Dawg Sports - Georgia/Vanderbilt Game Day Central.Georgia Bulldogs. 2012 SEC East and state champions.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48665/dawgsports_fave.png2014-10-05T11:13:34-04:00http://www.dawgsports.com/rss/stream/66712922014-10-05T11:13:34-04:002014-10-05T11:13:34-04:00Sunday Morning 'Dawg Bites: Gurley For President.
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<p>Todd Gurley threw a 50-yard pass? Give that man the Heisman</p>
— Edward Aschoff (@AschoffESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/AschoffESPN/status/518569824436248576">October 5, 2014</a>
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<p>The Georgia Bulldogs took care of business at home yesterday on a wild, wild day in college football. 11 of the top 25 teams in the country according to the AP Poll went down this week, which if not a record is at least pretty extraordinary. Now, as our Editor Emeritus T. Kyle King pointed out yesterday, Georgia has road trips to Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Florida on tap. Weirdly, the one to Jacksonville to play the Gators is probably the least worrisome. But that's a problem for another day (like, tomorrow). For now, here's what they're saying about yesterday's victory.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.georgiadogs.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/100414aao.html">Georgia Post-Game Quotes - Georgia vs. Vanderbilt - Georgia Official Athletic Site</a><br>Quotes from both teams after the game. Sadly no one asked Derek Mason how those answers of his worked out.</p>
<p><a href="http://onlineathens.com/sports/college-sports/2014-10-04/column-passing-attack-still-work-progress-no-13-georgia">Column: Passing attack still a work in progress for No. 13 Georgia | Online Athens</a><br>Fletcher Page hits the nail on the head by pointing out that the Georgia passing game doesn't have to be stellar, but it does need to be consistent. The problem right now is that it's neither.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.macon.com/2014/10/04/3344905_mitchell-in-four-plays-catches.html?rh=1">Mitchell makes his return to Bulldogs, says knee 'feels great' | Bulldogs Beat with Seth Emerson | Macon.com</a><br>Malcolm Mitchell's return to action was brief, but he said his knee felt fine and he'll be ready for more substantial action next week against Missouri. That can't hurt.</p>
<p><a href="http://onlineathens.com/sports/college-sports/2014-10-04/bowmans-big-day-starts-surprise-then-pick-six">Bowman's big day starts with a surprise, then a pick-six | Online Athens</a><br>Devin Bowman not only did a great job of honoring teammate Rico Johnson with his pick six, he also showed flashes of the explosiveness that coaches have talked about seeing in practice.</p>
<p><a href="http://bulldawgillustrated.com/2014/10/04/photos-uga-homecoming-festivities/">PHOTOS: UGA Homecoming Festivities - Bulldawg Illustrated</a><br>Photos from UGA Homecoming festivities including the crowning of the King and Queen. Because, you know, Homecoming is about more than beating up on Vanderbilt.</p>
<p>Everyone have a great Sunday. Until later . . .</p>
<p><b>Go 'Dawgs!!!</b></p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/5/6909595/uga-football-todd-gurley-heismanmacondawg2014-10-04T20:33:59-04:002014-10-04T20:33:59-04:00UGA 44, Vanderbilt 17: The Runaround Comes Around.
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<figcaption>Mike Zarrilli</figcaption>
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<p>Georgia methodically took care of business at home this afternoon against the struggling Vanderbilt Commodores, notching a decisive 44-17 victory.</p>
<p>That's all well and good of course. But I expect that many Bulldog fans are just as unsatisfied by the win as I am. Don't get me wrong, it's never a bad thing to be a Bulldog in Athens on Saturday night when the Chapel Bell is ringing. I'm thankful for an authoritative win in which Todd Gurley had a few more Heisman-worthy moments but left before getting too banged up. I'm glad that Hutson Mason hit on some big plays, but also that Brice Ramsey got some valuable infield experience. I'm thankful that the defsne made a couple of big plays and didn't give up many in return. Make no mistake, even Ice Cube would have to admit that today was a good day.</p>
<p>That being said, Hutson Mason's stat line was again . . .pedestrian. He was 11 of 17 for 121 yards, and 44 of those came on a single td strike to Chris Conley. Take that one out of the equation and he averaged 4.81 yards per pass attempt and 7.7 per completion. That's dreadful. He also had one bad interception and one even worse pass that should have been intercepted and likely returned for a pick six. I have defended Hutson Mason pretty steadfastly to this point. But I sense the coaches are trying to see if Brice Ramsey can take the job from him.</p>
<p>I don't want the Bulldog coaches to let anyone know, but they need to tell Hutson Mason that he has to go a solid week of practice without targeting Michael Bennett, just to see what it feels like. If Bennett were half as open half the time as Mason seems to believe, he would be a freakish combo of Randy Moss and Fred Biletnikoff. Mason goes to Bennett whether he's the safety valve, the first option, or standing in Jimmy John's ordering a sandwich. Oftentimes he doesn't even look at another receiver. It's time to break this habit before someone really makes us pay for it.</p>
<p>The Vanderbilt offense isn't scaring anyone, and the Bulldog defense didn't give reason to doubt that conclusion. The Commodores converted on only 15% of third down attempts, a much lower percentage than the Bulldogs had been surrendering (32%). 9 of 15 Commodore drives ended after fewer than 20 yards. The Bulldogs forced only 4 three-and-out drives, but 3 of them were accomplished within the first 4 Commodore drives of the game. Essentially the Bulldog defense was dominant up until the point it began to lose interest.</p>
<p>Todd Gurley did Todd Gurley things, rushing for 6.5 yards per carry (25 attempts for 162 yards), but he also did Hutson Mason things better than Hutson Mason, throwing a 50 yard pass to the emergent Jeb Blazevich. He also did Malcolm Mitchell things as well or better than Malcolm Mitchell, catching 2 passes for 24 yards. Though it was nice to see Mitchell back on the field and even nicer to hear that his knee felt fine after the game.</p>
<p>All in all, it was in the words of the old Blues Traveler song, like a bad play, where the heroes are right, and nobody thinks or expects too much. The things which were worrisome before are no less worrisome now. The things that we knew were sound appear just as sound as before. This game proceeded just as it should have, with Georgia winning solidly and tacking on a late touchdown to create a patina of blowout that didn't really exist. Georgia beat a bad team soundly at home, as they should have.</p>
<p>Next week they'll have to go on the road and beat a good but not great team in Missouri, then fly home, then fly back west to complete the same chore in Little Rock, Arkansas. My sense is that this may be the most dangerous two week sawing of the season, with games against teams Georgia could easily beat if they play their best game, but whom they will be playing under less than ideal circumstances. And today I saw little to tell me there's nothing to worry about. But for now, a win's a win and it's great to be a Georgia Bulldog, probably a lot better than to be a Texas Aggie or an Alabama, well, whatever the singular of Tide is. Until later . . .</p>
<p><b>Go 'Dawgs!!!</b></p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/4/6908929/uga-vanderbilt-score-stats-wrapup-summary-todd-gurley-heismanmacondawg2014-10-04T17:45:03-04:002014-10-04T17:45:03-04:00Georgia/Vandy Second Half Open Comment Thread.
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<figcaption>Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Georgia holds a solid lead headed into the second half of these one and so far we've seen things. Things magical to behold:</p>
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<li><span>We've seen Todd Gurley pass Lars Tate for third overall on the Bulldog all-time rushing list, going over 3000 yards for his career. He's only 2202 yards away from Herschel Walker's Bulldog record. One imagines that if he stayed healthy and came back for his senior season, Todd Gurley would likely leave Athens as the leading rusher in Georgia history. It won't happen, but it could.</span></li>
<li><span>We've seen Hutson Mason throw the first Georgia pass of the season of over 40 yards, a 44 yard touchdown strike to Chris Conley.</span></li>
<li><span>We've seen Malcolm Mitchell make his first catch of the season in his first action in over 13 months.</span></li>
<li><span>We've seen Georgia line 4 different players up at quarterback: Hutson Mason, Brice Ramsey, Faton Bauta, and Todd Gurley, who threw Georgia's only pass of 50 yards or more on the season, a pretty decent left handed ball to Jeb Blazevich. Speaking of which . . .</span></li>
<li><span>We saw Jeb Blazevich continue to start ahead of Jay Rome and has 3 receptions for 89 yards so far.</span></li>
<li><span>We saw no tailback other than Todd Gurley run the ball (Nick Chubb does have 1 reception for 4 yards). Unless things go all sorts of sideways in the third quarter, don't expect to see much more of him.</span></li>
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<p>Now we'll see if Georgia keeps the hammer down in the second half and finishes this one out strong. Until later . . .</p>
<p><b>Go 'Dawgs!!!</b></p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/4/6908425/georgia-vandy-second-half-open-comment-threadmacondawg2014-10-04T11:51:23-04:002014-10-04T11:51:23-04:00Early Games Open Comment Thread.
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<figcaption>One . . .singular sensation . . . | Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>It's time for college football once again, and the early slate of games is pretty solid. The biggest game is a noon SEC matchup between Texas A&M and Mississippi State (ESPN). This one will go a long way toward telling us is Missy State is for real following their upset of LSU, and whether Arkansas exposed the Aggies' weaknesses or if last week's overtime close call was a mere blip on the radar. The Tennessee Volunteers will host the Florida Gators in a game that Will Muschamp really, really needs to win, or at least not lose resoundingly (SEC Network, noon).</p>
<p>Everybody have a great afternoon. We'll convene around 3:30 for the First Half Open Comment Thread for the most important game of the day, the one between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Vanderbilt Commodores.</p>
<p><b>Go 'Dawgs!!!</b></p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/4/6907407/Florida-Tennessee-game-2014-time-tv-schedule-watch-onlinemacondawg2014-10-04T11:38:26-04:002014-10-04T11:38:26-04:00Numbers To Know.
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<figcaption>Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p><i>This is Numbers To Know, your weekly look inside the facts and figures that may just decide this afternoon's Bulldog football game. This week's edition is full of bad, bad numbers for the Vanderbilt Commodores. That's probably why I'm so terrified.</i></p>
<p><b>6. </b>The number of times the Commodores have won a football game in the Classic City. They've lost 27 such affairs. 6 is also the number of wins James Franklin posted in his first year in Nashville, following Robbie Caldwell's lone 2-10 campaign at the helm of the Vanderbilt football squad. Vanderbilt trails in the all-time series 19-53-2.</p>
<p><b>1958.</b> The last year that Vanderbilt beat Georgia in back-to-back seasons.</p>
<p><b>1070.</b> The number of days since Vanderbilt had returned a kickoff for a touchdown before Darrius Sims returned 2 against South Carolina on September 20th (the last one had been Andre Hall's 96 harder against Georgia in 2011).</p>
<p><b>36. </b>The number of tackles so far this season by Vanderbilt linebacker Nigel Bowden, a Macon (Central H.S.) native who's started all five games for the 'Dores after the Bulldogs passed on him following a knee injury. That number leads SEC freshmen. Bowden is a big, thumping run-stuffer who will likely acquaint himself with Todd Gurley, Nick Chubb, and Brendan Douglas early and often today.</p>
<p><b>22. </b>The number of Commodores who've made their first career start during the 2014 season. The SEC is really young all over this year, and Vanderbilt is no exception. The Nashville Nauticals have played 31 freshmen in total.</p>
<p><b>376.</b> The number of yards Vandy freshman tailback Ralph Webb needs to break Kwame Doster's Commodore record for rushing yards by a freshman (798). Webb is a tough, physical runner who gets yards after contact. If the Bulldog defense thinks they're going to half-effort tackle him, they are sorely mistaken.</p>
<p><b>1.</b> The total number of interceptions snagged by the Vanderbilt defense this season, good for last in the SEC.</p>
<p><b>24.</b> Passing plays of more than 20 yards allowed by Vanderbilt this season, second worst in the SEC and ahead of only South Carolina (which has given up 29). If Hutson Mason can't throw downfield on these guys he just can't throw downfield.</p>
<p><b>11 (part one). </b>Number of passing plays of 20+ yards by the Bulldog offense, last in the SEC just behind . . . Vanderbilt (17).</p>
<p><b>11 (part two).</b> Sacks allowed by the Commodores in 2014. Only Tennessee (12) has allowed more.</p>
<p>Just some things to ponder as we head into this afternoon's</p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/4/6907267/georgia-vanderbilt-game-2014-time-tv-schedule-watch-onlinemacondawg2014-10-04T10:57:57-04:002014-10-04T10:57:57-04:00Game Day 'Dawg Bites.
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<figcaption>Kevin C. Cox</figcaption>
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<p>It's once again Saturday in Athens, and if you're like me your tailgate is already underway. While you're polishing off those boiled peanuts, take a look at what's making news in Bulldog Nation:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.redandblack.com/sports/column-after-weeks-georgia-defense-still-a-head-scratcher/article_ee02b19c-4b17-11e4-8ddf-0017a43b2370.html">Column: After 6 weeks, Georgia defense still a head-scratcher - The Red and Black : Sports</a><br>The Red and Black's Taylor Denman notes correctly that we're still not sure what we have with the Bulldog defense, and just as correctly that a Vandy offense led by freshman Wade Freebeck is unlikely to provide any additional concrete answers.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.macon.com/2014/10/03/3343467_analysis-mason-is-now-on-the-clock.html?rh=1">Analysis: Mason is now on the clock for Georgia | University of Georgia | Macon.com</a><br>Georgia's struggling pass attack is due to get two receivers back for a game against Vanderbilt, whose shaky pass defense makes it ripe to give up big numbers. All eyes will be on Hutson Mason, who suddenly finds himself under a microscope.</p>
<p><a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tennessean.com%2Fstory%2Fsports%2Fcollege%2Fvanderbilt%2F2014%2F10%2F03%2Fvanderbilt-commodores-defense-georgia-bulldogs-sec%2F16667397%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dawgsports.com%2F2014%2F10%2F4%2F6907205%2Fuga-football-vanderbilt-time-tv-schedule-starters" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Nearly half of Vanderbilt defense calls Georgia home</a><br>One of the things James Franklin did at Vandy was place a renewed emphasis on recruiting the state of Georgia, knowing that there are a lot of good football players who Mark Richt and staff just don't have room for. The vestige of that is a Commodore defense loaded with solid football players who should come in loaded for bear to show the home state school what they can do.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.berniesdawgblawg.com/2014/10/two-keys-to-avenging-ramik.html">Bernie's Dawg Blawg: Two keys to avenging Ramik</a><br>Bernie lays out a simple plan to wipe the taste of 2013 out of our collective mouths. In the words of first string wedding crasher John Beckwith, "I do like your enthusiasm."</p>
<p><a href="http://www.georgiadogs.com/sports/w-equest/recaps/100314aab.html">Georgia Tops South Carolina 11-9 in Season Opener - Georgia Official Athletic Site</a><br>Beyond the Hedges, the No. 1 ranked Bulldog equestrian team edged always competitive South Carolina 11-9 Friday afternoon, falling behind early and trading points throughout the competition. Georgia's Horsemanship squad brought it home in the anchor position.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/03/upshot/ncaa-football-map.html?_r=2#8,32.413,-84.956">College Football Fan Map - NYTimes.com</a><br>An interactive map of college fans of 82 teams by ZIP code, as based on Facebook ‘likes’. I'm not exaggerating when I say that this may be the most important journalism the Gray Lady has done in 30 years. This may keep you busy until kickoff.</p>
<p>We'll be back with more Bulldog news and your standard Saturday open comment threads later. Until then . . .</p>
<p><b>Go 'Dawgs!!!</b></p>
https://www.dawgsports.com/2014/10/4/6907205/uga-football-vanderbilt-time-tv-schedule-startersmacondawg