Florida -vs- Tennessee: No Contest.

There has been a lot of hype over today's SEC tilt between Tennessee and Florida. Most of that quasi buildup comes from first year Vols coach Lane Kiffin and his press conference prediction of a UT victory over the Gators. I caught myself being a little intrigued by this game until I considered that the Vegas line is Florida by thirty points. More than four touchdowns. The game is being played at the Swamp in Gainesville, the Gators still have Tebow, and Tennessee is re-building. They are not "built" yet by any stretch. I'm not sure I would take Florida and give up the full 30, but they will nevertheless handle the Volunteers without ever missing a beat. Forget the hype, throw out the expectations of a great SEC clash; this one will be over before the first quarter ends.

Tech Thoroughly Thrashed!

Georgia Tech got beat in every facet of the game Thursday night by Miami 33-17. The Hurricanes held the vaunted Yellow Jacket offense to a mere 95 yards rushing, while Tech's defense gave up big play after big play. Tech's unstoppable offense was stopped dead in its tracks. It is so satisfying to see Georgia Tech lose, especially when their small fan base had been anointing them as the best team in the ACC. But I will have to give them one thing. Even though they didn't live up to their over-blown billing, they did live up to their nickname. Yep, they certainly looked like a "Rambling Wreck" against the Hurricanes!

UGA Tailgaters: Clean it Up or Stay at Home

Come on Dawg Fans. We're better than this. If you're an alumnus, it's hard for me to believe you would leave your alma mater like this. If you didn't attend UGA, then be considerate of those who still do and call it home. It's one of the most beautiful campus settings in the entire country, for crying out loud. Most Georgia fans I know wouldn't even litter an opposing campus, much less their own in Athens. If you in fact cannot do better, go and follow NASCAR. They don't give a crap how you leave, as long as you left your money before leaving. Or better yet, stay at home and throw your trash on your den floor. Then wallow around in it. Isn't that what hogs do?

Chick-fil-A Kickoff 2010

The LSU Tigers and the North Carolina Tarheels will square-off in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic to open the 2010 football season. The game will again be played in the Georgia Dome, this time on September 4th. The two schools have not met on the gridiron since 1986.

Blair Walsh: "I Do What I'm Told"

Georgia has been heavily scrutinized for its tendency to "directional kick" most of its kick-offs last year and a lot this year. The Bulldogs' kick coverage has been atrocious, resulting in great field position for the opposition. When kicker Blair Walsh was asked whether he preferred to boom it through the end zone or try to kick it short of the goal toward one of the 'coffin corners', he replied: "I do what I'm told". Translated, that means "I want to kick the crap out of it every time, but my special teams coach is such a bone-head that he won't let me". I don't think I could have expressed that any better myself!

Branden Smith & A.J. Green: Raw Speed & Natural Talent

Freshman Branden Smith (#1) might not be the fastest Bulldog ever, but he has that exceptional, game-breaking speed we haven't see in Athens in a long time. He is a threat to the opposition literally every time he touches the football. Sophomore A.J. Green (#8) just might be the best and most talented receiver to ever wear the Red & Black. He is a "Play-Maker Supreme", capable of changing the games' momentum all by himself. A quarterback doesn't have to throw it to him, just throw it in his vicinity. He will take care of the rest. Georgia must get the ball into the hands of these two guys as many times and in as many ways as they can. All Smith needs is a crease and he's gone; Green doesn't even need the crease, he'll make his own. In a season where most of the Bulldog Nation still isn't sure of what these 2009 Dawgs are all about, enjoy these two Pups all you can, while you can. They are as you say, "Worth the price of admission". At this level and the next.

New England 25 - Buffalo 24

On the night of the much anticipated return of Tom Brady, as well as, the not so much anticipated return of the throw-back uniforms, New England stunned Buffalo with two late fourth quarter scores. But what actually did the Bills in wasn't the scores (although they had to have the points, of course), it was the heart and soul of Tom Brady. You just gotta love that "refuse to lose" mentality. Down two scores when New England got the ball with 5:32 remaining on the game clock, 'Number 12' told the guys in the huddle: "We're gonna score before the two-minute warning, we're gonna get the ball back somehow, and we're gonna win". I think that is almost exactly what happened. The Patriots obviously have a lot of work to do to be a great team this season, but at least they have Brady back following a year off due to knee surgery. As Randy Moss alluded, when you have a guy like that leading you, the rest of the team just needs to shut and make plays. I enjoy just shutting up and watching the guy perform.

Roger Federer: The Greatest Shot of His Life!

O.K., this sounds like one of those old basketball commercials featuring Bird and Michael: Between the legs, back-to-the-net, cross-court winner to the baseline. Roger Federer pulled off what he himself called the greatest shot of his life. If you happened not to see it, check it out here. It is unbelievable when you consider it is in the semi-final round of the U.S. Open. He's not at practice trying out new shots. Wow...

Joe Cox: UGA Starter - Logan Gray: He Needs to Play

I've bought in to the fact that Joe Cox at quarterback gives Georgia the best chance to win. Mark Richt said so before the Oklahoma State game as well as the South Carolina game. He knows quarterbacks, especially his own. And Joe might be the type of player who gets better each week and makes everyone around better as a result. I'm all on the "Let's Go With Joe" bandwagon. That being said, I do think that Georgia needs to play Logan Gray at least one series per game. Especially for next year, but the time could prove valuable down the run of the schedule this year. We've let two games pass already, so I'm only suggesting the guy plays ten series from here on out. He could have played a series in Stillwater, and the plays off would probably have helped Cox. There certainly was no momentum he could have broken in the season opener. There were also times in the Carolina game where the insertion of Gray into the game would not have harmed the Bulldogs. The kid needs game experience. Just think if Joe had been given that opportunity a year ago. He might be a little bit more comfortable here in the early games of the season. I will admit, last year would have been harder to get the backup in games with all the high expectations and close,crucial contests. But this year, no such pre-season predictions of championships exist. We will not be hurt if Logan Gray quarterbacks the Dawgs one series each game. It will help Joe Cox, it will help Logan Gray, and it will help the team. This year as well as next.

Georgia 41 - South Carolina 37

Is there such a thing as an "ugly win"? In the SEC where every win is crucial, I vote for the old saying that "a win is a win is a win". And in Athens, Georgia this year, wins are to be cherished, because there is a very strong possibility that there will not be as many of them as we would desire. Georgia outlasted the South Carolina Gamecocks 41-37 Saturday night in a long, drawn-out gridiron affair. Big plays by both teams were the order of the night. As much as I hate to admit it, this game was a lot like one of those ACC tilts I have been bashing that conference about lately. Soft defensive play and big scoring plays. That's an ACC trademark, and the Dawgs and the 'Cocks borrowed a script out of their portfolio. It does indeed hurt to write that. And it hurts even more to acknowledge that a soft defense is continuing to be a way of life "Between the Hedges". The 'bend-but-don't-break' style of defense once employed so successfully by the great Erk Russell just doesn't cut it in today's football. Offensive teams now will take the six to eight yards you give them and stuff it right down your throat with ten to twelve play scoring drives. For one, Erk didn't have the athletes Georgia has now. He had guys with great heart and desire, even though they did not possess exceptional talent. Today, the bulldogs have talent galore, and if they don't, the so-called recruiting experts better re-evaluate our last eight classes. They were all ranked in the top 5 or 10 nationally. The Bulldogs have great talent, but they are not even close to being a great team. I know the difference, but I wonder why. The word I have deferred to for weeks now is 'philosophy'. I suppose it is our coaching 'philosophy' that allows us to abandon the run offensively when it is working so well for us. "Philosophy' that allows us to be so soft defensively. "Philosophy" that makes us so inconsistent on special teams. I am glad we won. I only wish we had won in such a way as to give me more optimism for the rest of the season. This 2009 edition of the Georgia Bulldogs does have heart and resiliency. But they should be reloading instead of rebuilding. And I don't understand why.

Ground-rule Double & Endzone Holding

I was watching North Carolina and Connecticut play this afternoon. The Tarheels ended up winning the game 12-10 because they received the two points awarded for a safety after the Huskies were called for offensive holding in the endzone. It was, by the way, the correct call. A safety is awarded the defense because it is assumed that without the holding, the defense could have earned the two points on their own. The 'assuming' part made me think of baseball's ground-rule double. A man can be on first base, and if the batter hits a ground-rule double in the stands, the runner on first can advance no further than third base. You cannot assume he would have scored , even though many times the runner could score easily. Football assumes, baseball does not. How the heck did I get off on that?

Ga. Tech 30 - Clemson 27 - Do Ya Really Care?

Clemson spotted Georgia Tech 24 points in the first half, fought back to tie the score at 27-27 with the second play of the fourth quarter, only to lose by a Tech field goal with 57 seconds left in the game. Now, I must be honest with you here. I did not stay awake to see the entire scenario play-out between these two football juggernauts. Someone I know who was on a diet said once said they didn't want to "waste their calories" on a certain dessert, and I didn't want to waste my sleeping hours on Georgia Tech football. I will concede it was an exciting game filled with big plays by both teams. The real reason I wanted to write this post was because of one play that wasn't so exciting if you were a Tiger fan. But is was nevertheless stupid. Clemson lines up for a 54 yard field goal in the first quarter, but calls time-out only to end up failing to properly execute a pooch kick which the Insects run back for a touchdown. While the Tigers were lining up for the apparent field goal, the play clock was running down. I'm sitting in the den thinking I wouldn't burn a time-out, just take the five yards and punt towards the coffin corner. Nope, Clemson coach "Yaba-Dabo-Do" Swinney wastes the time-out to set up the touchdown return by the Bees. But excitement is what the ACC is looking for in the absence of physical defenses in their ever-so-soft (sounds like Avon, huh?) football league. I guess last night was a success for them. By the way, Tech loves a Thursday night don't they? Go figure...