Blame Gurley? Look in the mirror first.

I’m not sure why it’s important to play the blame game with Todd Gurley, but since there are plenty besides Jeff Schultz who want to do so, is it worth my time to point out that the reason Todd Gurley was in a position to violate NCAA rules for making money selling his autograph is because we – fans, athletic directors, media members alike – have made his name and likeness valuable?

As Andy Staples puts it in this excellent piece,

The players didn’t turn college football into a multibillion-dollar business. The conference commissioners and athletic directors did. Now, those administrators must deal with the consequences, and one is people are more willing than ever to pay for the autographs of the players they see on television every Saturday. The players are going to sign. The money is too easy and the likelihood of negative consequences too small to stop them.

No doubt the situation sucks.  Gurley broke a rule he was well aware of.  Indignation is something I can understand coming from everyone.  It’s the righteous part that isn’t justified.  At least not if you don’t blame yourself along with Gurley.

And so it goes.

Gurley sits until November 15th.  At least.

Todd Gurley, University of Georgia football student-athlete, must sit a total of four games, or 30 percent of the season, for accepting more than $3,000 in cash from multiple individuals for autographed memorabilia and other items over two years. Gurley, who acknowledged violating NCAA rules, must repay a portion of the money received to a charity of his choice and complete 40 hours of community service as additional conditions for his reinstatement. Gurley will be eligible to play on Nov. 15.

In determining the appropriate reinstatement conditions, a 30 percent withholding condition is consistent with precedent in similar cases.

Makes you wonder why Georgia thinks there are grounds for an appeal.  Unless the school simply wants the virtue of saying it did everything it could.  Going through the motions like that should give us a ton of comfort as we debate the merits of full disclosure to the NCAA.  Again.

Chopped off at the knees by an organization for violating a rule even the NCAA’s president admits needs to be reassessed. Honestly, were I him, I’d seriously question the point of returning this season.

Nick Chubb – strap it up, brother.

Wednesday morning buffet

I’m leaving tomorrow, so enjoy the buffet while you can get it.

• Georgia is a 13-point favorite Saturday.  Matt Melton reminds us that the Dawgs are 4-7-1 ATS over the past two seasons as a favorite against a fellow SEC team.
• This Jeff Schultz column about Richt is so gracious that I’m not going to resort to any snark about it.
• “The question is, if Georgia eventually makes the playoffs and faces Florida State, what will they call that game?”
• Good nuts and bolts piece on the comeback of the fullback in modern offenses.
• Conference USA has hired a public relations firm to help promote the conference and make Marshall’s case with respect to the first College Football Playoff.  Oy.
• It’s not been a fun year for Steve Spurrier.
• In case you couldn’t tell last night, the selection committee is pretty full of itself.
• Tommy Bowden, self-proclaimed “Christian Conservative”, thinks Condoleezza Rice would make a good president, but isn’t qualified to sit on the selection committee.
• I’m not sure Dave Brandon gets this whole athletic director thing.  Or at least the part about dealing with the fan base.

Gary Danielson’s key to the game isn’t that key.

Does Florida have a chance Saturday?  According to Danielson, the Gators do, if…

Danielson: They have a shot because defensively they can stop run. The last eight years the teams that have run for the most yards has won the game. Somebody asked me: What would be the weakness of Georgia. At first I thought was their secondary, because so many players turned over. But I think they’ve done a nice job of turning that around. That matches up with their outstanding pass rush. They have a lot of veteran linebacker who make a lot of plays.

I would say if Georgia has a weakness it is quarterback. You probably wouldn’t believe this, but its Georgia that is ranked 112th in passing. Florida is ranked 94th. The reason for that is that they run it pretty darn good.

So the matchup has to be: can Florida force Georgia into a passing game and take advantage of that. If not they have no chance.

The problem with that analysis is that he’s looking at passing yardage.  When you compare passer rating it’s Georgia 27th, Florida 116th.

Georgia hasn’t had to go chase yards in the passing game this season because it’s run the ball so well, true.  But that doesn’t automatically mean the passing game isn’t good enough to get those yards if they’re needed.  Besides that, it’s the same facile analysis we’ve seen about Georgia’s offense all season.  At 6-1, it’s hard to see where any opponent has been able to make that a go.

Danielson is right in that Florida possesses the best rushing defense Georgia will see this season.  But the Gators didn’t exactly slow down either of the two stout running offenses they’ve already faced.

By the way, Georgia’s rushing defense ain’t too shabby, either.  In fact, it’s ranked higher in average yards per rush than Florida’s.  So what’s the Gator offense going to do if Georgia forces it into a passing game?

I know I sound like a broken record, but Georgia’s chances are going to come down to turnover margin and field position.  That’s what the Dawgs are built around and that’s what you have to control if you want to beat them.

In which I say something nice about the Gators…

I know hate’s what’s on the menu this week, but I have to take a moment to tip my cap to the other camp’s appreciation for what’s so great about it.

… The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party will commence this weekend in Jacksonville when the Gators and Bulldogs get together for their annual meeting.

“There’s nothing like it, coming over the bridge and getting ready for this game and the excitement that’ll be in the air, certainly on game day, but the build up to it,” Muschamp said.

Of course, Boom has been on both sides of the fence, so you’d expect him to get it, but even his players know what it’s all about.

A few of the players on Florida are from the state of Georgia, including linebacker Michael Taylor and center Max Garcia. Neither of them have beaten the Bulldogs since they’ve been at UF, so they’re desperate for a win.

“Being recruited by them (Georgia) and being recruited from the state of Georgia means a lot because you chose to go away for college,” Taylor said. “It’s a big game, it impacts us too as it does probably Muschamp too, he went there. It’s a big game for all of us, it’s the border rivalry. You want to play good in this game. This game has decided who’s going to come out of the [SEC] East for the last couple years, except for last year.”

“I’m a Georgia boy. One of the first memories I have is watching this game. I just feel like this game has so much hype, so much tension around it,” Max Garcia said. “I don’t even know how to describe the atmosphere. It’s so much antsiness and anxiousness around the game. It’s a huge game. Guys are really locked in from our lift this morning, guys are just focusing on trying to get better.”

The plus out of all this excitement is that Florida may be more on the edge mentally/emotionally going in than Georgia is.  Boy, is that a change.