Can’t say this is much of a surprise…
Daily Archives: October 3, 2023
Skoal, brother
Georgia has a vodka, y’all.
Five years ago, could you have imagined the concept of buying a bottle of booze to support Georgia players? Man, college football has found itself in a strange place.
Although I would have loved to have heard a Munson promo for Hunker Vodka. You would have, too!
Filed under Georgia Football, It's Just Bidness
Mark Richt has lost control… of Mark Richt?
Smart invited Richt to make some comments at yesterday’s presser to promote an event to help raise research money for Parkinson’s and Chron’s diseases. A very nice gesture that somehow sidetracked to this ($$):
“Back in my day, they’d get thrown in NCAA jail (for the winning team getting a belt),” Richt said, as Smart and media members laughed. “Believe me, they’d have a two-game suspension for being honest and fessing up to it.”
Green and Gurley were suspended four games by the NCAA — in 2010 and 2014, respectively — after confessing to violations that are no longer infractions. Green sold his Independence Bowl jersey for $1,000, and Gurley sold autographs. At the time, Richt did toe the Georgia and NCAA line. But on Monday, he sounded a different tune.
“If I had to go back and do that again, it’d be lie and deny,” Richt said. “Prove it two years after your eligibility’s up.”
Whoa. Wasn’t expecting that. Can you imagine what McGarity would have done, facing a Mark Richt who decided not to be a company man? I don’t know, but I would have loved to have seen it.
Filed under Georgia Football, The NCAA
“The offensive identity is do what it takes.”
Here’s a stat that will make you blink:
Georgia enters Saturday’s game against No. 20 Kentucky having run the ball 48.1 percent of its offensive plays. That’s down from 57.2 percent in 2021 and 53.1 percent in 2022.
The Bulldogs are on pace for their lowest percentage of runs per game going all the way back to 1994 when the team ran just 38.7 percent of the time.
… Georgia this year is 10th in the nation in passing offense at 332.6 yards per game, its highest total since that 1994 season. The only other season Georgia has hit 300 passing yards a game since then was 2013 when Bobo was offensive coordinator and Aaron Murray was throwing to the likes of Chris Conley, Michael Bennett, Todd Gurley and Arthur Lynch.
Between the injuries that have swallowed up the running back room and the ineffectiveness of the offensive line’s run blocking, I guess this really shouldn’t come as a big surprise. Mike Bobo is taking what he’s given.
Filed under Georgia Football, Stats Geek!
2023 SEC Power Poll, Week Five
Five weeks into the season, and I think it’s fair to say the SEC isn’t shaping up the way most folks expected it to.
- Georgia. Them Dawgs is hell… in the second half.
- Alabama. The Tide seem to have things figured out on the defensive side of the ball. There’s still plenty of room for improvement on the offensive side.
- Kentucky. It’s impressive when the other team has 13 players on the field and still can’t stop you from scoring a rushing touchdown.
- Tennessee. Revenge!
- Texas A&M. Like it or not, the Aggies have been playing some solid ball of late.
- Ole Miss. Hmm… Junior stays off social media this week and his team beats a ranked rival. Sheer coincidence, I’m sure.
- LSU. This year’s defense is making Bo Pelini look good.
- Missouri. Still undefeated, the Tigers had little trouble dispatching Vandy.
- Florida. The Gators’ record in the Swamp: 3-0. The Gators’ record away from the Swamp: 0-2.
- South Carolina. Similarly to UF, the ‘Cocks are 2-0 at home and winless away from home.
- Auburn. In the immortal words of Omar — you come at the king, you best not miss.
- Mississippi State. On a three-game losing streak, relief comes to town in the form of Western Michigan.
- Arkansas. I thought before the season that Pittman made a mistake hiring Dan Enos to be his new OC. I’ve seen nothing so far that shakes my conviction about that.
- Vanderbilt. Vandy didn’t lose the turnover battle this week, but still lost by 17.
Filed under SEC Football
2023 SEC Net YPP, Week 5
There was a ton of bad defensive play across the conference this week, which is how you wind up with four teams in the red in net ypp.
- Kentucky +2.63 (7.19 o; 4.56 d) [NC: -0.19]
- Georgia +2.47 (6.89 o; 4.42 d) [NC: -0.16]
- Tennessee +2.22 (6.62 o; 4.40 d) [NC: -0.19]
- Ole Miss +2.10 (7.48 o; 5.38 d) [NC: -0.58]
- Missouri +2.02 (6.85 o; 4.87 d) [NC: -0.08]
- Texas A&M +1.94 (6.46 o; 4.50 d) [NC: +0.26]
- Alabama +1.39 (5.80 o; 4.41 d) [NC: +0.16]
- LSU +1.30 (7.77 o; 6.47 d) [NC: -0.36]
- Florida +0.88 (6.06 o; 5.18 d) [NC: -0.69]
- Auburn +0.24 (5.43 o; 5.19 d) [NC: -0.51]
- Mississippi State -0.11 (5.91 o; 6.02 d) [NC: -0.45]
- Vanderbilt -0.14 (5.80 o; 5.94 d) [NC: -0.25]
- South Carolina -0.21 (5.96 o; 6.17 d) [NC: -0.30]
- Arkansas -0.26 (5.30 o; 5.56 d) [NC: -0.26]
Turnover margin:
- +6: Arkansas
- +4: Alabama, Ole Miss
- +2: Auburn, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina
- +1: LSU, Missouri, Mississippi State
- -0-: Tennessee
- -3: Vanderbilt
- -4: Florida, Texas A&M
Random bits and observations:
- If you’re a lover of yards per play, there’s a good argument to be made that LSU, first in offensive ypp and last in defensive ypp, is the most entertaining team in the league.
- Georgia doesn’t appear to be the dominant team of years past, but it’s still second in the SEC in net ypp.
- It looks like the only thing keeping Arkansas afloat is turnover margin.
- Only two teams had a positive change in net ypp this week: Alabama and TAMU.
- For all the reborn chatter about ‘Bama being a national contender again, their net ypp number doesn’t bear that out. For now, anyway.
Filed under SEC Football, Stats Geek!
Growing up before our very eyes
Maybe I shouldn’t be impressed by this, but I’m impressed by this.
His production, especially in the second half, has been steady, sometimes bordering on the spectacular ($$).
On third downs this season, Beck is 25-for-35 for 295 yards, two TDs and one INT. On third-and-7 or longer, he’s slightly better: 15-for-19 for 160 yards. (He’s converted the first down on 19 of those 35 throws.)
Yeah, Bowers has been a walking cheat code, but you’ve still got to make the throws.
Say what you will about Mike Bobo’s skill as an OC, there’s no denying he’s an elite quarterbacks coach.
Filed under Georgia Football, Stats Geek!
The Brock Bowers debate
Point:
Counterpoint:
Bowers has been leaving defensive coordinators scratching their heads for much longer than just this past Saturday. He’s been named to PFF’s All-American team in each of his first two seasons and won the John Mackey Award last season, which is given to the best tight end in college football. Even though he’s not even halfway through his junior year, he’s already atop the PFF record books in most receiving statistics.
Brock Bowers among Power Five tight ends since 2014 (PFF College’s inception)
Stat Amount Rank Receiving grade 94.3 1st Receiving yards 2,240 1st Receiving touchdowns 23 T-1st Receiving yards after contact 609 1st Missed tackles forced on receptions 39 1st Bowers’ 88.9 grade this season is five points higher than the next-closest tight end. He’s the current favorite to take home the Mackey Award once again. If he does, he’ll become the first two-time winner in the award’s 24-year history. And if he keeps carrying the Bulldogs to victories like Saturday, he may even earn an invite to New York as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, an unheard-of honor for a tight end.
Nobody, not even Caleb Williams, towers over their position quite like Bowers does. There’s a strong argument to be made that the junior is the best player in the country. Once this season wraps up and he moves on to Sundays, Bowers could go down as the greatest tight end college football has ever seen.
I like Bud Elliott a lot, but I’m not sure I get the assumption his take is grounded in, which is essentially that a tight end can’t make it to New York because of the limitations of the position. I think PFF has the better argument that Bowers dominance over the rest of the tight end field should be the controlling factor. But what do I know?
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.
Filed under Georgia Football
Does Hugh Freeze know something we don’t know?
Either he does, or he’s talking straight out of his ass with this.
Maybe Hugh just wants to get some of the hatred out of the rivalry. Peace and love, baby.
(h/t)
Filed under Auburn's Cast of Thousands, Georgia Football
2023 Fabris Pool results, Week 5
We had the mother of all tiebreakers this week.
Congrats, diwk. You definitely earned it this week.
As for the seasonal stats, things look pretty tight there, too.
Get The Picture 
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