The REAL Dawgs

Well, that was a visceral butchering that took place Saturday night.  But like any game, it was a game of moments.  I think great teams (and great coaches) GET those moments.  The biggest moment was holding MSU to a FG after the fumble and then a big completion.  I’ve watched UGA football for a long time, and I’ve seen our D give up a TD there more than I care to remember.  You don’t have to do that after a turnover.  They’ll let you hold the team to 3. 

The other part was after that.  We had some timeouts and about a minute-thirty left.  With this D you just don’t take those chances unless you have to.  There simply no reason. It’s a funny shaped ball and bounces funny (ask Mohammed Sanu).  A batted pass and pick there.  We were up 14-3 with a true freshman QB and that might just win the game.  Turns out it would have.  A D like ours will make you think much differently.  And, a Freshman QB with Jake’s skillset will do so as well.  If it had been tied, maybe you go for it there.  It wasn’t.  There was no need.

The game I’m most intrigued with this week is MSU/Auburn.  Everyone is starting to climb back on the War Tigersmen.  I’m not so sure.  That Mizzou team is historically bad.  Also, do you know how bad Georgia Southern is?  0-3 w/ a loss to 1-AA New Hampshire.  Their D is ranked very high.  They have played some incredibly bad teams.  I’d imagine Mullen will have those guys ready to play.  Speaking of Mullen, where are the articles this week about him being the 2^nd best coach in the league?  I’m just very interested to see that game. 

·       Godwin is turning into a star, but I still feel like we’ve got to get the ball to Ridley a couple of more times a game.

·       Chaney was phenomenal.  Tip o’ the cap.  Despite the two trick(ish) plays, we really didn’t show a lot.  Didn’t give that jet sweep one time, but it’s coming.

·       There’s something about Swift and either Nick or Sony on the field that is deadly.  Having two guys with that kind of running ability on the field together is doggone hard to stop.

·       Fromm was fantastic.  More on that…

·       Been a long time since we had an All-American middle linebacker.  We got one.  Hope he gets the notoriety he deserves.

·       The secondary play and tackling is kind of mind-blowing.  Pruitt improved us tremendously.  This is another level.

·       We play a lot, and I mean a lot, of D linemen.

·       I thought MSU did a good job of protecting Fitz.  Not sure UT can hold up like that.  I expect us to get to the QB in Knoxville.

·       UT is giving up 242 yards/game rushing.  Yes, they played Tech, but they’re not holding a bunch of other people down, either.  I like Kelly, but he had 101 yards on 25 carries vs. UMass.  4 yards a carry.

It’s hard to imagine UT even staying close short of turnovers.  And hasn’t that been the story the last 2 years?  Sony’s fumble in 2015.  Eason’s sack/TD in 2016.  But I think we’d have to turn it over a bunch. I can’t imagine Kirby won’t have us ready.  BTW, do you know us and Clemson are the only 2 teams in America with 2 wins over two current top-25 teams?

On Fromm – it was an incredible performance.  I’m not sure we saw Matthew or Eason play any games like that as a freshman.  Maybe Zeier.  He lit up a good Clemson team in ’91.  And Zeier is who he reminds me most of.  Kirby’s got a good predicament.  I have no idea what he’ll do.  If Jake plays like that again in Knoxville, it’ll be hard to go back to Eason.  But none of know what Kirby knows. Does he believe that his team is good enough to play the way we’re playing and beat Bama.  That is, throw it 12-15 times, run the ball and play solid D.  We might very well could go 12-0 doing that.  But can we go 13-0 doing it?  Is there more of a long game in mind.  Or, can Jake progress through the season to trust him more to win a game throwing it 30 times if we have to. 

The craziest thing (and this is nuts for me) is that I think Kirby Smart can manage this thing for possibly both of them to play.  I just get the feel that this thing is about feel.  They don’t hesitate to put Swift in before Sony.  We might literally do this thing week to week based on the opponent, and he might get them to buy into it…to win. 

I don’t care.  Just keep winning.  Play the kid that gives us the best shot every game.  That’s all that matters.  We’re all dawgs.

Go Dawgs!

Beat Tennessee!