Saturday, December 26, 2009

Pete Herrmann Builds Program

Seems to be enjoying his time at Young Harris. Great fit for Coach Herrmann and for Young Harris.

Herrmann

Warner Family's New Book

I wanted to have this video available somewhere on the Blog, so I'm posting it today.



I might be the only one encouraged by it, but just in case, here is the interview that touches on the Warner family's efforts to keep first things first.

Joe Cox Looks Back, Looks Forward

He's a great Dawg. Didn't have the best results, but the guy is a battler. Who knows what would have happened if he had a sophomore season in which to get better.

To have your first year as a starter be your last year on the team is tough. He handled it fairly well, given the circumstances.

I really do think that Cox will be a success, whether in coaching or in other pursuits.

Cox

Mark Richt on Bobby Bowden

Richt gives Bowden high marks for influence.

I'm sure it gives Bowden satisfaction that as he enters retirement, some aspects of his work with FSU continue on in the impact he has had on young men.

Bowden

Hayes Foundation Helps Out

The Jarvis Hayes Foundation was active in lending a helping hand to families in need this holiday season.

Although Jarvis himself is busy with practice and games for the New Jersey Nets (while he recovers from his hamstring injury), Jarvis' parents led the charge in getting food to the needy.

Wonderful example by all involved.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas!

"For unto us a child is born!"

"Great joy shall be for all the people."

Get excited and tell somebody!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Dawgs Win! Victory over FAU

Howard Thompkins was an absolute monster in this game. Guy went for 35 points on 12 of 20 shooting, and 1 for 1 from behind the arc. He would have had even more if he hadn't been off at the free throw line, where he shot an uncharacteristically low 66 percent (10 of 15).

Thompkins added 15 rebounds for good measure. All in all, a career-best night in scoring and rebounding for Georgia's power forward.

The Dawgs needed it. FAU came to play. The Owls were up 30 to 29 at the half.

I felt kind of sheepish about having predicted a 20 point victory for the Dawgs, and hoped that we would be able to pull out a win by any margin. Travis Leslie was saddled with foul trouble, and I wasn't sure where the points for a victory were going to come from.

However, in the second half, the Dawgs came alive and ended up winning the game by 17.

Final score: 77 to 60.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Prediction: Georgia Wins Big!

Twenty point win for the Dawgs. 88 to 68.

Thompkins and Leslie both go over 20 points. Triangle offense clicks. Jeremy Price gets a double-double. McPhee shoots 3 threes.

Go Dawgs!

Dawgs Face Florida Atlantic

Should be a good game tonight.

Florida Atlantic is coming off an 18-point loss at Miami. In the game prior to the contest with Miami, FAU posted an 18-point victory against New Orleans. Billy Humphrey was injured in that game and played only a few minutes.

FAU has Shavar Richardson, a 6' 3" guard from Brooklyn, New York. Richardson was the top scoring freshman in the Sun Belt Conference last year. He made 57 three-pointers for the season.

Sanchez Hughley is a 6'4 " guard from Orlando, Florida. At 210 pounds, he might be a load in the match-up against Georgia's starting guards.

Ray Taylor might give Georgia some problems with his quickness. Taylor is a 5' 6" guard who averages 18 points per game with 6 assists. He scored 23 points against Miami. Taylor is not shooting a particularly high percentage (a hair less than 40% from the floor), so the key for the Dawgs will be to keep him out of the paint.

Georgia should have an advantage in the post. Brett Royster is a 6' 8" post player, averaging right at 10 points per game. DeMonte Simpson is a 6' 9" 270 lb center who posts 7 points and 6 boards a contest. Simpson versus Jackson or Price should be fun to watch.

Miami had a large rebounding advantage against FAU in their recent game, and given UGA's performance against Illinois, I would expect Coach Fox to pound the ball inside to Howard Thompkins, Jeremy Price and Chris Barnes.

Mike Jarvis coaches the Owls. He led three teams to the NCAA Tournament. He had notable stops at George Washington and at St. John's before being hired by Florida Atlantic.

FAU went 6 and 26 last year. They are 5 and 5 on the season so far. They make $75,000 for their trip up to Athens. Good contest for the Dawgs as we head toward the game against Georgia Tech and prepare to start the conference battles.

Tip-off is at 7:00 p.m.

Damien Wilkins Gets Write-Up in AJC

He seems to be faring pretty well on a bad team.

The Timberwolves will improve during the year, now that Kevin Love is playing again. At some point, they will go back to their big line-up, with Love, Jefferson and Gomes, and Wilkins will leave the starting five.

Damien could score more points if he were more selfish about taking shots. He seems to defer to others on the team. And that's okay. I think that Wilkins sees his role as that of a defense-first guy, usually matched up against the other team's best scorer.

Wilkins won't ever lead the NBA in scoring, but he has made a nice career for himself. Hope he can stay in the League for a long time.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Milton Loses to Winter Park

Julian Royal was the only player for Milton that performed well. He had 24 points, on 10 of 16 shooting, to go with 13 rebounds.

Dai-Jon Parker and Shannon Scott had subpar games. Shannon shot 6 of 20 from the floor, and Parker shot 3 of 16.

The final score was 73 to 64.

Kennesaw State vs. Tech

Kennesaw is hanging with them early. Score is 11 to 10, Georgia Tech up by one.

I don't think that Kennesaw can sustain their good play for the entire game, since they are playing at Tech. Tech should win going away, probably by 20.

With that said, Tech better not have overlooked those guys. Kennesaw has enough height and toughness to battle. If Tech continues to have problems on offense and lets Kennesaw hang around, then who knows what could happen late in the game.

Billy Humphrey Injures Knee

Same knee that he had the surgery on before the season.

Has to be a real disappointment for him. He was leading the conference in scoring at 19 points per game, prior to his last contest.

Humphrey

Alec Kessler Memorial Tournament

The Tournament has been set for December 28 through the 30th. There will be 8 boys teams participating and 4 girls teams.

More Information

Coach Hugh Durham will speak at the banquet.

In honor of Alec, I am posting the link to the guest book from October 2007.

Alec

Quintin Banks Sprains Neck

Gotta root for the guy. He's had more than his share of injuries. Hope he can bounce back.

Sprain

Thompkins Named SEC Player of the Week

Story

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Mike Mercer Scores 19

Led all scorers in the game. Shot 8 of 13 from the field.

I would say that Mercer is recovering from his knee problems and beginning to show glimmers of the basketball skill that made him such a highly ranked recruit coming out of high school.

South Florida beat San Diego 69 to 60.

Tech Loses to FSU

Ugly game. The ref's let 'em play. That part was not so bad. The part that was hard to take was the shooting. The first half was brutal. Neither team could make a bucket.

I don't understand what is wrong with Georgia Tech. Lawal and Favors should be dominating. Hewitt needs to set a fire under these guys.

Maybe Coach Hewitt isn't getting the job done. I still think it's early in the season to say that Tech won't be competitive. They'll clearly do better than their 2 and 14 ACC mark from last season.

So far, Hewitt is 8 and 2 on the season. But they did not look good against Mercer, and the game against Arkansas Pine Bluff sounded a lot closer than it should have been. Tech is now 0 and 1 in the ACC in this short season, and things will not get easier. UNC and Duke are still out there. Wake Forest is tough. NC State might give Tech a hard time. If Tech can't beat FSU at home, I don't see where the victories are to be had.

Well, while Tech is playing badly, let's hope that they continue to do so, and the Dawgs can find a way to beat them in Athens on January 5.

Dai-Jon Parker and Milton Crush Dunbar

Not even close. No wonder Julian Royal didn't score much. With all the steals that Milton forced, it sounds like he hardly touched the ball.

Dai-Jon Parker had a great shooting game. Showed off his range, going 3 of 5 from behind the arc.

City of Palms Classic

Ben Watson Bursts Out of the Closet

Watson was almost cut by the New England Patriots just before the season started. Somehow, he managed to hang on with the team, and keep a balanced perspective throughout.

He hauled in two clutch touchdown passes in the first week of the season, and he caught the game-winning touchdown against the Carolina Panthers in a recent game.

I'm happy to see him to so well. The article below, though somewhat dated, tells how Watson got off to a good start, transferred to UGA, and persevered through injuries to get a Super Bowl ring.

Watson

AJC Article on Dawgs' Victory

Good recap.

UGA Defeats Illinois

Sundiata Gaines Featured in NBA Video

The NBA talks up their development league and features Sundiata Gaines.

Not as much footage of Gaines as I would have preferred, but I still think the exposure for Gaines is absolutely fantastic.

Budding Star