We'll be alright in 2007

I suppose this feeling extends to my years at UGA (1985-1989), when the doom and gloom predictions seemed to play out with eerie regularity and we always seemed to fall short of greatness. However, had we a QB like Mr. Stafford at the helm, I wonder if we would have entered the season full of apprehension (ala: 2007) instead of optimism (ala: 2007 the way it should be). I think we buy into the media and their myopic predictions each year, when we should be firmly be behind the dawgs regardless of the outlook (because WE are the DAWG NATION). Fan -positive, that's where we should be.

Anyhoo, I read this and thought that, despite the stormy year predicted, I actually think we're going to be as good as we hope to be, which is pretty darned exciting, if you ask me.

sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/football/...ford.0830/index.html

Speaking of your years at Georgia, here's a question my family's been asking itself. Remember, my family came to Athens in 1969, just five years after CVD began his tenure at UGA. Did Dooley ever have a stellar quarterback? He always had fantastic backs, and even running quarterbacks like Goff and Andy Johnson. But did he ever have a standout QB?

Ray Goff had Eric Zeier. Jim Donnan had Quincy Carter. Even Wally Butts had Fran Tarkenton. I know we've always been Tailback U. -- witness Frankie Sinkwich, Charlie Trippi, Herschel, Rodney Hampton, Garrison Hearst, Musa Smith, etc. -- but...did Vince really do all that he did without a standout quarterback?

The thing is, we've got all the ingredients -- THIS YEAR -- that great Georgia teams of the past had. We've also got a little spike in our punch by the name of Matthew Stafford.

So can anybody name a real superstar QB that Dooley had?

Dooley never did have what we would call a \"superstar\" QB. But he had Belue, and with him came a NC. Belue, while not great, did just enough to win when he had to in 1980, and that alone gives him a special place as a Bulldog legend. Any one of Dooley's QBs have won special games......Ridlehuber against Michigan in 65, Cavan against Florida in 68, Johnson against GT in 71, Goff against Bama in 76, Belue against ND in 1980, Lastinger against Texas in 84, Jackson against Florida in 85, and Williams against Mich. St. in 89. All had special wins, but none were \"special\" as far as say Stafford goes......but they all have special places in Bulldog legend.

Back in Dooley's day, especially in the SEC, you just didn't have many high profile passers and sophisticated passing attacks. You mainly had running attacks.....wishbone, veer, hambone and different types of option QB's. Passing was a surprise back in his day.

Thanks for that trip down memory lane. While there were many exciting moments wrapped up in your post, the one that REALLY jumped out to me was the 85 win over UF. As I recall, UF was nationally ranked, perhaps #1 and seemed headed for the NC. No one and I mean NO ONE gave us the slightest chance. Yet Jackson, Henderson and Worley tore a gapping southern oriface in the UF defense. This was an especially tasty victory because I was there and like many other dawg fans we rushed the field and tore large chunks of turf from the field...Yah, I know, public destruction, but it seemed like a grand idea at the time!!!!

GO DAWGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah, they were #1 for one week.