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Dawgs hit their ‘glass ceiling’ once again against Bama
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Dawgs hit their ‘glass ceiling’ once again against Bama
A competitive first-half effort isn’t enough to beat college football’s gold standard
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I think Kirby Smart has reached his ceiling! Unable to recruit & keep (J. Fields) real dual threat QBs is a major problem here. Its the reason Why Fromm was never able to overcome Bama in the 2nd halves of 2 games. Fromm untimely lack of arm strength missing wide open WRs and his lack of want to take off and run! Why Bennett was so locked in on forcing the ball to Burton is a mystery to me even the national news took notice! Something has to change or this will be the same result every time Kirby plays against Bama!
Great analysis as usual Bill. Spot on.
What baffles me and probably most of the other Power 5 teams that face the likes of Bama and Clemson...how do these elite teams continue to reload year-after-year and come out on top? I mean, Trevor Lawrence and Mac Jones are just the latest example of elite QBs who started out as inexperienced and green as Stetson Bennett. Yet, they can step in and somehow just continue the winning traditions of those schools without hardly skipping a beat. We get those same top recruits - 4 and 5 star QBs - and can't seem to get them or the team over the hump. What gives?
Is Stetson better than a 5-star Beck or 4-star Daniels? I like SB, but like you said we're not going to win a Championship with him no matter how good the players are around him. Does Kirby just not know how to develop his QBs?
Is this as good as it gets? Have we hit the glass ceiling of maybe occasionally playing in the CFP and that's it? The only way I see us getting into the playoffs on a regular basis is if they expand it to 8 teams. Even 6 teams won't do it for us.
The most frustrating thing about the pass interference call against Stokes in the end zone was that on UGA’s prior possession, Surtain played identical coverage on a sideline pass to Pickens, and it wasn’t called, of course.
It’s very tough to take out the “champ”. It’s nearly impossible when his gloves are loaded.
great assessment of the game and current state of UGA football Bill. Always appreciate the honest, balanced view a fab can have for their home team
i think Alabama has the mental edge over UGA since Kirby has arrived in Athens, and it’s kind of like Henry Winklers character in Waterboy....Saban has his defensive play calls in his green notebook, and Kirby folds like a cheap lawn chair in the second half against Bammer. Normally this is Kirbys strength, regarding second half adjustments, but he hasn’t beat the master
Stetson has been a great story, but the ending of his book doesn’t include a NC, or SECCG. Too short and doesn’t have the arm. Are Daniels or Beck really that much worse?!
Our secondary normally doesn’t get torched because our front 7 apply pressure.....and they did some of the time last night, but Mac was sitting there eating a sandwich at times before throwing
with are top recruiting classes, really no excuse to look like that IMO. Need to overcome these issues, and have the mentality that we will beat them
GO DAWGS!!!
This article is right on target when it comes to UGA not being able to compete with Alabama, but it also applies to Clemson, Ohio State and other teams with equal talent but better QBs. The QB is the most important position on the field and especially in college where an explosive QB can change the game. Every UGA fan loved the way way Jake Fromm competed and now Stetson Bennett, but UGA has to have a QB who can create explosive plays if they want to win a NC. That means KS will have to live with a more talented QB making game management mistakes until they learn while displaying superior athletic and QB ability. Nick Saban figured it out and Debo Sweeney figured it out when they switched from QBs who were extensions of themselves on the field to young QBs whose athletic upside was unlimited. The problem is not with recruiting the talent, the problem is with development which means letting them play.
We have to develop our quarterbacks. The Bennet thing was a feel good story but is he really better than Dwan or JT? So many missed passes down field and then we just abandon the running game...Their were some bad calls that hurt us. If you touch bamas receivers you get called and they were riding our guys. That PI call was crap, but it is what is is. Get Dwan and JT ready, also get Milton ready, he is better than the rest. work to do, get to it. No excuses, go to work so we can see them in Atlanta!
Georgia will never be elite as long as we complain about/blame the refs. Smart, to his credit, doesn't do that. He flat out said that our DB's were holding because we couldn't cover their WR's. And how about we just give credit to Bama's O-Lie which was outstanding. The only way we'll get to Bama's level is by honestly looking in the mirror and fixing the problems.
"That means KS will have to live with a more talented QB making game management mistakes until they learn while displaying superior athletic and QB ability."
The quote above by 87Dawg_ 11 nailed it. We will continue to be 2nd tier until KS accepts this.
I don’t know why Bennett kept throwing to a true freshman WR that consistently showed he wasn’t up to the challenge was baffling. Bennett didn’t go through his progressions on pass plays and he did have time, especially not seeing James Cook wide open toward the end of the half. Fortunately we did score.
If Bennett is the best QB we have, we are in trouble and Kirby needs to reevaluate how he recruits QBs. Yes, he did land Eason and Fields, but he lost both of them, too.
Was anyone else troubled by the Dawgs' reliance on trickery to get half a yard instead of being able to run a play to get it? I just didn't like the look of SB4 pointing his finger like a little kid screaming at the refs to look what Johnny did. Like the announcers said, if you can't get a half-yard in that situation, maybe you don't deserve to win. I know the Dawgs have had their maddening short yardage issues, but is that how we want try and to solve it? Like jackbmatt said, they need to look in the mirror and solve these problems.
I'm with you @jackbmatt. It's time to stop always complaining about the officiating, as if THAT'S the reason we can't beat Alabama. The refs miss calls in EVERY game, including all the UGA victories. I watch the games and I see plenty of calls they don't make against our guys that I'm sure have fans from other teams pulling their hair out. We just need to get better in every area. And I, too, ask the same question that others are asking, is it really plausible that at the University of Georgia, the best quarterback on the team is a former 2-star walkon, who actually quit the team to go play junior college ball (not at an elite level, either). Is SBIV really better than Beck and Daniels (5-stars) and Mathis (4-star)? If so, then something is horribly wrong with our recruiting and development. And if I'm Brock Vandagriff, I'd be saying wait a minute, will Muschamp's son be starting over me eventually. Again, as others have pointed out, in today's football world, it's not just about managing the game and not turning the ball over. Of course those are important, but you've also got to consistently make explosive plays with your arm and your feet. Bennett is fair in that area with his legs, but his arm scares no one. And neither he nor his coaches, apparently, can figure out how to get George Pickens truly involved in the game. I know they're covering him, maybe even double covering him. That's what they do to great receivers. But great QB's and offensive coordinators figure out ways to still get him the ball.