It’s not you, Stetson, it’s us.

Oh, that Stetson Bennett narrative ($$).

Stetson Bennett, Georgia: Bennett is back after helping the team to its first national championship since 1980. He’s almost reflexively overlooked by fans and some media, while continuing to gain strong reviews from opposing coaches.

“Disrespected,” one SEC coach said of Bennett.

“Is he Bryce Young? No. But the dude is good enough with his feet, smart enough to extend plays,” an SEC defensive coordinator added. “He plays within himself.”

I feel like we’re just a skip away from everyone who’s underplayed Bennett’s abilities, despite his accomplishments, blaming it all on the Georgia fan base.

Advertisement

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

Too bad, so sad ($$).

Which school has abundant opportunity in its territory but is failing to capitalize on the most prized recruits? — Themanebro

This is a great question and could go in a number of different directions. But the first school that comes to mind is Georgia Tech.

I understand that it’s not easy for the Yellow Jackets to compete with the likes of Georgia, Clemson and Auburn, all of which are a short drive from Atlanta. But Atlanta has as much talent as any area in the country, and Georgia Tech hasn’t been able to capitalize in its own backyard. In the last five recruiting classes, Georgia Tech has signed one (!) high school prospect who has ranked in the top 25 in the state of Georgia in the 247Sports Composite. That one player was four-star running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who transferred to Alabama this past offseason.

In the Class of 2023, the Yellow Jackets have eight commits from the state of Georgia, but the highest-ranked of that group checks in at No. 60 in the state and No. 651 overall (edge Zachariah Keith).

Geoff Collins’ ability — or inability — to turn that around will be something to monitor.

Coach 404 has managed to give Georgia Tech the same shitty recruiting it had under Paul Johnson, without the quirky offense that let them win a few more games in certain seasons.  To paraphrase, say what you want about the recruiting tenets of the triple option, Dude, at least it’s an ethos.  All Tech’s got now is some decent take out coffee.

Have a cold one.

Groo thinks the south side renovations scheduled for Sanford Stadium are a precursor to another change.

I believe this project might eventually have a side effect related to another story from earlier in the year. In the spring we learned that there would be no alcohol sales in Sanford Stadium in 2022. Other Georgia venues from Stegeman Coliseum to the softball and baseball fields began selling beer this past year. From my visits to those venues, it didn’t seem like a big deal. We’ve also seen alcohol sales at other SEC football stadiums, and, again, no big deal. I don’t think anyone making the decisions at Georgia is opposed to alcohol sales at Sanford Stadium.

It’s more likely that the delay in selling alcohol at Sanford Stadium has to do with limited space in key areas of the stadium – particularly on the south side. It’s a constraint we pointed out right away since the SEC loosened its restrictions in 2019. Adding beer lines to the already-cramped concourses would invite disaster and make the game experience even less enjoyable for fans. I don’t particularly care if fans want to waste time in line for a beer. I do care about main walkways or even other concessions being choked off by those lines.

With expanded southside concourses and an opened-up Gate 9 area, there will be room for standalone beer stations on all sides of the stadium. Reed Alley on the north side has plenty of space. The Gate 6 area can work for the east stands. Once this project has been completed I think we’ll see Georgia move forward with alcohol sales at Sanford Stadium.

Hmmm.  Maybe.  Looks like another money versus tradition debate could be coming.

It’s the same old song.

A new era begins for Auburn Football in 2021 as Bryan Harsin enters his first season as the Tigers’ head coach, and how the Auburn offense performs this fall may very make or break the 44-year-old’s debut year on The Plains. And it doesn’t matter whom your allegiance is to in order to see that — even retired NFL safety Roman Harper, who played college football at Alabama, agrees that his former in-state rival’s chances in 2021 hinge on a unit that is poised to be highlighted by the duo of quarterback Bo Nix and running back Tank Bigsby.

“(Quarterback) Bo Nix has to make that next step for me to where he’s not just running out of the pocket, he’s not just scrambling away from things,” Harper said Tuesday during an appearance on the Paul Finebaum Show.

But with a different meaning since you’ve been gone.

“How are they going to stop Bo Nix at Oregon, who’s already used to Georgia?”  Beats me, Roman.