From Athens- Game Day Friday #5

Buc wrote: If you folks have not heard this, worth listening to.

www.yahoosportsradio.com/shows/mark-rich...ill-in-the-mix-8356/

Good interview. I am ready to pad-up!

Looking for something on Friday night, came up with this. Those that have not read this, good read by Seth and what he expects. Pretty much a heads up.

STARKVILLE — The road awaits, but before we cross time zones, let’s take a look at the other side.

Georgia beat writer Seth Emerson provided some detailed intel on the Bulldogs of Athens in this week’s edition of the Q&A session. You should follow Seth on Twitter (@SethEmerson), read his articles and check out his blog.

On to the other side …

Set the scene for us, Seth. I’m sure some of the pressure on Mark Richt was alleviated after the win against Ole Miss, but what are the fans expecting this week and beyond in Athens?

I said after the loss to South Carolina that pretty much every week would be a referendum on Richt, whether that’s fair or not. Ole Miss began a four-week stretch of games where the Bulldogs probably couldn’t lose any of them, and those four winnable games lead up to a fifth one that may decide his fate: Florida in Jacksonville. After beating Ole Miss – and with South Carolina and Boise State remaining unbeaten – I wouldn’t say the hot seat stuff has died down, but it has been put off. And it’ll be put off every week he wins, then come back with a vengeance whenever they lose. That’ll be especially true if Georgia loses on Saturday to Mississippi State, which 1) hasn’t been impressive so far, and 2) is coached by a guy fans have mentioned as a potential replacement. (That’s the elephant in the room. I figured I’d just get that out of the way.)

Oh, if I could show you all of the emails from fans, Seth.

Georgia’s secondary might be the best group Mississippi State has faced this season (well, LSU was pretty darn good, too). What makes this UGA group so special?

Experience and speed, mainly. Cornerback Brandon Boykin is a senior, CB Branden Smith and safeties Bacarri Rambo, Shawn Williams and Sanders Commings are all juniors. Boykin and Smith are also very speedy and athletic, so much so that they return kicks and punts and have been used on offense. Georgia’s longest play from scrimmage this season? It belongs to Boykin, on an 80-yard run against Boise State. That’s not to say this is a shut-down secondary yet. They’ve been susceptible to the big play in the past, and Ole Miss uncorked a couple in the second quarter on Saturday. But otherwise this is a group that has been great on third downs, which was the defense’s big problem last year.

Isaiah Crowell has certainly been a surprise in the SEC, and his ability to hold onto the ball as a freshman might be his most impressive stat. Is he the catalyst or is the offensive turnaround more on Aaron Murray’s shoulders?


Georgia running back Isaiah Crowell (1) celebrates a touchdown against South Carolina with quarterback Aaron Murray (11), in Athens, Ga. (AP Photo/John Amis, File)
Oh, it’s Crowell for sure. He’s lived up to the hype. He can run between the tackles and to the outside, and he’s showed the ability to catch the ball and make things happen. He’s just a smooth, strong runner. The one thing he hasn’t done is have breakaway runs, turn 15-20 yarders into touchdowns. Richt said this week he expects that to happen eventually.

As for Murray, he’s actually been a bit inconsistent, but I would attribute that to not having A.J. Green and Kris Durham to throw to this year. I’m not ready to crown this offense yet – channeling my inner Dennis Green – because the offensive line is still wobbly and one injury away from disaster. The receiving corps has benefited from the emergence of freshman Malcolm Mitchell. But there’s still no A.J. Green back there.

What do you expect Georgia to do on defense against MSU’s spread attack? UGA certainly has the push up front, but what about the edges? Will a safety help in run support?

You’re exactly right, the question is what happens around the edges. Georgia’s run defense up front has been shored up by the nose tackles – junior college transfer John Jenkins and improving sophomore Kwame Geathers have just made the line bigger and better. But in the second half against South Carolina, Steve Spurrier adjusted and started sending Marcus Lattimore on outside runs, and it worked. I think Georgia has the speed to plug up the outside; I mentioned Boykin and Smith before, and outside linebackers Jarvis Jones and Cornelius Washington are very good as well. The problem, as I’ve seen it, is Georgia’s defenders sometimes get sucked in to the inside fake and leave the outside open. The question is whether that’s just experience and scheming that can be fixed.

If you’re up for it, give us your prediction and how you see this one developing between the hedges Saturday.

I would’ve called this a toss-up a week ago, but based on last week’s results I have to go with Georgia. (Side note: Louisiana Tech stayed at the same hotel as me in Tupelo last Friday night. No particular insight. Just kind of interesting to me.) Anyway, I also don’t think it helps Mississippi State’s cause that it has to travel on Friday and get up for a noon kick-off (and 11 a.m. Mississippi time.) That said Georgia’s defense, as good as I think it is right now, hasn’t seen a big athletic quarterback like Relf just yet, and with Chad Bumphis and Vick Ballard it’s not a one-man show. So I could see Mississippi State being able to move the ball pretty well, and as I said Georgia’s offense has been inconsistent. That’s why I wouldn’t consider a Mississippi State win on Saturday to be some giant upset. But I guess the line is Georgia by about a touchdown; that seems about right.

Thanks for the time, Seth. See you in the press box.

— Brandon Marcello

TN Dawg wrote:

RxCowboy wrote: I do miss Athens on game days. <really big sigh>

Me too brother. Lived there 2002 - 2009. Nothing like The Classic City during football season. I still get excited driving there to go to games.

Speaking of games in Athens, MSU better get ready for a fight. I hate trash talk. BUT here are my predictions:
*Jenkins will control line with help of returning Robinson, D will notch 4 sacks, DB's will have 2 ints. Total points allowed 19. Late trash TD.
*Offense will continue to sputter, however quick strikes will end with TD's, at least 3. Crowell will get 100. Charles will have 7 catches for 150 yds. Mitchell will catch a long TD pass.
*Walsh will miss NO fg's or PAT's
*UGA 34 - MSU 19

Hope I am correct. GO DAWGS!

Let's see how i did.

D line played well and controlled line. Jenkins and Owens both had big games. Linebackers looked good in coverage and plugging holes. I like way defense played overall. We had 4 sacs before halftime. DB's had one int. However Commings and Boykins missed sure pick 6's for sure. Overall score A

Offense looked good in 1st half, but did struggle in 2nd half. No sustained drives. Murray had three interceptions, one for 6. If he puts a little air under one pass #7 has 6. We missed two excellent scoring opportunities in 2nd half. One was a muffed snap on FG and one was with FG. You need 6 when you start within red zone. Crowell had 90 yards in 1st half and limited yards in 2nd. Thomas & Sammuel did good job when called on. Offensive line played well opening huge holes for backs. Charles and Mitchell both had TD catches. Overall score B-

Walsh made 1 FG and can't be blamed for bad snap. Butler and special teams kept MSU pinned deep with great kicks and excellent coverage. Overall score A-

Missed score by -10 UGA and -9 MSU.

I will take the win though...and I retire.

Offense a B-.....the D set up 2 of Td's they got only 1 TD on a long sustained drive.....they got nothing in the 2nd half.......nothing...O line shut down in the 2nd half even Crowell was shaking his head....at best the Offense gets a D from me.....so much talent and cannot play a complete football game....coaches "sit" on the lead and do not let the offense open up....need to gain some confidence going into the meat of the SEC schedule.....so not wanting to show our playbook as some have stated...is just poor coaching or plain stoopid......


The O sucks plain and simple.......

The good , the bad and concerns (thought I was going "ugly", didn't you)

1. What is up with AM??? He makes great throws then stupid mistakes. He has enough experience to know better than to keep FORCING throws into coverage. He's going to cost us in a big game if he doesn't stop making mental mistakes........really has surprised me, he's smarter than that.

2. The D played outstanding and am very happy to see us stopping the run.....sets everything up for the D and our DB's. Hurry back "Tree".....you will only make it better.

3. Yes, we got more conservative in the 2nd half but you also have to give Mullen some credit for making some adjustments. You don't have to adjust too much to beat our OL and stop the run. Plus with AM throwing a pick 6, it only magnifies the sloppiness.

4. The good news to me is they are getting better every week....playing very hard.....giving 110% and seem to "want to win". The biggest thing to me is that we did win and we DON'T WANT TO PEAK YET!!!!!! Just keep improving and we will peak at the right time. Remember we have several freshmen starting as well as a few sophomores. As long as we keep improving we'll be fine........attitudes are good.

5. Concerns (maybe)......AM needs to stop trying to be a Favre and a gunslinger. Play smart and quit forcing the ball...........can't figure out IC's attitude yet. Either his expression means he's trying real hard for the team and is mad at HIMSELF for not having a good 2nd half or he's mad at the OL for being so bad and not opening ANY holes for him. Hope it's the 1st one and not the BMOC attitude 2nd one.

6. Enjoy the win, we are improving with great attitudes, the kids want to win, are working hard and remember we don't want to peak yet.

"A person believed to be Georgia’s starting outside linebacker Cornelius Washington was arrested for DUI and speeding last night near Commerce.

A police spokesperson confirmed that Cornelius Davis Washington, 22, was booked into the Jackson County Jail on those charges overnight Sunday. That person posted a $3,500 bond and was released."


Nice...