Now, when I step back and take an objective look at the question, I have a few thoughts that come to mind. Since Paul Johnson has taken over and successfully installed his triple-option offense, he brings quite a bit of chaos to the match-up. What I mean by that is how it impacts their opponents game plan. Defensive coordinators get heartburn when they think about defending against an attack like Tech throws at you, and when you have the athletes they had the past few years (Dwyer, Nesbit, Thomas, & Co.) the gut ache is made even worse.
You would be a fool to think that Grantham has not already had a thought or 100 about how he is going to use the 3-4 to stop Johnson's offense. So, the question I posed at the beginning can be answered differently when looked at it from this perspective. I think that having today's Tech team on the schedule does hurt a little bit because coaches and players are required to spend so much practice time scheming against an offense they are only going to see once during the year.
Do I want to stop playing the Nerds? HELL NO! I relish in the joy of beating them, especially in years like 2009 when the whole world thought they would dominate the Dawgs. What happened in reality is that an SEC defense proved once again that the high school offense doesn't work when the big boys are prepared for it, even when Willie Martinez is your defensive coordinator!
My gut reaction is the same, but... what benefit does the game bring? SEC teams need not play more than one out of conference game a year against a quality opponent. With Damon Evans desire to travel the country spreading the UGA brand (see: possible games vs. PSU, Michigan, and previous games at OKST and at AZST.), playing the NERDS only offers a chance (while slim) of costing a trip to the National Championship Game. The bottom line is we are trying to win the BCS, everything else (including playing Tech annually) is secondary.
ReplyDeleteIf that game cost us a trip to the Nat'l Championship Game then we don't deserve to be there. A Nat'l Championship team may have a few speed bumps but Tech should not be considered one of those if we play a solid game of pigskin. I totally understand about the defensive strategy but if Willie can do it, Grantham sure as hell better know how to do it!
ReplyDeletePeople who think SEC teams shouldn't play top out of conference competition are out of their skulls. It's a stupid concept. College football doesn't have a playoff (and I'm still of two minds about whether or not we need one). The only way to be "crowned" the champion, is to prove you belong at the top. I know the best football is played in the SEC, but the fact is, the SEC doesn't go undefeated in Bowls. We don't go undefeated against out of conference competition. The SEC, as a conference, doesn't only suffer losses to its members. There ARE teams outside the conference that can beat this conference's member institutions. So, playing a "cream-puff" OOC slate does nothing to prove a team's worth at the top of the pile.
ReplyDeleteThere's an old saying we've all heard a billion times - if you want to be the best, you have to BEAT the best. I believe in that. Championship teams don't hope for easy schedules. Winners don't look for ways out.
Does GA Tech add anything to the schedule? Sure. Another tough contest against what is now becoming a more worthy adversary. Would losing that game do anything for UGA? Well, it would give us another opportunity for a home-home with another major power. But, since resurgent Tech looks like they'll be a top-20 mainstay for a while, I'd say that's unnecessary.
Am I glad Aaron Murray is starting the season against ULL and not Texas? Yes. Would I welcome Texas instead? In a heartbeat. What's the use of claiming to be the king of the mountain, if you took the escalator?
Bring on the challenge!
I agree Dukes. Bring on the big boys! I hate that we have to play tough teams week in and week out more so than the likes of Ohio State, Texas, and USC. But, that's why the boys in the SEC are so damned good! If this whole conference expansion thing happens, I hope we get Tech in the SEC!
ReplyDeleteGeorgia tek got out of The SEC because it refuses to accept $20 million dollars a year every year in Revenue Sharing. That for a little school whose football graduation rate is less than half their players 49 % according to the latest NCAA report 2010. That we are only the 9th best SEC team in football graduation rate here at UGA in this latest NCAA report, shows what a sham the Georgia tek athletics department really is, because our graduation rate in football is FAR BETTER than Georgia tek's is.
ReplyDeleteBen Dukes says it right. As long as Georgia tek is going to be a Quality Opponent, I am all for playing them.
Otherwise, the cheaters over at Georgia tek can take their high school offense and shove it.
Georgia tek is a non-factor in recruiting in this state. They always have been about Number 53 every year in recruiting.
Paul Johnson or not.
If Georgia tek is not a good football opponent, I don't want to play them.
There is nothing to gain by beating them.
Look, The University of Georgia is not like Florida, or Nebraska or Iowa or Wisconsin and we have never recruited any player here ever that wanted to play the schedules those programs play of nothing but crappy teams.
I like playing good teams. I am a Bulldog.
I would like to be better in The Coach Richt Era than just only 3 wins against Top 10 Final AP Poll teams and 8 losses to them.
I would also not like to add more to the total we have in The Coach Richt Era of 8 Losses to teams not ranked in the Top 25 Final AP Poll too.
Take the loss the year before last to Georgia tek. That was a horrible loss for UGA. 29 unanswered points. That Georgia tek team lived for only 1 goal, to beat UGA. That team NEVER would have been ranked in the Top 25 Final AP Poll had they not beat us.
This last season Georgia tek was # 13 in the Final AP Poll. Like Ben Dukes said, that is a great game for us.
All in all, I would not give a crap if we didn't play Georgia tek ever.
I hate them.
But, if we had not had played them last year with them having their best team in The Coach Richt Era and we having our worst team in The Coach Richt Era, then Georgia tek would have ended the season in the Top 10 Final AP Poll.
And, we would not have had our 1 good win all season long.
In fact, our best win in 4 years except for our Win over # 9 Final AP Poll Auburn in 2006.
The facts are that even in their best years, Georgia tek simply cannot compete with the players we recruit here. They like playing easy schedules. They are wimps. They had zero defense.
They have a horrible quarterback.
They have 1 wide receiver on the entire roster.
How in the hell is that a good game for UGA ?
It's not.
Georgia tek has already in its stinking history of cheating at football had 7 seasons where Georgia tek won 0 games. Georgia tek has already in its stinking history that stinks to high Heaven had another 5 seasons in which Georgia tek won only 1 game.
This is not viewed as a big game on the national stage.
And, you have to listen to the nerds try to sound so great playing against cupcakes in the all cupcake conference which was doomed to failure when it started spread out more than 24 hours and a half travel time from Boston to Miami.
I could care less if some other conference takes some of the ACC teams away from them. The SEC is better than the ACC is basketball, baseball and football, to name a few.
Paul Johnson doesn’t beat good teams. He never has. I saw something yesterday about Georgia tek being a team the Big 10 wants. Can you imagine how badly Georgia tek would run the football against the Big 10 when all they do up there in the frozen tundra is to run the ball and stop the run ? That and play cupcakes and lose all their bowl games.
The SEC might not win every bowl game, or every out of conference game, but The SEC has by far the best record at both, and at beating good teams.
ReplyDeleteThe SEC has done a fine job of adding some good teams we play out of conference with this new 14-game season format.
I like football.
I hate Georgia tek.
Georgia tek is not football. They were exposed by LSU the year before last. They were exposed by Georgia and by Iowa last year. They play in a weak conference which has not had any relevant team for as far back as anyone today can remember.
I wouldn’t care if we never played Georgia tek at anything. We are all they care about. They can have their season number 8 where they win 0 games as long as they look good against UGA at whatever cheating ways they have to utilize to try to look good.
They do not care if they have season number 6 where they win only 1 game, as long as they beat UGA.
I know.
We have a schedule full of teams who fit the same bill.
Auburn.
vols.
Florida.
South Carolina.
Alabama.
LSU.
But, do you know the difference in all these teams and Georgia tek ?
All of them have the upper hand advantage over UGA in football.
Only Florida of all those schools has a losing record to UGA, and Florida has beat us to a pulp recently and we have won only 3 games in the last 2 decades.
I hardly think anyone can say that UGA has the advantage over Florida. It would be a gross misrepresentation of their 3 National Championships since 1996 and us with none in over 3 decades and counting, not to mention 3 wins the last 2 decades.
What I am saying is that Georgia tek is NOT a rival.
I give a crap about playing Georgia tek.
What we should do is, if Georgia tek is ranked in the Top 25 of the Final AP Poll, then we should play a game number 15 if we have to, and play them in February. If they are ranked in the Top 25 it is because they played a weak soft schedule like they did last year where they played 1 team all season regular season long 2009 who had fewer than 5 losses.
Oh, Georgia tek is great. They got to play in the ACC Championship game right after South Carolina beat the Climpsum Farmers and right after UGA beat the crap out of Georgia tek.
Georgia tek gave up on its high school offense and threw on every down at the end of the game. And, as a direct result they lost because they do NOT have a QB on the entire roster. No one to block for the pass. Only 1 player on the roster who they say can catch against 11 of the 12 opponents with at least 5 losses they beat last year regular season.
Georgia tek has not won a Major Bowl game in over 56 years and has never been ranked # 1 in the Final AP Poll, ever.
As Ben Dukes says, if Georgia tek is going to be good, then I absolutely want to beat the living daylights out of them like we did last year.
Otherwise, they don’t deserve with their devious corrupt deceitful dishonorable ways to be on the same field with our men.
So, no I really don’t want to play them.
Take them off the schedule.
It is bad to have Georgia tek on our schedule.
South Carolina is more like Georgia tek than anyone on my list of our real Rivals, because South Carolina and Georgia tek are the only 2 teams on my list of Real UGA Bulldogs' Rivals who have a LOSING RECORD to UGA.
ReplyDeleteLike Ben Dukes says, give me the good teams as opponents. It is what makes our players good and what makes our games fun.