Dear Faithful (and God bless you for being so) Readers,

Sorry for the lack of any update for a while now, but if you follow me on Twitter, you guys know that something big has been coming down the pipe for a couple of months. This "big event" made me make the decision to keep from updating very much even though a slew of news regarding ADs, BMWs, red lingerie, NCAA inquiries and our drinking town with a football problem has hit the news cycle.

The big reveal is finally here and I'm happy to say that this blog will no longer by my home. No seriously, I'm happy to say that.

A couple months ago I was approached by an old friend who works with a former blogger (Jmac, for you old-schoolers out there) and they wanted to know if I had any interest in having this blog become the staple Sports blog for their site, Beyond The Trestle.

Naturally, I was thrilled, not only to work with my old friend, but also because the growth potential by making the move would do wonderful things for me. It's well documented that I currently find myself in a job I love, which takes up odd hours at times, hence making updating regularly a challenge. It was so much of a challenge that I contemplated making a move offline altogether, just to step aside and have one less thing to worry about.

However, that's no longer an issue. The new site is not up as of this moment, but expect the first post early next week. At that point, this address will route to the new site and content updates will no longer be provided here.

Now, the most important (and exciting) part of all this is a handful of new things. Here they are:

For those wondering, yes, parting with Blogger and this address is a little bittersweet. It's like getting a newer, more reliable car but leaving the car you've driven since you're 16.

The best part? It's still The Dawg-gone Blog. Nothing's changing for the worse, just getting enhanced for a better experience for you -- the most loyal readers who stop by and actually pay attention to a guy who talks about football when he was the worst fullback to ever play the game (and this was little league football, too).

The next update will be the last one and it will be the one that links to the new site. Thank you again for 5+ wonderful years at this shack. It's time for us to go all "Jeffersons" and move it on up.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

P.S. -- Tuck Fech.

Defense stuff coming in the next couple days. Until then, enjoy!

Anyway, the only silver lining to losing to Georgia Tech is beating them handily the following year. The unintended consequences mean things like THIS AWESOME VIDEO (embedded below for your view pleasure) happen, making my heart smile over and over again.

As always, please remember that it's not a slap. It's a high five to your face.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

Oh, and since it's the birthday of the DGB, I feel an appearance by resident Site Girl, Keira Knightley is in order. You're welcome.

Ohhhh NO! This post is all late 'n' junk. Here, let me get in my way-back machine and post this before the SECC game. Oh shoot. I can't. Because I can't time travel. Soooooooooooooo.....


K, bye!!!

Warning: The video contains alcohol, some profanity, and...dare I say it...Maalox.

Enjoy!

Secondly, I'm going to get your Hate Week 2009 kicked off by posting this classless act by some asshole who has no idea where rivalry ends and total asshatery begins. I also hope that others in Tech's circle don't follow his lead.

For those who can't view the picture, don't worry, I'll repost it next week. I hope we f'n kill them on the field and ruin their fun. Nothing would make me happier.

In the last precursor to the video, I wanted to go out of my way to give a shout out to a nice gentleman named Bobby who stopped me on my way from one tailgate to the next last Saturday. Bobby said that he's read the blog regularly for a long time and that he just wanted to introduce himself. Bobby, that made my day sir, and I appreciate you not only reading, but also your compliment. It was great meeting you as well and thanks again!!

Ok, so now we have the Vlog for this week. Total random eye-roll count is somewhere around 15 for the video. I'll work on that for the next one. As always, I hope you guys enjoy.

Seriousness? Absolutely.

Fart near the end? Negative. That was my cellphone vibrating.

As Dawg fans, we go out of our way sometimes to find the flaws. Hell, I'm guilty of it as much as anyone else. We beat Vandy handily, but I was no where near satisfied with the victory. Aside from a 4th quarter where we had guys in that seemingly wanted to play football, there really wasn't much to talk about other than A.J. Green.

Sure, the Defense played OK against a horrible Vandy team, A.J. played exceptionally well for his three catches, and Bobo showed us a "moment of brilliance" playcall with that screen pass to Caleb King, but other than that, I think we all left a little unfulfilled.

That's not to say it was all bad, though. I mean with what the team's been through, you'd have to think that the Dawgs were as down in the mouth as any team in America right now. An overly-talented team struggling in every game, a coaching staff on the verge of collapse, and a fanbase that has no idea what they really want to happen other than "change." Unless Helen Keller was suiting up for UGA, you know the players were hearing or seeing things that sent shockwaves through the lockerroom. It's going to happen.

The most important thing is that a 10-win season is OBTAINABLE. Is it likely? Not at all, but OBTAINABLE is better than impossible. At this point, I'd settle for revenge and a one-day-at-a-time mentality. I'd settle for our players trying to go and ruin Florida's season by beating them in Jacksonville. That's all I want to think about and that's all I want to hear about. I want a team mentality where everyone realizes that they truly have nothing to lose.

However, that's not going to happen unless Mike Slive gets a hold of the referees in this conference. Even I was getting tired of hearing about how all the SEC refs hate us, but the truth is, I'm starting to think that sans Florida and Alabama, they really do hate everyone. The numbers aren't lying and it's downright scary. With our statistics regarding penalties growing exponentially since the Celebration in 2007, combined with the LSU screw job, and the debacle in Gainesville last weekend against Arkansas, you can surely bet that no call is 100% right.

I guess the thing that's most frustrating about it all is that these calls aren't DETERMINING games. They're just influencing them. Arkansas didn't lose last weekend because of bad calls -- they lost because of missed field goals. We didn't lose against LSU because of a bad call against A.J. -- we lost because we can't cover worth a damn on Special Teams. The frustrating thing about the penalty issue is that a bad call of a non-touchdown or interception can be overturned with video evidence nowadays. A bad penalty call sets the tone, changes momentum and helps someone greatly while dismantling someone else's chances. It's not a matter of fairness -- it's a matter of responsibility.

No one's asking the refs to call every ticky-tack penalty. They're asking the refs to call it down the middle. They're asking the refs to call what needs to be called, and when it doubt, don't call it. It's that simple. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that we're dealing with hyper-sensitivite SEC referees when it comes to all teams not named "Alabama" or "Florida." I'm not subscribing to any conspiracy theories, but all I know is that those games are called differently for those teams than they are for the rest of the conference, especially in regards to Florida.

Slive needs to get on it, or Slive will be barking up a bad tree. SEC Football is religion to a lot of fans. It's one thing to have one school think the refs are against them. It's entirely different to have 10 schools think that way.

So, let's all enjoy the bye week for what it is...a chance to relax and focus for next weekend. We all need that right now.

Here's wishing a flawless week for you and yours.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

Until next time kids.

Be safe (and Go Dawgs!).

Since then, we've experienced some of the highest moments in UGA's storied history. We've won two SEC Championships, competed for a third and were only a handful of plays away from playing for the national title in those three years, plus the epic screw-job of 2007.

I wasn't that fan on Saturday though. I've been accused way too many times of being a "Disney Dawg." One that always errs on the side of caution. One that thinks it's better to be a Georgia fan than any other college football fan on any given Saturday. One that looks upon past success and keeps faith. I wasn't that fan on Saturday and I'm just now on Monday coming back to being that fan again. That being said, I'm still not quite there yet. It's with an incredibly ominous tone that I express how much I hate this feeling.

Saturday's game was the worst game I've ever personally seen a UGA team play. I know there have been worse, but I also know it wasn't beat out by much. We were out coached, out hustled, out hearted (yes, I said "heart"...har har), out cared, and out classed by a UT team that is essentially already playing for next year. You heard Lane Kiffin. You heard him classify our game as a "great recruiting victory." He doesn't care about what that team does this year. He's already given up this season in hopes of building a better one next year. That's not only disheartening for us, but flat out embarrassing.

I know our guys care about winning. I know the coaches, players, trainers and fans all care about leaving the field with a victory. However, I'm not sure if they're afraid of what will happen if they leave the field with a loss.

It's important to recognize that changes need to be made. It's important to also realize that they're not going to be made right now and even if some responsibilities shift hands, WE'RE NOT GOING TO HEAR ABOUT IT. It's like what PWD said in regards to Bobo first taking hold of the playcalling duties. CMR was only going to pass those off in a position of power. That time was 2006...the only other time a team in the CMR era has been considered as "disappointing."

Both PWD and The Good Senator have amazingly well thought-out posts on the subject. Blutarsky has a couple more than PWD does, but both have great articles that should be read and should be read as quickly as possible.

It's important to realize that wholesale changes need to come, but not at the behest of the season. We're six games in, with six to go. An SECC is out of the question for the most part, and there's no reason to think we'll do any better than an Outback Bowl appearance. These are facts. We as fans, need to understand and come to terms with that.

However, there's no need to think that it's now time to throw Logan or Murray out there to the wolves. Regardless of what you want to say, Joe Cox gives us the best chance to win at QB. What's stunting him is our incredible lack of a running game...something we've NEVER experienced in Athens under Mark Richt. Maybe that's why we're so shaken up as a fan base.

The reason I titled this post as "A Call to Our Version of Normalcy" is because I just want us to feel better about UGA football. I'm OK with losing games as long as I know that we're doing the best we can with what we have. I don't feel that way right now. I'm not sure the best players are playing on our team. I'm not sure that coaches feel any sort of heat from within about their decisions. I'm also not sure that fans realize that if you fire Willie Martinez, Rodney Garner is going to be the first person offered that spot. If you can't handle that, then you need to take a deeper look at how Mark Richt's ran this ship.

I want our coaches to blame themselves and be openly PISSED about losing. I want our coaches to stop blaming our players for losing. I want our coaches to realize that if a player is not "executing" on the field, those same players are being taught what to do from Sunday -- Friday, when the COACHES are guiding them along. Personal accountability is what's wrong with this team.

I got a piece of what I wanted to hear from CMR when he basically said that everything needs to get better. I heard fire in his voice. I heard discontent. I heard disgust. I heard anger. I heard an F'N FOOTBALL COACH.

All I ask is that Blair Walsh stop being thrown under the bus for things that aren't his fault. All I ask is that we grab our O-linemen by the facemask and challenge their manhood. All I ask is that if we're going to f*** up, that we F*** UP BIG. I can deal with effort mistakes. I can't deal with lack of effort, and that, my Dawg-friends, comes from the top.

I want Mark Richt to remain in Athens as long as it has a football team. I know that he will do what he's consistently done to make us better. I know that it'll be tough for him as well. I also know that our fan base couldn't be more discontent with where we're currently at, and where they THINK we're going. I also know that our problems are ones that can be fixed, with the proper change in attitude.

In my call to normalcy within our football team, I want less "Execute The Play" and more "Finish The Drill."

I hope they do, too.



Until next time kids.

Be safe.

Sorry for the shakiness of the camera. If I barely touch the desk, the webcam goes nuts and moves all over the place. So if you get motion sickness, you've been warned. I will not buy you a new keyboard when you blow chunks on it.

Until next time kids.

Be safe (and Go Dawgs!)

1. Willie coached his ass off. Save the last play where guys didn't make the much-needed tackles at the time, our defense saved us from getting blown out. The score should've easily been 21-0 at halftime. Secondary still needs work, but we knew it was going to be rough back there this year. I think Bryan Evans is a good kid, but kudos to Rambo for earning more PT.

2. Mike Bobo is getting better, but still isn't consistent. We basically have one play right now that defines our offense -- it's the "Throw it to A.J." Play. I'm sorry, but that's not going to cut it the rest of the way. I think Bobo dialed up some good calls on Saturday, but we had guys, especially Joe Cox, not capitalize on big opportunities. Overall though, it'll get better only when the running game shows up again. I will say that every time we run it on 3rd and long, I die a little.

3. Speaking of the running game, where is ours? Part of me wants to say it's the O-line, but a majority of me says it's not. Richard Samuel is not a "toss sweep" guy, yet that seems to be the play we like him in. Caleb King is not a straight ahead runner, but yet we seem to try and power him forward. Waushan Ealey is like fresh air right now and running like a kid who REALLY wants to be the #1 guy. My question is, where's D-Jax? Where's Carlton Thomas? I'm not saying Ealey isn't good, but it's the age old "chicken vs. egg" question. If a freshman is making waves, does that mean he's really that good or are the four older guys that bad?

4. Our kickoff coverage makes me want to move to Canada. You know what drives me really batty about Florida? The fact that their kids look like they enjoy every snap. Even the special teams units give it everything they have. Why? Because at Florida, a special teams starter is considered a starter. We've got to quit throwing scrubs out there. I know those guys play hard, practice hard and have a lot of heart, but hell, I've got a lot of heart. That doesn't mean I think I need to strap on some pads and try to tackle Trindon Holliday. You don't win games by playing your #3 Offense and Defense. Why in the f*** would we think we're going to win the special teams battle by playing some of the slowest players on our team?

5. All I'm going to say about the penalty is two things: 1) Tim Brando nailed it when he said that the SEC doesn't want journalists to look deeper into who draws those excessive celebration penalties and 2) It changed the momentum, but it didn't keep us from tackling Holliday or Scott.

6. I should have a Vlog for the Tennessee game up this Thursday. It's a busy week for me and writing isn't going to cut it. So, you guys will get to see my huge head and way-too-damn-short haircut very soon.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

You have to give props first and foremost to Joe Cox. Aside from him staring a hole through A.J. Green for that pick-six, he played a helluva game. He had decent protection for most of the day, but decent is probably the best word I've give to it. He made great throws, good reads and managed the game quite well. I don't care how good your running game is, you have to have a heads up QB to hang 41 on anybody and he did that with great satisfaction in my opinion.

Secondly, hats off to Richard Samuel. He broke tackles, ran with authority and honestly did a much better job balance-wise of getting positive yardage. I'm a little perplexed as to why he stayed out of the game for a while when Carlton Thomas took over for a few series, considering he had the hot hand at the moment, but then again, I'm not on the sidelines and hopefully there's a good reason for it. Either way, Samuel showed that he could carry the load if called upon.

Next is A.J. Green, who does what A.J. Green does. The WRs as a whole did great, including Michael Moore, who may only have 17 receptions this year, but hell, they might all be touchdowns since that's pretty much the only time the ball's thrown his way. But A.J. stepped it up and bailed Cox out a few times with some very impressive catches. The kid is a natural born playmaker.

Special teams as a whole deserves some credit too, since it kept us in the game, essentially won the game for us and gave us all a huge sigh of relief. I'm sure the people around me thought I was nuts, but I went totally apeshit when Blair kicked the ball deep in the endzone for a touchback. Then, I nearly got my block knocked off from the rabid Dawg fan behind me who almost killed me when Brandon Boykin returned the kickoff for the score. No offense to the guy behind me though. I appreciate that kind of enthusiasm. Then, you can't forget DeAngelo Tyson who essentially won the game for us with a blocked PAT late. I mean honestly, it's been years since the Dawgs have done something like that, and it happens rarely in college football as it is.

Now, let's talk about some things that weren't so great.

Mike Bobo's playcalling left a lot to be desired. I'm still firmly on the Bobo bandwagon, and the reverse call to Branden Smith was pure genius (nice block by Joe as well), but sometimes I just feel like we find something that's working and then we switch it up too soon in a lame attempt to catch the other team off guard. Samuel was hot and we put Thomas in the game for an extended amount of time. We still don't use the TE as much as I would like, especially with Orson Charles showing now that he can make some plays, and we seem to get conservative when we have at least a 10+ point lead. If Mike Bobo had the mentality that we're always playing from behind, we'd probably really embarrass some folks.

Willie's Soft Zone nearly killed me. With all the injuries last year, I stood behind Willie saying that we should give him one more shot. However, and not taking anything away from Stephen Garcia who had essentially the game of his life, we were dinked and dunked to death last Saturday. I'm sure Petrino is looking at our game film and licking his chops at the WR screens and TE in-routes that he's surely going to try against us on Saturday. I understand that the defense played fairly well, we had some hurt personnel and that Garcia played out of his mind, but giving WRs 5-7 yard cushions every play isn't going to help . At some point, we're going to have to let our CBs do their thing and if we get burnt, we get burnt. However, underneath routes move sticks, keep your defense gassed and eat clock. WE should be doing that to them, not allowing them to do that to us.

Finally, North Campus' trash is an abomination. Please take the time to look at this post by PWD and slap anyone whose trash you may recognize. As PWD noted, it's irresponsible crap like this that screws everyone. I'm fine with folks having a large tailgate, getting bent and then firing it up in Sanford, but I'd much rather see people appreciate the liberties they have on Gameday. Other colleges are much tougher on these types of things than we are and right now, I wouldn't blame Adams one bit if he immediately imposed some new rules on tailgating. Either appreciate what you have or be prepared to have it taken away. There's no middle ground here.

Ok, now that I got all those things out, I feel much better. I'm going to try a new thing this week if I can get around to it. Even though I'm not camera savvy, I might try some video or audio blogging this week, depending on which works and is easier to upload. I had some friends mention to me that as much as they love my writing, I'm much better at talking football. I'd really love to dedicate some time to a podcast if I can, but I don't have the means or the avenue to do something like that AT THIS POINT. If that changes, though, you guys will be the first to know. A small video or audio blog though? I think I could handle that.

Now, let's get healthy (thoughts and prayers to Rod Battle), rested and ready for what I'm sure will be a really tough test against Arkansas on Saturday. I was looking at the schedule today and if we can go 5-2 or even 6-1 through these first seven games, it actually eases up a LITTLE after the Florida game following the bye week. If we could somehow go 6-1 through the first half of the schedule, 10-2 isn't out of the question. However, a slip up here and there could easily put us at 8-4 or worse. It's all about how we play from week to week.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

My take on the whole matter sort of sides with Gundy, but not for the lame ass reason he's listed. While Gundy says he fears a brawl, what he's really saying is that he's getting his troops amped up and he wants nothing to do with anything that will quell that fire he's trying to light inside them. He wants his players amped up and ready to hit from the time the football gets kicked off. While that energy COULD lead to some type of altercation, an altercation is more than highly unlikely. Those kinds of things only happen when USC and Clemson play each other and any time a team from Florida plays another team from Florida (see: Florida vs. Florida State, Florida vs. Miami, Miami vs. Florida Atlanta, etc.).

I don't side with Gundy, but I see his ulterior motive in not bringing his players down. I side with the fact that TRUE sportsmanship happens AFTER the game when one team leaves as a loser and the other as a victor. Think about it. How many times did any of us when playing little league sports shake hands BEFORE a game?

None.

However, after the game, it's customary for the teams to high five and say "good game" to the other squad, regardless of whether or not they actually felt that the game they played, or the game the other team played, was good. When you can take that loss like an adult, hold your head high and wish the other team well, you've practiced TRUE sportsmanship.

What Gundy's gotten himself into is a mess where he looks like the villain in a shitty PR stunt by an organization trying to do something to gain attention. The AFCA has concocted this idea that doing this will somehow make the sport look better, when we all should know that, yes it's just a stupid handshake, but no, it means jack shit.

We already have a pregame handshake between the captains of the different squads at the coin toss. We already have the coaches go out and talk to each other during warmups. We have all of these things in place already and now the AFCA is asking for some type of PR stunt in the middle of opening weekend?

You want to see true sportsmanship, then go watch any game after the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001. We played Arkansas that year and not one player on the field put their own agenda above that day. In fact, that's the day I cared the least about UGA football and the day I cared the most about being lucky enough to attend an event of such magnitude.

So, don't side with Gundy, but in my opinion, don't side with the AFCA either. If they want sportsmanship, they should request something that actually puts the sport on the back-burner. The best way to do that is make both teams swallow their pride and wish the other team the best for the rest of the season.

Until next time kids.

Be safe.

It's another tune by Wolfmother called "The Joker & The Thief" and was most recently made famous by the movie "The Hangover." However, I saw it as a good excuse to make Mike Gundy the Joker and the Dawgs' win in 2007 as the Thieves.

It's a good blend of Munson's calls (the last game from which I've found any audio recordings) and Mike Gundy's "I'm a man! I'm 40!" rant from a few years back.

I hope you guys enjoy and as always, you can shoot me an e-mail at KitZeus99 {at} gmail {dot} com and I'll get this one and any others you'd like over to you.

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Until next time kids.

Be safe.