Regrets, Richt’s had a few.

For the most part, I like Mark Richt as a person, but there were times when he’d come out with some comment or observation that would get my back up.  The most famous example of that was his “in the arena” brush off from a few years ago.  Here’s another:

“When you turn over the play-calling as a head coach, you become more of just a CEO-type of coach,” Richt told SiriusXM College Sports Nation. “Obviously a lot of coaches had success doing it that way, and we did at Georgia, but it’s just not as much fun. You’re just not as involved. I think the players, over time, see you as the grandfather figure, just keeping an eye on everybody.”

At Miami, Richt is calling plays and coaching quarterbacks, and he says it’s mutually beneficial.

“Now, I’m in the heat of every meeting, the heat of every battle on the field, installing stuff, calling stuff, competing on a daily basis against a defense,” he said. “They see my energy, they see my competitive spirit that is more reserved if I’m not in the heat of it. I think it’s healthy for me. I’m enjoying it tremendously, and I think it’s healthy for the players to see me get down and dirty with everybody else.”

Jeez, you’re the head coach.  If you don’t like the effect the program structure has on the way you run it, that’s on you, gramps.

And just to repeat the obvious, nobody made Mark Richt hire Schottenheimer when Bobo left.  If it were best for Richt and the football program for him to be in the heat, that was the perfect opportunity to put himself back in the fire.

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A penny saved is a penny in the reserve fund.

The SEC was the most profitable (I know, I know) conference in the country during the last fiscal year.

Conference	Avg. Revenue	Avg. Expenses	Avg. Profit/Loss
SEC	$122,517,029	$105,609,195	$16,907,834
Big Ten	$108,498,429	$106,604,255	$1,894,174
Big 12	$103,336,579	$98,491,826	$4,844,753
ACC	$90,416,823	$87,753,344	$2,663,479
Pac-12	$81,255,208	$82,774,493	($1,519,285)

As Berkes notes, “(t)he SEC makes an average of about $14 million more in revenue than its closest peer and $12 million more in average profit after expenses.”

And you’ll be proud to know that Georgia is doing its share to prop up those profit numbers.  Despite being 15th in the country in revenue, the school’s athletic department managed to finish as the third most profitable enterprise in D-1, because of its 25th-highest ranking in expenses. Considering that Texas A&M’s numbers are a one-off based on its successful program for stadium improvements, that really means there was only one program that kept more money for itself:  Florida.

You can say the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, if you like, but before I start making analogies like that, it sure would be nice if McGarity was getting the same results in the Director’s Cup that his mentor is.  As it is, Florida’s getting bang for the buck and Georgia’s getting… buck.

And, again, nice to see a $3,212,769 subsidy to help prop that profit up.  Thanks, kids!

Jimmy Williamson’s sensitive side

Seth Emerson takes a rather thorough look at how the driving without a license criminal statute is enforced in this state here.  It’s a good read that backs up my initial driving-Mudcat’s-car take, but there is one side point I find to be of particular interest.

Yes, Briscoe was also charged with not wearing a seat belt. But that’s usually just a ticket. It was the lack of a driver’s license that sent Briscoe to jail, and re-ignited the question: Is that really necessary?

The UGA police appeared sensitive to the question. Attached to the Briscoe arrest report was an official opinion from the Georgia Attorney General’s Office – in 2008 – that anybody found driving without a valid license should be fingerprinted.  [Emphasis added.]

When’s the last time you saw “The UGA police appeared sensitive to the question“ in a story about a Georgia student-athlete?  Hell, when’s the first time you saw “The UGA police appeared sensitive to the question“ in such a story?

You may not think this means all that much, but the idea that the UGA police felt the need to explain their behavior in a proactive manner is an alien concept to me.  Baby steps, sure, but maybe Kirby has gotten through with his peace offering a little more than we gave him credit for doing.

Now you’ve really done it.

Serious question for you:  is there an organization out there that does a better job of stepping in its own shit than the NCAA does?

The United States Department of Justice has begun an informal inquiry into the topic of satellite camps by calling college football coaches, conference commissioners and college administrators, two people with knowledge of the matter told USA TODAY Sports.

I bet those are some fun conversations.  I wonder what they’re talking about.

The DOJ’s interest, according to one of the people who spoke to USA TODAY Sports, is based on whether an NCAA ban of satellite camps — a term used to describe off-campus coaching clinics attended by prospective student-athletes — could jeopardize or lessen opportunities for youth players to be seen or have access to college football coaches.

If I’m in college athletics, a standard of “jeopardize or lessen opportunities for youth players” would scare the bejeezus out of me.  What if, say, the DOJ decided to look at the number of scholarships handed out – or, more to the point, not handed out – in non-revenue sports in the same light?

Needless to say, that Board of Directors’ vote on Thursday just got a lot more interesting.