UGA Football 07' - What a Ride

Look, I felt incredible at the end of last season. What with the incredible lows we experienced, to finish the way we did against Auburn, Tech and VaTech was a high that puts 2006 in my own personal record books as one of the best seasons I've experienced in terms of a team growing up and hard work paying off.

That said...good GOD has 2007 been a wild ride!!! From defying the ESPN gods and destroying Oklahoma State to embarrassing Tech and getting just this close to the National Title, what a year it has been!

Game 1: Georgia vs. Oklahoma State

The first indicator I had that this was a year when all the powers-that-be would be against us was when my College Pigskin Preview edition of Playboy arrived and Georgia WAS NOT RANKED. That's right, Playboy -- who usually gets a lot of respect from me in their preseason picks -- did not have Georgia in its preseason top 25. Oklahoma State, however, was ranked #25. This was predicated on the idea that Oklahoma State could beat us. Well, I was at that Oklahoma State game, and I was surprised HYPEspn didn't pack up their cameras and go home when we went up 21-7. After all, the story that they wanted to report wasn't happening. Maybe they could get some mileage out of the App State/Michigan game, focus on that, maybe? Especially since they had focused all week on OSU beating us in our house with \"the greatest offense in the world.\"

DAWGS 35, POKES 14


Game 2: Georgia vs. South Carolina

From the get-go I knew it was going to be a bad day. When SCarolina scored immediately, my grandfather said, \"Oh well, wait till next year.\" He was wrong, but in a way, he was right. After all, losing to the Cocks ended up being what cost us both a shot at the SEC title and a shot at the National title. We played abysmally. Stafford looked lost, Tripp Chandler -- so sure-handed last year and in the second half of this year -- dropped everything that was thrown to him, and the Gamecocks were just so much faster than we were. Losing that game was almost as bad as losing to Tennessee last year. That one hurt.

DAWGS 12, COCKS 16


Game 3: Georgia vs. Western Carolina

I was worried during this game. We trailed at one point, and led by something like four at the half. This was a team in WCU that had already lost 12 straight, and we looked ordinary against them. \"Uh oh,\" I thought, \"here comes a repeat of last year.\" Nothing of note in this game until we blew the scoreboard open in the second half like we were supposed to.

DAWGS 45, CATAMOUNTS 16


Game 4: Georgia at Alabama

Unlike its stellar ending, this was a fairly frustrating game from a fan's standpoint, although a GREAT game from a football purist's standpoint. Twice we led by 10 points (10-0, 20-10) and twice we let Alabama tie the score up. Then Surefoot Coutu got up to kick the gamewinner...and missed!!! What really upset me -- and still has me questioning CWM's abilities -- is the fact that we completely outplayed 'Bama the entire game, even when they were tying us up. It almost reminded me of the Ole Miss game last year, when we only beat a TERRIBLE team by 5 points.

All that changed in overtime, didn't it? Bama gets the ball first, can't do anything, and kicks a field goal to take their first lead of that long, long day. Georgia comes up to the line, Bobo nearly vomits up in the booth calling the play, and next thing you know it's Scott Howard screaming \"ONE AND DONE, BABY!!!\" What an ending!!! How fantastic to have beaten Bama in Tuscaloosa for only the second time in school history!!! I watched that game with my little brother in my living room, and we had to jump up and down silently because my kids were asleep. Don't worry...I made up for it the rest of that week yelling out at random that Richt 3:16 says \"we just whooped some Crimson ass!!!\"

DAWGS 26, TIDE 23


Game 5: Georgia vs. Ole Miss

Is it just me, or does Ole Miss recruit some BIG BOYS? Those boys were huge up front, and it really didn't help us that they were blocking for Benjarvis Green-Ellis, who ran all over us. Nobody knew, because it wasn't televised and you couldn't tell from the final score, that Ole Miss played us tough for three quarters. Unfortunately for the Rebels, football ain't hockey, and you gotta play four periods. Georgia blew it up in the fourth quarter, and the final drive really heartened me. Cox led it very well, Kalvin Daniels ran all over Ole Miss and Fred Munzenmaier (the first recipient of the Larry Munson scholarship) plowed into the end zone for his first career touchdown and our final score of the day.

DAWGS 45, OLE MISS 17


Game 6: Georgia at Tennessee

Do I have to talk about this game? Aside from two stellar plays -- both of which resulted in touchdowns, which shows you how terrible the rest of our game was -- we looked like a backup JV squad playing against the Bear Bryant Tide teams of the '70s. There was NO WAY we were going to beat Tennessee that day, and Dawg Nation was the only group of people who didn't know that going in, apparently. I'm not going to lie; I quit watching. Took my kids to Chuck E. Cheese.

DAWGS 14, VOLS 35


Game 7: Georgia at Vanderbilt

Retribution time. Vandy played us tough; for the first half of the season they had a damn good defense. It was just when it mattered (against Florida and Tennessee) that their defense decided to flounder. But we couldn't move on them. Do you remember that phenomenal catch that the Vandy WR made in the end zone against us? Incredible. Absolutely beyond incredible. If it were any other team, I would have said I wish Vandy had won that game so that that highlight would be on every reel across the country. But the other team was the Dawgs, and Brandon Coutu was still smarting from missing the gamewinner against Alabama. The result? Coutu boots one for the whole ball of wax and we get retribution for last year's debacle, which I thought was going to cause my uncle to commit suicide.

DAWGS 20, VANDY 17


Game 8: Georgia vs. Florida

After the way we struggled against Vandy, I was worried. For about twenty-four hours. Then I remembered that I've known since we lost to Florida by only 7 last year that this year we'd beat them. Then I remembered that I had promised everyone I knew that we would serve up some Tebow pancakes this year. Then I remembered that we still had the rivalry games to play, that we had a great young team and a coach who couldn't lose to Florida forever...could he?

Here is what happened: we sacked Tebow on the first play from scrimmage. Here is what happened: we forced Tebow to fumble the football, then ran eight consecutive running plays and jumped Knowshon into the end zone for the win. Sure, it only put us up 7-0 in the first quarter, but we won the game right there. Trinton Sturdivant won the game all by himself, dancing the way he did. We went in there KNOWING we were going to win, and we left knowing the same thing. Not only was the Florida game our coming out party as a team, it was Knowshon's coming out party as an entire CHAPTER in the history of Georgia football. The kid ran for 153 against Florida, accounting for three of our touchdowns. Scott Howard made the call in the fourth quarter: \"Gator fans are scurrying for the exits as fast as their slithery little bodies will carry them.\"

DAWGS 42, GATORS 30


Game 9: Georgia vs. Troy

Sure Troy gave us fits. Sure, it was a trap game between Florida and Auburn, and against a very good team. Sure, we didn't play our best football. But KnoMo ran for over 100 again, our defense figured out how to confound Omar Haugabook and Homecoming was Homecoming again.

DAWGS 44, TROY 34


Game 10: Georgia vs. Auburn

The last time I had this good a time at a football game, we beat Auburn in 2003. Walking into Sanford Stadium and seeing everyone in the stands in black, I felt something special and incredible wash over me. I knew that this year's Rivalry was going to be an experience no one would ever forget. The energy in the stands was palpable, and when I couldn't see the players behind their flag (my seats are in the locker-room endzone) I knew something special was about to happen. Then our Dawgs ran out in black and the top of my head blew off. Luckily it fell back down in the exact right place and knitted itself to my skull perfectly, leaving only a mild buzzing feeling. I thought we were going to tear the structure apart, and Larry's hyperbole regarding the stadium falling down would finally come true. I knew Auburn had no shot.

Then the game started. What? We still have to play a game? I thought we had already won! So on the first play from scrimmage we intercepted Brandon Cox. KnoMo ran for a buck ninety against Auburn, and they suffered their worst beatdown since 1950. Brandon Cox threw four interceptions, just like he did last year, and Matthew Stafford threw one of the most beautiful touchdown passes -- to Mohammed Massaquoi -- that I have ever seen, even slightly more so than the one he threw to MoMass against Florida two weeks before. Even when Auburn was up 20-17, I knew they were going down. Granted, I didn't know that they wouldn't score again, but I knew they wouldn't win.

Was I the only one who didn't want to leave?

DAWGS 45, WARTIGEREAGLEPLAINSMEN 20


Game 11: Georgia vs. Kentucky

Retribution. Pure and simple. No other word for it. I took my wife to this game -- she had gone to the Vandy game with me the previous year, so I was nervous -- and we sat there like the Grinch, hating the Whos. It wasn't a pretty game, but it felt good to beat some Kentucky hind end. KnoMo got 101 -- five straight with 100 yards -- and Rafael Little was held to 38 yards rushing. Even more importantly, it was Senior Day, and the win ensured that our Seniors had gotten revenge on every team that had beaten them the year before save Tennessee...who, believe me, need to watch the hell out come October 2008.

DAWGS 24, WILDCATS 13


Game 12: Georgia at Georgia Tech

Oh, just jubilation and elation. Seven straight. Tech fired their coach afterwards. Thomas Brown took over for KnoMo, who got hurt, and ran all over the stinking Jackets. For the second straight game, Matthew Stafford ran a play-action QB sneak to perfection and walked into the endzone untouched. Larry travelled to Atlanta to call the game, and my whole family was at my house to watch. Sure I was too excited to eat and my family scarfed down all the pizza, and sure Kentucky blew a sure-fire field goal and sent Tennessee and not us to the SEC championship game. But in the end, we MURDERED Georgia Tech by the same score Richt achieved in his first year. We slapped those punks in the face and told them to go back to their inferior conference. THIS IS A BIG BOY'S GAME, YOU PATHETIC NATS!!!

DAWGS 31, PIECES OF CRAP 17


Now we're going to the Sugar Bowl, the Holy Grail of the Southeastern Conference. If things shake out correctly, we could finish this season ranked as high as #3 or #2. We have to take care of business first, though, so get after that Haka ass!!!


GO DAWGS!!!!

dapolla, that was GREAT!!!!!!!!!!

Love your post dapolla. Where do you find the time?

AWESOME dapolla! Couldn't have said it ANY better!
GOOOO DAWGS!!!
KNOCK THE COLORS OUT OF THE RAINBOW!!!

Enjoyed that dapolla, thanks for taking the time.