Georgia’s Mike Gilliard: ‘I felt disrespected and, yes, I definitely took it personally’
Linebacker Mike Gillard, here tackling a Florida Atlantic player, was not at all happy about Shawn Williams' characterization of his play at inside linebacker. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
ATHENS — OK, here are a few addendum’s from Tuesday’s post-practice interview opportunities. Todd Grantham, Mike Gilliard and Jarvis Jones talked about Shawn Williams’ comments on the defense and a few other things. So here they are kind of raw and unabridged:
SENIOR LINEBACKER MIKE GILLIARD:
On Williams’ remarks about Amarlo Herrera being the better linebacker . . .
“As a man, I wasn’t hurt at all. I felt disrespected. And, yes, I definitely took it personally. Today in the linebackers meeting, I stood up and told them, ‘no disrespect to Amarlo and Ogletree, but when I read that I felt disrespected and I’ll definitely taking it personally. But there’s no issue between me and Shawn Williams. All it is is fuel for the fire and basically its given me motivation to go out there and give 100 percent. And that’s what I did today. You can ask any of my teammates. I was upset today at practice today any time the ball came my way I tried to knock the [expletive] out of him.”
On the response of the defense to Williams’ remarks. . .
“He called us out. Us as linebackers and asa defense as a whole, we’ve just got to deliver. This week, that’s what I plan to do. You best believe whoever’s carrying the ball, I’m gonna know the (expletive) out of them.”
On talking to Williams on Tuesday . . .
“He told me it was nothing person. Then again, by saying their names, he said my name without saying my name. I took that personal. I feel like when another man calls me soft, he’s disrespecting my manhood. So all I can do is go out there and deliver. It just gave me motivation. You best believe, on Saturday I’m going to be ready. And as a defense as a whole, we had a great practice. We flew around the ball, tried to hit hard. That’s what we’re going to continue to do for the rest of the week.”
On how he might have handled . . .
“Me, personally, I never would have told the media something like that. I’d keep it in-house and talk to the defense. I would have sat down and talked to the defense and tried to resolve the issue then and there. But there’s not going to be any issues after this right here. It’s just if another man calls me soft, I’m gonna show him there ain’t nothing sweet around here.”
JUNIOR OUTSIDE LINEBACKER JARVIS JONES
On Williams’ remarks . . .
“Everybody knows Shawn is a very passionate guy. He loves this game of football. Looking back at last year and this year, we’re playing down a level and not executing like we’re supposed to. I feel like that woke a lot of guys up. Guys understand where he’s coming from and definitely respect him. It wasn’t like he was throwing anybody under the bus, coaches or anything like that. Personally, me and a lot of other guys feel like it was just a challenge for us to go out there and just re-focus ourselves and get back on the right track and play the defense we’re known for playing and that’s smash-mouth football . Last year that’s the kind of football we played and that’s what Shawn is looking for, the team that played hard, that ran to the ball, that hit people, that got sacks and turnovers. Obviously we haven’t been that team and that’s what he wants to get back to.”
Has the controversy had an effect . . .
“Oh, yeah. Guys were turned up on both sides of the ball. They really pushed themselves to get better. I definitely think we got better in a lot of area today. Guys were giving everything they had as far as the mental stage and physical.
How might he have handled it . . .
“I’m more of a quiet guy; I’m not that vocal. I probably would have just called my defense in together and talked about it. But sometimes you have to look into different ways to get your team’s attention. Shawn was coming from the heart with it. He definitely got our attention. So we’ve just got to look past the negativity of it and what other people think. We understand where Shawn’s coming from. We’re a brotherhood here. We’ve just got to keep grinding and keep getting better this week.
“I know what kind of guy Shawn is and I know how he meant it. He’s just challenging us to get better and just push ourselves physically and mentally.”
On practicing Tuesday after sitting out since Oct. 6 with an ankle injury . . .
“It was good to get out there and move around a little bit,” said Jones, who hasn’t played since injuring his right ankle against South Carolina on Oct. 6. “Everybody’s working hard and focusing, and it was good to get back out there with the guys. I feel good right now. It’s just Tuesday, and I’m still getting better.”
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR TODD GRANTHAM
On Williams’ comments . . .
“It’s no big deal. Shawn’s a passionate guy. He cares about the way he plays and the way the other guys plays. I think it was probably taken a little bit out of context from the way he meant it in some ways. But really you’ve got a guy who wants to win and cares about his players and he’s ready to move on.”
On whether he had any advance notice from Williams . . .
“Shawn and I are pretty close and we talk. He’s a guy who wants us to play well and physical and do those kinds of things. So, you know, I don’t know.”
On Williams making lineup suggestions . . .
“Players have opinions. Everybody’s got their opinion. I have my opinion about (reporters), too.”
On how he addressed the situation with defense . . .
“We always have meetings before practice as a team. I let him have the floor for a couple of minutes and basically explain what he meant and what he cares about. The most important thing is getting ready to play Florida and it’s really not an issue. So we moved on with practice. “
MORE GEORGIA COVERAGE
- Teammates, coaches react to Williams ’soft defense’ remarks
- Georgia players and coaches preview Florida game
- Notebook: Richt floats idea of coaching kickers himself
- Georgia’s O-line eager for another chance against an elite defense
- QB Aaron Murray will take offensive player of week honors into Florida game
- Georgia-Florida week: Will Abry Jones or Jarvis Jones play?
- Dogs struggle vs. Kentucky, but win sets up marquee matchup with Gators
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370 comments Add your comment
Grantham tried to choke Chaz Henry
October 24th, 2012
2:10 pm
1st half: UGA 17 UF 14
2nd half: UGA 3 UF 16
UF wins 30-20
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
2:13 pm
like the picture used by the ajc for this story..typical uga “student athlete” taunting a small school opponent after a tackle…missing from the photo are the 5-6 other defensive players on the field prancing, dancing and talking trash…
Alphare
October 24th, 2012
2:15 pm
I don’t think UGA is man enough to win, even former UGA player Pat Dye agreed.
dawglova
October 24th, 2012
2:28 pm
I am not being a smarta$$ peeps…I am really curious, who are your candidates to replace richt. I always see mult. comments saying we will never win with this staff. That may be true but I honestly cant think of to many HC’s who arent locked up in long term contracts. who do you guys wanna see come here?
hit a single
October 24th, 2012
2:30 pm
I don’ want to hear players complain. Bottom line is that at UGA we have been kissing recruits butts and not preparing them for what it should really be like and then all of a sudden it is too late. I don’t care what sport it is you have to hurt some feelings sometimes and have discipline and the UGA program has done neither lately. If it had of done the right things you would have seen Richard Samuel more. That kid has given his heart to this program but the prima donas get all the playing time even if their performance is subpar.
Lonnie
October 24th, 2012
2:38 pm
Let’s go Dawgs!!!!!!!!
Real Dawg Fan
October 24th, 2012
2:38 pm
Stop stirring up controversy, We have our Coach whether you like it or not. So if you want to WIN, how about getting behind the team/coaches that we have. Let’s save the off season talk for OFFSEASON
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
2:38 pm
I would really like to know who COWARDS team is! But he is to big of a coward to tell us.
david
October 24th, 2012
2:39 pm
gilliard do that in the game this week.if you dont lke what was said get off your as————————-
G-Dawg
October 24th, 2012
2:42 pm
I’ll get behind my coach..and hold him accountable as a fan!!!
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
2:49 pm
sounds like I’ve got under the fur of some of you dawgs…sucks being you!!!!
Joey
October 24th, 2012
2:52 pm
“Joey. can’t believe you dissed me last night on here accusing me of multiple monikers.”
*******************************************
Wasn’t me buddy – you’re my blogging hero – you can condense into 3 sentences, what it takes me 3 paragraphs to write.
Even when I slightly disagree with JB, I just move on.
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
2:52 pm
Yea, sucks being 6-1.
Jeff
October 24th, 2012
2:52 pm
Respect must be earned Mike.
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
2:53 pm
dawglova, no names will be volunteered because its an arguement that goes nowhere…Richt is your boy, stay with him…the rest of the SEC supports that…
G-Dawg
October 24th, 2012
2:57 pm
If a player was giving 100%, then they shouldnt be offended by Williams remarks. Leadership at the college level comes from both the coaches and players. Sometimes in the heat of the moment, we dont necessarily say the right thing…but his intent is clearly understood with the ppl who know Williams the best. Jarvis, Murray, Washington, etc…are all considered the leaders of this team…but have yet to see them become one. Williams took matters into his own hands. And if anyone looks at the film, LBs have been getting pushed around..they’re not meeting RBs in the hole. They are making tackles…but thats after 6-8 yard gains…which doesnt stop drives. Dline is more effective with Geathers and Jenkins in there. Those two require 4 linemen to block em…giving LBs more opportunities to make plays, but they’re slow to read the play. When is Grantham going to blitz from the inside positions?
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
2:59 pm
Was talking with a buddy of mine and he pointed something out about the SC game that i didn’t think about:
We lost M. Bennett on thurs before for the game. So the Offense had practiced all week on plays with him as the #1 WR. So Sat players had to be moved around and that proved to be a big reason why Murray’s timing was off. He has two weeks to work with the WRs and goes out and has a 30-38, 429yd 4 TD performance. The ONLY game the offense has struggled in is the one where we lost our #1 WR on the LAST day of game prep.
Now with S. Williams firing up not only the D, but the O as well, I think UF is in for a huge Surprise.
Oh and to you pathetic gator fans that like to post 18-4 or 18 of 22, get a life, the record is 48-40-2. We STILL own the Gators by almost a decade of wins, so give the PARTIAL HISTORY a rest.
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:00 pm
glad you are content scheduling and defeating inferior opponents Lake Harding…i am ecstatic for you and dawg nation…yall are comedy gold…UGA is the SEC version of cubic zirconia..looks like its real, but is easily proven not to be by average opposition…
G-Dawg
October 24th, 2012
3:04 pm
Everyone referring to scheduling and inferior opponents..all teams go thru it, some years are just better/worse than others.
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
3:05 pm
I don’t schedule anything, the SEC does. How stupid can you really be. And, again, who is your team?
Joey
October 24th, 2012
3:06 pm
“Anybody know of a blog where they are talking about the football game?”
*************************************
I’ll talk with you bout the game, AD.
What can out offense do to move the ball vs UF’s talented D-line?
dawglova
October 24th, 2012
3:07 pm
never said richt was my boy. in fact there r many complaints i have about the staff as a whole. like i said iwas thinking who would be better, who is available etc..couldnt come up with many. its always a hot topc. So throw some names out there. you obviously dont support them so throw some names out there. No reason to not…or are you the “coward of the blog”. And by the way I will find the link but i read an article ranking the best coaches in the south as ranked by coaches and players in sec and acc and richt was fourth on the list. And i do think hes a good coach, but i do believe when you are in one place too long things can become stale and it may be time for a change
Joey
October 24th, 2012
3:12 pm
“Yea, sucks being 6-1.”
*********************
LHarding, we have beaten 6 pitiful teams. Now, that’s not UGA’s fault. We play the schedule.
Look at out opponents’ records – we lost to the only decent team we have played.
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:14 pm
We lost M. Bennett on thurs before for the game. So the Offense had practiced all week on plays with him as the #1 WR. So Sat players had to be moved around and that proved to be a big reason why Murray’s timing was off.
______________________
ding, ding, ding…winner of the “lamest excuse of the day award!!!…barely beating out such classics as; “the moon was in the wrong phase”, “the trainers didn’t pack our lucky socks”, and “wait, you guys have figured out our snap count?..no fair, no fair”…
UGA lost to a superior program in South Carolina. Uga is a mid-tier SEC program. Period. More evidence to come Saturday afternoon. Verne and Gary will probably repeat the same message the Herbie and Brent spoke during the SC game…Uga is unprepared and undisciplined…end of story…
RichtmustGo
October 24th, 2012
3:16 pm
He should’ve felt disrespected when the worst team in the SEC ran all over them!
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
3:16 pm
Joey – Well Saturday’s a new day. Maybe we can turn the tide and win one. These sidewalk fans don’t think so but who cares what they think. They will not be in Jacksonville and I will.
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:17 pm
dawglova, it is in the best interest of SEC coaches to keep CMR in Athens. I hope he stays as long as he wants. Go Dawgs!
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:19 pm
enjoy your time with the wine and cheese crowd Lake Harding…guys like you keep the game in Jacksonville…
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
3:19 pm
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:14 pm
We lost M. Bennett on thurs before for the game. So the Offense had practiced all week on plays with him as the #1 WR. So Sat players had to be moved around and that proved to be a big reason why Murray’s timing was off.
______________________
ding, ding, ding…winner of the “lamest excuse of the day award!!!…
You OBVIOULSY are someone who has never played ANY kind of comptetive sport.
Dude seriously, think about it. Most teams lose a key player to injury either preseason or during a game. RARELY do you lose one during practice week, and even more rare to lose one on the last day of practice before a game.
Don’t get me wrong we still should have played better in that game, but if you don’t think that didn’t have a great deal to do with the offensive pass timing, you’re high as a kite and dumb as a box of rocks.
dawglova
October 24th, 2012
3:20 pm
And I do know this…there are about 109 teams that would love to have the problems UGA does. And lets all take a little dose of reality. UGA has never been an elite program. UGA is always a very good program.And I will also say this I remember the last 6 years of dooley, the goff years and the jim donnan years. Lots of nfl talent and how many Champs? how many real good seasons. Richt has had 2 poor seasons at UGA out of 11. So lets go ahead and bring in someone like kirby smart…a d-coordinator that doesnt even coach his on defense
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:20 pm
48-40-2
Unless you over 80 you have missed out on the dominance of the dawgs. 18-4 is the last 22 years and that is older than these high school kids we try to recruite. It’s pretty easy for making a case for coming to Florida unless they would like to go Jax every year and be embarrassed on a regular basis.
You see all the kids in HS today have known up watching the Gators dominate the dawgs.
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
3:21 pm
This is my 36th. Georgia Florida game coward. And your team is who?
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:23 pm
Joey, if you ain’t in Jax, you must be a sidewalk fan…bet you didn’t know that…
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:25 pm
I’m all dawg TonyaHardingdawg…
LHarding Dawg
October 24th, 2012
3:27 pm
Oh, a sidewalk dog.
gdawginkalamazoo
October 24th, 2012
3:29 pm
Come on Dawgs! I have a bunch of beer in the fridge that I have been saving for that big game win. The stuff is getting old and is probably stale. But if you win this Saturday I’ll drink it.
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:30 pm
48-40-2
You call 48 of 88 (55%) owning somebody, then I would have to call 18 of 22 (82%) complete and utter dominance.
UPDATED: UGA starting DE Abry Jones out for rest of regular season after ankle surgery | UGA sports blog
October 24th, 2012
3:33 pm
[...] UGA’s Mike Gilliard: ‘I felt disrespected and, yes, I took it personally’ [...]
everyone considered Georgia the coward of the conference
October 24th, 2012
3:39 pm
48-40-2…i guess if you need an excuse to explain incompetence, the Bennett excuse would work just fine…congrats..
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
3:43 pm
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:20 pm
Well if we’re gonna jus pick and choose what partial history to look at how about 1-0?
DIT
October 24th, 2012
3:44 pm
Attitude needs to show up on the field and not in the media. I’m in a split house with another gator coming over. I might be out numbered and wearing the colors of the underdog, however I will be yelling and screaming for our Dawgs.
You never know what might happen. Dawgs will need to play their best ball and the gators will have to be off their game. Could happen. Go Dawgs
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:46 pm
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
3:43 pm
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:20 pm
Well if we’re gonna jus pick and choose what partial history to look at how about 1-0?
SORRY, THAT IS TRUE DOMINANCE
UCF fanbase
October 24th, 2012
3:46 pm
48-40-2
That sounds good to us! We own you punks!
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
3:46 pm
Btw since you want to spin numbers no I wouldn’t call 55% dominate, BUT how about 8yrs just to even the series. Btw if you think these kids care anything about who or what they watched growing up you’re crazy. The only thing they care about is where are they going to be the best fit, get early playing time, and best exposure to get to the next level (NFL).
AltamahaDawg
October 24th, 2012
3:48 pm
Joey, the 2 (what I consider better Offenses) that UF faced Tn, TAMU actually moved the ball on UF. Also Vandy had 363 yard, and 23 first downs. SC just imploded on thier own. So baring that, I’m not really as worried about moving the ball. We just need to be able to run it a little.
I’d be more concerned about the flip side of that. Stopping thier run, and forcing the worst passing team in the league to beat us that way.
48-40-2
October 24th, 2012
3:50 pm
UCF – Congrats you caught one of the Big boys in a down year! Too bad the only way you’ll ever get to play a bigtime program in a bowl game is when you catch one in a down year.
Now run along child and let the grown folks continue their conversation.
Sorry for the interuption Gatorbait 18-4 you were saying?
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:50 pm
I do like our chances this year though. Our new OC Brent Pease had no probles confusing that baffoon Todd Grantham last year when Boise State embarressed the dawgs. This year he has bigger and faster players to work with—–be sure to buckle up
UCF fanbase
October 24th, 2012
3:54 pm
Who calls Georgia a big time program? Hahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!
The Truth
October 24th, 2012
3:56 pm
Suck it up Mike Gilliard, you f’ing pansy. If you and the the rest of your teammates and coaches were doing your jobs, you would get called to the carpet. From the sound of your response, you clearly were guilty of playing soft this year.
GatorBait 18-4
October 24th, 2012
3:57 pm
48-40-22
The only thing they care about is where are they going to be the best fit, get early playing time, and best exposure to get to the next level (NFL).
Some of the kids actually want to play for a National Championship team———when was the last UGA NC and oh BTW 21 of 22 starts from the 2008 NC team are currently playing in the NFL just FYI.