South Carolina loss boosts Georgia’s chances in East
Georgia’s hopes of reaching the SEC Championship game despite its ugly loss at South Carolina got a boost Saturday night when the Gamecocks followed their domination of the Bulldogs with a loss at LSU.
South Carolina’s 23-21 loss, one week after its 35-7 rout of Georgia, means UGA will represent the Eastern Division in the SEC title game if:
- South Carolina loses at least one of its three remaining SEC games, the most difficult of which is this week at Florida.
Those are big ifs, of course.
“Right now, I think the best thing for Georgia is to focus on getting better, focus on (this week’s opponent) Kentucky,” UGA coach Mark Richt said Sunday. “It’s kind of a boring answer, as always, but it’s really what we’ve got to do.
“We’ve got some things we’ve got to clean up. We’ve been giving up too many big plays. We’ve got to make sure we get back to running the ball like we (were) early in the year. … We need to get more turnovers. We need to protect the ball a little better. We’ve still got things to clean up in some of our special-teams areas.
“We want to finish strong, and if we can keep improving as we go, we’ve got a chance to have some fun in the end here. But we’ve got a ways to go.”
This past weekend’s results — South Carolina’s loss, Florida’s victory at Vanderbilt and Georgia’s bye — left the Gators (6-0, 5-0 SEC) alone in first place in the SEC East. South Carolina (6-1, 4-1) and Georgia (5-1, 3-1) are even in the loss column. All other East teams have at least three league losses.
Because of its loss to South Carolina, Georgia would lose a tiebreaker with the Gamecocks; that’s why Georgia needs them to lose again. If Florida beats South Carolina on Saturday in Gainesville but loses to Georgia on Oct. 27 in Jacksonville, that would leave the Gators and Bulldogs with one SEC loss each (provided UGA beats Kentucky) and the Dogs with the tiebreaker advantage over Florida.
Etc.
Richt took advantage of Georgia’s open date to watch his son play quarterback for Mars Hill (N.C.) College. Jon Richt set school single-game records for passing attempts (52), completions (33) and passing yards (370) as Mars Hill defeated Catawba 35-28. “I guess I can be a dad who can brag a little bit, but Jon played well,” Richt said. “It was the last time I’ll probably ever get to see him play college ball in person, so it was a treat for me and the family.” … Georgia’s 7 p.m. Saturday game at Kentucky (1-6, 0-4) will be televised on FSN, it was announced Sunday. … Georgia inched up one spot to No. 13 in this week’s Associated Press media poll and remained No. 12 in the USA Today coaches’ poll.
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769 comments Add your comment
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:17 pm
No HD, what we needed to see was the Dawgs show up in Columbia last Saturday night. How long will you continue to overlook the obvious, which is what has happened in the past, and quit hoping against hope things will improve.
Jefferson Davis Hogg
October 14th, 2012
9:19 pm
Slow your roll….Willie Taggart could very well be a good hire but I don’t believe he is on UGA’s short list….not sure how his lack of publicity would go over at UGA. He is considered one of the top five up and comers in the country though…..
Herschel Walker's Jock Strap
October 14th, 2012
9:19 pm
South Carolina got a taste of their own medicine. Playing at night in the real “Death Valley” at night mind you. That setting is worth at least 10 Pts in LSU’s favor. However, I will give South Carolina’s stadium more credit and they were much more of a factor in the game against UGA. It will be a tight game in Gainsville and I am thinking USCe wiil bounce back somehow and pulls it out. I hope not but I just don’t think Florida is that good. Unfortunately for South Carolina they went from playing the best game of their programs history to playing in the toughest environment in college football . With tha being said, if Florida beats the cocks and UGA has a chance to redeem themselves in a big way I think it would be worth the lost to USCe. Richt has to win out to be UGA’s coach next year and I hope he knows it just like the fans do.
Al
October 14th, 2012
9:19 pm
SC WILL NOT lose to UT or Ark. so you kool-aid drinkers can calm down!
Also some UGA fans saying that SC is not that good……. does 35-7 ring a bell!!
Such idiots
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
9:24 pm
Yea this 3 stooges coaching staff is good for 9-10 wins against cupcakes like North Eastern South Carolina Poly Tech or a KY and Vandy and occasionally they will beat down teams like this years Auburn team
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:24 pm
Ouch Al, do we keep having to be reminded?
Herschel, it wouldn’t matter whether Richt knew he had to win or not at UF to be retained next year. The cold hard fact is he doesn’t know how to win “big” games in the SEC. You look at him in action during the heat of battle and it’s obvious he’s lost.
creekwolf
October 14th, 2012
9:26 pm
with a new President in place, Kirby Smart will get top to bottom support at UGA.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:26 pm
Flat, Auburn will beat us this year, book it. Our kool aid drinking fans are the most gullible fans in existence.
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
9:27 pm
Richt is a good coach, not an elite coach. He is in the same category as Stoops, Beamer, M Brown. All the above can drop big games when they can least afford. Enjoy this ride. It is the best we have ever had and it could be much worse. 112 wins in 11 1/2 years. Most schools would die for it. There are only 4 elite coaches in college football and they are not coming to Athens: Saban, Spurrier, Bobby Petrino and Meyer.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:28 pm
Kirby won’t be available long if he wants to be a head coach. With the problems at Texas, (at least their coach admitted the teams play was unacceptable for Texas), UT, Auburn, Kirby won’t be around.
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
9:30 pm
@Jefferson
There is no list. What an idiotic statement…
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
9:32 pm
Mobile Dawg
It still amazes me everyday on these blogs how stupid and moronic our fanbase is; it almost makes me want to go pull for another team but I cant because I was born in this state and have live in this state most of my life.
Our fanbase is an embarrassment
Can you imagine LSU AL and FL showing up like we do everytime against top ranked opponents and embarrassing the program like we have done under our current 3 Stooges coaching staff
It really amazes me this talk of winning the SEC and playing for the national title. I wonder if people have been playing this season on their PS3 or Xbox cause they sure havent been watching our games
Old School
October 14th, 2012
9:35 pm
When and not until the big money from wealthy alumni stops coming in, tv revenue drops considerably, and season tickets sales fall significantly will any coaching changes happen at UGA. As long as the money keeps coming in from these sources [and I believe it is only about the money], cmr and company are here until they have long gray beards. Money talks and BS walks even at UGA. Time will tell if this tried and true motto prevails. Just watch the money folks, the diminished flow of the mighty green back is the one stat cmr can’t dodge or explain away with some over used cliche.
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
9:37 pm
The Factor
Richt in the same category as Stoops and Brown
Have you been smoking a bong
Um Richt has never even sniffed the National Title game; Stoops and Brown have played in at least 2 and won 1 each and they have won several conference championships that they didnt back their way into everyone of them like Richt does
Hire Gene Chizik
October 14th, 2012
9:38 pm
UGA should only hire a coach who has won a National Championship in the past. Every coach in college football sucks unless they’ve won one. Auburn sucks this year and got completely blown out by UGA last year but Chizik is better because he’s got that 1 crystal football. Hire Gene Chizik!!
The worst thing about being a Dawg fan? All the fair weather dumb*ss downer dawgs. Idiots.
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
9:40 pm
@Flat
No, the most moronic are those like u who never spent a semester on our campus but we have to put up with the embarrassment you bring our program with your rants. By the way, pick up your trash next time on campus and don’t cuss the visitors from opposing teams to Sanford Stadium. We love our university for more than just football.
smartdawg
October 14th, 2012
9:41 pm
GA, SC and FLA all have great ath. whichever coach does the best job prepairing the team wins everytime! If CMR loses in jacksonville his time in athens will be over. I think kirby would jump at the chance to come back home. UGA has everything it needs to win championships except championship coaching.
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
9:42 pm
UGA is #11 in the BCS poll.
gloom & doomers said all was over last year after 0-2 start. Nope.
said we couldn’t beat Fla. Wrong again.
Said UGA would drop out of top 25 after losing to SC? Nope, still #11 in BCS rankings.
UF is favored by almost 4 points over SC, they’ll win that game, and move to #1 ranking.
UGA will beat #1 ranked UF again in 2 weeks, setting up a SEC battle for the natl champiionship SEC represenative game aganst Saban (Richt’s 3-1 vs. Alabama).
Beat two #1 ranked teams (UF & Bama), and UGA’s a shoo in for an invite to the NATL CHAMPSHIP GAME.
Hire Gene Chizik
October 14th, 2012
9:43 pm
Flat Tire = Harvey Updyke
DawginLex
October 14th, 2012
9:43 pm
Florida fantasy land ends Saturday. SC is the best team integrity east and will price it Saturday. UGA and Florida play for 2nd place in 2 weeks
Arkansas has the passing game to give SC a fame but their defense is so bad that they have no prayer if stopping Lattimore.
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
9:43 pm
@Flat
If you think Stoops or Brown play in a conference like the SEC then you are truly moronic (to use your term). If you have followed the conference or been a “fan” more than a few years you would know backing into the SEC title game happens all the time.
Done……..
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
9:43 pm
Mark Richt leads all SEC coaches in career win percentage vs. winning teams (Richt’s only one over 60%).
DawginLex
October 14th, 2012
9:44 pm
Dang phone.
Jefferson Davis Hogg
October 14th, 2012
9:45 pm
@ The Factor….every AD in america has a short list onb hand at all times….it’s part of their job to be prepared at any given moment for whatever may come up.
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
9:46 pm
Thank you Sammy, Richt also has more wins than all SEC schools over the last 12 year with the exception of LSU (and we are just slightly behind..)
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:47 pm
Flat, Old School has got it right. At some point, people have to be fed up enough to quit. I stopped three years ago, I’ve been an avid Dawg and supporter for 43 years. I’m still a fan, but won’t be a supporter again until Richt is gone. We may go to the Auburn game, only because my wife is an alum there, and the tailgating and women are kick a…., and they always have extra tickets.
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
9:47 pm
Richt has a higher win % than Saban or Muschamp or Spurrier, so you have to like UGA in 2012.
Hire Gene Chizik
October 14th, 2012
9:47 pm
Flat Tire (aka Harvey Updyke) says he *almost* wants to pull for another team. That’s laughable, that cranky old POS troll has been pulling for the other teams all along. He’s nothing, if not miserable, and he really wants to be something… therefor he’s always miserable.
PAT DYE
October 14th, 2012
9:50 pm
GEORGIA’S NOT MAN ENOUGH TO GO TO FLORIDA AND BEAT FLORIDA!!! THEY JUST WANT TO TALK ABOUT THEIR FEELINGS AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:52 pm
Why don’t you fantasy land posters throw a little more pixie dust. Please give us those stats over the last five years Factor, and let us know how we stack up since Saban, Miles, Mullen, Kiffen, Meyer, Phillips, and others have been hired by opposing SEC schools.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
9:54 pm
We’ve already lost to Spurrier, we will lose to Muschamp, so we won’t have to face Saban thankfully. Sammy, you have to be a troll, just posting for comments, nobody can be as ignorant as you pose to be.
dewnsav
October 14th, 2012
9:55 pm
DLex, I’m thinking the gators find a way in G-ville Saturday…SC may have the best team in the East and a great coach, but it’s TOUGH on the road in the SEC…I think Driskel is the real deal…go dogs
Hire Gene Chizik
October 14th, 2012
9:55 pm
LOL mobile dawg thinks Dan Mullen and Joker Phillips (who kentucky cant even stand) have accomplished more than CMR. WTF are you smoking dude? You live in AL, go ahead and cheer for Auburn or AL, we seriously need fewer fans like you on our side. I’m pretty sure both Mobile Dawg and Flat Tire were happy to read when Aaron Murray’s house got egged.
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
9:58 pm
Been a great 1st half.
1) Improved special teams field goal %, and only 1 td returned against special teams
2) Improved 2nd half and 4th quarter defensive scoring allowed by over 50% each
3) Improved rush offense, ranked #1 in SEC
SC “domination” of UGA? Give me a break. Shaw had some good runs and 2 long throws, and Sanders had a good punt return. Should have scored from the goalline. Take away those plays, and UGA wins that game.
59 minutes, UGA played better. But those plays hurt.
1) Punt out of bounds
2) Contain QB run
3) 2 safeties deep
4) Throw on the goalline
4 easy adjustments.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
10:00 pm
dude? Seriously? Just give me the facts I asked for rather than your SAWB humor.
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
10:02 pm
Hire Gene Chizik
Im glad beating GaTech is the pinnacle of UGA football for you. You do know Bobby Dodd isnt coaching tech anymore you old fart.
Im glad bulldawg pride to you is losing to top 20 teams year after year
Im glad not beating FL two years in a row since the 80’s is so great
Im glad not beating every team in the SEC east in the same year since Dooley was our coach is big time football
Im glad UGA football puts more players in the NFL than any other SEC school yet can win big much less beat mid tier teams
Do this program a favor and go pull for Vandy they need more loser loving fans like you
Oh and please get rid of those 1950’s red pants you’ve been wearing and show up to a game sober; you might finally see how embarrassing our program has become
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
10:04 pm
I like Coach Richt’s plan moving forward:
1- We’ve been giving up too many big plays.
2 safeties deep fixes that.
2- We’ve got to make sure we get back to running the ball like we (were) early in the year
2 tight end set fix that.
3- We need to get more turnovers.
new defensive ends getting more pressure forces more bad throws and int’s, guys like Stripling, Drew, Smith need a chance as does doing more blindside blitzes.
4- We need to protect the ball a little better.
Murray needs to stop throwing the ball over the middle in traffic
5- We’ve still got things to clean up in some of our special-teams areas.
Punt the ball out of bounds.
He Hate Gator
October 14th, 2012
10:04 pm
Sammy, may need some sort of handicap there in those wins numbers as they are fluffed up with the likes of Buffalo, Florida Atlantic, Georgia Southern, New Mexico St, UL Lafayette, Colorado (ooops, they lost that one), Idaho St, and Tennessee Tech all in the last 3 years…
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
10:05 pm
I give up Sammy, you’ve converted me, hail to Saint Richt. I can now see the clear path we have to the National Championship game. Amazing Grace, please pass the kool aid, I now see clearly, what I couldn’t see before, Mark Richt is the greatest college football coach, ever.
DawginLex
October 14th, 2012
10:07 pm
Flat tire
Joker got told he is done today at 3 pm so you can go get him to replace Richt………
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
10:08 pm
Mobile Dawg
LOL
You will have to excuse Sammy; he is an Arkham Asylum patient on free time right now; I think his buddy in the next cell is Hire Gene Chizik
Hire Gene Chizik
October 14th, 2012
10:08 pm
Flat Tire… yes, you’re right. The Program needs more Downer Fans who go apesh*t when the program loses 1 game, egg the QB’s house to show their frustration, and make a general laughing stock of the entire fanbase. Fans who pull for the team through thick and thin are bad for the program. Idiot,
Mark Richt — 4 SEC Title Games in 10 Years, 2 SEC Championships. Truly a Vandy calibur coach. You are a fool old man.
Rick James
October 14th, 2012
10:09 pm
@The Factor
Richt is a good coach, not an elite coach. He is in the same category as Stoops, Beamer, M Brown. All the above can drop big games when they can least afford. Enjoy this ride. It is the best we have ever had and it could be much worse. 112 wins in 11 1/2 years. Most schools would die for it. There are only 4 elite coaches in college football and they are not coming to Athens: Saban, Spurrier, Bobby Petrino and Meyer
——————————————————————————————————–
Thank you..
Flat Tire on I-95 in Jacksonville
October 14th, 2012
10:09 pm
DawginLex
Give me a break Joker shouldnt be a kicking coach
tdaw
October 14th, 2012
10:09 pm
we need to somehow keep the 5 star recruits from leaving the state…. can anyone tell me how many 5 stars are in the state and how many of them is GA going to sign!!!
astrouga
October 14th, 2012
10:10 pm
Richt needs to put new faces in against Kentucky. The regulars just didn’t cut it against SC. Heck, I’d make all the starters sit out a series, defense and offense. Remind the starters that we field players who want to play. I wouldn’t even care if we lost to Kentucky, as long as the starters had to sit out the game.
Mobile Dawg
October 14th, 2012
10:11 pm
I’m glad after 12 years, and especially after studying “cutting edge football” the last year, he’s got it figured out. I feel so much better about Georgia football.
Sammy
October 14th, 2012
10:11 pm
The Florida-UGA game will come down to:
1- Containing Driskell
Use the plan LSU used against SC
2- Forcing UF running game inside, they like to get long plays on the perimeter
3- Running the ball well enough to stay balanced
2 tight end sets, and a fullback should help
4- Punt return defense
Punt the ball out of bounds, don’t give UF a chance to make a big play
He Hate Gator
October 14th, 2012
10:14 pm
Its not just one game….how about 0-9 against ranked teams, 0-3 in 3 straight games against Spurrier, and 0-3 blowouts against last 3 Top 10 teams….
The Factor
October 14th, 2012
10:15 pm
Here’s what you “fans” need to know. UGA plays the same puffs as all other SEC schools and not near as many as Ohio State. Second, the alums give UGA most of it’s $ so I can tell you, while not always happy, Mark Richt represents UGA very well and in more ways than one. We will be slow to let him go. He is the winningest coach in UGA history. There is a statue of Dooley on our campus with not as high a winning % as MR. But talking to some of you “fans” is like talking to a brick wall. Enjoy your rants but don”t embarrass us.