Nickel package

Rice coach understands what commitment means

Nick Saban could learn a thing or two from the Rice Head Coach. Heart-touching and reconfirms my belief that outside of Mark Richt there are other GREAT men involved in shaping the lives of young men in college football

Coastal Carolina gets it wish

Coastal Carolina head football coach Joe Moglia has named Nick Jones assistant coach. Jones will instruct the Chanticleer tight ends and tackles. "Nick is an enthusiastic up-and-coming coach," Moglia said. "He comes highly recommended and has proven to have great football IQ. Nick has a great knack for motivating and relating with the student-athletes since he was such a great leader while he played at Georgia. Nick's energy will be contagious and we are excited to have his influence." A four-year letterman for at the University of Georgia (2003-06), Jones was an offensive graduate assistant on the Bulldogs' staff for the 2010 and '11 seasons. His first year, Jones was with the UGA coaches in the press box on gamedays, but he was moved to the sidelines in 2011 to better utilize his coaching and motivating skills. This past season, Jones was additionally responsible for preparing the defensive scout team, simulating the upcoming opponent's defense and helping Georgia win the Southeastern Conference East Division. Jones was a second team All-SEC selection at center as a senior and was elected as the permanent co-captain of the 2006 squad. Following his senior season he was selected to play in the prestigious Hula Bowl All-Star Game. A native of Bowdon, Ga., Jones started 32 consecutive games for the Bulldogs and was part of a senior class that compiled a 40-12 four-year record, 3-1 bowl record, played in two SEC championship games and won the 2005 SEC title. Jones signed a free agent contract with the Seattle Seahawks in 2007 and spent parts of two seasons with the Seahawks, New York Giants and Detroit Lions organizations.

Richt says RB Samuel will play

RB Richard Samuel (foot) has shown no signs of pain in practice and should be fine to play Jan. 2, coach Mark Richt said. LB Mike Gilliard (ankle) "has a chance" to play, Richt said. DE DeAngelo Tyson (ankle) has not practiced and isn't likely to play.

A Damn Good Interview with a Damn Good Dawg: Jarvis Jones

"Preseason, I’m going to tell you, the only thing I knew was I was going to go out there and give it everything I had. I didn’t know anything about any awards, no All-American, none of that. I was just trying to prepare myself the best way I could to make plays and help my team out and give my team the best chance of winning."

Kent Turene is Marshall Bound

According to the AJC: UGA’s drama-filled recruiting journey with Turene is over, with the 4-star LB prospect from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., headed elsewhere. Flashback: Turene was committed to USC for six months before switching to UGA last February. The Bulldogs had high hopes for Turene, but his admission was held up by the NCAA Clearinghouse. Turene enrolled this fall at Atlanta Sports Academy, a prep school in Dawsonville, while waiting for the situation to be resolved. It never was, with Turene opting to go to Marshall in January as a Prop 48 student. Turene told UGASport.com’s Anthony Dasher that he recently took some night classes that were not approved by the NCAA: "They said my school had a bad history with Internet classes and things like that, so I just came to the decision that I’d go Prop 48."

NFL Evaluations in DawgNation

The AJC provides us with a tease in this column by telling us that Orson Charles, Bacari Rambo and Aaron Murray have all filed for NFL evaluations. They go on to say Murray is just trying to see how his skills will translate. CBSSports.com gives us a peek into Orson's thoughts as of this week as well as Jarvis Jones' decision to stay another year in their Rapid Reports

Crowell named 4th Best Freshman in the Nation

On the wwl, Todd McShay ranks the top 25 Freshmen in NCAA FBS. Insider Access required for the full article, but here is what he has to say about IC. Key stats: 847 rush yds | 4.7 avg | 6 total TDs Analysis: Crowell shows quick feet and the ability to stop and start quickly, and his patience and feel for running lanes is impressive for such a young back. He lacks elite top-end speed but has burst through the hole and can bounce inside runs to the sideline once he hits the second level. Crowell also runs hard and with good balance, but he'll need to get stronger to break more tackles in the future. He also flashes natural hands in the passing game and can develop into a big-time weapon in the passing game, but his instincts and experience are not yet up to par in that area. Finally, Crowell gets in good position as a blocker but needs to get stronger and more aggressive. Link to the full article is here. Top 5 are free.

Best Bars???

Hey guys just wondering what the good bars are to go to after the Boise st. game?

Pollack just Tweeted

that "Thomas brown, Tony gilbert & Kendrell bell are all on the strength staff at Georgia now." IF (and a big IF considering it's Pollack's Twitter)* that's true, I'm 2/3 encouraged. Brown and Gilbert were beasts in the weight room (I remember hearing a few times that Brown was the strongest guy on the team), but Bell was an NFL underachiever at best. Still, nice to see the S&C staff bringing back some of the workers they had. * Considering these 3 were his teammates, I consider it at least 80% reliable scoop.