The State of the Bulldog Union

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Bulldog Nation, Board of Regents, President Michael Adams douchebag, and Damon Evans, thank you for allowing me this opportunity to speak on the state of the UGA program, the year that was 2008, and our goals and expectations for 2009 and beyond.

2008 began for many in the Bulldog Nation in the Crescent City: eating sugary beignets, drinking 3 for 1 Bloody Marys at 9:30 a.m., and witnessing a #2 national finish. It is this Dawg fan’s wish that the 2009 season end, at worst, the same way.

2009 was supposed to began for the Bulldog Nation in Little Havana: eating plantains, drinking Mojitos, and witnessing our first national championship since 1980. As we are all aware, that did not happen.

The reasons why have been the subjects of much debate:

• Injuries. UGA was a walking M*A*S*H unit this year
• Line play. At its core, football is only two things: blocking and tackling. Both of those start at the line of scrimmage. Stacey Searles is the best O-Line coach in the country, but you can only coach around injuries and inexperience so much. I do however get a sense of optimism when I watch LSU’s offensive line, all recruited by and coached up by Searles. If we get that huge and that nasty, I’ll be very, very happen. And Ben Jones, I’m hoping you turn into the leader on the line I envision you being. The D-Line was another story. Certainly injuries hurt at well, especially to Owens. The Defensive Ends were banged up all camp and just didn’t get the practice they needed. Our Defensive Tackles coach is allegedly a great coach and recruiter, but this year there seemed to be a lack of talent and improvement at that position.
• Penalties. Call it lack of discipline, some bad luck, or even a payment for the 2007 Celebration and Blackout, but UGA got penalties in bunches in 2008. Watching the BCS National Championship game, we were reminded that both OU and UF were among the most penalized teams in the country. The difference this year was the timing of those penalties.
• Lack of Big Plays on Defense. Ironically, the most explosive offense we’ve had in 10 years was on the same team with a defense that just couldn’t get off the field when it mattered.
• Special Teams. This is a topic for a separate address. Lets just say they were….subpar.

Blow out losses to Alabama, Florida, and the GT debacle took the wind out of sails of a season that saw UGA open at #1. However, in retrospect, finishing the season #1 would have been a colossal accomplishment for this team. The brutal schedule we thought we had never fully bear its teeth, but it was still tough enough to be rated one of the hardest in the country. Of particular interest was not who we played, but WHEN we played them. We got Alabama after playing at Carolina and then having to travel ¾ of the way across the fruited plain. Then we got Florida after going to Death Valley. I could go on about our scheduling for days, but consider this: no SEC team played three consecutive road games. UGA however, played at LSU, in Jacksonville, at Kentucky, and at Auburn. Because UGA was the “home” team in Jacksonville, the league office didn’t consider our schedule as consisting of more than two consecutive road games. As you might have guessed, there will be more on this in the “goals and expectations for 2009 and beyond.”

Most disappointing about this season was that there never seemed to be any steady improvement as the year went on. Maybe that was due to having so many moving pieces with the injuries and line problems, but it is troubling as this was the first Richt team that I thought was better in week one than at the end of the year.

Having to watch UF win another national title is tough to swallow. Let’s not forget however, that a year ago UF’s situation wasn’t that different from ours today. Whether we make similar improvements will be a very telling sign about the direction of the program.

This brings us to the expectations for 2009. I personally feel that 2009, much like 2005, will be a defining year for the program. Winning when everyone is expecting a dropoff is the sign of a strong program. For that to happen, here are some things I want to see, along with some other general suggestions for the future of our program:

• Your new full time special teams coach: Mark Richt. Let’s not forget that before he was a head coach, Mark Richt was a hell of a coordinator. He knows X’s and O’s, he knows personnel, and he knows talent. Before he put in the “fast-break” no huddle offense at FSU, he didn’t know much about it. So he went to Buffalo, Tampa Bay, and other places that ran it and figured it out. He can do the same with special teams. Go to Virginia Tech, go to the Steelers, go wherever the hell you need to go, and let’s stop losing the field position battle in big games.
• A recommitment to sound, fundamental tackling. Our fundamentals started deteriorating around the same time Greg Blue decided he’d rather decapitate Steve Slaton instead of wrapping him up. The UGA identity must be hardnosed, fundamentally sound, physical defense. We’ve never won anything of any substance with any other formula. I know the injuries cut back the amount of live tackling in practice in 2008. Lesson learned; let’s never make that mistake again.
• Establishing a better home field advantage. Acoustics work against UGA, and there’s not a whole lot that can be done about that. The open endzone and the seats being so far from the field can’t really be changed. But there’s no reason Athens shouldn’t be as feared a venue as LSU, Auburn, etc. We just need to find a niche and stick with it. I thought the idea of the terrible towels in ’06 was good. But “I’m Georgia” was lame and the towels were too friggin’ big. At LSU and Auburn, the entire stadium uses the shakers. It looks awesome on TV and is noticeable to recruits. UF has the Gator Chomp. Even MSU has those stupid cowbells. We need to find something that is uniquely UGA that is instantly recognizable besides our mascot.
• A feeling that the team represents the ENTIRE state. GT doesn’t count. UGA is the state of GA. I mean running out with a state flag, more state flags in the stands, and an attitude that our state is better than our opponent’s, so our football team has to be too.
• Pissing in Florida’s cornflakes and not apologizing for it. The media loves Florida. Just like the news media would rather follow Barack to Hawaii than Bush to Crawford, the sports media is going to give Florida the benefit of the doubt no matter what. Before 1990, when UF had never won anything, the media still loved them and tried to convince everyone they were a football power. Now ESPN has Jessie Palmer, Erin Andrews, and Emmitt Smith working for them. Cris Colinsworth is on NBC. The Gator influence is everywhere. This is why it is CRITICALLY important for us to not take any shit from them. Punch them back. Call them names. Call timeouts in the last minute of any contest we’re beating them in. Do not apologize for it. Spurrier built UF into a winner primarily by understanding the importance of beating UGA. He got a bye week before UGA, and he beat us not only on the field, but in the media. In my mind, he single-handedly did more to create this notion that UGA isn’t UF’s equal than anyone else. 2007 was a start and I realize we had to eat some crow for it in 2008. But we CANNOT continue to treat Florida like they are better than us. THEY’RE NOT!! They just don’t waste their advantages and MAKE people beat them. Which is what we have to do. Getting the WLOCP to a home and home would be a great start.