Total Team Sports is Hot
SnowSham 2010 was a major disappointment here in Atlanta. Just enough precipitation combined with frigid temperatures to be a pain in the butt, but not enough to really enjoy it. All the schools and systems that I do business with are closed today, but this week has been a great start to 2010.
New customers and vendors are evidence of continued growth for Total Team Sports.
I am thankful.
I have created ad links to many of my suppliers on the blog as well a listing of apparel suppliers in the left side-bar. Ash City was my first supplier of corporate apparel and it’s been a great fit. I have used Sanmar as a supplier of tee shirts, sweats and other athletic apparel. Augusta Sportswear has uniforms and coaches gear at great prices. Stewart and Strauss is my primary source for custom lettermen’s jackets. Just this week, I have added Game Sportswear as a supplier of warm-ups, jackets and corporate apparel. I have sold their products before and they are top quality and unique.
The other new relationship is taking me in a new direction, promotional products. Norwood is a fantastic resource for ad specialty items for corporate and/or booster club applications. I also hope to supply items for fundraising and charity golf tournaments around the southeast. If your company needs golf balls with your logo, call me.
All in all, 2010 is off to a tremendous start.
Let me know if I can be of service to you.
What a Celebration!
It’s Championship Game Day! What a great experience for the guys at Alabama and Texas. A day neither will ever forget, although only one team will look back fondly on tonight’s result. It makes me wonder how Notre Dame’s players reflect on the 1981 Sugar Bowl. They are probably still wondering how in the world they lost to the Georgia Bulldogs.
The other night, the halftime show of the Orange Bowl featured Kool and the Gang, one of my favorite groups from back in the day. One of the songs they played was Celebration, one of their biggest hits. I am sure their sales have spiked since Tuesday night.
From Wikipedia: “Celebration” is a song released in 1980 by Kool & the Gang from their album Celebrate!. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100chart on February 7, 1981 and held that position until February 20, 1981. Late in 1980, the song had also reached number one on both the Billboard Dance and R&B charts.
I was listening to the tape during pregame in the locker room.
I was focused on the portion of the song that said these these words:
We’re gonna have a good time tonight
Let’s celebrate, it’s all right
We’re gonna have a good time tonight
Let’s celebrate, it’s all right
Needless to say, we did have a good time that night.
Oh yeah, 2010 marks the 30 year anniversary of The Championship. Wow.
Are We There Yet?
Georgia Head Coach Mark Richt made known his decision to fire Willie Martinez, Jon Fabris and John Jancek over a month ago now. It’s been a long trip to get to where we are today, possibly just days away from an announcement on who our new defensive coordinator will be. I have remained mum about my feelings about the process, because at this point, nobody really knows what the process has entailed. Rumors are rumors, and I’m not going to lose sleep about a rumor. Many in the “Nation” have been like that kid in the back seat asking, are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Sometimes you just want to smack’em.
I have some definite opinions I will share once the dust has settled and reality replaces rumor. Only then will we know for sure if Mark Richt has orchestrated a masterpiece or a rap video.
Red and Black Tuesday
I said it’s great to be a Georgia Bulldog! While the weather outside is indeed frightful, I feel warm and fuzzy inside because the history books will show January 5th, 2010 as (Red and) Black Tuesday.(Thanks AD). While my primary focus was on the Orange Bowl and Iowa beating Georgia Tech, the Hoop Dawgs were providing the appetizer by upsetting the 20th ranked B-Ball Bees, 73-66.
Once I was able to give the football game my complete attention, it was like a trip to Fogo de Chao. So much great stuff, you don’t know where to start. All you can eat, for one not so low price, but oh so worth it.
On offense, Iowa “pounded the rock” ala the Georgia Bulldogs and kept Tech’s offense off the field in the first half especially. Hawkeye QB Ricky Stanzi had a very solid game for someone that was coming off ankle surgery and had not played in a couple of months.
A Game to Forget…Maybe
It’s the early morning of January 2, 2010 and already kickers have both won and lost bowl games for their teams in this newest of decades. If you kick long enough, you will live on both sides of this fickle arrangement. As a kicker, all I ever wanted to do was whatever helped my team win, to do my part.
The fact remains that a kicker is just a kicker in most people’s minds and as David Pollack said on Twitter recently, “kickers are the worst part of football.” Whatever.
In yesterdays Outback Bowl, Stefan Demos of Northwestern missed field goals of 48 and 44 yards in regulation as well as an extra point. The 44 yarder sailed just right and sent the game into overtime. In the overtime period, he missed another kick but was roughed on the play allowing the Wildcats to continue their drive. Ultimately, a fake field goal was thwarted moments later and Northwestern’s dreams of beating Auburn were over. Luckily, Stefan is only a junior and can hopefully make up for an inauspicious bowl game.
It reminds me of the 1978 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl where the Georgia Bulldogs lost to Stanford 25-22. You old Dawgs will know where this is going. I had a very similar game to Stefan Demos although the game itself was very different. We were winning the game 22-0 at halftime, with yours truly having made one field goal, but I missed one field goal and one extra point.
The second half was a disaster as we had a myriad of problems, i.e, fumbles, another missed field goal and 25 unanswered points. It was a long off season with that as your last memory of an otherwise great season. I hope Stefan Demos has an opportunity to win some games down the road, you know, to ease the pain. Maybe. A little.
I have mentioned before, former “athletes” hold on to the bad plays, and the bad games much more than the good. It’s weird. I know. Oh, by the way, the quotes above were for those of you that can’t see your way clear to classify kickers as athletes.
Anyhoo, The Bluebonnet Bowl was my Waterloo, but fortunately there were other battles to fight and to win. A horrific loss does not have to be the end of the road. It’s just a brief detour. It actually can be the fuel that ignites a fire that leads to greatness. Do you remember Alexis Serna? He was the Oregon State kicker who as a freshman missed three PAT’s against LSU in 2004 when the Tigers won the National Championship. Alexis went on the win the Groza Award two years later.
2010 Will Be Better
The year 2009 will go down as an off year, a down year, for Georgia Football and life in general. The Dawgs should recover nicely with the changes that are imminent. New coaches, a new attitude that is apparent from Coach Richt and the likelihood of a renewed focus on every level. But hey, 13 consecutive years with 8 or more wins ain’t bad.
I feel the same way about my life. I started Total Team Sports in early 2009 and while things have gone well, in looking back, I made a lot of mistakes. In the sporting goods business these days, having access to “brand name” merchandise is crucial in certain circumstances, but as a new “Team” dealer without a retail presence, I can’t get every single brand out there.
I will continue to provide practice gear for every sport and especially in packages for fund-raising efforts. No need to go to the “BIG BOX” stores and pay retail when you can put it in a practice pack and pay a “team price”. Contact me for details at rexrobinson5@gmail.com or click here or here for just a couple of examples.
Late in the year, the opportunity to sell a great quality lettermen’s jacket presented itself. Stewart and Strauss has sold directly to the public for over 30 years on a retail basis. I contacted them in the summer and I am now one of only six dealers in the country that sell their jackets on a “wholesale” basis. I am very fortunate in that regard. There is no doubt, 2010 will be a huge year for lettermen’s jackets for Total Team Sports.
Another major difference in where I am headed with TTS is corporate apparel and not just athletic gear. I can supply any need for your business. For corporate, industrial, and institutional applications, I have some great alternatives. Just click on the Total Team Sports, LLC ad at the top of the page or here.
Just like with the 2009 Georgia Bulldogs, the main thing is to learn from the mistakes that were made and not repeat them. Learn, make adjustments and move forward, never looking back. Get better every day.
Happy New Year and Go Dawgs!
Coaching the Fine Line
Mike Leach was fired this afternoon. The Texas Tech head coach is accused of abusive treatment of a player, WR Adam James. The fact that ESPN’s Craig James is the player’s dad sensationalizes things, but really should not enter the discussion, in my opinion. After years of what was a contentious relationship with Texas Tech administrators, Leach gave them the ammo they needed. I will wait to hear more of the full story before I pass any kind of judgment on Leach, but it brings up a real and difficult issue.
In our not so brave new world, where political correctness is king, how does a high level coach in a highly competitive sport motivate and discipline his players? All sports, but football in particular have always called for mental and physical toughness. It is the ultimate “team” sport, and the good of the individual has always come second, as it should.
Coaching Division 1-A(FBS) football is a high paying, high profile and highly pressurized occupation. Graduating young men does nothing for your job security, winning does. Motivating 100+ 18-22 year olds to all focus on the same goals and working together to achieve those goals is all that matters.
When a player consistently pulls in a different direction, he needs to get back in line or hit the bricks. For the kid that has a selfish attitude or is a cancer on the team, many times a coaching staff will try and run that kid off. The players offense may not rise to the level of kicking him off the team, but applying pressure and even ill treatment can give that player the needed motivation to leave on his own.
It’s the old, “You don’t have to go home, but you have to get the hell outa here”!
That being said, there is a fine line as to how to get that kid motivated to leave. Running sprints, stadium steps, up-downs, and bear crawls are all well known behavior modifying activities. A lack of playing time can also be a part of the process. Abusive language and yes, even embarrassing a player to get right or get gone is all reasonable to expect, even on the high school level.
But Mike Leach may have crossed the line by putting a kid in what amounted to solitary confinement, even if just for a few short hours. You can bet he will fight this decision, as it was timed just when he was to receive an $800,000.00 bonus tomorrow.
It’s just one more example of how difficult a coaches job is. Back in the day, a player would never dream of talking back to a coach for fear of the repercussions. It happens more than you realize now, even to the point of physical altercations. It used to be that parents and teachers/coaches were on the same page, but now parents excuse bad behavior by their kids and blame the other adults in the scenario.
I’m not saying that’s true in this case, but it happens a lot. I would not want to be a coach or teacher today.
That is How You Finish a Drill
There was a lot of concern in the Bulldog Nation as to how the Georgia Football team would handle the adversity of losing almost their entire defensive staff. On top of that, there were rumblings of growing dissatisfaction among the players. Many fans thought the players were not motivated to play in a lesser bowl game, especially a game that would disrupt Christmas.
I must say the defense answered the call, with a true bend but don’t break effort, holding Texas A&M, the best offense in the Big 12 to only twenty points. The offense did look inept because Joe Kines Aggie defense was not going to let the Dawgs run the ball, but put the game in Joe Cox’s hands. It was working too until the Georgia special teams took the game over.
After Texas A&M scored their first touchdown, the Dawgs immediately reversed the momentum with 17 points created by special teams. Brandon Boykin returned the ensuing kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown, Baccari Rambo blocked a punt to set the Dawgs up on the two yard line and then Blair Walsh kicked a 49 yard field goal.
This wave of kicking game excellence, which also included a blocked field goal by Geno Atkins, bought enough time for the offense to finally get going and the Dawgs ended up with 44 total points, a Georgia Bowl game record. Not bad for the “worst team” in the Mark Richt era. The eighth win of the year put CMR at 90 wins in his 9 years at UGA, a remarkable record.
I’ll be honest. With all the seeming negativity swirling about the program this past month, I didn’t know what to expect in this game. Someone deserves alot of credit for putting this team in a position to win. Mark Richt? Sure. Rodney Garner? Absolutely. His D-line pressured Aggie quarterback Jerrod Johnson all night. Apparently defensive G.A. fill-ins Todd Hartley and Mitch Doolittle did a great job as well. Kudos to them.
But what I was most impressed with was a group of players that exhibited enough pride to rise above all the negativity and doubt to Finish the Drill, one last time. Go Dawgs!
Urban Meyer is full of it
I am sitting here watching the press conference where Florida’s Urban Meyer is announcing his choice of a leave of absence versus resigning. Yesterday, when I heard he was resigning, I was shocked and pleasantly surprised. I don’t wish him any ill will and I did not make fun of the situation as many people chose to do. But a Florida Gator program without Urban Meyer is a plus, period. More and more it appears his condition is self induced and not life threatening.
This seemingly endless presser is turning into a glorious recruiting infomercial for the Florida Gators, during a time when coaches cannot contact recruits directly. Do you not think every player whether committed or not is watching this crap?
All the love and family espoused for the players and how it figured so prominently in his second decision in 24 hours. The bottom line is that all the decisions made and changed in the last few days could have been made quietly in the off-season. He could have reprioritized his life and not tell us about it, because honestly, I don’t care.
Mark May just said the same thing…all this could have waited til after the bowl game.
Thanks Mark!
The Ninety in Nine Crew(Active)
The Georgia Bulldogs have a chance to finish 8-5 in 2009 with an Independence Bowl victory. That would give Mark Richt ninety wins in his nine years at Georgia. Here is how he ranks with a bowl game to play. It is pretty elite company, even with a disappointing 2009.
Urban Meyer…95 with a bowl to play
Pete Carroll…94 with a bowl to play
Bob Stoops…93 with a bowl to play
Mark Richt…89 with a bowl to play
Here is the listing of the 80 in 8 coaches all time.
| RICHT IN THE “80 IN 8″ CLUB | |
| Coach | School, Record First 8 Seasons |
| George Woodruff (1892-99) | Pennsylvania, 102-6-2 |
| Pete Carroll (2001-current) | Southern Cal., 88-15 |
| Bob Stoops (1999-2006) | Oklahoma, 86-19 |
| Amos Alonzo Stagg (1890-97) | Springfield, Chic., 85-33-7 |
| Barry Switzer (1973-80) | Oklahoma, 83-9-2 |
| Urban Meyer (2001-current) | B. Green, Utah, Fla., 83-17 |
| Mark Richt (2001-current) | Georgia, 82-22 |
Right Coaches(sung to White Christmas)
I’m dreaming of the right coaches,
not like the ones we used to know
with new ideas, that soon will see us
with a defense that no longer blows.
I’m dreaming of the right coaches,
not like the ones we used to know
We’ll cover kick-offs, and not drop hand-offs
and fewer flags the refs will throw.
I’m dreaming of the right coaches,
with every blog post that I write
may your days be merry and bright
and trust that CMR’s decisions will be right
A Lesson Learned
When the Georgia Bulldogs boarded the plane to Stillwater, the last thing on their mind I’m sure was where they would be playing a potential bowl game. A season with as many ups and downs as the best roller coaster left a lot to be desired when all was said and done. The fact that the last part of the ride ends in Shreveport has a lot patrons jumping off and staying home.
Everyone is disappointed, including the players. There has been some talk about frustration over the bowl practice schedule and heading to Shreveport Christmas day. I understand that. Our guys are used to playing January 1st at the earliest, unlike another local team rejoicing at their rare chance to play with the “big boys” for the first time in nearly 50 years.
The fact of the matter is, while disappointing, it’s the reality of under-achievement. You lose control of your destiny and it’s therefore imposed upon you. At any rate, it sounds as if the team has refocused and is ready to play a Texas A&M team with a pretty good offense. Based on each team’s track record on defense, this could be a 51-48 game, with Blair Walsh kicking the game winner of course!
The bottom line is this. I hope the players understand that much of this was in their control and it got away. I hope they never take anything for granted ever again. That includes their personal preparation, their preparation as a team and also the family time they will miss this one time in their lives.
If they truly take it to heart, it’s not a bad life lesson.
We all should remember it too, especially this time of year.
Nick Folk is No Joke
The Dallas Cowboys put together an almost perfect game to beat the previously unbeaten New Orleans Saints 24-17 on Saturday night. The only exception was the continued struggle of kicker Nick Folk who missed a 24 yarder with a little more than two minutes to go. The field goal would have made the game a two possession game and cinched the victory for the Cowboys.
Nick Folk is a former All-Pro kicker(2007) who has missed more kicks this year than the two previous years combined. Folks issues began with off-season surgery to repair a labral tear in his hip. Obviously, something is still not right because Nick had the best FG percentage among active kickers coming into the season(86.8%). Now, he has missed as many kicks in the last 6 games as he did in his first 34 games.
It is admirable that Dallas has stuck with him thus far, but time may be running out. They know he is a great kicker, but last night’s game may precipitate a change, as Dallas cannot afford to have a kick be the difference down the stretch. With a 9-5 record, there is just no room for error. The Cowboys have lots of issues(see Roy Williams), but the kicker is usually the first to go.
If you watched the game last night, you saw them repeatedly show Nick’s pregame warm-ups and how bad things are. His complete lack of consistency shows a mechanical glitch possibly brought on by pain avoidance. His late miss was not a choke, because he was missing those same kicks in pregame.
I hope he is able to regain his form at some point. It may be too late in Dallas.
Joe Shad Has Been Caught
Fans of the Georgia Football Bulldogs will be happy to learn that ESPN rumor monger Joe Shad was caught by an amateur fisherman this morning off the coast of Connecticut. Narcisso Figueroa, the Puerto Rican fisherman whose heroic effort made this capture possible, said, “I was only looking for dinner”. Figueroa said he used a new lure called “The Scoop” to land the fish.
Shad had come under intense scrutiny for his irresponsible tweeting of non-events relative to the coaching search at the University of Georgia. Maybe the defensive coordinator job search can proceed with fewer distractions and without Dawg fans having to chase down rabbit trails.
I sure hope so.
Post Season’s Greetings
Many Georgia Fans find themselves in a rut. There is weeping and gnashing of teeth as to who our next defensive coordinator will be. I myself, while anxious to hear the news, will not spend one minute writing about all the rumors that float about us like a procession of Macy’s Parade balloons. If you don’t like any of the ones you’ve seen, just wait, there will be another in a minute or two.
In the meantime I wanted to share my little creation for Christmas. My little post season gift to you and Saint Simons. Yep, this Dawg has already received what I wanted for Christmas.
Go Dawgs!
Blair Walsh’s Year to Remember
As a Georgia Bulldogs fan, if you do a search for Blair Walsh on my left side bar, you will see just how much I have supported the sophomore kicker from Boca Raton. If you are a long time reader of my blog, you already know. A great deal of space has been dedicated to the promotion, defense and praise of Blair Walsh. At this point, an I told you so might be in order, but I would never ever do that. Heehee.
Blair had one of the best single season records in the history of Georgia football. His 90.5% is third best in school history. Blair hit field goals of 50, 51, 52, and 53 yards. By the way, he is already tied for #2 in career field goals over 50 yards for a career(6). He was 37-37 on PAT’s. One of his two misses came from 55 yards. He led the SEC with 17 touchbacks, even though many times he was asked to forgo the deep kick for short high kicks for coverage purposes.
He kicked a game winner against Arizona State that kept a struggling Georgia team’s head above water during it’s tough early schedule. His miss against LSU was an inexplicable anomalie based on his body of work this year.
Some people are curious to say the least as to why Blair did not make any All-American teams. He was after all, named a finalist for the Groza Award for the nation’s top kicker. Kai Forbath of UCLA won the award. The reason is simple, field goal attempts. There were at least twenty-five kickers that had more attempts than Blair, therefore there were eleven with more field goals made. it was to their credit that the Groza people saw past that to bestow the honor of his being a finalist. The sad part is, no one else has looked past these facts.
I will be honest, Kai Forbath deserves all the recognition he’s gotten. The young man was 26-29 on field goals and all of his misses were from 50 yards or more. That is pretty strong. My problem is with Blair not getting any first team All-SEC recognition. Leigh Tiffin attempted more field goals than any kicker in the country(33). He made 29, with one kick of 50 yards. His misses were of 36, 39, 43 and 49 yards. He also missed 3 PAT’s… do you hear the crickets chirping? To me this single stat can’t be over looked, but it has been.
So the bottom line of all this? Blair’s exceptional year will be remembered by the Georgia faithful, but his omissions from any first team All-SEC listings are a travesty. The fact that he has not made any All-American teams while disappointing, is not evidence of a hose job. He just did not have enough attempts. The fact that he played on an average Georgia team didn’t help.
I am glad he has two more years to try and reach these two goals.
He is very deserving.
Mike Singletary, The Eyes Have it
I just put Monday Night Football on and the 49er’s are handing it to the Cards 17-0 in the third quarter. It sounds like Arizona has done all they can to give it away. Whatever the case, I would be pulling for San Francisco anyway. I want Mike Singletary to succeed as head coach, for lots of reasons, but more on that later.
I’ll never forget the first time I saw Mike Singletary. It was the season opener in 1978 and we were playing Baylor University. It would be a great day for the Dawgs and for me personally, but I also remember #63 making a tackle on the sidelines right next to me. That’s when I saw them. Those eyes! Dang, who is this guy? He’s possessed!
I have no idea how many tackles he made that day, but later that year he made 35 against Arkansas. Look it up. We were both sophomores, so no one outside the Southwest Conference knew who he was yet, but they would. He and I made some of the same All-American teams in 1979 and 1980, but he went on to a Hall of Fame career with the Chicago Bears. Me, not so much.
I really am pulling for Mike to succeed because of what he represents. He is a man of faith and holds on to the old school way of thinking we grew up with. He’s a great guy.
Oh, and in case you were not in Sanford Stadium that day, Georgia upset Baylor 16-14. I had three field goals of 43, 38 and 36 yards and one PAT…I even won the Chevrolet Player of the Game.
Thanks for asking!
Oh No “U” Didn’t…But They Did
I had an interesting Saturday night . I joined my old team mate Buck Belue to celebrate his 50th birthday. It was a family friendly affair with couples and kids and even Santa stopped by. Just so you know, Santa went on Nutri-System and you may not recognize him when you see him.
We got home just in time for me to catch the last half of the ESPN series 30 on 30 episode called “The U”. In case you don’t know, that’s what players from the University of Miami call their Alma mater. This documentary recounts the programs rise to prominence and the downright shameful attitudes that were not only allowed but encouraged at times.
There is no doubt that the Miami Hurricanes had a tremendous run as a team and they obviously had some of the most talented athletes ever to play college or pro football. They won an amazing five national championships from 1983 -2001, which is the most of any program during that time period. If you watch “The U”, which airs again tonight at 7:00 PM on ESPNU, you will see it all.
The coaches, the players, the plays, the shame.
It’s not that anyone connected to “The U” expresses any shame or regret over the repeated and flagrant abuses of sportsmanship and NCAA rules. The fact is, all the former players and coaches interviewed are very proud of themselves, even as 40-something year old men. I had forgotten how bad it really was. Of course not every single game was on TV like they are now. Suffice it to say, if you watch this two hour highlight reel of athletic freak-nik, you more than likely will be sick to your stomach.
Here is a Sports Illustrated article demanding the dismantling of Miami’s program written in 1995.
Tide Turns for Ingram & Heisman
Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy in the closest vote in history last night. Amazingly he becomes Alabama’s first Heisman winner. I thought Texas QB Colt McCoy might win it as a life-time achievement award, but he actually finished third behind RB Toby Gerhart of Stanford.
The best news was as the week progressed it appeared less and less likely Tim Tebow would be a factor. In my opinion, Tebow should have only been in New York as a past winner, not as a finalist. Maybe it saved the Gators some airfare or something. I’m sure ESPN would have pitched in if asked.
Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska had a tremendous week, winning the Lombardi Award as the top collegiate linemen/linebacker, and he also won the Bronco Nagurski Award for the nations top defensive player. He finished fourth in the final Heisman voting. Not bad for a defensive tackle.
FWAA All Americans
Drew Butler has won the Ray Guy Award and has been named to several All-American teams already. There should be more to come. The Football Writers Association of America named their team and Drew indeed was honored again. This is a team I actually was fortunate enough to make in 1980, my senior year. Of course, Drew is just a sophomore and may well have other chances to make this team again. Oh yeah, Drew’s dad Kevin made this team also, in 1984. In looking back on that group I was a part of, I am reminded of how many notable names were on that team. Some of the best to ever play the game on the college or pro level, especially on defense.
Check them out.
OFFENSE
QB 9 Mark Hermann Purdue 6-4 190 Sr. Carmel, Ind.
RB 24 Freeman McNeil UCLA 5-11 216 Sr. Carson, Calif.
RB George Rogers South Carolina 6-2 210 Sr. Duluth, Ga. HOF
RB 34 Herschel Walker Georgia 6-2 215 Fr. Wrightsville, Ga. HOF
WR Ken Margerum Stanford 6-1 175 Sr. Fountain Valley, Calif.
WR 80 Dave Young Purdue 6-6 241 Sr. Akron, Ohio
OL 72 Nick Eyre BYU 6-5 276 Sr. Las Vegas, Nev.
OL 73 Mark May Pittsburgh 6-6 282 Sr. Oneonta, N.Y. HOF
OL Louis Oubre Oklahoma 6-4 262 Sr. New Orleans, La.
OL 68 Keith Van Horne USC 6-7 265 Sr. Fullerton, Calif.
C 57 John Scully Notre Dame 6-5 255 Sr. Huntington, N.Y.
DEFENSE
DL 99 Hugh Green Pittsburgh 6-2 224 Sr. Natchez, Miss. HOF
DL 39 E. J. Junior Alabama 6-3 220 Sr. Nashville, Tenn.
DL Derrie Nelson Nebraska 6-2 220 Sr. Fairmont, Neb.
DL 77 Kenneth Sims Texas 6-6 265 Jr. Groesbeck, Texas
DL 90 Hosea Taylor Houston 6-5 265 Sr. Longview, Texas
LB 51 David Little Florida 6-1 228 Sr. Miami, Fla.
LB 63 Mike Singletary Baylor 6-1 232 Sr. Houston, Texas HOF
LB 98 Lawrence Taylor North Carolina 6-3 237 Sr. Williamsburg, Va. NFL HOF
DB 5 Kenny Easley UCLA 6-3 206 Sr. Chesapeake, Va. HOF
DB 42 Ronnie Lott USC 6-2 200 Sr. Rialto, Calif. HOF
DB John Simmons SMU 5-11 188 Little Rock, Ark.
SPECIALISTS
K 5 Rex Robinson Georgia 6-0 215 Sr. Marietta, Ga.
P 3 Rohn Stark Florida State 6-3 195 Jr. Fifty Lakes, Minn.
Coach of the Year ……………………..Vince Dooley, Georgia
Outland Trophy ………………………….Mark May, Pittsburgh
Grantland Rice Trophy………………………..Georgia Bulldogs
Tiger Woods in a Buried Lie
It’s been two weeks since “The Accident”, when Tiger Woods ran over a fire hydrant and hit a tree, just leaving the driveway. It was bizarre from the start and only went down-hill from there. The possibility of an irate Elin Woods swinging a golf club, not to extricate her husband from his Escalade, but to seperate his head from his body, is quite the mental picture.
The rumors had just started about the possibility of something extra-marital going on when, all of a sudden, the most famous and recognizable athlete in the world was in uncharted territory. His public persona had been almost perfect. The only possible exception might be his proclivity for expletives and the occasional club toss. No biggie.
Well, when Tiger found his balls out of bounds this time, he was on a slippery slope and seemingly every day new and more damaging information was exposed. This was no “mistake” as some were characterizing it. This was a life style, a conscious choice, over and over and over. The number of women claiming to have had a “relationship” with Tiger went from a bogie, to a double bogie and continued to grow until now, when Tiger has decided to pick up.
Tiger has announced that he will take an indefinite hiatus from the PGA Tour to try and save his marriage first and ultimately his image. Neither will be easy, but as a human being, I hope he can do it. He does not deserve a mulligan, just because he is Tiger Woods. He will have a lot of work to do to regain his wife’s trust, if it ever happens. I have a feeling the public will be more forgiving. That’s just the way we are.
Brian Kelly to Notre Dame
Twenty-nine years ago the Georgia Bulldogs almost experienced what the Cincinnati Bearcats are feeling today. Coach Vince Dooley was temporarily drawn by an offer by Auburn University, his Alma mater. Ultimately he decided to stay in Athens, but even the idea of losing your coach when you are preparing for a Sugar Bowl and potential national championship, was very difficult. As a 21 year old kid, it’s hard to fathom a coach leaving. As a 50 year old kid, I totally understand the forces at work. The whole team was upset back then and there is plenty of evidence that the Bearcat players feel that way now.
Here is an excerpt from an article last night:
Receiver Mardy Gilyard, one of the last players to arrive at the banquet, said in an interview that he was upset Kelly had accepted the Notre Dame job after telling him and other players before their last game that he was staying.
“I don’t like it,” said Gilyard, the Big East’s top receiver and kick returner. “I feel there was a little lying in the thing. I feel like he’d known this the whole time. Everybody knows Notre Dame’s got the money. I kind of had a gut feeling he was going to stay just because he told me he was going to be here.”
I also follow Isaiah Pead, Cincinnati’s great running back on Twitter. Isaiah was pretty upset last night also. “Action packed day..but I guess not every1 can be pleased..all good things must cum to an end sumtime..I just think its all bull****”. Here they are playing in the Sugar Bowl against Florida, and this happens. I believe Cincinnati has a chance to be really competitive vs. the Gators. I hope they can keep it together in the interim.
This brings up that whole issue of players having to sit out a year if they transfer(see Ryan Mallett), even when their motivations are related to a coaching change. That’s another blog for another day.
Here’s to you, Drew!
The Georgia Bulldog’s Drew Butler won the Ray Guy Award last night. Quite an accomplishment for the sophomore from Duluth. I have encouraged both Drew and kicker Blair Walsh on this blog since this summer. I felt good about Drew’s potential to replace Brian Mimbs. I had no idea he would have the record setting season he enjoyed.
There came a point that I didn’t want to talk about it on here. I was afraid I would jinx either he or Blair, who had an equally phenomenal year. Drew punted 50 times for an average of 48.84 yards per punt and a net average of 42.84. This net figure that won it for Drew as the selection committee chose the three punters with the highest net averages at the time of the nominations for finalists.
I must say I am amazed that Drew went the entire season with out a shank of some sort. I didn’t see every single punt, but I am almost positive every single punt was at least good, while most were very good to awesome. That is unbelievable. To go an entire year without a bad kick? Unheard of.
Congratulations Drew, you deserve all the accolades that you are receiving.
Tell me what you really think!