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- 3/17/19 UPDATE -- We've updated the permissions for our "Football" and "Commit to the G" recruiting message boards. We aim to be the best free board out there and that has not changed. We do now ask that all of you good people register as a member of our forum in order to see the sugar that is falling from our skies, so to speak.
Comments
@GoodGame
This @Tom_Bomadil fellow, completely unlike the actual guy from Fellowship of the Ring, says:
And it was not because of a lack of talent. Georgia had some of the best talent in the SEC
Yeah ... during the Mark Richt era UGA had 2 tailbacks drafted in the first round (Knowshon Moreno, Todd Gurley) when Auburn 2004 and Alabama in 2009 had two in the same backfield. They had no Heisman Trophy winners when Florida 2007/2008 (Tim Tebow, Cam Newton) had 2 on their depth chart. UGA had a single WR taken in the first round (AJ Green) and only two taken in the 2nd (Reggie Brown, Mohammed Massoquai) as well as one TE (Ben Watson, a transfer). Compare that to how loaded LSU, Florida and Alabama teams were at WR and TE when they won titles.
And that is at skill positions. It gets worse. Richt did not recruit a single first round offensive tackle or defensive tackle during the entire 14 years at UGA. Charles Grant (technically a DE but 290 lbs!), George Foster and John Sullivan were all Donnan recruits. It was because of not having guys like that - or the Stinchcombs etc. - anymore that UGA never won another SEC title under Richt. And Richt also sent zero defensive backs in the first round, unless you want to count Thomas Davis (I don't, as Davis was a rover at UGA who played OLB full time in the NFL). Compare that to LSU (2003), Florida (2006 and 2008), Auburn (2004) and Alabama (2009) teams who sent their entire secondaries to the NFL.
Yes, Sony Michel, Nick Chubb and Isaiah Wynn were Richt recruits that were drafted under Kirby. But it doesn't change much. Richt only (somewhat) consistently recruited elite players at two positions at UGA: tailback and edge (DE/OLB types like Leonard Floyd, Roquan Smith and the aforementioned Davis). The rest of his recruits would have been backups at the programs that actually were winning titles. UGA is winning now precisely because UGA is getting guys like Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, Jalen Carter (three first round picks at DT in 2 years despite running a 3-4 defense!), Lewis Cine, Kelee Ringo and Malachi Starks now. Add that to guys like Andrew Thomas, Isaiah Wilson and Amarius Mims at OT, please realize that UGA is landing the types of players that Richt never got. When Richt was at UGA, not only did he rarely land guys like that from out of state, but he let some of the most promising in-state guys go to Auburn, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, FSU and even at times Georgia Tech (during the Chan Gailey era when Tech was serious about recruiting).
Richt did a lot of good things for UGA. In a lot of ways, he helped pave the foundation for where UGA is right now. (Including the fact that Kirby Smart was once Richt's position coach.) But claiming that Richt recruited championship caliber athletes at UGA is just false.
Quote: A leopard does not change his spots, and a person doesn't stop being what he is in his essence I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think so. End of Quote. So your saying that Stetson Bennett didn’t get better from 2021-2022 ? For that matter your saying that Kirby Smart didn’t go from a DC to a HC ? People DO get better at their vocations. Not worried to much about Leopards. And as the articles and posters have stated Repeatedly, Bobo actually had a slightly higher PPG than Monken. And when did UGA sink over $247 million into the program during the Richt/Bobo era ? Do you recall Richt having to Embarrass UGA by offering to pay his staff raises out of His Own Pocket ? You do of course remember that the AD for a large segment of the Richt/Bobo era was Mr. Damon “Red Panties” Evans don’t you ? And your saying that Richt/Bobo had Both Offenses and Defenses equal to those at UGA during the Monken era ? Your saying that after nearly TEN years there’s NO WAY that Bobo can improve ? You wouldn’t happen to be one of those from 2021 that said there’s NO WAY we will win a Ntl. Title with Stetson Bennett at QB would you ? Then in 2022 you wouldn’t happen to be one of those that said Well there’s NO WAY we’ll win Another Ntl. Title with Stetson Bennett at QB would you ? Lastly are you as critical of Yourself after 10 years in Your vocation have passed by from your First Time in that vocation ? Look there is a certain amount of Risk involved with replacing a Critical Unit Coach with Anybody. There are NO guarantees. And I don’t think Kirby could find ANY OC out there that could say OK I Guarantee You I will win UGA another Ntl. Title !! So it boils down to Do You Trust Kirby making the right hire ? In the game of football, especially in the SEC, No One can Guarantee Anything !! There’s no need to repeat all the Many reasons that Kirby made this hire, you and other naysayers won’t except them. And Again YES there’s a certain amount of Risk involved with hiring Anybody. But Kirby hired who HE thought was best for the job. And it’s a done deal. So for your own peace of mind I would advise Watch and See how things go. Don’t automatically assume from almost 10 years ago in his First gig that Bobo can’t get better. Colorado St. SC. and Auburn were ALL bad jokes when he was there, literally Nothing talent wise to work with.
I have to laugh at the indignation of people at me for calling a spade a spade when it comes to Mike Bobo. One poster, Navydawg, went ballistic yelling, "So your saying that Stetson Bennett didn’t get better from 2021-2022 ?" Uh, never said a word about Stetson Bennett. Listing people who got better at their positions, such as Bennett, is not the same thing as having a root personality type which does not change. So, yeah, the leopard analogy has merit. Mike Bobo does not have the creativity or imagination that Monken has, and never will. Those things are inherent within a person, not learned. Bobo has been a conservative, don' -take-risks coach his whole career. It hurt Georgia during the Richt years, Richt being another coach who did not like to take risks more than once or twice a game, usually at the beginning of the game. You know, get an early lead and sit on it the entire game.
Scoring points is not an indicator of creativity.
Didn’t go ballistic at all. Certainly didn’t yell. Just asked legitimate questions that apparently your not able to answer. So what OC out there could Guarantee You a 3peat Ntl. Title ?? Could Even Coach Monken Guarantee You a 3peat ?? With Kirby Smart as the HC he has made the Right Decisions thus far to get the Dawgs back to back Ntl. Titles. So HE made the decision to hire Mike Bobo. But because of YOUR ( and a few other naysayers ) opinions of Bobo from nearly Ten years ago, Dawg Nation is supposed to be utterly terrified that Bobo will ruin the program ? Yeah right. 🙄 No Thanks I’ll Trust the PROVEN Knowledge and Experience of Kirby Smart over a few whiny fans, belly aching from their recliners Lol. P.S. And I guess you about crapped yourself when you read ( or Did you even read it) that Monken Himself said Bobo drew up some of the plays, in particular the Red Zone plays where teams traditionally struggle. Monken was/is a pretty straight forward talker, he complimented Bobo. So I guess Both him and Kirby are wrong Lol !! But it’s so comforting to know that You and a handful (comparatively) of other fans have every thing under control. And the Stetson analogy was Just As accurate as your thing about a leopard and his spots Lol !! And scoring points is not an indicator of creativity You said !! Big LOL !! Yeah points just automatically score all by themselves !! Gosh Thx for straightening me out on that !! 😂
Kirby Smart is entering into his 7th year as HC if my memory serves. He’s obviously gotten better as he goes along ( People Can and Do get better in their vocations). Among the many things he’s gotten better at, I would think that gauging Hiring Decisions would also be included. Though there is NO Coach in College football or Pro football that can Guarantee their fanbase success with the people they decide to hire. I don’t know of Anyone more passionate about winning than Kirby. In addition I’m pretty confident that Kirby wants to leave a great legacy when it comes time to retire. So I’m pretty confident he weighs each and every hire very, very seriously. And during the season IF he sees something from a Coach he has hired that doesn’t set well with him, I’m Confident he will be in that Coach’s ear Really Quick, saying Get It Fixed NOW !! And IF the problem what ever it might be becomes repetitive I’m also very confident that it will Quickly go from Kirby just talking to the Coach with the problem, to Kirby chewing that Coaches backside very fiercely !! And IF by chance the problem were to continue after that, I’m very confident that Kirby would show that Coach the door, any personal relationships not withstanding. Kirby is building a winning program at UGA, and there’s NO WAY he will just kick back and let Anyone take away from that. SO in summary I Trust Kirby to make the right decision in the first place, But if problems do arise, I Trust Kirby to quickly rectify those problems. Our Dawgs are in Very Good hands with Kirby Smart at the helm !! Go Dawgs !!
@thadec You made Excellent points. And at least Part of the reason that Richt wasn’t able to recruit higher level talent AND hire better coaches was that he didn’t have Even Vaguely the operating budget and facilities that attract recruits as Kirby has had. And I’m Not knocking on Kirby by saying that. Richt had the terrible misfortune of having Damon Evans as AD. A man that could care less about actually Doing his job. And also got caught up in an embarrassing scandal ( referring to Evans). One year Richt let it get out in the public ( I’m confident deliberately ) that he was willing to pay his Coaches pay raises out of his own pocket !! Richt never had even close to the support Kirby has had. Don’t get me wrong I’m Very Thankful that UGA decided to go all out for Kirby and the football program !! They (UGA) brought the program up to par and Better in many cases than other major football programs. These young recruits Love all these high caliber facilities and resources. It’s a large part of the recruiting process. All told Coach Richt did pretty well with what he had to work with. And Yes as you said he established the foundation for Kirby to build on. Kirby has done absolutely Phenomenal with what he inherited !! And I’m Very Proud of and for him !! But Coach Richt was and will be or Should be a part of the Dawgs legacy, because he played a positive role in helping to build it.
I would say, that same "leopard & spot" analogy, applies to some over-opinionated fans, as well. Once a know-it-all...always a know-it-all. Nothing you can do about that. And, no I'm not talking about @navydawg or anyone specifically.
I've had the pleasure of knowing several individuals, that would rather chew off their right arm, than to say anything that would throw shade on a previously avowed opinion. They'll NEVER adjust their opinion, based on new data. I think it's rooted in some self-value thing. Maybe they lost a lot of arguments to their parents. Or something. Lol
Speaking of opinions...Bobo is a better Coach now, than he was 15 yrs ago. But, for some people...he'll never escape that first impression. He was an outstanding Coordinator, while he was here and would be wearing 2 or 3 Championship rings, if UGA could've actually stopped somebody on the defensive side of the ball.
Richt's program trajectory at the time, took a nose-dive when, "Van Gorder decided to leave and Willie Martinez was eventually hired", "Dooley was force retired and Damon Evans was hired...then fired shortly after (for DUI among other things)" & "his Wife developed Cancer causing him to lean on a friend...(DC) Willie Martinez".
Just to be clear...Willie Martinez is the worst DC in UGA History....IMO. And...the reason UGA didn't win a Natty under Richt. Bobo and UGA's offense, was the only bright spot of that era.. it took Richt too long to bounce back from the damage his loyalty and friendship to Willie "Bend-don't-break" Martinez did to the defensive leg of the Program.
Pruitt was on the right path, but, time and opportunity took over. Kirby finally agreed to come back to Athens...as Head Coach. Not as DC as Richt had tried to get him to do, before he hired Grantham...and, again after he fired Grantham. Pruitt was second or third choice and had some of the same football DNA as Kirby (and Mel Tucker).
What's interesting is that Smart and Pruitt, apparently didn't see eye-to-eye. Otherwise, why wouldn't Smart keep Pruitt on staff? They just worked together at BAMA under Saban. I think it's because Kirby had his own way of doing things...with his own ideas of how to build a Championship Program, while Pruitt was a true "Saban-ite" and would resist change.
As for Mr. Bobo....I knew Bobo going to Colorado was a big mistake. But, it was time for him to make a move, and that was the "best available", at the time. He has grown through the fires of experience since...and, I think we all know that "experience and practice", don't make you worse...but, perfect. Lol...you can build experience...but, you can't replace it.
Bobo's gonna be just what the Doctor ordered for UGA's offense, going forward. You just thought they were explosive over the last couple of years. You ain't seen nothin' yet.
UGA needed a Todd Monkin in 2020, to get it started. Now, they need a Mike Bobo to build on it and take it the distance. Monkin was always going to be a 2-3 year hired gun. That's been his MO, since the '80's. Leopard.....spots. Lol
And once again my Brother you are right, right, and right !! I think Some want Guaranteed success. Ain’t gonna happen. EVEN if Monken had stayed he couldn’t honestly Guarantee success. The Probability would be sky high though. The probability with Bobo is pretty Dawg gone good Lol !! Kirby is No dummy. He went with the best at hand which is Bobo. Many fans believe and I think there’s plenty of merit to that, Kirby hired Bobo as an analyst because he knew Sooner rather than later Monken would get itchy feet and leave. A Smart move by Smart Lol !! I’m confident Bobo did add to his knowledge from his time with Monken. And coupled with his own knowledge along with the level of talent that Bobo has Never had at his disposal the O should be pretty potent. I love how the naysayers simply choose to ignore the compliment that Monken himself in His own words gave Bobo !! That Bobo drew up some of the plays in particular Red Zone plays. So in reality when some of those plays went well and we were cheering Boy that Coach Monken is a genius ain’t he ??!!?? It Could have been a Bobo play !!! Course we don’t know which plays. But Monken being the straight shooter he is wouldn’t have even brought that up if he wasn’t at least some impressed with Bobo !! He wouldn’t have any reason to. The naysayers are essentially saying they don’t trust Kirby or Monken !! No one can Guarantee that Bobo will be successful that’s ludicrous to say of Any Coach. But the Probability of success is Very high !!