“You guys thought too much of me as a dual-threat quarterback…”

For some, it was the nail in Mark Richt’s coffin.

For Faton Bauta, “(t)he opportunity came and went.”

Existential Mark Bradley is the best Mark Bradley.

I really enjoyed reading this tortured column explaining that Tech might find it necessary to can the genius after this season while simultaneously holding the position that “I’m on record as believing the next Tech coach mightn’t do as well as Johnson“.

If you’re a Georgia fan, that’s about as win-win as it gets.

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Game changer!

Shot.

In a move that could challenge the NCAA’s monopoly on elite talent, the NBA’s G League is creating a new venture as an alternative to the one-and-done route for the best American basketball prospects, league president Malcolm Turner told ESPN.

As part of a newly formed “professional path” starting in the summer of 2019, the G League will offer “Select Contracts” worth $125,000 to elite prospects who are at least 18 years old but not yet eligible for the NBA draft. It will target recent or would-be high school graduates who otherwise would have likely spent just one season playing college basketball, enticing them not only with a six-figure salary but also the opportunity to benefit from NBA infrastructure, as well as a bevy of off-court development programs “geared towards facilitating and accelerating their transition to the pro game,” Turner said.

Without the restrictions of the NCAA’s amateurism rules, players will also be free to hire agents, profit off their likeness and pursue marketing deals from sneaker companies and the like, which could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in endorsement opportunities to top prospects.

Chaser.

I have doubts about how many top players will go this route. Some, yes. But G-League is full of early connecting flights, long bus rides, small gyms. It isn't glamorous. Big-time NCAA ball still has the trappings of exposure, packed houses, private jets. You'll get paid there too

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 18, 2018

Love that closing line snark.

Today, in stick to sports

Go ahead, you tell Nick Saban that.

An advanced stats metric for some of you

Brian Fremeau’s current FEI ratings do in fact have LSU ranked ahead of Georgia… in fact, they’ve got LSU ranked ahead of every dang team in the country.

They’ve had better days.

One reason the offense sputtered in Baton Rouge was because the offensive line suffered through one of its poorer efforts of the season, as evidenced by this chart.

Jake Fromm faced pressure on 35.7% of his dropbacks vs LSU, a season high. pic.twitter.com/8owSC9TFtR

— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) October 16, 2018

Again, PFF agrees.

Blocking: The Bulldogs fell from No. 3 in pass blocking (93.7) to No. 8 (90.0), after its dismal performance against LSU. The Bulldogs remain the top run blocking team in the country at 86.4, with Alabama next in the conference with a 74.1 grade, good for No. 8 overall. After allowing just three total pressures, two quarterback hurries and one quarterback hit, with four penalties on 36 pass snaps, against Vanderbilt, Georgia allowed 14 total pressures, four sacks, one quarterback hit, and nine hurries, on 40 pass snaps, against LSU, with one penalty.

Is some of that due to depth/injuries?  Perhaps.  I mentioned in my Observations post that I thought Andrew Thomas had his worst game of the year, and apparently he is still struggling with an ankle problem.  Cade Mays has a nasty streak I appreciate and he is a big boy, but he’s also still a true freshman plugging a hole in the absence of Ben Cleveland.

What I do find a little worrisome — and this is pure speculation on my part — is whether the legitimate pressure Fromm faced bled over into his confidence on plays where he was getting pass blocking support.

Georgia suffered a stunning loss to LSU as their offense completely disintegrated on the road. Jake Fromm was clean on 66.7% of dropbacks but posted a passer rating of 65.8 on such attempts. On the season, he has a 132.2 passer rating when clean as his significant dropoff crippled this offense on Saturday.

LSU’s defensive scheme clearly had Fromm off-balance much of the day, but as someone who’s seen over the years what a lack of trust in pass blocking support has done to the mindset of many a Georgia quarterback, I can’t help but wonder if that also had an effect.  If so, they’d better do something to recapture the magic, because if there’s one thing we know the offense will see a week from Saturday, it’s a lot of blitzing and pressure on the offensive line.

I have to admit it’s getting better.

It may surprise you to learn that, relative to its peers, Georgia’s defensive pressure no longer sucks.

Here's a look at which SEC defenses are generating the most pressure this season pic.twitter.com/w6mJfdZRg2

— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) October 17, 2018

More confirmation of that from PFF:

Pass Rush: Georgia continues to see signs of life in this area. Four weeks ago, the Bulldogs were ranked No. 119 out of 130 FBS programs in pass rush grade. After a 76.0 pass rush grade against Missouri, the Bulldogs moved up to No. 75 overall. Following the win over Tennessee, which included a 70.0 pass rush grade, Georgia was tied with Northwestern, Duke, Colorado, and Baylor for No. 41 overall. After the win over Vanderbilt, Georgia was tied with Boise State and Arkansas for No. 33 with a 70.5 pass rush grade. Following the loss to LSU, Georgia is now No. 38 in pass rush grade. D’Andre Walker led the team with three pressures in the loss, a sack, quarterback hit, and quarterback hurry, with Robert Beal and Tyler Clark getting two pressures each.

Certainly there is still room for improvement, but it’s no longer an area in crisis mode.

The NCAA cries “wolf!”

If, as the NCAA has claimed throughout its history, people only watch college sports because the players aren’t paid, why doesn’t the real world demonstrate that?  (For that matter, why does the organization keep moving the goal posts?)

The latest example of reality calling bullshit:

So what should we expect to see when college basketball tips off next month?

If you believe the NCAA’s “amateurism” hypothesis, it’s now clear that many of the best athletes in college basketball were paid by third parties to play for their AAU teams, and many were also paid to choose a school based on the shoe company those schools have contract with, so the inescapable result is that consumer demand for college basketball will plummet because of systemic payment above the magic line that was not kept under control by rigorous NCAA enforcement efforts.

Once again, the “Amateurism is Essential” argument will be put to the test. Be ready for it, because if the NCAA is correct, then College Basketball May Die Next Month. People might boycott in droves. And if so, the elusive magical line will finally have been found.

Care to take any bets on that happening?  I didn’t think so.

Cortez Hankton is doing some work.

We’ve all seen how much Georgia’s receivers are committed to downfield blocking.  They’re doing something else really well.

Which SEC quarterbacks have suffered from the highest drop rate by their receivers? pic.twitter.com/DbFEDjd4tr

— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) October 17, 2018

I don’t know how well Hankton’s doing on the recruiting trail — and, obviously, with this staff, that matters — but as far as his coaching skills go, he’s been a major contributor.  Good hire, Kirby.

Georgia is a young team.

Maybe so… but apparently it’s not any younger than LSU or Alabama.

There is a logic to this, if you’re running a program that depends on high-level recruiting to replenish the talent base.

Think about it. If a school signs close to 25 players per year with a hard limit of 85 total scholarships, attrition has to happen. Players who are not seeing the field on gameday by the time they are juniors tend to start thinking about transferring or giving up the sport. Alabama is popularly thought to “encourage” upperclassmen who are not part of the rotation in their position group to seek playing time elsewhere. My guess is that all top programs practice that type of roster management, thus the similarity in numbers for the three schools in this article.

Compare that to the way, say, that Dan Mullen accumulated experienced talent at Mississippi State to build towards seasons where he had a starting roster laden with upperclassmen (kinda like what Kentucky’s doing this season).

Bottom line in Georgia’s case is that youth’s not an excuse.  It’s a design.