Champ Bailey 2.0?

I’m a little surprised that the coaches are willing to consider this…

Wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell acknowledged there has been some kind of preliminary discussion about him possibly playing some cornerback next season. However, offense would still be his primary role.

“If I think that it’ll help us win and he can function and do that, that’d be fine,” Richt said. “We have a few guys that play both ways but we try to have them focus on one position. If they have enough of a comfort level knowing what to do, we can begin to share a little bit. I wouldn’t be against it.”

… more accurately, that Richt and Bobo are willing to consider this (I’m sure Grantham’s just fine about it), but it’s worth remembering that coming out of high school Mitchell was more highly rated as a defensive back than as a receiver.

He’s been Georgia’s best deep threat this season and I’d hate to see that go.  But if he can pull the whole thing off, I won’t complain.  Although I do wonder what this says about how the coaches feel about the secondary post-Brandon Boykin.

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Commence screaming from Columbia in 3… 2… 1…

Per Seth Emerson:

… It is all but official, based on talking to someone with knowledge of the schedule talks, that Georgia will not play Alabama next year. A trip to Missouri early in the season (probably Sept. 8, the second week) will replace the previously-scheduled trip to South Carolina, which will be moved to midseason (probably Oct. 5, the sixth week).

If that’s how it plays out, the Dawgs wind up with an easier schedule than the one they faced this year, while South Carolina, in addition to seeing the Georgia game move a month later, supposedly gets LSU and Arkansas as its opponents from the West.  Yowza.

Name that caption: genius wearing sombrero

Really, this is about the lowest hanging fruit you’re gonna find this bowl season.

(AP Photo/El Paso Times, Mark Lambie)

Rip it a new one, guys.

Tuesday morning buffet

With just a week to go until the bowl game, the buffet gets a little Sparty.

• Vince Dooley would consider this news a lot bigger than some:  MSU suspends its long snapper for the Outback Bowl.
• Can someone explain to me why Chris Petersen would be interested in the Penn State job?
• LSU’s fullback questions the manhood of Auburn’s defensive players.  (Actually, he doesn’t question it; he comes right out about it.)
• If I’m a coach thinking of taking a job with Illinois, I’m reading my contract very carefully.
• One more reason the 2012 SEC schedules haven’t appeared yet:  But we were told by one SEC employee last week that “it may be necessary to break up one pair of rivals for 2012 only.”
• You wonder about an Outback Bowl letdown when you read stuff like this:  “The Spartans spelled out their goals entering this season with the four-letter acronym “P4RB” – play for the Rose Bowl by winning a second straight Big Ten title.”
• This is sort of the interception analogue to the famous Tyrone Prothro TD catch off the defender’s back, except goofier looking.
• Sad, but true:  Charlie Weis gets commitments from two quarterbacks who lost their starting spots at other schools and it’s hailed as a major step up for the quarterbacking situation at Kansas.  Too bad he can’t fix the defense like that.
• Here’s a look at Mark Dantonio’s track record at Michigan State.
• “It doesn’t get more American than whiskey.”

Another one bites the dust.

Another rumor, that is.

… There was another reason for Richt to be in a good mood: The Bulldogs are close to full strength, avoiding any academic casualties.

Last year, three Georgia players, including tailback Caleb King, were academically ineligible for the Liberty Bowl. This time around, Richt reported that everyone had made it academically.“Those guys have done well,” Richt said.

“It gets rid of a lot of distractions,” quarterback Aaron Murray said. “We had a couple last season, and we don’t have to worry about that now. We just have to worry about practicing, getting ready for the bowl game.”

I presume that includes a certain freshman running back about whom I was hearing a fair amount of academic crazy talk in the past couple of weeks.

And Richt had better be careful with that stuff about Mike Gilliard cavorting with barnyard animals.  Next thing you know…

Go away, or I shall taunt you a second time.

Asked about the status of some of his players before the bowl game, Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz got all Monty Python and the Holy Grail-esque with the assembled media.

After deflecting a few personnel questions Monday, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz joked that he passed gas on the practice field.

It was a bit of a defensive response.

“Did you guys catch that one?” Ferentz joked. “I’ll see if I can muster one up for you right now.”

I hope somebody had the presence of mind to make an asshole joke.