It’s the seventh week of the 2015 season, and there are already five head coaching vacancies to fill, including this one.
USC is one of those rare places where literally everything a coach needs to win big is right at his fingertips. Take a rock star coach and hand him the LA recruiting turf and media market, big money, immaculate facilities (still relatively new), celebrity fans and a cool-to-the-kids brand, and he should be able to field a regular national title contender.
If there’s one thing Georgia doesn’t do well, it’s hire rock star coaches.
I lack confidence in Butts-Mehre being able to pull off a competent hire even in the best of times. What makes any of you think that McGarity and the people he answers to are ready to go out and get a big time coach in this kind of market?
Again, this isn’t about keeping Mark Richt. It’s about recognizing this as a likely scenario if Richt goes.
I don’t want to replace Richt because the odds are 80-90% that our first hire to replace him will not be as good as Richt. There have probably been 150-200 coaches hired and fired at BCS schools since Mark arrived. UGA has been in the top 10-15 in terms of winning percentage over that time span. He isn’t terrible. He’s just not good enough to win SEC or National titles on any kind of regular or quasi regular basis.
Those of you stomping your feet and demanding that Georgia find the guy who will deliver your birthright, how long are you prepared to wander in the desert? Because when it comes to the Georgia Way, patience isn’t just a virtue. It’s a necessity.
Get The Picture 
It’s a moot point because Richt getting fired is not going to happen although it wouldn’t be surprising to see him retire if he just gets tired of the pressure cooker.
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I agree. His 2016 recruiting class is too strong for the administration to let him go. Unless that class starts to fall apart he will be here for the next few years.
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I’ve said this before – keeping a coach to preserve a recruiting class is a bad reason to keep a coach.
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That’s true of a bad coach, but not a pretty good one.
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Senator, I agree with you; however I see the only scenario being(No matter what the final record if we don’t make the championship game) being “You have next year to win the championship”. With Tennessee and Allbarn at home along with Tech and our west opponent no better than this year’s one the table should be set with So Car’s new coach to be able to actually win the east with the new QB recruit and whole class.
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So our excuse for this year is youth and inexperience but we’re going to reason that NEXT year is the year because of a soft schedule (which we’ve had for years now) and MORE inexperience?
Everyone needs to stop hanging the future of this program on Jacob Eason. He isn’t a savior. Matt Stafford couldn’t win this team a championship on his own and Jacob Eason certainly won’t either.
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Blasphemy
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Richt is under contract through 2019. Pruitt and Schottenheimer are under contract through 2017.
Anybody think UGA is interested in paying those coaches NOT to coach? Me either. That’s the UT and Auburn way, not the Georgia Way.
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Yup. That is why Richt will be at Georgia until at least the 2017 season. The powers still have to pay for the IPF.
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Agree.
Coach Richt is not retiring nor is there any consideration of him being let go.
The vast majority of fans I meet at the games support him, his players, and his staff.
There is need to feed the negative recruiters with baseless speculation.
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There is no need to feed the negative recruiters with baseless speculation.
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There is no need to feed the negative recruiters with baseless speculation.
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I feel the need! The need to feed!
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You’re high. That or you haven’t been to a Georgia game and actually talked to people in three years.
And I assure you the negative recruiters have all the ammunition they need. Richt gives it to them himself every year.
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I go to every game.
Truth be told, most of the people around me at the tailgate and in lower level South don’t know much about football.
They show up every year because they love to tailgate, eat, drink, and go out in Athens. Most have bought into the “moral superiority” angle sold by Adams on down. They just leave and go out on the town when Georgia falls two scores behind.
Us hard-cores are out-numbered. It’s frustrating.
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We’re stuck in a catch 22. Damn
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How long have we been wandering in the desert? All the years but one.
As a commenter said the other day, it doesn’t matter if we win ten games or two games a season, neither is going to win us a championship.
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Sorry, nothing personal, but that’s dumb.
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No it isn’t. Not if the stated goal for the program is to win championships. If the accepted conclusion is that Richt can’t win a championship then he is no longer fundamentally qualified to hold the position and its time to move on.
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It isn’t dumb. It is galactically STUPID! Have a few 2 win seasons in Athens and then tell me there isn’t a difference! Go talk to some Vandy fans and ask them if they would rather have a 2 win season or a 10 win season “since they aren’t going to win a championship and the two are the same.” Sheesh. Some of you……………
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Georgia has won only 2 national championships in the 3 major sports (football, basketball, baseball) since World War II. That’s 210 seasons with only 2 championships at resource-rich school in a talent-rich state.
I think the Senator is right to say that thanks to the “Georgia Way,” the next coach (and the one after that) may likely be worse than Richt. But I’d rather burn through a Dubose/Franchione/Price/Shula period that finally discredits the “Georgia Way” and its proponents than continue indefinitely with the good-but-not-great standard that has been the mark of Georgia athletics for the past 70 years.
Winning 10 games a year isn’t going to win a championship and it isn’t going to move us forward. It only leaves us right where we are.
{And when I say championships, I mean national championships. I don’t mean just SEC championships. With the playoffs, there’s not reason we shouldn’t be able win one. Much less likely to get screwed out of a deserving chance with a 4 team playoff than with a two team championship game or a one team poll. Again, 2 championships in 210 seasons is simply unacceptable.}
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I may be alone (or a LOSER), but a lack of a NC doesn’t drive me crazy. The SEC title drought, yes.
But nowdays, the most fun of CFB is playing our rivals, beating them, and getting to talk smack. In that sense, CMR is doing ok. Maybe I’m just getting old…
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Winning the rivalry games is why CFB is superior to the NFL–in my mind at least.
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NC is overrated. All it does is make people want MORE, YEA, THAT”S IT, MORE. . .
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Yup. If Richt ever wins one NC. All media and some will ask, “When is the next one?” and then will add, “He is not great enough because he only one” or “He cannot even shine the shoes of Bowden, Paterno etc.” Just saying.
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This. A certain fan will never be satisfied with whatever metric you choose. That is the way they roll.
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Agreed. I also like the community around Georgia games, both the tailgate in which I’m 3rd generation (making game days mini-Thanksgivings with fried chicken & bourbon), and in the stands, where we’ve watched kids around us grow up and have known most of our neighbors now for nearly two decades.
The same people who are so focused on titles are the same ones who get angry when we don’t beat Little Sisters of Directional State by 50 points. Beat our rivals. Have a good time on game days and watching the competition (it is just a sport). You’re better off if a game played by college boys isn’t your alpha and omega of existence.
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Unfortunately to many that seem to be the case.
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+1
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True SEC fans don’t care much about the CFP National Championship, and shouldn’t! We care about the SEC Championship! And the fact that Mizzou has represented the East the last two years is reason enough in itself to fire Richt.
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Great comment, Jeff S
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Problem is some of you don’t understand what a deal desert is. We have not been in a desert. Being ranked most of the time does not qualify as a desert. Ask Tennessee fans about a desert.
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If we want to stick to that analogy some Georgia fans remind me of the Isrealites who were freed from slavery and then complained about having to eat manna. That is why they sobered in the desert instead of heading to the land of milk and honey.
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My stupid kindle keeps changing words real not deal and wandered not sobered.
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I think some of our fans are still sobering up in the desert, Deb. So no worries.
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From the look of some of the posts on this thread they are not sobering up–in the desert or anywhere else.
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Tennessee is not a good comparison for UGA.
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Why Phil Fulmer had that program doing well and look where they are now?
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Franchione left TCU…Patterson has done GREAT, Harbaugh, Dantonio, McElwain, Bob Stoops, Mora, Jr, Helfrich, Briles, etc….all replaced someone that was failing….and are doing great. Please quit using ONE example of a misguided program. We get it, you love Richt more than the University of Georgia and Bulldog football.
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To say Richt is “failing” is laughable.
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To say that Richt is succeeding is an obvious lie.
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Mediocre would be the truth
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In that respect, it is a good comparison. UT also has a rich tradition, and has historically been a great football program.
But this is the 21st Century. Current players can’t remember when UT was good (there was that one time they alllllmmossst beat ‘Bama with Kiffin…and that’s it). UGA has the better brand (yes, in large part to CMR) and a drastically better recruiting base. If both jobs came open at the same time and you want to lower UGA to UT’s level, that’s your right. But don’t expect the rest of us to wallow down there with you 🙂
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Ricky Bobby! If you ain’t first, you’re last! Wooo!
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Exactly. I guess No One Knows missed the joke on that one. Sigh.
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Maybe he was high when he wrote that? 🙂
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If poor performance by a coach is accepted because an AD has a track record of poor performance just means the search firm needs to look for replacements for 2 job openings instead of one. Think of it as the Evil Georgia way.
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“Poor performance” = “most consistently successful coach in modern program history”
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Define modern.
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Ever. In UGA history.
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Vince Dooley has 3x the SEC titles. Wally Butts has 2x the SEC titles. Richt has more wins, but the tradition of playing 2-3 cupcakes per year is… modern.
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Check that 1980 National Championship schedule and get back to me about the relative modernity of cupcakes.
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Tennessee, Texas A&M (swc), Clemson (ACC), TCU (swc), Ole Miss, Vandy, Kentucky, #14 South Carolina (with Heisman winner George Rogers), Florida, Auburn, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame.
You’re right. Tennessee was a cupcake that year.
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I agree. The argument seems to be settle for what we got because we are scared. We should just vacate the SEC for the Big 10 if we are taking that approach
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It’s not being scared. It’s about recognizing reality. If you trust McGarity to find the next Saban, God bless you. If you believe UGA will tap the reserve fund to pay out the contracts of the current staff in order to make a change, God bless you. If you believe that UGA is a special place where any idiot is a lead pipe cinch to win 10 games a year, God bless you.
I live in the real world. I believe in none of those things. I think McGarity is much more likely to hire the next Bielema than the next Saban. And while nobody has ever suggested that Bielema is too Christian to win, or isn’t animated enough on the sidelines, I really don’t think he’s an upgrade to Richt.
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In the real world, UGA would attract better coaches than Bert
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Really? Give us some examples of those kind of coaches who pursued a job in Athens.
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(cricket sounds….)
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If by “those kind of coaches” you mean better than Bert, you’d have to say Mark Richt, Vince Dooley (too far in the past?), Jeremy Pruitt (based on perception at the time of the hire, not current perception), Kirby Smart (who was apparently close to coming home a few years ago). If you mean winning head coaches at major programs, well you’ve got a point (does Donnan count? Weren’t people excited about that hire at the time?).
McGarity has never hired a head football coach as far as I know, so I’m not sure why nobody believes he can get a good one. Didn’t he learn at the knee of Jeremy Foley, who has always been aggressive about filling head vacancies (Meyer, Muschamp, McElwain)? Doesn’t mean he always had good taste (they say 2 out of 3 ain’t bad), but he was always aggressive.
But beyond all that: I don’t think Richt is going anywhere, and I don’t necessarily want him to. But I scratch my head when folks say UGA, at this juncture (consistently winning, consistent top ten recruiting classes, incredible recruiting soil, in the weak division of the SEC), would not be one of the 10 or so best jobs in CFB.
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I’m talking about head coach hirings, and not necessarily in football. And I’m not just talking about McGarity. Over the last 30 years, it’s a very short list to me: Ron Polk, only because he fell into Dooley’s lap, and Jim Harrick, who was ethically challenged, but did have a national title on his resume.
Georgia couldn’t even bring Erk Russell home, for goodness sakes.
Donnan was the consolation prize when Glen Mason changed his mind after a day on the job, which should tell you something.
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I see your point, but I’m not sure the pessimism is entirely justified. I wonder if there are any important B-M employees left from those days?
I hope Richt turns it around (and with Grier gone we may be the favorite to win the SEC east right now) and I think he can. But, if he doesn’t, I’m not worried that the university will seriously underwhelm or refuse to try for the best; I’m just worried that the next guy, no matter how coveted, won’t succeed as well as Richt did (a la Muschamp, Kiffin).
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If I remember correctly, Chan “five losses/season” Gailey was given serious consideration before they went with Richt too which…yikes.
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Senator, I would like to add this. “The Process” program to the east of us nearly didn’t happen. If RichRod had kept his wife under wraps, he would have led Bama to, well, only God knows. My point is this. Certain fans see the birthright restored in Tuscaloosa and they believe want one too. Hey, its easy, right?
ps. I know many Bama fans and alumni and most have worried every preseason about what was ahead. Apparently it’s hard to relax at the top.
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I meant to say, “to the west of us”
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I didn’t say they would pursue the job while Richt is still here. But the fact is that we plucked Pruitt on a lateral move after winning a NC at FSU, we plucked CBS out of the NFL, Stanford’s S&C coach (viewed by some as the best in CFB) applied for a lateral move, etc.
I don’t know what coaches are secretly looking around, or which ones will be unemployed come December but the evidence shows that UGA football is a sought after place to work.
I think a lot of the Pruitt & Schotty hires have to do with Richt being the head coach, but removing him from the equation, don’t you think that UGA is a more attractive job than Arkansas?
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Hell of a lot more attractive then South Carolina. Bet Smart takes it at 4-5 million per year.
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Maybe, but I think Smart is waiting for a better job than USCe.
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Stepping stone to other jobs. Ready to lose the “never been a HC mantra”. I think he would be the #1 choice and he would not have to play Saban every year, but would get to play Richt every year. 3-4 years at Carolina does a decent job and maybe then it would be his time to head back to the old Alma mater or even Tuscaloosa. Time is right IMHO for him to leave the shadow of Saban.
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As you admit, the hires are probably more due to Richt than due to something else special about UGA. Pruitt explicitly stated that he came specifically to work with Richt.
I’m not Bluto, but I can’t see anything special about UGA that couldn’t exist at Arkansas. Their money spends just as easily as UGA’s. Their beer drinks pretty good.
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Here’s are some factors I think influence coaches to prefer one job over the other:
History, tradition, etc
Recruiting base
Support from the AD/ school administration
Facilities
Pay
Authority/Autonomy
Support from boosters & the amount of butt kissing required to get it
Pressure to win
Talent to win right away
Challenge to coach in the SEC (or if they prefer, easier path to playoffs, etc)
I’m sure there are more, but it’s late and maybe no one will read this ’cause we’ll be onto a new thread tomorrow.
In which of those areas does Arkansas have the edge over UGA? Less pressure, and….what?
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Sometimes you have to take a step back to go forward, and a failed hire maybe just the time to clean out B-M. However, my hunch is the real problem is with the moneyed old guard alumni who influence B-M and that isn’t as easy to change.
Rumors floated around that McGarity wanted Mullen and I am just fine with that. He has taken Miss St. to levels they have not been in a long time with a budget that was among the lowest in the SEC when he arrived., Further Miss St. is little brother in a state where LSU and Bama routinely take the top talent.
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I am shaking my head at this line of thought.
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and what championship has he won?
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I am shaking my head at this line of thought. Given the resources he has been a massive improvement
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Red Cup, it shows you the “talent level” of the thinkers in the anti group. I must say that this one may be at the very bottom, but still directionally the same. It is why they are what they are. Not worth your time, although Mullen as a choice does provide humor and could be a guy in a thinker like McFrugal’s gun sight. Gives credence to the Senator’s concern about what might come next if we lose Richt.
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Fire. Hire. Fire. Hire. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
I recognize this sarcasm gets converted into being a richt-apologist but my opinion about Richt has always been the same as it would be for any coach: you don’t fire him because you can. You fire because you have no choice.
We got close to there after losing at Colorado. That was the time I didn’t think he could right the ship. He did. Since the program got redirected, we’ve had the most atrocious luck with injuries and other things that we just aren’t where we want to be. We’re a lot closer to that though than starting all over with X as head coach.
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You are a Richt apologist. There’s no two ways about that. You’re either a relative or a silly evangelical who thinks your place in heaven is somehow tied to how vehemently defend a shitty coach.
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I have said for years we need to clean out B-M. If CMR goes we need to hire a first rate AD and get him to: (1) Hire a new HC; (2) Replace the hangers-on at B-M with folks who really do something productive.
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You either care about winning championships or you don’t. If you really care about competing at the top level, winning SEC championships and occasionally being in the national championship conversation, then you make the change. Yes, it could be worse and a new hire may not work out. You then rinse and repeat. Settling for middle tier status is where we’re at. It’s never going to get better and most likely it will slowly get worse. The 2 or 3 losses will eventually turn into 3-4. Look at what the Falcons have done. Mike Smith didn’t forget how to coach, the system grew stale and just wasn’t working any more. You bring in a new guy with a fresh approach and suddenly things turn around. Look how many national championships happen in the first few years of a new hire.
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We have not been “middle tier status” under Richt. We have not won an SEC championship since 2005, sure, and have not been in a BCS championship game or the playoff, but his track record is not “middle tier status.”
The media focus in the playoffs has the unfortunate effect of reducing all teams finishing 5 and below as equals. UGA fans follow that trend by viewing the 2012 number 6 finish and the 2014 number 9 finish as no better than being number 70.
I lived through the Goff years. THAT was middle tier. If we fire Richt we have to hire some one even better. The pool of candidates better than Richt is much, much smaller than the pool of candidates better than Goff.
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In fairness, the pool of candidates better than Goff included Kindergartens and zoos.
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Good one!
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lived through those years as well, and while Goff’s teams may not have won as much, I guess the lower expectations back then made it more fun…Garrison, Robert Edwards in the first half against Tennessee, Zeier, Brice, Hines Ward carrying his team on his back,,,horrible OLines, breaking AU’s home winning streak Auburn one year, Goff throwing the epic comeback and game away the next …the peach Bowl, winning in driving rain against Texas Tech…annual beatdowns of GT….all clear and fond memories I still have of those days….my memories of more recent years are of epic failures in big games….guess it’s a matter of persepective
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The win in the driving rain against Texas Tech was under Donnan.
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thanks…Hines somersaulting into the end zone in a monsoon is my lasting memory from that one…DGD
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2nd tier but definitely not middle tier. But give him time to at least achieve middle tier. He is definitely on the way if the last to games are any indication.
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Relax peeps, I’ve figured this out.
Can mcgarity
promote Richt to ad
hire Mike Bobo as head coach, offensive coordinator, & qb coach
hire a special teams coordinator
profit
Think of the benefits
– mcgarity gone, self explanatory
– don’t have to seal club a good man and a good coach even if the game’s past him by
– Bobo’s cheap, could structure his comp as half cash, & unlimited uga apparel and free tuition for all his kids
– brice Ramsey now understands the play book
– keep Jacob Eason
– keep the IPF
– special. Teams. Coordinator.
My work here is done. You’re welcome.
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Very funny especially since it’s reasonable …
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I think Bobo needs a few years as HC first. 3 or 4 maybe…I hope Richt can make it that long and then I hope Bobo comes back.
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VD had no years as a HC before coming to Georgia. CMR had no years as a HC before coming to Georgia. Just sayin.’
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I’ve heard worse suggestions. I’d like for Bobo to bake a little longer to make sure he’s fully done before bringing him home. How is CSU doing? I need to see some of his pressers to see how he runs his program.
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CSU is bad. 2-4 and will probably finish with 4 or 5 wins. If he can’t elevate the talent level in Ft Collins, then he will be looking for a new gig in a few years.
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Only way for McGarrity to go is to be fired. Georgia is relatively doing well in other sports. For McGarity to resign to give way to Richt out of his gracious heart seem doubtful. Plus, if Dawg fans feels Richt and McGarrity are good but only mediocre as a whole, will BM like another of the same as an AD. These folks have their own huge ego including Richt. McGarrity will have to be fired or at the very least whispered upon to quietly go.
And just keeping Richt as an AD will not be an assurance that Eason will stay..
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Um, Bobo’s buyout is $5 million. I think we’ll see monkeys flying out of Morehead’s butt before we go that route.
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If we keep repeating the same arguments over and over and over, I’m sure we’ll come to a consensus eventually.
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The Dawgsports poll is swinging more than ever in the direction of replacing Richt.
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I figured the 15% from last year is up to 40 to 50% right now. Assuming the season doesn’t fly off the rails (and I don’t really think there’s a reason to expect it to), I figure it will settle in around 30% heading into next year.
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The Dawgsports Poll? Whoa! That changes everything!
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lol..
exactly. A bunch of people that dont write checks and dont attend games are angry on the internet.
crazy.
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Yes just like all those that walked out of the Bama game never wrote a check
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Were they walking out of the sky boxes? I couldn’t see from my seats.
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It’s the check writing part that I’m questioning. Until the Leeburns of the world turn off on Richt, I think he’s safe. Even if a few more of us give up our season tickets.
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That maybe so
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And you assume that every single wet-ass soul who walked out from that game are today saying “Fire Mark Richt?”
Admit it, Otto. You were one of those people there booing, weren’t you?
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I don’t boo players. I have family that played at an SEC program and were thankful as they were for a coaching change.
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Well good on you for that. I bitched about people booing and got my ass jumped by some here.
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It isn’t the kid’s fault. A coach may not get my support but booing/heckling in the stands is not the way to show it. The only rare time I may boo in the stands is on a bad call by the refs. Richt was flagged for a 15 yarder the last time I booed at the refs.
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You realize that people who write checks also have Internet, right? I think it’s laughable that you think the general sentiments of the fan base as a whole is somehow completely opposite of people who contribute money, as if they exist in an alternate reality.
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Ya har har That’s a good one DL, made me spit my coffee out.
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good time to be an agent…every one is getting paid this off season.
Though if I a big time coach, I might be interested in waiting to see what if Haden gets canned first.
hell even when it comes to AD there are worse guys than ADGM. Patterson and Haden are a couple of really bad ones.
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I’m at the point that I’m willing to risk wandering in the desert. There’s still that part of me that thinks 2-3 years from now we could be celebrating Richt finally breaking through the ceiling – at least making the playoffs, if not winning the national title.
But there’s an even bigger part of me that thinks if he’s still here 3 years from now, we’ll just be having the exact same discussions about how we were just one break away, but we never able to make that break happen.
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My fear is he gets it, and then is less focused than ever. The Disney Dawgs will give him a life time contract on the way to regularly placing 3rd in the East.
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Your fear is that Mark Richt gets a championship. That’s your fear? Ok, I think we’re done here.
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Assure it will be one and only one
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Otto my friend, sadly I think he already has a lifetime contract, based on the fact that he can fall out of bed and get a top 10 recruiting class that can win him 8 to 10 games a year.
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Were you a season ticket holder in the Goff years? If so, tell me whether our level of success now is no more satisfying to you than the level under Goff.
I am not willing to go back to that.
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I was. It was horrific. The thing is Ray was not ready for the job and Tennessee and Florida were ascending with good coaches. Richt, on the other hand, created much of the Charlie Foxtrot circumstances the team is in from a talent and depth situation himself and he did it at a time when UT and UF have been in shambles. It’s pitiful how he has fucked up the team by sleep-walking. I listened to the Hotline last night and he’s on there laughing and giggling. He projects an image, right or wrong, that losses like Saturday’s are God’s way of making sure he’s humble.
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No I wasn’t. My freshman year was Donnan’s first year. I get what you’re saying. I just think the odds of things getting THAT bad are very small. (I know, I know, Vol fans would have said the same thing before Fulmer was let go).
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Sure, the chances of hiring another Goff are small.
The chances of hiring another Donnan are much greater. Did you know that Donnan is in the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach? The chances of hiring a potential Hall of Fame coach and have him produce Donnan type results at Georgia are much higher than the odds of getting Goff results.
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He’s not in the HOF for his Georgia performances. Losing regularly to your biggest rivals is not a way to keep your job.
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That is my point. He is not in the HOF because of his record at Georgia. My point is that a guy good enough to get to the HOF because of his results before going to UGA produced results at UGA below that of Richt. That means that hiring someone who would get better results than Richt is not easy; a guy good enough elsewhere to make the HOF could not do it.
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Ahh, gotcha. I missed your point initially. And it’s a good point. Donnan was a hot hire when he came in. Marshall was the popular mid-major powerhouse and all Donnan needed was SEC-caliber athletes and facilities. Uh, no.
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Reality check: Donnan’s win percentage for the last 4 years of his 5 year era (got to give him one year to get the Goof out of the players, right?) is almost exactly the same as CMR’s. And the coaches of our rivals he lost to: Steve Spurrier (best coach in FU and SC history), George O’Leary (arguably the best Tech HC since Bobby Dodd–his only real rival for that would be Bobby Ross because Ross won 1 nattie at Tech although O’Leary had a higher winning percentage.), Phil Fulmer (second highest winning percentage all-time at UT) and Tommy Tuberville (85-40 while at Auburn.). If Donnan got to coach against stiffs like SOD and Booch, Fish-Fry, Boom and Cheats-it, Donnan would have had about the same record against them that CMR has had and likely would still be Georgia HC today.
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I was and replied to your post above, but honestly I see no difference in a 6-6 or 7-5 year with average talent and 9-3 or 10-2 team with above average talent, especially when the 10-2 includes games we should have won and lost opportunities…either you win the SEC East or you don’t…win the east and I’m satisfied…that never happened under Goff and is happening less and less under Richt…difference being Tennesse and Florida were at a different level back then
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Totally agree. 7-5 or 10-2. What’s the difference if you’re getting two of those losses being smoked by rivals and you aren’t winning the East because of it?
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Okay. We are now making personal value distinctions. I would always prefer 10-2 over 7-5. You would prefer 7-5 over 10-2 depending upon which teams are the 2 and the scores of the 2.
It is like whether you lake apples better than strawberries. To each his own.
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If you prefer apples, you’re slime, and frankly, I wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.
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I prefer strawberries. Do you like me better now?
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You’re clearly a man of good moral fiber.
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Yeah but apples have more fiber than strawberries.
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Now I have to reevaluate my whole value system.
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LOL. Biggus, as bad as I don’t want to, I’m beginning to like you.
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I do that. I grow on people.
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Kind of like a wart? 😉
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I was thinking moss or fungus. But wart works.
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Well, to me, if you are blowing 2-3 games a year and not winning the conference then it’s the same as 7-5. Dooley redux.
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I think it’s a trick question. 10 wins is better than 7 wins.
It amazes me that Ricky Bobby’s dad, “If you’re not first, you’re last,” now passes for profound wisdom to the UGA fan base. Even he admitted that he was drunk when he made the nonsensical statement.
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Maybe if Richt said he was going to “come after Florida like a spider monkey”, everyone would feel better?
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Richt just needs to get all jacked up on Mountain Dew.
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I’m with you. I do not think there is really enough out there at present, despite the last 10 years of so called mediocre performance for Richt to be fired or whispered on to go by BM which anyway is the more important of all bloggers or posters. The likely scenario is he will continue to the 2016 and 2017 seasons unless he himself gets into some personal problems or his team goes into an SC type season, but even that will not be an assurance that he will not get the 2016 season.
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It is clear to me Georgia is not going to replace its head football coach in the near future.
While all the folks who have been saying for years….(fill in the blank(s) can continue to wonder, rail, cry, moan, bitch, etc, etc, about the current head football coach and his perceived shortcomings, and I don’t exclude myself from this bunch, I have a new road to happiness.
One game at a time.
When the Plus-sized lady wails at the end of the game, I will take note of the stats on the scoreboard. If we got more than them, I will be happy till Monday. If we got less than them I will be pissed, confused, hurt, angry, depressed etc, etc, till Monday morning, then I gonna get ready for the next one.
Worrying myself and or my con freres into a lather about last week is not only pointless, it is detrimental to my overall mental health.
I got a multi-million dollar coaching staff which is all the fuck over worrying about what went wrong last week. I am gonna let them earn they money.
I have been asked to deliver the key note address at the annual World Congress of Kharmic Bitches in Hahira over the winter. I may or may not attend, because what, at this point, have the Kharmic Bitches done that would make me want to be in the same room with them….ok, ok, that’s last week shit there. Move on.
What I can do something about is hats. I am at an all time low point in my hat-fetish. I just can’t seem to find one that works…last week I went (mostly) hat-less and we saw how that fucker worked out. (sotto voce…HOLY FUCKING SHIT).
So right now, this morning the search begins anew. Hats…I’m lookin for you.
A hat, a good hat, a winning hat…my freaking little kingdom for a hat.
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How about a nice red fedora? That’s a championship caliber hat if I ever saw one.
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Who knows? Rick see this is stuff that you really gotta get worked out in pre-season camp…I guess I gotta get me a Sony hat…ya know? Its out there somewhere, I can feel that hat calling me…I just gotta find it.
Now if that ain’t the Georgia Way, nothin is. Right?
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I’ve got a line on a top flight pork pie that I can bring in this winter. I think it will change everything.
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Thanks, man…I needed that…I just hope its not too big to play hat. 🙂
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If people don’t understand that it’s about your hats and my right mix of m&m’s and reese’s pieces…they just don’t get it.
Find a hat, dear dawg friend. Not black this week. That’s Mizzou’s colors. Red, white, gray…maybe even khaki. Maybe even red or white. It’s a big decision. Choose wisely.
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“You gave up, I gave up…we were out of it and gone….
The whole Georgia Way of Life could ride on a hat choice.
I can do this, I can do this, I can do this……
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I am going to back to country style ribs, chicken thighs, and a steady rotation of Journey this weekend. That got us through some rough times in 2011.
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But, but, but … the Dawgsports Poll!
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Polls, Dolly, phooey….hats, Dolly, hats…hep me out here….hats….
(Hat choice may be more accurate than most polls. I used to do that, trust me, I been in that arena.)
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LOL. That’s why I stopped doing the hat trick. Never worked for me. I probably would just as well wear the hat of the other team and likely Dawgs will win.
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I also like to bring my son in law (Miami fan) into big games. The Dawgs lost in all those games. I stopped doing that, and the Dawgs lost even more games, LOL.
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And I stopped going to games, and the Dawgs still lost more embarrassing once, haha.
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ones
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Sobering words indeed, Senator.
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FUD
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For a long time I agreed with you, Senator. I think a lot of people out there understand the rational logic in this post. But as I previously noted in another post, I think a group of those people are now ready to enter the abyss. Yes, we understand the risks and we’ve seen what can happen at other universities and we know of the unheralded consistent ‘success’ CMR has brought to UGA…. but it’s no longer enough knowing we’re also consistently going to get these types of games from our program.
Does that make CMR a victim of his own success? Yeah, I suppose it does. But as another poster noted, at least it would offer some hope.
but wait! you say. there’s still a chance to reach the SECCG! you say. what do you have to say about that?! you say.
No one will disagree that you’ve got to get done what needs to get done to get there, win more (or the right amount) of games than your East competitors… I think the biggest issue is the general consensus of how our program is viewed outside our own heads. Personally, I’d prefer to ‘earn’ our place in the national conversation rather than doing just enough and getting all the breaks to go our way.
and before you say “every national title team needed a break to go there way…” – yes, I’ll agree luck is involved (Hellooo Auburn), but it seems our ‘luck’ is more about needing everyone around us to fold rather than us pull out some hail mary victories.. Maybe it’s my personal opinion, but it feels a bit embarrassing and cheap. And while consistently shitting the bed on the national stage every year and STILL having our goals in front of us every year is nice, it sure as shit doesn’t make me want to beat my chest about the Dawgs. It’s more like a shy, head down toward the ground, twisting my foot back and forth, hands behind my back, ‘aww shucks thanks guys’.
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I think this is fair. When you’re fielding a competitive product, walking into the abyss is irrational. But the further you slide from being competitive (and we have had our share of slips) … the less irrational the abyss becomes.
The less MR does, the less we have to lose.
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Your point about people beginning to slide over to the risky aisle is spot on. Toward the end of this post I wrote I had this line:
“The heat isn’t going anywhere should Richt and Co lose another one, and while I think he’s still the man for the job, that position is getting harder to defend.”
I really do think Richt is a great coach/leader of a program, but the manner in which he loses games beats you down as a fan, and it makes you want to gamble a bit more than perhaps you should.
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If we were fielding an SEC contender on a regular basis, appetite for a walk in the desert stays low. Recognizing the risk and costs involved in coaching changes is important. And “firing” a coach mid-season is a ridiculous idea.
But if we can’t win the East on a regular basis, much less the SEC…that walk in the desert — a carefully planned, intentional walk — starts to look more appealing.
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We have won the East two out of the last four years. Do you expect us to improve on that?
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Given that we were the most talented team in the SEC East each of the last 4 years, yes.
This is not Spurrier’s UF and Peyton Manning/Jamal Lewis/Cosey Coleman/Deon Grant UT teams we are facing. I am not expecting to win every game (Alabama 2 weeks ago for example), but beating teams like this year’s UT, last year’s UF and S. Carolina, ’13 Vanderbilt, etc. should happen.
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Beer Money is right. Today’s SEC East is utterly winnable — especially by a stable program with the same coach at the helm for over a decade. No excuses at this point. Lack of talent, poor roster management, bad coordinators?? All fall at the feet of the head coach.
As you say, we won the East 2 in out of the last 4 seasons.
But…
We have also won the East in 2 out of the last 9 seasons.
Or…
We have won the East in 5 out of the last 14 seasons.
So…how do you want to look at it?
I think it’s the march to 2/9 and being noncompetitive in key games that has people running out of patience/hope with Richt.
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Let’s look at the last 4 complete seasons (2011-2014).
Our record: 40-14. Winning percentage of 74.07%. The only coaches with a 4 year record that is better than 2011-2014 since 1939 are Dooley’s 4 year periods ending in 1981, 1982, 1983 and 1984 and Butts 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948. Those included the Herschel Walker years, Frank Sinkwich years, Charlie Trippi years and John Rauch years. The only other 4 year periods better than 2011-2014 are other Richt years.
Record versus rivals during Richt’s last 4 complete years:
Auburn: 3-1
UF: 3-1
UT 4-0
Tech 3-1.
The past four years against UF, AU, GT and UT are better percentages than our win percentages against those teams prior to the Richt years.
Final rankings: 2014 9th in coaches, 9th in AP (preseason 16th in both)
2013: unranked (preseason 5th in both)
2012: 5th in AP, 4th in coaches (preseason 6th in both)
2011: 19th in AP, 20th in coaches (preseason 19th in AP, 22nd in coaches)
I would say we have been competitive. I give the 2013 result a pass due to the incredible injury bug. Otherwise, we have done well generally and against our rivals.
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Umm. You are messing with the meme by showing actual facts.
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Donnan went 35-13 (.727) his last four years. The lesson Donnan’s tenure teaches is to spread your losses around.
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There are other coaches outside of this program. Why is Richt only compared to the coaches that were employed before the forward pass? There is a difference in saying you don’t trust the administration to make a hire because of history, and quite another to say the current state of the program is the best we deserve because of history. The latter argument just doesn’t hold water. The game has completely changed in the last ten to twenty years.
Boise State wasn’t a thing twenty years ago. Oregon is new money. Baylor is new money. You think those teams are worried about being better than they have ever been or deserve to be by right? What about Florida? Before Spurrier, they were losers who needed to cheat to compete. He elevated that program waaaay beyond what they had ever been, and now they are a college football blue blood with a sterling 25 years of tradition. Georgia is a 2nd rate program compared to Florida’s accomplishments now even though Georgia has History and Tradition and all those things that make you feel good about yourself. The players that are playing today think Florida has always been better than Georgia because they were born in ’93 at the earliest. Some of the recruits for Richt’s 2018 recruiting class weren’t even born when he took the job at UGA. You think they give two shits about Donnan or Goff or Erk Russell or what Wally Butts’ record was? It may be fresh in your memories, but they have to google it to know what the hell you are talking about. But, thank goodness we have the best coach in the history of our program. I am damn lucky to be living in such a golden era of UGA football.
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Ahhhh, yes. The Golden Age of Above Average. The Golden Age of two conference championships in 14 seasons.
Smell the roses, boys; it’s going to be a sweet, sweet ride to 9-3.
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The real Golden Age is raking in $4 million a year for netting all of the above.
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You ARE lucky, Trey. Trust us on this.
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I’m convinced Richt is going to retire after Eason leaves. It will put him at 19 years (or so) at UGA and he’ll be 60 or very close to it and he’ll go into his post-coach Mission-life he’s always talked about. Eason is his last shot to win a title.
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Serious question: I’ve heard many people put out there before about Richt saying he wanted to go on to a “mission-life” after football, but I’ve never once heard him mention that in all the years he’s been at UGA. Not saying you’re wrong, just have never once heard him say that. Is this something he’s said in the pre-season speaking circuit that wasn’t reported? Do you have any links I could read which quote him as saying this? Again, not saying you’re wrong, just curious if I missed something.
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Praise be the savior amen
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What you say is what I said to some friends after the realization yesterday at USC how hopeless their fans must feel about Haden.
That is not a question it should take you long to answer. And despite the ‘grand schemes’ of “oh, we’ll get a complete athletic dept. overhaul”…those aren’t serious. I’m as frustrated as anyone, but I trust Mark Richt more. That might change if we go 7-5, but we haven’t gone 7-5. Lo and behold, we’re going to play the rest of the games.
With a young QB and losing 4 of 5, I saw CMR take a team and boat race a #6 Auburn team in 2006. Things changed in the program and Richt 2.0 was born. We saw Richt 3.0 born in the midst of an 0-2 start in 2011, and Pruitt’s hire has marked the beginning of Richt 4.0. Let’s win these last 6 games, beat some rivals, maybe end up in ATL and see if we can change our hearts a little. But I trust the guy who has poured 15 years into Athens more than McGarity…I just do. And the wheels simply haven’t fallen off enough for me to lose that trust.
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I’m not saying I trust McGarity but I do think there is obviously something between Richt and McGarity. McGarity seems not to be sold on Richt but has his hands tied on firing him by the wealthy boosters. Richt would not have lasted 15 years at Florida. McGarity has agreed to fund the IPF and has opened up for more coaches giving Richt access to the infrastructure to improve. I obviously think Richt has shown his potential. Winning the last 6 games will not change that.
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I guess the thing that gets me here in this analysis is the recognition that Richt can’t win championships, but we’re going to keep him because the next hire won’t be as good.
I’m sorry but that is completely insane. If the conclusion is that he CANNOT lead this team to a championship, then that is where the analysis necessarily ends.
The search for someone who we believe can win a championship has to start immediately.
Championships are the stated goal by everyone involved in the program. If the belief is that Richt can’t achieve that, then he is no longer qualified to hold the position.
Fear that the next guy won’t win any either is irrelevant.
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If McGarity feels Richt is incapable of winning SEC titles then he has to fire him. It’s that simple. If he feels Richt can win them, so be it. The talent coming in is pretty good and Eason might be the difference maker.
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You aren’t getting this.
What makes you think the people in Butts-Mehre have the same priorities you do? Or even if they do, that they have the first clue about how to go about succeeding?
It’s not an argument about keeping Richt. It’s an argument about whether Georgia football has the management to ever reach the place so many think is its deserved destination.
If you don’t – and I sure don’t – we’ll be having a similar discussion five years down the road. And that’s a lot more depressing for me to contemplate than Mark Richt’s future.
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is it because you don’t believe the administration wouldn’t be willing to put the right financial package together to get the right coach or is it because you believe the administrations is just incompetent and doesn’t care about winning i.e. how Gurley situation was handled
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Both.
Plus, history.
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Bingo…and what I do believe is that Richt deeply wants to win one/many.
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Management? Please define.
Richt? Which would probably also mean most of the current coaching staff. Or people in B-M? Or both?
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The people who call the shots in the athletic department.
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Yup. I agree. If coaches tenure depends on what the fans feel after each or every series losses, there will not be enough competent coaches out there that will qualify. LOL
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In fact if fans can determine the coaches tenure, then SC(west) problem would have not happen esp. if one think how many fans attend games drunk or mess up tailgating areas. The coach just fits into the crowd.
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Who exactly are you talking about in BM? It seems like whoever it is, they’ve changed a little (at least according to the folks on here) how they run the program. Why wouldn’t we hire a search firm like every other program and see who we could lure away for $5M? If we’re already paying our coordinators the going rate, don’t you think in this new era of spending we’d pay what it costs to get a sexy hire?
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Search firms are what scared athletic departments use to avoid making tough decisions they can be held accountable for.
I have no idea on the rest of what you’re asking. But between what the buyouts will cost and what it would take to bring in your sexy hire – and remember, there will be plenty of competition out there for whoever that may be – I would think there would be some hesitancy with the money, yes.
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http://www.nusports.com/staff.aspx?staff=89
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So who do you keep referring to as BM? If they aren’t specific people what makes you think they’re still around and making decisions? We are, after all, doing things differently as you’ve pointed out.
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FYI: That’s the group that gets to meet so often to determine the fate of the entire athletic program. Like to cosa nostras sitting around a long table in a darkened paneled room. LOL
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I mean if we want to get fully paranoid, one could make all kinds of insinuations about what what industry benefits the most from a team that can drive its fans to drink…
But I don’t think that person has Bobby Lowder at Auburn prior to the financial crisis levels of influence.
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First, I most certainly am “getting it.”
I know that Greg McGarity has said championships are the goal. So, I’ll take him at his word.
So the point does in fact remain, if the consensus is that Mark Richt cannot achieve the sated goal, then a move has to be made.
All of the other stuff is irrelevant.
There is a goal, which McGarity has stated is the goal. There is a thought among some that Richt no longer can achieve that goal. That means he is no longer qualified to hold the position. Which necessarily means ity’s time to move on.
Whether we have the folks to make a good hire is a separate question in my mind. Things are different now than they were before. I think the end of last season and the investments being made to the program prove that unequivocally. In that regard, I’m not sure the hiring history of say Goff or Donnan is all that informative.
I also don’t think Greg McGarity is the person who will make the hire and I think that is a good thing.
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If the “some” you refer to aren’t in management, your conclusion is incorrect.
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McGarity did say he wants to win championships. So, I can understand believing him, although I’m too cynical to automatically assume he was telling the truth. Although I think it’s adorable that you do.
But, McGarity did NOT say that championships are ALL he cares about and that he’s willing to do ANYTHING to make them happen. You’re assuming that he holds those positions. And you know what happens when you assume.
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Richt has always said he loves it in Athens and he doesn’t want to be anywhere else…well that’s it…he’ll stay as long as he wants to…the Athletic board will have to be persuaded to get out of their comfort zone to make any changes anywhere…Richt needs a 16 team playoff to get relevant again…that ain’t gonna happen, by the way…
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Dear Mr. Jones…that Will Grier thing there…who the sam hell do you think put the PED in his cornflakes, you freaking ingrate?
Read the damn signs Scorp, read the damn signs.
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Jeezus Boo…maybe you are right, hell, I am a Georgia fan… “I been down so long it seems like up to me.”
Time will tell.
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Wish I was really the pharmacist who offered that over the counter PED and assure him it cannot leave any residual testable residue in his body.
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oh, you believed that story? That’s cute!!!
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My Problem with McGarity making the next hire is that every year it will cost $750k-$1M more to hire the next coach–especially with 5 well paying gigs open mid season this year. Imagine how many more people will be hired and fired in the next 3 years with salaries already spiraling out of control. I think he is more likely to hire a coach on the cheap–even if losing is guaranteed and ride out whatever profit is left in the cash cow that is(was) GA football. I would like someone–anyone–else making that hire.
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$750k-$1M more a year in the contract…with 5 or 6 year minimum.
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And not anyone in this blog either. LOL
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FWIW gamecock radio says their AD will offer a big time coach $6 million. Will they get one? Or will they get their third or fourth choice? I don’t know. But Greg McGarity just said, “whoa, an indoor practice facility is one thing…”
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Could they get Dantonio for that?
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I don’t know why he’d leave Michigan State to go to South Carolina unless he doesn’t get along with the administration up there. Still, stranger things have happened.
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Dantonio is a USCjr alum.
Remember when the Bear said, “Mama called.”
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I was unaware of that. He’s also nearly 60, so does he want to start over just because his alma mater offers? Still seems like a long shot.
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He graduated from SCar in ’79, and was a three year letterman. So there’s that…
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South Carolina fans are going to tell themselves that they have a great job opening, but I suspect they will not have the long list of proven winners to pick from once it all shakes out.
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I call bullshit on Gamecock radio. I don’t see them spending that kind of money at all.
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Could be, but don’t you think a number like that really puckers the cornholes at BM?
The Georgia way has often been the most economical.
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Sark is available can fit in though in Sarkelina.
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LOL
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They aren’t spending that much on a coach. Maybe a staff…
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BREAKING NEWS!!!!!! Since you know who is like, all retired, somewhere in a box somewhere I’ve got a Georgia….wait, for it….VISOR!!!!!!!!!!!
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We all know what we’ve got with CMR—a man of impeccable integrity with a strong winning record who sometimes gets close, but only close.
Getting rid of CMR would give us a chance to find a winning coach who turns out to have a tolerance for finding and keeping players who behave badly, even criminally, and then defends the “young man” to a near comical extent; or who cheats as easily and often as a Clinton tells a lie; or who wins big and then leaves the program in a shambles when he has “health issues;” or who uses UGA as a stepping stone to the NFL or elsewhere; or who shows up drunk when he bothers to show up at all; or who has a few hot seasons at a lesser program and then finds himself out of his depth in the SEC; or is a hot assistant who likewise finds himself out of his depth as a head coach.
Or we can find a man of demonstrated integrity who plays by the rules, will represent UGA in a first-class manner, and wins.
There aren’t nearly as many in the second group as there are in the first. And if we can’t find one from the second group, do we cross our fingers and choose from the first? And if we find a coach who delivers both championships and sleaze, will we be okay with that?
I’m not yet ready to throw Mark Richt overboard. We may find a better coach, but we won’t find a better man. And, in my opinion, the likelihood of finding neither is high enough to make me think long and hard.
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Oh god, again with the moral superiority bullshit.
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I would tell you to go screw yourself but I’m afraid you’d actually do it and then smoke a cigarette afterwards. And we all know that smoking is bad for you. So I’ll just let your comment rise to the clouds like the gas it is and wish you the best of everything. 🙂
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I think the point of this post is to bring into clearer focus what our chances are if we step in the abyss and to strengthen the argument for those who don’t want to see Richt gone yet. Another aspect to consider is the apparent stellar recruiting class we MAY bring in. Yes, I know Richt always recruits well (who couldn’t in GA right? Oh..forget Paul Johnson) but this year may be the year where he out recruits the usual 3-4 SEC schools that beat us out annually.
I am still in irritated wait and see mode. At the end of the year we should get an idea of 1. Have we improved as a team? 2. Have we stepped it up a notch in recruiting? If the answer is no for either one of these two, then the abyss looks more and more appealing.
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Why does it matter how we finish? We’ve already been given the test and failed miserably. If we get to 9 wins beating mediocre opponents are you going to tell yourself we’ve gotten better? Because that’s what folks around here were doing after beating Vanderbilt and South Carolina and you see how that turned out. We already know Georgia can beat average teams. We also know we can’t beat good teams and we will always possess the mental fortitude of a battered woman. The “wait and see” philosophy is just a way of saying “let’s just forget about the cold hard truth and let ourselves be lulled back into the fantasy that Richt can get it done.”
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I get it chili. I’m just not all the way over where you are now.
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I know. It was mostly a rhetorical question so I could feel like I’ve adequately expressed my dissatisfaction. I don’t think I’ve really made it clear.
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2002, 2007, 2012… 2017? It seems like UGA has a contender once every five years, so everybody bide your time for the next season and a half. May I suggest taking up a hobby like knitting or learning a new language or French cuisine for the next twenty-two months, then come back in the fall of 2017 when everything will fall in line and the team will be full of veterans and there won’t be mental lapses and everyone will get a unicorn to ride into and out of the stadium and all of our rivals will be crying at the thought of having to play our magnificent QB who rides a pale horse. Just be sure to send your checks in to BM next February. The future is bright!
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Lol, so your suggestion is to just be content to wait for every five years when the stars align perfectly so we can fall short of winning the SEC yet again?
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If this is really the case, and I’m not saying it’s not, then replacing McGarity should be the primary priority. We’re saying we can’t hold our current coaches accountable because we don’t trust their boss not to fuck up hiring their replacements.
That’s a fairly horrible place to be.
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Again, I’m not saying anything about coaching accountability.
And McGarity is a symptom. He’s not the disease.
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I wish you would give more specifics of the disease.
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How many posts do you need me to write about the Georgia Way?
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One with names instead of “Buttes-Mehre.” It sounds like you don’t know who’s pulling strings yet pretend to see some impending doom even after freely admitting the athl dept is operating differently, spending more, etc. What happened to your “BM I hardly recognize you” narrative? Either things have changed or they haven’t. It seems to me like we have more reason to be optimistic about staff decisions than a year ago.
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If you don’t know who McGarity answers to, research the members of the Board, and look at who the big contributors are. It’s not that hard to figure out.
And the Georgia Way isn’t just about the money. Unless you think there isn’t a coach in America who would care about Georgia’s drug policy, for example.
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Come on, Senator. Certainly it’s not that tough to type “Good Ole Boys” when alluding to the problem. I’ve used that term for years here to describe that group.
But I’ve always thought that you were one of them or, at the least, high-fiveing them from their coattails.
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Based on what?
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This.
We really don’t know who’s ultimately making the decisions and how much leeway McGarity will have and who’s really pulling the strings. For example what happens when the perfect candidate says change your drug policy or he won’t come? What about the way we handled Dick Sheridan as another example? What if McGarity wanted to hire James Franklin, Butch Davis or the Pirate? Would he be able to or would the powers that be think there was too much baggage? I’m not suggesting hiring those guys or that McGarity should be given free reign just trying to illustrate my doubts in the process. Senator like I you I just don’t have much faith in the machine and why should I?
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This, in a nutshell, is all I’m saying.
Those of you who disagree with me, either have the honesty to admit that Richt’s departure means enough to you that you don’t care about the process, or give me solid, factual reasons why I can disregard the record. Otherwise, you’re simply not convincing.
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Someone else mentioned it up above and I agree. I like beating our rivals and CMR has done a really great job at that. Amazingly good.
Despite last weekend, we are currently enjoying the greatest run of success against UT in UGA history.
CMR has nearly 1/2 of all time wins against UT.
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Ah, welcome home from Bellevue Hospital Adult Inpatient Psychiatric Services
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Luv that.
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Tennessee’s also going through their worst stretch of football since the late ’70s/early ’80s.
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And you could argue that Coach Richt had a small part in that.
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You could.
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you could also argue Mike Hamilton had a small part in that.
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Bingo!
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I’ll wander in the desert as long as it takes. It’s only illusion that we’re any better off than Tennessee. We’re not. We’re deceived into thinking winning 9 games makes us special. We’re wandering in the desert now.
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I’m as upset and depressed as anybody right now. Though I am a Richt supporter I will play the devil’s advocate here since we seem to be on the wandering in the desert analogy. Anyone remember WHY the Jews were forced to wander in the desert for forty years? God initially took them to the promised land post haste. But the Jews were afraid to take it. Their scouts came back with reports of giants! Fear got the best of them. They were forced to wander in the desert for forty years while the entire generation of leaders who were disobedient to God died and a new generation of leaders were raised up. I don’t know. It just seems somewhat appropriate. Perhaps not.
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I’m not sure where you’re going with that….
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Well, a lot of us, myself included are wary of pulling the plug on a successful coach. If Richt had even one national championship would we be having this conversation? I think not. So what we’re saying is, yes he’s good but he’s not great. We want great. How do we get there? With Richt or with someone else? If we hire someone else is greatness assured? Of course not. Even a great hire can flop for a variety of reason, not all of which are even under his control. Are we willing to take that risk? Remember, Michigan had Rich Rod (good coach, bad fit) before Harbaugh. Tennessee got Junior (good coach, horrendous fit) and Derek Dooley (good coach but in over his head) before they got Butch (the jury is still out). Florida got Boom (good coordinator, not a head coach yet) before they got McElwain. However, there are situations where the fear of the unknown and the unwillingness to act as a result can actually put you in a much worse position than you were in to begin with (see above reference to the Jews wandering in the desert). Is this one of those situations? I wish I knew. Perhaps too tortured an analogy. But I’m feeling a bit tortured lately.
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We disagree on Richt as a “successful coach.” I don’t think he’s successful at all. When you go 10 years without a conference title and can’t even win the Lions share of division titles in a historically weak period in the East, you’re not successful. Richt peaked in 2005 and that Sugar Bowl loss to WVU was an omen of what we were going to get for the next decade.
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Here’s the thing man. You’ve become borderline troll-ish in torturing your point and refusing to have reasonable discussion, and that’s making it hard for the rest of us to take you serious. But something tells me you don’t really care if anybody takes you serious.
You want to see things in black and white, refusing to acknowledge that things are rarely black and white. You’re not going to win any arguments here with hyperbolic statements like, “I don’t think he’s successful at all.” Dude, most other teams would KILL for his consistent track record against our rivals. Success is a relative term. Richt has had a LOT of success. Just not as much success as you and I and all our Georgia friends had hoped for to date. He has proved successful in posting winning records overall and a high win pct overall and in conference. He has proven successful in mostly dominating ALL of our rivals. He’s been successful in running a clean program and representing the university in a manner we would hope it be represented (believe it or not that actually does mean something to some people). He has not been successful of late in winning championships. No question about that. He deserves pointed criticism for that, and he needs to do better. But to say be has not been successful at all is complete bullshit. He’s had varying levels of success. And that level of success over a long period of time stacks up pretty well against his peers across the country and conference. I find the “underperforming meme” to be the most entertaining and ironic because CMR is the one who put us in position to be favored to win almost every game in the first place. He is truly a victim of his own success. Problem is, when that happens, it usually doesn’t end well for the blood thirsty short sighted fans who didn’t realize how good they had it.
I think THAT is the point Bluto is making here. We’re all hurting man. Some of us just choose to have a more measured response than spouting nonsensical hyperbolic rhetoric. Sorry for the long rant. I hope to have changed to viewpoints.
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You cannot look at Richt’s record since 2005 and objectively call him sucessful. 2001-2005 Richt was successful. 2006-present? Average at best. A bad coach can win 7 games at Georgia. He is not a good coach. It is patently absurd to say he has “put us in a position to win every game” when we’re getting the shit kicked out of us in our own building.
No, I think you missed Blutos point altogether if you think he’s arguing for Richt. And I think you’re lying to yourself if you think he’s a successful coach right now.
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And the icing on the cake was the loss to UCF
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BTW I don’t think we even have to hire a rockstar coach. Pete Carroll wasn’t a rock star when he was hired. Jim McElwain certainly wasn’t. I think even a marginal hire can do better than Richt with the resources at his fingertips.
So, I almost don’t care who we get at this point as long as we get rid of Richt. At least we’ll be out of this limbo that we’re in where we’re afraid to go get a coach that can win a championship for fear of losing our previous 9 win seasons.
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cough, cough…Pat Fitzgerald…cough…cough….
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Exactly. We don’t have to have a guy who has won a NC. We just need a guy who has shown the ability to get more out of what he’s got than Richt has. That doesn’t necessarily mean he even has to have won as much as Richt.
Give me Kyle Whittingham and I’d be thrilled.
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Both excellent choices
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For the Richtophants, Cowherd’s opening segment is discussing both CMR and Mattingly as we speak, and I suggest you give it a listen.
Basically, he’s defending him…saying he’s a solid B- coach that would be hard to replace.
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Maybe we can use Cowherd’s rant and give Nebraska a call and see if they are still interested
http://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/georgia-football/mark-richt-among-betting-favorites-next-nebraska-head-coach/
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Real question, Senator. Just watched the Spurrier presser. He said he’s resigning, not retiring, and might coach again, just not a college head coach. Is there any way that if Schotty heads back to NFL pastures after the season that Richt gives Spurrier a call as OC to groom Eason? That’d be the darndest things to ever happen to UGA football. He’d be in hog heaven with a competent QB. He still wants to call plays, just not recruit.
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You’re dreaming, son.
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Yes, it is a dream. But you could see it in Spurrier’s face. He ain’t done. I’d bet he pops up somewhere next year doing something, and not TV. He loves the game too much. Just a funny thought I have. Don’t think Schotty is going anywhere, but crazier things have happened.
Would have sure been interesting had Spurrier done this last year. Richt and Spurrier like each other, contrary to what most people think. Hoping Schotty can pull some ball plays of his own out these last 6 games.
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Hiring Spurrier as an assistant coach might be the best (only?) way for Richt to get himself fired.
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So if he’s resigning, not retiring doesn’t it seem a whole lot more likely that he was given no choice? That perhaps it was resign or be fired?
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How about some mid-major head coach with a .750 winning percentage and a NC to his credit? Let’s throw in some successful experience at a top Division 1 program. Proven winner, been in the arena, championship resume. Bingo! We just hired Jim Donnan!
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I am not scared of kicking the bucket before Georgia exits this desert that we speak of. Even if I do, they should at least have TV’s in heaven. If I go to hell I guess I will be forced to watch the Gators instead. So to answer your question Senator, I say however long it takes.
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Fair enough. I appreciate you being one of the few honest enough to give a straight answer.
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For me, it’s pretty simple. Richt doesn’t regularly surprise the fan base with a signature win or accomplishment. Our expectations are high, and maybe they should be. So, Richt can either create a culture of lowered expectations or surpass our collective expectations. Neither has happened and you have today’s “fire him now” mentality as a result.
Another coach will have the same problem because Atlanta is only going to grow larger. So, can another coach exceed expectations? Maybe, but probably not.
In my opinion, the city of Atlanta is our best friend and worst enemy. The quality and quantity of athletes from the area creates very high expectations and a coach can only be measured a success if he wins the SEC on a regular basis. This just isn’t realistic so the formula for success in Athens is set up for failure.
I don’t have answer on the coaching situation but it’s obvious that almost any coach will have his hands full due to the extremely high expectations. Surpassing these very high expectations is just plain difficult.
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Your argument is flawed. We haven’t won the SEC in 10 years. Wanting better than that is not “unrealistic expectations” for one of the SEC’s flagship programs.
People like you invent this idea that we have impossible expectations for the program, and it’s horseshit. This isn’t the 08 Florida Gator fan base you’re talking about here. Most Georgia fans would like to at least be able to do better than 3rd place in the division with the most talented team in it. Missouri beat us out for the division crown the last two years. Let that sink in. If you want to go run some numbers on which team has put more players in the NFL the past few years, be my guest.
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Its frustrating… sure… but ’13 was devastated by a rash of injuries unseen by many teams… ever. ’14 we had a brand new QB and brand new D Coordinator after our entire secondary was booted off the team… Let that sink in. Why do you people just assume we have the most talent and underachieve year in and year out? The problem is people assuming this and setting unrealistic expectations.
I did run some numbers 2014 and 2015 players drafted in the NFL (Covers the 2013 and 2014 teams)
Mizzou – 10
UGA – 9
(and out of those 9 we had to play Mizzou both times missing half of them)
Yet we just continue to underachieve with the most talent of anyone in the country! FIRE RICHT!
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Well, since these schools managed to figure it out during the last 10 years of CMR’s tenure, maybe they can form our coaching search committee; UF, LSU, UA, BAMA, FSU, and OSU.
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Brilliant. Using your own search committee, who have figured it all out, we could certainly get Boom, or Chiz, or The Vest. Any of those would have to be better than Richt, amirite?
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McGarity worked at Florida, remember?
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It’s a wide and deep Red Sea you are looking at little Levi.
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I’m prepared to wait a decade. That’s how long I’ve been waiting for Richt to win the damn SEC again.
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applause
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Tom Herman, Houston head coach
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The AD waits for CMR to retire.
He then turns to Bobo and Friends … who are currently 2-4 at CSU.
CMR could win if he kicked some butts sometimes and stop being so passive about football…like there are more important things in life than football…he is right there…that is why his teams do not achieve as they should…but if there are more important things in life than football why is he coaching and why does he not get a visor to throw down when he has twelve men on the field.
CMR likes to give pep talks to fans and players. He is good at that.
And Georgia folks are good at going a long with the same old issues year after year.
They are 6 games in on offensive. 6 on special teams. Both of these phases of the team are not producing. By far the offense is the most experienced and deepest part of the ’15 squad. They are like their coach. Passive. Not aggressive and no play makers with the attitude to pour it on. The reason for a score board is to score. For once I would like to see a CMR team ring up 60 plus points on a SEC team, and keep the needle close to that number.
You just do not see a CMR team dominate a highly ranked defense.
At UGA we like out men’s programs to be mediocre. Especially the AD.
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Why is it that people think that us members of the FIRE RICHT crowd have not thought this whole thing through? Now that we have ALL come to the conclusion that at least the man has some serious deficiencies you should at least pay us this respect.
Yes, we know it comes with risks probably. (Probably less then a coin flip)
No, we dont think Saban is coming with Chip Kelly as his OC.
We are very, very, aware of UGA’s ineptitude at most thing athletics.
Yes, most of us sat through every Ray Goff coached football game.
Ever started a new career or moved somewhere new and been excited because you didn’t quite know what was coming next, but you had an open mind and a positive outlook? Thats called courage.
These excuses sound like whining from sad people who are complacent in being good enough. Sad.
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You lost me at “probably”.
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Fine.
You need to understand that folks who want Richt fired have rationally thought the process.
The thought didn’t occur to me after tearing off my shirt and angrily writing I HATE CMR on my wall in lipstick after a bad loss.
It has risks. Gradually fading away in ineptitude live Texas with Mack Brown has risks also.
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Thanks for letting me know you’re the spokesman for the disgruntled.
Perhaps you should read more of your constituents’ comments here at GTP. Some of ’em haven’t gotten your memo on rationality.
Look, you want Richt gone, fine. You’re a fan and entitled to your opinion on that. Just don’t try to tell me what everyone else is thinking on this, because I bet I’ve heard from a greater cross section of the fan base than you have.
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Or you ran everyone off with your condescending posts. Just a suggestion. Blog on Senator.
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I ran everyone off? That’s what you’re suggesting in a thread with 250 comments?
Thanks for your permission. You’re a real pip, you are.
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Whatevs. After I wrote “I hate CMR” in lipstick on my wall 300 people came to my house and made comments under it.
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Clearly, you are wasting your talents as an opinion maker, then. You need to be blogging. 😉
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Little Annoyed: Thought Leader.
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Do you want to know why many of us don’t think you’ve thought it through? Fine. I can tell you in your own words.
“Probably less then [sic] a coin flip.”
That sentence right there proves that your argument isn’t rational, it’s emotional.
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In 122 seasons of football and 1,251 games, including 413 losses, Georgia has lost just nine games in its history when it led by at least 14 points during the game: 5 of which have been under the CMR watch.
http://patrickgarbin.blogspot.com/2015/10/blowing-it.html
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Yeah, but how does that stack up against Average-Points-Scored in those 122 seasons? A 14-point lead 70 years ago was like a 30-point lead today.
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did you account for inflation?
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I think you missed the point of which 5 of 9 belong to CMR, but since you asked…
22—1978 Bluebonnet Bowl (vs. Stanford): led 22-0 in 3Q, lost 25-22
21—2015 vs. Tennessee: led 24-3 in 2Q, lost 38-31
17—2006 vs. Tennessee: led 24-7 in 2Q, lost 51-33
16—2008 vs. Georgia Tech: led 28-12 in 3Q, lost 45-42
16—2012 Outback Bowl (vs. Michigan State): led 16-0 in 3Q, lost 33-30
14—1967 vs. Houston: led 14-0 in 4Q, lost 15-14
14—1991 vs. Vanderbilt: led 17-3 in 2Q, lost 27-25
14—1994 vs. Alabama: led 21-7 in 2Q, lost 29-28
14—2009 vs. Kentucky: led 20-6 in 3Q, lost 34-27
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I hate to admit it, but I think I’m morphing into one of those who’s willing to do some desert wandering for a while. While I’m very disappointed that we’ve won no championships since ’05, what is most frustrating to me is that seemingly fixable problems aren’t in fact fixed. We keep seeing the same crap over and over: special teams snafus, lousy coverage in the middle (3d and Willie becomes 3d and Grantham becomes 4th and Pruitt), can’t deal with running QBs, and most of all, lack of preparedness/falling on faces/crapping the bed games once or twice a year. It’s extended beyond coordinator (and even AD) tenures, beyond graduation dates, beyond suspensions and injuries. The one constant is that Mark Richt is the head coach. Collectively, the “here we go agains” are killing my ability to enjoy Dawg games, and I find myself slipping over into just not giving a shit. And apparently I’m hardly alone in that.
So a new start may at least give us some hope. If we bomb, we bomb. But it’s now pretty hard for me to convince myself that things are ever really going to change for my favorite football team while Mark Richt walks the sidelines.
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but, but, but have you considered the risk?!!! Could you imagine if we hired a bad coach?!
We might have to gasp. . . fire . . . . him . . . . .also!
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Amen, brudda. It’s the steady stream of no fixes. It’s the perpetual game of Whack-a-Mole that his program is playing.
Mark Richt is skating towards some thinner ice. The worse he performs, the less we have to lose by venturing into the desert.
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I’m willing to walk in the desert in three years…unless the coach shows up to practice and banquets drunk. Then I’m willing to walk in it for three more. And three more after that until we find the right coach. UGA isn’t Tennessee and will attract better coaches, and although historically we’re not USC it might be more attractive right NOW. (I doubt it)
But how many programs would rank higher than UGA (in terms of attractiveness to top coaches)? I estimate less than 10 and that USC, OSU, Michigan, Alabama, Texas are the only shoo-ins.
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I’ve seen the argument that UGA is so much more attractive than all the other jobs out there many times here. I would like to know why you believe that.
I doubt it’s anything the administration has done to prove that it is committed to supporting football and helping to establish a winning team. Is it just the hedges?
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If you can’t think of advantages that UGA has over 95% of the programs, I doubt you have an open mind on the issue…but just in case;
They have better talent than all but 5-10 teams, the job pays well and if BM chose to,it is in a position to pay as well as anyone, one of the best 10 teams in wins, winning percentage, top 4 in bowls and bowl wins, the hedges, the mascot, Athens, SEC prestige, a down SEC east, current high levels of support from BM, and one of the best geographically advantaged schools for recruiting.
If Chip Kelly, Pete Carroll, or insert your dream coach here were to choose between Arky, USCe, and USC, the only one that comes close is USC (and I think would rate higher).
IMO, the list of schools that can beat UGA’s advantages is very short.
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You know, I just saw the Steve Spurrier press conference and what struck me is that everything he said about himself is true for Richt. CMR should literally give the same speech, word for word.
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Just droppin’ my name in the hat since there is 280 comments. Richt is my coach and I still believe he can get us where we want to go.
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And Texas has done so well replacing Mack Brown at Texas.
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You could spin it that way.
Or you could recognize the steaming pile of garbage that Mack Brown left for the next guy. Mack drove Texas football deep into the ground, slowly and very surely. Digging up the wreckage and dusting it off is a multi-year project.
I don’t think the Mack Brown/Texas analogy supports the idea that UGA should keep Richt. If anything, it’s a cautionary tale against keeping an old coach past his prime around for too long. As in, fear decay, not just change.
I’m not in the FIRE RICHT crowd. But it’s increasingly obvious that Richt will not win championships at UGA. If you’re okay with that, I totally understand. I’m not sure how much I really care about championships, honestly.
But if Richt reaches that conclusion and truly loves UGA — not just the sweet $4m paycheck — he should probably arrange for an orderly transition for the sake of the program.
Mack utterly failed at that last part…
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The discussion under this post reminds me of Fall 2006 on Tider Insider.
I feel for you guys.
Back in those days, I don’t think any Bama fan was very confident that Mal Moore could do the “right thing.” But, ultimately, the “right thing” fell into his lap and all he had to do was a little begging.
Aside from Richt resigning, you’re left to the whims of your AD. If I was in his seat, I honestly don’t think I could pull the trigger and fire Richt based simply on his record. On the other hand, no matter what his record might be, if you sensed his fire was gone, I think you’d have to fire him on the spot.
Hang in there,
BD
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C’mon y’all. Once I hit “post” on this one, we’ll just be four short of 300.
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Here’s 299. Come on, lady luck! Daddy needs a brand new pair of shoes!
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Ummmmmmmmm…………. GO DAWGS!
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I’ll end my day by saying this, I don’t think Richt is a bad coach, but I also don’t think he is a great coach. He is simply a good coach. He reminds me of a 75% free throw shooter, to use a basketball analogy. 75% is good but not great, because he makes more free throws than he misses. The problem is that his misses always seem to come in crunch time when the game is on the line. He not only misses the shot, he misses the whole freaking goal. That’s what the annual face plants and brainfarts feel like, a basketball player shooting an air ball with the game on the line.
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