Oh, brother.
I could hate him for that, but I’ll settle for playing this for the first time this week instead.
Daily Archives: September 25, 2023
Observations from the armchair, here there be dragons edition
(If you’re fretting over Georgia’s offense now, imagine what it’s gonna be like next season after he’s gone.)
Lighting a fire under this team from the opening kickoff was clearly on the coaches’ minds, as evidenced by the aggressive playcalling on Georgia’s first drive, which resulted in a touchdown. (See how that works?) Unfortunately the fire sputtered out after the score, as the Dawgs went three-and-out and turned the ball over on downs on their next two drives. (I’ll say it again — under the new clock rules, those four and a half-minute drives with no scores are brutal.) That, in turn, was followed by a short UAB touchdown drive set up by a Mews fumble.
From there, it seemed that Georgia caught fire again, scoring three straight TDs in the second quarter to grab a 28-7 lead with less than two minutes to go in the first half. And then — you guessed it — the fire flickered out again and the Blazers managed one of the most improbable two minute directs ever mounted against a Smart defense to cut the score to 28-14 as the half came to a close two seconds later.
Kirby used halftime to fan the flames and, like death and taxes, Georgia third quarter football dominance was unavoidable. By the time the dust had settled, the lead had stretched to 42-14 and the backups were in, adding and yielding fourth quarter touchdowns to settle on a final score of 49-21.
By now, you’ve gathered there was a definite ebb and flow to the game. I hesitate to call them momentum shifts because there never was any doubt Georgia would win the game. Besides, it wasn’t like UAB ever took control, even for a short time; it was more like the Dawgs lost focus, got sloppy, etc. If Mews doesn’t fumble and Smart doesn’t call that ill-fated time out just before the half, the final score is a lot closer to the blowout most were expecting. (And if a frog had wings…)
Anyway, how ’bout some bullet points?
- Given the injury situation and the shuffling on the offensive line that’s ensued, it’s not really fair to come down too hard on those guys. Also, when your offense generates 582 yards, you’re doing more good than not. I’ll just say they’re still struggling with overloaded boxes and blitzes more than I’d like to see and leave it at that.
- Brock Bowers, you magnificent bastard, you simply picked up the offense on your shoulders after things had slowed and made it all work again. Helluva game from the best tight end in the country. He really is a cheat code.
- I know Delp is no Darnell Washington, but I keep hoping every week his blocking will become more consistent. There’s always next week, I suppose.
- Rosemy-Jacksaint had another terrific game. But for a dropped pass or two, Lovett and Arian Smith would have, too.
- It’s impressive how much Daijun Edwards has stabilized the offense. No, he didn’t run for over 100 yards like he did against Carolina, but he’s steady as a rock and again averaged 5.5 yards per carry on a night when the run blocking wasn’t consistent.
- Carson Beck remains a work in progress. That being the case, it’s a good sign that he turned in his best performance (as measured by passer rating) of the season Saturday night. He’s still got work to do on holding the ball too long sometimes (got sacked once because of that) and not seeing the open man, but you can tell he’s getting more comfortable going through his reads and progressions from week to week. Ugh, but that overthrow to Meeks — did you yell at the TV like I did? As always, he made up for that with a couple of beautiful deep throws and, in fact, seemed much less hesitant about going downfield than in his previous starts. Maybe the coaching on that is getting through.
- Vandagriff bounced back from his last subpar stint to lead one scoring drive and looked pretty good doing so, especially on that 18-yard scamper. Stockton, not so much; the interception was definitely the result of an ill-advised throw.
- Defensively, it really was a game of ups and downs. There were stretches, particularly in the second half, when they were dominant, but there was also that successful two-minute drill in the second quarter that left me open-mouthed in disbelief. They clearly missed Mykel Williams and Javon Bullard (duh). The end result was the most yardage a Georgia defense has yielded this season, although it took almost 80 plays for UAB to get there. It’s hard for me to get overly worked up about that, though, because they must have played close to thirty guys on defense. That will pay off down the road, long after everyone’s forgotten about UAB’s fourth-quarter drive against the third-team defense.
- Warren Brinson played well, netting Georgia’s lone sack of the game, as well as adding in a few pressures.
- The big three ILBs — Dumas-Johnson, Mondon and Sorey (who led the team in tackles) all turned in solid performances, although perhaps better against the run than in coverage. Mondon did tip the pass that resulted in Georgia’s lone interception of the game.
- The best nights from defenders came from Starks and Tykee Smith, who both played their asses off. Again.
- I hate to pick on the guy, because he’s such a good story and busts ass, but Dan Jackson’s game has slid a little from what it was before the injury. It’s not fair to compare him to Bullard, but the gap there is noticeable.
- And how about Aguero, who contributed a pass break up and tackle for loss? Nice!
- Special teams was an adventure again, although not in the way it was the week before. Zirkle and Woodring had quiet nights, as in routine. I was a little disappointed that Smart elected to go for it on the aforemention 4:30 drive that came up empty instead of giving Woodring a shot at redemption, but then I didn’t get to watch practice all week to know whether he had earned that shot. Thorson is so good and so consistent, I swear I almost forget to mention his play every week. Unfortunately the main special teams story from this game was the two fumbles on returns. Mews’ you could argue was the result of fighting too much for extra yardage instead of settling for what there was, but Bell’s appeared to have been caused by poor fundamentals in how he carried the ball. Hopefully, those are things that can be coached up.
- Speaking of coaching, I thought that was Bobo’s best called game of the season. And, given the injury situation, as well as still working on all the new moving parts, that’s not meant as a backhanded compliment. More and more, Bobo is taking what the game is giving him. The running game wasn’t clicking early, so instead of forcing it, he elected to call more pass plays. Lots more play action, too.
- Muschamp and Schumann deserved to be dinged a little for that two-minute drill thing (can you tell I’m still a little miffed about that?) but overall, did okay. I really do like the way they’ve gotten the backups significant playing time so far.
- All I’m going to say about Smart is that, speaking of the two-minute drill, I bet he wishes he could have a mulligan on that time out he used at the start of it. Talk about your best laid plans, and all…
- I’ve quit talking about two things in my Observations posts, officiating and broadcast teams, but I’m making an exception here to note that I may have listened to the worst broadcast pair ESPN has ever inflicted on me, especially the play-by-play dude, who spoke as if he were talking in ALL CAPS. (Gilmore was only marginally better because he wasn’t as loud and attempted to correct some of his partner’s mistakes.) Please don’t inflict those two on another Georgia game, Mickey.
And with that, it’s on to Auburn, whom none of us care for. I expect some big names to come off the injury list this coming Saturday. The Tigers looked like crap against TAMU, but some opponents you never take for granted. I hope to see the team progress on smoothing out those highs and lows, but any kind of win on the Plains is a good ‘un, right?
Filed under Georgia Football
2023 SEC Power Poll, Week Four
Missouri is the only team in the conference yet to face another SEC squad, so there was plenty of carnage to go around this past weekend.
- Georgia. It hasn’t been pretty at times, but it’s been effective.
- Alabama. It ‘s weird to describe Saturday as a big win for Saban, but it was a big win for Saban. The second half was the best ‘Bama has played this season. Is that something to build on, or just a fluke?
- LSU. At home, at night, the Tigers struggled against a team that lost to BYU at home last week, so I dinged them a wee bit.
- Kentucky. Maybe I’m giving them too much credit here, but, if so, I’ll find out when they host the Gators this week.
- Ole Miss. Ordinarily, there’s no shame in losing to Alabama by two TDs, but this hasn’t been your typical Alabama team. The Laner maybe should spend less time trolling his opponent during the week and spend more time on game prep.
- Florida. I told myself I’d jump the Gators past the Vols if they didn’t shit the bed this week. They didn’t, so I did.
- Tennessee. Rolled UTSA this week. Big whoop.
- Missouri. Played another decent game against a respectable Memphis team. The Tigers are starting to show signs of life on offense.
- Texas A&M. Absolutely destroyed what looks like a weak Auburn squad. How much that means in the vast scheme of things remains to be seen.
- Arkansas. Did everything they could to hang in there in a road game in Baton Rouge, only to lose in the last five seconds. It’s starting to look like that kind of year for Sam Pittman.
- South Carolina. I hate to think where this team would be without Spencer Rattler.
- Mississippi State. Tied at the end of three in Columbia, they couldn’t close the deal, despite outgaining the ‘Cocks by almost a hundred yards.
- Auburn. Woof. If these guys can’t run the ball, they got nothin’.
- Vanderbilt. With two pick-sixes, the ‘Dores continue to make life harder on themselves with turnovers.
Filed under SEC Football
No fear whatsoever
I don’t know if you’ve had the chance to watch any Virginia football this season — I mean, why would you? — but if not, you’re missing one of the wilder seasons I’ve seen from a true freshman quarterback. The kid’s name is Anthony Colandrea and he plays as if his personal goal is to verify that chicks dig the long ball.
Get a load of these stats:
You really have to see it to believe it. Against Maryland, he sunk his team with interceptions on three straight possessions, none of it slowing his roll one iota. He threw two picks in his last game against NC State, which definitely contributed to the loss.
The ‘Hoos are 0-4 and are bound to lose more. If you’re going to be bad, at least don’t be boring. And I have the feeling watching this kid that he’s going to have one game against somebody decent where he avoids turning the ball over and leads an upset. He’s crazy fun to watch and it looks like he’s having the time of his life. Just so you know.
Filed under ACC Football
2023 SEC Net YPP, Week 4
Lots of conference on conference action this past week, so, as you might expect, the spread between the top and bottom decreased fairly significantly, mainly because the highest net figure is almost a full yard less than last week’s top net number. Here’s what we’ve got now:
- Kentucky +2.82 (7.21 o; 4.39 d) [NC: -0.38]
- Ole Miss +2.68 (7.29 o; 4.61 d) [NC: -1.11]
- Georgia +2.63 (6.94 o; 4.31 d) [NC: +0.21]
- Tennessee +2.41 (6.62 o; 4.21 d) [NC: +0.46]
- Missouri +2.10 (6.78 o; 4.68 d) [NC: +0.50]
- Texas A&M +1.68 (6.53 o; 4.85 d) [NC: +0.77]
- LSU +1.66 (7.57 o; 5.91 d) [NC: +0.17]
- Florida +1.57 (6.23 o; 4.66 d) [NC: +0.38]
- Alabama +1.23 (5.68 o; 4.45 d) [NC: -0.14]
- Auburn +0.75 (5.56 o; 4.81 d) [NC: -1.41]
- Arkansas +0.38 (5.76 o; 5.38 d) [NC: -0.91]
- Mississippi State +0.34 (6.29 o; 5.95 d) [NC: +0.19]
- Vanderbilt +0.11 (5.79 o; 5.68 d) [NC: -0.45]
- South Carolina +0.09 (6.11 o; 6.02 d) [NC: -0.27]
Turnover margin:
- +4: Arkansas, Mississippi State
- +3: Georgia, Ole Miss
- +2: LSU
- +1: Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee
- -2: Texas A&M
- -3: Florida, Vanderbilt
Observations and random bits:
- Vanderbilt’s at the bottom in turnover margin and heading that way on net ypp, which is to say the ‘Dores are reclaiming their usual place in the conference.
- Kentucky’s net ypp is impressive, but according to FPI, they’ve played the softest schedule of any team in the SEC at #132 overall. Also according to FPI, their remaining strength of schedule is fifth.
- In case you’re wondering, Georgia’s comparable FPI SOS is 110th to date and 39th going forward.
- Auburn played as poorly against TAMU as that huge drop in net ypp indicates.
- Missouri is finished with their non-con schedule, so we’ll see what happens to their net ypp… well, maybe not this coming week, as they play Vandy.
- Alabama being next to last in offensive ypp may look strange on paper, but if you watched their first half against Ole Miss, you understand how.
Filed under SEC Football, Stats Geek!
Monday ticket exchange
First road game of the season. First SEC road game of the season. Auburn, peeps. Looking for tickets? Got tickets to sell? Let ‘er rip in the comments.
As always, please be specific and leave contact info.
Filed under GTP Stuff
2023 Fabris Pool results, Week 4
Another tiebreaker this week:
Dudemankind, well done!
And here’s the seasonal race after four weeks:
That is tight. On to Week 5!
Filed under GTP Stuff
Musical palate cleanser, troubadour edition
Here’s the incomparable Townes Van Zandt, with a moving version of his best known song:
Filed under Uncategorized
Get The Picture 
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