I guess you haven’t been happy with the media, fellas, but this seems a wee bit ham-fisted:
After the meeting a security team brought in by UGA for the night prevented the media from talking to most players. They got between media members and players, and at one point told the media to move across the street, which the media refused as the area is public property.
Jenkins left the building with fellow outside linebackers, and was willing to talk to the media. He said Sunday night’s meeting included Richt, players, and most of the coaches and staff members.
“It just was jacked up. Not everybody on the team is sitting right with us,” Jenkins said. “But we’ll find out more stuff tomorrow.”
At that point a security member came up to Jenkins and ordered him to get in his car.
Jeez, if you’re that insecure about the decision, why did you make it in the first place?
Get The Picture 
I know it’s not the biggest story of the day, but lost in all the fooferaw about the Richt firing is that Jimmy Williamson is the new head of PR at Butts-Mehre.
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If I had actual faith in the AD, I’d read “we’ll find out more tomorrow” as “they’ll announce the new coach, and what coaches are coming back tomorrow, because they planned this for several weeks.” But given it’s McGarity…
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Keeping the media at arm’s length is a good sign things are changing for the better. No doubt it was a difficult meeting tonight.
We’ve already seen what full media transparency got us when Dr. Adams was in town. Most of those guys are not friends of the program.
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This seems to be going well.
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Thanks for my only chuckle over this frustrating business. I think my main question now is: if CMR couldn’t save his job after the Florida loss no matter what he did (ie keep the team together and win out) – why lead him and the rest of us on?
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THIS. For fuck’s sake, it would have been an extra month to smooth things over with recruits, if nothing else.
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Because his successor wasn’t available until seasons’ end.
Given what went on that week, they weren’t going to promote anyone on the staff to interim HC.
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I wonder what the devil Jenkins meant? That the decision isn’t sitting right with all the players?
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I’m still trying to interpret that as well. I thought he meant not everyone from the team was there though.
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I see. It’s a typo — ‘this,’ not ‘us.’
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Does it matter?
I wouldn’t expect them to be OK with it. They mostly came to UGA because Mark Richt closed the deal during recruiting and has been there for them since they got to Athens. I’d be surprised if they weren’t upset.
But if you think that’s going through the mind of UGA’s leadership at the moment… well, you haven’t been hanging out on campus for the last year or so.
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I respect that Jenkins doesn’t like it, but I could not disagree with him more. Georgia was around before Richt, and will be around after Richt. The attitude that “there’s no Georgia football without Mark Richt” is a large part of the reason I’m happy we’re moving on.
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It sucks to have a beloved coach, that’s for sure – part of the problem with college football these days is it lacks the mercenary component so vital to its professional counterparts. It just gets its priorities messed up for saccharine nostalgia and personality when it needs to be solely focused on winning football games.
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Glad you and I could finally see eye to eye.
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If that is all there is to it, then college football is just a crummy version of the NFL.
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That’s some good shtick right there, Cosmic Dawg.
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Wow, that was so subtle, I had to read it three to times. Well done, sir. I’m not sure some of the others responding are picking up what you’re laying down.
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We will disagree but the fact that a university’s college football program lacks the mercenary attitude of the NFL is a good thing to me. This is a part of a university and should be administered in a manner consistent with a university’s mission. That mission includes mentoring and developing character and life skills. By contrast, the NFL is, and should be, the just win league.
If furthering the university mission is not a goal of the athletics program then why is the athletic program entitled to tax exempt status?
I do not claim to be any better a,person than you. I just see it differently.
All right, take your shots at me for thinking that an university activity should be consistent with its university’s goals. I know,it is coming.
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I think your sarcasm meter needs checking.
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As Dan Patrick said, “You can’t stop it, you can only hope to contain it”.
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What can you say? The security detail seems to be a bit off sides.
Mark being a company man until the end, though, I guess. He’s certainly no Bo Peliini.
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More McGarity/Pruitt (and other coaches?) garbage. Coaches place up talking points board for players to tweet out…McGarity tries to keep them from speaking with the press.
It’s the AD’s fault…he could have made the announcement weeks ago but waited to see if he could get cover from another loss. Now you’re firing a 9-3 coach that the players love and a DC that has bragging rights and a bunch of followers on the team and in the NFL. He let the coaches plan a turf war rather than being decisive after the Florida game. Here is the fallout. And guess what…the AJC will be calling for his job (and Fox’s) in the next 6 months.
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6 months? That long?
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You’re really advocating for a mid-season dismissal?
Let’s think that through a bit…
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I’m sure the reason they didn’t want the media talking to the players immediately following the meeting was to avoid players speaking hastily like Jenkins did.
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“At that point a security member came up to Jenkins and ordered him to get in his car. Jenkins did get into his seat but kept talking.”
I’m sorry but what authority does this security member have to order Jenkins into his car? This is America where we can speak our mind…no matter what consequences it has on recruiting and the status of a program.
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I’m not here to argue civil liberties or freedom of the press, dawg. Maybe a security guard overstepped his bounds, I don’t know. I’m just saying I don’t fault them for trying to keep the media at bay immediately following the meeting.
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I fault them. So we can disagree on that.
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+1. They’re not even employees – they’re college students leaving a school meeting. LMFAO.
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What does ‘keep the media at bay’ even mean?
Look…we all get it. You’ve wanted Richt gone for months. Sorry if you didn’t realize everyone …even people whose opinion I think matters…wouldn’t cheer along with you.
Just tell them to shut up if that’s how you feel. It’d be much more genuine than trying to justify having security ‘hushing’ the players.
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God your tears of bitterness are delicious.
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Nice try.
Let’s recap…
-You say it’s ok to have security prevent players from ‘speaking hastily’ and ‘keeping media at bay.’
-I disagree and basically say the reason you are saying that is because you also don’t want to hear what they have to say
-you respond saying that I have bitter tasting tears
Signing off now…but want to plant this seed for you. CMR getting fired isn’t some sort of trump card for you. It doesn’t make up for you calling people hypocrites, making bad arguments or being lost in some sort of alternate reality where only your opinion matters. If your best response when you are clearly boxed into a ridiculous position that reveals you to be an entitled fan showing a complete lack of respect for those playing the game is going to be some sort of tired ‘tears of bitterness’ retort, just save us the time and add it to your iPhone’s keyboard shortcuts and lob that off before you get to reply #3, ok?
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+100. I think its time for the Senator to trot out the Raylan Givens line about assholes.
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That line’s gotten a lot of use on a lot of Dawg blogs today.
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Again, not skilled management. I understand the desire to control the message, but security keeping media at bay? The AD needs business communication classes or PR classes from Grady badly.
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McGarity has conspired to deny these kids their rights under the first amendment? That’s stupid..although if it pisses of the AJC I can find some enjoyment in it.
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I have been a lawyer for 36 years (UGA law class of 1979) and I guarantee you the security guard overstepped his bounds. Jenkins is free to remain outside of his car.
What did McGarity want, Jenkins arrested if he talked to the media? What was McGarity’s plan in case the players asserted their rights go dtan dcc on a public sidewalk?
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Agree 100%. These players can say whatever they want. A security team? That is bullshit. What was this security guy going to do to Jenkins had he ignored the “order?” I’m sure Jenkins is more than capable of breaking any member of the security team in half.
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I would loved for that to have happened. If any of these rent-a-cops had put their hands on a player to steer them away from the media, they should get cold cocked. We need something like this for a catalyst to get rid of McGarity’s ass.
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+1 legally Jenkins could talk to anyone he wanted. Do they take the player’s cell phones too.
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Seriously, chilidawg…those players should know their place.
Just stop.
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Ok man, go ahead and take that in whatever context you want.
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In what context should I take your comment justifying security presence to keep the players from talking to the press because they wouldn’t be on brand?
Seth pointed out on twitter that this is the only time he’s been covering the beat that they’ve taken these measures. It certainly isn’t the only time a player could have said something ‘hastily’…so the only conclusion is that the reason they brought in security and tried to put the press on the other side of the street was to control the content …to control the message.
Sometimes hearing from the players can be inconvenient for fans or admins that want a coach fired. After watching them literally bleed for the Red and Black…I’m one of those who think they’ve earned the right to speak ‘hastily’ about their coach.
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Here’s his context. ” You boys don’t be talking to no media unless we tell you to, ya hear!” Players: ” Yassir masah McGarity, you the bossman.” Because you know, these aren’t student- athletes with their own feelings, which are hurting right now. They are expendable property of a mercenary athletic department. Just like it should be.
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I truly mean this with no mean-spiritedness whatsoever.
The way you’ve spent the last few months blasting all of us Richt-supporters for twisting ourselves into pretzels trying to defend him?
That’s what this sounds like.
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I’m not defending anything except the possibility that this is being blown out of proportion.
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So it didn’t work and they look bad? Brilliant!
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After reviewing all of today’s posts and comments, one thing is clear– Chilidawgnv has a lot of time to sit in front of his computer.
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There’s these cool things called smartphones that they just invented…
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Oh I’ve got one of those, but you know…life and stuff
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Clearly.
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Jenkins should have told that security officer to stick it. He can speak with whomever he damn well pleases. He’s a senior, so what can the suits in Butts-Mehre do to him now? The PR genius, ADGM, is back to his great work …
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Always hard for players not to be emotional about their coaches.
All those guys were recruited br Richt. Practice and played for him.
Just let it play out.
But UGA had to make a change. Eventually the players understand like Hicks.
Whoever the hire is had better be an attention to detail coach, and one who can recruit Georgia. Think alot of high school coaches were disapponted in what UGA did. Most high school coaches thought the program at UGA was getting below SEC standards.
Plus the hire has to be able to put in a top offense. One where the QB is a dual threat. If there was one position Richt failed was at QB.
His offense under Shotty was dismal. The most basic of offenses. Richt should have fired Shotty after going with a third string QB four quarters. That game and game prep was the end for Richt. It spoke volumes about how serious Richt was about coaching.
New hire had better get a top staff. If Smart does he bring a very good OC.
Can not continue to waste talent in this state like Richt did.
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Richt really did eff up the QB spot the last fifteen years. How did he keep his job for so long?
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Will Trane goofed on that one or his memory got short.
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If there was one position Richt failed was at QB? What in the hell are you talking about?
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Can we at least get confirmation that Shotty is gone? That could make us all sing “Glory, Glory.”
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It would seem McG would do well to hire a PR guy but hey, he’s put his balls out there at this point. He’s giving those on here that think he’s an idiot the chance that he’ll hang himself. Seems to be going out of his way. I couldn’t give a shit about him after the Gurley clusterfuck.
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who the hell is a private contractor or even a UGA barney fife to order a player to do anything when he is behaving within the law……
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McGarity is showing his lack of leadership. Surely there is a better way to handle this transition?
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Now for the good news — Shotty is gone.
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We are depending on McG to make the hire, he might just hire Shotty as the head coach.
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“Georgia outside linebacker Leonard Floyd exited a team meeting Sunday night after the firing earlier in the day of coach Mark Richt declaring he’s not coming back in 2016.
“I’m gone, too, by the way,” Floyd shouted to reporters from a car as it was leaving the Butts-Mehre building parking lot.
Floyd had said last Monday that he would start this week making his NFL decision.
“I’m leaving,” he tweeted about five minutes before interacting with reporters.
“Coach Richt probably was the only one that could of convinced me to stay just a sad day for me as a Dawg,” Floyd tweeted minutes later.”
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It was a tough day for everyone.
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By the looks of it, 17 & 6 are gonna be twice the beast 84 is. Good luck in the NFL.
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Leonard had a very good second half of the regular season.
He has positioned himself well for the next level.
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He is a Burkina award finalist. Staying would have helped us next year.
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I did not know Richt had been fired until someone told me around 8pm.
Frankly I was shocked the A D would do it.
Be surprised if hire comes from within.the SEC ranks. Mullen is almost like Richt. McGarity should be cautious there and not let past friendship come into play.
Doubt if Smart even would consider South Caroline.
This going to be interesting. Butts-Mehre lights should be on.
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please do note that the two top candidates are acolytes of two of the biggest mercenary assholes in college football.
shame and disgrace, please. table for 96.000.
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In rolls more hypocrisy – the people who a few hours ago were saying they hoped UGA never talked to the media again suddenly indignant that they were trying to keep the media at an arms length.
Hopefully by tomorrow y’all will have gotten over your tantrums and start thinking about the next coach instead of your outrage that Richt is gone.
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You really don’t get the difference between an administrator not speaking to the media as a matter of employee policy and an unpaid student athlete who wants to talk being physically cordoned off by security, do you?
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Oh, so now was physically cordoned off was he?
I never saw you complain about Richt closing practices to the media or making players unavailable to the media. Which happened often. So you’re just being a hypocrite.
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Clearly the same thing. SMH.
Way to double down on the hypocrite bomb, though. Solid
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The only thing different is who ordered the sequester. Richt locking the team up in a hotel the night before doesn’t bother you? He’s suppressing their freedom to go out the night before the game!
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One was to focus players before a game. The other was to cover someone’s ass. You can decide which is which.
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So why are only certain players allowed to talk to the media? To keep them focused or… to control the message?
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Okay, fine. We don’t know what either man’s motive was in either situation. But considering that the media restrictions before games were a regular occurence that didn’t require freaking security guards, I guess we’re just going to have to agree to disagree.
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Why is it so important to you to defend McGarity hiring security to tell the players they can’t talk to the media?
Suppose Jenkins had said “No, I am not getting in the car ” and had talked to the media,at length. Would you defend arresting him? What value does UGA derive from that confrontation?
Anyone would have expected Richt’s players to be vocal in support of Richt. Happened with Goff’s players, too.
The choice is to let them have their say and move forward or to rate the risk of threatening to arrest players. Why not let them say what they want and ignore them?
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Nobody was arrested, for fucks sake. Y’all are taking one line and creating a whole scandalous story out of it.
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It’s a questionable (read: dick) move. It deserves to be discussed. As you like to say (in reference to those who get sanctimonious with you), feel free to ignore the discussion about it.
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When a rent a cop gives a citizen orders on a public street, he’s breaking the law. We have something called the first amendment and it applies to college football players too.
Did you see what real cops had to endure (in the name of the first ammendment) in the recent riots?
McGarity really screwed up when he hired security to shut people up.
He’s got some piss poor judgement and decision making skills.
He’s toast and he deserves to be ran out of Athens on a rail.
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You did not answer my question. Why is it so important to you to defend McGarity hiring security to tell the players they can’t talk to the media?
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Interesting to ponder what might have happened had Richt been the coach carried off the field by his players on Saturday. McGarity was smart to keep his plans out of the major media outlets. Miles’ players were saying FY to the LSU AD.
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This is the first post I’ve seen on any site today that makes me think McGarity was actually smart in his handling of this. A scumbag, but a smart scumbag.
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They would have been crucified by some for celebrating their win too much.
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Is this story like Pruitt hollering in Richts backyard.
Reliable source says McGarity has landed in northern California.
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Woah, David Shaw??
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I don’t know. My source says a moving van wit georgia tags just pulled into Houston
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I’d love to have David Shaw as our next HC, but why in the world would he leave a great situation to come to UGA? Stanford can match or beat us in terms of compensation if they want to, his program is flying high and he’s the BMOC at a perennial top 15 P5 school. It will be curious to see who McGarity has lined up for the job, but so far his communication with the team/staff and PR skills continues to leave a lot to be desired. So far his HC hires have been very underwhelming including the recent women’s basketball coach and none of his hires are even close to “competing for championships”. As much as I love CMR, it was time for a change, but I also wish Morehead would’ve cleaned house at B-M and let a new AD make the hiring call. I’m keeping my fingers crossed and saying some Hail Marys that we don’t take 3 steps backward with the next HC.
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I’m sure I’ll probably be assassinated for this comment but you can’t have it both ways. I respect the opinions of Floyd and Jenkins but it’s the chicken or the egg. Either the players should have played better to save Richt’s job or they played their asses off and were let down by coaching. I suspect the latter.
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Terrance Edwards today on twitter said it was the former. i think his quote was “Was it CMR’s fault I didn’t make that catch?”
But what does he know, amirite? How did he get past security anyway?
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Well. I can’t diasagree with TE. One of the great all time Dawgs. I Thought the people that dogged him were scum. But. As far as the coaching change what’s done is done.
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DJ Shockley made similar comments about players being accountable at some point a few weeks ago on David Greene’s show on 92.9. I thought it was interesting to hear that viewpoint from a former player, especially considering the conversations on here about coach accountability vs. player accountability. You know, his being in the arena and all…
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It was, however, CMR’s fault that his players were not terrified enough of the consequences to not do something dumb like hump a gator.
George Foster – gator humper.
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I’m thinking some last year players are considering their interest in playing the bowl.
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Team could have shut down after FL, but won out. Didn’t hear a lot of player chirping like tOSU had after their loss. I’d say there was some coaching there.
As to the “cone of silence” that BM has thrown over the situation, it smells like future press access is at stake. Why would the Senator claim he “knows” the situation with Pruitt was complicated but can’t discuss for fear of losing/exposing his source? Did Pruitt challenge the AD again, only to have Richt step in between them? Why was Pruitt not given a heads up before he went off recruiting? As to controlling the players and the press, you don’t want to have a Missouri-type walkout before a bowl game where players refuse to play because of what happened to their HC. That doesn’t sell a lot of tickets.
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So, it begins all those who wanted Richt gone become the hunted and make excuses and such. His supporters now become the hunters ggggrrrrraaaawwwllllllll! Our time to bitch and moan.
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I can take a wild guess where the supporters don’t live… 40 minutes from UF. I do and that helps me considerably to cope with the news. So if anyone wants to hunt me, they’ll need to come down here where they collect all these championship rings.
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I heart Mark Richt. Wish him nothing but the best. He’s getting $4M and doesn’t appear incredibly interested in coaching anywhere else from what I’ve read. In other words, he will move on faster than our angry little elfs in the blogosphere.
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Have you read that Richt said today that he isn’t interested in coaching? Someone in a nice college town will offer him 2.5 million x five years. I think Richt loves to mentor young men by way of being a football coach. He also knows that hanging around Athens watching another coach is no bueno.
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It’s been okay for Goff and Donnan. I will be surprised if he leaves Athens unless he gets the perfect job somewhere else. I do not think he’s going to Miami or Virginia.
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Yeah, I can’t see him staying. I could see him taking that UVA job, though. A little less pressure, play Wake Forest every year, live in a nice Southern town.
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There are two reasons that calling the UNC / UVA game “The oldest rivalry in the South” is fallacious. UGA / Auburn was played first, and Virginia is no longer in the South.
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Charlottesville is definitely Southern, and UVa.is a fantastic school.
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UVA is a fantastic school. Charlottesville is a very nice town. I have gotten drunk on the corner. That does not make it the South, though. Anywhere north of Richmond hasn’t been “The South” since the early ’90’s. Richmond hasn’t been “The South” since around the turn of the millennia. The Hampton Roads area is barely hanging on. Twenty years from now, Blacksburg will be a Yankee hellhole as well.
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Yahoo sports said Virginia should be on the phone now to get Richt. It said they would love him.
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Hey, Senator. I politely request a post dedicated to allowing the commentariat to detail their (semi-realistic) dream coaching staff. I think it would be fun.
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+1
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This is today’s world in college football. The money that is paid to coaches has become a blessing and a curse. It is at a level that coaches in years past could only dream of, but it has also add unreal expectations. With the large salaries comes a very short window of patients. It’s pretty much NC ( or at least make the playoffs) or bust these days.
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Big changes like this seldom accomplished without a few awkward moments.
In a pure legal sense Jordan Jenkins had the right to say what he wanted. But for football players everything is about tea, discipline and team rules, or perceptions of them. Getting in the car was probably a wise strategic withdrawal.
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