Was sorry to see BMac packing up and heading to Muschump-ville. I'd have much rather seen him join CMR in Miami and not be a thorn in our side, but such is life.
I want to focus a bit on the decisions made by CKS up to this point. Now, of course, the talking heads have been talking about "how important it is to retain some Georgia identity and not make Athens the Eastern version of Alabama." I have heard this said numerous times on DawgNation Daily. And how "important it is for the players to feel like there's some continuity from this season to next with coaches they identify with." BS. What's wrong exactly with having Athens import the Alabama culture? The fact that this is even brought up as some pertinent problem needing to be addressed "for the players" shows how far gone the CMR fan club were under his hypnosis (and to a large degree, still are.) It's like a guy trying to project the qualities of his former girlfriend on his new one.
This entire program needed a man-sized enema and it got one. Rocker was retained based on merit, not because CKS is interested in retaining some "Georgia identity." He'll make his own Georgia identity, thank you very much. This nonsense about how Kirby "needs to" this and "needs to" that in order to continue some of the Richt culture just continues to show how much the press doesn't support the University's decision to part ways and clean house. Look for the pressers to come out about how foolish CKS was to let BMac slip away. Is his departure going to hurt? Yeah, it is. But I think what is being missed here is just how strong of a recruiter Kirby is. I mean, he hasn't missed a beat since taking over, has retained the biggest recruit in Jacob Eason, and is looking to pick up several more key names such as Issac Nauta, Mecole Hardman, Derrick Brown, Ben Davis, etc.
So, let the naysayers naysay. I wish BMac stayed, but I trust the decision to let him go. Again, retention based on merit. Let's face it, the wide receiver play this season was less than stellar. D-line, different story. Rocker stays. My bet is that Kevin Sherrer is promoted to DC after the bowl game interview he's about to get. We'll see.
The UT fans I've heard from think that Georgia killed the golden goose in canning Richt and how we're going to be a comedy of errors until we run Smart out of town on a rail in three seasons. Okieeeee dokieeeee. We'll see how that plays out for ya.
FL folk are telling me how good of a pickup Smart was and how dramatically different the East is going to be in just a couple of seasons. To quote one of my FL friends, "I don't want to see you guys do well, but I want Jacksonville to mean something again. I want our teams to be the best when they play each other and us have something to talk trash about. Not this meaningless crap we've both had to deal with for several years. I think you guys may have just hired a Georgia legend in Kirby. You probably will be making our lives difficult for years to come with this hire and I think you will win a national championship with him." Well, coach Mac won't be giving us softballs either.
I too will be hit-or-miss on the forums until the weekend.
Until then, I wish all of you and your families a happy, holy Christmas Day and season.
Et Verbum caro factum est, Et habitavit in nobis (John 1:14)