Observations from the 35, err, err, err! edition

Sandstorm that, ‘Cocks.

Domination is fun.  You pretty much knew the coaches could sense what was happening when the decision was made not to bring in Ramsey for his obligatory second quarter series.  And when the dust settled, you had the kind of ass whipping most Georgia fans have only been able to dream about when it comes to the OBC.

Savor it, Dawgnation.

• The crowd was great.  Electric atmosphere for the players to draw on… not that they needed much help from us.  And the Keith Marshall love was very nice.
• Whoever made the decision to dial down the volume on the PA system, bless you.
• Your team beats a South Carolina team by thirty-two points, there aren’t going to be many brickbats to hand out, but it has to be said that kickoff coverage left something to be desired.  Especially the poor coverage, aided by a dumb penalty, with just seconds left in the first half that allowed Spurrier to steal three points.
• How about Marshall Morgan showing off his mad tackling skillz?
• There is something sad about watching Steve Spurrier reduced to calling plays for an option offense to move the ball.
• And there was something strange about Spurrier not testing the middle of the field against Georgia’s pass defense more than he did, given the success he had with that last year.
• Best thing about the game Pruitt called against Spurrier was holding Pharoh Cooper to one catch.
• There may have only been one sack in the game, but you could tell that Georgia’s pass rush was throwing off Orth’s timing as the game wore on.  As well as his composure – the pick he threw was just an awful decision.
• If you’ve seen any of the LSU-Auburn game and had a chance to compare the way that defensive line played to the way Georgia’s did, going from Garner to Rocker has been a huge trade up.
• Can you believe how comfortable Jake Ganus looks?  It’s like he was born to play in Pruitt’s scheme.  I really only saw one blown play from him in coverage.
• In case you hadn’t noticed, that Leonard Floyd fella’s a pretty good player.
• Malkom Parrish played his ass off.  Again.
• Every time I watch Quincy Mauger, I can’t help but be impressed with how good a secondary coach Pruitt is.  Mauger is just light years away from the confused to the point of uselessness kid we saw in his freshman year.
• Okay, one more negative note:  I’m still not thrilled with how this defense handles running quarterbacks.  It won’t be an issue with Alabama in a couple of weeks, but Tennessee has Josh Dobbs.
• The offensive line gets better week to week.  Pass protection was more than adequate, as Lambert never got touched.  And the run blocking is solid, to say the least.  Chubb wasn’t touched on his last touchdown run, despite everybody in the stadium knowing he was going to get the ball.
• Speaking of Chubb, how amazing is it that even with him getting his eleventh straight game of rushing for more than 100 yards and going over 2,000 yards for his career, he was probably only the third or fourth biggest story on offense on the night?  Abundance of riches.
• Sony Michel is really starting to feel it.  And Schottenheimer is doing a great job making use of his skill set.  All in all, it’s like watching the Georgia version of Percy Harvin.  Every time Georgia lines up in a set with Chubb and Michel, you have to hold your breath.
• Malcolm Mitchell is back, baby!  Great hands, great moves, great everything.  The save he made on Lambert’s throw that was supposed to be a back shoulder toss, but was a little more inside than you’d like, was as good as you’d like from a receiver.
• Terry Godwin is smoove.
• I’m not sure it’s possible to be more wide open than Reggie Davis was on that one reception.
• Five completions to the tight ends and two more to Quayvon Hicks.  Me likee.
• To me, Lambert’s success was about trusting his surrounding cast more and being put in good spots throughout the night by Schottenheimer.  The quick throws that were there all night – really, the South Carolina defensive backs are going to be having unpleasant dreams about those slant passes for a while – were a great way to cut down on Lambert’s propensity for looking down his receivers.  (Although, in his defense, he did a better job with checking off than he’s done before.  It’s just that it’s still a work in progress.)  You can do plenty when you make a quarterback comfortable and give him plenty of weapons to work with.
• For those of you complaining that Lambert’s biggest flaw of the night was not throwing deep, my only question is why did he need to?
• I’ve already lauded Schottenheimer’s night in a previous post, so it’s not really necessary to dig into that again.  But it is nice to know the guy isn’t as big an idiot as some folks have made him out to be.  His next big challenge is going to be figuring out a game plan against a defense that can play press coverage against Georgia’s receivers.

All in all, a great, great game.  The coaches coached; the players played.  The defense looks more assured week by week.  (And remember, Saturday night Pruitt had to plug a true freshman in Abram into the starting lineup because of McGraw’s injury.  They still didn’t miss a beat.)  Offensively, it feels like Schottenheimer is figuring out how to fit all the parts together and the timing of that is coming along fine.

But the best part of Saturday was the psychology behind the win.  That was Steve Spurrier they beat, the guy who has made a career out of maneuvering Georgia teams into routinely crapping the bed.  If there was a time for a Richt team to slide mentally and emotionally, especially after a win in Nashville that left a few questions in our heads, this was it.  Instead, what was delivered was a game of total control.  It wasn’t just that Georgia won convincingly.  It was that it appeared natural in doing so.  If there’s any reason to begin to feel optimistic about where this season may be headed, that’s it.  I don’t know if Georgia’s going to beat Alabama in a couple of weeks, but I’ve got a pretty good feeling they’ll show up to play.  And that’s real progress.