My natural reluctance to do these posts has only grown from week to week, and it wasn’t lessened reading this quote from Mark Richt:
Georgia’s kickoff coverage team has struggled throughout this season, culminating with a disastrous effort against LSU that allowed the Tigers to begin their final drive with exceptional field position.
While head coach Mark Richt said the team continues to address the problems, he said some of the issues are simply a matter of youth that can only improve with increased experience.
“I can’t sit here and say we’ve got 10 guys that are really getting after it and getting it done,” Richt said. “I think they’re trying their tails off but there’s a lot of youth on that thing and they’ve got to continue to mature.”
Cue the Ray Goff “buttah and buttah” quote. Sigh.
Anyway, it’s a waste of time to write some sweeping overview and conclusion about tomorrow’s game, because, like the rest of you, I have no idea what Georgia team is going to step out on the field. So you’re going to have to settle for bullet points from which you’re welcome to draw a larger truth. If you dare, that is.
- Considering all the talent that’s flowed through these programs in the last fifteen years, how strange is it that there’s really only one front line receiver playing tomorrow?
- Semi-amazing stat: Jonathan Crompton has more passing attempts this season than Joe Cox.
- We’ll see some tackling machines tomorrow, that’s for sure. Rennie Curran leads the SEC in tackles per game. Eric Berry and Rico McCoy rank third and fourth, respectively.
- I probably shouldn’t indulge myself like this, but I’m feeling better about Georgia’s defensive line than I have all season. Houston and Weston have really come on.
- With the game he played last year, I’m happy that Robert Ayers has moved on. I’ll no doubt regret this observation, but no current member of UT’s defensive line scares me as much.
- On the other hand, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that Joe Cox vs. Eric Berry does scare me a little bit. OK, more than a little bit.
- As I noted in a previous post, Crompton’s yards per passing attempt figure shouldn’t strike fear into an opponent’s heart. His longest completion of the season is 40 yards. Willie Martinez, if you don’t challenge these guys in their short passing game, you don’t have a hair on your arse.
- By the way, that 40-yard completion was to the tight end who leads their receivers in average yards per catch.
- Georgia’s defense hasn’t allowed a running back to gain 100 or more yards on the ground all season. Tennessee has won its two games when Hardesty has cracked the 100-yard mark and lost its three games when he hasn’t. Just sayin’.
- I’ve got to give Phil Steele credit: he’s picking Georgia as one of his upset specials this week.
- Finally, if you want to wallow in a statistical breakdown of the match up, check out a new blog I’ve been introduced to, College Football by the Numbers.
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Pingback: Friday Morning Links « The Grit Tree
I think you should’ve channeled the SC preview:
Blah, blah, which team shows up?
Blah, blah, special teams… blah blah, directional kick, kick coverage, tackle. Fabris?
Blah, blah, offensive balance, blah?
Eric Berry, blah, boooo…
AJ Green, blah!!!!!
Blah, blah, my sister throws better than Crompton, blah, blah.
Blah, turnovers and penalties, blah, blah.
In fact, until we win a game by more than 2 touchdowns, I think you could pretty much write “blah” as the previews for the rest of the season.
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I look at my South Carolina preview as sort of the blogging equivalent of the blackout. You don’t want to trot it out there too often, for fear of reducing its effect.
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Pingback: DawgsOnline » 10 Questions – Heading to Knoxville
We’re an underdog to Layla Kiffen’s husband? Gah.
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Think about the game in terms of this matchup and you’ll feel much better about the game……..
Mike Bobo vs. Monte Kiffin
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Ah, yes, thanks. Who’s their special teams coach?
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It could be an inanimate metal pole and their special teams would still be coached better.
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How about an animate metal pole? 😉
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Wouldn’t that be a Motorhead fan from Warsaw?
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At least it’s not an inanimate carbon rod…
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The old man says he’s going man-to-man on AJ. Smells like ’04 Saban to me.
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I’m just worried that their Defense will do enough scoring to win the game.
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Phil Steele loves him some Georgia. At some point he has to decide we’re really not that good, right?
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Upset special?? Aren’t we favored in that game?
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No. UT -2
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Global War on Lane (GWOL) Crisis of the Day (COD) Piece, “Georgia takes the bus to Tennessee” (slow-ride edition) , 9 October 2009
President’s Mansion, Green Zone, Knoxville
1100 Department of Fatherland Security meeting
Monte takes the daily intel from Layla Two along with his venti expresso. There is no intel to report on the basis that no intel reports generate on games involving teams with a combined record of no more than .500 except for those that generate in Vegas and Atlantic City for the ‘sportsmen’ there. Monte will freestyle the meeting this morning.
Monte, an experienced fence climber, holds a balance pole like an old Wallenda on the railing of the veranda around the President’s Mansion. The assistant coach troopers including Lane are seated in close formation in rows of Cracker Barrel rocking chairs playing checkers waiting to hear Monte’s Plan of The Day.
Monte, having heaped beaucoup propaganda T.O. Randy Johnson praise on A.J. in hopes that A.J. will temper down his notorious end-zone taunting, is confident that A.J. will not be doing a dance on the checkerboard. EB while somewhat exhausted from starring in his EB for Heisman Video series is expected to be well rested to no-call interfere with not only A.J. but any other Georgia players he can get his hands on. Monte has shown EB, who he likes to call Little Lester Hayes, and his other defensive guys you tubes of various and sundry Georgia players getting knocked out without penalty calls over the past few years to get the defense even more fired up for assault and battery over what they usually are.
Lane asks his Dad why Tennessee is favored over Georgia for what, according to Vegas, Lane imagines will be his very first and maybe only SEC victory this season. Monte tells Lane that’s just how things shake out and after moral victories over Florida and Auburn, now it’s just time for Lane to get a real SEC victory.
Lane asks but what about Georgia? Monte says give the ball to Monterio, Crompton throws no interceptions, my defense will play great as usual, and we’ll just wait for Georgia to do something to itself which half of the time is self-destruct. That’s what Georgia does. Sometimes.
Lane asks what will they do. Monte says who knows but it will be something. For example, if Reshad hits anyone, it’s a personal foul. If we kickoff deep into their end-zone, they’ll run it out to the ten or so. If they run it out and score a touchdown, it’s an automatic clipping penalty on them. Same with interceptions. When Cox hits #7 down the middle, #7 will get a penalty. They tackle Crompton, it’s roughing the supposed passer. They may get no first downs in a half but still stick around somehow and be in a position to win a game.
What about Brandon and Branden, Lane asks. Monte says that while Brandon and Branden are high-risk high-reward targets, sometimes they can make us the target but we’ll just have to deal with that when and if it happens and just hope the officials notice that Georgia has done something postive so they can throw a flag.
What about the officiating crew, Lane asks Monte who tells Lane not to worry because it’s an SEC crew doing a Georgia away game in front of 100,000 fans who hate Georgia. Since last week’s nationwide notoriously bad PR on The SEC, bad enough even to cause Slive to put on his silk cape and emerge from his underground executive bat cave in Birmingham and read a brief press release on secret accountability and why public lynchings are not good things to do in the South, Monte tells Lane that Georgia can expect an even bigger payback on bad calls over what they had already been getting anyway. If Georgia thought they were getting a dose before, wait until now. The Red Cross is already on standby to airlift penicillin to Clarke County to clear up this one.
Lane asks Monte what do you think Richt is doing and Monte tells Lane he doesn’t know what Richt is doing except that Richt’s got Rex Robinson teed off about blaming the kicker when special teams can’t cover returns.
Monte dismisses the meeting telling them to take the day off and do whatever makes them feel happy.
Lane is already happy. He feels good. Coach O asks Lane what’s written on the big card Lane holds, flips over every now and then and keeps looking at under his Spurrieresque visor on the sidelines during games. Lane says just some lyrics he’s trying to memorize. Now that Lane’s favored for a change, maybe somebody else has a good chance to memorize some lyrics. At least, that what Lane hopes as he heads out to take the chopper to Dollywood for some R and R until Saturday morning cartoon time.
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If there is a conspiracy, the best thing we got going for us is Jr. will say enough stupid things and do enough stupid deeds that he just might piss of the SEC sufficiently for UT take UGA’s place.
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Oh my… it’s amazing how we own Georgia. Go Vols.
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