First S.E.C. Power Poll Released; Results Produce Eye-Rolling
by T Kyle King
on Sep 4, 2008 8:45 AM EDT
in Football
The results of the first in-season S.E.C. Power Poll are up, and, quite frankly, they are nonsense.
Georgia and Florida each received 13 first-place votes, but the Gators edged the Bulldogs by a 3.5-point margin.
What are the justifications for this silliness? Garnet and Black Attack quotes Orange and Blue Hue as having argued, "Georgia depth is being pushed to the limit this year." The ‘Dawgs have had two high-profile injuries. Why is it that these push the Red and Black’s depth "to the limit" if Florida’s corresponding rash of A.C.L. defections does not operate against the Saurians?
Likewise, the Mississippi State Sports Blog asked of Georgia, "Did they put in the second string defense in the fourth quarter?" Yes; it’s called building depth and showing class. While I agree that the overall superior performances by Ohio State and Southern California called into question the Bulldogs’ present worthiness for the No. 1 ranking in the country, why is responsible coaching considered a basis for declaring the ‘Dawgs less than the best team in the league when no other S.E.C. squad put on a show comparable to that exhibited by the Trojans?
I addressed this issue before, when C&F argued that "Georgia looked less impressive" than Florida did on Labor Day weekend. In response, I wrote:
[T]he Gators were deadlocked with the Warriors in a scoreless tie for almost the first third of the contest. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, were up by seven less than three minutes into the game, led 10-0 after one quarter, and led 17-0 three minutes into the second quarter.
The Red and Black tallied 535 yards of total offense. The Orange and Blue tallied 406.
Other than the fact that Urban Meyer lacks both the good sense to pull his starters and the class not to run it up on an overmatched opponent, in what sense was Florida more impressive than Georgia?
The S.E.C. Power Poll is a fine institution comprised of many quality webloggers and the fellows who run the operation do a good job, but the voters this week dropped the ball, producing results which are ridiculous when viewed in light of the available evidence.
Go ‘Dawgs!
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I would actually . . .
correct the Mississippi State Sports Blog by pointing out that, in fact, it was the 3rd and even 4th string. On the final touchdown we were playing almost nothing but freshmen and walkons. And here’s a question: If you’re going to downgrade a team in a poll such as this based on depth issues which have not, as of yet, led to a drop off in onfield performance, is it “double jeopardy” to them drop them further if and when the depth issues actually contribute to a loss?
And further, at this point, how do we know that any team “doesn’t have depth” when we haven’t actually seen the performance of their backups? Hypothetically speaking, if Kregg Lumpkin and Thomas Brown had gone down last year against Oklahoma St., this rationale would justify a drop in the polls, because we’d be relying on an inexperienced freshman tailback (some kid named Knowshon Rockwell Moreno). And that just never would have worked out, right? I can abide with partisan voting, but illogical ballot casting just chaps me.
That said, it will all sort itself out.
by MaconDawg on Sep 4, 2008 9:30 AM EDT 0 recs
So, I know you guys don't mind being jumped by USC...
But to be honest, it really pisses me off. There really is a double standard for USC in the polls.
by LSU Jonno on Sep 4, 2008 10:07 AM EDT 0 recs
I just
read your thread over on the LSU blog and i agree. But honestly i wouldn’t want to be #1. It awfully lonely at the top spot. Plus with UGA’s wretched schedule, the pressure of being #1 might be too much.
Don't take life to seriously, you'll never get out alive.
by bammer on
Sep 4, 2008 10:19 AM EDT
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A few things
A few things went in Florida’s favor here. First, the Gators were on live TV in the southeast and the Bulldogs were not. Second, Georgia’s highlight package from this weekend wasn’t as impressive as watching Florida’s parade of long plays. Plus, Florida’s backup defense kept Hawai’i’s backup offense from scoring more than Georgia’s backup defense allowed Georgia Southern to score, and when you can’t see both games, the final score is a convenient shortcut.
The biggest reason I’d guess is that Florida answered some of its offseason questions. Yes, there are good running backs finally and yes, the secondary can cover someone. They weren’t definitive answers, no; those won’t come until SEC play. However, Georgia didn’t have the chance to answer any of its questions to any degree because it played a I-AA team and any and all success against one immediately gets dismissed.
The fact the Gators got to answer criticism helped its case seem stronger. Overall, early season polls really aren’t worth worrying about.
by Year2 on Sep 4, 2008 10:18 AM EDT 0 recs
Garbage.....
Florida didn’t answer any questions on Saturday other than confirming what we all knew anyway…Urban Meyer is a giant douchebag of the first magnitude. All the seconday proved is that it can cover a second rate bunch of receivers.
by RocketDawg on
Sep 4, 2008 11:51 AM EDT
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Long plays?
As always, Year2, I appreciate your perspective and the reasonableness with which you present it. You make good arguments why someone might have adopted the wrong position. Please bear in mind that my reply is directed at the people who voted upon the basis you describe, not at you for describing it accurately. It is not my intention to punish the messenger.
If the ESPN box score for the game is to be believed, Georgia posted the following big plays:
Runs of 18, 19, and 27 yards by Caleb King.
A run of 24 yards by Knowshon Rockwell Moreno.
Passes by Matthew Stafford of 26 yards to Tripp Chandler, 36 yards to A.J. Green, 37 yards to Moreno, 47 yards to Mohamed Massaquoi, and 61 yards to Kris Durham.
A pass by Joe Cox of 32 yards to Michael Moore.
That sounds like a “parade of long plays” to me.
I take nothing away from the Gators; I ranked them second in the S.E.C. and they are a legitimate top five team. However, the fact is that, by the end of the first quarter in Gainesville, Florida hadn’t scored. By the end of the first quarter in Athens, the Bulldogs’ second-string quarterback had attempted two passes and Georgia’s third-string running back had gotten one carry.
If Florida allowed fewer points, it is because the Gators’ slow start required Urban Meyer to keep his starters in the game longer than the Bulldogs’ hot start required Mark Richt to do. Had Florida been up 17-0 early in the second period the way Georgia was, you’d have seen more Gator backups (and, hence, more Warrior points) in the fourth quarter.
If the Gators made a "statement," that statement was this: Coach Richt’s team came ready to play from the get-go (the kickoff went for a touchback, G.S.U.’s first drive was a three-and-out, and Georgia’s first drive resulted in a touchdown) and Coach Meyer’s team took the first 15 minutes of the season off. Anyone who’s impressed by that is impressed by the wrong things.
Anyone who voted Florida higher because Georgia wasn’t on television needs to take the time to read a dozen box scores or give up his voting privileges because he’s too lazy to do his homework properly.
Anyone who takes Hawaii more seriously than Georgia Southern needs to look at schedules and rosters. The Warriors succeeded last year precisely because they played the functional equivalent of a Division I-AA schedule. Moreover, this year’s Hawaii squad took the field in the Swamp without Colt Brennan, without June Jones, and without the Warriors’ marquee receivers. The team the Gators beat in Gainesville was a far cry from the team the Bulldogs beat in the Sugar Bowl, and the team the Bulldogs beat in the Sugar Bowl wasn’t anywhere near as good as advertised.
Florida is an outstanding football team and the Gators may prove, in time, to be better than the Bulldogs. However, anyone who thinks the Orange and Blue had a better opening game than the Red and Black is simply ignorant and in error.
RocketDawg, as always, your presence and your commentary are welcome and appreciated. Nevertheless, I’d be grateful if we could keep the insults of opposing coaches at a little more moderate level. I agree with you in principle, but the particular animadversion hurled against Coach Meyer crept a little closer to the line than I’d have liked. Your understanding and cooperation are appreciated.
Go 'Dawgs!
by T Kyle King on
Sep 4, 2008 12:19 PM EDT
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Don't forget the punt returns
Often, when Media discuss “big plays” they don’t factor the return game into the equation. Granted, an average kick return is over 20 yards, which seems long compared to a run.
That said, Georgia had two big punt returns, even as punt returns go. Generally speaking, I think the return game should factor into any reasonable discussion, IMO. And it also represents a diminished chance for big plays from the line of scrimmage, since better field position takes away yardage from an offense (I was especially pleased that we ran up 510 yards of offense with over 100 yards punt returns, on that note).
May the wings of liberty never lose a feather
by peacedog on
Sep 4, 2008 1:25 PM EDT
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Georgia’s highlight package on College Football Final only included four offensive plays (all TDs), and two of the four were less than 10 yards in length. I doubt the SportsCenter package was any longer than that, but I didn’t record it. I’m not denying that Georgia had a lot of long plays; you can see that they did when you see that UGA had over 9 yards a play (versus Florida’s 7 and change).
The difference is that every one of Florida’s offensive plays was available on TV in the most of the east and streamed for free from Yahoo. Any interested observer could have seen all of them. Anyone interested in seeing Georgia would have needed to have a ticket in Sanford Stadium or to have purchased the game on pay per view. I doubt anyone other than a Bulldog fan would have have taken advantage of those options.
So, most people nationwide (fans and media folks) had only the 61-yard pass to a receiver who was wide open, a five-yard Moreno run, a 24-yard Moreno run, and a 5-yard TD from Joe Cox on a fade route. That is, of course, assuming they saw the highlights at all. Getting a full perspective of the game without seeing more than that requires digging farther into a box score than even most bloggers do.
The story of the Florida game ended up being “Wow, Tebow did nothing and they dominated. Those running backs must be good after all. And hey, two interception returns for scores. That would have never happened last year.” The story of the Georgia game ended up being “Well, they blew out a I-AA team but man, another season ending injury? To a senior? How many more can they take?”
Not saying it’s fair or right, but that’s a breakdown of how a lot of people came away thinking Florida had a better game last weekend. If both teams went full blast all game they both would have won 80 or 90 something to zero. One game against an overmatched team proves nothing, really.
Since there was no preseason SEC power poll based on team quality, we don’t know who if anyone changed their opinions based on one game. The SEC media picked Florida over Georgia, and so did several preseason magazines. It’s possible that if we did one, Florida could have come out on top just like this week. We just don’t know.
No one in the country has the chance to impress more than Georgia does. That’s what having the toughest schedule in the country does for you. By the end of the year, no one will care about these first week games anyway.
by Year2 on
Sep 4, 2008 7:08 PM EDT
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I agree
That UGA should be #1 in the SEC power rankings. I believe the best 2 teams in the SEC are UF and UGA. The winner of the cocktail party this year will determine which SEC team will win the NC.
Don't take life to seriously, you'll never get out alive.
by bammer on Sep 4, 2008 10:20 AM EDT 0 recs
I will be pulling for UGA...
Think about what it will say for the SEC if 3 different teams from the league win the NC 3 consecutive years. That is just ridiculous.
by LSU Jonno on
Sep 4, 2008 1:04 PM EDT
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Two things
I agree with Year2 that the Gators being on a more widely-viewable channel helped their case somewhat.; they were viewable and they won big.
Two – did we play the second string in the fourth quarter? The only defenders who hadn’t yet seen the field were walk ons, and yeah they got to see the field too.
May the wings of liberty never lose a feather
by peacedog on Sep 4, 2008 12:10 PM EDT 0 recs
In my defense
I did rank Georgia first. I just thought the score from the Florida game against an FBS team was more impressive than the Georgia score against an FCS team. “Looks” can be deceiving, and I still think Georgia is the better team.
Just to be clear.
by cocknfire on Sep 4, 2008 5:01 PM EDT 0 recs
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