Memorial Day buffet

Don’t forget to take a moment to remember those who’ve sacrificed everything they had in the name of our country.

• From the department of wishful thinking:  “The Big 12’s contract with FOX is up for re-negatiation (sic) and if the league can also renegotiate its arrangement with ESPN-ABC, it could have a situation at least equal to what the SEC has.” Sure it can.
• From the same department:  “But the NCAA apparently misjudged the value of a 96-team event before it accepted formal bids from the networks.” Jim Delany smirks.
• The next big thing at Georgia Tech.
• Gee, I wonder what the 800-pound gorilla in the room will be this week at the SEC spring meetings.
• Now we know what Lew Perkins needs that big salary for.  (h/t The Wiz of Odds)
• Forget about the school – this is a pretty cool online application.  (h/t Oversigning.com)

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Living up to the hype: a Memorial Day GTP poll

We haven’t had a poll in a while, so with Heisman Pundit’s anointment of Cameron Newton as a “possible dark horse candidate” for this season’s Trophy, I thought it might be worth asking which one of three candidates in your opinion has the best chance of living up to his/its preseason hype in this year’s SEC.

Step up and make your pick.

Steele and his #19 Georgia: breaking down the breakdown

The most fun I have with Phil Steele’s magazine isn’t the predictions – and you should know right off the bat that there’s nothing in his preview of Georgia which comes close to his “run the table” quote on College Football Live the other day – but sifting through the almost diarrhetic flow of information he provides in eye-strain inducing-sized print for the reward of finding insight or just plain, unusual facts about the program’s recent performance and what it brings to the table this season.

It’s safe to say that this year’s edition doesn’t disappoint in that department.

Take, for example, this passage from his quarterbacks section:

Last year I pointed out that Mark Richt was hoping for a season like ’05 out of his QB’s. In ’05 UGA had to replace their career leading passer, David Greene (#3DC).  DJ Shockley (PS#3) was lightly tested but led UGA to the SEC Title earning 1st Tm SEC and throwing for 2,588 (56%) with an outstanding 24-5 ratio (322 rush) in ’05. … Joe Cox’s stats last year were eerily similar to Shockley’s as he threw for almost the identical yds (2,584), comp % (56) and same amount of TD’s (24, 1 off UGA record). The 3 areas that were different were the rush yds (-28), int (+10) and no SEC Title.

That last observation may sound trite, but what Steele is getting at there is that Georgia’s offensive system is good enough to get a team to the SECCG – provided the quarterback isn’t bleeding interceptions all over creation and is otherwise doing his part to make the offense function.  Those yardage and completion percentage numbers for both Shockley and Cox are fairly pedestrian (Stafford crushed both in his junior year), but DJ didn’t throw picks and did contribute as a runner.  Joe’s contributions fell short in areas like that and so did his team as a result in part.

So when Mark Richt tells Aaron Murray he doesn’t have to be a hero, this is where he’s coming from.

I figured that Steele would have good things to say about the offensive line (he does; he ranks Georgia #1 in the country in that department) and special teams (he calls Georgia a top five team there, and that’s without a settled punt returner), but here’s something I wasn’t expecting:

… Richt has sent four TE’s to the NFL since his arrival here, but LY projected starting TE Bruce Figgins (PS#23) RS. TE’s Aron White (PS#12), true frosh Orson Charles (PS#2) and Arthur Lynch (PS#4) combined for 38 rec’s (15.5). This year they only lose Moore (5 st). Figgins returns and Green is back to full health making UGA my #2 receiving corps in the NCAA (see pg 13).

Whoa.

Steele’s biggest concern on the team is the defensive backfield, which is a sentiment I’m not sure a majority of Dawg fans would share with him (I’m guessing quarterback and defensive line rank higher on our anxiety scale at present).  He points out that the unit will be less experienced this season, but most of us would point to replacing Evans with Rambo and call that a feature, not a bug.

Oh, and about those turnovers last year?  Here are two factoids that will make you grind your teeth in frustration:

UGA’s 487 yds vs KY last year were the most in a loss in SEC play in Richt’s 9 yrs.

UGA has been outscored 90-27 the L2 yrs vs Florida but only outgained by 63 ypg.

There’s plenty more where that came from, so take some time to go through the whole thing.

It takes a village to run down a program.

I’m not sure it’s sunk in yet how far down talent-wise Tennessee has found itself, but this article paints a pretty grim picture for the next two seasons.

… First, UT’s senior class has some longtime contributors, but few standout players. The Vols have 13 seniors who have started a game, led by two potential All-SEC players: tight end Luke Stocker and defensive end Chris Walker – if he’s healthy.

UT’s seniors boast competent receivers (Gerald Jones and Denarius Moore), solid linebackers (Nick Reveiz and LaMarcus Thompson) and starting defensive ends (Walker, Ben Martin and Gerald Williams).

But after the seniors, the roster gets scary.

UT only has one junior who has started a game at his current position: cornerback Art Evans.

There are some brutal quotes from unnamed SEC assistant coaches that follow.

Derek Dooley says he won’t dip into the JUCO ranks too deeply to fill holes, but to me that looks like it’ll be a hard temptation to avoid on his part.

It’s delusion that separates man from the lower primates.

Hope springs eternal.  It’s the offseason, it’s predictable, but it’s still fun to read.

First, the Tech fan who wants some cheese served with his whine:

Richard (Atlanta)

Once again there are people (including ESPN bloggers) doubting Paul Johnson and Georgia Tech. What does it take for a coach with an conventional (sic) offense to silence critics for good? Urban Meyer did it with a national championship. Is that what it’s going to take for PJ to do the same?

Bruce

(2:28 PM)

He is a well-respected coach, but it’s not like they’re coming off a top 10 season. They didn’t finish last season off well. I think they’re a top 25 team, but I think there are 3-4 teams in the league who are more talented/complete.

It’s okay, Richard.  At least you’ll have something to chat with Feldman about next year.

Or maybe you can be this dude’s pen pal.

Please answer these questions: Will Steve Spurrier ever win an SEC title with the Gamecocks? If so, is this the year? Assuming that it is, wouldn’t that also put them in the national championship game? And if South Carolina does win, would that make him the greatest college football coach ever?
D.H. in Lawtey, Fla.

Only a legitimate clairvoyant (if such really exists) could know whether South Carolina will win an SEC championship and maybe more under Spurrier. Personally, I have my doubts, but I’ve been around too long to rule anything out.

For example, I never saw it coming when Northwestern won the Big Ten under Gary Barnett. And Wake Forest‘s ACC title blindsided me. Heck, I’ll even admit surprise to Oregon winning the Pac-10 championship last season.

But if the Gamecocks did win (and that is a huge “if”) the SEC and maybe more, your question about Spurrier’s place among college football’s greatest coaches is certainly interesting…

Translation: feel free to keep in touch.

Come to me, son of Jor’El.

From the annals of great football names:  LSU has received college football’s first verbal from a native of the planet Krypton.

I would not want to be the guy who lines up against this kid.

Good enough for me, but not for thee

I don’t know about you, but I’m sort of amused by a fan of a Big Ten school telling us Sun Belt denizens to suck it up and play some cold weather bowl games, seeing as it’s the Big Ten which pushed the NCAA to implement a uniform start date for baseball because… wait for it… its teams were at a disadvantage early in the year due to cold weather.

Steele ❤ Georgia, too.

Okay, now it’s our turn to go nuts over a Phil Steele prediction.  Stick around to the end of this one:

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“This program is a sleeping giant and Spurrier…”

Believe it or not, Phil Steele is writing that about Spurrier’s current program.

And he is really high on the Gamecocks.

… SC is a legit SEC contender and even made my list of Surprise Teams (Darkhorse National Title contender, pg 20).

You can hear the chest beating from the Carolina fan base already, can’t you?

Here’s my favorite tidbit:

… SC had only allowed one off TD to UGA in ‘07 and ‘08 before allowing 4 in LY’s 41-37 shootout loss. SC is 5-13 vs UGA since joining the SEC (‘92) incl 1-7 since 2002.

I loves me some trend.

Back to Jax

Some of you no doubt don’t want to hear about it, but Marc Weiszer has some details from the new contract being ironed out between Florida, Georgia and the City of Jacksonville:

• Jacksonville will pay Georgia up to $300,000 in 2010, $330,000 in 2011 and $363,000 in 2012 and 10 percent more each year of the contract to charter three 50-seat passenger jets to transport the football team, coaches, administration personnel and other official traveling party members from Athens to Georgia’s chosen destination (St. Augustine) and back.

That’s on top of the $50,000 that each school will get to offset travel expenses, which include hotel costs and meals.

• The City of Jacksonville would have a “right of first negotiation,” under which the schools can negotiate with one another for an extension to play in Jacksonville beyond 2016. The schools are allowed to negotiate starting 10 days after the 2014 game through June 15, 2015. After the June date, the schools can negotiate with other cities to hold the game. Atlanta has been a suitor to land the game on a rotating basis.

As previously reported, control of the marketing assets to the game would go to the two schools instead of being split three ways with Jacksonville. The deal also will ensure that the Duval County Agricultural Fair near the stadium won’t be held at the same time as the game to avoid additional traffic.

And for Atlanta to get into the conversation, here’s the key threshold it’s going to have to cross:

… Georgia nets about $1.6 million annually for the Florida game compared to $2.8 million for a home game that is rotated home and away with SEC opponents.

Now if they could just write something into the contract about the weather…

**************************************************************

UPDATE: Tim Tucker reports on another interesting provision in the contract.

Georgia and Florida would have expanded opportunities to market their annual football game, including the right to sell the name of the game to a corporate sponsor, under terms of a contract still being hammered out with the city of Jacksonville.

I’m ready to pass the hat right now, so that we can officially name the sucker the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.  Who’s with me?