Curran Brings Holiday Cheer

Very proud of Rennie.

RC at B&GC

Andre, Jr.: Little Brother to Gilbert Arenas

Good story on how Arenas befriended Andre McAllister, Jr., a kid who lost his family in a tragic fire.

The other side

Weird Game

I don't think I've ever seen a game in which none of the guards scored.

If you count Travis Leslie as a small forward, then that's exactly what happened.

Dustin Ware: 0 for 1 from the field, 0 for 1 from behind the arc, 0 for 2 in free throws.

Gerald Robinson: 0 for 2 from the field. No free throws.

Vincent Williams: 0 for 1 from the field. No free throws.

Sherrard Brantley: 0 for 2 from the field. 0 for 2 from behind the arc, 0 for 1 in free throws.

Connor Nolte also had an 0-fer, as did Marcus Thornton.

We're not very good, folks. Travis and Trey cannot carry us all the time. We just have to get some contributions from the bench.

Then again, it's better to win ugly than to lose pretty. A lot of teams have lost to mid-majors lately, so I'll take it. We're standing at 9 and 2. Hopefully we can fix the problems before we hit SEC play.

Fred Gibson Finishes the Drill

As they used to say back when I was in school, "That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!"

I think it's great that Gibson kept pushing, kept striving, persevered through disappointments, and completed his degree. Congratulations to him.

Love to see the good news about athletes after graduation. There are plenty of opportunities to stumble, and plenty of articles written when players succumb. Hat's off to the AJC for writing an article that casts a former athlete in a positive light.

Gibson

I'll say this, too. One of the reasons why I appreciate Mark Richt is because he does in fact stress more than wins and losses. I know that we hire a coach to win ball games. I love to win just as much as the next guy. But it's a bigger failure to win championships and lose young men. Cutting guys loose after they're injured, or because they've been supplanted at the top of the depth chart. Leaving them with no chance for a degree and no tools to manage life.

Whatever the team's record, the fact remains that as individual student athletes we only play ball for a short time. Our greatest achievements do not lie in the school records or championship rings, whether we have them or not, but who we are as people after we hang up our cleats or sneak's. It's as Fred Gibson has found, what truly matters is the "more", the "life after football", and the care that we give to our five year old daughter or others who look up to us and rely upon us.

As one friend once said, "success is finding out what God wants you to do and doing it with all your heart." I wish Gibson well as he racks up other milestones along life's journey.

Thanks, Fred Gibson, for representin'. Thanks, too, coaches, for those of you who inspire us to stick with it, finish strong, and be excellent in whatever our fields of endeavor. Go Dawgs!

Mark Fox Interview: Around the Rim

Decent interview. Nothing particularly new, but interesting nonetheless, since we haven't played a game in a while.

Fox on ESPN

Can Fox Snag One of 2012's Best Big Men?

Fans know that Georgia will lose two quality bigs after this season when Jeremy Price and Chris Barnes graduate. Although Coach Fox has recruited two tall players in Tim Dixon and John Florveus for 2011, the sense is that Dixon and Florveus will need some time to develop.

In the meantime, Atlanta's high school basketball programs have once again produced one of the top big men in the country. Georgia missed out on Julian Royal and Nick Jacobs in the 2011 class, but we have a shot at successfully recruiting Tony Parker for 2012.

Can Fox go head to head with coaches from the ACC and bring Parker to Athens? What do you think?

Parker

If he can't get a championship just like his Dad,

maybe he can help bring back a more important one.

Glad to have spotted this article from ESPN.

Competitor

That Knicks Celtics Game was a Barn Burner

The refs let them play at the end.

Amare Stoudemire is a man. The guy has just upped his game. If he got every foul called that he should, he'd probably average 40 points.

I wasn't expecting much from Amare after he had the knee problems. But now he has players around him who can shoot the basketball. He probably needs a talented big guard to take New York to the next level. If Allen Houston played for them nowadays they'd be hard to beat.

The Celtics stood up when they needed it. Ray Allen hit big baskets and Paul Pierce had the clutch jumper at the end.

Great game!

Fox on ESPN

Should be a good chance to receive an update from Coach Fox and find out what he thinks of the team's progress so far this year.

Fox

Congratulations, Dustin Ware!

Huge, huge game. Ware was money with the clock running down, a zone-buster against their 2-3, and clutch at the end of the game.

Ware shot 7 of 9 on three-pointers, he had six assists and no turnovers. He led the team in scoring, tied with Thompkins, that is, with 21 points.

Without Dustin's key contributions we would have lost this game by double digits.

With that said, I'd still like him to go to the hole on occasion to keep teams honest, but if he can shoot them at anywhere near a 77 percent clip, shucks, let him fire away.

It may have been just me but I think Dustin had a lot more balance on his shots tonight. I mentioned in a previous post after his poor shooting effort in the tournament that I thought Ware was pointing his feet inward instead of squaring them up to the basket.

The one that he missed late in the 4th quarter seemed to be due to him having tired legs. However, with the clock winding down and Gerald Robinson penetrating toward the basket, Dustin had just enough space to gather himself and launch the game-winner.

Huge game for Ware and I couldn't be happier for him.

Just Like Football! Clap, Clap, Clap-Clap

Okay, I couldn't resist that title for my post. It's the same one as last year about this time.

This one was a game for the ages, too. Just like the football game battled out between Richt and Johnson.

Fantastic back and forth action. They started out the game shooting lights out. I was surprised that Hewitt chose not to utilize his press. I remember once that Tech just destroyed Georgia with B.J. Elder and crew, and though I don't recall which year it was, I do remember that the key to their victory was Hewitt's defensive pressure.

It wasn't the blow-out I expected, but we scored right about where I thought we would. We need to hit our free throws, though. Gerald Robinson has to be money at the end of the game.

Good heads up time-out by Trey Thompkins. He had picked up his dribble and was stuck against the in-bounds line with his body twisted away from his pivot foot. Everyone was covered and he was off-balance. That play could have easily resulted in a critical turnover. Instead we kept the ball and were able to win the game at the end.

Not Feeling Good about the Game Against Tech

It will be a blow-out either way. They either press us to death and we wilt because they have more depth at guard, or we push them around inside and Trey and JP have field days.

Shumpert can score. We'll have to control him. Brian Oliver can shoot it, and Udofia can get streaky. Jason Morris had a nice outing off the bench last game for them, and Glen Rice goes to the hoop pretty effectively.

My prediction: I just can't bring myself to pick Tech over UGA, even if it is at their place and the home team almost always wins in this series.

I'm saying 75 to 62, UGA over Tech.

Tip-off is in 10 minutes. Go Dawgs!

Troy Brewer Finds His Mark

Pretty impressed that Brewer scored 17 points against Florida.

Florida still beat Brewer's American University team by a large margin, but Brewer definitely held his own against one of UGA's key hoops rivals. He went 6 of 8 from the floor, 2 of 4 from behind the arc, and 3 of 4 from the line.

I imagine that Troy got stronger during the year that he sat out after his transfer. Perhaps the coaches at American also worked on Brewer's shot some. He consistently brought the ball from his left side over to his right as he shot the ball, which led to a sideways spin, and many times his shots rattled out. He averaged in the mid-twenties for his three-point percentage while at Georgia. This year he is shooting 38 percent from long range, a better percentage than any of the Dawgs players.

Troy had a 24-point game against Howard University and an 18-point outing against Columbia earlier this season. Add those scoring outputs to the 17 against Florida and it sounds like you have a pretty good player. Don't know if he guarded Florida's shooting guard Kenny Boynton, but Boynton went 0 of 9 in 32 minutes.

Perhaps Brewer would have performed just as well under Coach Fox, but you never know. Some players just have to find where they fit best.

It's the Dad Life!

Church on the Move Video.

CotM

Dawgs Win!

Great game! Sure we had that dry spell coming out of the locker room in the second half, but UAB is no slouch. They picked up the defensive pressure and we didn't respond. Besides, when teams shoot over 40 percent on threes, you have to tip your hat to them. Play D, yes, but give them their props as a really good team.

This game gives a glimpse of what the team could be. Brantley scoring from deep. Price active under the boards. Thompkins getting a double-double or right at it (20 and 9 against UAB). Gerald Robinson cutting to the basket.

With that said, I definitely agree with Coach Fox. With Robinson eligible last year, the Dawgs probably would have won several of the close games. Could have even scratched and clawed our way to a 20-win season.

Robinson showed what he can do last night. He has too many turnovers, but just like the St. Louis game, he came through in the clutch. I loved his scoop basket with the left hand. That was an 11 on the scale of difficulty. And when we needed a basket, Robinson created something. Cut to the hoop, made a jump stop, glided to his right and kissed if off the window.

Travis Leslie had an off game. Hit just 2 of 9 from the field and one of his makes was a dunk. They were challenging him to shoot the ball. I think his shot could be adjusted just a bit to move his release point slightly to the right. His shooting motion would be more fluid and he would find his jumper truer out to 17 feet or so. And I would still like him to take the ball into the paint and show the ball. Get guys off their feet. He's a good enough free throw shooter and strong enough to get the "and-one."

Anyway, Georgia has some promise. Good to see contributions from the bench. Dustin Ware needs to keep shooting it. Not take tons of shots, but if he has the ball at the end of the clock, he needs to take the jumper or go toward the basket with an eye toward scoring. If he penetrates just to the free throw line and then dishes, his teammates don't and won't have time to get up a good shot.

We're 5 and 2. We really need to beat Tech. That would make me really happy with this portion of the season.

As expected, we win

Trey performed a little better. He could have been called for the over-the-back on Leslie's free throw miss. We dodged one. I guess that made up for the missed kicked ball call that Manhattan used to get out for a breakaway dunk.

Not sure what happened to Leslie at the end of the game. His free throws were off and he missed what looked like a wide open layup late in the game.

Chris Barnes looked a little better. Price looked worse. He seems to have reverted back to his two-handed push shot on his free throws. Not sure what's up with Brantley. He really does need to get into the flow of the game some before launching threes. He was 0 for 4 from behind the arc. He's got to mix in a mid-range game. Thornton got in some minutes. When he gets into basketball shape, he'll help out on offense and defense.

Pleased that Ware went to the hoop and got fouled. He stuck his two free throws, which was key to the Georgia victory.

Trying to be upbeat about this one. Sometimes you have to win ugly and live to play another day, but if we don't get things fixed the other teams in the SEC will blow us out.

Hopefully Fox will see the value of playing a mix of zone defenses. We're not good enough defensively to stay in a man-to-man the entire game.

We're up Three, they have the ball

with 10 seconds left.

We can't shoot from the free throw line. Can't break the press. Can't score against a zone.

What happened?

Looks like we're about to lose to Manhattan

Stunning. They look poised and we look flustered.

Ughh.

We'll win in the end, but this is bad basketball. Not sure what else to say.

Game for the Ages

Now that(!) was a football game. Back and forth, edge of your seat action. Bone-headed plays by both teams. Putting the ball on the carpet. Three times each! Not sure I could have taken any more.

I know Blair feels bad, but such is the game of football.

Georgia needed some help, too. We sure didn't stop them. They chewed up yardage. If Nesbitt would have been healthy, this thing would have been much closer due to his running ability on the edge.

Hats off to Aaron Murray. That guy is one cool customer. Fifteen of nineteen passing in the biggest game of the year. If we get a first class running back, UGA will be back in the thick of the SEC race next year.

Key play? There were so many. If I had to name one, I would say missed extra point. Close runner-up was the kickoff return fumble that bounced right to Marlon Brown.

Key adjustment? We started timing the snap count based on when the option back was put in motion. We then attacked the offense instead of waiting for them to hike it and hit us.

Great game.

Things Could Get Ugly

for the 2010/2011 Hoops Dawgs. Reminds me of the feeling I had early in the season about the football team.

Some would say that we're very fortunate not to be 0 and 5 at this point. None of our victories have been that impressive. Last minute wins over lower tier teams are not going to instill confidence in the fan base. As a point in case, Liberty University beat Mississippi Valley State yesterday by 6 points on a neutral court.

Sure, Trey has been out and is rusty in his return, but we shouldn't use that excuse to gloss over our weaknesses. We have an advantage in the post over a lot of our opponents, but if our guards turn the ball over, we can't stop dribble penetration, and we can neither make nor defend the three, then we are going to lose to the elite teams.

So where are we? We're 3 and 2 after last night's loss to Temple. Can we beat Manhattan? Unless we're a lot worse than I think, we should win this one to go 4 and 2.

UAB on December 3 and Georgia Tech on the 7th are probably toss-ups at this point. If we're not on our game, we could lose to Tech. They have a roster full of guards who could get hot at just the wrong time of the season for the Dawgs.

After the Tech game, we'll likely feast for the rest of December on the lower-ranked teams. Then the SEC portion of the schedule looms.

We have Kentucky at home, then go to Vandy. We play Mississippi at their place, Tennessee and Mississippi State, Florida and then go to Kentucky. Sure, we "have to play the games," but knowing what we know now, where are the W's?

Any ideas?

Hope I'm Wrong, but

tonight could be a trap game for the football Dawgs.

Not the kind in which a highly ranked undefeated team loses to a lower ranked squad. We only wish Georgia were that good. But the fact is that Georgia should be able to win handily over an underperforming Tech team. We've had a week off to prepare. We're playing at home. Murray is back. Nesbitt is not.

Yet and still, Tech is very dangerous. They have a better record than we do. Sure, they play in the ACC, but they are 6 and 5 and we are 5 and 6.

Losing Nesbitt could ultimately prove to be a net positive for Tech. Tevin Washington apparently gives them the same skill package. Crafty with the ball. A strong runner in their option game. Can he throw it? He had over 5,000 yards of passing in high school. They might establish the run and surprise us with a long ball or two, then play keep-away for the rest of the game.

We have a new defensive scheme. The 3-4, with its emphasis on pass rushes from the linebacker position might be totally over-matched against a grind it out option attack. Besides that, we haven't stopped anybody all year.

You'd think we would be able to out-physical them on the offensive line. Well, our offensive line play has been an enigma. Expected to be a strength this year, our line play has been less than stellar. We're scoring lots of points, but we really need to be able to run the football tonight, use the same game plan as last year. They'll probably load the box and hope to get a quick three and out on our first possession. Are we man enough to take it to them?

We're playing to protect home turf. To become bowl eligible. Avoid a losing season. Honor our senior class. They're playing for revenge. Because a win over Georgia would make their year. Because they hate our guts.

Which team will be more inspired? Will Murray be gun-shy coming off of his injury? Is he ready to play? Will our defensive linemen get tired of the cut-blocks in the fourth quarter? Will our backs hold on to the football?

Hope I'm wrong, but I think it will be a close one and Tech could surprise us. Prediction? 30 to 24, Georgia Tech.

Dawgs Lose

About as I expected.

We looked terrible against the zone. We shot 50 percent from the line. Let entirely too many defensive rebounds slip through our hands.

On defense our bigs just sat behind their post player and didn't fight him for position. And we didn't adjust the defense when they kept going to him. When a guy gets the ball right in front of the rim, he's usually going to score or get fouled. How to play it? With an undersized post player, you front him and force the defense to throw the ball over the top. If you can't get in front then get three quarter post position and force him to his off-hand.

Bottom line: we didn't deserve to win this one. We were stagnant on offense and uninspired or unmotivated on defense.

Dustin Ware had a couple of key buckets, but his shot is definitely off. His biggest problem is with his lift. He points his feet inward toward each other and thus his lower body works against his upper body on the release. He needs to watch some film to get it corrected. Teams are playing off of him, so although I don't recommend a lot of tinkering with a guy's mechanics during the season, in this case it's warranted. If he's going to shoot 8 or 9 threes during regulation and 13 for the game, then he needs to get it right.

A continuing concern is that Ware has no game going toward the basket. That was my point when he was recruited. He had a lot more three-point shots than a good point guard should have, especially when compared to the number of free throws he shot. He just has to take it toward the basket sometimes. Develop a floater, spin move, or learn to draw contact and get to the line.

If teams zone us, we might want to experiment with Robinson at the point and Brantley at the 2-guard. Not that Brantley is a particularly true shooter, either, but if Ware is off, let's try someone else.

And we need to develop an offense against the zone. We seemed to not know what to do. We looked confused and out of sorts and decided to just swing the ball around the perimeter. You do have to swing the ball, but if there is no movement through the paint, the zone will just shift. I like to overload one side and put a double or triple screen on to free a shooter. Tubby's offenses were great against the zone and Bruce Pearl has effective schemes. Either we run the normal triangle or we come up with a different offense against teams that zone us.

Wasn't a terrible game, but we had our chances. We'll get better as Trey gets acclimated to being on the floor again. You can tell that he doesn't have much lift.

When the guy banked in the three-pointer during the second overtime, I figured we weren't going to win it. They played just good enough to win and we have a lot of work to do.

South Bend Tribune Article on Leslie and Game

against UGA.

Should be a good one in just a few. Hope the Dawgs can pull it out.

Go Dawgs!

ND Tries for Good Shots Each Time Down

Means that every player for the Dawgs will have to D up.

They have good size across the front line and start three guys at 6' 8". Travis Leslie should fare well, nonetheless, since one of their big guys is more of a guard/forward, and Travis makes up for any height disadvantage with his leaping ability.

Jeremy Price probably has an advantage over his man. Price has the wide body, good hands and has added the nice free-throw stroke.

It's that third match-up that is the big unknown. If Nolte is hobbled with his new face-mask, or if Trey comes out and is not quite ready to play, then I guess you would have to give them the edge in the post.

It's probably a tie out on the perimeter. Hansbrough has a little craftiness to his game. Can get hot from deep, too. The season's still young, but he is shooting right at 60 percent from behind the arc and averaging 18 points per game.

Eric Atkins is a point guard who sounds a lot like Dustin Ware. Mostly a distributor with a high assist to turnover ratio. Even though Atkins doesn't shoot that much, he makes over half of his attempts.

Gerald and Dustin should be able to hold their own against the Irish back-court. We need a fast start, plus some good contributions from our bench.

Look of the Irish

Can Gerald Robinson be the Difference Maker?

Georgia needs to get out to a fast start tonight. We have to shoot well and play good defense without fouling.

Would love to see Gerald Robinson get hot from the outside. He likes to set other guys up, but until Trey is fully ready, we have to have 15 to 20 points from Robinson.

AJC Article

If we play tomorrow like we did

against St. Louis and MVSU, Notre Dame will punish us.

I'm not optimistic about the game. We really do need more production from our bench. Will Trey be back? Even if he is, it still doesn't mean that he will be ready to play. Most players are very rusty after coming off of an injury.

As readers likely know, I'm a homer. However, with my predictions, I challenge myself to state what I think will be the outcome without any reference to my feelings. My prediction? 69 to 65, ND.

Zac Swansey Interview

Good job by the Bleacher Report.

Zac sounds like a great guy to interview. He's positive about his experience at UGA, optimistic about the future, and has a few good stories to tell, to boot.

Hope Zac continues to do well in the OVC.

The Swanz

Alabama loses to St. Peter's

I don't remember ever having heard of St. Peters before. Sounds like a junior high where all the kids wear uniforms. In a Rubix Cube solving contest, Bama would not have stood a chance.

But there they were. St. Peters, winners in basketball over the University of Alabama by a score of 50 to 49.

Bear in mind that St. Peters is the same team that scored a total of 30 points in an earlier match-up against Robert Morris.

In the Alabama contest, a guy for St. Pete by the name of Blaise Ffrench made a key bucket. Did Buffy and Jody score, too? A player named Yvon hit two three-pointers. I mean it's bad when a team uses their cheerleaders against you.

Their mascot is the Peacocks. The St. Peters Peacocks. There's something that's just wrong about that name. But I digress. I'm sure they are very proud about the win.

It could have happened to us, so I'm not gloating. Besides, teams better get Bama this year, because with the freshman class Grant is bringing in, they will be significantly better next year. Even still, Crimson Tide fans are not going to be happy about losing to the 1 and 3 St. Peters team.

At any rate, even though I had some fun at their expense, it's a great win for St. Peters. Congratulations to them.

Tubby Beats Huggy

Still don't see how Tubby has fashioned a winner up at Minnesota. But here he is at 5 and 0. Beat West Virginia by a score of 74 to 70.

Minnesota takes home the championship of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Tournament. They should have a significant NCAA tournament resume, since they also beat UNC in the semi-final game.

At some point in time, the lack of talent on Tubby's team will catch up with him. Minnesota will hit a lull during Big Ten conference play, I predict. But his guys move the ball and play solid defense, so that will hold him in good stead for a while.

Two Sport Athletes: Response to Philip

I was going to post this response to Philip and leave it in the comments section on the article on Nick Marshall. Then I thought that I should go ahead and post it, since more readers will see it and perhaps join the discussion.

At any rate, I want to thank Philip for responding to the challenge of naming guys who have played both football and basketball, and were "contributors," which I arbitrarily defined as scoring more than 5 points per game. Philip offered Reggie Love from Duke, and Julius Peppers of UNC as examples.

Reggie Love works at the White House so his is a name in the news these days. My objection to Reggie Love as an example of a contributing 2-sport guy is that he averaged 1 point and 1 rebound per game. Since he did start a few games for the team, and the team is Duke, then Love gets some extra credit, I suppose.

Julius Peppers did not play basketball his red-shirt year, but he did play hoops in two out of his four years. He last played basketball ten years ago, 2000/2001, averaging 7 points per game. After that season, however, Peppers felt he had to concentrate on one sport. He ended up giving up hoops for football.

Charlie Ward was drafted by the NBA, NFL, and MLB in the early nineties. Tony Gonzalez played a couple of years of basketball. Different situation entirely, but Kenny Lofton did play basketball and baseball at a high level back in the late eighties.

Closer to home, Georgia had Larry Brown in the late nineties, Fred Gibson and then Quentin Moses eight years or so ago. Moses didn't contribute much in basketball. He was all-SEC in academics, so he may have chosen to focus more on his studies. Besides, he played during that weird time just when Harrick was on his way out and Felton was brought in. Gibson scored just 5 points a game, but he helped out in a memorable win over Florida. Larry Brown had his moments, too, but I probably need some help from other fans who remember how many points per game he averaged.

Any others? Who did I miss? Is the football/basketball two-sport athlete at the college level rare or fairly common? Will Marshall successfully play both? What do you think? Help us out here.

Dawgs Win!

Well, I was correct that Georgia would pick up the win. What I didn't foresee was that we would play so poorly.

Lots of turnovers. Missed free throws. Failure to close out on shooters or leaving guys wide open for lay-ups.

But when it was crunch time, Georgia relied on Gerald Robinson, Travis Leslie and Jeremy Price and got the job done.

Game ball definitely goes to Travis Leslie. Leslie was not on during the first half. He shot 2 of 5 from the floor and had 2 turnovers. But in the second half, he was money. A perfect 5 for 5 from the field, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 of 4 from the line.

He finished the game with 19 points and 6 boards.

We got just enough from everybody else. Gerald Robinson had 10 points and 8 assists. Way too many turnovers (7), but with the game on the line, we needed to get it to someone who could create something, and he did with a perfect left-handed drive and dish to Jeremy Price.

Dustin Ware had a quiet 10 points. He was 2 of 3 from behind the arc, 2 of 2 from the line, and 3 of 7 from the field. He had 2 assists and no turnovers.

Jeremy Price didn't give us much in the second half, going 0 for 4 from the field for the first 15 minutes or so. Then around the 5 minute mark, he settled down some, and hit 2 of 3 from the field and 4 of 4 from the charity stripe.

Story of the game: They missed their free throws late and we didn't.

Ugly win, but I'll take it. We're 3 and 0. Another 5 days before we play again, which gives Thompkins the better part of a week to rehab and work on coming back.

It's Going to be Hard to Get

this guy on the court next year. Hard enough to keep this cornerback signee out of the qb rotation.

If basketball started first during the year, then obviously he would suit up for Mark Fox. But since football practice takes place during the summer, then all the games in the fall, and probably a bowl game at the beginning of winter, there's little time left for basketball season.

Besides the time barrier, there are other hurdles looming. Would he emerge from the rigors of football injury-free? Can he adjust to college life and find time for two-a-days, washing clothes, study hall, social life, etc., and still have the fire in the belly to play hoops? Even if he does want to put on sneaks after he takes off his cleats, how long would it take him to get his basketball feet underneath him-- get accustomed to playing hoops again, learn the Mark Fox way and gel with his teammates?

If any football player had decided to play hoops during the Mark Fox era I would have thought it would have been Marlon Brown. He signed on as a freshman with the understanding that he considered himself a two-sport athlete. As the football season continued last year, it turned out that he wasn't getting a whole lot of playing time on the gridiron, and it stood to reason that he might like to get up and down the court. Yet, basketball speaking, there has been no play for Mr. Brown.

As much as I'd like to see Nick Marshall play hoops, and as good a basketball player as he is, I would say that the chances of seeing him in Stegeman in anything other than street clothes are slim to none.

Give yourself a challenge. When's the last time Georgia or any other college basketball team had a legitimate contributor (say, 5 points or more per game) from their football squad?

The folks that have consigned South Carolina

to the cellar of the SEC East might want to think again. Darrin Horn has these guys trapping all over the floor and running and gunnin'. He has done a fantastic job as a recruiter, too, snagging former UGA recruit Damontre Harris and others.

After putting a real scare in Michigan State, South Carolina will surprise some teams this year.

The SEC East is really tough, folks.

Coo Coo Ca Chu, Mr. Robinson

Gerald Robinson went for 21 points in 23 minutes against Colorado. Here's hoping he stays on the floor a bit longer against St. Louis.

I believe he will and that he will again lead the Dawgs in scoring.

On paper, you would figure that Georgia would win the game big-- 17 points or more. But it is a road game, UGA willl still not have Trey Thompkins, and Rick Majerus will have his St. Louis team ready to play.

Prediction: Dawgs win, 72 to 64.

Tubby Beats UNC

Got to give the guy his props. He takes a bunch of 3-stars, best I recall, and puts them in a gym at UNC and comes out with a victory.

I guess UNC's freshman Harrison Barnes isn't that spectacular a player after all. He's plenty good, but you have to figure that the scouts would have him down a rung after his 0 for 15 shooting performance.

Impressive victory by Minnesota.

Sundiata Gaines Warming Up to Task

in chilly Minnesota.

In his last outing, Gaines played 17 minutes and had 10 points on 4 of 5 shooting. He also had 2 assists and a rebound against zero turnovers.

Fantastic game for your back-up point guard.

He'll have to learn all the plays, of course, but since Minnesota's other point guards are injured, Coach Kurt Rambis and other officials from the T-Wolves have to like what Gaines brings to the table.

Dawgs Win!

Great game for the Dawgs. Final score, 83 to 74.

No, we didn't do everything well. Missed entirely too many free throws. But you can see what Georgia has to work with.

Gerald Robinson, Jr., is exactly as described. A legitimate scorer. Not a pure shooter. But he can handle the ball and take it to the hoop and he has a little show-time in him. Would like to see him do better than 6 of 11 from the line, but he made so many other contributions, you have to tip your hat to him for the game he had.

I liked Connor Nolte's game. Unfair to compare him to Trey Thompkins, the guy he replaces in the starting line-up, so I won't do it here. What I like is that Nolte is very solid with the ball. Doesn't turn it over. Won't score a ton of points, but he gives us way more than I was expecting. Takes charges, passes well. A true "glue guy." Reminds me a little bit of Corey Butler.

Chris Barnes is almost there. I want him to post up aggressively. He can do so much more than he is giving us. I like the fact that he really has worked on his free throws. He didn't shoot them well tonight, going 5 of 13 from the stripe, but he'll do better. As I have said before, if he can keep his elbow locked in tight, just as he did on his first two free throws, he will make more than he misses. Might even raise his percentage into the 70's, like Jeremy Price.

JP is doing great. Had 17 key points tonight on 7 of 9 shooting. We need him to bring the thunder every night. He can do it. Great hands and has now become a pretty reliable free throw shooter.

Travis Leslie looked great, except for the missed dunk. I would like for him to study film of guys who consistently go to the line. Like Paul Pierce. Add a few ball fakes to Leslie's arsenal and he can pick up another 6 or 8 points a night.

Dustin Ware was steady. Didn't shoot all that well, going just 1 of 3 from the floor. But we was clutch at the end of the game, shooting 4 of 4 from the line. Even got into the lane tonight. More of that, please, sir.

Didn't get too much from Vincent Williams, Donte Williams, or Marcus Thornton, although Thornton did snare a couple of key rebounds late. Glad to see Sherard Brantley get a few minutes.

When Trey Thompkins gets back, we should really have something. We'll still need to watch foul trouble, since we're not deep, but adding his contributions to the group we have will make for an exciting brand of basketball.

Go Dawgs!

30-30 Men

Albert Jackson scored 30 points last week with 15 rebounds in Anastasia's game against Sayago. The final score was 110 to 85.

In the same game, Jackson's teammate Marcus Sikes almost hit 30 points. He fell just short, registering 29 in the contest.

Anastasia will need a whole lot more of the same from Jackson and Sikes to move up the standings in the Uruguayan basketball league. They've been playing .500 basketball so far this season, and that has the team 2 spots from the bottom of the 15-team league.

Tech Crushed By Kennesaw State

Wow! Just stunning. And funny, too.

I read that the Kennesaw players were sitting on the bench laughing with 4 minutes left in the game. The Kennesaw State fans didn't even rush the court.

Wow...

Troy Brewer Starts Season at American

American University started its 2010/2011 basketball year with a victory over St. Francis of Pennsylvania.

Troy Brewer went 5 of 11 in his debut, scoring 12 points with 5 boards. He also had an assist and a steal.

Swansey plays well in Tennessee Tech Opener

Tennessee Tech played at North Carolina State for its first game of the year. Swansey performed well going against Ryan Harrow, Lorenzo Brown and others.

Zac scored 13 points, had 5 assists and 3 rebounds. He shot 6 of 13 from the floor.

He'll help Tech this year. Wish him the best.

Dawgs Win Against Colorado

As badly as we played against Mississippi Valley State, I am expecting Georgia to perform better against Colorado.

Colorado can shoot the three and they like to put it up, so Georgia will have to do a good job in closing out against their shooters. I would expect UGA to have an advantage in the post. They have some big guys, but if we feed the ball to Price, he should be able to be effective.

I am hopeful that Travis Leslie will shoot the ball well. He was 6 of 14 from the floor last game, but since most of his made shots were dunks, teams will start playing off of him to take away the drive. He's got to start shooting well from the perimeter to keep teams honest.

If we get a total of 1 point and 2 rebounds in 38 minutes from the combined efforts of Chris Barnes, Marcus Thornton Vincent Williams, and Donte Williams, we will lose. These guys need to show up tomorrow night.

It could be a close game. Anyone remember that contest in which UGA was down 4 points with under 12 seconds to go? Jarvis Hayes hit a three, their guy made 1 of 2 free throws, and Jonas hit the desperation shot at the buzzer.

It may take similar heroics to pull this one out. Their guards are at least even with ours, but hopefully our post play and home court advantage will make the difference.

Who are we?

Who-who, who-who? I really wanna know!

Are we the team that has been hopelessly over-hyped? Any decent squad will take advantage of our lack of height on the perimeter and scarcity of ball-handlers?

Or are we a team of destiny? A team that seems to luckily win the close ones until we can get our star back and go on a run through the SEC and win the whole thing?

What do you think? Any conclusions that can be drawn from the game against Mississippi Valley State?

Honest Thoughts on Recruiting

I'm disappointed with our signing class. Nothing against the guys we brought in. It's just that I was expecting so much more.

We had 8 members of the 2011 Rivals 150 available in the state of Georgia. Plenty of scholarships to give and playing time to offer. Of the eight, we only got one, and no other elite recruits from other states.

I didn't expect we would get Kevin Ware or Shannon Scott. They announced fairly early that they were going out of state. Victor Nickerson was a three-star recruit that I didn't follow.

However, I was almost positive we would sign at least one of Malcolm Brogdon, Nick Jacobs, Julian Royal and Dai-Jon Parker. All those guys are top level talents with good grades. I actually thought we would get two out of the four, and I hate it that we lost out to Tech yet again, and let out of state teams like UVA, Alabama and Vandy clean the cupboards.

Coach Fox has a lot of good will. I like the notion that he'll be able to develop the talent that he brings in. He didn't have a reputation coming in as an elite recruiter, so expectations have been modest. Many fans are more focused on the prospects for the 2010/2011 Dawgs than on recruiting. But to be the program that we all want Georgia to be, Fox will have to lock down the borders and keep the best players in-state.

I think we'll be okay for next year. I can foresee us with a 2011/2012 starting line-up of Dustin Ware, Gerald Robinson, Kentavious Caldwell, Marcus Thornton and Donte Williams, while we bring the big men along slowly. Who knows? Travis or Trey could decide to stick around for their senior years.

But as the Felton recruits of Trey Thompkins, Travis Leslie, Dustin Ware, Chris Barnes and Jeremy Price move on, we'll need to get some players in the fold to replace them, or the rest of the SEC East will pass us by. Don't get me wrong. We're doing okay. It's just that I want to be great.

The prospects for success on the floor this year make me fairly optimistic about recruiting for 2012. If we perform well, win the SEC or at least do well in the NCAA Tournament, there's no reason why we shouldn't bag local talent like Shaq Goodwin, Jarmal Reid, Tony Parker, Shaq Johnson and others.

What do you think?

Dawgs Ink Three

Georgia has signed letters of intent from the three hoopsters who committed earlier. John Florveus, Tim Dixon and Kentavious Caldwell are all on board.

Welcome, guys!

Dawgs Win!

Sure, it was an exhibition game. But still it was good to see the basketball Dawgs put their game uni's on and get up and down the floor.

Gerald Robinson has a nice game. Good speed. Looks to pass the ball, yet can take it all the way to the rim. He had a double-double in his first outing.

Dustin Ware was on from the outside. That's a good sign. He was 3 of 4 from behind the arc.

I was most impressed by Donte Williams. I had posted last year that Fox ought to consider Williams, even though at that time we already had Cady Lalanne committed. My thought was that Williams was a team player, could defend, came from a winning program, and had a nice skill package. Boy, am I glad that we went ahead and pushed for and got Williams. He'll help out, even though he did look lost a couple of times on offense. Donte had 9 points, 7 boards and 2 blocks on the night.

Marcus Thornton looked pretty good. He'll have to work hard to get up to the speed of the game, but you can tell that he has all the fundamentals.

Chris Barnes had some good blocks. Price looked a lot better on his free throws. Leslie didn't play all that much, and of course, Thompkins was out.

We defended well as a team. We seem to know where to go on offense, and we have a good mix of size and skill. We need Trey back soon, but as for now, so far so good.

Recap, Interviews and Box Score

Takais Brown to D-League

Takais Brown, former power forward for the Dawgs, has been drafted by the Reno Big Horns of the NBA's D-League. He was selected in the second round.

Dawg fans might be interested to know that Reno had the first pick in the D-League draft and they used it on Nick Fazekas. Fazekas played at Nevada under current Dawgs head man, Mark Fox. Reno chose James Florence, who played at Mercer, in the third round.

Hard to say if Takais will be able to stick with Reno. He probably has enough talent, but there is no telling if he is past the off-court issues that derailed his progress at Georgia. Hopefully he has put those matters behind him and is ready to contribute to his new squad.

Player and Coach Interviews from Official Site

Looking forward to seeing how Gerald Robinson and Dustin Ware play.

From all that Coach Fox says, the new guys (Robinson, Donte Williams, Marcus Thornton and Sherrard Brantley) have been working hard.

Preseason Interviews

Dawgs Play Augusta State

The 2010/2011 version of the Dawgs basketball team will officially be revealed tonight at 7:00 p.m. The exhibition against Augusta State will take place in a newly renovated Stegeman Coliseum.

Should be a good experience for the fans.

Augusta State comes into the game having had a lot of recent success. The Jaguars went 29 and 4 last season, and 110 and 23 over the last 4 years. Coach Dip Metress has a challenge in 2010, however, since he lost all five of his starters and just about all of his scoring from last year.

Georgia will be looking to see how the roster can adjust to the injury loss of Trey Thompkins. Thompkins' ankle sprain is a significant blow to the team. There is a bright side, however, as I posted recently.

Trey's injury occurred almost a full two weeks before the official opener against Mississippi Valley State on Friday, November 12. So with the way the schedule is looking, I doubt Thompkins can play in the first game, and I suppose he'll miss the contests on the 16th and the 20th against Colorado and St. Louis. I'm hoping that Thompkins will definitely be back in time for the Old Spice classic on November 25.

Given Georgia's depth at the power forward position, we should be all right. Fans will get to see more of Chris Barnes and Marcus Thornton.

Let's lace 'em up and tip the ball off!

R&B Article

Travis Leslie Named Top Shooting Guard

Rivals picked Leslie in its ratings of the top shooting guards in the country. Leslie came in at #4, behind LaceDarius Dunn of Baylor, Nolan Smith of Duke, and Will Barton of Memphis (who has not even played a college game yet).

With all due respect to Rivals, I would not have picked Leslie as a shooting guard, since he did not exhibit real guard skills last year. He didn't bring the ball up the floor, had more turnovers than assists, and attempted only 11 three-pointers all year.

But if Rivals is basing its rankings on potential, and that's the only conceivable reason why Barton would be ranked, then you have to have Leslie somewhere in the mix. Of the 11 shots from behind the arc last season, Travis made 6, a 55 percent average. He shot right at 49 percent from the field and close to 75 percent from the free throw line. He led the Dawgs in steals, free throws per game and free throws made per game.

Simply put, Leslie can score the basketball and defend. So whether you have him at shooting guard, small forward or somewhere in between, Leslie is brimming with talent now and skills to be developed for down the road. If he cuts down his turnovers and improves his handle, he'll have a fantastic season.

Leslie Ranked

Trey Thompkins Injures Ankle

Just when the season was about to start, too. Since it's a high ankle sprain, no one knows when Thompkins will be back and ready to play. Bad luck for the Dawgs?

Or just what we needed.

We needed to get some more minutes for our other bigs. Chris Barnes has to be ready to play. Marcus Thornton must learn the offense and be prepared. Donte Williams and has to get some experience. Someone else has to learn the high post. We figured that Jeremy Price would start. Without Thompkins, he'll have to play more. Fewer breathers.

And it's not just playing time. It's productivity. Who will put up the 18 points a game that the Dawgs will be missing? Who will snare the 8 rebounds that Thompkins averaged? We'll see now if Gerald Robinson can be that third scorer, because he might have to be the first one-- register the majority of the points some days. Dustin Ware may have to shoot more efficiently.

Of course, we may just decide to ride Travis Leslie. See how far he can take us. He might have to score 25 points a night instead of 15. I've said before on the Blog that Marcus Thornton can get it done. Fox just about has to play him now.

Hate to see Thompkins go down with a bad wheel, but if it had to happen at any point in the season, better for it to happen now than in the SEC portion of the schedule. With any luck, the end result will be that Fox knows more about what he's got, and UGA will field a more balanced team at the end of the season.

Thompkins

Jeremy Price Most Improved Player

If Price plays up to his potential, it could be a big year for the Dawgs.

Interview with Coach Fox

SEC's Top Ten Players

Dude is a Stud

#5

Multi-talented

#1

Roy Skinner, former Vanderbilt coach, Passes

Won more games than any other Vandy coach. Remembered for his role in integrating the SEC.

Skinner

Seth Emerson was Spot On

Dawgs lose to Florida. Not even worthy of a headline. We just can't beat those guys. 18 of 21 is "purt near" 90 percent.

Hate it. As bad as we were early in the season, the year would have been a success in my mind if we had found a way to beat Florida and Georgia Tech. No chance to win both games, and at this point, I doubt we will win against Tech.

I started to post my prediction. I anticipated a loss against Florida, but my thought was that we would get blown out.

I didn't get around to it. Too busy to blog.

Well, I have to give props where they are due. Seth Emerson did get around to it. He posted his prediction, and he nailed it. Not only did he predict that Georgia would lose, he got the right margin of victory (3 points) and almost got the final score correct.

That is worthy of a headline.

Travis Leslie Working on 2-Guard Skills

Can he handle the rock?

That's the challenge for Leslie this year and for the future. He already has the pro body. Big-time athleticism. Great attitude.

Leslie did a fantastic job last year playing the 3. He already projects to be a high-level selection in the NBA draft.

But if Leslie wants to make the most of his potential, he has to play the hand that's been dealt him. He's not likely to sprout up another 3 or 4 inches. Travis knows that as talented as he is, as successful as he has been at small forward, he will make his living playing the shooting guard.

“He needs to play more in the backcourt just for his development as a player,” Georgia coach Mark Fox said. “If he can do that, then it allows us to play a big two-guard and Marcus (Thornton) at the three, and with them you’ve got two very athletic wings.”

Leslie's time this summer was spent developing the skills that a 2-guard needs. Handling the ball, passing, defending quicker players.

So far, so good. As Dustin Ware is quoted, "His (Leslie's) ball-handling between now and last season is like night and day."

Great article from the ABH.

Leslie

Georgia Picked to Finish Fifth in the SEC East

Well, there are a couple of compliments thrown Georgia's way in the attached Rivals article (Team on the Rise and all that), but the writer still predicts that Georgia will finish the year near the bottom of the SEC East.

What say you? How will Georgia do in the Division?

Jeremy Jacob has Surgery

The bad news keeps coming for Oregon. Jeremy Jacob, one of just ten scholarship players on the team's hoops roster, had arthroscopic surgery yesterday.

He'll be out three to six weeks.

Jacob took a redshirt year in 2008 when he was with the Dawgs due to a stress fracture in his right foot. Jacob transferred to a junior college at the end of the 2008 season, and from there was recruited to Oregon.

Hopefully Jacob can recover soon from this latest setback and contribute to the team as the season progresses.

"I'll Tell You Who I Love-- Georgia"

I'll say it again. Calipari gives great interviews.

He sounded like Vince Dooley at the beginning, the way he was talking down his team. Of interest to me is that in every interview that I've seen recently, Calipari has something positive to say about the Dawgs.

Man, I hope we can live up to it.

ESPN's coverage of SEC Media Day has the Calipari video, a rather dull interview with Jeff Taylor of Vanderbilt, and the article on Trey Thompkins.

ESPN, Calipari, and SEC Hoops

Jacobs Commits to Alabama

One of my fears when Anthony Grant left VCU and ended up in the SEC was that it put one of the country's elite recruiters right on Georgia's doorstep.

Sure enough, Grant is getting it done. He's locking up the key recruits from Alabama and now venturing into the Atlanta basketball scene and snatching away a guy that really could have helped UGA.

And I will say with no offense to Florveus or Dixon, Georgia's two post signees for 2011, that Jacobs was the power forward that I hoped Fox would have been able to get. Even more so than Julian Royal, the other big-time power forward from the Atlanta area.

As it turns out, we didn't get either. Disappointing, but not totally unexpected.

We still have a shot at Dai-Jon Parker, which would be a huge accomplishment for Fox and staff. And beyond that, there could be a surprise commitment from someone, a coach could leave unexpectedly and open up a recruit in 2011, and there are some talented guys in the 2012 class.

If Georgia plays big this season, then recruiting will be much easier in the future.

Basketball Notebook

The attached Red and Black article is full of good news.

1) Fox expects Ware, Robinson and Price to Score

Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie are Georgia's two big returning scorers. Thompkins averaged right at 18 points last season. Leslie, a shade under 15.

Winning teams have balance. Who will give Georgia that crucial third scorer in 2010/2011? Fox thinks that it could be Price, Ware or Robinson.

Most fans who follow the hoops squad have high expectations of Robinson, in part because Coach Fox talks about him so much. To have Price and Ware mentioned, along with Robinson, as expected scorers is fantastic. These guys are obviously showing something in practice.

2) Marcus Thornton

Okay. He has a lot to learn. But Fox indicates, and I heartily agree, that once Thornton gets down the details he will be able to put up points in a hurry.

The good news is that Thornton is playing on the wing. He can help at either the power forward or the wing position, but he is most needed this year on the perimeter. The fact that he is out there and "doing a nice job" bodes well for the future.

3) More Efficient Practices and Better Locker Room Attitude

The team has already had a year under the Fox system, so there's less to learn. The transition between high school and college ball represents a huge leap, so it's good that the upperclassmen aren't having to pick up a new system at the same time that the freshmen are doing so.

4) Travis Leslie Summer Experience

He got a chance to "D up" Kevin Durant during the summer camp run by Paul Pierce. There was lots of information out there on Thompkins' summer experience, so I appreciated the quote from Leslie on his activities during the break.

Here's the article:

Notebook

Jacobs Decides

Okay. I'm not optimistic about this one. As I wrote before, Georgia is still in it, and there are loads of reasons why Jacobs should choose Georgia.

1) Home School

I'm a homer, but why wear the colors of some other state's school when you can represent your own?

2) Cousin Effect

I've written before about David Jacobs, former starting defensive lineman for the Dawgs, who is Nick's cousin. UGA took care of David, which would mean a lot to me if I were advising Nick.

3) Playing Time

Jeremy Price and Chris Barnes graduate. HTIII is likely gone after this year. Marcus Thornton will be at the 3 position. Dixon and Florveus, commitments for 2011, are more center prospects than guys who will earn minutes at the 4. While Georgia does have Donte Williams, you have to figure that with the lean frame that Williams has, Jacobs would have the playing time advantage. They call the position "power forward" for a reason. I look to see Williams move toward backing up Thornton at the 3 spot.

4) Academics

Georgia is doing ground-breaking work (literally and figuratively) in the medical field. Hopefully, Jacobs has kept abreast of the news on this front.

My guess? I suppose it's still Clemson. UGA would have had to make up a lot of ground in the last week or so, and although I think he would have compelling reasons for picking us, we probably were not able to close the gap in the recruiting race.

Herschel's Nephew

Dude is 14 and is already 6' 3" and over 200 pounds. We ought to be on him now for football, track, baseball, basketball, swimming, whatever.

With the blood lines he has, you know he has the potential to fill out his frame and have world class speed to boot. Combine that with the fact that Richard has got the personality and academics down, and he will be a coveted student-athlete for sure.

Sounds like his famous uncle is doing his part to steer his nephew in the right direction.

Milan Richard

Georgia Still in it for Jacobs?

You'd have to think so based on the counsel that Coach Reddick has been giving his star player.

An early decision would obviously benefit Clemson, since it is the last school that Jacobs visited. However, if Jacobs waits a while, carefully considers playing time, coaching, opportunity to be supported by family, and an academic environment that supports his interest in sports medicine, then Georgia definitely holds its own. In fact, I would go beyond that and say that UGA is far and away the best choice.

Coach Reddick is a solid guy and whatever decision that he and Jacobs reach together (scroll down some in the attached article) hopefully will be the best long term for Nick.

Wise Counsel

Go Dawgs!

Thompkins and Leslie Recognized

as one of the top twelve inside-outside duos in college basketball.

Georgia's duo is indeed rare in that although Leslie is considered as the "outside" part of the duo, he gets a ton of baskets at the rim. Thompkins, the "inside" threat is a legitimate threat from outside, shooting almost 40 percent from behind the arc.

Dynamic Duo

John Florveus Commitment

Obviously Fox and staff saw something they liked in Florveus and convinced him to commit.

I've been a bit disappointed in how recruiting is going since we lost out to Tech on Julian Royal, and it looks like Nick Jacobs will commit to Clemson.

At any rate, it's hard to teach 7', and if he is anything close to that height, Florveus might be able to help.

Here's the free article from Dawgpost.com

Mark Fox Interview

From the official site.

Gerald Robinson has picked up some muscle. Looks really good.

Donte Williams looks bigger. Don't think he'll ever be huge, but a lean guy coming into a Division 1 strength and conditioning program can put on 20 pounds in one year.

Would love to see Chris Barnes get back to being "Bam-Bam." In my opinion, he is playing at less weight than she should have. He'd be more accurate in free throw shooting if he learns to lock in his elbow.

Marcus Thornton is a real key to the season. If he plays hard and to his potential, Georgia will be much improved.

Travis looks ready. Last year he missed some of the buckets around the hoop that he used to hit in high school. If he mixes in a ball fake, up and under move, and learns when to go strong vs. acrobatic, then with his natural leaping ability, he will have more than one 30-point game this year.

Video

"You Guys Are Missing the Boat on Georgia"

Great, great interview. I'm not a particular fan of John Calipari, but his interview was fantastic. Funny, thoughtful, and had just the right tone.

Calipari was very complimentary on the Dawgs, Coach Fox, and the Thompkins/Leslie duo. He even pounded the table when he spoke about UGA.

Speaking of pounding, we'd better pound the ball into the post when we play against Calipari. Kentucky will really miss Patrick Patterson, Perry Stevenson, Daniel Orton and Demarcus Cousins. They had the size and talent advantage last year, and by the end of the game they were able to exploit it.

If they don't get Enes Kanter eligible, then they will be vulnerable. We should play the zone against the dribble drive and make them shoot over the top.

Interesting to hear Calipari's take on the information age and social media.

I wish we had the coverage in the media that Kentucky takes for granted. We'll get there. If we win an early tourney and beat Kentucky in our first SEC game, our following will go through the roof.

Calipari

Dawgs Ranked #25

in the ESPN College Basketball Pre-season Top 25 rankings.

Andy Katz updated the rankings on Friday, October 15th.

It's interesting that he has 4 SEC East teams in the rankings. No SEC West teams. That's quite a showing for the SEC East, especially since Katz says that Vanderbilt was one of the teams that just missed the cut.

To put the Division's rankings in perspective, consider that the SEC East's 6 teams had 4 ranked in the top 25, while the ACC's 12 squads only got 2 teams in.

There are of course no guarantees that the final rankings will be anything like the pre-season's, but the list by Katz does give some indication of how tough the SEC East will be this year.

Hope the guys are working hard.

Georgia beats Vandy

It's homecoming. It's Georgia vs. Vandy. It should be another Georgia win.

And so it shall be.

In order for the Dawgs to win this thing, we'll have to be stout at the point of attack.

If I'm Vandy, I keep the ball on the ground, chew up the clock and try to win ugly. 16 to 14. Make Grantham try to adjust and then adjust to his adjustments. Get the UGA defensive line demoralized. Keep A.J. and Murray off the field, and dink and dunk with the passing game. Take a shot with a vertical strike if Georgia turns the ball over.

It will be a test for Dobbs and Geathers and Tyson and crew. However, if we take care of business up front Georgia should win handily. Maybe even give the back-ups some time in the 4th quarter.

My prediction is that Georgia will score 36 points. I'm thinking that the margin of victory will be the Dawgs by 12. Final score: 36 to 24.

Well Said

Alum shares his thoughts on why he goes back to Athens.

Very well written.

Where it all Began

O, Canada!

Some Canadians are smitten with a lovely southern college town.

Sure, you could quibble with a few of their characterizations, but why bother? It was a fun read for me.

Enjoy.

Old South, New South, Plain old weird South

D - ####!

Fox is preaching defense. If the Dawgs can pick up some easy baskets from steals or transition buckets from blocked shots, then those close games that we lost last year should turn into comfortable wins.

We'll be a better defensive team, and here's why:

1) Shot-blockers

We lost Albert Jackson and Ricky McPhee to graduation, Drazen Zlovaric, Demario Mayfield and Ebuka Anyaorah to transfer. Albert Jackson averaged a block a game. Anyaorah had 6 blocks on the year, which is decent production for a guy with limited minutes, but he didn't get enough playing time to get a good read on whether he could block shots consistently.

Donte Williams and Marcus Thornton have been added to the post for the 2010/2011 Dawgs. Both are quick leapers. Williams will have to add some weight, for sure, but he is athletic enough to be effective.

The net result of the roster transition is that we will have more shot-blockers on the floor this year. Chris Barnes will get more minutes, and Williams and Thornton will boost Georgia's rejections and intimidation factor.

2) Steals

Ricky McPhee averaged a steal a game. The key to his defensive production was hustle. He didn't have the kind of quicks that would allow him to get out in the passing lanes and take the ball to the other hoop for a lay-in.

From all indications, Gerald Robinson has the speed to pressure the perimeter. Sherrard Brantley will be available, too. Hopefully, he, along with his three-point shooting prowess, will be able to give us tough defense.

3) Fresh Legs

Since the team has more depth, Georgia should be able to exert a high level of energy on the defensive end, without suffering offensively. And as Coach Fox has said, his deeper bench gives him the freedom to sit guys who aren't defending.

4) System

Coach Fox has a core of guys who understand the triangle offense. He can concentrate more on the nuances of the offense and use more of the practice time teaching about defensive assignments.

5) Commitment

The guys have bought in. They want to be good and defense is their ticket to the post-season.

Article

Practice Starts Today

Dawgpost has an article up today. I'm looking forward to seeing how things shape up over the next month or so.

Get fired up!

Wasn't to Be

Hope Julian Royal finds what he was looking for.

Hewitt is a very capable recruiter and it looks like matched head to head, he can still outflank us. UGA doesn't have the track record to flip the scenario.

Not sure who are the other 2011 post players being recruited. Nick Jacobs feels like a long-shot to me. If Royal had committed to the Dawgs, we'd almost certainly have no chance with him. As it stands now, Jacobs will know that our power forward slot will definitely be open for the future, and that can't hurt.

Practice starts tomorrow. Let's keep the enthusiasm up.

Julian Royal

I still think he will choose Tech, but Georgia seems like the perfect fit, basketball-wise.

If Trey Thompkins leaves after this year (and if he has the year that I think he will have, it would be hard to convince him to stay), I see Julian Royal fitting in almost immediately to the slot that Thompkins vacated. Hopefully, Royal sees that, too.

We'll all know soon. Typing with my fingers-crossed...

Mark Fox Previews the Dawgs

Appreciated the video. Good to have information about the team.

Ten thoughts and impressions:

1. Expectations are high.

Fox and the team are embracing them.

2. Gerald Robinson will be fun to watch

It seems that every chance Fox gets, he says something good about Robinson.

3. The Stegeman Coliseum will be much improved.

I don't need fancy glass, just make sure the bathrooms are fixed.

4. There's competition for playing time.

Wish we had more height on the perimeter, but I feel comfortable that we've got guys who can bring the ball up the floor. Great to have options for post players. With Thompkins, Price, Barnes, Williams and Thornton, we should be able to take advantage of the smaller teams.

5. Fox will start and play the guys that are working the hardest.

6. The team is healthy as practice starts.

I keep waiting for a key injury to occur. Somebody to jump up and come down on a teammate's foot. Always seems to happen to derail the program's potential. So far, so good, though. No hits, no runs, no errors.

7. The SEC East will be tough

No one is talking about South Carolina. Could be a mistake. They're no "gimme."

There is so much parity in the Division that all predictions are suspect. For example, if Enes Kanter is not eligible, Kentucky will be height-challenged. They have enough athletes to play everybody tough, but a team with a talented front-line like Florida or Mississippi State might blow them out.

8. Fox will employ a lot more man-to-man on the defensive side

I like man-to-man if UGA turns out to be a really good defensive team. Otherwise, it's smart to use zone defenses to keep the other teams off-balance. Hopefully, Fox will not rigidly adhere to a particular defense, but mix and match depending on the situation.

9. Repeat the question

It seemed that Mark Fox was having trouble hearing the questions. For the sake of the video, he either should repeat the question after it is asked, or even better, have an assistant pass the mike to each reporter so that he can hear clearly and that the video's volume will be more consistent (the questions will have the same volume as the responses from Coach Fox).

10. Don't repeat the question

Our reporters need to ask more creative, more focused questions. By doing so, fans will get better insight into the team's progress and Coach Fox will be forced to abandon some of the cliches.

Preview

Nick Jacobs

Really think he would be better off coming to UGA. I am, of course, biased.

Jacobs seems to have enjoyed his time at Florida, so Mark Fox and crew will have to do their best job to reel him in. I share the sentiment of the other people who made comments that the comparison of Nick Jacobs to Udonis Haslem was not a particular compliment to Jacobs.

I'm glad that UGA is in the running to keep the talented players in-state. I await the day when our team will get a good number of early commitments, really be the top choice, instead of one of the finalists.

AJC link.

At the end of the day, there is a lot to be said for playing for your home university in front of all your family and friends. There will be plenty of playing time available at UGA since we are losing Jeremy Price, Chris Barnes and probably Howard Thompkins.

Hoping Jacobs makes the best choice.

Housekeeping

I made some changes to the Blog lately.

Decided to add a pageview counter to indicate what kind of traffic the Blog is getting. Please know that although the pageview says "all-time", what that really means is since June 1, 2010. Don't know why pageviews started being counted from that date, but I suspect that it has something to do with the date that I made a major change to the layout of the Blog.

I recently added snippets from the top posts of the last seven days. I don't want to clutter up the Blog, but I thought it might be helpful to see just a couple of sentences from the posts that are getting the most views. I also included a poll yesterday since this is a big week for hoops recruiting.

Don't forget the search capability. If you are looking for information on a particular player or topic, just search on it by going to the upper left-hand corner of the Blog and fill in the search criteria.

I may add or delete items as I decide how I want the Blog to look going into the beginning of the basketball season.

Thanks to those who follow the Blog.

DM

Parker and Royal?

Sounds good to me. UGA might end up with both Dai-Jon Parker, top 100 shooting guard from Milton High, and Julian Royal, top 100 power forward, also from Milton High, whether it is described as a package deal or not.

What do you think will happen? Let your views be known by leaving a comment or taking the poll below.

George Fant to Western Kentucky

UGA basketball recruit George Fant has decided to play his college basketball at home.

Fant had been pursued by UGA, but the opportunity to play in his home state of Kentucky was too much for him to pass up.

UGA may receive good news on the recruiting front this Thursday, as top level recruit Julian Royal is set to announce his decision between the Dawgs and Georgia Tech.

Swansey Honored

The Blue Ribbon Basketball Yearbook is out, and a familiar hoops player is noted. Blue Ribbon named Zac Swansey its 2010/2011 preseason Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year.

Swansey is newly eligible to compete at Tennessee Tech after sitting out last year, following his transfer from the University of Georgia. Hopefully, he spent his off-year working to tighten his handle and avoid floating sideways on his jumpshot.

Still appreciate Swansey for the miracle turn around J to beat University of Kentucky in the SEC Tourney. Hope he does well at Tech.

Bruce Pearl

I don't think that Bruce Pearl will resign from the University of Tennessee. He has a huge contract with the school, with lots of protection to keep him from being fired, and I doubt he would walk from it.

From every indication I've seen, his personality is wrapped up in who he is as a coach. Although he'd likely be better off if he gave the game a rest, in my opinion he'll stay until UT either fires him or opts not to renew his contract in 2014.

Not Drinking the Kool-Aid

I know there are scenarios in which the Dawgs could win the SEC East. No one claims that Georgia will actually do it, but rather that they could.

Well, there's absolutely no way that Georgia can claim the East if they lose tomorrow. In fact, a loss to Tennessee would be like a Saturday morning cartoon in which one of the characters builds this incredible machine, only to accidentally hit the red self-destruct button.

We'll still play football, folks, win or lose, but a 1 and 5 start would be as close to total program collapse as any of us have ever seen.

Will Georgia in fact beat Tennessee? Some say, "Sure. We just have to win, UT's roster was decimated by their coaching changes, and the Dawgs will come out on top." Of course, a lot of us expected UGA to beat Colorado, too. That, too, was a must-win game.

Well, I let my heart lead me to predict a win over Colorado, when my head was saying loss. This week, I'm not drinking my own Kool-Aid.

And, sad to say it, I hereby predict another loss for the Dawgs. I feel free to make my prediction here, since I doubt that there are any football players who read the Blog. If I'm incorrect and there are Dawgs from the gridiron reading my words, let my prediction be a source of anger so that you can go out there and take it out on the Volunteers.

So, with that said, I feel that UT has had our number. The Dooleys emerge happy and victorious, 30 to 14.

Georgia Basketball: Feel the Buzz!

Yes, there is a buzz of excitement. No, it does not come from the Georgia Tech Yellowjackets, but instead from the Bulldogs basketball squad in Athens.

Georgia will be much, much better in hoops. SB Nation believes so, and they wrote a complimentary article about the team.

Let me say this, with Marcus Thornton and Gerald Robinson as the key newcomers and a solid cast of veterans, Georgia will make a big leap forward. There may even be good news on the recruiting front next week, which could give Coach Fox some additional momentum.

If we start practice amidst the enthusiasm from a couple of key commitments for the 2011 class, the buzz from Stegeman could drown out the boos from Sanford.

Marcus Sikes Hits Triple, Forces Overtime

But it was not to be for Anastasia* last night as they lost a heart-breaker to Montevideo.

After being down the entire game, Anastasia tied the game with just 1.5 seconds remaining in overtime. Marcus Sikes was the temporary hero of the game, hitting from long range to knot the contest at 87.

However, in overtime, Montevideo was able to take control. The final score was 108 to 97.

*As readers of the Blog know, Anastasia features former UGA players Marcus Sikes and Ajax (Albert Jackson).

Trey Thompkins Video

Awesome interview with Jeff Goodman of Fox Sports. I understand that it's not new, but I hadn't seen it before, and I wanted to link it in case the Blog's readers hadn't discovered it elsewhere.

Highlights:

Thompkins says that the Dawgs are the team to beat in the SEC East. Coming from other players with a bigger ego, I would immediately dismiss the high expectations as boasting. Hearing Thompkins say it, however, causes me to think that he is seeing something in the workouts and pick-up games that has him very, very confident.

Thompkins is getting lean and mean. He wants to be tenacious and his sense of aggression has started to come out. Sounds great.

Although Thompkins is just starting his junior year, he has played a lot of basketball during his college career. He was injured and missed conditioning his freshman year. But since then, he has gone seemingly non-stop with the FIBA training and gold medal, and this summer's time making the USA Basketball Select team.

The end result is that Trey has played against high level competition, different athletes with a mix of skills and physical ability. His body has taken the pounding from battling in the post with Robin Lopez, Kevin Love, and Javale McGee, and has responded to the challenge of having to guard the quicker players like Lamar Odom, Gerald Wallace and Kevin Durant.

The good news of Thompkins playing the 5 is that if Fox wanted to, he could go with a high-scoring line-up of Thompkins at center, Marcus Thornton at power forward, Leslie on the wing, Dustin Ware playing the point and Gerald Robinson sliding into the shooting guard slot.

Speaking of Robinson, Thompkins says that Gerald is one of the fastest players he has ever played with. That's high praise.

Awesome interview.

Trey Thompkins on Preseason Wooden Award Watch List

Congratulations to Trey!

The official site recognizes Thompkins for being on the list.

The SEC only had three players to make the Wooden Award's preseason group. Kenny Boyton of Florida and Jeff Taylor of Vanderbilt were the other two for the conference.

The full list is available from the Wooden Award's site.

Sundiata Gaines Leads Jazz in Scoring

Just an intra-squad scrimmage, but Gaines is working hard. Trying to make the roster, while being 4th on the depth chart.

You have to like his production, as he led the team in scoring. The attached article notes his two three-pointers and tough drives to the basket.

Gaines

I Give Up. You Do, Too

And this time, I guess we'll stay that way.

Resigned to embarassing displays on the football field. Dreading ESPN replays. Wondering what happened to the once-proud Dawgs team.

There will be no Belue to Scott, "Lindsay Scott, Lindsay Scott" miracle. No Greene to Hayes hobnail pass over the middle. We're losing the games that we used to somehow find a way to win.

We are so bad that I actually laughed. When Caleb King fumbled the ball, I got up, turned the t.v. off and just kind of chuckled.

We are finding creative ways to lose. Roughing the kicker penalties. Late-game fumbles, a missed field goal.

Gaffes on defense. Receivers for opposing teams, once again running wide open.

When we just have to have a stop, we couldn't do it. Colorado played smash-smouth football with us. We knew the run was coming, but the Dawgs couldn't hunker down. We got a sack to finally keep them off the board, but they controlled the ball for over eight minutes.

We look boring and totally predictable on offense. In the meantime, Colorado was unveiling options, misdirections, surprise two-point conversions. All manner of cool offensive plays to keep our defense off-balance.

If there's any consolation, it's that Larry Munson doesn't have to call these pitiful outings.

Wilkins willing to help

Damien Wilkins has consistently kept an ear out for what is going on in his home town of Washington, North Carolina.

Wilkins has been involved in sports camps and activities for the city's youth, and more recently, he has expressed his willingness to help restore the court on which he developed his game.

Good effort by Damien.

Very Optimistic on Dai-Jon Parker

I could see him coming in and getting minutes at the point guard position with Kentavious Caldwell playing the 2. That would give Georgia a big line-up at guard, something we haven't had in a long, long time.

It would be great to see a fast break with Parker and Marcus Thornton as options.

As readers of the Blog know, I love guys who have played both football and basketball. They bring to the hardwood a sense of toughness that the hoops-only players sometimes lack.

This AJC article recounts how Parker starred at wide receiver and at cornerback and received 11 scholarship offers for football, including Georgia, Oklahoma State and Mississippi State.

I love the quote from Milton High's coach that says that Parker is a "great shooter, great athlete and great defender." He gladly takes on the other team's best player. Add to the above superlatives the fact that he carries a 3.2 gpa and you've got a rare student athlete indeed. Parker would be perfect for the kind of team that UGA is building in Athens.

I'm optimistic that at the end of the day Dai-Jon Parker will choose the Dawgs.

Five SEC East Teams to Dance?

Athlon Sports predicts that 5 SEC East teams will make the NCAA Tournament. Everybody but South Carolina.

I don't see how the SEC East can get that many teams in. Even with the slight tournament field expansion, the SEC West will send somebody, the ACC is bound to have a number of teams in the tourney, and there are just a lot of good teams out there, not to mention the surprise teams that win their conference tournament and get an automatic berth. Besides, one of the SEC East teams is bound to disappoint, if for no other reason because they get knocked off by the other good teams in the Division.

Still it's hard to poke too many holes in Athlon Sports' analysis. If you just look at the talent on the rosters, the East is stacked. Florida brings everybody back and adds Patric Young and Casey Prather. Vanderbilt lost some talent in A.J. Ogilvy and Jermaine Beal, but they will be plenty tough if their point guard play holds up. Kentucky has all those talented freshmen. And for all his troubles, Bruce Pearl has been able to hold things together. Even South Carolina has size and athleticism. The Gamecocks will miss Devan Downey, for sure, but Coach Horn will throw some teams out of whack by using his traps and pressure defense.

Basketball is definitely back in the SEC, and especially so in the SEC East. Are you ready to get started?

Sundiata Gaines to Jazz Camp

One of the things that I appreciate about Sundiata Gaines is his attitude. Guy doesn't quit, complain, or showboat. Just works hard.

I think the Utah Jazz and Coach Jerry Sloan feel the same way, too. Asked to work harder in practice, Gaines has responded and he's in the mix of competition to make the roster.

I tell you, if the Jazz cut him, there are plenty of teams who would love to have a pass-first guard, tough defender, team guy, and all for the minimum contract.

I hope he somehow ends up playing for the Atlanta Hawks. That would be perfect.

Gaines

Picking a Dawgs Victory

The turn-around starts Saturday.

I expect for the defense to still struggle, but the offense will do enough to get the Dawgs the W.

Trey Thompkins, Athlon Sports' Pre-Season First Team All-American

Athlon Sports has published its 2010-20ll College Basketball Preview and Thompkins was named to its Pre-Season First Team All-American list. He was picked along with Jimmy Fredette of BYU, Kyle Singler from Duke, LaceDarius Dunn of Baylor and Jajuan Johnson at Purdue.

Great honor for Thompkins.

Congratulations, Trey!

This Article Makes Me Sad

Not really, but sure wish we could have closed the deal on Dwayne Polee. St. Johns came in at the last seeming minute and snatched him away.

I still think that if we could only have one, it was better for us that we get Marcus Thornton.

Not saying that Thornton is better than Polee, even though he might be. Polee has incredible hops but Thornton has the bigger frame that might suit him more to SEC play.

The point is that Thornton is a Georgia kid, and for the sake of short and long-term recruiting, it's more important to get a Mr. Basketball than someone from clear across the country who may end up as a one and done.

But boy, if we could have gotten both...

Georgia performed about like I expected

We have flashes of potential. Aaron Murray had a couple of nice runs, a few instances of decent touch on the football. Kris Durham did well.

I think we all agree that 2010 is and will continue to be a down year for us. Can we get to a bowl? I guess we're playing for pride at this point.

We will lose games that we are supposed to win. Mississippi State was an example. When all we score is two field goals, we know something is wrong. The Kentucky and Vandy games will be struggles.

With that said, I can really see us winning a game that we're not supposed to. I am thinking of Florida right now.

A.J. comes back next week. He really is a difference maker. The Dawgs will get better, but not soon, and certainly not soon enough for most of our fans.

Hang on guys, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

Hoop Dawgs to Have Breakout Year?

Loved this article.

ESPN writer Andy Katz has picked N.C. State and Georgia as the two hoops teams poised to make a big step forward this year. I heartily agree.

Fantastic news all around.

Hoops fans have a pretty good sense of what we have in Travis Leslie and Trey Thompkins. The buzz in the program is being generated by the expected contributions from the other guys.

Great to hear that Jeremy Price is making an impression during preseason workouts. Georgia needs either Price or Chris Barnes to step up in a big way. They'll be called upon to hold down the center position for the Dawgs this year. Neither one is tall enough to shoot over the top of the other centers in the SEC, so Price and Barnes will need to play big, hustle on defense, and catch the ball cleanly so that they can go up strong and finish.

Jeremy has always had a lot of potential, but his conditioning never was where it needed to be. Albert Jackson was logging a good bit of the playing time at center, so Price didn't get max minutes-- that, and the fact that Price often shot his playing time opportunity in the foot by picking up touch fouls on the perimeter. He'll get the minutes this year, and it sounds like he is ready to make the most of his time.

Gerald Robinson is doing very well. "No way he doesn't start" is high praise from Fox. Dustin Ware had a good assist to turnover ratio last year. Especially so, since he was the only consistent ball-handler that the Dawgs had. But Ware wasn't fast enough to create buckets going to the basket. Robinson is.

Fox is high on Marcus Thornton. If Thornton is healthy and stays that way, he will score a bunch of points for the Dawgs.

Sounds like our starting five will be Robinson, Ware, Leslie, Thompkins and Price. The first man off the bench is likely to be Marcus Thornton. If Leslie is able to handle the ball more, then he could slide to the two-guard and Thornton could start.

No matter who starts, Georgia basketball will be a lot of fun this year. I'm ready for a breakout season. How about you?

Hate to do this, but I just don't see Georgia winning

tomorrow.

I'm probably the biggest homer around, and I would love to see Georgia right the ship. Without A.J. and with our players still learning the defense, it's too much for me to predict that the Dawgs will go into a hostile environment and come home with the W.

I do think that our team can get much better, though. Put all the pieces together (Caleb King, AJ Green, a healthy offensive line, a couple of good breaks on defense and a little bit more creativity on offense) and Georgia could actually run off a string of victories.

Here's hoping that our streak starts tomorrrow.

A.J.'s Jersey: the lawsuit

No, the lawsuit does not directly involve A.J. Green, but it might as well.

A.J. is a current athlete and the lawsuit deals primarily with rights of athletes after they graduate. Still, the crux of the issue boils down to who owns a player's name and image. Does the NCAA own those rights? If so, how? Does the NCAA unfairly restrain trade (trade, such as an athlete's ability to sell a jersey with his name on it)?

The NCAA has got trouble in this case. Not only has the lawsuit survived, it has thrived. Eight separate complaints consolidated, a judge writing a preliminary opinion that favors the athletes.

Part of the danger for the NCAA is the wedge factor. The case has the potential for turning two allies into adversaries. Game manufacturers are not going to want to be sued. Because of the big penalties associated with using a person's likeness without permission, if push comes to shove they will turn on the NCAA. The manufacturers will readily turn over any representations from the NCAA, any sales boasting that the NCAA used to get EA Sports to fork out the big bucks.

Game manufacturers do not want to negotiate with a million athletes. They want to pay one price to an entity that has permanent, exclusive rights. I'm sure there are e-mails somewhere from the NCAA that make just that sort of claim.

In its defense, the NCAA says that the form which student athletes sign "...says nothing about the use of student-athlete images by member institutions, nothing about video games, and absolutely nothing about the right of a former student-athlete to sell his own collegiate image after graduation,”

Well if the form says nothing about video games, what in the world did they sell to EA Sports? Are the video game manufacturers so dumb that they spent a lot of money for nothing?

The NCAA can't have it both ways.

The case will be resolved way too late for A.J. and way too late for Georgia's football season this year. But the final decision may be broad enough to vindicate him-- not that A.J. didn't break the NCAA's rules, though that much is indeed in doubt, but that the NCAA's rules themselves are broken, out of step with fundamental American principles that support private enterprise, and out of date in a 21st century digital world.

Collegiate athletics is about to change.

Case

Albert Jackson playing in Uruguay

Albert Jackson has signed to play with the team Anastasia in Uruguay. He arrived at terms with the team back toward the beginning of August and has been scoring and rebounding the ball very well so far.

Anastasia is a team that plays in Tacuarembo, in the north of Uruguay.

For those who want to know, Tacuarembo is a town of just over 50,000. The majority of the population in Uruguay lives in the capital, Montevideo, which is a good distance away from where Jackson is playing. Tacuarembo is closer to southern Brazil.

As it turns out, Albert is on the same team as Marcus Sikes, who played at Georgia before transferring to finish his collegiate career at Cincinnati.

I'll be giving more information later on how Ajax is performing down in Uruguay.

In the meantime, congrats, Ajax!

Somewhere, Willie Martinez is Laughing

I'm sure he wishes the best for his former team and players.

But the fans who clammored for him to be fired? Not that anyone cares what Willie Martinez or I think, but put yourself in his shoes. It must be ironic to see the opposing team's players left wide open. Wide open.

Their first touch down? There were two men (!) all by themselves. No Georgia defender around for 20 yards.

For all the attack mentality of the 3-4 defense, we generated very little pressure. I remember one sack. Maybe we got another that I can't recall. But the mental mistakes and poor positioning makes the new defense look downright embarassing. Like we have three fourths of a defense, instead of a complete one with a secondary that knows how to cover people.

The wheel route? Awful. Maybe not open by twenty yards, but no one within five to ten yards.

Finally, when we needed to hunker down, get a stop and at least take the game into overtime, we couldn't get the job done. We give up yet another long touchdown pass.

I know that fans wanted change. Maybe it was time for a different defensive coordinator. But not all change is progress. Georgia looks like it has taken a few steps backwards this season.

Dawgs will Lose

say the facts.

Our difference maker won't be playing.

Our offensive schemes are too one-dimensional. The other teams have strength and conditioning programs, too. You just can't line up and knock guys around. You have to stretch the field laterally and vertically. Make them play assignment football and exploit weaknesses.

Cordy Glenn still not 100 percent. He lost a lot of weight and stamina when he got sick. He was our best offensive lineman prior.

Mallett is the real deal. This guy can throw the football.

Too much confusion in the off-season to come out firing on all cylinders.

The facts say we lose. I'm hoping that we somehow pull it out. I'm not optimistic.

Kentavious Caldwell's Plans for the Future

Georgia hasn't gotten a guy like Caldwell in forever.

He is a big guard. Enough of a handle to play some point guard, but a natural two-guard. He's a legitimate threat from behind the arc, while still having enough size to post up smaller players.

Caldwell's rankings are impressive. Five-star, likely Mr. Georgia Basketball, and a probable McDonald's All-American. Sure, he may not achieve all of his goals for his senior year, but he is in the running for all of the various awards.

And then there's the confidence. Caldwell thinks that he can come to UGA, play as a freshman and distinguish himself sufficiently that he can go to the pro ranks after a year or two.

What's even better for Georgia is that Caldwell wants to be at UGA. He is an early, solid commitment.

Been a long time.

KC

Dave Bliss to Oklahoma City

Congratulations are in order for Dave Bliss. He is now an assistant of basketball operations for the NBA franchise, the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Bliss started working for the Thunder in June of 2010, so this information isn't exactly new news. But I just found out about it, so I'm sharing it with the readers of the Blog.

At any rate, I think it's a fantastic opportunity for Dave. He gets to hang out with a an impressive coaching staff, not to mention Kevin Durant, a real superstar already in his young career. The Thunder is an energetic, exciting team, and they will be a powerhouse in the NBA if Durant stays healthy (if Seattle had known that the Thunder would be this good, this fast, they never would have allowed the old Supersonics team to move).

Dave will be right there in the mix. His trajectory toward a high level coaching position in the college ranks, or even in the NBA, has taken a definite sharp turn upward.

Congratulations, Dave!