spineless recruits committin and backin out… when u play UGA… We will pound u like we do Mr .Da Rick…..

Budlight Dawg

July 19th, 2012
11:07 pm

Mr Dooley… The writing is on the wall… u lose to Kentucky, Vandy… U will be made available to the industry…….

[...] Vanderbilt coach passes on question about Todd Grantham [...]