Great moments in special teams

Tuberville’s team did beat Baylor on Saturday, but not without overcoming this self-inflicted wound.

Geez, that wasn’t smart.

GTP bleg

By the way, if any reader here happens to dial into Finebaum’s show today, I’d love to get a report.  Please toss something into the comments section about what you hear.

Will the NFL put a price tag on Agentgate?

By now, I presume you’ve heard about the dismissals of Marvin Austin, Greg Little and Robert Quinn from North Carolina.  Based on the information furnished by the school, there’s little surprise to the decision.  But there’s an interesting quote from the UNC AD worth mentioning:

… Although they are responsible for their actions, they are part of our university and our program and we will support them as they move into the next phases of their lives. I know they love to play the game, but I hope they will learn from their mistakes and lead productive and responsible careers.

Which begs the question, if these three don’t wind up paying a price in terms of their position in the next NFL draft as a result of this – and I’m not arguing whether they should or not – doesn’t that send a message to high-profile college athletes that the NCAA’s adherence to some standard of amateurism is basically irrelevant in terms of those players’ ultimate goal?

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UPDATE: The header on this Sporting News piece should tell you all you need to know.

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Upon further review, Aaron Murray edition

Watched the Tennessee replay yesterday, and nothing shocking jumped out at me.  But there are a few items worth a follow-up mention:

• No doubt some of it was due to the level of opposition, but that was the best effort I’ve seen out of the defensive line this season.  Sure, UT’s rushing yardage included sacks and the botched snap, but the flip side of the coin is that it also include a bunch of yards on third and long draw plays.  Bottom line is that even though the Vols wanted to run the ball, Tauren Poole wasn’t a factor.
• Those of you who think the secondary is a lost cause need to go back and watch Boykin’s play on Saturday.  Another name you didn’t hear much from on Saturday was Gerald Jones, who killed the Dawgs last year in Knoxville.  A lot of that was due to Boykin’s coverage.
• Justin Houston should have drawn at least three holding calls – and that’s just the blatant stuff I saw.  He was dominant, and now leads the conference in sacks.
• If anything, I didn’t do Aaron Murray’s game sufficient justice.  One thing I know I didn’t mention was how good he’s gotten at carrying out his play fakes.  He’s really becoming a nightmare to defend on roll outs because of that and because of the threat he poses running the ball.

Which leads me into an overall observation about the offense – yes, the offensive line didn’t have a dominant day run blocking.  But a lot of that is due to Tennessee selling out against the run with blitzes, in much the same way as Mississippi State gambled with greater success a couple of weeks ago.  The reasons it didn’t work are (1) A.J. Green’s presence (duh) drew over the top coverage from a safety and (2) Bobo got away from I-formation power football playcalling on first down.

This gets back to something I mentioned a week or so ago.  We all anticipated that defenses would load up the box to stop the run and force Aaron Murray to be the player to beat them.  Six games in, it’s apparent he can do that:  he’s third in the conference in total offense, third in passing yards per game and fifth in passer rating.  (And note that he’s the only top ten quarterback in the SEC who doesn’t have a “JR” or “SR” after his name.)  But up until last Saturday, it was still a good strategy, in that coordinators were daring Mike Bobo to use Murray to beat their defenses and Bobo wasn’t taking the bait, at least not enough.

That was the difference on Saturday for the offense.  The Dawgs played less in the I (at least until late in the game, when they were salting things away with the run) than they had earlier in the season.  Bobo seemed more willing to throw on any down, as well.  At some point, if he keeps it up, defenses will have to respect that more, which should open up the running game and make the o-line’s job easier.

One more thing about Murray you should look at is his game-by-game passer rating.  Think having A.J. back makes a difference?

It never ends.

There are days when you wonder if Mark Richt has a room somewhere he can go, close the door and scream.

Georgia running back Caleb King is being held at the Clarke County Jail this morning, according to the jail’s online booking report.

The charge listed is “Hold/Other Agency.” King, a redshirt junior, was booked into the jail at 5:08 this morning.

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UPDATE: Just dumb.

… King was held on a charge of failing to appear for a traffic charge in Walton County, according to jail records. The traffic charge occurred on Aug. 6.

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UPDATE #2: This is probably a good reminder why it doesn’t pay to jump to conclusions.

Caleb King’s arrest occured as a result of traffic stop this morning for his brother Brandon, according to ACC PD arrest report

Per report, Wood and Caleb King went to scene of traffic stop and had licenses run. King’s showed the Walton Co warrant

Even the Walton County Popo says this is no big deal.

… The charge is a misdemeanor, and King’s fines could be paid in Athens without him being transported to the Walton County Jail in Monroe.

“He had a traffic ticket and apparently forgot to pay it,” Wright said. “If he pays it, it goes away. It’s just a fine, as it would be with anyone.”

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UPDATE #3: Rex Robinson makes an excellent point.

… Somewhere along the way, there has been a disconnect between the Athletic Department and the surrounding law enforcement agencies. There is obviously no attempt to handle things discreetly and still have consequences. How many people in Walton County with knowledge of this situation watched Caleb King and the Dawgs all year long and no attempt was made to resolve the issue. It’s not like Caleb is some secretive figure that no one knows where to find him. There knew how to find him.

My Mumme Poll ballot, Week Six

With the new ballot structure, it doesn’t take long to put a vote together.  (Coaches, take note.)

• Alabama
• Auburn
• Boise State
• LSU
• Nebraska
• Ohio State
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• South Carolina
• TCU

COMMENTS

• Oregon got my nod for the tiebreaker, but I gave serious thought to Boise State and TCU.  Ohio State’s looked good, but against a weaker schedule than those three.  I spent more time on the tiebreaker than any other decision except for the last team to make my list.
• I’m a little uncomfortable with four SEC teams in the top ten, to tell you the truth.
• And I wanted another Pac-10 team in the mix, but they keep cannibalizing each other.
• Teams hovering in the background:  Stanford, Arizona, Florida State, Utah, Michigan State.

You knew there had to be a reason.

Georgia fans recognize when it’s déjà vu all over again – Florida loses a big SEC game, and here come the medics:

Florida quarterback John Brantley was dealing with injuries to his ribs and throwing thumb but also pain in his throwing shoulder leading into the loss to LSU, a source close to the quarterback said Sunday.

Brantley and coach Urban Meyer downplayed the extent of Brantley’s injuries after the game, but the source said Brantley was in considerable pain and limited all week.

… Because Brantley was overcompensating for the rib injury early in the week, the source said the quarterback began having a shoulder issue on Wednesday and was unable to throw on Thursday and Friday.

It’s probably worth pointing out that LSU didn’t play with a complete quarterback, either.

SEC Power Poll, Week 6

From an entertainment standpoint, last Saturday was about as good as the SEC gets.  Of course, that means this week’s power poll gets a shakeup.

1. LSU. Yeah, there’s a part of me that can’t believe I’m typing this, but I don’t think there’s another team in the country that’s got six straight wins over BCS conference competition.  The schedule is what gives these Tigers the slight nod over…
2. Auburn. these Tigers.  And it’s not like these guys haven’t had their share of close calls this season, either.
3. South Carolina. The Old Ball Coach proved he still has it Saturday.  Now the question is what will the ‘Cocks have in the tank come November.
4. Alabama. Hard to believe that Georgia played South Carolina closer than the Tide did.  Still, they’re in control of their destiny in the West.
5. Arkansas. The Hogs’ offense has settled into a pattern of fading in the second half.  So far that’s only cost them one game.
6. Florida. WWTD?
7. Mississippi State. The first half of the season has gone about as well as they could have hoped for, and they’ve only got to find two more wins to become bowl eligible.
8. Georgia. It’s not that Georgia’s that good; it’s that every team below seven is that mediocre.
9. Mississippi. Of all the weeks to play Alabama, this probably isn’t the one you’d choose, even coming off a bye.
10. Kentucky. Randall Cobb is a special player.  The rest of this team is anything but.
11. Vanderbilt. If nothing else, good enough to kick a MAC team’s ass.  That might be enough to beat Tennessee.
12. Tennessee. So, Barbara Dooley wore a half-orange, half-red ensemble to Saturday’s game.  Black would have been more appropriate.