You know, as I look around the college football and NFL world today, there is a recurring theme: HEAD COACHES ON THE HOT SEAT. That's a headline that, frankly, I'm sick of. It got me thinking about my favorite coach in all of sports, and how I feel blessed as a Georgia fan to have: Head Coach Mark Richt. I've come across some information that I found very interesting concerning him. Here's some facts about the state of Georgia Bulldogs football since he arrived in 2001:
Record Under Richt (2001-2007)
2001 8-4 (5-3) T-3rd East
2002 13-1 (8-1) SEC Champions, Sugar Bowl Champions
2003 11-3 (6-3) SEC East Champions
2004 10-2 (6-2) 2nd East
2005 10-3 (7-2) SEC Champions
2006 9-4 (4-4) T-3rd East
2007 11-2 (6-2) T-1st Sugar Bowl Champions
Recruiting Rankings
2002 #3 Rivals, #9 Scout
2003 #6 Rivals, #11 Scout
2004 #6 Rivals, #6 Scout
2005 #10 Rivals, #4 Scout
2006 #4 Rivals, #4 Scout
2007 #9 Rivals, #17 Scout
2008 #7 Rivals, #5 Scout
National Rankings (AP Poll Finishes)
2001 #22
2002 #3
2003 #7
2004 #7
2005 #10
2006 #23
2007 #2
Other Facts:
* 2002 and 2005 SEC Coach of the Year
* Posted a 72-19 record in his first seven seasons
* Has the fourth highest winning percentage in the country among active FBS coaches
* Has led Georgia to 3 SEC Championship games, Georgia is 2-1 in that department
* Has led Georgia to 3 Sugar Bowl appearances, Georgia is also 2-1 in that department
Conclusion
What more can be said? Mark Richt is one of the best coaches in the country. I'm glad we don't have to worry about how our coach being fired. I don't mean that as a stab at any other team whose coach is on the hot seat, I just feel blessed to have a coach like Coach Richt. He's also a man that shares my faith and values, we are both Christians. I've had the chance to hear him speak in person at the NW Georgia and Chattanooga Bulldog Club, and it was pretty awesome. GO DAWGS!!!!!!!
As A Georgia fan, I've heard all the hype surrounding my team, and equally as much hatred. Those of you that have read any of my previous posts know that I like to do informative and persuasive blogs. This time, I thought I would take a break from the numbers and stat books and stick to my opinion. So with that in mind, there are a few people that I would love to thank:
1. All the Georgia Haters
You continue to inspire me and drive me to looking even more forward to proving your sorry butts wrong. It's true that when your team is on top, the haters will increase. When you're the top dog (no pun intended) people gun for you. Saying stuff like "Florida is better because of Tebow" and "Knowshon won't win the Heisman" and "Stafford is overrated" and "Georgia's schedule is too tough" only motivates us to win. If you think that hating on my team because we're #1 is going to somehow hurt us, you need to think again. No one thought that we could beat Florida or Auburn, but y'all know how that turned out. The #### Mark May on ESPN thought that Hawaii was going to win the Sugar Bowl, and of course didn't. Come on naysayers, keep it up, keep picking Florida and Tebow and their weak secondary to win the SEC and National Championships and I'll stick to my Dawgs.
2. Urban Meyer
I want to thank Urban Meyer for being the biggest crybaby in college football. Yes, I'm throwing down the gauntlet with Florida. Everybody talks about what is now being called 'The Celebration'. That celebration took place 10 months ago and I'm still hearing Florida fans and Oscar Meyer complaining about it. Come on, Urban is mad because he didn't think of something like that and his team and his beloved Heisman winner got their butts handed to them!!!! I heard a member of the media at the SEC Media Days ask Meyer if they had something special planned for the Nov.1 showdown. Please!!!! You can't top what we did. We've only got better since then, so expect another beatdown. By the way UGA leads the series 47-37-2.
3. Mark May and ESPN
Here are some notable quotes from Mark May: "I pick Hawaii in the upset", "The SEC East doesn't have any power teams", "I think that Pitt will contend for a National Title". Thank you Mark May for proving that you don't have to be smart to be a college football fan. I thank ESPN for hiring idiots like him to entertain us while we wait for the season to start.
4. Myself
Lastly, I would like to thank myself for coming up with a blog like this. I wish I'd have thought of this sooner.
5. Everyone
Thank everyone that takes time to read this and drop me a few hate notes. (I know you Florida fans are boiling right about now)
It's been awhile since I last posted a blog, so I thought I'd spout off a few thoughts about what I think about the upcoming season for the SEC.
1. Who will win the East?
That's the million dollar question. Florida looks to be scary good, but they have no defense so look for UGA to run up the score. I know, you Florida fans think you own UGA but let me remind you that WE own the series lead 47-37-2. The winner of the Cocktail Party will win the East and the SEC.
2. Who will win the West?
This is a toss-up because there's no stand-out team. LSU has lost too much talent to compete, Bama is Bama, MSU is improved but not enough to matter, Ole Miss (goes without saying), Arkansas has no offense, and Auburn is going through transition. Really, you could put any team in this slot. I really don't know who will win this division. I'll have to go with LSU because they're the defending champs.
3. Who will win the SEC Championship?
Like I've said before, I think the winner of UGA/UF will win the SEC and go to the National Championship and win. The Atlanta showdown could be Georgia vs. LSU or Florida vs. LSU with the Eastern Division team winning. I'm personally biased if you couldn't tell already for Georgia. We're just too loaded to bet against.
4. Can Georgia successfully navigate the tough schedule?
ABSOLUTELY!!!!! Why not? I encourage everyone to go on georgiadogs.com and check out our depth chart. We have the guns to do it. I'm not saying we'll go undefeated, I think at best we'll go 11-1. Yes, the schedule is tough, but we have one of the best coaches in college football that knows how to motivate his team and keep them focused. I have all the confidence in the world in my team. I'm not ignorant, just confident.
5. Who will surprise?
I know it may sound like I was dissing the SEC West, but I think Mississippi State is the one to watch. I'm not saying that they'll win the division or the SEC, but I think they could be this year's Kentucky. They have a good coach, but they need to get that offense going. I think they'll make a bowl game again this year.
Towards the end of 2007, when the national title talk started to heat up, one thing kept coming up among the team message boards: Strength of Schedule. The national title talk for next year has already started, so I did a little research on next year's top 3 teams. I looked at all three schedules and analyzed them. This is what I found:
Schedule Analysis:
* Faces 9 bowl teams from last season
* Faces 5 ranked opponents (based on the final AP poll)
* Highest ranked opponent: #1 LSU
* Lowest ranked opponent: #16 Arizona State
* Faces 9 teams with winning records (excluding Georgia Southern)
Recruiting (according to Rivals.com):
2 Five Star
13 Four Star
23 Total Commitments
Final AP Ranking: #2
2. USC
Virginia (9-4, 6-2) ACC
#5 Ohio State (11-2, 7-1) Big 10
#25 Oregon State (9-4, 6-3)
#23 Oregon (9-4, 5-4)
#16 Arizona State (10-3, 7-2)
Washington State (5-7, 3-6)
Arizona (5-7, 4-5)
Washington (4-9, 2-7)
California (7-6, 3-6)
Stanford (4-8, 3-6)
Notre Dame (3-9) Ind
UCLA (6-7, 5-4)
Schedule Analysis:
* Faces 7 bowl teams from last season
* Faces 4 ranked opponents (final AP poll)
* Highest ranked opponent: #5 Ohio State
* Lowest ranked opponent: #25 Oregon State
* Faces 6 teams with winning records
Recruiting:
2 Five Star
13 Four Star
19 Total Commits
Final AP Ranking: #3
3. Ohio State
Youngstown State (7-4, 3-3) Div. 1-AA
Ohio (6-6, 4-4) MAC
#3 USC (11-2, 7-2) Pac 10
Troy (8-4, 6-1) Sun Belt
Minnesota (1-11, 0-8)
#24 Wisconsin (9-4, 5-3)
Purdue (8-5, 3-5)
Michigan State (7-6, 3-5)
Penn. State (9-4, 4-4)
Northwestern (6-6, 3-5)
#20 Illinois (9-4, 6-2)
#18 Michigan (9-4, 6-2)
Schedule Analysis:
* Faces 7 bowl teams from last season
* Faces 4 ranked opponents (final AP poll)
* Highest ranked opponent: #3 USC
* Lowest ranked opponent: #24 Wisconsin
* Faces 8 teams with winning records (excluding Youngstown State)
Recruiting:
4 Five Star
9 Four Star
20 Total Commits
Final AP Ranking: #5
Final Comments:
Based on all of this, I would have to give the toughest schedule award to UGA (not just because I'm a dawg fan). I put this blog together to hopefully shed some light on the schedules and settle the debate about who has the toughest schedule. Georgia and Ohio State both play one Div. 1-AA team, while USC plays none. The reason UGA has the toughest schedule is because we face more ranked opponents, more bowl teams, and more teams with winning records. The lowest ranked opponent is #16, while the other two lowest teams were near the bottom of the poll. Georgia also faces the 2006 and 2007 National Champions, back to back, on their turf. This isn't just opinion, it's backed up with facts.
