Tell it like it is.

Ugh, I see I’m the subject of a few choice comments in the usual quarters about supposedly having a Mark Richt mancrush.  Sorry to disappoint, but I’m emotionally detached from his fate and have been that way for several years.  He’s a good man deserving of credit for reinventing himself and the program after the crash and burn of 2009 – and may be on the verge of doing it again – but pulling that off is something to admire and respect, not blindly worship.  If he goes, so be it.  I’ve been a Georgia fan long before Richt got here, and would expect to stay one after his departure.  Nor am I stupid enough to deny that there aren’t some coaching candidates who couldn’t improve on the foundation Richt has laid in his 14-year term.

That being said, I will admit to having reservations about canning the man.  Which leads me to run a little exercise with all you FIRE RICHT NOW! proponents.

Let’s say you got your wish and Mark Richt is shown the door after the bowl game.  In your mind, what are the top three priorities McGarity, Morehead and those they answer to will have in searching for a successor?  Mind you, I’m not asking what your priorities would be for the new hire – unless you’re one of the aforementioned decision makers, your priorities don’t mean shit – I want to know what you think will guide B-M to a choice who could lead Dawgnation out of the wilderness.  (Hint:  if you don’t include being a relative Boy Scout and not negatively affecting the financial bottom line on your list, you’re not being honest.)

So let’s hear your answers.  I’m genuinely curious.  After that, you can get back to insulting me.

420 Comments

Filed under Georgia Football

420 responses to “Tell it like it is.

  1. Tronan

    Their priorities? Not jeopardizing the cash cow’s lactation. I’m hard pressed to think of a priority beyond that one – which makes me believe Richt is going to be around as long as he wants.

    Like

    • And if he leaves on his own terms, Bobo gets the next shot.

      Like

      • Tronan

        Yep. Bobo is likely to be a relatively inexpensive option, too, which will greatly please the university and AA.

        Like

      • Mayor

        Personally I think hiring Bobo as HC would be a big mistake. He learned at the feet of Richt and actually is the guy behind many of the end-of-game screw-ups himself or in combination with Richt. A better option already on the staff would be Pruitt, IMHO. Bobo won’t like it and might leave because of being passed over–if so, so be it. But Bobo, while overall a good OC, doesn’t have the killer instinct needed for the HC job. Hiring Bobo is asking for more of the same problems we are writing about today.

        Like

        • Dawgfan Will

          You say he doesn’t have a killer instinct, but how do you distinguish Richt’s conservatism from Bobo?

          This is not to say I want Bobo as HC. I wouldn’t be upset, but I wouldn’t be excited either.

          Like

      • @gatriguy

        Would have agreed 4 years ago, not now. When it happens, the program will need a complete culture overhaul.

        Like

      • Bulldawg165

        I was going to post Bobo as the likely successor. I have no inside info, but I doubt a coordinator of his caliber would stick around and accept pay well below his market value if there wasn’t some informal promises made behind the scenes. Just speculating here, but those are my thoughts.

        For the record, I’m not on the fire Richt bandwagon, but I grow more apathetic each season.

        Like

        • Apathy ought to scare them as much as anger.

          Like

          • Chadwick

            If you mean “apathy” by not buying tickets and suites. But few signs that would happen at this point. Right wins enough to be a winner while not being the irritant Donnan was. The folks that run the program are happy with the results as long as they get to run the machine.

            Like

      • If Bobo is ever HC at UGA, that will be the LAST time I am ever in Sanford Stadium

        Like

        • sUGArdaddy

          That’ll be a shame, Atticus, because he’s going to be a darn fine one. Bobo is one of the best recruiters in the nation, a splendid offensive mind and has an edge that’s a little different from his boss. And I can assure that there isn’t a guy in the program that burned with anger after that loss yesterday than him. Spurrier’ greatest asset at Florida was that he hated seeing the gators lose. Mike will be much the same.

          Like

          • Will (the other one)

            This isn’t that bad of a counter-argument really. I still remember Bobo letting some f-bombs fly when we were stopped on 3rd down up 42-3 on the NATS in 2012.

            Like

          • Bazooka Joe

            +1 – I think some people confuse Bobo with Richt. Now most of us work for other people/have bosses…. well you work in the way the boss wants you to or you are not there long. Doesn’t mean that is how you would do things if you were the boss (and you are not going to come out and say something like that – undermining your boss – no quicker way to get fired….).

            Like

  2. Scott W.

    No one. The answer is no one. If Georgia fires CMR there is no one to step in and fix all the mistakes. I am tired of these shitty losses but even more tired of the knee-jerk, bullshit, behavior of the supposed fan base. If you fire a man like CMR you have a scorched earth program that no one but a crook or fucking idiot will coach

    Like

    • MattR

      You are wrong.

      Like

      • MattR

        And Bo Pelini, that other mark of average achievement just got fired.

        Like

        • RocketDawg

          And as I posted in the other thread when Nebraska hires a coach that you have never heard of and is 3-9 or 4-8 for five or six years you will see exactly how things would play out if we fired Richt.

          Like

          • 3rdandGrantham

            You’re not even comparing apples to oranges. More like apples to rocket ships. Am I right to assume that you’ve never made any truly bold moves in your life?

            Like

          • IAmAGurleyMan

            How do you know that? How did it work out for Auburn when they fired Chizik merely 2 years after winning a national title? How exactly are you so certain that the only coaches available and who would be interested in the job are ones who would guide us to a 3-9 or 4-8 record? If you truly believe that, then you must believe there are bigger problems in our program if you believe our AD is so incompetent that he would make such a bad hire.

            Like

            • I’m in the “please retire” camp, but AU is a bad example. They realized Gus was the talent & Chiz the good ball so they set up failure by Chiz & replacement with Gus

              Like

            • 81Dog

              it looks like it worked out for AU like this: two miracle, pull it out of their colon wins put them in the SECC against the weakest East champ in 20 years, where winning somehow left them as the dog with the freshest breath for the BCS game. Where they lost. I might add at this point that I suspect neither you, nor those of like mind to you, would be happy with a loss in a championship game, either. They were an 8-4, 9-3 team that got unbelievably lucky. Is that your foundation for championships? Pure, right out of your colon luck?

              This year? They started out highly considered due to last year’s improbable run. They got their asses handed to them by Miss St, UGA and Alabama. They somehow managed to beat Ole Miss before the horseshoe dislodged from Malzahn’s sphincter, but in the cold harsh light of day, they look like a decent to average program to me, and one, I might add, that has gotten it’s ass handed to it by UGA 7 times in the last 9 years (a miracle kept it from being 8, and the spineless NCAA may have allowed it not to be 9-0).

              If you want to point to AU as an example of “bold moves,” that term must not mean what you think it means.

              Like

              • Gurkha Dawg

                Auburn’s record last year was 12-2, not 8-4 or 9-3. And they played great against FSU and barely lost. Every NC has close games which they were fortunate to win. See ala- arky this year. That does not diminish what a team achieves. I assume u were around for our 1980 NC run. If so, u know we pulled several games out of our colon. That does not matter, what does matter is we won.

                Like

                • 81Dog

                  Clearly, you can’t read too well. I didn’t say, and am well aware, that AU was 12-2 last year. My point is that they were really an 8-4 team that got really lucky. We played great against Alabama and lost in 2012. Should I count that as a win now?

                  if you want AU as your paradigm, you have bigger problems than a lack of reading comprehension, or your lack of energy to hit the necessary keys to spell “you.”

                  Like

                • Dawgfan Will

                  That’s fine, but if you’re going to give credit for last season to Malzahn, it’s only fair to admit that the opposite type of luck has bitten Richt more than once.

                  Like

                • 81Dog

                  exactly, Will. If your paradigm is based on pure, blind, unadulterated luck, which is by nature just random and not predictable, how exactly does a program account for that in its hiring criteria? Oh, AU got breaks, but good teams get breaks. So, if UGA had been luckier yesterday, would those folks be happy? Would CMR be a better coach? No to both, I think, and the unhappy people would simply hone in on some other thing to be unhappy about.

                  Like

              • I wouldn’t say they are a mediocre team in terms of talent. Good old Rodney seems to have gotten a new lease on life as far as giving a real shit about recruiting. Not only did we hear a dozen or more stories about talented instate players who never heard from UGA or very late over the last few years of RG being recruiting coordinator but he also took some stud D line guys from this state to the barn that were coming to UGA til he went to Auburn.

                We may have beaten up on the barners this year but we still let them come into our state and take stud players. Hell. I’d like to have the guy who determines OL prospects to target bc they get road grading hosses out of GA while we get private school lineman often from other states.

                Yes. We all know auburn is dirty but shit. The fallback school of the south shouldn’t beat us out for 4 and 5 star guys from GA. I suspect that Malzahn may have been figured out a bit this year and perhaps Marshall looked more like a DB than QB this year. Not to mention that they got lucky last year. But the issue is that we need to close the damn borders to those assholes bc they are building a team that can out talent other teams.

                And they sure as hell have a lot better idea of roster management than we do. And while they might be the extreme, they don’t kick players off the team at already weak positions like UGA. No other SEC school does.

                Like

            • Bazooka Joe

              There are bigger problems…. everyone knows what a tightwad B-M is – wont spend the necessary $$.

              Like

          • NCDawg

            I just look to Tenn after firing Fulmer the last 6 years. I don’ like losses like yesterday but I don’t want to swim through the quagmire that Tenn and Fl are in now either. We are just a few plays away (except Fl game) from the play-off. I want more but don’t think firing Richt will get us closer.

            Like

            • Will (the other one)

              Yep. And we were close to the playoff and SECCG with a non-NFL caliber QB (who yes, largely avoided mistakes, so he was no Joe Cox), a totally new defensive staff working with a walk-on getting starts in the secondary, limited depth at DT, plus we wound up, via NCAA assholery + bad injury luck, spending over half the season without by far our best offensive player. PLUS we had injuries at WR and to half our backup runningbacks.

              Tell a fan all that, and say “but they go 9-3, beat the hell out of the eventual SEC East champ without Gurley, and have improved offense and defensive numbers from 2013” and we’d be pretty happy. It’s just those inexplicable moments that bug us. Like 95% of the UF game, and the final 3 quarters of a game against the NATS that never should have gone to OT.

              Like

        • So. IL Dawg

          Nebraska hasn’t won anything under Pelini. He’s also an ass in public. I’m surprised he’s made it this long. Remember, the Big Slow is way down and Nebraska couldn’t get it done. I know we’re hurting right now; but CMR has taken UGA to another level. Our expectations have been raised because of him. Please don’t put CMR in the same category as Pelini.

          Like

          • Macallanlover

            I don’t think many do, Pelini was an obnoxious jerk who achieved average results in a weal environment. No comparison, just surprised that Nebraska tolerated him that long. A better example is them getting rid of (Stolich sp?) and ending up with Callahan. Nebraska is a great traditional program with one of my favorite fan bases, if I were them I would support a change, and would have before now. Good luck to them.

            Along with Florida, Nebraska,probably Michigan, and a few more yet to come it will start the dominoes falling as coaches start moving. Muschamp could already be in line for the DC spot at A&M, SC, and Auburn.

            Like

            • Mayor

              I’m not sure Muschamp won’t get a call for another HC gig although not likely a top program. That said, DC at a major program that wins would rehabilitate him for another major college HC position somewhere in the next 3-4 years and is more likely. I’m betting on South Carolina. Auburn…. been there, done that.

              Like

          • Will (the other one)

            He did make it to the Big 10 title game one year…then gave up 70 points and 500+ rushing yards to a 7-5 Wisconsin team.

            So no, I don’t quite think the two are alike.

            Like

      • Scott W.

        No I’m not. As stated above if CMR were to step down no one in B-M would be cutting a check to any hot coaching prospects (which is a pool of none) and Bobo would be taking over.

        Like

    • Tronan

      A lot of the criticism isn’t knee-jerk. Many people have consistently been calling for Richt’s head for the past several seasons. Personally, I’m ambivalent. I’d like to see better results – ideally from Richt. But, I’m skeptical he and, by extension, the program are going to turn the corner. After 14 years, there’s just too much evidence to the contrary.

      However, I have no idea who’d replace Richt, nor do I have much confidence in the administration to make a better hire. Not that we as fans (unless we donate 7+ figures a year to the AA) have any say in the matter.

      Like

  3. Granthams replacement

    Jim Harbaugh

    Like

    • Scott W.

      You’re out of your damn mind.

      Like

    • He makes, what, $5 million a year with the 49ers? Yeah, I can see McGarity stroking the kind of check it would take to get him.

      Like

      • Granthams replacement

        He won’t make 5 million with the 49ers next year. Your right , bobo will be much cheaper and a good puppet

        Like

        • If so, there will be plenty of other NFL teams and college programs prepared to pay him a lot more than UGA would.

          Like

          • Granthams replacement

            Sadly yes. We can only hope Richt continues moving forward at a faster pace with list from your post outback bowl loss

            Like

          • I think Patterson from TCU might be the best candidate if the position for HC at UGA ever came open. Obviously, he can recruit some great players and he consistently wins games he should win and beats some teams he shouldn’t….sounds like we want those kinds of results here!

            Like

          • gastr1

            He wouldn’t come anyway. The guy clearly has his preferences about where he wants to coach. You’d have to hear some interest from him before you start believing.

            He should be a college coach, though. That way he can only piss off players for so long before they have to leave the program.

            Like

      • Mayor

        That plus McGarity and the B-M crowd would not want to have to deal with a guy like Harbaugh who is a win-at-all-costs guy who would DEMAND that they get behind the program full throttle. Nope, those B-M boys want somebody who will cow-tow to THEM. After all, that’s the Georgia Way.

        Like

        • Granthams replacement

          Imagine Chubb running the ball in an offense like Harbaugh had at Stanford. Might be worth an extra 2 million a year based on the return on investment bama got with Saban. Too bad it will never happen

          Like

        • Ain’t that the truth

          Like

          • RocketDawg

            Because Chubb was hamstrung by Bobo’s scheme to the tune of almost 1,200 yards?? WTF????

            Like

            • Dawgfan Will

              See, I want to listen reasonably to what their detractors say, but every time one of them complains/wishes about something that is not really a problem now, I don’t know how to take them seriously.

              Like

    • So. IL Dawg

      If he’s going to step into the college ranks, it’s Michigan and no one else. they would stroke a check for more than he’s making with the niners.

      Like

      • Mayor

        I don’t see Jim Harbaugh going back to Michigan. There are systemic problems in Ann Arbor that can’t be fixed simply by a coaching change and Harbaugh is too smart for that. I do see Harbaugh leaving the Niners after this season, though. People forget that Jim Harbaugh is a Bay Area guy through and through. He played football for and graduated from Palo Alto High School. I think he’s going to be the next HC of the Raiders after extracting concessions from Raiders’ management that would give him complete control of all football operations. Alternatively, he could wait on the Stanford job to open up again, which it will in about another year or so.

        Like

  4. Ginny

    First of all, Richt ain’t going anywhere. In fact, he probably have to have more than one losing season to get canned. So he is our coach for the foreseeable future. When we talk about these kind of things, all I can think about is all of the other schools that have lost ball games this year and whether or not they should fire their coach. Because if we’re honest, this is the same discussion that many other successful programs are asking every year. Why? Because it’s damn hard to go undefeated. So, should LSU fire Les Miles? Talk about inexplicable losses. They we’re shut out by Arkansas. Should Miss St fire Dan Mullen? Thy just watched their dream season go up in flames by their biggest rival. Makes you wonder if they were really all that great to begin with. Should South Carolina fire Steve Spurrier? They got blown out against Clemson and barely made a bowl game. What about all of the other top ten teams that inexplicably lose to unranked teams every year? All I’m saying is that with the exception of Alabama, there isn’t another team that doesn’t have at least one or two head-scratching losses every year. That’s just college football. That said, if we ever decide to go the route of a different coach, this is my criteria:

    1. Represent my alma mater with class and honor. The most important thing and it ain’t even close.
    2. Keep us at least in the discussion for conference and national titles.
    3. Beat our biggest rivals more than they beat us.

    Like

    • Mayor

      Ginny, I appreciate your point of view but the losses you describe are not the same type of loses that Georgia suffers under Mark Richt. He repeatedly, over years, has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, by end-of-game decisions that boggle the mind. While he puts together skilled football teams he undermines those teams on gameday by bad decisions. Yesterday was just the latest in a long line. If Richt stays, someone else has to take over gameday decisions or we will be talking about the same things over and over in perpetuity. Maybe that’s the answer–let Richt run the program but remove him from making any decisions during games. I understand that Bama did that in the 1990s with Gene Stallings and it worked out well–they won a National Championship with him in a recruiting and program overall management role, but he made no decisions during games.

      Like

      • Erk

        So CMR told N Chubb & S Michael to fumble inside the 5 yard line, huh, i did not know that.

        Like

        • Macallanlover

          Mayor is off his meds again. Of course, we should fire him he lost, happens every single time, every loss going back to about 2006. Richt is an idiot, heard it right here on the internet today (again) by a Lounge Recliner Genius. I have resigned myself to 15% of the adult UGA fan base pushing this agenda relentlessly in an attempt to blame someone for everything that doesn’t go their way. It is a crutch, like putting pins in dolls, or punching a bag. If it weren’t him it would be one of the names they throw out, if they ever cam to Athens. Just like most fans always want the backup QB, UGA has fans that always blame the HC.

          Good post Ginny, your logic is out of synch with some but much appreciated by others. It doesn’t matter to them about anything but the titles, as if we all don’t want them too, and even that would not be enough if they didn’t come bi-annually. They somehow think UGA is entitled to that and nothing else will do. I suppose if we don’t all choose to be miserable along with them it is their mission to remind us why we should also dwell incessantly on every past flaw, to the exclusion of what is going well. If you believe “perfection or bust” you are doomed to this gloomy life. Worthy goal but not very balanced or realistic. I know there are some people who live their lives like that, I choose not to join them.

          Like

        • Mayor

          Well, since you brought it up, Chubb had just run a 65 yard sprint and was gassed. The Georgia coaches needed to get him out of the game and run the dive play for the TD with a fresh back. On the first TD attempt Chubb clearly was so tired he could barely get to the LOS much less score. Then they left him in again for the second TD attempt and he tried to jump over the pile but didn’t have the legs to get airborn. While he was trying to jump unsuccessfully, a defender hit the ball with the defender’s helmet and it came out. Look at the replay which will show this clearly. So, yes, the Chubb fumble is directly related to a bad coaching decision–that one is probably on Bobo though. The Michel fumble came as a result of him trying to extend the ball over the goal line a la Pig Howard and he lost control of it. A really bad idea. Just go out of bounds and score on the next play. Apparently the UGA coaches are teaching the backs to do that so, yes, that one is on the coaches, too, and since they wouldn’t be teaching that without Richt’s approval, yes that is on Richt himself..

          Like

          • Patrick

            This has to be sarcasm.
            If we’ve reached the point where giving the ball to your best running back on the 2-yard line on 2nd down is somehow a coaching error, we are no longer looking at it objectively.

            Like

            • Lakatos Intolerant

              Let’s go through every play – good and bad – and figure out which coach should be praised for good plays and reprimanded for bad ones! Ridiculous commentary.

              Like

          • Dawgwalker07

            I think those mind-control chips Richt had implanted in Michel’s and Chubb’s brains must have malfunctioned or something. Otherwise I have no explanation for their actions.

            Oh yeah! Other than they’re kids and try to do too much. This may come as a shock to you Mayor, but sometimes, just sometimes, people don’t listen to the coaches. Maybe they think they can do more than they actually can do and so instead of listening to what they’ve been told they cut a corner to try to get more done.

            But I guess since you’re in every meeting with the players and are at all the practices you can for sure tell us what the coaches are and aren’t teaching. -.-

            Color me unimpressed with your musings. I get that you don’t want like the coaching staff. Fine. But stop making ridiculous arguments so that you can blame EVERYTHING on them.

            Like

          • Dawgfan Will

            And if they had pulled Chubb, put in Michel, and the same thing happened, or we didn’t score anyway, every one who is micromanaging this decision would have complained just as vociferously that Richt is a buffoon for not leaving our best RB in after he’s had so much success on the series.

            Like

            • 79Dawg

              Exactly – if we’d kicked it deep and the Tech guy had run it back 105 for the win, the same idiots would be on here, Twitter, the call-in show, etc. bitching about how everyone knows our coverage team has sucked for years and we should have squibbed it, and Coach Richt would have to be apologizing for kicking it deep…

              Like

    • Otto

      Auburn doesn’t have at least 2 head scratching losses every year. Given what Mullen walked into at Miss St. he has done an amazing job. Miss St. was little brother in their state with a smaller budget than Vandy. Florida under SOS and Urban did not have unexpected losses every year. Les also has 2 BCS CG appearances.

      Like

      • Patrick

        You don’t think Malzahn had two head-scratching losses this year?

        Losing at home to a 3-5 SEC team that lost 59-0 to Bama, and then scoring only 7 points on a defense that gave up 38 points to Florida’s offense?
        Auburn fans absolutely consider those head-scratchers.
        You could also watch the last 30 seconds of the Iron Bowl first half if you want serious game clock mismanagement. 1st and goal from the 2 with 29 seconds left and a time out…and they got off ONE play before kicking a FG.

        UGA’s losses or questionable coaching moves are not more painful than anybody else’s. It only seems that way because they are the only games you are emotionally invested in.

        Like

      • sectionzalum

        if you are ready to trade right-and-wrong for a win, man the fuck up and say so. happy to grayshirt players? BE PROUD! endure a coach like urban fucking meyer for wins in exchange for disgrace? be a fucking man and admit it. if you have a candidate that fits the bill, say so. otherwise summon your children into the room by your spot on the couch and begin explaining why a little bit of whoring is ok if no one finds out, and tell your wife you are happy to fuck a hooter’s waitress on the side, because, you know, moral high ground. you semi-literate pigfucker.

        Like

        • @gatriguy

          Pump the brakes a bit. No one is advocating hiring an Urban Meyer or Bobby Petrino. But being afraid to hold Richt accountable because he’s a GCM™ is ludicrous. Tommy Bowden was a GCM™ too, but he was a mediocre game day coach, a la Richt. Nothing wrong with living in reality.

          Like

          • sectionzalum

            you are fucking high comparing Richt to Tater Tot. Tot got fired for fucking a secretary that was in the donor bloodline and for jetting off to James Taylor concerts before the end of practice. ignore that if it’s convenient. the only accountability I see that’s consistent is Richt’s. please, do fucking tell me the name of another coach of a top ten program, or an SEC program, that ditches uber-talented players fully understanding that the morally bankrupt shitheads at Auburn would take them in without giving a shit about the kid or right and wrong. if I had wanted to go to a school that is a living breathing example of moral disgrace, I would have gone to Auburn.

            Like

          • I’ve often compared MR to Tommy Bowden in my head as I have a number of diehard Clemson fans as good friends.

            Like

        • 1) Not kicking kids out of the program because they make mistakes. Teach them. Make them run stairs till they puke. But don’t give away great players.

          2) Stop testing for pot. For f*ck’s sake, it is legal in a couple states now. That ship has sailed.

          3) Stop being so overly proud of ourselves that we’re so wonderful and it is worth losing because we are nicer than the other guy. Being nice is fine, being proud of failure and justifying it because we are nice = doormat. You don’t have to choose between ethics and success. You can have both.

          4) “you semi-literate pigfucker.”

          lol. Calm down, bro.

          Like

          • sectionzalum

            to recap the Muckbeast Doctrine:

            let players use drugs that are illegal in Ga.

            keep kids who get popped for domestic violence.

            and 3rd-strike violation that’s bank fraud.

            overlook sexual assault.

            and just run kids that get pulled over for weapons and drug charges in a car they don’t own.

            stay classy.

            Like

            • sectionzalum doctrine:

              1) Eat paint chips.

              2) Have a mother and father who are also brother and sister.

              And yeah, kids smoking pot is none of the University’s business. There’s a reason we are one of the few programs who has such retardedly strict policies on this. Our AD is stupid as hell.

              I am actually becoming confident you are an Auburn fan just trolling here and hoping we will continue our brain dead policies that keep our program down.

              Like

          • Dawgfan Will

            I think you would have to take numbers 1 and 2 up with the athletic department and the state legislation respectively. I don’t see how you can lay either of these at Richt’s feet.

            Like

      • sectionzalum

        Higher Ground! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

        Like

    • sectionzalum

      Amen, and Amen, and Amen.

      Like

    • sectionzalum

      “Represent my alma mater with class and honor. The most important thing and it ain’t even close. ”

      AMEN

      Like

      • Biggus Dickus

        Son, you have serious mental problems. Seek treatment immediately for your own good and the health and well-being of those around you. Get a grip on yourself. Please.

        Like

    • Debby Balcer

      +1

      Like

  5. There are a lot of Wills in these comments and here's another

    Interesting note: our Big [whatever] alter egos, Nebraska, just canned Pelini, their semi-reliable stolid mainstay of a head coach, who was renowned for his ability to have decent but ultimately disappointing seasons.

    Will be interesting to see what happens to them over the next few years. Will probably be ugly but, hey, you never know I guess.

    Like

    • PTC DAWG

      I thought Bo asked for it…

      Like

    • Will (the other one)

      Well, they fired Solich after good but disappointing results, and then later gave up 70 points to Kansas. So it certainly didn’t work out the last time.

      The success rate on replacing coaches is probably around 30% or so. Sure, Bama fans love Saban (who was barely over .500 and lost to Louisiana-Monroe his first year), but to get to him they had to go through a lot of crap. UF has Meyer post-SOS, but also Zook, Muschamp, and is now stuck having to sell the excitement of another ex-Bama coordinator (McElwain) or Dabo Swinney.

      Like

  6. DugLite

    I think CMR is a fine man and a good coach for UGA. I believe any successor will have the same if not less success than CMR. It all starts and stops with the complete support from the president of UGA and the UGAA.

    Like

  7. PTC DAWG

    Your first paragraph is SPOT ON.

    Like

  8. Bulldog Joe

    Coach Richt has three more seasons on his $3.2M contract. There is no way the UGA Foundation, I mean the athletic association, willingly parts with that kind of money and takes on the costs of acquiring a new staff. A simple $1M indoor practice facility is beyond their appetite right now.

    If winning is important to UGA, the solution is to remove the off-field policies which put us at a competitive disadvantage, build the indoor practice facility, and lessen the fund-raising and non-football time commitments from the coaching staff.

    Like

    • PTC DAWG

      On what planet can you build a suitable IPF for 1 Million US dollars?

      Like

      • Bulldog Joe

        Sorry for the typo. A simple $1M for an indoor practice facility is beyond their appetite right now.

        I understand $400k for a design is the only commitment they made. No property acquisition or decision, no commitment for a bidding process, just a design. I am not an expert on construction, but this does not sound like a solid near-term commitment.

        Other programs are turning these projects into $20M+ recruiting palaces. Damon already built one of those, but without a fully functional indoor practice area. We don’t need to break the bank on the facility, just make the commitment.

        Like

    • Bulldawg165

      “If winning is important to UGA, the solution is to remove the off-field policies which put us at a competitive disadvantage”

      With all due respect, which off-field policies causes what we witnessed against Florida and Georgia tech this year? Or every other bed wetting over the past decade that occurred while no players were suspended?

      Like

      • Mayor

        165, I think BJ has a point. The fact that some of our very best players get suspended or removed from the team due to infractions that would be considered minor or not even considered to be infractions at other SEC schools DOES put the Georgia team at a competitive disadvantage. Part of the reason that Georgia seems to be always short of scholarship players, particularly at certain spots (DB this year, RB in previous years, OL seemingly every year) is that Richt keeps kicking guys off the team or suspending them. Let’s stop that. I’m not saying quit disciplining players. But it ought to be internal, like running the stadium steps–that sort of thing. Keeping them out of games is self-defeating, IMHO. And for goodness sake, stop testing players for marijuana–particularly the first day back from spring break–when there is no such testing required by the SEC or NCAA and nobody else does it!!

        Like

      • Bulldog Joe

        All three losses this year can be traced to depth on defense. Georgia signed the smallest classes in the conference in 2010, 2011, and 2014, a very large class in 2013, and a mid-tier class in 2012..

        We dismissed four projected starters from the defense during the off-season and had to rely on inexperienced players and longer rotations to compensate for it.

        We suspended our best player for four key conference games, including the Florida loss. He was injured on a non-contact play after the long time off. I don’t want to beat the dead horse on Georgia’s voluntary suspension, other than to say it worked out well for only the NCAA and our competitors. 20/20 hindsight I know, but we’ve seen how well our policies have worked out previously with AJ Green, Jack Bauerle, and other cases.

        Specifically, our recruiting, disciplinary, media, and NCAA policies should be reviewed from a competitor’s viewpoint.

        Like

  9. McGarrity does not have the stones to make any moves except maybe for a special teams coach. Richt will retire to do mission work one day( which is great) , but his ego won’t let him until he goes out on top….

    Like

  10. Scott W.

    All of those calling for CMR to be fired, need to take a long hard look at the program and realize what it is. It’s a highly profitable, not very good program and it’s going to stay that way.

    Like

    • Justin

      Minor quibble… UGA is a highly profitable, pretty good team. 9 wins a year is doable, and 10-11 wins is the ceiling.

      And why not: A FRIGGIN POOCH KICK?!? AAAAARRRRGGGGHH!!

      Like

  11. Dave

    Who are the “usual quarters”?

    Like

  12. MikeInValdosta

    If the job were open today, and Mark Richt had been at another large school the last 14 years with the same resume, he would be at the top of the UGA wish list. McGarrity is not about to rock this boat. The Reserve Fund!

    Like

  13. I hear Phil Fulmer and Gene (I can’t spell his last name) are still available.Come think of it so is Will Muschamp. If we really want to please the reactionaries,we could bring in Lane Kiffin. Hell Dooley is still alive …why not Jim Donnan or Ray Goff because we all know the program was so much better under them…o wait …never mind. I suspect Kevin Sumlin will be available shortly. Let’s hire Steve Spurrier away from Usc and let him become our agent Muschamp. If we just want to satisfy the total reactionary morons that continually react by saying “Fire Bobo/Grantham/Richt the moment would dictate that we hire Paul Johnson(his contract has not been renewed and he’s cheap). Scott W is right if we fire CMR it will be like Obama trying to find a replacement for the Sec. of Defense ,no competent or sane person wants the job and ,likewise, no Coach will want the UGA job. An 86% winning percentage against your in-state rival ain’t all that bad.Take a deep breath people.

    Like

    • Biggus Rickus

      Yes, because Lane Kiffin is everyone’s dream hire. There’s probably someone out there that the administration would hire who could outperform Richt. I don’t know who he is, and they may hire someone worse than Richt. Maybe the program will enter a down period, but we have gone a decade without an SEC title now. I expect we’ll go another decade if Richt keeps coaching. I’m willing to risk it.

      Like

      • you’re not answering the Senator’s question….WHO? Fulmer?Johnson?WHO?

        Like

        • Biggus Rickus

          Fuck off. I don’t know who would be better. Anyone you hire is a crap shoot, unless you hire someone like Harbaugh, which is a pipe dream.

          Like

          • NIce retort…Fuck off…can I quote you?

            Like

            • Biggus Rickus

              Please do. It’s a perfect retort to the loaded question of who would better. Either we throw out names that everyone knows wouldn’t be hired, or we take wild guesses about which coordinators or head coaches at smaller programs would be better. Nobody knows the answer to the question. All I know is that with the talent in the state of Georgia and the resources at their disposal, a different head coach could improve on Richt’s results.

              Like

              • 81Dog

                I think you kind of made the Senator’s point for him, which is: all you geniuses who want “change” have no idea or plan that would actually have a prayer of making things better. You’re like a 4 year old pitching a tantrum because he doesn’t want to take a nap. All fury, no brains. Impressive.

                Oh, and you’re an asshole to boot. Well played, though.

                Like

                • Biggus Rickus

                  The plan is to take a chance on hiring a coach better than Richt, while acknowledging that they could hire a worse one. You guys are fine with things as they are or have faith that Richt will eventually win something again for some reason. That’s fine, but it is not irrational to disagree with you.

                  Like

                • 81Dog

                  that isn’t a plan. That’s a pipe dream. You aren’t irrational for having an opinion that UGA can do better (you aren’t necessarily rational if you have that opinion, but let’s assume you could be). You’re irrational because you think all we have to do is fire our current head coach and a new, better one will magically appear.

                  Like

                • Biggus Rickus

                  I am not responsible for hiring a new coach. Who gives a shit what specifically I would plan? They’d interview people and try to find the best coach in their estimation for the money they’re willing to offer. He may end up doing better than Richt or he may not. There’s nothing magical about it.

                  What you are asking us to do is the equivalent of us asking you people who think Richt will win to specify what changes he will implement to keep the meltdown games from happening.

                  Like

                • 81Dog

                  @br @6:24: Your second sentence makes an excellent point, one which I not only can’t refute, but with which I wholeheartedly agree. I assume it’s a rhetorical question, because the answer is obvious. Nobody gives a shit what you would specifically plan. This (and I grant you, you may not have thought this part all the way through) is because you’re clearly not too bright. I should know better than to argue with idiots. Guys like you drag people down to your level, and then beat them with experience.

                  Like

                • Biggus Rickus

                  Sick burn, bro.

                  Like

                • Why do we have to have a plan?

                  We’re just fans and alumni.

                  They make millions of dollars a year – each – to guide the program to championships.

                  THEY are the ones being paid to find the coaches that can win titles.

                  Like

                • 81Dog

                  You don’t have a plan. You don’t even have a suggestion. You just have complaints. And no matter who they fire, or who they hire, you’re always going to be unhappy until someone manages to go undefeated. Except that year, you’ll be bitching because someone scored on us, or we didn’t win impressively enough to meet your apparently very high expectations. I would be willing to bet not a single one of the crybabies on here has coached so much as a single play at a D1 school, and also that none of you are near as good at your day jobs (should you have one) as CMR has been at his the last 14 years.

                  But hey, you’re demanding excellence, so have at it.

                  Like

                • Charles

                  Boom. +1000

                  Like

                • Actually at this point I’d be mildly happy to win the weak ass division. Winning an SEC championship would be nice too. We get it. You love MR. Good stuff because he’ll probably be here for awhile.

                  I don’t insult people personally for having a different opinion than mine but I think it’s a bit odd to accept mediocrity because you’re worried about being less than mediocre. I can guarantee that there’s a coach out there that could do better with the talent MR has access to but you never find out until you start looking at options.

                  Like

                • 81Dog

                  Me. personally, I don’t insult people for having a different opinion than me. I insult them for saying stupid things, and then following that up by throwing out stupid shit like “you just accept mediocrity.” 9-3 isn’t championship material, but it’s not “mediocre.” Mediocre would be 6-6, 7-5, 5-7, wouldn’t it? I’d be more impressed, or at least, less likely to fire back, if any of you refusing to accept mediocrity geniuses actually had a clue about what should come next, other than “hey, that’s what our cheapskate mediocre AD who I have no confidence in gets paid to figure out.” That sounds like a recipe for greatness if I ever saw one.

                  Like

            • Biggus Dickus

              Eat shit. That my retort, too. And yes, you can quote me.

              Like

          • Harbaugh has been a nightmare for anyone who has hired him.

            Like

  14. SouthGaDawg

    I’m in the camp of. “If Richt is fired, what is a better option?” After the pooch kick yesterday, I’m not a big Richt fan today although I don’t see any better options out there. I think there are scenarios that Bobo leaves to be a head coach or an OC somewhere else. Sometimes you have to move from a situation before you can come back to the situation (ie if he want to be the head coach at Ga one day). What if Les Went to Michigan – Kirby went to LSU as HC – Bobo follows Kirby to LSU as OC? I don’t think its that far out of the possibilities. I do think there are unexpected changes coming in some shape of form in Athens.

    Like

    • Dawgwalker07

      I don’t see any scenario where Bobo takes a lateral move away from his alma mater. If he leaves he’s going to be a HC somewhere.

      Like

  15. Hogbody Spradlin

    Hey Blutarsky: You’re a jock sniffer. 😉

    Like

  16. I have never, never been on the fire CMR bandwagon. Never. Our 3 loses this year push me to that edge. But, this morning I have gathered myself!

    Yet, I pose this question to all of you who are more knowledge than I, a mere girl, who obviously never played a down of “real football”(sarcasm intended). Most guys who blog regularly never played beyond high school. Yeah, football is so complicated no one who did not play pop warner & high school ballcould possibly understand it(again sarcasm intended)!

    So, here is my question, if we don’t move on, where do we, especially those of us who graduated form this beloved institution, who contribute each year, just to be able to buy our tickets, find solutions to the total meltdown in our biggest games? Where do we impact change? How do we fix the total cluster-F!@# of inconsistent play in these games? Other teams have struggles, other teams have problems, that does not concern me. What does concern me is when someone does not listen. Do something. Hire a freaking special teams coach for Gawd’s sake! Seriously, Tech had run a kick-off back zero, yes zero times this year for a touchdown. 18 seconds and no time outs. Really, no excuse for that call. None. Dear God, how many times do we have to see Hicks out there looking like he does not have a clue? He is a great kid, but he needs coaching up. Period.

    I am not one of those numb-nuts who believes only fired-up coaches win. I see guys who are fired-up win and some lose. But is is not acceptable for The University of Georgia to crap their pants in almost every big contest. One of the biggest things in sports is this: You gotta hate losing more than you enjoy winning. Yeah, it was Nick Saban who once admitted that on camera. I want my school to win another Championship before I die. Period.
    If you can prove it to me, prove it, that UGA does not recruit some of the best players in the country, then prove it. Yes, Alabama is number 1, but it is not like UGA in 15th, or 20th?

    Finally, I am glad than CMR cares for these young men, and that he is concerned for their lives. It does matter. Yet, do you think anyone is still talking about the total lack of character showed by Jimbo and the Seminoles? No, the chatter about how noble UGA was during the investigation is over, while Winston continues to play, with his 4000 sequentially numbered items on ebay.

    So, sorry for the long rant. I rarely, if ever post. I want us to win a championship. I am tired of being the poster child for inconsistent play, and being punished for the selfish acts of players. I understand all of the points made in earlier posts, but the reason that McGarrity won’t pull the trigger or make demands, or even start thinking about what has to be done, is because we, the donors don’t pitch a crazy fit. We have become complacent and continuously write articles and posts that uphold losing the big ones. If there is a middle ground, if we can win the big ones without firing CMR, then tell me how we get better? I definitely want/need to hear the proposed solutions.

    Like

    • Nice long rant but again the real question goes unanswered. Are you suggesting the only that the two coaches you named in your post would be good replacements…Jimbo Fisher and Saban…that’s good plan(sarcasm intended) WHO?

      Like

      • Why do you think it is mere fans job to know who to hire? It isn’t. That’s the UGAAA’s job.

        As fans, all we can do is notice that 14 years and no title is a failure.

        We can diagnose the problem, but it isn’t our duty – nor are we paid to – solve it.

        Like

      • South FL Dawg

        She said she wasn’t on the Fire Richt bandwagon; she is just asking what else can be done. It’s telling that even the people who support Richt are getting antsy. And Richt provided some talking points yesterday.

        Like

    • Take a couple years off from contributing.

      Save that money. Put it in a little savings account or something.

      Then, when the asshats in BM die and maybe someone who cares more about winning+money than money+money+money, we might go to a title game.

      Bust open that savings account to pay for your trip to the national championship game.

      Like

  17. Turd Ferguson

    I think you could be interpreted as asking two very different questions at once:

    (A) What would their priorities be?
    (B) What should their priorities be?

    I don’t give two squirts of piss about (A). As I’ve said before, I have no confidence at all that UGA’s athletic department would handle a hire like this well. Maybe they’d accidentally hire the next Nick Saban. Or maybe they’d hire the next Derek Dooley. Hell if I know.

    Thankfully, answering (A) is not any kind of prerequisite for discussing whether or not Mark Richt ought to be Georgia’s head football coach.

    Like

  18. Turd Ferguson

    I’d also like to point out that there is a difference between calling for Mark Richt to be fired, and simply wondering aloud if he’s the right man for the job. Some commenters immediately assume that anyone who dares even raise the question is thereby calling for Richt to be fired … and then, missing their own ass for a hole in the ground, they call us “reactionary.”

    Like

  19. dudemankind

    You asked, so this is my opinion of what they need, and if #3 pisses anyone off, then that is just tough.
    1. The replacement should already be, or have been a college head coach with a deep resume of work with other successful programs.
    2. He should be familiar with the SEC, and the southeast recruiting trail.
    3. He cannot run the program based around his religious beliefs.

    Like

    • Appreciate the response, and, no, #3 doesn’t piss me off. While B-M may not call it religion, however, it’s going to want someone who’s willing to live with the drug and crime punishment protocols in place. So I think your list is a non-starter.

      Like

      • Mayor

        Maybe the B-M people behind the “drug and crime punishment protocols” you described above are the ones who really need to go. We’ve discussed this before. CMR is a symptom. B-M is the disease.

        Like

      • Will (the other one)

        That still doesn’t disqualify Gene Chizick, who did institute a curfew at the ‘Barn his final season there….

        Like

    • FarmerDawg

      Sounds like you want to hire Phil Fulmer.

      Like

    • Ant123

      I don’t see how he runs the program around his religious belies. He runs his life around them but not the program.
      Are you saying that anyone with sincere religious beliefs can’t be a major college head coach? Are you saying that his beliefs cause him to be not concerned enough about not losing? Or are you just really unhappy that with him the ends don’t justify the means?

      Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      Number 3 doesn’t piss me off; it’s just a dead horse that no one can support with actual evidence because it doesn’t exist except in their minds.

      Like

  20. Flukebucket

    I was 22 years old when Georgia won the National Championship in 1980. Honest to God guys, it does not change your life that much. The taste of shit the pooch kick left in my mouth yesterday will far outlive the taste of honey the 1980 championship left. College football is big business and Coach Mark Richt sees it as such. He will be the coach as long as he wants to be the coach. I hope he wants to be the coach until he wins a National Championship because that means eventually he will. And even in that glorious year when we win it all there will still have been at least one game where the entire universe is left thinking WTF?

    Like

    • I’m with ya, Fluke. My pickup died in an accident in ’86 and I didn’t bother to get the “1980 National Champions” tag off the front bumper.

      My son-in-law is an Alabama grad and his anxiety level about staying on top every season, is enough to kill this old man.

      My last words are these. I wouldn’t want Meyer, Fisher or anyone of their ilk to ever coach at UGA, regardless of how many championships they may bring.

      Like

  21. Otto

    First off the people at B-M have acted very well to protect their interests. The program is profitable, has not done anything to give the program a major black eye in the perception of their supporters, and their coach has won enough to keep the ticket holders buying tickets. Richt will coach next year and will be coaching again going into 2016 unless he decides to leave. McGarity will not act rashly risking his job to pursue more wins.

    I disagree that we as fans have no say. UGA has a culture of following the admin which is helped by the season ticket holders. My family had season tickets while Goff was the HC and we made all of the home games. During that time we watched some people give up tickets in disgust. Since that time we have talked to people who did this and I are still trying to work their way up to acquiring seats that were as good as they had. I have to hand it to B-M here, ticket holders do not want to give up their seats because they want better ones, and sooner or later the magical season will happen just as it did for Mack Brown at Texas. I think the fans should be more active cutting donations, purchases, attendance, and public criticism. Even when Richt gets his title, I will believe that UGA should have had more had the fans demanded more.

    I disagree with many things out of B-M from a drug policy that makes the program look like it has more of a program than other teams… handling internally is not the same as no action, and it doesn’t give the press a headline. The Richt loyalists believe the Richt makes better men. I’m not sure he does a better job of this than other HCs. If he did why does UGA have so many arrests? And why do former UGA players not get in trouble at other SEC programs? He strikes me as the mother who shakes her finger but does not generate respect, which results in major punishment later down the road. Further he does not motivate players as a good HC should, the tweet from Wesizer quoting Jenkins that they thought Mizzou would be a pushover last year speaks volumes.

    Bobo is a decent game planner, and QBs coach, and a below average situational play caller. Bobo has made the wrong call at pivotal moments more often than he should and has not adapted to what he has and defenses give him quick enough. I still believe Strength and Conditioning is behind the rivals UGA needs to compete with. However, JoeT2 did improve the program mostly by being the coach that generates respect. If he is going to run strength and condition he needs more help which is up to date.
    In the end B-M will do nothing until forced which will take a strong outcry from the fans. The outcry will take 2-3 years of getting beat by rivals. I believe UGA has the resources, and in state talent to be a dominant team, get a national title every 5-7 years, and given the state of the east UGA should be going on 4 consecutive SECCG appearances. Georgia is 4th in producing talent and is the only program in the state that is regularly touted as top 15.

    Like

    • Mayor

      I agree with many of your points, Otto. Add this one: The UGA strength and conditioning program is doing something wrong about lower body conditioning and knees in particular. We have had too many players–STAR players–suffer ACL injuries in non-contact situations for there not to be something being done wrong. I suspect that they are doing too much dead lift type work and the interior of the knees are being strained and frayed just short of breaking. Then the breaking comes later when stress of a full speed cut happens. But I don’t really know. I do know that Gurley himself made the statement that he had been working extra hard on his legs in the gym with the UGA training staff during the time he was suspended and then…first game back look what happened. We need an expert, an orthopedic surgeon or specialist in sports medicine, to conduct some sort of analysis to determine the cause of this problem and eliminate it.

      Like

      • RocketDawg

        Stick with politics Mr Mayor. You obviously know nothing of how the human body works (although from your posts that must be the only thing you think you don’t know everything about). The ACL, MCL, PCL, or meniscus cannot be “strengthened” as they are connective tissues and not muscles. There are some protocols that are gaining traction in women’s soccer that suggest there are things that can be done to lessen the incidents of ligament tears. Strength and Conditioning has gotten light years better over the last few years. We didn’t lose any games this year because we weren’t strong enough or in good enough cardiovascular condition.

        Like

        • Will (the other one)

          Stanford’s S&C seems to have a far better handle on this. And while there are no exercises to strengthen ligaments, bone marrow broth/collagen supplements wouldn’t hurt if they were on the food court menu.

          Like

        • Mayor

          Apparently you do not understand plain English, RD. Reread my post above. The dopes in S&C at the football complex are doing something stupid training-wise that is hurting the connective tissues of the knees and the kids are tearing their ACLs in routine running/cutting. I said let’s get some experts to figure out what they are doing wrong. Are you against that?

          Like

          • RocketDawg

            Look dumbass, I was trying to be nice. ACL injuries just like anything else are largely chance incidents. We just happened to have a rash of them last year and 2 of them were on that cow pasture of a field at UT. The ACL is designed to limit the knee as it twists (otherwise the leg would go all the way around) what you saw last year on JSW’s was a classic “plant and give” type of injury. What we do or don’t do in S&C has little to no bearing on injuries of this type. Again don’t let the facts get in the way of a good “FIRE EVERYONE $&#*##(#(#(#)#)#)#)###&#@^@^#” rant.

            Idiots like you and most of the other morons on this blog make me ashamed to be a Georgia fan. You and Biggus seriously need to get a life.

            Like

      • Otto

        Thanks Mayor,

        Senator, I agree with many of your points with B-M, and I have plenty of more complaints but we can save that. B-M and likely some big money boosters are the problem, CMR’s record is just a symptom.

        Like

  22. ClydeBoogie

    Good Senator, a word with all your “Haters” if I may. Damn y’all…. All y’all

    Like

  23. anon

    The Senators favorite straw man. “who we going to hire”? well we don’t get paid to handle these questions but there are people in high paid positions that do. do we think so lowly of our football program that we don’t think we can do better…if that is the thought then we get what we deserve and this where we are now and forever will be.

    Like

    • IAmAGurleyMan

      +1,000,000

      People who believe in holding onto mediocrity because they’re afraid the AD is going to make a bad decision means their view on the state of the program is even darker than just having a mediocre head coach.

      “Oh no, UT hired clowns after Fulmer, so we have to hold onto Richt!!!” lmao. The classic false dilemma strawman logical fallacy trotted out there time and time again.

      Same with, “I don’t want a Jimbo FIsher, I want a guy who runs the program right.” I didn’t realize the only options are a saint like Mark Richt or a scumbag like Jimbo Fisher. As if there is no middle ground. lmao. The Disney Dawgs are a bunch of clowns.

      Like

    • LMAO. When has B-M done better, sport? Rattle me off that list of impressive hires McGarity’s made.

      Like it or not, Richt is one of the top hires Georgia’s managed in the last quarter century.

      What you’re saying is that Georgia will get a great hire if only we’d stop thinking badly about the way the football program is managed. Talk about blind optimism.

      What I love about bullshit like yours is that it’s easy to insult and criticize, but you really have nothing substantive to offer in response. That’s why I respect your commentary here so much.

      Like

      • IAmAGurleyMan

        I believe McGarity has hired precisely 0 football head coaches. Not quite sure where you’re coming from killing his football head coach track record. I think he’s been weak in that he’s been slow to pull to the trigger on Richt, but that doesn’t mean that I think he can’t hire a competent replacement when he does pull the trigger.

        Like

      • anon

        real ballsy of you ask “who you going to hire” on a blog to people (me and you included) who have zero experience or responsibility to hire a football coach….none of us have ever done it. but you don’t think a competent administrator has a secret folder somewhere on this? You don’t think a dozen agents would be calling with candidates who are qualified for the job? if you say none of them are qualified to hire over Richt then I guess I can agree with you and say Richt is our guy for now and forever.

        Like

        • It’s just as ballsy to sneer at people here the way you do for supporting Richt (or in my case, not calling for his head).

          And again I hear nothing of substance from you other than hoping the AD gets lucky.

          Yawn.

          Like

          • anon

            richt is our guy and I am so much smarter and well connected than all of you says the senator. what can I give you of substance when I have never hired a football coach? I watch the same BS calls and BS preparation that you do. You say we cant do better and I disagree. you cant prove there is no one out there better than richt no more than I can prove there is. stop with your stupid straw man argument (who is out there) to save richt. you are the one with your panties in a bunch when anyone has a different opinion

            Like

            • Like I said, all you’ve got are insults and blind hope. Nothing to take seriously.

              Like

              • IAmAGurleyMan

                What exactly is it that we can say that you can take seriously? No matter who we throw out there, you’ll say how “do you know he can do well at UGA?” Your argument is that because Vince Dooley screwed up and hired Ray Goff in 1989, and then Jim Donnan was a mediocre hire too, then we should stick with Mark Richt because he looks good by comparison to them. What a ridiculous argument.

                Why are you holding against Greg McGarity the crappy hires Vince Dooley made 18 and 25 years ago?

                Like

                • Dawgwalker07

                  I’m thinking the senator isn’t talking about football hires only. Which would make sense because his line of logic is that the internal culture of BM permeates all hiring decisions, and based on the lack of slam dunk hires in other sports you shouldn’t hedge your bets on them randomly knocking this one out of the park. BM is a cost-focused organization that cares a lot about looking good, preventing loss, and keeping the moral high ground. If you can’t filter a mental coaching search through those lenses then you’re always going to be disappointed in hires because that’s exactly how BM is going to do it. And saying, “Well that’s not how they should do it” may be true, but it’s reality.

                  So (my opinion) if you don’t like Richt and want him gone, you ought to keep in mind how the next guy is going to be found because it probably isn’t going to be how you would find them but you’re going to have to live with the results. If you want real change in the football program it starts with the Athletic Association.

                  Like

                • The issue isn’t McGarity. He isn’t king of the athletic department. He has a boss, Jere Morehead. Morehead answers to people, too.

                  The Goff hire is the perfect example of how B-M (not McGarity) could screw up a wet dream. Erk was the obvious choice to succeed Dooley, but the school fucked it up.

                  My argument isn’t close to how you’ve paraphrased it. But I’m not surprised. Because it’s easier than answering my question.

                  In the end, all you guys have is a hope that the administration wouldn’t screw the choice up, notwithstanding a long track record that indicates those odds aren’t good. And I don’t have a problem with your hoping. But that doesn’t entitle you to occupy the high moral ground over those who hope Richt will push the program where it needs to go.

                  Like

                • IAmAGurleyMan

                  Like Greg McGarity, Jere Morehead has hired precisely 0 football coaches. Again, you’re holding against him the actions that occurred under Adams and Knapp. Your logic is that because UGA has screwed up under different ADs and Presidents in the past, then we are obviously destined to fail again, so let’s stick with our B coach (who looks great when compared to his C-rated and F-rated predecessors) rather than have our administrators look for an A coach.

                  To answer your question, it’s not my job to find the right coach. I trust that McGarity, having worked 20 years in a Florida athletic department that craved success, has the wherewithal to make the right choice. I don’t care that Dooley was too much of a dope to make the right hires. But to make you happy, I would take Gary Patterson, Art Briles, Gary Andersen, Mark Helfrich, Rich Rodriguez, Dan Mullen, Gary Pinkel, and Bryan Harsin. But I’m sure you’ll piss on each one of these guys, so have at it.

                  Gary Andersen is a perfect example. He is a guy who was at Utah frigging State, and he has come into Wisconsin and done a great job. Just like Urban Meyer at little old Utah did at Florida. And if you don’t like any of the guys I listed, do you really think there isn’t a diamond in the rough at a smaller school, like Meyer and Andersen were, who couldn’t take this program to another level? I remember when LSU hired this decent coach from Michigan State – that turned out OK for them, I think.

                  Like

                • You seem to think things have changed at B-M with the new blood. Is that based on something concrete, or more wishful thinking?

                  BTW, I don’t have a problem with your list of coaches, except for Briles who’s too old, and Harsin, who’s unproven and never done any big time recruiting in the South. But you really think Georgia would spend the kind of money it would take to get any of them?

                  Like

        • Hogbody Spradlin

          Anon: do you really think that the chance of hiring a coach who would improve the winning percentage, compared to the risk of hiring a coach who will have an equal or worse record, is worth taking?

          Like

          • anon

            Hog: i saw someone post this stat earlier so i am not 100% certain “Georgia is 9 – 23 against ranked opponents since 2008” …but if correct, do you think this is acceptable?

            Like

            • Hogbody Spradlin

              With respects, I asked a question capable of a straightforward answer. I’m not trying to be cute or clever. If you have an answer state it and give reasons.

              Like

  24. sectionzalum

    I think the whole notion of firing Richt is absolutely absurd. Two freshmen tailbacks fumbled inside the 3. But even if we had totally laid an egg and lost by 20, I wouldn’t take Saban or anyone else over Richt.

    As for the program, I think it’s in great shape going forward. Stomaching a couple head-scratching losses when we’ve had a limited playbook because our QB isn’t as dynamic as we’ve grown accustomed to is worth enduring for the future when we have a talented coach and great recruiting from a man with unchallenged integrity. We endured 3 coaches when Dooley retired – Goff, Madon, and Barney Rubble – none of whom are in the same class as Richt as a coach, and none of whom share Richt’s commitment to player AND alumni-player support.

    I think the chances of Richt winning a national championship in the next 3-5 years are strong. I think the prospect of finding a coach to succeed as Richt’s replacement is less likely than McGarity hiring some mercenary who leaves with a shitty record and Harrick-like ethical challenges.

    Losing sucks. Eat some fucking crybaby salsa and get the fuck over it. I wouldn’t trade Richt for Saban or Jimbo Fisher if they could win 5 national championships in a row.

    Like

    • Otto

      UGA is a destination job, I would trade RIcht for Mullen assuming he is serious about passing on Florida or I would have traded for Cutcliffe 5 years ago. Saban is many things but he does not win Fulmer cups which Richt has done.

      Like

      • sectionzalum

        Mullen and his gimmick offense can kiss my ass. He lost to his rival as well.

        Like

        • Otto

          How many national titles have gimmick offenses won between Florida and Auburn? The forward pass was once a gimmick, as was the wing T, triple option, and the wishbone Dooley ran.

          Like

    • IAmAGurleyMan

      “I wouldn’t trade Richt for Saban”

      lmao. That’s why the guys at B-M have no incentive to get rid of Richt. Because clowns like you keep stroking checks for season tickets to reward consistent underachievement and buffoonery from CMR.

      “I think the chances of Richt winning a national championship in the next 3-5 years are strong.”

      On what exactly is that based other than your silly emotions? Yes, because CMR did so well while UF and UT have stunk the last 5 years and 7 years, respectively. So, naturally it makes sense that now CMR will put it together when UF is better in a few years after upgrading the coach and after UT is better in a few years now that CBJ has them on a solid path. lmao.

      Like

      • sectionzalum

        Laugh all you want. Saban is a shitty human being who treats players like livestock. If that’s your idea of integrity, move to Alabama.

        Like

        • Otto

          The players don’t see it that way, and he does create respect and men that don’t get arrested at the rate Richt does.

          Like

          • sectionzalum

            Emotional commitment to ignorance does not make that statement true.

            Like

            • Otto

              The same could be said for fans that support a program that can’t win the big game and the claim of better men is not reflected in the Fulmer cup.

              Like

            • Macallanlover

              Because sectionz, some actually think other SEC athletes are held to the same zero tolerance standard as UGA (only Kentucky does), and they also believe the campus and local police book those athletes for minor indiscretions like they do in Athens. Consequently, they are all angels and UGA is an out of control group of thugs. If you can believe in that like the Disney Dogs do, you can feel those coaches and athletes are superior. Simple, problem solved, next.

              Like

  25. Will Trane

    Fine man. Fire the coach. Knee-jerk reactions. Same old complainers after a loss. We hear those comments all the time.
    9-23 against ranked teams since “08. No SEC titles since 05.
    Now why is that Bama, and UF have those titles. Coaches and players.
    UGA does not have that resume. Neither does their current HC. But then again the big 3 mens program at UGA are subpar or mediocre at best. Why?
    Alums and supporters make an investment in those programs. For a fine man. So-so seasons, and maybe we will get lucky one year [when everyone
    elses program is down]. Missouri has been in the SEC and SECE 3 years, and now they have back to back East titles. But we have a fine man. But we do not have a return on our support.
    Right now. This day. Do you think Tech has better mens’ big 3 programs. I think they do, and damn I will not accept that. Why? This state is loaded with talented high school players. Think not. Go to some of the games. Because there are simply to many players leaving and going to other programs. Or CMR recruits them, get them on LOI, and then the attrition begins. Why has thise happened so much in the past few years. Why does his OC disappear for stretches and quarters in a game. And why in back to back season against 2 of your biggest, historical rivals, you come back take a lead and then in the blink of an eye [18 seconds] you give it away. Now there is a connection between coaches and coaches and coaches and players during that stretch. Can not let a player run free down the field on a pass route and a qb scrabble for 21 yards to put itself into a FG to tie a game.
    Fine line in winning and losing. Yesterday that was decisions thru out the game and in particular the squib kick.
    What I would do. Well, I would look at the game management and decision making in games. Second. Special teams would become more focused. I’d stop the player attrition. I would not free up a player after a transfer. Scholarship is based on performance.
    Coaches. I might revist my OC and staff. Maybe it is time to change. Where was the short and deep passing game this year. Lack of players. Yes. But that was the situation at RB. Why have 5 QBs and you only play one and never really those roster players. Down to 2 RBs on scholarship. Rest were injured or suspended for long periods of times and several games. Why give Marshall a medical redshirt? Gone for 2 seasons. They think he can come back. If so when and how productive. And it it worth it. After all they recruited a high school player who carried them most of the season. Are they telling you they can not recruit another? That would be like let’s squib kick it. Tech can not score.
    HC. Yeah. The one a Colorado State.
    Anything else.

    Like

    • sectionzalum

      Two years ago we were 3 yards away from playing Notre Dame for national championship. Be as selective with your facts as you care to be.

      Like

      • Scott W.

        5 yards

        Like

        • sectionzalum

          Forgiveness, please.

          Like

          • Mayor

            And CMR blew that game the same as he blew the game yesterday, only with a different bad decision. That’s the one thing that has been consistent during CMR’s tenure as HC at Georgia–end of game bad calls that snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Don’t get me wrong. I am NOT in favor of firing Mark Richt. He does a lot of things right and has a good winning percentage overall. I just want his end-of-game decisions that lose the game, when the TEAM has the game won, to stop. How to do that I’m not sure. We could have the AD shift end-of-game decisions to Bobo, but he’s just as bad as Richt about that. We could get the higher-ups in B-M to hire another assistant whose primary responsibility is to make clock management and end-of-game decisions–that’s a possibility, but CMR wouldn’t like it and might not go along with it. Maybe we shift those decisions to Pruitt but Pruitt wouldn’t want to do it because it would piss off CMR and Pruitt wouldn’t want that. I really don’t know the answer. But Richt doesn’t seem to learn from his mistakes–he just keeps on making them.

            Like

            • Dawgfan Will

              This is what frustrates me about those who constantly complain about his decision making. He gets conservative in one game, like yesterday, and it costs us the game. He lets it rip in another game, like the 2012 SECCG, and it costs us the game. No matter what he does, if we lose a close game, it’s because of his decision making and he needs to be fired.

              This argument is just as tiring as those who complain about us defending him.

              Like

              • Mayor

                Kicking a pooch kick-off in yesterday’s Tech end-of-game situation wasn’t “conservative”–it was stupid. And not spiking the ball with no timeouts and then the clock running out “wasn’t letting it rip”–it was stupid, too. The only thing those 2 situations have in common is the coach screwed up both times and Georgia lost both games. There have been plenty of others, too.

                Like

                • Mayor, agree with your points and your frustration re Richt’s perpetual end of game gaffes. What others seem to fail to appreciate is that there ARE objectively great coaching decisions and stupid coaching decisions which can be judged apart from the results of such decisions (i.e., a stupid decision may not end up hurting you or a great decision might not work out). Perhaps these fans just don’t know football well enough to independently understand what a good or bad coaching decision, so they assume others don’t know either and are simply mad at the bad result. Consequently, we have the particularly inane argument that “If he would have done the opposite and it didn’t work, you’d still be calling for his head….”

                  Yesterday’s pooch punt was an objectively bad coaching decision, plain and simple. Richt admits as much. Even if Tech throws an interception on the next play or the kicker misses the field goal or whatever happens to result in a Georgia win, it was STILL a shitty decision because it decreased our likelihood of winning the game. Yesterday, this poor decision was immediately followed by another strategic blunder in playing a deep prevent defense (7 players back 25 yards from the LOS after the play begins), although no one has yet acknowledged this strategic fuck-up. As you note, Richt has a fairly consistent history of 4th quarter, close game screw-ups that make our winning LESS likely and too often do cost us game(s). My wish is not to fire him, but for him to address this deficiency and propose a solution. Of course, I don’t expect this to happen b/c I’m afraid that these decisions are too tied up with a coach’s personality and instincts for them to relinquish control. And unfortunately for Georgia fans, Richt’s late, close game instincts suck.

                  Like

                • Dawgfan Will

                  Tomayto, tomahto.

                  Like

      • Otto

        …and Bobo and Richt couldn’t get a veteran QB on the same page to run a play. Piss poor preparation shows up under pressure

        Like

        • Macallanlover

          Wow, and that is what you think went down? I thought with all your grandiose ideas you actually were current on what happens in games and issues involving them. I apologize, we should give you time to catch up.

          Like

          • Mayor

            You’re so smart, Mac, why don’t YOU explain what “went down” yesterday that caused the team to lose that game. Please enlighten us.

            Like

            • Macallanlover

              In addition to other issues, your reading comprehension is awful too, the comment was about the 2012 SECCG, not yesterday. This mouth doesn’t even know the argument about that decision. much less have an informed viewpoint. Even your take on it, which you have continually obsessed over, is just a difference of opinion, you do realize it was a deliberate, decisive action, not a matter of not having thought of it. You never even give credence that there are two viable options, but I will acknowledge that, I just disagree with our opinion.

              But you are coming pretty loose now and acting like the other haters, you usually get your feet back but seem to have joined the bad guys this time. I don’t really care, there are so many pathetic negatrons here, one more won’t matter. Little late for it at your age but…..grow up man, you are too old to act this foolish.. You rant unmercifully over every loss.

              Like

        • Dawgfan Will

          Are you talking about the game-ending interception? The CB made a play. End of story. Read Emerson’s post-game interview with Hutson Mason.

          Like

  26. WarD Eagle

    Hoke, Pelini, Muschamp, Chizik, Bowden, Bowden, Kiffen, et al are probably available. Surely one of them would be a fantastic upgrade.

    I don’t get the Didn’t Win a Natty, Ain’t a Great Coach crowd.

    You guys have an incredible coach who occasionally loses big games. The reason they are big games is because you’re expected to win them. Not because of your name/history/etc., but because your program wins

    …BECAUSE YOU HAVE A GOOD COACH!

    College football isn’t about titles. It’s about individual games, rivalries, tailgating, your school, fun on a Saturday, traditions, and all the other trappings that aren’t the NFL (e.g., piped in music).

    If you want titles and playoffs the Falcons are waiting for your money.

    Like

    • Scorpio Jones, III

      “If you want titles and playoffs the Falcons are waiting for your money.”

      Ward, I would like to agree with you cause you are spot fucking on, but I am afraid I will lose my job.
      🙂

      Interesting thought that some folks can’t separate what they see on Sunday from what happens on Saturday…and hear about constantly all week.

      Reckon this is at the heart of the reason (s) Bear and Shug fought pro football so hard in Alabama? Food for thought, dude.

      Like

      • WarD Eagle

        I don’t know much about that history. I know some folks enjoyed the pro leagues, but there’s no way they could compete with AU and UA these days.

        The pro game is incredibly boring, too.

        Like

    • College football isn’t about titles.

      Wrong.

      Like

    • AusDawg85

      Dear Lord…you usually annoy me for the most obvious of reasons, and yet here you are with the most fundamental truth. Thank you WDE…sometimes our enemies know us best.

      We may now resume our regularly scheduled dislike. Scoreboard you cheatin’ bastards! Hahahahahaha. 😉

      Like

    • 81Dog

      it’s a sad day indeed when one of the most reasonable, thoughtful posts in a thread about UGA football is from an AU fan. Ward, I mean that as a compliment to you, truly. If anyone should be rubbing his hands in glee at the thought of UGA getting rid of Richt, it should be AU fans. That you would defend Richt, incredulous at the idea some UGA fans would have him canned, that has to be from the heart. I’m going to have to start being nicer to you, dude.

      Like

  27. 81Dog

    Some of you people need to start taking anti-anxiety meds. If you don’t like the way the team is being coached, or performs, here’s an idea: quit buying tickets. Nobody is making you write a check to the athletic department. If your opinion is as widely held as some of you seem to think, you’ll bring Greg McGarity to his knees, and they’ll beg you for answers to get your money back.

    Option number 2 is to relax. Unless you’re on the team or staff, it’s a game played by kids that has nothing to do with your actual life. It’s entertainment. If you don’t like George Clooney, you don’t go to his movies. Go bandwagon for a program that wins sufficiently frequently for your highly evolved tastes. Then, when they lose a game, you can bitch about them, too. Alabama hasn’t won an SEC title in several years. Maybe they should have canned Saban last year. He gacked up a win to AU on a bonehead play, didn’t get to Atlanta, and then mailed it in for the bowl game, which they lost by about 100.

    Option number 3? Go get yourself hired as an AD at a major university and show us all how smart you are. This probably wont work too well because you’re spectacularly unqualified and nobody with two working brain cells cares what you think about most anything.

    Option 4, franklly, seems like the most workable plan: for all the know it alls who can identify all the problems but have no clue what the solution is, just resign yourself to being miserable.

    Like

    • Scorpio Jones, III

      What he said. Thanks for the clarity of thought.

      Like

    • Macallanlover

      People go to Clooney movies? Dang.

      Like

    • Seriously man. You like Richt that’s obvious and you’re more than entitled to it. But enough with the “if anyone disagrees with you they are stupid or crazy” bullshit. If you want your opinion respected than perhaps learn some manners and show a bit of common courtesy to the opinions of others. If you can’t handle someone not being in lockstep with you than I’d humbly suggest it might be you that needs the meds.

      Like

      • 81Dog

        sounds like someone’s self esteem is threatened. I don’t recall taking any shots at you, but if you agree with the stupid people, I guess you can feel outraged, too. I don’t criticize people for disagreeing with me. I criticize them for boohooing about how awful UGA’s current situation is, with zero constructive ideas about how to get us to that unicorn filled land where we (apparently) never lose a game and just rake in the titles. That is, unless you count the “our AD is a penny pinching weasel who wont go hire a top flight candidate, but surely he will find someone better” idea as a “plan.”

        Try not to butt in when the grownups ate talking, son. You might learn something, or at least, not reveal yourself as a dumbass.

        Like

        • And you just made my point for me. Frankly I’d question the maturity of someone who has to insult people that don’t agree with them. Not sure where you can call me a dumbass for simply pointing out that you personally insult the intelligence, mental health, or maturity of anyone that doesn’t agree with you. So keep showing your ass and us grownups will rationally debate on this forum and shake their heads at your spoiled brat comments. Have a nice day. 🙂

          Like

  28. Q

    Huh, boy scout demeanor? Donnan came from Barry Switzer. That ain’t scout camp.

    Like

  29. They’re here. Keep your head down Bluto…
    😉

    Like

  30. Biggus Rickus

    You are only asking the question because you think you already know the answer. Any serious response will be criticized for being delusional, because you have already determined that the problem with the program is administrative and they will automatically do worse than Richt. You may be right. They may hire an absolutely terrible coach. I think I know what we can expect from Richt from here on out, and I don’t think it’s good enough. I would rather see if they can hire a better coach. Since Richt isn’t going anywhere, in part because his supporters outnumber us, I can only hope to be proven wrong.

    Like

    • I don’t know the answer. I hear a lot of criticism and insults from you guys, but little in the way of constructive suggestions as to how B-M might do things right.

      All I basically get in response is anybody might be better than Richt. That’s a helluva hiring approach.

      Like

      • Biggus Rickus

        I don’t work for the University of Georgia, and I have no idea what their criteria for a new coach will be. I expect they will be unwilling to back the truck up to anyone’s door, so that limits things to small school coaches and major program coordinators. At that point, you’re rolling the dice on any hire. The question is unanswerable. Personally, I think McElwain will be a very good head coach when he gets a shot on the big stage, but I have no idea whether or not I’m right about that.

        Like

        • Scorpio Jones, III

          “how B-M might do things right.”

          “Right” seems to be the essence of the disconnect between some percentage of the fan base and the administration.

          What many are questioning is whether their own idea of “right” matches the administration’s idea of “right”. “Right” for the administration appears to be the kind of football program that Mark Richt has built.

          While I understand the frustration of folks who want “more” I doubt there will be any sea-change in institutional philosophy to accommodate the “more” contingent.

          If Greg McGarity announced tomorrow morning that Mark Richt had resigned, I, personally, doubt this would indicate that Georgia had, suddenly, decided to be, institutionally, something other than what they are.

          Like

          • Biggus Rickus

            That is not the argument people are having. I don’t think many of us who think Richt SHOULD be fired think that he WILL be fired. The argument at this stage is between people who have no faith that Richt can fix things and those who think he can or the few who seem to think he doesn’t need to fix anything.

            Like

            • Macallanlover

              I think you are right about this, there are people who think CMR will be fired any day now, because they read the message boards and blogs and see all the loonies stating this critical need. And that is what feeds the crazies on the FBomb show that UGA is a program in chaos. It is bad that crazies on other programs laugh at the UGA crazies, imagine being ridiculed by FBomb callers. Today I saw someone here link an article from Bill Shanks as something he thought folks should read, and he was serious. That is like relying on that Rome guy who has a show on TV and has a hard-on for Richt. Yeah, there is a guy that I want telling me about what UGA’s program needs.

              Like

            • 81Dog

              Let me see if I can follow your logic (sic). You think Richt SHOULD be fired. You have no idea who the AD would replace him with, but you’re sure they aren’t willing to spend the cash to get a name HC or on the rise guy. You admit that it would be a “roll of the dice.” So, our current head coach is unacceptable, and you want to blow it all up and put your faith in a bunch of bean counting cheapskates who are almost guaranteed to hire someone who’s not a name or hot commodity. But in any event, you have no clue what they should be looking for, or who they should be looking at, beyond (apparently) he should be someone they can hire for peanuts.

              Well, that convinces me. What could possibly go wrong with a GENIUS plan like that?

              Like

              • Biggus Rickus

                Since you seem incapable of doing anything but insulting people, this is the last response I’ll leave you. What is your obsession with plans? If I was an administrator at Georgia I would try to hire the best coach available for whatever the market is asking. So I’d make a run at guys like Helfrich, Patterson or Briles. Those guys probably won’t leave their current jobs, so I’d next look at up and coming head coaches at smaller schools, such as McElwain. You could also look at retreads like Rich Rodriguez, but I don’t think that would be an improvement on the current regime. Those guys will almost certainly take the job for what I think the University is actually prepared to spend. Or you can look at coordinators you think are ready to make the step up. Thing is, even the guys like Helfrich, Patterson and Briles are not guarantees, because there are no guarantees. Saban was no sure thing when Alabama hired him. Miles was a major question mark when LSU brought him in. Muschamp was a hot commodity, and we’ve seen how he’s worked out at Florida. So you are rolling the dice no matter who you hire. It comes down to whether or not you’re okay with the status quo. I think Georgia could win more games if they made the right hire. There’s also a decent chance they’ll win fewer games by making the wrong one. I would like them to take the chance. You wouldn’t, and that’s fine. Now kindly go fuck yourself.

                Like

                • 81Dog

                  so your plan is “fire this guy, who wins a lot, so we can offer the job to guys who wont take it, but then maybe get lucky with some dude no one ever heard of.” I’m sure that as soon as that happened, guys like your would howl like hit dogs over the incompetence of our AD, and then the first time the new guy loses a game (should he ever lose one), you’ll be screaming for his head, too.

                  It’s easy to whine. My “obsession with plans:” is simple: that’s what grownups who are responsible have to come up with to be successful. Clearly, that’s over your head.

                  Like

          • Biggus Rickus

            As for the institutional philosophy, Richt does not lose games because of the institutional philosophy. He may keep his job forever because of that institutional philosophy, but that’s a separate argument.

            Like

            • Scorpio Jones, III

              I could make an argument that losing a game is sometimes a result of institutional philosophy…depth, for instance can be impacted by institutional ethos, and the place of football in that philosophy.

              Maybe this will clear the picture I see and have seen. At Bama, championship football is an important part of the institutional culture that championship level football makes the university as a whole better, more attractive, more productive in all aspects of university performance.

              At Georgia, it is my observation and that of others, that football is a part of the institutional culture that adds value to the whole.

              At Bama, the head football coach gets anything he needs to produce championship football teams…anything. But he better win, a lot and win championships.

              If Nick Saban thought he needed, for instance, an indoor practice facility, I hope no one doubts it would not take nearly 10 years to get one.

              Like

              • Biggus Rickus

                I think the comparisons to Alabama’s psycho culture are poor excuses for the continued failures by Richt and his staffs, but what’s the point of debating it? You and others like you won’t agree with me, and I won’t agree with you.

                Like

        • 81Dog

          that last clause pretty much describes your thought process on the football program. Stupid really IS as stupid does, isn’t it, Jethro?

          Like

          • Scorpio Jones, III

            If you mean the line about Saban and in indoor practice facility, it does not, to me anyway, mean that Bama is smarter than UGA, it just means that the priorities are different at Bama, as are the expectations and institutional priorities.

            And in case Bryant Denny is hiring cyber hit persons, I am NOT judging Bama at all, just observing what appear to be institutional priorities.

            Like

          • Biggus Rickus

            Yes, I allow that my opinion is fallible. Truly, I’m an idiot. Jethro? You people.

            Like

          • Mayor

            At least get your metaphors right when trying to insult people, 81. “Jethro” is from the Beverly Hillbillies. The “stupid is and stupid does” line is from Forrest Gump.

            Like

            • 81Dog

              You’re about as good a metaphor critic as you are a judge of football coaches, douchebag. I must have missed that section in the metaphor rule book where one is not allowed to combine stupidity metaphors in order to properly pay homage to the galactically stupid person one is addressing. When, as in this situation, one is faced with such abysmal, black hole quality brain voidness, merely throwing out an allusion to one stupid hero doesn’t seem adequate, n’est pas?

              you can put your troubled mind at ease, however. Not only am I aware that Forrest Gump and Jethro Bodine are not characters in the same work of fiction, I also know that between the two of us, you and I know all there is to know in the world. You know everything except that you are an insufferable douchebag, and I know that, so we have it covered.

              How bout that for trying to insult someone? Hopefully, that meets your criteria, but if not, I’m sure you’ll be happy to explain where I went wrong.

              Like

              • Mayor

                Thank you for the compliment. You say that I “know everything” except that I am “an insufferable douchebag.” I have known for years that I am an “insufferable douchebag.” And I certainly know it now because you told me. 🙂

                Like

                • 81Dog

                  well, heck. I guess you really DO know it all.Istand corrected, and humbled by your enlightenment. I’m hoping to achieve that sort of self awareness. Maybe I need to be more Zen-like. 😉

                  Like

        • He’s got a huge buyout at CSU, from what I understand.

          Rumor is that Florida is looking at him to succeed Boom.

          Like

          • Biggus Rickus

            Since I think he’ll be good, I hope they go with someone else. I kind of figured they’d end up having to settle for him after their short list of dream candidates turned it down since he fits their stated criteria.

            Like

      • Biggus Rickus

        Oh, I guess I should have said that I thought the criticisms of you and some others last night were unfair. I don’t agree with you on a variety of things, but I don’t think you’re a blind Richt apologist.

        Like

  31. Mike

    From year two;

    @Year2:

    Bo Pelini since 2008: 66-27, three CCG appearances (0-3).

    Mark Richt since 2008: 63-29, two CCG appearances (0-2).

    Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      I get this, I really do. The problem is, Pelini never actually “knocked the lid off the program” at Nebraska like Richt did here. That goes a long way with people like me, and that’s not going to change unless Richt has another losing season or embarrasses the school in some way.

      Like

    1. Represent the program (no public embarrassment a la Evans);
    2. Field a consistent winning team;
    3. Keep the program profitable (this might actually be No. 1).

    Hey, that means they’d want somebody just like Mark Richt.

    Like

    • Chuck

      Who among us wouldn’t agree with #1 and 3 above? Nobody really wants red in the program — either ink or panties.

      So let’s get down to it — the real issue is defining “a consistent winning team.” It seems that many of us believe that means something different to B-M than it does to us.

      I maintain that UGA should be in the SECC game 2 of every 5 years and win it 1 of the 2. One SECC every five years is a consistent winning program.

      Like

      • RocketDawg

        I don’t disagree with you Chuck. Unfortunately we have been playing against a stacked deck with the SEC West for the last 6-7 years. When you have LSU, Alabama, and Auburn (coincidentally the ONLY teams to win an SEC Championship since 2008) oversigning an extra class every 4 years along with the other shady shit that goes on over there you are automatically at a disadvantage. Not oversigning is not just a UGA thing either, none of the SEC East teams use creative roster management and that is why you have a year like this one where the West is so much better. The problem for us since ’05 has been the defense and I firmly believe that Pruitt is the man to fix it. As long as Bobo keeps putting up record setting numbers on offense and we can make a few stops on defense the championships (or at least the shot to play for them) will come around often.

        Like

        • Mayor

          Your point about SEC West teams oversigning as being the cause of the imbalance in the SEC is right on the money, RD. And I agree that Pruitt is exactly the guy to fix Georgia’s D.

          Like

  32. Farsider

    I think Richt is the quintessential Georgia coach. His presence illustrates the disconnect between a loud group of fans upset at bad losses & failure to compete for a NC and the powers that run the program. On the plus side, Richt represents the program admirably, never gets into big trouble with the NCAA….will get you 8 to 10 wins a season & almost always beats Tech. He beats the other big schools on his schedule (except UF & USC) more often than not. The downside is the extremely uneven performances since 2005. A lot of memorable wins and excruciating losses. Yet it would be difficult to make a case for his dismissal. I see some similarities with Dooley’s tenure at UGA; always competitive, sometimes very good, and seldom great. The big difference between the two IMO is that Dooley was usually perceived to be doing more with less; while the opposite is the case for Richt. Georgia’s population has doubled or tripled what it was in Dooley’s heyday, it’s now a prep hotbed. With UGA’s resources, and recruiting base, what should its expectations be? What should its fans expectations be?

    Like

    • Mayor

      No, Farsider. The biggest difference between Dooley and Richt is this: In a big game against a very good opponent Dooley’s team that would hang around, and hang around, and still hang around some more, then any one of a number of players (not always the same one) would do something heroic at the end that would win the game. Mark Richt’s team would be in a big game against a very good opponent and would hang around, and hang around, and still hang around some more, then any one of a number of players (not always the same player) would do something heroic to win the game–then Mark Richt would do something stupid and the team would lose the game. Time and time again.

      Like

      • 81Dog

        You must not have been around for the night Mike Shula took Alabama down the field in 3 plays for the winning score with under a minute left. Or the day David Treadwell beat us with a last second FG for Clemson. Or the day Tech beat us like we stole something in the rain as a double digit underdog in Athens without attempting a single forward pass. Or the time a shitty UVA team (sorry,Senator) shut us out as our homecoming opponent. Etc etc etc.

        I say this not because Coach Dooley wasn’t a great coach, because he was. I say this because know it alls like you would have been burning up the internet to fire him in 1974, had Al Gore invented it at that point. Dooley had his share of confounding losses and blown games (anyone remember the Dan Marino Sugar Bowl?), too. But hey, 25 years later, wow, he’s way better than the current guy. Never lost a close game! Never had a bad loss! Always pulled it out at the end!

        Read a book sometime.

        Like

        • Mayor

          I am aware of those games you mentioned above. In not a single one of them did CVD make a stupid decision at the end that cost Georgia the game like what happened yesterday. I saw the Georgia-Bama game where Shula took his team down the field in less than a minute to win. That was a great drive by Bama. It started with a “celebration” penalty after Georgia’s great drive that should have won the game. That game wasn’t lost by a coach’s stupid decision. It was won by great play of the opponent. But you wouldn’t know the difference.

          Like

          • 81Dog

            SO you don’t think the “prevent D” against Bama, or the decision to blitz Marino on 4th down, were stupid decisions?

            you could just as easily credit Tech’s QB for making a great play on the screamble that put them in FG range. I like how this game works!

            Like

      • Farsider

        Dude, I completely share your frustration. I think this program has the potential to be better than it is. I’ve stated before my belief that a “glass ceiling” has settled over the program since 2005. To me the program’s complacency at odd times coupled with an apparent lack of a sense of urgency are galling. Richt had a great window to do something special, but I fear that window may be closing. But all that said, I don’t think he needs firing……yet. I think firing Richt would be result in a Fulmeresque fiasco for UGA program. As frustrated as we both are with current state of affairs, I just do not think that’s the answer…….yet

        Like

  33. UGAAA top 3 priorities for a coaching hire:

    1) Money.
    2) Money.
    3) Cham… oops, sorry. Money.

    Like

  34. A10Penny

    Coach Richt won’t be fired, so I’ll modify the premise slightly to say I think it only happens under the following conditions:
    :
    1. Bill Belichek and/or Jim Harbaugh calls asking about the job.
    2. They offer to take the job for $5M or less.

    Like

  35. MikeInValdosta

    I bet Nebraska would love to have Richt, just as most Georgians.

    Like

    • The Lone Stranger

      And that is slightly ironic since Richt was born and lived some in Omaha. The more you look at it, CMR would fit right in there, stoically like the old icon Tom Osbourne.

      Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      Any school that doesn’t rhyme with talabama would snap Richt up within a month of the season’s end if we ever part ways with him. And the school that does rhyme with talabama would do it if they didn’t already have Saban. They did go after Rich Rodriguez first, after all.

      Like

    • Mayor

      Hey, if any school wanted to hire Richt it wouldn’t have to wait until he was unemployed. All they would have to do is just make him an offer. So if the Nebraska team “would love to have Richt” it only needs to have its AD pick up the phone.

      Like

      • Dawgfan Will

        This is territory that was trod long ago on these boards. Who has come after Saban since he was hired by Alabama? Who besides Michigan has come after Miles? Lack of offers doesn’t mean no one would be interested if the situation changed.

        Like

  36. This is a great thread. I would guess that the priorities of the athletic association would be influenced by, and ultimately revolve around what they see as being in the best interest of the athletic program in total…which remains greater than simply the football program. I would argue that there is no silver bullet answer here. Any choice would bring criticisms and hindsight rebuke. Going from the premise that the athletic association understands that, then firing Richt becomes a non-starter. He’s done a lot right for the program…this blog has seen its fair share of commentary about how the chips just missed falling UGA’s way. But if they did need a new hire, it would have to be one that insulated b-m from resulting criticism. That’s why I think the top 3 priorities would be:

    1) a marquee name with solid credentials that passed the sniff test as an “improvement.” This would mean no FCS coaches or relative unknowns.

    2) a credible reputation that doesn’t carry baggage or create perceived liability for the admins – that means coaches linked to any kind of scandals, shady dealings, or scooter accidents would be out.

    3) a price tag that is more than the current bill, but isn’t so much that thins the reserve fund – this assumes that the good of the athletic program in sum is more important than the football program by itself, but a hire that reduces the overall coaches salary would invite further criticism that B-M is unwilling to pay the price to win.

    Like

    • Scorpio Jones, III

      Well reasoned. This is also a very interesting time to be in the college football business. The whole playoff schmeer has already dramatically increased pressure on college athletic programs to win right by God now.

      Basically, if you are not in the final four, you are nothing. Some schools have already bowed to the pressure it would seem…Florida State I am looking at you.

      And don’t forget, the Boys of Butts-Mehre take the flack, but they don’t run the asylum. They are just hired help, you know?

      A former athletic director at Georgia once said his main job was to protect the president of the university from criticism of the football program.

      Like

  37. Ron

    Herm Edwards.

    Like

  38. Ron

    I keep reading comments that suggest Georgia is lucky to have Richt. Seriously? In what universe would a top tier university hire Richt? His resume serves as proof of concept. The only schools wantng richt are the ones still trying to right the ship our coming off a scandal. This much I can promise you…..the rest of the sec wants us to keep Richt.

    Like

    • Mayor

      Ron, I am not a Richt supporter but I cannot allow that to go unanswered. CMR has won 7 out of the last 9 against Auburn. He has a winning record against every SEC team, some dramatically so. SEC coaches would LOVE to see the guy leave the SEC. He beats them with regularity. My gripe with Richt is that he kicks away games that already are won which mean the difference between having a good season and having a championship season. If he would stop doing that I personally would kiss his ass and hoist him on my shoulders and parade down Peachtree Street at high noon.

      Like

      • Ron

        All it takes is asking a few rival fans and you’ll get your answer. He scares no one and they absolutely want him to stick around forever.

        Like

        • Dawgfan Will

          If we actually did fire Richt, we would be the laughingstock of this conference. The way that we talk about Tennessee and Florida right now? That’s what we’d get.

          Like

  39. Is it any surprise that our Athletic Department continues to make crappy decisions, when they didn’t even have the foresight to name their main building anything other than BM?

    Let’s just get it out there: THEY FLIPPING NAMED THEIR BUILDING BOWEL MOVEMENT.

    Why not Mehre-Butts even? I mean for christ sakes, these people are the keystone cops of stupidity and incompetence.

    Sorry if this comes off childish, but my god, these people are morons. We probably should be super duper happy we have Richt and crew, because the odds of those idiots doing better are slim and none.

    Like

  40. JWG
    1. Firing Richt would cause a bit of a PR storm, so I think the administration would want to make a big name hire (a hire the papers would respect) that…
    2. Wasn’t too expensive. By not too expensive I mean under $5M. I think you pretty much have to pay at least what Richt was getting to bring in a solid name, and although McGarity may have to swallow hard, the reality of the market forces his hand.
    3. I’m not sure they would be too concerned with a guy who didn’t like their drug policies. After all, the HC doesn’t really have a say about that, so if he wants the job he’ll STFU about drugs.
    4. They’ll want a guy they perceive as being able to win the recruiting wars, since they want to at least keep winning 9-10 games every year.

    To me, Mike Bobo, Kirby Smart (although he would probably push them on the salary), Jim McElwain, Josh McDaniels, Mark Stoops, and Jeremy Pruitt are likely hires in this scenario. McElwain may or may not ring the recruiting bell, but they would think his time at Alabama surely taught him something.

    In my opinion, the hire would be Bobo. I like Bobo a lot, so that wouldn’t bother me. In that case I would expect McClendon to be retained, so bonus.

    Like

    • @gatriguy

      I would also add Scott Frost and Tom Herman. Both young, energetic, smart coordinators (Herman is actually a Mensa.)

      Like

    • The Pruitt meme seems pretty amazing for a guy who has yet to produce a consistent defense (though in a very limited stint, and without his own recruits).. I mean, he may turn out to be the real thing, but how can you declare him to be a UGA HC finalist as of now?

      Like

      • Folks jizzed all over Grantham for a couple years also. Remember all the KTMFD chants?

        UGA fans (myself included) are a sad lot. We are so desperate for anything that gives us hope, we get overly excited whenever we see a glimmer of “maybe.”

        Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      Maybe it’s just me, but I really don’t see B-M going down the coordinator path, especially after a seeming sure-fire hit like Muschamp failed so spectacularly.

      Like

    • BMan

      Pruitt’s outspoken thoughts on the IPF are probably indicative of a quality that the powers that be will set as an avoidance factor if they had to look for a new coach. They want someone who isn’t going to be publicly at odds with the administration. I think that and a consistent winning program (9 regular season wins) are the overriding factors for the administration. They aren’t mine, but I think that’s what matters to them, as it keeps the money coming in and doesn’t impact where and how it gets divided up.

      Like

  41. W Cobb Dawg

    I don’t know who we should hire. 14 years ago UGA hired Mark Richt. At the time Saban and Pete Carroll had never won mnc’s, and hardly anyone heard of guys like corch or Brian Kelly or malzahn or Myles or Fisher. Jim Harbaugh was known primarily as an ex-QB. Like em or hate em, these coaches have adapted, improved, and challenged for national prominence.

    I personally believe Pruitt has the stuff to be a top coach and to a lesser extent I believe Bobo might too. They are NOT the SAME coaches they were as recently as a few years ago – they adapt and improve. The reason I place Pruitt further ahead of Bobo is because CJP has surrounded himself with capable assistants, and has been vocal about our facility and s&c deficiencies, whereas CMB has been ambivalent on those issues as far as I can tell. I’d have to give CJP slightly higher points on recruiting as well, since he’s been very effective in a short timeframe.

    Contrary to the self-improving coaches named above, Mark Richt hasn’t changed at all in 14 years. He doesn’t work to improve his deficiencies. Clock management, under recruiting, directional kicks, etc., are perpetual issues he stubbornly avoids fixing. He sure-as-shit hasn’t “reinvented” himself. The dumb ‘punt safe’ approach cost us wins as recently as last season. He got incredibly lucky with the Pruitt & co hires, and that’s the difference between last year’s 8-5 and this year’s 9-3.

    Like

    • This is an absolutely BRILLIANT point:

      I don’t know who we should hire. 14 years ago UGA hired Mark Richt. At the time Saban and Pete Carroll had never won mnc’s, and hardly anyone heard of guys like corch or Brian Kelly or malzahn or Myles or Fisher. Jim Harbaugh was known primarily as an ex-QB. Like em or hate em, these coaches have adapted, improved, and challenged for national prominence.

      Also:

      Coach Belichik was a scrub from Cleveland who never won anything on his own.

      That’s how long it has been since we hired CMR.

      Folks act like there is nobody out there who could bring titles to Georgia. That’s bullshit. The next brilliant uber coaches of 5-10 years from now are available now. We just need an AD who can find him/them.

      But that’s the real problem… UGAAA is trash. Absolute trash.

      As much as I blame CMR, CMB, etc. for various mistakes, I actually believe their failings are about 25% of the problem, and UGAAA is the other 75%.

      Like

    • Granthams replacement

      Richt wanted to retain grantham. Pruitt fell in his lap.

      Like

      • RocketDawg

        Are you stupid enough to actually believe that? Does the timing of the “new opportunity” with UL and the speed at which we hired Pruitt not seem a little strange? Things like that don’t happen overnight. Richt told Grantham to look around so he didn’t have to fire him.

        Like

  42. ClydeBoogie

    Wellllllllll……”If if’s and but’s were candy and nuts, oh what a merry Christmas it would be” so who do we hire? Mervin Meyer the ex Fla. God, Gustahson Malware Auburns God, Nasty Nick?? Dudes the SEC is a meat grinder, where many sell their souls to win big.Honesty and Integrity still resides in some places right?…….right???

    Like

    • See Above post:

      I don’t know who we should hire. 14 years ago UGA hired Mark Richt. At the time Saban and Pete Carroll had never won mnc’s, and hardly anyone heard of guys like corch or Brian Kelly or malzahn or Myles or Fisher. Jim Harbaugh was known primarily as an ex-QB. Like em or hate em, these coaches have adapted, improved, and challenged for national prominence.

      Also add Belichik to the list of coaches who hadn’t won anything at the time we hired CMR.

      Like

      • ClydeBoogie

        Sorry Bo_cat none of them are nothing but cheats and liars. They will not do, my friends great grandma said if you want to get anything in life (or coach) get a black cat, skin it….boil it…..get the bones…..throw them in a river…..if they float back up stream the devil has accepted your sacrifice. You then, can get anything out of life you want (or coach I assume) so forget the AD the AA or anyone else you simply bypass them and presto bingo a coach of your desire.

        Like

  43. SAtownDawg

    9-23 against ranked teams since “08. No SEC titles since 05.,,,
    that really says it all in this argument….hopefully Bobo takes the Troy job and Pruitt takes over next year after a 5-7 season…we have no QB, D line or OLBs coming back, other than Carter, and that will be a problem

    Like

  44. Richt won’t be fired but he probably needs to retire gracefully at this point. Another mediocre season with some of the best talent in the country is commonplace now and I get that mediocrity is ok with some of you. I’m sure another 9-3 or 8-4 season next year will have nothing to do with coaching either.

    As far as who to replace, Patterson comes to mind, but I think we need more of an offensive mind. Bobo is ok at times but his tendency to go ultra conservative leaves our defense on the field too long and his playcalling is utterly predictable only to be bailed out by talent on the field. I would imagine Oregon’s coach would love to step up and compete in the SEC at a program with as much potential as we have on the field. Art Briles may be a choice too.

    Like

  45. Rebar

    I wonder why Pruitt wanted to come here? Do y’all think he knows something about Mark Richt?

    Like

    • @gatriguy

      He knew Jimbo Fisher is an asshole and a nightmare to work for.

      Like

    • W Cobb Dawg

      CJP has been vocal about major issues, like the s&c and ipf. And since he doesn’t appear to hold back, I’d say he doesn’t seem to give a ship if BM thinks he should tone it down. He’s taken a big part in the recruiting, and his assistants have made major improvements on D and STs. He may not be a HC, but he walks and talks like one. Yesterday was a blotch on his resume, but he’s made giant strides here and the last few years. If I were looking for an up-and-coming coach to consider as my HC, CJP would be high on my candidate list.

      Like

    • Smith

      I would think Pruitt came here to escape the high expectations he was under at FSU.

      Richt or AD McG don’t expect Natl Champshps at UGA and Richt doesn’t fire his coaches unless they are bad for many years.

      Like

      • What a stupid statement. Jimbo Fisher is known as an asshole & willfully hides allegations his QB is a rapist. If Pruitt wanted to pad his stats & then jump to an HC he would’ve stayed at FSU where the ACC is far weaker than come to georgia where dumbshitt Grantham failed to recruit for 3 years.

        Like

        • Smith

          I didn’t say Pruitt wanted to pad his stats, I said he wanted to lower expectations on himself, and he did that in coming to UGA where National Championships are not expected.

          Proof of that? Richt hasn’t even got his team to one national championship game in 14 seasons but is still there.

          championships are not the UGA standard. So Pruitt make his life a lot easier.

          Like

  46. Smith

    here’s what I’m looking at, with a new coach:
    Auburn is better off now, Alabama is, T A/M is, Ole Miss is, MSU is, SC is, and Kentucky is.

    Good chance of improving if you get a new one. Sure, it didn’t work out for UF/Vandy/Tenn.

    Richt doesn’t seem to be competitive enough to win it all. He’s been close, but no cigar. He’s had the talent and resources.

    Where’s his drive? If Richt hasn’t been able to get it done in 14 tries, why do we think he’ll do it in the 25 tries?

    Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      The problem with your comparison is that Auburn, Alabama, A&M, Ole Miss, and MSU were all getting rid of coaches who weren’t even close to achieving what Richt has achieved, so of course they are better off now.

      Like

      • Debby Balcer

        And MSU has been up and down. Freeze has not been at Ole Miss long enough to know if he will be consistently good.

        Like

  47. JRW7

    CMR is a very good man, CMR is a excellent recruiter, CMR is not a very good game manager. We (UGA) have 3 loses this season, games that we could have won, I think the reason we Dawg fans are so upset with CMR is the WAY he manages to lose these very games, the games that we were very capable of winning, SC, UF and now GT, is very frustrating. And it seems to happen at least 1 to 3 times every season with CMR. If everybody is content to win 9 to 10 games per year, well, status quo is OK, but if we want to win a NC, what do we do? CMR is not ever going to get fired! So we Dawg fans will have to be content with 9 to 10 wins every year and endure it, till CMR decides to retire!

    Like

  48. I Wanna Red Cup

    I have read some of the comments, and find them amusing and sad. I think reasonable should be able to disagree agreeably without getting personal and calling each other names but you folks are proving me wrong. I guess my main problem with the FIRE CMR crowd is you sit quiet when we enjoy big wins and then appear out of the wood work with you hair on fire at each loss. I think some folks believe every offensive play should be a TD and the other team’s O should never gain a yard much less score. Anything less than perfect calls for firing Bobo and Richt, regardless of the fact we led the SEC in scoring. I like CMR as a person and a coach. He is not the coach Saban is but also remember places like Bama football is everything. Do we really want UGA to be like that? I don’t . Having said that. I wish BM would open the purse strings and get us an indoor practice facility and anything else we need to recruit with the best. I think we have a great coaching staff, the best since Van Gorder left. I think the D staff is great both in teaching and recruiting. We have a great O staff. Bobo is an excellent recruiter, QB coach and play caller. No, every play is not perfect. The other teams have good players too. I do worry about getting rid of Richt and falling into a Tennessee situation. If we fire CMR we will lose most of the excellent staff we now have. CJP has intimated we do not have the DL needed and overall talent to be a top 4 team, but most of those commenting here have apparently not heard that. And most commenters here think they are better coaches than our coaches but apparently not as confident in the AD skills as they seem to refuse to give alternatives.
    It is never as bad or as good as it appears. It is just a game played by 18-22 year olds.

    Like

    • I guess my main problem with the FIRE CMR crowd is you sit quiet when we enjoy big wins and then appear out of the wood work with you hair on fire at each loss.

      I know you think you said something really clever and insightful, but you didn’t.

      Here’s a newsflash: Contrary to what Disney Dawgs think, the people who are either yelling for, or at least contemplating replacing CMR are still fans. After a win, they are probably still happy and excited and hopeful that maybe things will be different.

      Then we have the 1-3 bed shittings each season and we are reminded “nope, not different.”

      The time to raise concerns about our staff is not after a win. That’s illogical. The time to do so is after yet another embarrassing loss, or in the off season. That’s what happens and that’s logical.

      He is not the coach Saban is but also remember places like Bama football is everything. Do we really want UGA to be like that?

      What’s wrong with how they run the program at Alabama?

      I live in Lexington, KY. The way they run the basketball program here is brilliant. They win titles. They don’t accept mediocrity. They don’t have to do anything illegal or immoral in the process.

      It is possible to have morals AND a full commitment to success.

      Like

      • Normaltown Mike

        Right. John Calipari never cuts corners.

        Kentucky b-ball….clean as a nun’s honeypot.

        Like

      • Calipari’s top players spend at best a total of two semesters in classes, and I’m not even sure about that second semester. I don’t think you can be ruled academically ineligible until the semester AFTER you quit going to classes.

        Like

        • That’s how college basketball works right now. That’s the nature of the “one and done” situation.

          But so what? He’s getting them amazing careers in the NBA, and in the meantime, winning for UK and all the benefits that brings to the University, its fans, and this city and state.

          Like

      • RocketDawg

        You are the biggest shitbag on here Muck when it comes to “FIRE EVERYBODY $$$($)$($(@@_@(#”. We never hear a PEEP from you when the team is winning and playing well, but let them lose (and it doesn’t matter who we lose to or how we played) you are the first one on here bitching about Richt and Bobo. You are the definition of a troll and when (not if) CMR and company win a championship you don’t get to celebrate and enjoy it. You suck as a fan.

        Like

        • I am going to take the high road here and ignore your insults completely. Instead, I’m just going to educate you as to why you are completely off base.

          1) I am not in the “FIRE EVERYBODY” camp whatsoever. The only person I think should be fired right now is the unqualified, legacy crony S&C coordinator who utterly lacks the proper training and qualifications for the job. For about the 5th time in this thread alone, I think 75% of our problems are institutional: the University, the Athletic Department, etc. Their stinginess and lack of dedication to winning are crippling. Frankly, until that institutional problem is resolved, I don’t have much confidence they could do a better job hiring an all new staff.

          I think we should give the current staff at least 2 more years to make something special happen. If we continue to have 1-3 bed shittings every year, then I think it is time to blow things up and make a change. At that point, it would mean that something is rotten in Denmark and there are just too many scars, too many fears, too many bad memories to really achieve greatness. Who knows – maybe that is why CMR coaches scared sometimes (like the squib kick). We’ve all been burned so many times those scars and bad memories can affect judgement. Sometimes the only cure for that is a new environment.

          2) A few weeks or months back Senator had a thread specifically about Bobo, and more than once I said I think he’s grown into a darn good OC. I think we paid the price for his learning process – about 6 years of the last 8 he was very problematic and not a top program quality OC. But he has definitely learned on the job and become very good. He isn’t great yet – maybe that is still to come. Point is, again, you are way off base in the way you characterize my opinion of Bobo.

          3) I post here all the time – win or lose. I am sure Senator can vouch for that. I am excited when we win. And guess what: no matter what you say, I get to celebrate wins and be happy about them. I’m not sorry if this bothers you, but that’s the facts.

          Like

  49. Smith

    The context for evaluating Mark Richt is his conference, the SEC.

    Where does he rank among his SEC peers?
    Spurrier, Malzahn, Saban and Miles have all coached their team into the BCS Championship game.
    Mizzou has won the East the last 2 years in a row.
    Miss St and Ole Miss are both ranked higher than UGA.
    Sumlin at Tex A & M is paid $1.6 million more.

    Richt only makes $200,000 more than Butch Jones.

    Money talks.

    Richt has only won .675 of his games over the last 5 seasons. Well below his .738 average.

    Fact is, Richt is average and mediocre, when it comes to his own conference.

    Like

    • Mayor

      I don’t think an SEC record of .675 over the last 5 years is average or mediocre, Smith.

      Like

      • Smith

        So you think .675 win record is tops in the SEC over the last 5 years?

        Let’s see:
        Spurrier went 11-2 in 2011, 2012, and 2013.
        Saban did pretty good over last 5.
        Miles too.
        Pinkel’s had a nice run
        Gus wins about 75% of his games.
        Sumlin’s winning better than .675

        Richt’s win % over last 5 is better than Muschamp’s.

        Like

        • Mayor

          Smith, Gus’ team, Auburn, went 4-4 in the SEC this season. So did Les Miles with LSU. Spurrier and Sumlin both went 3-5 with their respective teams this year. I never said .675 was “tops.” But it isn’t “average or mediocre” either. Take a look at UT, FU, UK and Vandy, and before this season, Ole Miss and Missy State, for “average and mediocre.”

          Like

    • Dawgwalker07

      “Richt only makes $200,000 more than Butch Jones.

      Money talks.”

      You do realize that 1) our athletic department is cheap as hell and 2) Mark Richt has publicly said he doesn’t mind the fact that they’re cheap as hell because his current salary is more than he ever thought he’d make anyways. If he wanted more money he could get it. Maybe not today, but overall I think he could.

      So telling me he’s not a good coach because he isn’t paid more isn’t logical.

      Like

  50. For you fire-eaters out there, try Auburn on. They don’t fool around; just fired Ellis Johnson the day after the Iron Bowl.

    Like

  51. Smith

    Senator brings a good point in asking what the B-M regime will look for.

    Right now, UGA has the #1 toughest policies in regards to discipline. While this might win Richt a Sunday School Badge or two, it hasn’t translated to winning national championships.

    I’m all for enforcing the sec standards, but Richt has a holier-than-thou standard where none of his programs will ever win a national championship due to player suspensions.

    Look at how champions approach discipline:
    Winston barely sits at FSU for all the things he’s done, yet Gurley misses the Florida game and 3 other games?

    UGA is caught in the financial syndrome that gripped Notre Dame for a while, as Notre Dame was among a top profitable program, yet not winning championships on the field.

    Then they got themselves a new coach with a Championship head coaching pedigree, and got back there pretty quickly once they got their priorities changed.

    Like

    • Normaltown Mike

      Is that the team that just finished their season 7-5?

      Like

      • Yeah, but they spent the first half of the season in Lou Holtz’ final four rankings.

        Like

      • Scorpio Jones, III

        The team with the spectacular defense?

        Like

      • Smith

        It’s the Notre Dame team that played in the BCS recently, something Richt as Head Coach will never do.

        Point is, when they rearranged their priorities to how do we get to the national championship, instead of how much profit are we making, they get there pretty quickly

        kelly had a head coaching track record of getting teams into championships, and shortly after his hire, he got Notre Dame into one.

        Like

        • 81Dog

          remind me how ND did in that debacle. That’s the same team everyone and his brother acknowledged UGA would have stomped to bits had we beaten Alabama, right?

          So what you’re saying is, we don’t need to BE better, we just need better PR so we can get to a championship game and then get undressed like middle schoolers playing the varsity. Got it!

          Like

        • Normaltown Mike

          So Georgia losing at the goal line against Alabama in 2012 in the SECCG is an indictment of CMR’s incompetence.

          But Notre Dame getting smashed by Alabama in 2012 in the mnc Game is proof that Notre Dame “wants to win” by hiring a “proven winner” like Kelly.

          Great analysis, sport.

          Like

          • Smith

            Thing is sport, Kelly has got 3 teams to the Championship game as a Head Coach, where Richt has none. Make sense?

            Like

            • Normaltown Mike

              Good point, I had forgotten Kelly’s run of success at Division fucking Two Grand Valley State.

              By that “logic”, we should hire Paul Johnson as he led Georgia Southern to three championship games and won the crown twice in 1-AA football.

              Like

              • Smith

                Richt just lost to Paul Johnson, probably not the best example there sport.

                Like

              • 81Dog

                hey. Jim Donnan won a national 1AA title at Marshall! Let’s hire him!!!! Wait, what…?

                Like

                • @gatriguy

                  I wish we could just have his recruits again.

                  Like

                • RocketDawg

                  I don’t because you know as well as I do that there was some shady shit going on in those days. I have a few friends who have let me in on some of the stuff going on with the football program during the Donnan years and I am quite thankful the NCAA didn’t come sniffing around during those days. The Richt hire was as much about character as it was about being a good football coach.

                  I will give you that there was some amazing talent that passed through here in the late 90’s-early 2000’s.

                  Like

    • Dawgwalker07

      “I’m all for enforcing the sec standards, but Richt has a holier-than-thou standard where none of his programs will ever win a national championship due to player suspensions.”

      What makes you think Richt had a say in those policies being what they are? He doesn’t write the athletic department’s rules. He just enforces them. That’s why hiring another guy isn’t just going to FIX those overbearing rules. They come from above Richt.

      Like

  52. Smith

    I think a very good question is, what are the chances a hire in the SEC will hurt a program and decrease wins?

    Vanderbilt, Florida, and Arkansas are in worse shape now. All the other 11 teams didn’t lose less with a new hire.

    So odds of hitting a replacement at least as good as Richt has been in the last 5 seasons? About 11 of 14 hires. 80%.

    Odds of getting into a Muschamp situation? 3 of 14 hires.

    To me, that’s as good of a question as what are the top three priorities McGarity, Morehead and those they answer to will have in searching for a successor?

    11 of 14 programs are as good as or better than the programs were before, regime was irrelevant.

    So, there’s little risk in hiring a replacement for Mark Richt, @20% chance it hurts the wins. 30% chance its @the same, 50% chance it improves wins.

    Like

    • Scorpio Jones, III

      Is Tennessee one of those remaining eleven schools?

      Like

      • Smith

        Tenn has not gone backwards with their hire. Only UF, Vand, and Ark are in worse shape.

        Like

        • How did Alabama (Saban), LSU (Miles), Florida (Meyer), and Auburn (Chizik, Malzahn) do with their hires made since CMR was hired?

          Aha. 7 national titles and 9 title appearances.

          LSU hired Saban a year before Richt, or that would be 8 titles and 10 appearances.

          Folks need to stop being so damn scared and think it is impossible to hire a coach who will improve your program.

          I’m not even saying CMR should be fired. As I’ve said a few times before, I think 75% of the problem is the athletic department and the University, which will plague ANYONE we have.

          Like

          • Dawgwalker07

            “I’m not even saying CMR should be fired. As I’ve said a few times before, I think 75% of the problem is the athletic department and the University, which will plague ANYONE we have.”

            This is the most sane thing I’ve read today.

            Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      Vanderbilt, Florida, and Arkansas are in worse shape because they replaced good coaches with bad ones. The others are in better shape because they replaced bad coaches with good ones.

      Like

  53. “11 of 14 programs are as good as or better than the programs were before, regime was irrelevant.”

    Question: How many of those 14 hires were replacing a coach coming off a 9-win season? I think that could change your odds.

    Like

  54. Lrgk9

    Stay the course and let the new DC play out. Bring in the speedy recruits and play aggressively enough to overcome Bobo’s 1.5 or 2 game walkabout.
    (Alas, JHC’s speed was sorely missed.)

    Bobo needs to put the Option QB in the game from time to time imo.
    Especially in the Red Zone when, because of the USCe game debacle, everybody knows we are going to run it.

    Like

    • Smith

      On new DC:
      Not as sure as you about the new DC, the new DC finished 8th in the SEC in scoring, right @Grantham’s ranking in 2009, 2010, and 2013. Also thought the new DC’s tough guy approach that ran off the top 3 most talented db’s this summer, was a poor approach. Hopefully, he’ll learn from his mistakes quickly and be an improvement over Grantham’s 4 year average.

      On Option Qb:
      I thought Faton Bauta would have been a better decision at QB this season since you had a first year starter at QB no matter what. He played as well as Hutson in the Spring Game, which was the only time I got to see him do his thing. He looked very sharp.

      And had the run option for the red zone and on 3rd downs.

      Like

      • RocketDawg

        The top 3 DB’s that left were shitbags and needed to go. If you can’t look at the Defense and tell that they are better fundamentally as well as schematically then I can’t help you.

        We don’t run the option game because we don’t have an option QB. Last time I checked we led the SEC and were top 10 nationally in scoring. Putting the ball in the endzone isn’t the problem.

        Like

  55. AusDawg85

    DiploDawg is the only one to answer the Senator’s question and got it right. Safe, clean, established record. But I don’t think the question is all that relevant since CMR ain’t even on the hot seat.

    A premise I see the FIRERICHT crowd make time and again is one I submit is the biggest fallacy. The notion that “some other” coach can win SEC Championships ever 5th year and a Natty once every 10 because we have Georgia resources is all made-up and flatulent. This is going to piss-off the natives, but Georgia HS talent is only as good as a number of other places. There is no built in advantage, and CMR has done a great job recruiting. Nothing a future hire brings will likely improve the talent base. So the new coach has to coach ’em better and overcome the same challenges at B-M and within the SEC has Richt has had to deal with.

    How many more losses do Saban, Miles, and lucky Gus have if they had to play their twin each season?

    Let’s try another question: clean sheet of paper…who is the favorite to win the MNC next season? Bama? …probably a fair guess. Why? Not only because of Saban, but the whole program. Say Nicky pulls an Urban and quits, Kirby takes over…want to change your vote? I wouldn’t, unless I started going down the list of the usual suspects and looking at their schedules (not just who the coach is). So Oregon, FSU, Oklahoma, tOSU, etc. come into the picture. But not UGA. Not UGA with a new coach. Not UGA with Harbaugh, Kelly, the Hoodie, whoever. We COULD win it, we CAN win it, but we’re not ever favored to win it and that is not just because we have Mark Richt. We are not institutionally committed. We have a good talent base, but we’re not the the only ones with access to top talent. We are in the brutally competitive SEC, not the B1G, PAC12, or BIG12. Ours is a lot tougher road.

    Given all that, I just don’t see anyone in a position to do better NEXT YEAR than Mark Richt. Show me someone available who can do better with all that next season and I’ll gladly listen. Otherwise, I’ll cheer for the Dawgs, but would place my gambling money elsewhere.

    Like

  56. aikendawg

    by far the 2 most intelligent people here are wcobbdawg and mayor. I agree with every post they make. wake up fellow dawgs and listen to what they have to say because they are both right on the money and are obviously true football guys. keep up the good work wcobbdawg and mayor. I appreciate and enjoy reading your comments. gata jyd

    Like

    1. A carefully crafted persona in which you present yourself as a pseudo-pastor because we all know that Jesus watches football on Saturday.
    2. The appearance of caring about the program while saving as much money as possible. This is a fine line because you don’t want to disenfranchise those who you depend on to blindly give you money.

    t3. He must look good in Ford pick-up truck commercials.

    t3. The uncanny ability to allow a middle of the pack Big 12 school to win the East during a time in which Florida and Tennessee are as low as they will ever be….ever.

    Like

  57. Smith

    Alabama, led in spending, and look at the results. They seem to be truly committed to winning championships.
    http://www.forbes.com/sites/aliciajessop/2013/08/31/the-economics-of-college-football-a-look-at-the-top-25-teams-revenues-and-expenses/

    Like

  58. Smith

    I’d say B-M needs to change things to compete:
    1- Spend 44% of football revenue on football expenses like Bama does, instead of 29% like UGA does, Bama is outspending UGA by 50%!
    This investment requires facility upgrades, world class s/c facilities, indoor facilities, asst coaches paid top, and a slate of asst’s
    2- Bring discipline standards down to minimum’s required to reduce suspensions, the goal is not to be #1 in toughest discipline
    3- schedule cupcakes for first 4 games in case of suspensions (Urban Meyer trick)
    4- don’t schedule a month of consecutive road games near November
    5- Schedule as few top 25 teams (Urban Meyer trick #2) EVEN IF IT DOESN’T MAKE THE SCHOOL AS MUCH MONEY IN TICKET SALES, MAKE IT UP IN LICENSING!!!!

    Like

    • Spend 44% of football revenue on football expenses like Bama does, instead of 29% like UGA does, Bama is outspending UGA by 50%!

      There’s a huge part of the problem. It is institutional. Bowel Movement just doesn’t care about winning.

      This investment requires facility upgrades, world class s/c facilities, indoor facilities, asst coaches paid top, and a slate of asst’s

      And that includes hiring a s/c coach who is actually qualified for the job, rather than promoting your videographer.

      Like

  59. Irwin R Fletcher

    So I assume my thoughts will hide out here at the bottom of this wasteland of a thread, but I’ll go ahead and throw it out there anyway.

    I’m just not sure what the expectations were for this season…a new DC, a make-shift secondary, a first time starting QB…throw in losing Mitchell, Conley, Gurley, and Marshall for injury/suspension for a significant amount of time….and what are the results? 9-3 and ranked #15 with the #2 recruiting class coming in in 2015 sounds like a pretty good year based upon those things. When you consider that small margin between beating South Carolina and Tech and ultimately losing…Senator had UGA at 8-5…and that didn’t raise the alarms with this bunch. No one jumped on the message boards to say ‘what a bunch of garbage that it…this team should win a national championship or it’s Richt’s head’…

    Anyway, here we are. This team destroys Auburn, Clemson, Arky, and Mizzou but struggles against Tech, Florida, Tennessee, and Carolina. Admittedly, it’s some Donnan-like tendencies…who we fired…but then again, the answer to Donnan was Richt so if we fire Richt for being Donnan, are we going to have to re-hire him 30 days later?

    That’s the issue for me…wandering in the wilderness. You can lose a decade pretty quickly that way…talk about playing it safe, you fire Richt and that is the ONLY way we set the program back to Son of Dooley levels. Keeping Richt raises the floor dramatically. Maybe he’s not V. Dooley or even the 2002 Richt…but recruits and coordinators seem to think he still has it and that’s good enough for me at this point. The program is so close…so very close…maybe it’s naive to think that Richt can pull us over the hump, but it seems more naive to think that we won’t spend a decade or two trying to find someone that has a better chance than Richt at doing it.

    Like

    • Soooooooo close! I mean its only been 14 years. Everyone just calm down…..maybe we will at least play for a NT sometime in the next 14 years.

      Like

    • Dawgfan Will

      The real reason so many are upset, both Disney Dawgs and Doubting Dawgs, is because for a few games it looked like we might exceed our preseason expectations, then instead we met them in the most painful way imaginable. The Disney Dawgs’ disappointment stems from the fact that we think that Richt go more at times out of this team than we thought possible. The Doubting Dawgs’ disappointment stems from the fact that they think we won those 9 games in spite of Richt.

      Like

  60. aikendawg

    go ccrider go right on point. and for you 81dog………….go learn a little more bout the game of football and then come talk to mrs mayor. lol. gata jyd

    Like

  61. stuckinred

    What’d you weenies decide? I’ve been fishing.

    Like

    • Normaltown Mike

      same shit, different year.

      Like

    • Cosmic Dawg

      I read a lot of it. Everybody’s crazy about Richt, can’t wait to see who we’re gonna play in the bowl game, and out of 300+ responses Senator got about two that answered the nuances of his question.

      It’s going to be a long offseason, Red.

      Like

  62. Dawgfan Will

    This debate would be much more interesting without the sarcasm and name-calling, but I’m not sure it would be as entertaining.

    Like

  63. aikendawg

    hope you caught something stuckinred. wish you woulda caught a win over the yellowbellies. and yes normaltown mike. same shit different year. gata jyd

    Like

    • Mayor

      Thank you for your favorable comments earlier on this thread aikendawg. I take it from your name that you are either from Aiken, SC or live there now. I am from Augusta, GA and have always thought Aiken, SC was a beautiful place. Have a good day.

      Like

  64. 81Dog

    is this a record for thread length? It has to be close.

    Like

  65. jadams

    Here is my list of coaches to replace Richt:

    Mark Stoops – HC at Kentucky – great recruiter and UK is much improved in his second year.

    David Cutcliffe – HC at Duke – great recruiter, great head coach, knows the SEC.

    Burton Burns – Associate HC at Alabama – top recruiter, knows the SEC, follows the process.

    DJ Durkin – Interim HC at Florida – very young, but bright and is Special Teams guru

    Cam Cameron – OC at LSU

    Steve Spurrier, Jr.

    Rodney Garner – okay, this is just trolling.

    Like

  66. aikendawg

    yes mayor. born in augusta raised in aiken and now living back in augusta. as a 45 year old dawg who lives for Georgia sports, this thing that happened Saturday just blew me away. when i read your comments, they reflect my feelings 100%.i have supported and defended CMR more than you can imagine but it is so clear to see that as long as he is HC we are gonna be stuck at 9-3 with continual bind boggling losses every year. this is a trend that cant be denied. again great input my friend. gata jyd

    Like

  67. Irwin R Fletcher

    Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Tennessee….Bill Callahan, Rich Rod, Brady Hoke, Ty Willingham, Charlie Weiss, Bo Pelini, Dennis Franchionie, Derrick Dooley, Lane Kiffin, Mike Sherman…these are places that most fans would say any idiot could win 70% of their games…and places who ran off coaches and who are still wandering through the wilderness.

    After Bear Bryant, Bama hired Ray Perkins, Bill Curry, Gene Stallings, Mike Dubose, Dennis Franchione, Mike Price, Mike Shula…and then hired Rich Rodriguez only to luckily get turned down so they could fall into Nick Saban.

    Anyone arguing that not trying to hire someone better than Richt is ‘settling for mediocrity’ is missing the point…the reality is that hiring that ‘one’ coach is really, really hard…and there is a lot less history to suggest UGA could hire that guy in the next 10-15 years compared to the history that guys who consistently win 75% of their games ultimately win a national championship or two.

    Like