Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Joe at 3:13:04 PM

EMPTYING JOE`S THOUGHTS

There are a lot of issues regarding our game play, coaching, execution, and other factors of our miserable play. I’m going to try and get them all out in a format that someone may be able to read or understand, but I’m having a hard time understanding it all myself. Maybe someone out there can help me understand.

• Joe Cox – (I’m siding with Dunk on this one) Joe Cox has well outperformed any expectation I had of him this year. He’s clearly not a NFL caliber quarterback and I don’t think he would start on half of the SEC teams this year. Yes, he occasionally throws it to AJ in quadruple coverage, (but who wouldn’t). Cox has the ability to get us out of bad plays, make the throws we need and manage the game effectively. No one else on our roster can bring the same thing. Would I like to see a QB get experience for next year? - ABSOLUTELY. However, “that” QB has an injured arm/shoulder and blew any shot he had to get on the field this year. I think you guys are starting to see that the Coaches don’t have faith in Gray……Murray’s just going get thrown in the fire next year and we will be dealing with another QB situation next year. Now, going back to this year’s QB, the biggest concern for our offense is something that Cox can’t control - the lack of running game and piss poor play calling. Which leads me to…

• Running Backs – WTF!!! (What the F***). I am completely shocked that the coaches actually had the balls to take the redshirt off of Mr. Ealey, but I’m glad they did (at least we have a glimmer of hope). Samuel is the fastest of any RB we have and has the build of a freakish athlete, but he has ZERO ability to break any tackles – which is imperative when playing in the SEC. Caleb King will impress with a run but then looks like he is more interested in the cheerleaders for his next three attempts. Both have pass protected as well as we could have hoped for, which is the one reason we’re not going to see Mr. Ealey for the 20+ touches Nate has requested. He just doesn’t know the offense well enough to pass protect the way it needs to be done – which is unfortunate that we can’t get him coached up quick enough. Kind of makes you question the hiring of a former WR to coach your running backs with no prior coaching experience– huh?

• Offensive Line Play - WTF AGAIN!!! This unit was supposed to be one of the best in the nation. I think we had the 2nd most returning starts out of 116 D-1 schools. Now I will say that we have been pass protecting EXTREMELY well. Joe Cox is about as mobile as a 6’2” 275 lb HR Director and I don’t recall him getting sacked very much this year. However, as well noted, we can’t run the ball for sh!t. and I really can’t figure it out. We have ample talent up front but where is our toughness? I know that a good running back can make us look better than we are and that does have something to do with our struggles. Think back to all those runs that Knowshon turned a 3 yard loss into a 2 yard gain. That was solely on his shoulders….. we just don’t have that kind of back ready to go 20+ times a game. I loved what I saw from Ealey, but our OLine must improve if we want any shot at beating Florida or Tech. I really think we have one of the best OL Coaches in the country and I hope he can start working his magic….SOON

• Kicking Coverage – I’ll dig into the Celebration Penalty in a few paragraphs, but the fact of the matter is our Kicking Coverage is pathetic. I cringe on every kickoff – it’s either going out of bounds, a short kick to give the other team field position beyond the 35, or getting returned for 40+ yards. Drew Butler is a great punter, but he’s kicking it out of our coverage area (or we just suck – which is more likely) and are giving up the 3rd most punt return yards per attempt in the nation. I’m more ready for John Fabris to go than Willie or Bobo.

• Undisciplined play/Coaching – I hate to say this, but I think this is the worst coached team of Mark Richt’s tenure, which is extremely discouraging considering I had those same thoughts about last year’s team. I don’t think we have improved, I think we have gotten worse. Do you think an Alabama or Florida defensive back would have tried to return that pick? I don’t think so. Saban and Meyer teams are better coached than we are. That bone-head decision turned an amazing play into an “equalizer” as far as the turnover is concerned. We had no field position or option and ended up giving them the ball back inside their own territory. It almost completely negated the interception.

I understand the not wanting to play without aggression, however, we are once again one of the most penalized teams in the country. I can live with an occasional unnecessary roughness, I cant live with false starts, breaking the huddle with 12 men, and countless other penalties that just shouldn’t occur more than once a season.

Yes, we did hold LSU to 6 points when we easily could have given up 21, however, they moved the ball up and down the field all day long. We couldn’t get a stop when we needed to. Not to mention giving up 2 critical TD’s in under 3 minutes.

The offensive play calling must improve. Bobo is too streaky and unwilling to adapt to the changes needed in a more timely matter. I could have called a better first half, but his 4th quarter was the reason he is back there. Just get it together on a consistent basis!

Richt’s loyalty to his coaches is killing me. He needs to put some fear into these guys and I just don’t think his balls are built to do it. Fabris, Bobo, McClendon, Janak, and Martinez need some “foot up their ass chewing bitch slapping punch in the throat eye poking nut punching” fear!

• Recruiting – Nate’s right. Statistically (from a rankings standpoint) we have recruited with the best of them. However, what we haven’t done is recruit to position needs. Think about the OL problems we had early in Richt’s tenure? Then it turned into multiple QB problems (‘06, ‘09, ’10). What about the secondary? There should have been more DBs on the roster. We needed the right guys a year earlier. We wait too long to solve an upcoming problem.

• Celebration Penalty – Yes, we could have had a chance to stop them anyway, but that penalty completely changed the state of LSU’s mind. It was one of the worst calls I’ve seen. We just came from behind with 69 seconds to play. They tried to make it up with the subsequent call on LSU, but the damage was already done. Pathetic.

• AJ Green and Rennie Curran – I cringe at the though of where this team would be without these two guys. I wouldn’t trade them for anybody in the nation at either of their respective positions. AJ is the best wide receiver I’ve ever seen play at Georgia or against Georgia. A complete game changer (or in our case game keep-us-close’r). Rennie Curran just has a nose for the football. He is a pure football player. I bet he would be the best fullback we had if he needed to be. I love both of these guys and they are part of the legacy that is the Georgia Bulldogs.

• The state of our program. I hate to say it, but we are on a slide. I know we have talent to rise back up (and the talent that Florida and Alabama will lose after this year will help), but we have got to get this thing going in the right direction or we could take a giant step backwards. We ARE lucky to have Richt and I DO NOT think in any way shape or form does he need to go. He just needs to make some of the tough decisions needed to get this show back on the road.

With all of that said, don’t fret too much, all is not lost. Georgia is still in the same shape as we were before. All roads to the SEC championship still lead through Florida. If we can take care of business the next two weeks then we will have set ourselves up for exactly what we would have asked for at the beginning of the year – a chance to beat Florida and still win the East.

Personally, I think we finish 9 – 3 with a shot at 10 wins with the bowl, although 8 – 4 isn’t that far off. We will not be 7 – 5.

I hope some of this rambling makes some sense. I still love ‘em even though they pissed me off so much that I went to bed right after the game.

Let’s just have some fun kicking “Lame” Kiffin’s @ss.

GO DAWGS

COMMENTS:

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Dunk at 3:37:00 PM

You went to bed at 7:30?

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Joe at 3:50:14 PM

Yes. at 8 o`clock, after I put Luke down, I went down.

i`m still pissed

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Nate at 3:58:50 PM

I have to admit that I just can`t get a grip on Dunk and Joe`s man-crush on Joe Cox. Seems like a great guy and I am very glad he`s a part of the UGA football program. So was Tereshinski. Let`s call mediocrity for what it is. A middle-of-the-pack QB is not what UGA should be trotting out. And let`s not toss out stats when even Cory Phillips had a 400-yard game back in the day. A lot Cox`s yards are because the WR (namely AJ) are catching balls (as opposed to the dropsies UGA had been plagued with earlier this decade) and making plays. For such a smart and accurate QB, I have seen a lot of throws into double coverage with wide open check down receivers. I`ve seen missed wide open receivers. I honestly don`t mean to be totally dogging out Cox like this, but I just can`t get over how ya`ll keep defending so blindly. Let`s be real honest. If Cox completes those passes that he should have in the first half, you`re probably not dogging out Bobo for his play calling either.

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Joe at 4:05:59 PM

I never said Joe Cox was a David Greene or DJ Shockley and we SHOULD be trotting someone better out on the feild. However, we dont have the person to do that. We should have, but we dont. Joe Cox is better than what I thought he would be.

You wouldn`t be happy with those statistics if we were averaging 150 yds on the ground?

What were you expecting out of Cox? I dont know how you could have expected more than what he is.

Did you ever think he could out throw AJ Green? He said it was the first time he had ever done it. You actually agree with that first pass screen play to AJ in our first series? If he had caught it he was dead in his tracks.....2 LBs were right there waiting. It was probably better that he didnt complete it (for AJ`s health).

Yes, he was off, but he was a lot closer to DG/DJ/MS than he was to JT3.

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Dunk at 8:23:15 PM

So, Nate is pulling the "man-crush" card now. I could have pulled it when you were rambling on about playing Logan Gray, but I didn`t because you had justification. The quarterback position has been the center of controversy since Stafford decided to leave for the NFL, so this has been up for debate for a while now. I`m just calling it like I see it. Too bad you and Foltz are on the wrong side of the tracks with this debate. Joe Cox has been better than what I thought through the first 5 games of the season and we can`t ask for anything more, except for better playing calling and a running back to break a few tackles.

I guess you need to change your Fantasy Football team name now.

Monday, October 05, 2009

Posted by Nate at 9:55:23 PM

Yeah, I need to change my fantasy team name to Cox for the Reggie Ball Award!!

Okay, Joe, you`re making my point. You ask me how I could expect him to be more than what he is. Yes, the 5 TDs against Arkansas and all the yardage have been nice, but those things aren`t what I`m talking about. I`m not asking Cox to be more than he is; I`m asking him to be exactly what he is. Supposedly he`s a smart decision maker (2 pick-sixes) with pinpoint accuracy (horribly inaccurate at times), yet I`ve seen inconsistency in both areas. Cox`s great numbers from a yardage and TD standpoint are more a function of solid receiver play and are masking what I perceive to be a larger problem. And look, I`m not saying we need to bench the guy. I`m saying that another QB on the roster needs to get at least 1, maybe 2 series a game...to run the offense, not hand the ball off on an option read. Anyway, clearly we need to agree to disagree on this because it`s looking like we could go on forever.

To some of your other points. I agree that the kick return coverage and offensive line play are both much more disappointing and more relevant to our 2 losses than the play of Joe Cox. With two blue chip running backs (not even counting Ealey), and our returning o-linemen we should averaging close to 200 yards per game on the ground. It is actually quite alarming to me that we cannot seem to control the line of scrimmage. And kick coverage....what can I say. This continues to be a HUGE problem that affects field position and directly impacted the result of the game this past weekend. Richt devoted starters (the supposed better athletes) this year to improve the problem. It hasn`t worked, so that leads me to believe there is somehow a larger fundamental issue here in one of the most conventional parts of the game. Discipline is somehow a large problem with this team.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Posted by Foltz at 10:38:24 AM

I may be beating a dead horse but I didn’t get a chance to read your blawg until this morning...

Nate’s recruiting statistics are very interesting because every team he mentioned has won a national championship this decade and most of them have played for a BCS Title game more than once. The recruits are there and that is why I don’t want to hear any excuses about any team we put on the field. Whether it’s coaching or recruiting busts, the system is only working for us to beat the teams we’re supposed to, but not the team’s we know we need to defeat in order to get to the next level. And Joe, I agree about the recruiting needs and you need to mention the lack of recruiting solid defensive ends, too. That’s an issue that is going on three years now.

And are you two (Joe and Dunk) even listening to what Nate and I are saying about Joe Cox? Yes, he`s been what we thought he was going to be...and that is nothing special. You two are pretty much saying the exact same thing by saying "I don`t know how you could have expected more than what he is." That sounds just like a girl telling you her friend is cute before you`ve seen her. You know "cute" from a girl means fat and lonely but has a great personality. Nate and I are only pointing to the fact that UGA shouldn`t settle for a QB like Joe Cox. Do you think USC, Florida, Texas, and Oklahoma would? That`s our point.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Posted by Dunk at 11:02:07 AM

I think Foltz and Nate are confused and lost track of this debate. I was ONLY defending Cox`s game play against LSU and strongly disagreed with Nate on this quote: "he was the primary reason we lost that game Saturday". We lost because we were cheated and Bobo`s play calling was horrible in the first half. Now, I`m beating a dead horse. By the way, if you guys haven`t heard the SEC has come out and said that the excessive celebration call was a bad call. :)

I agree that Cox is not a top 10 college quarterback. Maybe Gray or Murray should have started the season at QB (I still think Cox is the best man for the job). That is up for another debate, but I am merely defending Joe Cox`s game play against LSU. Honestly, UGA could easily be 5-0, but we seem to find ways to lose and beat ourselves. Overall, I think Cox has played well enough to have 5 wins right now, but if we didn`t have AJ or someone of his caliber, then we could easily be 0-5 or 1-4 right now.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Posted by Foltz at 11:08:47 AM

You really think Cox played well enough to beat Oklahoma State and LSU? Seriously? And we were cheated? Really? You`re right, Nate and I are confused and lost track of this debate.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Posted by Joe at 11:39:29 AM

I think we are basically saying the same thing. I never said I would WANT Joe Cox as my starter. I`m saying that he is what we have, and for what he is, he has played better than my expectations.

Joe Cox did not play well enough to beat the Pokes, but HE DID play well enough to beat LSU. Heck, he did beat LSU. 13 - 12, only to have defense and special teams let him down in the end.

Joe Cox`s play wasnt the reason we couldn`t move the ball in the first have. 24 rushes for 45 yards was a MUCH larger reason for that.

We weren`t "cheated", but that penalty did give life to LSU. Yes, we shouldacouldawishwewoulda stopped them, but a shorter field definitely helped.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Posted by Nate at 1:26:01 PM

I think Joe and Dunk must have watched a different game Saturday. Yes, Joe Cox played well enough to beat LSU....if we had the defense of the 85 Bears. I understand that the defense allowed 2 touchdowns in the 4th quarter, but they also bowed up and kept the score at 6-0 at halftime. I`m not a big fan of the "bend-but-don`t-break" defensive scheme, but, whether you like it or not, we executed it brilliantly in the first half. LSU scores 6 points when they DOMINATED time of possession and field position the entire half. I`m not hanging that game on the defense. Should Dowtin have wrapped up, yes. But it shouldn`t have come to that.

I will admit that I was a little over zealous by saying that Cox was the primary reason we lost. I would say that the o-line and our lack of a running game was the primary reason, with Cox`s play coming in 2nd. I have been highly suspect of Bobo`s play calling for a while too, but I really don`t put this one on him. I saw enough plays that didn`t work on Saturday purely because of poor execution that I honestly can`t say whether or not the calls were that bad.

And, hey, I`m pissed about the bogus penalty too, but guess what. I don`t think it changed the outcome of the game at all. If we allow a 40 yard return and a 5 yard penalty, they have the ball on their 48 instead of our 37 without the penalty. And remember, it was a 1 point game since we failed on the 2-pt conversion, so they would still have only needed to gain 15-20 yards to have a reasonable shot at the game winning field goal. My guess is that the penalty was the difference in us losing 20-13 rather than us losing 15-13. (Unless AJ could have blocked that one too.)

I do think we`re all saying the same thing about Cox, in that, that is not the talent level UGA should be putting on the field. However, I do think we see things differently in terms of what Cox has produced versus expectations. The way I see it, solid receiver play and porous opposing defenses have been the real reasons for Cox`s favorable numbers. I just can`t get past some of his decision making and accuracy issues. I`ve never complained about his lack of arm strength because we knew that coming in. But I also thought I knew that he was smart with the football and extremely accurate.

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