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Comments
What about the losses against teams like Vandy, Carolina and other teams considered inferior than UGA talent wise during those years also??? And I remember auburn beating
UGA senseless in the regular season before the DAWGS got their revenge a few weeks later..
And how can we be 19-1 vs East teams the last few years when we embarrassingly lost to sc last year? Wouldn’t that be 18-2 or are we not counting the sc game from last year like fla doesn’t recognize the first ever game we beat them in 1915?
Excellent article as usual Bill. You hit the nail on the head. Structural deficiencies, poor coaching decisions, and really a lack of vision for the future of the program and where college football was heading. Smart has tunnel vision. Effectively ignoring the future dual-threat star Fields just shows where Smart's priorities were. And that was just one of the many bad decisions as you stated. Now it will take us at least a couple of seasons to try and catch up.
And yes, I agree, injuries definitely hurt us but all teams have injuries. We probably would have played a closer game against Florida, but with no offensive fire we still would have lost. And remember, we got torched by Bama with our full starting defense in the 2nd half of that game. There's no excuse for that loss.
I'm still not convinced that Kirby has bought into a high flying offensive scheme just based on his comments and actions with Bennett and Mathis. We need to be moving to play both Beck and Daniels in the remaining games so we can have some kind of QB experience and foundation for next season. If Smart continues to start Bennett or Mathis I will completely lose ALL faith in him as a head coach.
Also consider the SEC adjusted the Dawgs schedule to accommodate UF although UF and the clown brought their COVID problems on themselves. UF played one game in three weeks and came into yesterday’s game at 100% while the Dawgs had Bama and KY and the D was at 60% or less.
If, as Bill and the delusional fan base suggests and Kirby is the one hamstringing the offense, how did Monken manage to “abandon” the run game per Bill and have so many open receivers missed by the QBs? It was Bill and the same bunch that demanded that Mason be replaced by Bauta because they know so much more than the coaches that are at practice everyday, that lead to Richt finally giving the fans what they wanted and led directly to their “good man” being kicked to the curb.
Also Bill, I cannot disagree more with your assessment of Kirby’s WR recruiting the past two years. Two years ago we had two five stars and last year was a great WR haul with several freshmen making great contributions this year. I expect the fan base to allow their emotions to make them delusional and to spew baseless crap, but it does seem that even on DawgNation, a “guest columnist” would try to base his opinions on research and facts rather than baseless diatribes.
You won’t find anything. But I have reliable sources. I just find it strange that the media hasn’t even hinted to it. It’s a rather big deal, regarding his previous school. And it’s why he hasn’t been on the field. It’s not cause he’s not impressing the coaches or that he’s not fully healthy. Eventually, you’ll read about it and you’ll remember this post.
Clearly, there's an "issue" with JT Daniels. Is he not great in practice (which Kirby is suggesting)? How could he be worse than what we've been putting on the field? Is he in the "Dawg" house for some reason? Hey, we fans won't settle this and KS isn't talking, as usual. It was only H.S., understood, but on a National Championship team (Mater Dei), he threw for over 12,000 yds., 152 TDs, 14 INTs. Only played through his junior year - 52/4 TD/INT and a QBR of 144.0, before leaving for USC (a year early). Ranked #1 at MaxPreps. Played in a Todd Monken type system in both H.S. and at USC. Has he suddenly lost the ability to play the game? Why did UGA recruit him to transfer in the first place? Had they not seen him play, watched tape, met with the kid, talked with coaches? Last comment from me on the subject; it's pointless. Maybe KS will play him and he'll stink it up but the odor's not so great at the moment so maybe grab some Fabreze and try something else?
Another shot of truth serum from Bill King. He and I think alike on this one. Bill: "However, that still will mean the Dawgs will wind up in one of those bowls Bulldog Nation grew so bored with during the latter years of the Mark Richt era.
"And, that’s not what Georgia had in mind when it hired Smart."
I give Smart two years tops....yeah, you more sober-minded posters will disagree, but wait for it before you jump. We do not want another Richt...Mr. Bridesmaid. That is where we are headed...Pudding Bowl after Pudding Bowl. Some say "we are fine." No, UGA is not fine. They proved it Saturday.
Our WR are better than last year, but we are far from elite. WR is still an issue for us to be at a Natty level. I watched Liberty play Saturday and they have a better QB and WRs than we do. How does that happen? Kirby has taken his eye off the ball with the O and over invested in the D.
Richt essentially had no chance while at UGA during his latter years. We were getting lapped many times over with our sub-par facilities, coaching salaries, program support in comparison to the top eschelon programs in the SEC and around the country. It was nearly impossible to recruit at the elite level. Imagine if Kirby had to work under the same circumstances and had the same type of rosters? I had no problem with a change in coaches in 2015, but with a program like UGA, you would think the university would have taken a hard look at other candidates too.
Wow, I thought Bill King retired or something.
Just saying....
Thank you Bill as always for your cathartic posts. I must say I struggle to believe that Daniels is a worse bet on the field than Mathis. I'm not just talking about the inaccurate throws to wide open receivers, or the sloppy ball handling, but some of his decisions just go against the grain and make him seem aloof...like not throwing the ball away on 2nd and 8 with 4:30 left to go when he was forced to run out of bounds. Sure the clock stops briefly when running out, but then it winds up immediately, and over half a minute was lost as a result of him not throwing it away. And then on another play, he runs straight (and I mean straight) into a 240 lb linebacker (James Houston) and gets his clock cleaned. I just have a hard time believing Daniels is not capable of being better than Mathis (and perhaps Bennett as well), not only with mechanics and completing passes, but also with game management skills. I have to wonder if some of the chatter I'm hearing about the legalities of playing are true concerning Daniels.
See my comment below. That’s why.
I expect the defense to recover with injured personnel returning and some introspection in the offseason. The offense is a QB away from throwing for 300-400 yards a game. Alas, JTD must be a myth, OR the coaches are making a historically bad choice.
As is, Beck should be trotted out there since JTD is apparently not an option. It would feel good as a UGA fan to even watch him play regardless of whether he did well or horribly. We'd either have an uplift or would have more closure on the choice of QBs seeing the field so far if he doesn't do well.
For now, a healthy Bennett does look superior to Mathis.