I support Richt

For those of you who said Richt should be fired, look at the big picture and focus on what he has done during his time!

Richt has guided us to two SEC championships in his first five years. No other UGA coach in the past has done that.

Richt has given us consistent 10 win seasons. If it weren't for bad defensive plays from Vanderbilt and Kentucky in 06, we could have gone 11-2 and made it 6 consecutive seasons with 10 or more wins.

Richt has given us three Sugar Bowl appearances and consistent rankings in the polls, 2 seasons in the top 3, 5 seasons in the top 10. Make that 4 consecutive seasons in the top 10 from 2002-2005. Not even Florida can do that despite what their team has accomplished.

There are many more successes that Richt has given us in the football program, but which coach can you think of who can replace Richt? Yes, Richt still has a lot to improve on especially after this season, but he has accomplished tremendously during his tenure here.

This is the first season where a combination of injuries, bad plays, numerous penalties, bad discipline issues, lack of focus, and inaccountability has come together all at once, and Richt will address it accordingly. However, some of the coaches should be held accountable especially for how many points or yardage on special teams we have given up and instilling discipline in the team. We may give Ole Willie another chance next year as an indication if he could turn things around, but in the long term, his PASSIVE defense WILL NOT work at Georgia. If he does not turn things around for the 09 season, he may be out. Coach Searels is doing a great job on the offensive line and has kept us alive in spite of our defense, and Bobo, despite the occassional bad calls, is still learning in the process. We have great players, we have the potential for great coaches a good defense and an unstoppable offense in the future. It's that somehow many positives has not worked in our favor this year.

To make a comparision, our team this year is somewhat similar to what Texas (a team that has been successful throughout the years) had to go through last year in 2007. Texas had a good offense, but the defense gave up many points, and it led to a change in the defense coordinator. They lost at home to Kansas State giving up 41 points AND yes, they lost to their in-state rival Texas A&M 38-30, not once but twice in a row. I'm not saying that we may lose to GT next year, but as good as the Texas Longhorns were, they lost some football games. I don't know if they had many discipline or penalties as we had this year, but even the best fall down sometimes. That is college football. The thing that defines a football team that wins championships and a team that is mediocre at best is that a championship team treats each game for a purpose as if it is their last football game they will ever play (as many people on this blog pointed out) and a mediocre team that wins just to get by.

High expectations is what kills us (on the football field, at work, or as a student)  because we may or may not REALISTICALLY achieve those goals given the circumstances. The preseason polls are foolish and stupid ranking us #1 in the beginning, and I would've ranked the UGA football team #12 at best in August. As for Richt, he is the best coach we have had for our Georgia program in a long time and things will get better for the good once he addresses what needs to be done. It will take some time (maybe a new offensive scheme here or there, and definitely, better defensive strategies, and some players who never say quit), but he will guide us to where UGA football needs to be, and that is to championships. For those who want Richt to be fired, who do you want to be the next UGA coach?