Is It Better to Pump Up the Volume or Get Into the Swim of Things?

by T Kyle King on Aug 11, 2007 1:01 PM EDT in Football

As David Ching reported and Paul Westerdawg noted, Mark Richt sprang a surprise on the Bulldog football team on Thursday, taking the players to the Ramsey Center for a relaxing afternoon at the pool.

"We've been working hard and haven't missed a day yet," said Coach Richt, who performed a back flip off of the high dive for the amusement of the team. "It's been extremely hot with record temperatures. We try to do something like this every year for camaraderie and fun, and I think they enjoyed it."

Thursday's afternoon practice was moved from 4:20 to 8:30 that evening.

Meanwhile, in Stillwater, Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy is planning to implement his game plan for the Cowboys' season opener against Georgia earlier than usual.

Typically, the Pokes begin preparing for their initial opponent a week or 10 days in advance of the game. This year, however, the plans for O.S.U.'s inaugural outing in Athens will begin being implemented two weeks before the contest.

It will be interesting to see which coach's approach pays bigger dividends on September 1. While there can be no doubt of either team's intensity (as evidenced by the prevalence of sweatshirts seen in Athens reminding the team of the upcoming showdown with the Cowboys), Coach Richt appears to be trying to keep his players loose, while Coach Gundy looks like he's planning to turn things up a notch for Oklahoma State.

Which coach is adopting the more sensible tactic?

Go 'Dawgs!

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I'd rather swim

We are three weeks away from kickoff. That's plenty of time to get focused and crank up the intensity. I think it is a good move to back off the conditioning a bit considering that the weather right now is downright dangerous.

Plus, seeing your headcoach do a backflip from 18,000 feet would fire me up to no end.

by DavetheDawg on Aug 11, 2007 3:51 PM EDT reply actions

Both make sense

I think both approaches make a lot of sense and are indicative of the state of their programs.

Gundy is trying to instill a fire in his team, and is trying to get them ready to knock off a highly-ranked team that would get his program a lot of national attention. They are trying to get to the level UGA is at.

Meanwhile Coach Richt is maintaining an atmosphere of both focus (oSu sweatshirts) and relaxed confidence (backflips into the pool). He resides over a program that sees itself as elite and while it has bigger goals, it is in a place where they already know how to get things done.

by Hobnail Boot on Aug 11, 2007 5:45 PM EDT reply actions

I like the Dawgs' approach

The Dawgs are in a position where they don't need to treat this game as a "make or break" opener. Of course, everyone wants a victory, but at the same time we can all agree that the NC is highly unlikely this year, but a shot at the East or SEC is possible.

If too much emphasis were to be put on this game (through extended preperations), a loss would demoralize the team. Also, it's a better idea to stick with the standard prep time so in the following weeks the team doesn't feel underprepared for future opponents.

by SoccerDawg on Aug 11, 2007 8:59 PM EDT reply actions