If there’s one thing Dawgnation excels at, it’s overreacting to scrimmage news, whether it’s good or bad. So I wasn’t shocked by some of the stuff I saw on message boards and Twitter after this week’s scrimmage. Some players may not be immune, either. Aaron Murray, three-interception performance (ZOMG!!!1!1) in hand, didn’t have much to say about the day, but his backup did.
“Coach Bobo always talks about it can’t be coach-driven enthusiasm and leadership. It has to be player-driven,” Mason said. “We hear so much yelling and so much of the coach jumping us it does get kinda old, and it kinda gets tiring. That’s why we need seniors, that’s why we need upperclassmen, guys with experience and moxie and balls to them, to step out and say you know what, you’re not doing your job. You’re letting me down, you’re letting your whole team down. You’re letting the offense down and you look like crap. That’s what we need. … You can only go as far as your leaders go. If you’re a coach-driven team, you’re gonna fail.”
This, after a summer when by all accounts the team gave better effort in attending voluntary offseason workouts than ever before.
Not to make too light of the outburst, but it’s hardly surprising that a team hits a wall during fall practice, especially when you consider the number of kids held out of the scrimmage. Part of the experience from that is getting used to the grind and making your way through it. Granted, if the funk continues, it could develop into a legitimate concern, but it’s hard to get that worked up over one disappointing session.
Get The Picture 
Granted that this is just on anecdotal observation and experience over the years and not statistical data, but I have generally believe its a good sign for your defense to get the better of your offense in practice. Hell, the defense knows the players and have seen them every day for years, if they can’t stop their own offense they aren’t probably going to be able to stop anybody.
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True dat. Additionally, do practice Os truly “scheme” against their counterparts on defense as would be done in a game setting. I doubt it. So the offense cycles through a variety of plays it wants to hone, not exploiting soft spots in the D. Less strategery … more Mano-a-Mano skills.
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If Hutson is being critical of others, he should probably just shut up. He hasn’t earned Shawn Williams status yet. If he’s being critical of himself, he should probably also just shut up and doing something about it rather than chatting the media up.
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I completely disagree with you on this. Just because you aren’t a Starter doesn’t mean you can’t be a leader. Good for him for getting in people’s faces and demanding that they play better. He’s been in the program for 4 years and by all accounts is a good kid, I think he’s earned the right to speak.
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Yep, I was happy to see he’s fired up. I don’t have any complaints when our upper-class players get slackers back in line. Got to get their minds right!
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While I don’t disagree with fuelk2 about HM’s right to get frustrated, and voice those frustrations, I do think it should be kept in the locker room, or on the field. Many have earned the right to speak but comments about the team should remain within the team, not be stated to media/bloggers. We don’t know the context, and comments made immediately after a game/practice are usually not well thought through…particularly by someone so young.
I would like the information coming from practice to be general, not specific stats. Several players are not working with the usual units, or could be missing due to injury, and the competing teams often have a much better idea of what is coming than opponents will. Sirius radio even had Murray’s 3 INTs in practice as a news headline on their hourly sports update covering all sports headlines…..must have been a slow news day. I would have been fine with an “offensive team looked sluggish and needs to work on ball security while the defense is ahead of schedule. We are pleased with our young DBs ability to learn our system.” That’s all, just tell me as the team looks, not individuals.
I agree with Trey’s comment below, I am ecstatic with the positives I am hearing about the defense. I have no major concerns about the offense. Would love to hear something good about the kicking units, my other concern.
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If Hutson Mason complains and if it is not in the AJC, did Hutson Mason ever really complain? My father-in-law will never hear about it.
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Much as there’s preseason happy talk every single year, there’s a bad practice or two with displeased coach and player quotes afterwards every single year. Nothing to see here.
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So…. you’re saying the defense got six interceptions including three off the 2nd best QB in the country in passing efficiency last year? Am I to be upset about this, considering the defense, and the secondary in particular, are major concerns going into week 1?
If there are guys back there that will catch bad passes, I think that’s a positive. If they can help in run support better than Rambo did last night, that, too, will be a positive. Plus, Georgia has shown they can win even if Murray throws three interceptions… as long as they’re playing Florida (zing!).
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+1. This means the D is good not that the O is lousy.
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Speaking of Rambo against the run, did you see what Chris Johnson did to him last night? Woof.
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In a locker room of highly competitive people who are used to some level of athletic success, is it really surprising that someone’s a little chippy after a bad scrimmage? I’d be more worried if everyone just blew it off. It’s no big deal to have a bad practice; they’re human, they’re college students, it happens. Winners have bad days, too, but they don’t like it, they don’t accept it, they expect more of THEMSELVES. I’m glad to see a little fire smoldering in someone’s belly.
On the other hand, all the fire in the world won’t make a difference if UGA gets housed by Clemson or the Chikins. So, I guess it’s necessary, but not sufficient. Either way, it’s nothing to get excited about for people outside the locker room.
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Agree … I read that Aaron was breaking down film afterwards to see where he went wrong … we know he does that for games, and it’s really not surprising that he does it for a scrimmage … but still shows his dedication
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I wasn’t concerned about the scrimmage that much. But the way yesterday’s practice started off concerned me, because we had obviously hit a wall. But from what I hear we were able to regroup and get something out of the practice.
Some offensive funk is expected this early. But I can’t help but be concerned about the offense because we have no choice this year but to have the the offense functioning ON TIME.
All the pieces are there, so it shouldn’t be a problem. If our offense is functional, it’ll score a lot of points, or at least enough. It’s just that Bobo, to this point in his OC career, has never been able to get his unit to function right out of the gate. Richt always did it, but Bobo never has.
So, regardless of how good or bad the scrimmages go, I guess I’m doomed to worry about it until the two games get here. We’ve had great camps on offense before, and then laid a rotten egg in the early games.
The thing that makes me feel somewhat OK, is having Gurley and Murray. In that order.
~~~
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Yeah, they come out so sorry that they just set SEC records for yardage on the ground and in the air. And Bobo had nothing to do with it, right? You need to sell that anti-Bobo crap on another corner. This corner has a lot of people who respect what he has done and will continue to do.
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Huminahon Cojones …. mga tao ay pagpunta sa pagkakamali mo para sa akin.
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lol
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[“Yeah, they come out so sorry that they just set SEC records for yardage on the ground and in the air.”]
What does that mean? This is one of the more ridiculous comments you’ve made. A ridiculous of the ridiculous. Records against who? Okie State in 2009? Boise is 2011? Records for stinking up the place, maybe.
I’m not anti-Bobo and never have been, and it seems that’s the second time you’ve falsely accused me of being so. I’ve criticized him over the years (though rarely for playcalling), and rightly so, when he’s messed things up, and always give him credit when he’s done a good job. And all of that within the context that he was growing on the job. That is all a matter of record.
There were 2 BIG openers for Richt, Clemson 2003 and Boise State 2005. Richt’s offense played well in both and we won those games handily. Bobo had has two big openers against good opponents, Okie St.’09 and Boise ’11. In both those games the offense, with different personnel, couldn’t function at all.
The fact is, getting his offense to function in a big opener against a good opponent is a bridge that Bobo has yet to cross. My post is was/is accurate. The record speaks for itself, and as always, the film doesn’t lie.
But there you go again, acting too big for your britches, spouting off when you don’t know what you are talking about.
Nobody is pulling harder for Bobo right now than me. It’s challenge for any OC to get his team ready for a big opening game, more than most people know. It’s important for Bobo personally, and even more important for the team and us, that he succeeds this time.
There is no reason for the offense not to be running smoothly when we go to Clemson. None whatsoever. Bobo will never have more good pieces to work with than he has this year. And he has the experience now, to boot.
So hopefully this is the year that he gets over that hump. We’ve never needed our offense to carry their load more than we do in these two opening games.
~~~
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Conjones?????? Digame!
Wax philosophical with one of those pedantic rambles. “The word cojones as a metaphor for bravery is Hemingway’s 1932 book on bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon. “It takes more cojones,” he wrote, “to be a sportsman where death is a closer party to the game.”
Hah… just kidding. Turn on the sarcasm meter. You’re still my favorite.
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“pedantic”. Been a while since I heard that word, LOL …..
~~~
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“It’s just that Bobo, to this point in his OC career, has never been able to get his unit to function right out of the gate. Richt always did it”
http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=222572579
http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=242620061
Yeah, no.
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Just hand the ball to Gurley and everything will be fine.
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Yes, Yes, and Yes. I’d love for Gurley and Marshall each to get 20 carries against Clempsun, grind out a win on the ground against a team that hasn’t shown they can stop a solid rushing team. And at the same time keep our young suspect defense off the field against a good offense.
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That would seem to me about the optimum gameplan. Just let’s please be up by >7 late to mitigate the place kicking game!
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I am going to go out on a limb here – I’ve never watched a Dawgs practice firsthand, and I totally get that the video I see is during practice times designed for the media. And obviously, the proof of our program’s effectiveness is clear by CMR’s track record.
However, it is really weird to me that every time I watch video of practices, the drills appear to go slowly and kind of sloppily, 95% of the players are kind of standing around, there does not seem to be much military crispness, efficiency, or sense of purpose or urgency. Again, I am sure this is just perception on my part, but does it give anyone else the same feeling, watching these videos? Do they just use the media time as a time to kick back for an hour before beginning to practice again in earnest?
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My concern was the O line allowing the sacks. That feeling is mediated by our best and experienced player(s) getting the most sacks plus the play of our new D hotshots. What do all the sacks say about the O line?
The overall poor feeling about the O iturns toward summer prep. By this time they should not be tired or lackadaisical in their play. That is the big surprise to me.
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I don’t have a problem with Hutson speaking up in the locker room, but sure wish he wasn’t talking to the press or bloggers about it. Leaders don’t speak up to see their quotes in the paper or internet.
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I bet you $5 we don’t see another quote like this out of him. I bet it’s “been taken care of.”
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I personally have heard enough from Hutson Mason to last me a lifetime. He seems to like bitching to the media. But it never feels like its constructive. It always seems like he feels the need to publicly belly ache when he isn’t getting what he wants and to me this seems like he was saying that he should be the starter in a back door sort of way. I admit that I wouldn’t feel that way if he hadn’t already publicly whined about lack of playing time. Shawn Willimas’ comments were completely different. He was a starter who had proven himself and the defense had underperformed all season to that point. It was time for someone to do what he did. One bad scrimmage from the offense and the back up qb is is running his mouth to reporters about pack of leadership as if he could do better. I wish he would he stop talking because if he was as good as he seems to think he is he would be the starter. Bad form in my opinion.
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I fear you may be right but hope not. I don’t know him, and the limited quotes may not reflect who he really is, but a QB and leader should be giving more thought before he makes comments in front of a microphone. Bad form indeed, can anyone remember Aaron Murray handling an interview this way? I realize it is hot and humid these days, and that he wants his shot but there is more to being a starting QB than physical talent.
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No Murray has never done anything even remotely like what we’ve seen from Mason. And he’s the starter. And by all counts, Murray will get on people’s butts if they are being lazy. To me Mason just sounds foolish talking like this. For all of the Coxian moments, Joe Cox did at least come in and win a game for us when we were struggling against Colorado as the backup. But he never went and ran his mouth to media about playing time or leadership and I can’t imagine that he was never asked about at least one them when he was sitting behind Stafford.
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Pansies, the lot of them. This happens every year. We drink the Kool-Aid like Low Information Types and then wonder why we can’t beat a decent team on a Saturday afternoon.
It’s a giant flounderfest!
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I won’t go that far, I like this team and am excited to see what they can do when the brigt lights go on. Go have a few pints and mellow out a bit, it will all look better to you. These are great times to be a Dawg! Enjoy.
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anyone know who Murray had running pass routes? It’s not always the QB’s fault…just curious…Snake out
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And that wussy Mason does that MMA dancing in his off time, sheez – what a belly achin pansie. Y’all can whoop him and his mouthpiece anytime from behind your keyboards.
Let’s see how it plays out. Takes all kinds of dynamics to make a team go. Still not sure a coach didn’t encourage Shawn and am not too sure here either…
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Mason is belly aching to the arc about playing time again.
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