A one-paragraph summary of what every college program aspires to:
Alabama has become the model by which all programs strive to emulate. Unfortunately for the rest of the country, they lack the resources that Nick Saban has at his disposal. Couple that with the ideal recruiting footprint, and you get back-to-back trips to the College Football Playoff. The pro personnel model, including an emphasis on four key areas (QB, OL, DL, secondary), has created a finely tuned machine for evaluation, player development and ultimately production.
That might explain why Alabama leads all schools in the number of former players named to this year’s NFL Pro Bowl, with five. The funny thing is that Georgia, non-Process Georgia, is second on the list, with four.
Imagine the possibilities if Smart is successful in transferring what he’s learned in Tuscaloosa to Athens.
Get The Picture 
Actually I think we have 5 tying Bama’.
LikeLike
Even better. 😉
LikeLike
That article you reference is from last year. Pretty sure LSU leads the SEC this year in Pro Bowl selections.
LikeLike
Per CBS report Dec 23, 2015, LSU and Georgia are tied with 5, and Bama only has 1.
LikeLike
I checked on a CBS report dated Dec 23. It said Georgia and LSU are tied with 5 and Bama has 1.
LikeLike
“They lack the resources at his disposal …”
That’s the fundamental difference between Bama and everyone else (Georgia included). If Saban wants something, Saban gets it. Mal Moore and Bill Battle have fallen over themselves as ADs to set Saban up for success. Nick has delivered a serious ROI for the investment.
Will Georgia do the same thing for Kirby? Past performance is an indicator of future results. The Georgia Way indicates that we’ll be reactive and do it on the less expensive because of the impact on the reserve fund. If so, will Kirby deliver the same or better ROI? Time will tell.
LikeLike
Reserve fund be damned, I just hope we don’t start “processing” students/players like Alabama does. In that regard, “The Georgia Way” is better.
LikeLike
+1
LikeLike
UGA has five players in this year’s Pro Bowl: A.J. Green, Geno Atkins, Todd Gurley, Justin Houston, and Thomas Davis. I read elsewhere that UGA and LSU were tied for first with 5 selections each, and Bama only had on. Here’s the link: http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/eye-on-college-football/25424923/sec-georgia-lsu-most-represented-on-2015-nfl-pro-bowl-rosters
LikeLike
That’s last year’s list. I don’t know how many Alabama has this year, but we’ve got: Gurley; Geno; Thomas Davis; Houston; and A.J.
I believe I heard that we lead all schools.
LikeLike
That’s what I get for not following the NFL more closely.
LikeLike
No shame there. When they
graduateleave school, they’re dead to me.LikeLike
I’m sure you’re dead to UGA fans too!
LikeLike
Well, Hankie Poo, just bury me head first so you and the rest of the world can kiss my ass.
LikeLike
It’s a little off subject, but with so many UGA players in the NFL and with the south such a college football driven market, why do the Falcons never seem to work to draft a Georgia player? Richt and his assistants seemed very gifted at putting talent in the NFL. I might be more inclined to watch a Falcon’s game if there were more “local” players.
LikeLike
The falcons are awful at the player side of the game right now. The front office has been a disaster for a long time. Them missing on players from any school isnt a surprise.
LikeLike
This. Rumor has it that Dimitroff was scouting some Dawg players (on the D side), but chances are he is gone after this year. The Falcons tone deaf approach to Athens is at worst a poor business decision. And its not like they are passing over busts at UGA. They seem like they don’t give us a second thought, when at least they should when considering the potential fan impact.
LikeLike
I’ve never understood this approach at all. Pick the local “heros” and you’ll put more fannies in the seats. The Texans did the same with Vince Young (yeah, I know how that turned out). Still, when Young was leaving school and the Texans needed a QB, my wife (who could care less about NFL but went to UT – the real one) said she wanted to get season tickets to go see him play. Of course, the Texans chose Mario Williams, a DE from NC State. After that fiasco, the Texans were dead to her.
I’m not a follower of the NFL, but I do follow Dawgs in the NFL. If they were more local to me, I’d be a little more inclined to pay for their product. It’s just good business in my book.
LikeLike
I agree with this 100%. They consistently miss opportunities on local players, and it is so so stupid. I am not interested in the NFL…but the Falcons drafting Georgia players would change that. When I read about the NFL, I read to find out how Georgia players did. I think trading the farm for not AJ Green was the final straw for me. The last time I paid for tickets was to see DJ Shockley play in a pre-season game. Hell most SEC football fans are much more loyal to their team and its players than the average Atlanta sports fan. Why not tap into that existing allegiance? If they are going to be unsuccessful regardless, which the Falcons have proven to be far more often than not–why not do it with players people want to see!?
LikeLike
IIRC, the Falcons wanted A J Green but Cincinnati wouldn’t give him up…Falcons had to settle for Julio Jones… (not a bad fall back)
LikeLike
Not saying Julio is bad–just not worth what they gave up to get him.
LikeLike
None of the guys they gave up for him are in the league any longer
LikeLike
I wouldn’t put AJ/Julio into that bucket for the Falcons. Green was gone and Julio has clearly worked out for the Falcons. It worked out pretty well for both teams.
LikeLike
I don’t understand why the Falcons picked Beasley over Gurley. Jammi German over Hines Ward … This list could go on forever.
LikeLike
Hines Ward has always been at the top of my list for Dang Good Dawgs. Watching him QB against Auburn with a broken wrist was amazing to me. So when he and Kendrell Bell and someone else that I can’t remember ended up playing for the Steelers, I became a Pittsburg fan. Totally disinterested now. Which is pretty much how I see the Falcons. Something to nap through on rainy Sunday afternoons.
LikeLike
Exactly. NASCAR used to be my go to napping noise–now, somehow, its not even worth napping to!
LikeLike
Steelers have Jarvis Jones.
LikeLike
All time worst was 1990 when the Falcons needed a running back and took Steve Broussard over Rodney Hampton. Broussard’s rookie season was his best of four with Atlanta where he rushed for 454 yards. Hampton rushed for over 1,000 yards five times for the Giants and I believe he retired as their all time leading rusher (later passed by Barber). Remember watching that draft and knowing the Falcons were going to take a running back. Was so excited that Hampton was still available when it was their turn to pick and was in absolute shock when they announced Steve Broussard.
LikeLike
Ugh – I forgot about that. Hampton was a great running back. He was fun to watch with the ball in his hands. In ’88, when he and Worley were together, they were the original Cadillac and Hummer.
LikeLike
Catch 22 on the “local players” Great if they work out, sucks when they have to cut them and the local fans are unhappy.
That said, like others have pointed out, the Falcon’s don’t get much of anything right on the draft. No quality depth ever.
LikeLike
So, when I read that I interpret that to mean, “Bama 2.0” or “Tuscaloosa East”
LikeLike
Talent………has never been our problem.
LikeLike
No, but I think depth of talent has been, particularly on the OL and DL.
LikeLike