In the vast scheme of things, it ultimately may not mean much, but this is the best thing I’ve ever heard Mark Richt utter in advance of the Florida game.
“We all know what’s ahead, I don’t even need to say anything about it,” Georgia coach Mark Richt told his players in the locker room after Saturday’s game in footage aired on his weekly coach’s show. “I want you all to get as much rest as you can get, get your minds right, get your hearts right. It’s going to be a war in Jacksonville. … Just get ready. Coaches will be getting ready. I want y’all to get ready. You leaders, I want you to think about what this game means. You’ve been talking about it all offseason since January. ‘Our team, our time, no regrets.’ Well, here we are. We’re at the moment of truth.”
Amen, brother. Skip the fake juice. This is a team that needs to have its collective manhood challenged.
And he said that for public consumption! I only hope he’s even more forceful in practice this week. This whole bunch needs to be moved out of their comfort zone if they’re going to play a competitive game in Jacksonville on Saturday.
Get The Picture 
As much as we all want this Win, we need to realize not one of us wants it more than the Team and the Coaches. They can win this game and I think they will based on pure desire.
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I wish I still had faith in our team. But I just don’t anymore. I hope you’re right, but I doubt it.
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And I my might add…SJIII picks the right hat and does all that hocus pocus stuff. I will do my part with the lucky panties.
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Last year my Sunday School class got together to watch the game and we won so we’re doing that again.
Godspeed Dawgs!
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Amen
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Sounds like a plan. ” When two or more are gathered in MY NAME…..”
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I usually associate no panties with being lucky.
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+1 Like the end of the rainbow. We will need good fortune this Saturday, and we are due some. UGA has lost a few close ones in JAX over the past several years that would have gone a long way to changing the mindset of many fans here. My concern is can we keep it close enough that a good bounce, big play, etc., makes the difference. If we do, it means the defense finally shows some grit.
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Paraphrasing the quote from the girlfriend of the piano-playing, partying “bon vivant” and scofflaw lawyer in “Midnight In the Garden of Good and Evil” is that “No self respecting girl wears panties to the WLOCP.”.
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I read that book. Never been to WLOCP. Had chances but always passed them up. If someone wants to take me maybe I’ll try to be a, “self respecting Georgia Girl.”
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Damn! I am headed for the brown water right now. Mind has slipped away from football for a while.
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You are so funny! It is not cold enough for brown water.
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I’m thinking the defensive players should be forced to wear panties during practice all week until they decide to man-up. But don’t tell them I said that. I took a sick day last time I got a paper cut.
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Well, you have not seen these Georgia Panties. They are an inspiration.
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Inspired me to make it a double! Dawgs will need all the inspiration they can get on Saturday, both teams know it is for all the marbles. I don’t care where they find that extra lift but there is no reaosn to have a slogan lije they have, get into a position like they find themselves, and leave anything in the tank. Here’s hoping they realize it and take advantage of the opportunity.
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+1 Cheers!
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I think if we play our absolute best we can make this game one hell of a fight. If we don’t I have a feeling it could be 2008 all over again and frankly, the past few weeks haven’t left me with a lot of optimism about our ability to show up.
I’m to the point where I really don’t care if we win or lose as much as I just want to see us look like we WANT to win more than the other team does. If we do that and fall short then I’ll sleep well Saturday night, but if we wet the bed again like we did against SC then I may not watch another game all season. I wish I could root for a victory, but that seems too far-fetched so all I’m going to root for is us to show effort and “want to”.
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Unfortunately you have captured my feelings as well.
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As well as the feelings of many Dawgs who have sensitive prideful thoughts of the team. You can’t bear to watch the guys take it knowing it’s not going to get better in the game..
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I still don’t get this comment. Is it meant to be a personal attack on me or an accusation of me as a “fair weather fan” of some sort?
This is the biggest game of our season, we’ve been given a fresh chance to win the SEC East, it’s an opportunity to do what no Georgia team has done since 1989 by beating Florida in consecutive years, they are our most hated rival, and yet you and I both know that there is STILL a good chance we will see our team show up flat and get whipped by a Florida team that simply wants it more than us.
Is it so ridiculous to simply hope that my expectation turns out to be wrong?
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Does CMR read GTP?
It seems like a perfect contradiction to what you asked to not be said.
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I disagree. He said he didn’t want to hear any bullshit excuses about the defense. Richt’s comments are not excuses and not about the defense.
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Fair enough. It may not be a perfect contradiction, but could you agree that what CMR said and what Senator asked of were at least in the same ballpark?
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What should Richt have said that would not trigger your response? He has to say something.
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“Coaches will be getting ready.” Anyone want to bet on which coaching staff worked harder and smarter yesterday?
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Well, why don’t you swim, bike, run over to BM and Gainesville to see if you can gather any REAL evidence to support our ‘betting’ strategies!
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Whatever, the proof is in the pudding. Either our staff is getting outworked, or they’re putting in the same amount of time and the team continues to be unprepared. Neither of which should inspire a while lot of confidence when we go up against teams with comparable talent.
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Other coaches working harder: Maybe, but probably not IMO except for maybe Saban. Other coaches working smarter: Yes, and I honestly don’t see how anyone could disagree given our multitude of underwhelming performances, even in the victories where a 28 point underdog gives us a run (which is all too common for us the past few years).
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Watch and listen. It will inspire you all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w919Ce2IPc
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dammit…just go to you tube and look up Corey Smith – Georgia Tribute!
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Here we go again. Another top 10 opponent. Another opportunity to step up on the national stage. I will give the Dawgs credit for this…They have “put themselves in position to get into position” (Bobby Knight). I have zero faith that this current staff is capable of taking advantage of this opportunity. Time and time again they have shown a complete inability to climb to the mountain top. We have all seen this movie before. Murray will be pressured all day. He will turn the ball over a couple/three times. There will be little to no running game. Special Team’s will give up a few huge plays and a missed FG or two. The defense will look lost for a large portion of the game. And in the final 15 minutes there will be a couple of “frustration” personal fouls from this defense. But hey, they are “in position to get into position.” GATA
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true to your name sir
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Except the “Dawg” part.
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One of the reasons I hope the Dawgs win would be to shut you up–asshole.
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Someone is grumpy this morning! Your piss and vinegar misplaced. I understand your frustration is actually with the current state of this program. It is understandable. I am equally upset with the state of the program. Where we differ is that I have come to terms with Richt and co. and what they are. You are still wishing and hoping. GATA!
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My frustration is with the current state of the fanbase, most notably you and that other turncoat Carolinadawg. The program is 6-1 and playing for the lead in the SEC East–or haven’t you heard?
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You ought to be frustrated by our 1-9 record against top ten ranked teams since 2008. And I’m really not sure why losing confidence in Mark Richt makes me a “turncoat” or “traitor”. You seem to equate blind support of a coach with supporting the team and instiution…they are NOT the same.
I hope like hell we win Saturday…that would be awesome. And I hope we then win out and play for a natty. But having watched us fail to win a big game and go on a championship-like roll multiple times since 2008, well, lets just say I will be surprised. Happy, but surprised.
And honestly, you’d be better off just ignoring my posts. Your immature name calling and moronic threats have absolutely no impact on me. You have your opinion, I have mine. Nothing you say will change mine…the only thing that will do that is watching CMR lead the dawgs to some big games for a change.
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“…lead the Dawgs to some big wins for a change.”
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SD, I agree with you sometimes. Other times I just want to kick you in the Vulva.
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Here’s to hoping that Christian Robinson and Aaron Murray egg your house on the way home from a dubya down in JAX.
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+1. I’ll be glad to supply the eggs.
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We could get lucky. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while
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I used to believe. Now I WANT to believe. Sadly, after our lack of success in this game and other big games, I’ll believe it when I see it. They talk to much and don’t produce nearly enough. Sigh.
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I like that he motivates without throwing players under the bus. They need to be ready but not over thunk or come out tight. Praying for Jarvis and Abry to be healthy.
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Actually he throws them under the bud fairly often. He just doesn’t name names (which is good–see “Spurrier, Steve”). Next time you hear about how we didn’t execute, remember that it’s code for “we told them what to do and called the right play/defense and they screwed it up.”
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So would this make anyone feel better or worse if we lose to the gators by 4 Tds?
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Something I noticed from the linked post:
“Watching Murray on that bootleg couldn’t help but make me wonder why we don’t see his mobility more often.”
I’ve wondered this myself, and my conclusion has been that Murray’s footwork is not good enough to maintain accuracy when he rolls out. Maybe the coaches feel as though they are making the field smaller and perhaps more predictable because he can only roll to his right, too?
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In his first year he picked up chunks of yards, but was pulled back by Bobo so as not to invite injury. Can’t you remember the right sideline bailout run to the 2-3 yd line as one of several he ran that year? He convinced me that he can stick his nose in and run well. My opinion is that the coaches have emphasized his staying and passing from the pocket without regard for the total collapse that sometimes can occur this year, leaving him no outlet to run. Has everyone forgotten how important Glenn was to us last year? You certainly can see it now.
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By the way, I think Murray will run vs FU.
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I think he had better.
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shit he won’t have a choice but to run, for his life.
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@ Jax and Mac – those are pretty funny comments. If you’re not AM.
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+1000. I miss plucky freshman AM. And people act like he looks nervous back there – well, shoot, they’ve told him not to run away from the crazy dudes trying to kill him.
Look, if your QB *can* run a little bit…and if your OL is…um, a work in progress…and you can’t find an open receiver, RUN, KID, RUN.
Have the coaches schooled AM to get thumped by a DL behind the line of scrimmage, to stay in the pocket no matter what? Is that really better than to choose your own poison and try to get some positive yards in a way that will probably mean you at least get to choose somewhat how you end the play – ie, get out of bounds rather than have 350lbs of angry dude land on your head.
By the way, if staying in the pocket is supposed to make him a better passer, I don’t see that he’s on pace to beat his freshman completion %, is he? How about the effect a scrambling QB has on the secondary?
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Murray is having his best season by far as a passer this year.
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Halfway through the season, freshman AM’s passing stats are not that far behind, and the swing on rushing is 200 yards.
He is being more careful w/ the ball…but
I’m not looking at it as an either/or thing – can’t we have the patient passer and the occasional scramble, too…?
I think the intangible of having a gamer QB used to fire us up a little, too.
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At his current pace, he’s going to finish with more than 3500 yards and 30 TDs, along with a passer rating that’s 20 points higher than his first season. That’s a little more than “not that far behind”, I think.
He won the UK game. That’s a pretty solid intangible as far as I’m concerned.
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AM was not told to stop running to prevent injury as much as to help with ball protection. Fair criticism or not, he’s coughed-up some bad ones rather than take the sack. Last Saturday, he hit the dirt fast in the face of a blitzing DB, and some online commentators were criticizing him for that. It was the right move. Take the loss…don’t scamble backwards and make it worse, and live to fight another down.
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Do the Dawgs have a defense? Do the Dawgs have a rushing attack? Do the Dawgs have coaching? If you can answer yes to those three questions, then the Dawgs might have a chance against Muschamp.
Have you noticed something about Florida, Bama, and LSU? They have very good football programs. How and where do they get their coaches? Now think on this. Mark Richt, Bobo, Grantham, Gardner, McClendon, and who ever is coaching the special teams.
Thought so.
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Garner. Rodney Garner. Huge pet peeve of mine.
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Please explain to me what the difference is in how Florida, Bama, and LSU got their respective coaching staffs versus how UGA got its coaches.
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Yes, yes and yes, which is why there is a chance. A chance. As for the SEC trio, guess what else they have in common? Every other team in CFB has green-eyed jealousy about their success. Put UGA with Richt in any other league (or give him a running QB that wins a Heisman) and we probably would have been in a MNC game. Miami, tOSU, USC and Auburn chose to compete by avoiding ethics. Want to be like them?
Thought so.
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On one side you have a team that plays with aggression and attacks the football. On the other side you have a team who is hesitant, lacks discipline and is too concerned with assignments to play fast.
Who the hell do you think wins this game?
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None of what we THINK matters. Play the game. Go DAWGS!
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That pretty much nails it, not just for this week but for way too many UGA games of late. SC and KY came to win, not just to play, and so maximized the application of their talent in order to beat Georgia. We did not. Joker Phillips did a much better job coaching his team up in the 1 week following their awful loss than Richt did in 2 weeks following our awful loss because UK WANTED TO BEAT GEORGIA. What is it exactly we wanted to do? We didn’t seem prepared to do much of anything. It’s not enough to bring intensity and desire to a couple games a year (Mo and Vandy this year, UF and AU last year for us). You gotta do it every week in this league. Florida, Bama and MSU are, we aren’t, and all 4 cases are reflections on coaching.
Here’s the place we’re at: no matter what we do in J’ville, I wouldn’t put money on us vs. Ole Miss, because they will damn sure show up with every intention of beating Georgia, while our guys will show up to, again, do what exactly?
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Base on that logic… can we take it that Kentucky most definitely did not wish to beat Arkansas?
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Will watch and pull for them, but contrary to the first years with Richt, now feel like am back in the Goff-Donnan days.
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Don’t mix up Goff with Donnan. Goff had the Dawgs winning about 6 games a season for most of his time as HC. Donnan, after a 5-6 campaign his first year (at least give him that year to get the “Goof” out of ’em) had seasons of 10-2, 9-3, 8-4 and 8-4. That’s a winning percentage of .729, which is higher than VD’s career winning percentage and about what CMR’s career winning percentage is. I didn’t like Donnan and was happy to see him go because he was such an asshole but from a coaching standpoint he was a huge improvement over Goff.
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Donnan was also 6-14 against FL, AU, TN and Tech. Like a certain other coach, he padded his record agaianst crappy teams, and underperformed against the good ones.
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Um… what’s Richt’s record against those four rivals?
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28-17 combined with the only opponent that he doesn’t have at least 7 wins in his tenure being Florida. But hey, who ever let facts get in the way of a good argument?
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Not saying that the pessimism in the current coaching staff is undeserved, mind you. Just that citing a group of opponents that the man wins against more than he loses isn’t going to bolster the case for ineptitude.
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Perhaps the question was intended to be rhetorical in nature Senator but nevertheless the answer is: 28-17.
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““I want you all to get as much rest as you can get, get your minds right, get your hearts right. ”
By God, that gets me ready.
Clear Eyes, Full Hearts.
And pick the right hat.
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Uhh…could you omit the “clear eyes” bit? Fire don’t make’em clear for the team and booze don’t keep’em clear for the fans. .
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And one more thought about fatherhood and leadership and such.
For you folks who have kids, kids who act, from time to time, like kids; kids are make mistakes you have to live with.
How do they respond to Boom Mutherfucker?
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OVERCOME THE ADVERSITY ON THE FIELD!
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaaf-dr-saturday/muschamp-tell-overcoming-adversity-field-video-154434865–ncaaf.html
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what happened to the UGA Illuminati…? Boom is working deep cover as a Dawg
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I’ve poor mouthed this team plenty the past few weeks. I’m as down on Mark Richt as anyone and deep down have little faith we can pull this off. HOWEVER, I also know we have the talent to beat Florida. They’re coming off of an emotional, big game. I’m not expecting a win, but damnit I’m so sick of losing to Florida every time we need a win. I want this one bad. I really, really hope we kick their ass. GO DAWGS!
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BTW, we sound like Tech fans leading up to the Georgia game. It’s actually kind of embarassing.
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Yes, David. The fan behavior, particularly on this blog, has been very embarrassing the last couple of weeks.
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Yep.. I’ve basically stopped reading for the most part.. just isn’t enjoyable.
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I hope you’re looking in the mirror when you say that.
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It sounds like you have some experience seeing pricks in the mirror, there dude.
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Agreed.
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David – you are correct. Georgia’s performance in big games over the past 5 years is indeed embarassing.
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Indeed. The embarassment extends to many parties in many directions. The embarassment is bright like an oversized red Ford truck. The embarassment hangs in the air around the program, around the coaching staff. Mark Richt has been chronically embarassed for about five years.
The embarassment has arrived at our doorstep as well. It’s like an uninvited guest that won’t leave your den, won’t leave your tailgate, etc.
It envelops the Disneys (for their myopics), the Downers (for their pessimisms), and anyone who invests too much energy and emotion into college football. I have fallen into all three categories at one time or another.
This is where we are. It’s humbling. I don’t like it, but I accept it as reality.
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Senator, your rant from the other night was read on-air this morning on 680 the fan. Perry Lorentino read it out loud to Brian Finneran. Congrats.
FYI, it was this one:
The only thing I ask
… is that nobody affiliated with the Georgia defense speaks with the media this week. I don’t want to hear about coaches’ regrets. I don’t want to hear players talk about playing like “the real Georgia defense”. I don’t want to hear about rust. I don’t want to hear about getting communication problems worked out. I don’t want to hear about how they’re getting it all figured out this week.
Because it’s all bullshit.
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Oh, boy.
Just out of curiosity, what was the context and what were their responses to it?
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There was an ongoing discussion about UGA and the state of the program. Finneran’s take was that losing to both SC and Fla would be unacceptable, given that these were the only two good teams that UGA plays and that UGA had not beaten a good team in a long time. They then took a couple of calls from angry UGA supporters wanting a coaching change.
And then Lorentino chimed in that he wanted to read a comment he liked from a Georgia blogger and identified you. After he read it, Finneran chuckled and said he agreed completely. I didn’t stick around for more reaction because i had made it to work by that point and had to go inside. It was about 8:45 is my guess as to the time it was read.
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They even read the word “bullshit” on air, which i thought was funny.
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B-Fin is good but Lauren-tina is the least talented sports hack in a town full of no-talent hacks. I’d rather hear Cokie Roberts feign objectivity on Morning Edition than suffer through Perry analyze sports.
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Be careful what you write Senator because once it’s out there it’s impossible to take it back. This is a prime example.
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Why would I want to take this back?
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I would never try to speak for our second highest ranking civil servant, but, if I may….I don’t think he means what you said in this case, but where it winds up.
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+1. Once it’s out there people can use things out of context to advance their own agendas. Then the source of the quote gets tarnished by association with the ones repeating it.
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Sorry, but I’m still not getting your point here. Who’s going to be tarnished and why?
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I’ll leave that to you to figure out yourself.
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Speaking for myself, boss, I got no problem if you want to contribute to Finebaumerization in Atlanta…question is are you gonna be Pat Dye?
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The focus requested by Richt is the first part. The second part will be for everyone to go out and do what they’ve practiced all summer and season for. We don’t need a new “double-secret” game plan, or whacky jerseys, or anything else. We have the tools. Just go out and play our game, and don’t let the Gators stop us from playing our game.
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My head says we don’t win – too much strength vs weakness. I do hope that we are at least competitive and show a little more fire and spunk than we did against SC. I will say though that this seems a little like a trap for the Gators. How many times have we seen the big emotional win followed up by playing a team that looked terrible the week before and that “terrible” team jumps up and bites them? That is of course not the best recipe for winning a game. But given our talent, if we get the right mindset and play/coach smart, we’ve at least got a punchers chance.
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And yes, I’ll post the obvious response to my own “analysis” – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX5jNnDMfxA
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Don’t do your good post like that. It’s right there with the correct ingredients. This team beat them last year and while they have demonstrated good progression from last year, they are the same people. We absolutely have the people who can do the trick as they have already proven. Nothing but themselves can prevent them from winning. We will see how it goes as to which players show up with that winning attitude from last year. You could feel it before and during the game last year.
While my bet on this game was laid with an FU grad 6 weeks ago, things have changed from a sure win by UGA to one that will be hard-fought. We have yet to see if our game with Ken is a result of not showing too much to FU and Jarvis not playing. I’m betting that they both played a factor and will be in place for Sat’s game. We won’t know about Jarvis’s health until gametime, but I’m convinced that he will play.
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I just hope we never give the sombitches quarter from start to finish.
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No, I do like our chances. I think we were looking ahead a little, no Jarvis, no Abry. Jordan Jenkins is developing well. Feels a little like AU 06.
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I want the Dawgs to win and I want them to win badly. I want Mark Richt to win and I want him to be our coach until he either doesn’t want to be our coach or is physically incapable. I am not a fair weather fan nor a bandwagon jumper. I’m an alumnus, married to an alumnus and our son graduated in just the past few years. We support the school and the team both financially. and with our time. But let’s be honest. What have we seen this year that inspires optimism? Over the past three years what have we seen every time Georgia steps up to the national stage in a big game? Unfortunately, we’ve mostly seen a team that looks unprepared. A team that apparently lacks desire. Do we have the talent not only to compete but win? I think we do. Has that translated into actual quality wins against formidable opponents? Not lately. Do the players and coaches know this? I think they do. I think a huge chunk of the fan base sees this game as a referendum on the staff’s ability to motivate and coach players as well as the players ability to execute. They’re going to need to play the most complete game they’ve put together in quite some time. I think they’re capable. Whatever the result, I just hope they leave everything on the field. We need to see that it matters.
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The way I see it, there are basically three outcomes we’re looking at:
1. We piss the bed in JAX, probably lose at least one more (bowl game probably) and Richt is squarely on the hot seat and McGarity’s end-of-the-season analysis becomes much clearer.
2. We win and all is well in Dawgville.
3. We play a good, competitive game but come up a bit short. We then proceed to win out and finish the season strongly.
In the big picture, any of those three scenarios ultimately lead to good things. I’m so ready to throw Richt and this team under the bus, but honestly, I’m starting to get a feeling that this team has something special in store. I may very well be wrong, but we’ll let the Dawgs decide. It’s the field where shit gets figured out, not blogs or message boards…
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Ah, the message boards. Hey Muschamp, wanna “guarantee” this one?
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Do we have the talent to beat florida? Absolutely. But I think we had the talent to beat sc too. Will we show up? Who knows but I sure hope we do. One thing’s for sure, no black unis this year. For that I am thankful.
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IMO we are better than a mediocre team and worse than a great team. The difference between us and greatness however isn’t talent. It is fire. Florida played with their hair on fire against the Cocks, just like the Cocks did against the Dawgs. If this team EVER played with that much fight and enthusiasm and determination they could be a great team. Not sure how confident I am about that however. Unfortunately for me my ex father in law is a Gator and I still take shit from him if we lose. Sucks totally.
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High hopes and tempered expectations. That’s how I would characterize my feelings for Jax.
My biggest concern is simply this: a Georgia win seems like it is going to require something in temperament/character that we haven’t seen yet out of this team. If that something extra shows up in Jax, wonderful – maybe it’s the turning point we’ve been talking about, at long last.
I think Georgia matches up better against Florida than any quality team it has faced in awhile. For me, it’s now or never.
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“It’s now or never..”
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The man died on my 8th birthday, and I remember that we found out on the way to football practice – but I’ve never really been an Elvis fan. What does this have to do with anything. I have no clue.
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Two of my best friends were born on that day, & now another friend has a son with an Aug 16th birthday. For me Elvis means birthdays & Christmas time, he’s just always singing during that time of year -in my head, at my location, wherever. What does it mean,ASEF? Why it means Go Dawgs!! of course.
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I’m a DAWG fan and I will always root for UGA to win, I would love to beat the Gators in JAX, but my heart tells me, Gators win, CMR has 6 wins this season, and will probably finish with 10 wins, but the 6 wins we have now are against teams with a combined record of 12-31, and we struggled in most of those 6 wins, something’s wrong here!
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