Three tidbits from Seth Emerson:
- John Lilly will call the plays in the bowl game. So at least we’ve got somebody new to bitch at if things don’t go right. (Though it would be kinda cool if they’d try this again.)
- Richt claims he’s already received “tremendous” interest in the open offensive coordinator position. I don’t doubt that.
- As expected, Will Friend was officially announced as Colorado State’s offensive coordinator. (He’ll still coach in the bowl game, though.) I assume that was a move made with Richt’s blessing. It would be nice to see Richt hit a home run with Friend’s replacement.
Get The Picture 
The first name Weiszer brings up to replace Friend is Neil Callaway. If God has any love for the Dawg Nation this can never happen.
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Problem with NC wasn’t his coaching skills. It was his talent evaluation, which sucked. Even worse, Richt cut a deal with him giving Callaway carte blanche over which OLmen were signed. Hopefully that’s not a mistake that’s repeated.
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Were/Are you impressed with Friend’s talent evals? I know ole miss bought Tunsil but we always seem to let other teams poach some good players from the state. Need less private school kids from other states and more big hosses from GA IMO.
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Friend is a clear step up from NC. Two of the 2014 class cracked the two-deep this season. Plus, Friend didn’t have ultimate say so over which kids Georgia recruits.
And I’m being generous in calling what Callaway did talent evaluation. He wanted Inman because he was the son of a coaching buddy of his.
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I sure hope the Grinch doesn’t leave Callaway in our stocking. But Richt has hired his disciples ever since he left , so…..
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Say it ain’t so..!!!
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How about Wisconsin’s O line coach? Or Arkanasas’? Those linemen have been pretty impressive lately.
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Wayne McDuffie! Oh wait, sorry.
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Poor taste.
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Bright – Bad form Sir
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http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/sports/family-pain-year-suicide-mcduffies-feel-loss-article-1.753616
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Just think if CWM were still with us – he would be great for CMR to have as a retired analyst for film study, mentoring, etc. CWM could flat out coach some offense. As someone who has had a family member commit suicide, it certainly sucks. Someone has to be emotionally tortured to do something like this to themselves. Oh well, Merry Christmas to all on GTP!
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Just curious, but why wouldn’t CMR, a former longtime OC at FSU and previous play-caller for Georgia for his first 7 seasons in Athens, call the plays for the bowl himself? Instead, he picks Lilly, a guy who-except for G-Day games-has never done it before, to call plays in the bowl?
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One would assume Richt will have some input into play selection…and Lilly will probably be calling the plays Bobo picked a week or so ago.
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Maybe he’s trying to reward Lilly and/or keep the rest of the staff together. Maybe he sees potential in Lilly and wants to develop it. I’m ok with any of those in a bowl game that isn’t very important in the grand scheme of things.
That being said, I don’t want to go through the growing pains of developing an OC on the job like we did with Bobo. But this is just one game.
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I think it a clear message to candidates that he is done with play calling and that is a skill they must already have. CMR doing it would send a mixed message about the roles of coordinators at UGA, and his role as CEO. I am sure Lilly will get CMR input than Bobo did. Plus, how hard can it be? Every critic here is a play calling genius if you give them a mulligan 20 seconds after seeing the results of the previous play.
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Please, Mac, one must exercise discretion when delivering uppercuts to the geniuses. Be nice. 🙂 🙂
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20-second mulligans….great line…dammit.
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Broken. Record.
But I agree that CMR may be sending a message, and if so, it’s a much better message than Barry Alvarez is sending…again.
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I sent in my resume for the OC position. The one thing that I think have, which separates me from the other candidates is I will change my last name to Bobo. That will make the transition easy for the drunk jackleg that sits in front of me yelling Bobo every time a play does not go for a touchdown.
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+1. Seriously though, losing Bobo scares the crap out of me. Hope it all works out in the end…I do believe in CMR and his ability to get the right men for the job.
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I do hope CMR will hit a Home Run with the OL Coach he hires.
In my opinion there Is no way he can get a QB Coach, Recruiter,
& OC, particular an OC, that will measure up to what he loses in Bobo. Sorry but I can do as good a job, or better, than the other
armchair signal callers. But. not nearly as good as Bobo.
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I would imagine guys who want to be OCs or get a promotion from a smaller program are salivating at the thought of our raw talent on offense.
I wonder if this is a tryout for Lilly to see if he can handle the job.
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Maybe Lilly wi’ll have us throwing to the TEs more often – something us armchair QBs have wanted for a long time.
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It has been pointed out (unofficially of course) that my age might be a problem when I applied for the OC job…apparently when Mark Richt says “experienced” he does not mean “grizzled”.
Somebody also said there is more to this offensive coordinator-play calling thing, there, than yelling when they work and shaking yer head when they don’t.
Kinda hurts my feelings, ya know….I mean I got Zeke Bratkowski’s chin strap and everything.
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+1
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Despite limited coaching experience have a feeling Dan Inman may get a shot. He’s great with recruits, fits in well around the program, highly liked and received high praise so far.
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….and fits within “the Georgia Way” budget set by McFrugal
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And could false start with the best of them. But he did have a mean streak, according to Ray Gant, who called him some sort of angry warthog after practice one day.
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Just think CMR goes to someone young, talented, aggressive for both positions. For sure “the list of prospects” will be tuned in Monday. The guy that would perk them is the future QB.
Do not think CMR goes back to any former coaches. Not good to go back to former coaches. Have to have Friend on the sidelines with CMR. Lilly is the guy for the booth.
If I was a coach who expressed an interest, made the call, sent in a letter, I’d be in Charlotte on monday on my own dime. No doubt.
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I don’t doubt Mark Richt has had some interest in the offensive coordinator job…with the weapons coming back, despite losing the starting Noodle, there is enough punch to make an offensive coordinator giggle in his corn flakes.
Since the OC and the offensive line guy are kinda joined at the hip, it might be that the new OC should have some input into that selection.
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I just looked at the stats, and was surprised to see Michigan State ahead of us in scoring. Any chance of luring their OC? Do they run a pro set style offense?
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Hurry up
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I believe that’s probably Irishdawg’s top speed…
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I don’t think the loss of our QB coach is getting enough attention, which is for me the factor that makes this a very tricky hire. Even removing my red/black colored glasses, I feel confident saying that MR/MB have been the best (or at least top 3) QB-developing combo the last 12-14 years, probably more so MR earlier on and MB the last several years. So we not only have to bring on an OC who – hopefully – agrees with our pro-style identity and concepts but also can teach QBs to take the ball under center, work on their drops, read field/go through progressions, etc…unless of course MR plans to slide back into that role full time.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see a QB guru hire and then promote from within for OC/play calling. I really would like to see McClendon get his shot at a bigger role at some point – maybe this isn’t the right time – but he would be a massive loss if it were to happen.
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Your idea about a quarterback coach and an OC/play caller is interesting.
That we’ve been able to combine the jobs is just one way to go. Separating the two jobs makes the candidate list a lot longer, although an O line coach/O coordinator does have some historical precedent.
This is gonna get interesting, I bet.
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I think it’s really difficult to split those jobs especially at the college level with the limitations on the number of coaches. The QB has to be an extension of the OC on the field. I’m not sure I would want an OC who isn’t a QB coach or a QB coach who isn’t an OC.
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I don’t disagree with you, that’s why I think it’s a particularly tricky hire. Ideally need an OC/QB coach who also share MRs offensive ideologies, otherwise we could be changing identities and honestly believe our system/scheme are perfect for Georgia and why we’ve been successful.
Does MR aim for some form of continuity, or does he hand the reins over to someone else who may want to do things differently?
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Good questions – I think he probably wants somebody who can bring innovation to the offense without wholesale change in philosophy. We’re not going spread option, Air Raid, etc. as a base offense with CMR at the helm. Will he consider someone who may tweak what we do like Bobo did the last couple of years with the pistol, wildcat, etc.? I would like to see some 5 wide sets when we need them. That would be the main innovation I would like to see.
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I still like the idea of either Roper or Sanders – both seasoned QB coaches and play callers. They coached both Mannings and both worked under Cuttcliff. They have also had experience in multiple offenses.
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I like the idea of Roper but not sure about Sanders. He was never impressive at UT when Cutcliffe wasn’t around.
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Since we’ve received “tremendous” interest, I’d assume at least some of the candidates have good to great qualifications.
We should all accept the fact that matching Bobo’s ability of QB coach, OC, and recruiter isn’t likely to happen. When Van Gorder departed it left a hole in the program that took years to fill. I fear we may be repeating that scenario again if we don’t hire the right guy.
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tremendous interest until they found out Mcgarity was offering $15.75/hr for the job
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Maybe we should try a player coach? Kinda like Pete Rose toward the end of his career.
Bauta is my choice.
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He was live during G-Day. That alone makes him the best choice to the troll who lives under the bridge to Sanford.
That guy is going to make “Bauta” a verb in the GTP lexicon and not in a positive way.
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Never fear, children…CMR does this for a living and doesn’t have to wait around and wring his hands like so many commenters here. He’ll make the best choice for Mark Richt’s ‘Georgia, so relax, enjoy the season..and the Belk Bowl!
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If you had an unlimited budget and were truly conducting a National search for the best possible Offensive Coordinator in the game, wouldn’t that search begin and likely end with Stanford’s Mike Bloomgren?
http://www.gostanford.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=30600&ATCLID=208167701
Two Major UGA “Culture” Checklist Points:
1)Coached at ‘Bama: check
2) Has a Connection with Richt at FSU: check
3) Recruiting ties to Southeast: currently recruits S. Ga and N. FLA for Stanford, school in Alabama, graduated from FSU.
Objective Checklist Points:
1) Seems to possess the ability to maximize the potential of the talent around him: check
2) Extensive NFL Experience in Pro Style System: check
3) Capable of both OC and Offensive Line Coach Duties: check
4) Has Honed the Offensive Line and Running Game of Stanford University, repeat Stanford, not Nebraska, not Michigan, not Oklahoma, into the strongest assemblage of performance and execution in the country: check
5) Numerous Outland Trophy Candidates in Four Years: check
6) Master’s Degree from Alabama. 4.0 GPA
Questions about Bloomgren:
1) Would he be willing to retain Lilly, Ball, McClendon, work with Richt on QB coach selection?
2) If Shannon Turley, the Head of Stanford Strength and Conditioning, wanted the same position here, wouldn’t it at least be worth a phone call?
3) Would the folks at BM be willing to make a considerable offer to one of the games brighter, younger coaching prospects?
Good interview with Bloomgren:
http://espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/71049/qa-stanford-oc-mike-bloomgren
Good read on offensive line and offensive philosophy from September:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2014/09/02/college-football-stanford-cardinal-offensive-line/14979515/
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I like the idea. I hadn’t thought of someone from out west (that East Coast bias thing again). The only problem is that would pretty much require Richt to become the QB coach due to NCAA limitations. While CMR is very involved in QB recruiting and coaching, he left the day-to-day QB coaching to Bobo. I’m not sure he wants to go back to 2001 again.
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I wish you were heading the search for the replacement.
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I like this idea if he’s an OL coach/OC and we get a separate QB coach (Stanford’s QB play this season was bad-to-terrible).
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I’d be interested in seeing how many of the top offensive teams the last 5 years or so, of those how many offensive coordinators on those teams WERE NOT ex quarterbacks?
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