We’ve focused most of our attention to the slow start on the offense and the defense, but it’s worth remembering that by this time last year, the kickoff return game had already played a major role in Georgia’s 3-1 record.
This year, not so much.
Surprisingly, the culprits seem to be not an overabundance of scout teamers, but a bunch of new faces who don’t know what they’re doing yet.
… Ball, who returned kicks for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga from 1977-80, admits his team has not performed how he would like, but he expected some struggles with so many new faces. He said safeties Jakar Hamilton, Shawn Williams and Alec Ogletree are newcomers on the front line and that his two ends on the back unit, tight end Bruce Figgins and receiver Marlon Brown, are new as well…
Get The Picture 
Completely irrelevant I know, but the title of this post reminded me of the Curb Your Enthusiasm episode where Larry David’s dad shows him his new epitaph, which reads “…Past Away…”
Larry questions why they misspelled it, only his dad did it on purpose to save money on the extra two letters in the correct spelling. Of course, Larry is baffled and can’t resist the argument.
Tried to pull it up on youtube with no luck. Maybe DiF can pull it out of the old archives for your pleasure.
LikeLike
We do a full day (Monday practice) devoted to nothing but special teams. How are we still not prepared? Also, shouldn’t there be a few more big bodies on KO return? Jakar, Williams, Ogletree, Brown…not exactly what I envision making up a “wedge”.
LikeLike
You can’t wedge block in college anymore.
LikeLike
Ah…grasshopper…. Next it will be like intramural flag football…after a score the opposing team takes the ball from the 20.
LikeLike
I would have taken that last year, which the Chinese calendar refers to as The Year of Directional Kicking.
LikeLike
Plus all of spring practice and a month of fall practice! If they don’t know what they’re doing, its Ball’s fault. Its sickening the way this staff keeps throwing the players under the bus.
LikeLike
I know we’re talking about the return game, but I heard Lou Holtz on 680 The Fan the other day talking about how his “good friend Jon Jancek was responsible for Georgia’s great kickoff coverage in the past”. Please.
LikeLike
Much like Lou was responsible for the Gamecocks “great” administration of NCAA rules.
LikeLike
Damn. You just uncovered another reason why Holtz is so anti-UGA. After the UGA-ARK game on a post-game wrap-up show Holtz was literally beside himself with glee. When Reece Davis made a positive comment about how UGA made a comeback in the second half Holtz retorted: “They didn’t make a comeback. They just completed a couple of long passes, is all.” While Holtz has always had antipathy for the Dawgs stemming from the regular ass-kickings administered to his Gamecocks when he was the SC coach, I never saw him so clearly unconcerned about openly exhibiting his bias as he was that night. So he and Jancek are buds……hm…..
LikeLike
Senator, on another note, our KO coverage has been excellent even though we are still for the most part kicking it to the 5 or so. Amazing how you don’t have to have the directional thing, just your better players covering.
LikeLike