If I'm ever going to be objective about where Mark Richt stands as a head coach among his peers in the SEC, today would be the day. My rose-colored glasses may finally be a little dirty after yesterday's depressing loss to the archrival Yellow Jackets. Georgia blew its football game against Georgia Tech yesterday in heartbreaking fashion, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory after they seemed to have won the game by scoring a touchdown with only 18 seconds left in regulation. Yesterday's loss was almost as bad as the infamous Prayer at Jordan-Hare last year. Inexplicably, coach Richt called for a pooch kick on the subsequent kickoff, afraid that Georgia Tech might manage a long return for a touchdown if we kicked deep. The shorter squib kick gave the Yellow Jackets excellent field position, and just enough time to run one play that gained just enough yardage for their kicker to attempt and make the longest field goal of his career, with literally inches to spare. With that fateful decision, Richt only managed to delay the inevitable winning touchdown, scored by Georgia Tech during their first possession of overtime. Truthfully, Georgia had no business being in position to win the game at the end. They were thoroughly outplayed by the Yellow Jackets for the entire second half. Tech managed to take the lead with about five minutes left in the game, and should have iced it after the receiving team failed to field the ensuing kickoff, giving the Yellow Jackets possession deep in the Bulldog territory. However, they fumbled the ball when they could … [Read more...]
Todd Grantham versus Jeremy Pruitt — which Defensive Coordinator would you rather have?
It's a good thing I don't drink coffee. This morning during breakfast when I read Michael Cunningham's article in the AJC that was published a couple of weeks ago, suggesting that Todd Grantham has done a better job of coaching defense at Louisville than Jeremy Pruitt has been doing this year at Georgia, I would have spit that coffee all over my keyboard. Water cleans up much easier. Nor does it hurt very much if you laugh while swallowing and some goes up or down the wrong way. Was Mr. Cunningham serious? Has he actually watched the two defenses play, or simply looked at the raw statistical analysis? In his defense, Mr. Cunningham normally writes about the Atlanta Hawks and professional basketball. He must have wandered a little bit out of his comfort zone. That's the only way I can guess someone might think Todd Grantham could do a better job at Louisville than Jeremy Pruitt has been doing this year at Georgia. He simply can't have watched Todd Grantham coach a defense before. However, I have. In fact, I watched Grantham in action for four mostly painful years, from 2010 - 2013, every game the Bulldogs played. And in my personal opinion, Georgia won the freaking lottery when Grantham left and they hired Pruitt to replace him. Now it simply isn't fair to Grantham to compare him to Jeremy Pruitt, a man who has proven he knows how to coach a national championship caliber defense. Grantham's work should be measured against Willie Martinez, the guy he replaced. Grantham was a slight improvement. But I am sure that I can recognize a … [Read more...]
