You know, I thought James Franklin’s let’s get ready to rumble moment on the field Saturday night was sparked by him taking offense at what he perceived as dirty play by one or some of Georgia’s players. I didn’t think he went about his business in the best way, but I could understand his being upset.
But that’s not exactly what set Franklin off. (h/t SPORTSbyBROOKS)
If you want the transcript of that, here ’tis:
… In video captured by WSMV-TV in Nashville, Franklin talked to Georgia coach Mark Richt on the field about Georgia “rubbing our face in it right after the game. And then your coach when I tell him about it, then he goes after me and the fight starts.”
Richt responded by telling Franklin: “That’s what I thought happened.”
Oy vey. At that point, Richt’s got to wonder what in the hell he’s gotten himself into. All he wanted was a nice little “good game, coach” exchange after a too close for comfort win. Instead, he found himself inserted into a scene straight out of middle school.
I mean, this turned out to be about a head coach at the conference’s most uppah-crust school taking offense at being verbally dissed by a twenty-something kid? Seriously? If I’m Mike Slive, I’d be tempted to announce as punishment that Franklin and Grantham are being sent to time-out without supper.
The thing is, though, while I don’t doubt that Grantham foolishly reacted in the heat of the moment, there’s a part of me that wonders if there wasn’t something more calculating behind Franklin’s actions. And I’m not the only one.
… And what I got out of his “we won’t back down” press conference is that he — very rightly — had his team come into this game determined not to be the patsy. Georgia is a wobbly traditional heavyweight that they could land some punches against, so Franklin wanted to be the aggressor. That was evident from the trick plays, the fake punt, the chippiness, the chop blocks, etc.
I don’t begrudge them that. If you want to take over Vandy and have it be something other than Vandy, then you go hard after a team like Georgia.
I do begrudge the passive aggressive “we’re gonna play with class” posturing after the fact. Franklin wanted this fight and he got what he asked for. It’s disingenuous for him to feign surprise at the outcome.
That’s reinforced by what Franklin was evidently selling recruits afterwards.
… Sealand said he felt like running on the field in support of his future college coach. “Honestly, it got my heart pumping, and I know with a lot of the recruits around me, it got their hearts pumping, too. It gave me a lot of pride about Vanderbilt and made me realize how much I love that school already without being up there yet. Coach Franklin has won his players over, and has already won me over, too.”
East Paulding defensive lineman LaDarius Banks, “Honestly, I liked the confrontation. I’m all for getting after it. At a certain point, though, it’s college football and you’re supposed to conduct yourselves accordingly. As of right now, there are a lot of players on Vanderbilt’s team from Georgia, and what happened on Saturday is going to stir up a good rivalry over the next few years.”
Banks met with Franklin after the game. “I can’t really explain how Coach Frankin was … OK, he was pissed. All the other coaches were trying to calm him down. Everybody was fired up about what happened.”
Come to Vandy: we may not win much, but at least we won’t take anybody’s shit anymore. You know, that’s not the worst sales pitch in the world for a program that largely been a doormat for decades. Matt Zemek’s buying it.
The part Franklin likely didn’t count on, but turned out to be the bonus that made the confrontation so much bigger, was Grantham’s rapid combustibility. If he’s being chewed out by Richt and McGarity, it ought to be over his stupidity in responding, not his passion. That’s the life lesson he needs to take away from this.
Particularly because, as Groo notes, the coaches on Georgia’s sideline weren’t doing a good job keeping emotions under control during the game.
… The discipline and execution that had led to four straight dominant defensive performances were abandoned. We’ll let the players describe what happened. Ray Drew:
We kind of fell apart (in the second half), let emotions run a little too high, and things started going every which way.
Jarvis Jones:
We were out of position on a lot of plays, which is the mental part of the game, and the quarterback took control of the game.
They’re not reaching for excuses – that all happened. You could see the missed tackles, the personal fouls, the loss of containment, and the gaping spaces left by players out of position. No other way could Vandy roll up 200 yards of rushing.
Unfortunately, there was no one on the sideline able to reel the emotions back in. If someone was trying to get heads back in the game, they didn’t make much progress. After the game Grantham was well within his place to take up for his players, and that will be appreciated in the locker room. During the game though Grantham and the other defensive coaches needed to recognize that their players were caught up in the emotion and get everyone settled down and focused on their assignments. They failed in that respect, and that should bother us a lot more than whatever went on afterwards.
That, too, reinforces my impression that a lot of this was calculated on Franklin’s part. That’s not bad coaching, although you wonder how sustainable it is over the long haul.
And don’t take my word for Franklin’s nature here. Take his:
“I’m not a guy who really has a whole lot of regrets,” Franklin said. “I’m really calculated and pretty thought out in the things that I do, for the most part. I am an emotional guy, as most of you guys know.”
Well, after a home loss, he’s got his team on the map for the moment. That’s something. Let’s see what he does with it from here.
And let’s see what Grantham takes from this.
***********************************************************************************
UPDATE: Mark Bradley, in throwing the fish bait out, offers this warning:
(An aside here: I’d also be careful about angering this Vandy coach. James Franklin is going to beat some big names very soon.)
Is it too much to hope that Georgia Tech could play Vanderbilt real soon? The Bradley column pondering that meeting of coaching legends would be epic.
so franklin thinks the best way to advance vandy’s prospects in the sec is to loom larger on the radar screeens of the sec’s heavyweights? um, ok. . .
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So basically the Georgia players and coaches let Vandy (that it correct I said Vandy) rattle them. Franklin has been on the local sports talk radio station (he is calling in not them calling him) for several days leading up to and after the game continuing the mantra. You’d think he was a politician.
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Yeah, and he has been allowed to take the moral high road and accept no responsibility for being a douche, so he is doing just that.
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You didn’t mention the most brilliant part of Franklin’s calculation, Senator. Franklin can be an ass after the game and instigate a confrontation because his feelings are hurt by Georgia’s players celebrating, and he can have his team pull cheap shots during the game and nobody in the media will blame him or his team for what happens because they’re Vanderbilt. Everyone’s going to assume that Georgia’s being a bully and poor little old Vanderbilt is just trying to play the game and not take any crap from the bullies anymore. The wine and cheese school’s not going to cheap shot guys after the play’s over. Hell, that’s why Shawn Williams got flagged for the personal foul instead of the dude who blindsided him after the play was over and then punched him under his facemask after Shawn retaliated! The Vandy kid can’t possibly be an asshole, flag the Georgia guy.
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It works for GT. They have been playing that card for years.
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This ain’t Merryland, Franklin.
Sack up and take some responsibility for your actions. The tough guy act failed miserably and has ensured that you receive a beatdown of epic proportion on your next trip to Athens.
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Franklin is gonna learn that payback is a bitch.
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+1
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What has CMR ever shown that would lead you to believe he has it in him to deliver a beatdown of epic proportion? Yes, he handed it to GT one time. Do you foresee CMR and his “loving” way beating the crap out of Vandy next year (if CMR is even on the sideline next year) due to their actions this year? The answer is NOT A SHOT IN HELL.
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Seemed to me they beat the crap out of them last year.
43-0 is some kind of ass whipping is it not?
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Shoulda scored 60! Fire MarkRichtMikeBobo11!!!1!1111!11!
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Are you a complete moron or just blinded by your hatred of our coach? Did you watch the game against Vandy last season?
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2012 between the hedges………
CTG to Franklin:
“We started a game we never got to finish. “Play for Blood,” remember? “
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Hogbody- I thought your comments on the other blog were really good and consistently to the heart of the matter. I thank you for putting my 2 cents worth in with yours. We think alike on this matter and “Ain’t gon’ never forget”.
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Of course Mark Richt “thought that was what happened”. This man doesn’t have a clue. It was obvious to anyone with a BRAIN that Mark Richt was the 2nd best head coach on the field that night. And now, he can’t even get Todd Grantham’s back on this one. “Oy vey,” is right. A REAL coach would have told that Vandy guy to shut up and sit down. Instead, Richt just takes it on the chin, wipes it off, and begs for another shot. Good god, we need either Mushchamp or Brian Kelley or Brian Van Gorder or Jesus to coach this team. If Muschamp was our HFC, he would have popped a blood vessel right up in Franklin’s grill and plugged the wound with Franklin’s momma’s fat foot. Boom M’Fer! Fire Mark Richt!!!!!1!
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(laughter!)
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i mean…(laughter!!!!1!!)
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I wouldn’t take Mark Richt’s statement to Franklin at that point as not having Grantham’s back. At that point he had no idea what happened, and was trying to diffuse the situation. Don’t forget, this is the coach that was lucky to get away with the celebration at Florida in 2007 without an altercation and wants to stay as far away from any kind of altercation as he can. I think he said what he said as a simple reaction to try to keep things as calm as he could.
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If he had no idea what happend, why say, “That’s what I thought happened”?
If you’re trying to really diffuse it, say it in a way that doesn’t incriminate your coach or players…something like, “I didn’t see what happened, I’ll look into it. Good game, coach”
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That’s exactly my point.. he didn’t say the right thing in the heat of the moment. I’m just saying don’t go thinking he’s throwing Grantham under the bus because of what he said or because he didn’t have the right response when he gets some out of left field excuse and all he wants to do is get off the field.
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Though, he did effectively accept responsibility for what happened…thereby exonerating Franklin.
Not good, IMO.
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Exactly!
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Thank you Dawg Vent, you have made the dumbest comment ever. Fire Richt because he didn’t go crazy on the Vandy coach? Florida lost to Auburn despite “Muschamp popping a blood vessel”. Brian Kelley popped a blood vessel against South Florida….and lost. Please explain your thinking! So Richt told Franklkin “that’s what I thought happened” because maybe that is in fact what he thought happened! You say we need another Muschamp, or Kelley or BVG….when did we have the first one? I don’t recall Dooley, Goff, or Donnan being like those guys. If you are talking assistants, then I believe we already have one and he is doing just fine. This is a none issue in my opinion. It has been handled in house, like it should. Move on.
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Switch on your sarcasm meter. He’s funnin’ us. 😉
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Apologies Dawg Vent…I’m just a little sensitive! 🙂
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There’s a lot of that in all of us, Griff. I’m the #1 guilty one on this blog. Not trying to downgrade your sensitivity, just didn’t want you to take the only title I have on this blog.
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Why does it seem over the past three years that after many games there is a certain segment of the fan base who insists we should all just “move one” from what happened in the game? When do we quit having to “move on” again and again?
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When do we quit “moving on”? After we play the last game ever.
Though I still occasionally replay that GT game where Jasper Sanks was down. We should fire Mark Richt for that game, too.
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But not for that breakdown at the end that cost us the Alabama game in ’85? And what about James Jackson at QB, for crying out loud? You’re gettin’ SOFT, DawgVent.
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Just to clarify in case that was directed at me. The non-issue that we need to “move on” from is the Grantham-Franklin debacle.
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So he’s pointing to Williams, and all Franklin said to Grantham was “Hey that kid’s rubbin our noses in it”? How exactly does that prompt the reaction from Grantham? Franklin’s leaving out some details there if that’s all that set Grantham off. Lane Kiffin, part deaux
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Oh yeah, suuuuure Franklin did nothing wrong. It’s on for next year Vandy.
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Eff that. It’s NOT on. Vandy’s a bottom feeder that shouldn’t even be in our conference. That we’re even mentioning their name 3 days after the game is idiotic.
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It’s all part of the plan to keep Vanderbilt in the news. Franklin has hired Kiffen has his P/R consultant.
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Right. Hopefully McGarity’s meeting was a big thank you to Coach Grantham. “Thanks Coach – now we have three interesting home games for 2012!”
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The ability or inability to control our emotions and play smart will determine who wins in jax
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You sound like a fortune cookie! Confuscius say, “Man who jumps off cliff, jumps to conclusion.”
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“Girl who fly upside down have crackup “
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Getting manipulated like a stafe prop by the SEC’s bottom feeder….yuck. What a soiling experience. With all the annual laments of how Georgia has more rivals, i.e., opponents who consider us to be a main rival, than any of our neighbors, I can’t see how we want to add another one. You notice that Franklin didn’t try any of these cheap antics against Alabama the weekend before. This is what sloppy play, lack of focus, and “conservative” game “management” will get you. There is a reason that we got picked as the chump for this episode. Our coaches do owe our players better coaching than what was seen on the sidelines. And CMR owes Grantham an apology IN PRIVATE for an unfortunate choice of words when he was blindsided by Franklin’s cheesy but calculated tantrum.
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Good job pointing out that this is a result of weeks worth of conservative late game offensive decisions. This is why not putting teams away, even when we win, is a problem. Eventually it comes back to bite you.
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I’m sorry, but this is a reach. That game was going to be chippy whether we won by five or fifty. Vanderbilt wasn’t having it any other way.
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I agree, but if we have a big lead we can put lots of subs in and limit the risks to our starters.
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Actually, I could see some of this happening BECAUSE of getting schooled by Alabama the week before. That had to be a humbling experience, and with all of Franklin’s comments about telling his guys they “don’t have to take anything” from anyone, I wouldn’t be surprised if his players were feeding off his own chippiness during the game. Of course, I could also be full of shit. I’ve been told so several times before.
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I hope Todd Grantham gains appreciation of the idea that it’s possible to get your troops too fired up, to the point they lose discipline. Motivating isn’t Grantham’s weakness, and he’ll improve as a coach if he learns where to draw the line. You want them thinking they can run through walls, but you want them to remember the correct technique for running through walls.
Bear in mind that Grantham’s resume is pro coaching, and it’s a lot easier for college boys to go overboard. If I’m Richt and McGarity, I see that as my training opportunity in this situation.
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+1 CTG probably and understandably needs time to adjust to college kids vs. pro athlete mentalities.
So should some of our fans.
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If you dance with the big bear, you better know what happens when the music stops.
“And then your coach when I tell him about it, then he goes after me and the fight starts”. Anybody who believe that for a second is on something.
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This was all about Franklin trying to manufacture some manhood for Vandy football. Which is ironic since he’s apparently just a sneaky, shady lil b*tch. My prediction? He will never get a victory over the Dawgs.
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Franklin’s a douchebag for letting Grantham get skewered publicly for what he personally fomented. Read Dean Legge’s account – he was right next to Grantham. Franklin started this whole ordeal…..I agree with you that there was some cold calculus at play. It’s a shame the media aren’t calling him out on it. And I hope Coach Richt gave Coach Franklin hell after he learned what really happened.
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What was Legge’s take on it? Gotta be a payin’ subscriber for that good info on the dawg post.
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It’s a pay link. Can you give us the script?
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I don’t believe a word out of Franklin’s mouth about what happened. That guy is an emotional time bomb. Georgia has not been the kind of team to incite hatred on the field during a game, so it’s clear to see that any ‘face rubbing’ that Franklin experienced was a direct result of his team’s actions earlier in the game. To me, the real fault here is the officials should have put a stop to that early on.
As for the team’s response in game by losing control.. if I’m Florida I go Muhammed Ali on us and get us to once again abandon our fight plan and play angry. If I’m Georgia’s coaches (and Grantham in particular) I have a chance for a teaching moment to play mentally tough and keep your cool. Hopefully, two weeks gives us time to make that happen. I’d love to see Muschamp’s head explode and for us to just act like we don’t even notice.
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Heybert, Georgia is the kind of team to incite hatred on the field. Exhibit No. 1 is Washaun Ealey, departed but still remembered. Isaiah Crowell is no shrinking violet either, and Shawn Williams was lippy. We’re not Miami but we’re not a bridge club either.
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Do you know for a fact that our players were the ones initiating the trash talking? Based on what we’re finding out about Franklin’s “strategy” it seems more likely that the Commodes started it. I’m not denying that our guys participated in it or that they are above starting it. But this isn’t a league of bridge clubs. It seems clear that of the two teams in that game Saturday night that one in particular had a vested interest in creating controversy…and it wasn’t UGA.
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Point on comment.
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I’m just saying that we’re not known for going outside the norm on that front. Apparently, Vandy did and given the actions of their coach, that’s not surprising. The only thing I fault our guys for is letting the words get them worked up to the point they didn’t play as well. Like H-Town said.. it’s not surprising at all that this was something Vandy initiated. Much like Auburn last year.
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RE: Franklin’s “mad man” strategy
Wasn’t this a Nixon strategy?
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Yes. He and his sidekick Henry were exceptionally proud of this brilliant strategy.
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It was a “basketball” strategy. Put a sub in to provoke the other teams starters to the point that someone gets ejected. If anyone premeditated this it would have to be Muschamp. What if it had worked and Georgia had several players or a coach suspended for the cocktail party?
It’s really a stretch for me to believe that all of this was calculated by Franklin or anyone else. Just emotions because, as lucky as they were to even be in a position to win, Vandy felt like they were entitled to win and Georgia somehow cheated them out of it.
Kind of like when the Democrats get close enough in a vote count to force a re-count…they expect to be given the win.
As far as the “beatdown” next year…don’t count on it. I think CMR has it in him, but his better nature usually dictates that a safe lead is enough…
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So Franklin starts a confrontation with Grantham, elicits the entirely predictable reaction of getting screamed at, goes and tattles to Richt about it, and then pulls a tough-guy act at his press conference that gets him hailed by the locals as finally putting some swagger back in Vanderbilt football?
Wow. I mean, the guy’s a disingenuous prick, but I almost have to stand and applaud the sheer Macchiavellian calculation of it all. If this Vandy gig doesn’t work out, he should run for Congress.
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I think if the Vandy gig does work out, Franklin will be running for a higher-profile coaching job.
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Toll booth operator?
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HEY!!!
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ok, but let’s not give franklin more credit than he deserves: he didn’t calculate grantham’s response, nor did he calculate (or pre-plan) his own counter-response. what has happened in the wake of the exchange is purely after-the-fact rationalization. and doesn’t franklin’s whole manufactured image of the confrontation boil down to “ma, he’s looking at me funny”?
that man is a clown, not a machiavellian operator.
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I dunno. Someone on Dawgsports pointed out that if Franklin really was looking for Richt immediately after the game, it wouldn’t have been hard to find him — I mean, there’s a reason it’s called the “coaches’ handshake at midfield.” But for all we know, Franklin went looking for Grantham specifically because there was a much better chance of him going ballistic than Richt doing so. Thus Franklin would have a much easier time pulling off his victim act.
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Yes.
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Franklin, rub your face in this!
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So…we all seem to agree that Franklin whined like a little 12 year old bitch in this video. Futhermore, many of us seem to believe he did it on purpose.
Here’s my question: Is that supposed to make it better?!? Is our position that an SEC coach should never whine like a little 12 year old bitch unless it was…well, uhhhh…ON PURPOSE?
You can put me in the camp of people who think that makes it worse, not better.
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Richt definitely says, “he’s a Dumbass,” as Franklin’s talking.
Count me among the dissappointed re: Grantham’s reaction, but Richt doesn’t need to throw him and/or Williams under the bus before he speaks with his own guys first.
As someone else said earlier, a simple diffusing non-statement “None of that should have happened, and we’ll get to the bottom of it,” would’ve been preferable.
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Exactly. Richt clearly tells Franklin that Williams is a dumbass. That’s the worst part about this. Even if Richt feels this way and even if Williams is a dumbass, keep your comments to yourself when the opposing coach is in the middle of berating you like you’re some stupid kid.
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I don’t think he “clearly” said that at all.
I’m not saying he didn’t, but it’s a lot easier to hear something when you’ve been told that that’s what’s said. You’re more likely to interpret things based on how you’ve been told to hear it. He may’ve said “he shouldn’t-a done that.” That would sound about the same.
I just dont think what he said is very clear and Richt calling a player a dumbass – especially one that’s gone through as much as Shawn has – is beyond uncharacteristic. I don’t think that’s it.
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Me thinks you need your ears checked. Give it a listen again.
I too was surprised and found that behavior to be extremely uncharacteristic.
At that heated moment, I think Richt had gone into full damage control mode, and he might have handed over the watergirl if it meant placating Franklin.
Also, FWIW, I’m pretty sure that the was referring to Grantham – not Richt. It seemed like they were kind of talking past each other at first there.
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Oops – meant “Grantham – not Williams.”
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yeah, I’m pretty sure he’s saying “he shouldn’t’ve done that.”
rewatching it just reinforced that. have you watched it with that in mind? I know it’s hard to hear something differently… but if you had initially been told that he said “he shouldn’t’ve done that” then you may not have come to the conclusion that he “clearly” says “he’s a dumbass.” nevermind that one option makes much more sense than the other…
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After trapping Mark and Todd, Franklin and Neidermeyer are going on the Vandy fight song tour
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First, they have to get Neidermeyer’s horse out of the Dean’s Office. Anybody got a chainsaw?
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Senator, I want your honest take (or what your initial reaction was upon hearing all of this) on where this goes from here. I silently pray it just dissolves and the SEC slaps BOTH parties on the wrist and says “no-no”. However, I wouldn’t put it past them to suspend Grantham for the UF game and do something similar to Kwame over his punch. What say you?
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I would be shocked if Grantham is suspended. He didn’t throw a punch.
Geathers is a closer call because of that. I just hope that if the SEC goes that route, it’s consistent about it. Because Vandy’s center would deserve the same punishment.
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What happens if they’re not? What recourse does UGA have then? I’d imagine none really. In this time btween act and punishment, what moer could UGA be doing to avert a suspension?
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I really doubt it will happen both ways.
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I don’t mean to imply it will. My thinking/worry is that they realize they can’t really do anything to Grantham for losing his temper….so they go after Kwame (the one who did hit someone). If they suspend him, can UGA then send in footage of the Vandy center chopping Kwame from behind after the play was dead to counter that he was provoked? Would that even fly?
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If there were no suspensions after the Auburn game last year, then I doubt there will be suspensions following this game. Fairley’s antics were called out on ESPN of all places as unequivocally wrong, and the SEC did nothing. These actions are getting nowhere near the same scrutiny.
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Georgia isn’t a top 5 team and potentially going to a big money bowl game like Auburn was last year.
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And do they have to bend over for Slive when he is trying to get a 9-vote majority to bring in Missouri? Uh, no.
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Correct, which is why they can afford to make an example out of UGA. My personal hope is that they just leave it be and allow the Universities to handle internally. I REALLY want someone Geathers’ size to take out his frustration (in a more controlled manner) on the UF line and Rainey. In fact, if the whole D can develop a nice chip on their collective shoulders and play with a controlled rage, then I twould think this all worth it!
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I think Richt should take the Urban Meyer suspension approach and suspend Geathers for one quarter of a game that doesn’t really matter. Man, Urban really laid down the iron fist for the Spikes-Ealey incident.
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Nah. If they didn’t say anything to Spikes for trying to blind Ealey through his face mask, what would be the precedent.? This crap goes on every game except Vandy was kinda new to it and couldn’t cover it up like most teams do. Don’t you think if you interviewed all college football players that you would get an overwhelming greater % to say that they have experienced worse? The provoked player gets caught, but the true cause is hardly ever captured. There should be a replay choice when you have proof on film of the provocation. Too bad. We all live with this frustration happening to our guys. Think how they feel.
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By the way, if that should come to pass, what could UGA do? I mean, they have enough video evidence to at least show Vandy was a party to this as well. Not just Franklin’s overly large pie hole, but his players as well. I’m sure someone out there has a shot of the Vandy guy trying to cut down Kwame from behind after the play was dead.
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I guess Richt does not have any testosterone.
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I guess those COMMODOORMATS are trying to elevate themselves with Franklin copying Muschamp style.
Looks like Red and Black will never have love from any school with dirty gold and black colors. It will not be hard to hate those COMMOCOORMATS as their colors are close enough to those nerds at North avenue.
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If Franklin is saying Williams is a thug, he is just saying I like to have some in my team as well to those recruits in the sideline.
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Richt has to live with Grantham every day. I’m sure what happened in Nashville is not a surprise.
I don’t have a problem with Grantham sticking up for his players – especially an injured one, but he’s got to figure out his place in the pecking order.
You have to figure that this is basically strike two for him at UGA.
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I can’t really buy into the strike two thing.
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What was strike one? The choke thing?
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Strike two is a stretch Bryant. What Grantham did here, and at Florida, just isn’t that bad. The choke thing maybe worse because it was directed at a player. These things stir the pot and spill lots of ink, but they’re not career affecting behavior until a lot father down the track. Same for Muschamp.
On your first point about Richt living with Grantham, I might be out thinking myself, but part of Richt likes having a bad cop around.
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“they’re not career affecting bahavior”
Before this game I was thinking Grantham was on a fast tract for a head coach hire. I was thinking that within a couple years he would either take over at UGA or leave to run his own program.
Not anymore. He set his head coach hire back 5 years. $750,000 a year will buy a lot of beer, but it ain’t $2.5 mil. Dumbass cost himself some money Saturday. But he’ll be fine.
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I hear Coach Boom is doing just fine.
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So is Coach Franklin.
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Well, I think all of this kind of forces Richt into a corner over something he’d doesn’t mind having around as long as its far enough away from him.
Yes, I think the choke thing was strike 1, for the same reasons.
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😆 It’s all FRANKLIN’S fault! He fooled our defensive coordinator into acting like an ass! 😆
On a similar note, during the Auburn game, the refs intentionally did not call the punt interference, just because they hoped Muschamp would get all worked up and then get a reprimand or even suspension for doing so.
And let’s not discount the possibility that last year Chas Henry somehow baited Grantham into misbehaving too!
Hey, if they are really out to get you, it is not paranoia, is it?
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I don’t think Franklin set out to bait Grantham deliberately. He just got lucky with that.
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I agree. I think Franklin is this loose cannon who goes takes people right up to the edge, and when someone falls off he just says ‘I didn’t push him’ and gets away with it by denying his part and pointing the finger in the other direction by pointing out behavior that he’s incited or just guilty of himself. That’s just straight up douchery.
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Franklin is a loose cannon? I guess that makes Grantham a loose battleship!
😆
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Have you seen something that contradicts that?
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What’s the latest Brantley update?
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Jealous much?
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Hey Mike, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not after you!
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The way Frankiln baited Grantham and then pretended like he didn’t is just like the way you show up here trolling and pretend like you don’t.
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I doubt that I would be able to find the link, but I am almost positive that Chas Henry actually admitted that he was partially to blame for the choke thing. He said he gave some kind of ‘what’s up with that?’ hand gesture to the coaches when we called time-out to freeze the kicker. Henry said that he was thinking ‘why are you trying to freeze me? I’m not even the real place kicker.’ You’re a lizard fan, you shold have all the lizard links at your disposal. I’m sure you could find it.
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😆
This is comedy central. You just can’t make this stuff up!
Yes, Chas blew a kiss to the Georgia sideline. Not sure if it happened before or after the obscenity laced tirade, but does it really matter?
Oh, and he also Gator chomped the Georgia sideline too. But he did this after the kick was successful.
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Yep and Brandon Spikes was just trying to help Washaun Ealey adjust his contacts.
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Spikes was suspended for a game for that transgression. What that too harsh or too easy?
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Spikes was actually suspended for the first half of the next game by Corch Meyers, but Spikes told the Corch that he deserved to be suspended for the whole game. He was just probably looking for a week off, but still.
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That way he could spend the whole weekend shacked up. I do not blame the young man. A one-half suspension meant he would have to do the whole “get ready for the game thing” and have to stand around for the better part of an hour without playing. Better to watch the game on TV from bed with a little &%*#@! during halftime.
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Performing a role in a Chatroulette production is hard work
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More likely playing hide the sausage in person not via the innertubes.
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I love when a kicker gator chomps the opposing team.
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Hey, I’m just going by what your kicker said. If he says that he was partly responsible for what went down, who am I to call him a liar?
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So Grantham had no choice but to act like an ass? Sounds like you don’t assign much responsibility to individual actions.
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If we assigned responsibility for individual actions we would have run you off from this blog a long time ago.
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What part of partly do you not understand?
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Time for CMR to go. You can not allow your self not see what Franklin’s intentions were from the start to the end. Like I said on this post he sandbag the game with Bama and prepared for UGA. He is a clever, calculating SOB. If I am Williams’ dad [and I do not think he needs it], but I find Franklin and we go at it. No damn coach is going across a field cussing and pointing at my son. If I am Williams parents I and my attorney are going to ask McGarity what protection does my son have on an opponents field. Apparently there is none at Vandy.
Like I said before we never had issues with any team post game except now with Franklin. What does that say. Says we got a SEC coach with no character or no class. Now let’s see how far Mike Slive aligns from that.
CMR, right or wrong, you have to stand up for your staff and player. CMR has aboslutely no backone. His team and players know that. I’ve heard older former players say the current players do not fear CMR.
CMR you can not put your hand on an opposing coach to console him, agree with him, and throw you players and coaches under the bus. Grantham is one of the few coaches on this team with any passion, courage, vision, and direction. He may come across as not under control, but Grantham is my kind of coach.
As some one who has been combat, I’d take Grantham any day of the week. I know he will be there when you do not think you will walk out. CMR, do not think so.
We will find out who the men and gentlemen are now in Athens. The question marks above Adams, McGarity, and Richt. Care to place a bet?
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I can’t tell if you’re serious or not. The Vandy coach cusses at a football player, and you advocate his parents getting an ATTORNEY involved?
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We live in a litigious society?
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And that makes it OK? Some people need to take a deep breath here. Go ahead and sue everyone that says a cross word to your little angels, you won’t end up with a tough football player, that’s for damn sure.
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All right that’s enough! My people will be in touch with your people!
😉
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We need to take some meetings and get back to you.
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I hate to do this, but it has happened enough that it’s driving me nuts. “To diffuse” is not the same as “to defuse.” In this context, the latter is appropriate. Let’s call this a learning opportunity 😉
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+1
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Well, us folks with an agenda are trying to diffuse, not defuse.
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BenG…. the science guy?? 😉
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Yeah, but what about de-views, the malaysian wedding photographer?
http://www.de-views.com/
If they had been there, they’d have got much better angles on Franklin & Grantham.
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McGarity should probably resign with Richt.
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But BOBO should go first.
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I’m glad this happened against Vandy and not florida. We can’t afford to lose control and let our emotions get to us in the biggest game of the year (so far). Hopefully CMR has this cleared up in the next 2 weeks.
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Look at Muschump, without his antics on the sideline UF most likely will be viewed this season lower than VU. His “I am tough” asshole image does affect the perception of a team, and that is what Franklin is trying to established with the COMMODOORMATS.
Look at how UGA team is perceived, people calls our players thugs but looks at our Head Coach as a SOFTY, and therefore no respect is given to team in the media or public at large. The public perception at large looks at football as a violent game where SOFTIES are not acceptable.
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he also has the perception of having a lot of talent on his team. That always helps.
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And in two weeks UF will probably be viewed as the better team than UGA despite multiple more problems in the personnel of UF because the UF coach is viewed as the tougher one.
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Not by me. Muschamp’s antics make him look silly. Your point below is a good one. The head coach needs to be above that sort of thing, and I’m glad that Richt is. He gets after the officials when it’s needed. That affects the game. I could give a rip about winning the postgame handshake.
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Richt gets after the officials when it’s needed? Really? Really? You mean like Auburn last year? Or UF in 08? Or USC and their 800 holding no calls? Richt is a pussy and has been completely pushed around by the SEC and the media since the celebration.
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I’ve seen Richt yell at officials before, and I saw him do it in that Auburn game. Is he a pussy because he didn’t challenge them to a fight? Get serious for a second. The idea that the man’s weak because he failed to bend the officials to his will and have them do a “check with me” before throwing flags is ludicrous.
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If you think Saban, Meyer, Spurrier, etc. would let the officiating be as blatantly one-sided as Richt has, I can’t help ya. Remember Spurrier making a tape of all if the late hits that were going uncalled? Can you ever imagine Richt doing that?
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Yes, I can. There’s lots of things that go on behind the scenes that we never hear about because Mark Richt doesn’t have such an ego like a Spurrier or a Meyer that he feels the need to air the dirty laundry. Now whether you want a coach that airs that dirty laundry is another conversation, but I don’t doubt that there’s plenty of chirping done by Richt during the games and McGarity after the games when it comes to SEC officiating.
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Errr….Not so fast my friend. I know for a fact that McGarity is in denial about the SEC refs being one-sided in calling UGA games. CMR I don’t know for sure although I, like gastriguy above, saw no evidence that CMR has ever argued with an official about anything and I either go to or watch on TV every game and have for eons.
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He bitched at the refs in the Vandy game about an offsides call.
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I didn’t see that but thank you for pointing it out. CMR just went up in my eyes.
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Richt went ballistic (well, ballistic for Richt at least) when they flagged Kwame after the clip and retaliation. He was 1/3 of the way on the field screaming. The Vandy guys behind me were whining that it should be a 30 yard penalty because Richt was on the field yelling at the refs.
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Dude. Get a clue. Georgia sends tapes of questionable officiating calls and sends them to the league office EVERY WEEK.
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I sure hope so.
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apparently Richt should just fist fight all his players and then kick them in the balls like Lou Gossett’s character in “Officer and a Gentlemen”. Maybe that will convince some of our fans that he’s “hard enough”. Jesus Christ, screaming and pointing fingers is what makes one a tough guy, now?
Grantham’s got a fiery temper, and that’s great in a DC. A head coach needs to keep his cool, even when a whiny gash like Franklin gets in a huff. Richt is the CO, let Grantham be the Sergeant Major.
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That is the best analogy of the day! +1 Everybody needs a kick a$$ SGM but the CO has to stay cool.
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Amen!
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Grantham’s more Gunny / 1st Sgt than SgtMaj
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“Whiny gash” just became my phrase that pays for the day. Well done, Irish.
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Hell, I’ll drink to that!
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Beyond my comments above, I am a head of a team(not athletic) and had several encounters with angry customers. If get caught by an angry one before knowing the other side of a situation, I will indeed apologize first to just defuse the anger saying, “I apologize for how the problem is upsetting you so much” but will always follow that with this statement, “I will check with the other person involved to determine how we can remedy this situation”.
I am just saying that I will not immediately side with the customer or my team. This usually will give me some more time to investigate the truth.
I am not better than Richt, but he seem to have sided with Franklin immediately, and that will usually result for the team member involved to lose their trust on his leader especially if Franklin did really provoked and his own word “calculated” this.
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Or perhaps you have dealt with more angry customers than CMR has douche bag head coaches. I’m sure the next engagement will be more to our liking.
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I’m not sure he was taking Franklin’s side as much as he was saying what Franklin wanted to hear to get the guy to calm down and shut up. I’m sure Richt just wanted to get to the locker room without further incident. Sometimes that’s the right thing to do and it’s not the same as really taking someone’s side or throwing someone else under the bus.
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FWIW I did not take what CMR said to mean he was siding with Franklin. I took what he said to mean that’s what he believed happened already, before Franklin told him. Franklin’s primary complaint seems to have been that Williams said something to “rub their noses” in the fact that Vandy lost. UGA ain’t so good that any player needs to be saying stuff like that anyway and that kind of mouthy behavior is, unfortunately, the kind of thing UGA has gotten a bad rap for in the past because of Ealey and others. Williams needs to be told to STFU and have to run the stadium a few times. Look the trouble him opening his yap caused. It could have been much worse, too (brawl between the 2 teams, etc.).
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I know this isn’t breaking news, but Mark Bradley is little more than a professional troll. I can’t believe that the once-proud AJC has resorted to just letting the guy gas off to get page views. Just assuming that all of the blame rests with Grantham without even considering how belligerent this Franklin clown was being on tape with Richt (gee, I’m sure he was nice and respectful when talking to TG) is unprofessional.
And not to try to actually analyze his little throwaway line about Franklin’s impending greatness, but what evidence does he have that Franklin is going to beat the big boys soon? The fact that he tackled a player in practice? The fact that he has them “believing”? Georgia mismanaged the game enough for Vandy to have two shots at the end zone (and that’s what it was, kids. UGA was clearly the more talented team, and even with the misfires, Vandy is down 11 if UGA makes all the field goals). They “believed” right into an incomplete pass (which replays showed was catchable) and Aaron, Jr. getting hit as he threw and completing a short pass. He’s getting some recruits excited… awesome. What evidence do we have that he knows what to do with them once they get to campus? Was Maryland that much of a juggernaut under his tutelage? Does beating Ole Miss really carry THAT much weight?
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Go Dawgs! Well said.
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Franklin is a tool.
Grantham is a hot-head.
They played cheaply; we talked too much.
The bottom line is that Georgia rolled helmets onto the field and beat Vanderbilt. If this is what I have to deal with (all this Franklin/Grantham nonsense giving the bashers their fun) in order to have our best RB healthy and our defense refocused, I’ll take it. No team brings it’s A game every week. We didn’t and still won the scoreboard.
Franklin can keep manufacturing fake juice on top of his moral(?) victory. Vandy still lost.
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Does Franklin remind anyone else of this other clown that was the lead for the Digital Underground back in the 90’s??
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Yup. That’s him!
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“Grantham’s more Gunny / 1st Sgt than SgtMaj”
I met more than a few Sgts Major in my Army days that got every bit as torqued up as Grantham; he’s earned the promotion.
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Franklin is a baby. It’s that simple.
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CRYBABY at that. LOL
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I read on one site that the Dawgs had two personal fouls in the UT game and 3 in the Vandy game.
Do not recal Derek Dooley going after a Dawgs player after the game or to one of the coaches.
Have not read or heard where the officials in those games went to CMR while the game was in progress. Apparently it can be reasonably concluded the penalties were sufficient for the game and did not warrant a player going to the sideline.
Now if I am Brooks or Slive I ask Vandy’s coach this question. You went after a Georgia player after the game is over. You have no control or direction over any Georgia player. Their coaches do. But here is our question coach Franklin would you do that while the game is in process?
Officials are charged with rules and conduct during the game. Not the coaches. I do not think Franklin risks that in the game. I would agree with Franklin’s self assessment … a clever, calculating coach. He had no intentions of going to Richt after the game about a player. No his actions on the field clearly show his intentions and his mindset…I am going after # 36. Where was CMR in the initial stages of the post game?
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I think you’ve got it covered pretty good. If Franklin is as calculated as he says then pretty obvious he had a plan. The state of Georgia recruiting base obviously is important and central to Franklin’s recruiting strategy, so can’t go lay an egg at home and leave with your tail between your legs when you’ve got big time recruits and committments from the state of Georgia at the game. This was all about making a statement to UGA and rest of the SEC that Vandy isn’t the same patsy they’ve always been.
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