Monday Morning 'Dawg Bites.

Once again Monday morning's rolled around and you've got work to do before the Georgia Bulldogs take the field in Charlotte tomorrow night in a battle for all the reasonably priced menswear. But before you affix your nose to the old grindstone, let's take a look at what's making news this morning in Bulldog Nation.

Full, Never Seen Before Track Coverage from Yesterday - Georgia Official Athletic Site
The AA website has a cool video of Bulldog players and coaches hitting the track at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday for a little NASCAR experience. The UGA-themed car was cool, and Coach Richt's reaction to being passed at 170+ mph is pretty entertaining as well. All in all, I get the sense that Charlotte has really rolled out the red (and black) carpet this week, and that the team has made the best of being away from home for the holidays.

Mason wants Bulldogs to replace a winner | Online Athens
It's hard to say what Hutson Mason's "legacy" in Athens will be. Frankly, being a 15 game starter is sort of like being President for two years, hardly enough time to have a definable impact. But I hope that Mason will be remembered as a steady hand on the wheel who, while his numbers weren't spectacular, by and large did what he was asked to do to give the Red and Black a shot to win. While Mason's performances could have been better at times, none of 2014's three losses can be laid squarely at his feet, and his feet alone. That's something I wasn't sure I'd be able to say in hindsight at the beginning of this season.

Debut season with Georgia Bulldogs a strong one for Jacob Park
The future always seems more exciting than the present, which is one reason writers love to ask about next season during bowl practices. It's fresh enough to be exciting but not so far away that asking about it seems gauche.

And that's why we're now talking about the 2015 QB race. The backup signal caller is always right behind the guy who makes the best fake IDs in campus popularity contests. So I don't know that I'd get too excited about Jacob Park's chances of overtaking Brice Ramsey. This article notes Park's running ability, but it's helpful to remember that Ramsey comes from a Wing-T system at Camden County in which he also ran the ball some. A new offensive coordinator and QB coach might see something Mike Bobo didn't, but given what I saw of Ramsey in 2014 I have every reason to tag him the front runner.

One thing that bears noting is that whoever takes over the Bulldog offense is going to take over a stable of quarterbacks who've been in the Classic City long enough to get what Mike Bobo was trying to do. If the new guy tries to do too many things differently too fast it will be a disaster. Look no further than Jeff Driskel to see what happens when a young man with all the physical tools has no continuity of coaching. Even with good coaches (and I happen to think Kurt Roper is a very good coach) the transitions slow things down. Different things get emphasized. A crossed up and confused young quarterback is a great way to lose football games, and that's why Mark Richt has a very challenging process ahead of him, no matter who he picks in the coming days or who that guy picks come August.

Seton Hall Ends Lady Bulldogs' Undefeated Season - Bulldawg Illustrated
Lost in the late season football news and a strong start for Mark Fox's team is the fact that Andy Landers' squad only just suffered their first loss of the season, an upset at the hands of Seton Hall to drop the Lady Dawgs to a still stellar 12-1. Coach Landers remains one of those people I want to succeed, and early nonconference wins over Tech, Ohio State, Michigan State, and TCU sounds like success to me. Let's hope they can keep it rolling in conference play. Until later...

Go 'Dawgs!!!