Knock Out Parkinson’s, Coach Richt

One thing that I have and continue to stand on is that Mark Richt is a championship coach...he just through cruel dealings of fate has no championship trophy to back it up.

As much as Kirby Smart has elevated the Georgia program since 2016, it had to be elevated up to be in that position. It got there under Richt, being at the highest level it had been since fans of generation had only heard stories of how magical the era of Herschel, Buck and Lindsey, and Rex were. What Richt did, especially through 2007, was what you could have only dreamed of.

In this time, one thing defined Georgia: “Finish The Drill.” That became a rallying cry for Richt, and it’s now something that carries much more weight for Richt following Thursday night’s bombshell that he has Parkinson’s disease.

As much as Richt elevated this program and what it meant to be a Bulldog, we as Georgia fans now send our thoughts toward Richt as he enters his toughest fight.

Myself and at least one or two others from this site had the good fortune of being around the program during the early part of Richt’s time in Athens. It was, to say the least, more laid back than it is now with player's families running around during ‘family night’ on Monday evenings and Richt even letting his guard down enough to casually eat lunch with members of the media a time or two before the weekly news conferences.

You got to see the real Mark Richt in these times, as someone who was a pretty good football coach...but an even better person, as well who, while he was a football coach and cared a lot about winning, strived to keep all of that in perspective. You saw that world view on Thursday night in the way that Richt made his announcement.

Fight hard against Parkinson’s, coach. We’re all in your corner.