All year long we've heard about how explosive our offense can be (provided we don't mention that night in South Carolina). So, I decided to peek into that stat just a bit. I found some interesting results. Here's how Georgia ranks nationally and in the SEC on Long-Plays from scrimmage.
10+ Yards: 201 plays - 23rd FBS, 3rd SEC (TA&M, UT)
20+ Yards: 75 plays - 7th FBS, 2nd SEC (TA&M)
30+ Yards: 38 plays - 3rd FBS, 2nd SEC (TA&M)
40+ Yards: 24 plays - 2nd FBS (Baylor), 1st SEC
50+ Yards: 13 plays - 3rd FBS (Miami, UtahState T-1), 1st SEC
60+ Yards: 7 plays - 5th FBS, 2nd SEC (Vandy)
70+ Yards: 2 plays - T-38th FBS, T-6th SEC
Looks like we really need to work on our 70+ yard offensive gameplan.
We're also tied for 9th in the country with 62 Touchdowns, which is 2nd in the SEC behind TA&M's 72.
(Alabama is in 12th at 61)
Go Dawgs.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
That Pesky Ol' Stat...
At the beginning of the season, I wrote a blog about the Georgia Defense's failure to stop opponents in the red-zone. In fact, until the Missouri game, we hadn't stopped any opponent in our redzone since Florida in 2011. That's horrible.
Well, folks....
Things are better. Looking up our opponents' redzone scoring percentage today made me pretty happy. Georgia ranks 13th nationally, and second in the SEC (AL #1 Naitonally, #1 SEC) with an opponents' scoring percentage of 71.05% (AL 60.87%).
The interesting part for me, though, is in the Opponent's TD percentage, where Georgia (15 Nationally, 4th SEC) LEADS Alabama (18th Nationally, 6th SEC) 47.37% - 47.83%. Of course, we can see how small the difference is, but still, it's nice to know that from the standpoint of Redzone Touchdowns, our defense is on par with what is seen as the defensive standard in college football.
Naturally, these statistics are only hard-number statistics, and do not factor in anything like garbage-time points, quality of opponent, etc...but our defense is playing at a hell of a level right now, and it'll be interesting to see how they square off against the crowned-king of Bama.
Go Dawgs.
Well, folks....
Things are better. Looking up our opponents' redzone scoring percentage today made me pretty happy. Georgia ranks 13th nationally, and second in the SEC (AL #1 Naitonally, #1 SEC) with an opponents' scoring percentage of 71.05% (AL 60.87%).
The interesting part for me, though, is in the Opponent's TD percentage, where Georgia (15 Nationally, 4th SEC) LEADS Alabama (18th Nationally, 6th SEC) 47.37% - 47.83%. Of course, we can see how small the difference is, but still, it's nice to know that from the standpoint of Redzone Touchdowns, our defense is on par with what is seen as the defensive standard in college football.
Naturally, these statistics are only hard-number statistics, and do not factor in anything like garbage-time points, quality of opponent, etc...but our defense is playing at a hell of a level right now, and it'll be interesting to see how they square off against the crowned-king of Bama.
Go Dawgs.
Victory Helmet Updated
Sorry it's taken me a while, folks...but you'll see the 2012 Victory Helmet is now fully updated. Feel free to steal and share the image if you'd like.
Go Dawgs!!!
Go Dawgs!!!
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Fire Mark Richt? Kiss My Class.
Oh man, he just keeps winning football games. The Anti-Richt/Bobo crowd has got to be kicking itself in the balls....all the way to the Georgia Dome. That's right, kids...ANOTHER appearance in the SEC title game. Last time that happened? 04-05...when Georgia lost the '04 contest, then won the '05. Back-to-back victories against Florida. Last time that happened? 1988-1989. Shutout Auburn. Last time that happened? 1976. Eight victories in eleven tries against Auburn. Last time that happened? Not since the game was played in Columbus Georgia in the 40's and 50's.
Sorry haters, Richt is a Good Damn Coach, and he ain't goin' anywhere.
There are those who hate his style and his demeanor, who complain that he's too much of a choir-boy. There are those who hate his benching of players as a measure of discipline.
There are those who wish he was more of a mean sommommabitch, because you know, that's what it takes to win.
Well, I think you haters can just pucker up and Kiss His Class. Richt wins, and he does it the right way. We're a few weeks from finding out if he can go up against the "best" coach in the SEC and beat him (as he has a couple times already) and possibly get a chance to play for the elusive BCS title.
But even if he doesn't, I think it's fair to say that Richt is back in a big way, and that this latest crop of young players (Gurley, Marshall, Mitchell, Jenkins, Swann, etc) may be the best he's brought Georgia. Bright things are on the horizon, and when the spotlight is already on the program, that's a pretty great thing to be able to say.
Go Dawgs.
Sorry haters, Richt is a Good Damn Coach, and he ain't goin' anywhere.
There are those who hate his style and his demeanor, who complain that he's too much of a choir-boy. There are those who hate his benching of players as a measure of discipline.
There are those who wish he was more of a mean sommommabitch, because you know, that's what it takes to win.
Well, I think you haters can just pucker up and Kiss His Class. Richt wins, and he does it the right way. We're a few weeks from finding out if he can go up against the "best" coach in the SEC and beat him (as he has a couple times already) and possibly get a chance to play for the elusive BCS title.
But even if he doesn't, I think it's fair to say that Richt is back in a big way, and that this latest crop of young players (Gurley, Marshall, Mitchell, Jenkins, Swann, etc) may be the best he's brought Georgia. Bright things are on the horizon, and when the spotlight is already on the program, that's a pretty great thing to be able to say.
Go Dawgs.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Better, but not Best
Aaron Murray, God Love Him.
Did he lift the monkey from him back? Hard to say for me. To call Murray's performance yesterday a good one, I'd have to have one less eye and a Disney-Dawg's heart. I will, however, give him credit where it is due. Mike Bobo put the game in his hands in the fourth quarter. We were only up by one, y'all. We were holding on by one little point and Bobo decided to go with the passing game. He picked the guy who had already tossed three interceptions to go out and win the game for us. He decided that Florida may gang up on the run, and so the throws would be there. Bobo bet on Murray....
and Bobo won. So did Georgia.
Unlike previous big-game performances, Aaron Murray looked great on the final drive. Of course, that was largely due to Malcolm Mitchell's clutch catch-and-run.
Did we get lucky with a penalty? Yup. Did fortune shine on us with an instant replay overturn? It did. Still, the final big throw had to be made. Murray had to throw a back-shoulder pass (his specialty) to a receiver running a stop-route against tight man coverage. In the past, Murray might have let that moment overtake him. He might have sailed the ball over Mitchell's head. He might have thrown it too far inside, and had the ball picked by Purifoy.
Not this time.
No, this time Murray made the throw. He overcame three first-half interceptions. He overcame a couple of big drops by his receivers. He stood in the face of the blitz and tossed a pass that put his receiver in a position to break the game open with an amazing run.
The final statline is not impressive. 50% completion for 150 yards, 3 interceptions and 1 touchdown.
But, the one touchdown was a huge one. When Aaron Murray absolutely had to make a throw, he made a hell of a throw...and Georgia won as the result.
Like I said, I don't know that the monkey is off his back....but it looks like the thing's grip is pretty damn strained. The good news? We should see the other Aaron Murray for the rest of the season... you know, the one that plays amazing against bad defenses. And maybe...just maybe, he'll prove to be the SEC's best in the SEC title game.
Go Dawgs!
Did he lift the monkey from him back? Hard to say for me. To call Murray's performance yesterday a good one, I'd have to have one less eye and a Disney-Dawg's heart. I will, however, give him credit where it is due. Mike Bobo put the game in his hands in the fourth quarter. We were only up by one, y'all. We were holding on by one little point and Bobo decided to go with the passing game. He picked the guy who had already tossed three interceptions to go out and win the game for us. He decided that Florida may gang up on the run, and so the throws would be there. Bobo bet on Murray....
and Bobo won. So did Georgia.
Unlike previous big-game performances, Aaron Murray looked great on the final drive. Of course, that was largely due to Malcolm Mitchell's clutch catch-and-run.
Did we get lucky with a penalty? Yup. Did fortune shine on us with an instant replay overturn? It did. Still, the final big throw had to be made. Murray had to throw a back-shoulder pass (his specialty) to a receiver running a stop-route against tight man coverage. In the past, Murray might have let that moment overtake him. He might have sailed the ball over Mitchell's head. He might have thrown it too far inside, and had the ball picked by Purifoy.
Not this time.
No, this time Murray made the throw. He overcame three first-half interceptions. He overcame a couple of big drops by his receivers. He stood in the face of the blitz and tossed a pass that put his receiver in a position to break the game open with an amazing run.
The final statline is not impressive. 50% completion for 150 yards, 3 interceptions and 1 touchdown.
But, the one touchdown was a huge one. When Aaron Murray absolutely had to make a throw, he made a hell of a throw...and Georgia won as the result.
Like I said, I don't know that the monkey is off his back....but it looks like the thing's grip is pretty damn strained. The good news? We should see the other Aaron Murray for the rest of the season... you know, the one that plays amazing against bad defenses. And maybe...just maybe, he'll prove to be the SEC's best in the SEC title game.
Go Dawgs!
Just call him Clutch
A kid who was known as a hell of a playmaker had not quite taken the fanbase by storm. There were mixed emotions. We saw the potential. We had seen some results. But, in crucial moments in the past (namely big games like the SEC title game), he had faltered. Many thought perhaps we'd just been caught up in the hype of another highly-rated recruit, who seemed to have all he needed on the field, but perhaps not everything he needed between the ears. Perhaps he wasn't the kind of player who will win you the game in the waning moments.
I'm talking, of course, about Malcolm Mitchell. (See what I did there? You thought I was taking a step back on my disapproval of BigGame Murray. Nope.)
With about 7 minutes to go in the first quarter, Malcolm Mitchell caught his second of two consecutive passes. He wouldn't catch another until Georgia's final scoring drive. In the interim, he would frighten fans by catching a punt with three gators surrounding him and no fair-catch called. He would inexplicably run the ball out from six yards deep in the endzone on kickoffs. After his first catch on that final drive, he would even talk trash, and cost his team ten yards. He didn't look like a player who was going to win the game for Georgia.
Then he made a clutch reception on 2nd down. The play was initially called incomplete, but careful review showed Mitchell pull the ball in, turn, and touch his knee to the ground (ending the play) before the ball was stripped. This gave the Dawgs a 3rd and five instead of a 3rd and ten, which was the key in the final play. Because the Gators had to defend only five yards instead of ten, they couldn't sit back in deep zones. They would have to play up on the Dawgs receivers, so as to not allow a quick-hitter for a first down. Purifoy, the best cover-corner on Florida's roster, covered up Mitchell and played bump-and-run. What's the best route-pass combination for that coverage? A stop route, with a back-shoulder throw. Murray made the throw, and that's why you may want to lean toward calling HIM clutch...but it was Mitchell's run-after-catch that was truly the gamebreaker. Not only did he run a fantastic route and make a fantastic catch, but he read the men in front of him, made his cuts, picked up enough of a block to get a crease, and then exploded into the endzone.
It was clutch. Bobo put the game in the hands of Aaron Murray and Malcolm Mitchell. Murray had been struggling. The receivers hadn't been helping. But when the game was on the line, they came through. Murray made a few throws, and then Mitchell helped his qb in the best way possible - by scoring a TD that would prevent the much-maligned Junior from needing to make another decision. Murray wouldn't have to decide what coverage he was seeing. He wouldn't need to go through his progressions and worry about forcing a pass. No, Malcolm Mitchell had scored a TD that put the Dawgs ahead by 8, and Murray's big-game woes were gone.
That, my friends....is "Clutch."
Go Dawgs.
I'm talking, of course, about Malcolm Mitchell. (See what I did there? You thought I was taking a step back on my disapproval of BigGame Murray. Nope.)
With about 7 minutes to go in the first quarter, Malcolm Mitchell caught his second of two consecutive passes. He wouldn't catch another until Georgia's final scoring drive. In the interim, he would frighten fans by catching a punt with three gators surrounding him and no fair-catch called. He would inexplicably run the ball out from six yards deep in the endzone on kickoffs. After his first catch on that final drive, he would even talk trash, and cost his team ten yards. He didn't look like a player who was going to win the game for Georgia.
Then he made a clutch reception on 2nd down. The play was initially called incomplete, but careful review showed Mitchell pull the ball in, turn, and touch his knee to the ground (ending the play) before the ball was stripped. This gave the Dawgs a 3rd and five instead of a 3rd and ten, which was the key in the final play. Because the Gators had to defend only five yards instead of ten, they couldn't sit back in deep zones. They would have to play up on the Dawgs receivers, so as to not allow a quick-hitter for a first down. Purifoy, the best cover-corner on Florida's roster, covered up Mitchell and played bump-and-run. What's the best route-pass combination for that coverage? A stop route, with a back-shoulder throw. Murray made the throw, and that's why you may want to lean toward calling HIM clutch...but it was Mitchell's run-after-catch that was truly the gamebreaker. Not only did he run a fantastic route and make a fantastic catch, but he read the men in front of him, made his cuts, picked up enough of a block to get a crease, and then exploded into the endzone.
It was clutch. Bobo put the game in the hands of Aaron Murray and Malcolm Mitchell. Murray had been struggling. The receivers hadn't been helping. But when the game was on the line, they came through. Murray made a few throws, and then Mitchell helped his qb in the best way possible - by scoring a TD that would prevent the much-maligned Junior from needing to make another decision. Murray wouldn't have to decide what coverage he was seeing. He wouldn't need to go through his progressions and worry about forcing a pass. No, Malcolm Mitchell had scored a TD that put the Dawgs ahead by 8, and Murray's big-game woes were gone.
That, my friends....is "Clutch."
Go Dawgs.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Shot at Redemption
Collegiate athletes face more public tests of their ability than most people face in their entire lifetimes. Every week, a player can be a hero - or a goat. Not so in the lives of so many fans. Also uniquely theirs, is the opportunity to spin perception on a dime. In the early part of the 2012 season, Aaron Murray was seen as somewhat of a Heisman Candidate. Many thought he had truly matured and become a championship-caliber quarterback. He would finally be able to win the big games, to lead the Bulldogs back to the promised land.
Then South Carolina.
For the first five weeks of the season, the offensive line had looked quite strong. They were opening big holes for young running backs. They were holding their own against the pass rush, protecting Aaron Murray. They were getting out to their assignments on the edge and allowing runs to get big yardage.
Then South Carolina.
A young pair of runningbacks dominated early competition. They exploded for huge runs. They ran out of arm-tackles. They punished defenders instead of taking punishment themselves. They garnered the love of a fanbase, and even of the media. They found a nickname - Gurshall.
Then South Carolina.
After the South Carolina game, the fanbase soured. Our shot had been lost in many eyes. We were again underachieving. For the 8th time in 10 tries, UGA had lost to a ranked opponent. That's not a record that instills a great amount of confidence. Georgia was behind the eight ball. We were forced to sit and wait, and hope that a miracle would happen. We would have to hope that the team that had so thoroughly dominated our squad in Columbia that night would falter, that they would fail, that Steve Spurrier had not yet coached them into a position to run with success, but rather that being so unaccustomed to it, they would let it slip through their hands.
Then South Carolina....lost....and lost again.
So now Georgia, the team whose offense crumbled against South Carolina, stands poised to once again take the reigns of the SEC East Race. The Dawgs did not impress against an overmatched Kentucky team. Oh sure, Aaron Murray was back to early-season form...but what else would we expect? He was facing a team that had no chance to match up with his receiving corps. He wasn't in a "big game"... so naturally, he was going to light up the scoreboard. A career day for him, but the stain from the USC game lingers. The running game wasn't on point against Kentucky. How then, can we expect it to be strong against Florida? The defense was slashed-and gashed against Kentucky. Surely Florida fields a better offense than the worst team in the SEC.
This is Georgia's "Rocky" moment. This week is one of two things - a coming out party for a beleaguered team who will finally stand up and slap down a ranked team, or further proof that against the best competition, we just plain don't get it done. After the South Carolina game, we were left broken and bloody on the mat. But here we are, two weeks later, back on our feet with a chance to knock out the apparent champ, and pave our own way to center-ring to square off with (most likely) Alabama.
Can these athletes once again spin their perception in a 180? Can they now shake the horror that has been the UGA-FL game for the better part of 20 years? Can the young offensive line "Man-Up" and get it done? Can those young backs once again remind a fanbase why they made all those grand comparisons to a bygone hero? Can a quarterback, much maligned by writers such as myself finally stick it in our face and show us that on one day, on one great Saturday, he can play his best, against the best, and finally BE the best?
Saturday is a shot at Redemption. I'll be glad to eat crow if these guys can do it.
Go Dawgs.
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