A CLOSER LOOK AT RENNIE CURRAN'S FIRST SEASON :
OJT for the LIBERIAN DREAM



Coming out of Brookwood High School with a zillion tackles, Rennie, at 5'-10" was too short to make the grade at big D-1 schools, right? Not so much! Last season, Rennie learned on the job combining for 50 tackles in the final 8 games of the season after having only 3 tackles in the first 5 games - two in which he did not get on the field. In the final 6 games, he had 42 tackles, averaging 7 per game. That included a 13 tackle performance against Kentucky. Here are his game-by-game statistics according to www.georgiadogs.com.
OK State - 1 assist.
S. Carolina - did not play.
Western Carolina - 2 solo.
Alabama - did not play.
Ole Miss - no tackles.
Tennessee - 5 solo, 2 assists.
Vanderbilt - 1 solo.
Florida - 4 solo, 1 assist. 2 tackles for loss.
Troy - 4 solo, 1 assist. 1 sack.
Auburn - 5 solo, 1 assist. 1 tackle for loss.
Kentucky - 12 solo, 1 assist. 1 tackle for loss.
Ga Tech - 6 solo. 2 tackles for loss.
Hawaii - 5 solo, 2 assists. 2 sacks.

I wish I could find out his total number of plays per game. But, he did start in only 5 games: Florida, Auburn, Kentucky, Ga Tech, Hawaii. When you read comments by Coach Martinez, Coach Richt and other players (see the articles linked below) it is clear that Rennie was playing on talent alone in the beginning as he was trying to learn the defense and where to be on each play. I noticed this in the WCU game. He seemed to be running all over the field but did not necessarily seem to be in the right place all the time. Obviously, he was a fast study, as he earned the starting spot down the stretch and became the most prolific tackler over the final 5 games - edging out Danell Ellerbe by 2 tackles (42 to 40.) More importantly, he seemed to be in the right place most of the time and was extremely disruptive while playing at top speed. That is the one observation that really sticks with me... how fast he plays. Indeed, the USA Today article below comments on this very point... Coach Mark Richt marvels at how much faster the defense looks since Curran got on the field, starting three of the last four games.

Curran has that special quality of being able to explode into a tackle with excellent form and at full speed. Thomas Davis was the last UGA player who made tackles with so much speed. From the ABH article below, we get this quote from Coach Richt, "Rennie Curran has really given us a boost with his ability to play with a lot of instinct and speed and he's a direct hitter," coach Mark Richt said. "You're always looking for a guy that can hit somebody square and knock them back and he's been able to do that."



More from Coach Richt in the USA Today article, "He makes a lot of direct hits, which is why he's such a good tackler," the coach said. "He has that focal point right down the cylinder, and he's able to hit it most of the time because of his speed and instincts. He plays low. He bends his knees well. He stays square to the line of scrimmage. When he's getting ready to make a tackle, his feet are closer than most guys. That's why he rarely misses. And he's strong, really strong." You can get a working knowledge of his strength from watching this video from CES in Atlanta.




Rennie lifting before arriving in Athens. Keep in mind that he was not an early enrollee in 2007.

He showed all of these skills as a true freshman. Now, as a sophomore with much more experience, imagine the possibilities as he plays with speed, aggression and knowledge of the defense. I think we are going to see several double-digit days for Rennie. He has his sights set a little higher... from the ABH article about his high school days... Curran remembers making 24 tackles in a freshman game, a number he thinks he could reach at Georgia.

"I think I can definitely," Curran said.

I like this quote from the ABH article from Coach Van Halanger... "He's the nicest kid in the world," strength and conditioning coach Dave Van Halanger said. "Then you see him on the field and he's like Godzilla."

Here are a few good articles written about Rennie Curran:
ABH before the Sugar Bowl
USA Today before the Tech Game

Introducing The Great One... Cale Conley!!!

BE NOT AFRAID, BULLDOGS:

NUMBER ONE IS A GOOD THING

By Cale Conley

© 2008

It’s a stat that makes you shake your head: until last week, the Georgia Bulldogs had never been ranked # 1 in any major preseason poll. Not in 1981 as defending national champs, not in 1982 with Herschel back for his Heisman, not ever. Trivia geek alert: the closest the Bulldogs have come was in 1942, when there was no preseason poll but Sinkwich & Trippi’s Dogs were # 2 in the first AP poll of the year.

Since the release of last week’s USA Today Coaches poll putting the Dogs up top, there is of course buzz in the Bulldog Nation, but also a real undercurrent of unease, in fact concern. “It puts too much pressure on us,” I’ve heard uttered. “Now we’ve got a target on our back,” say others. “Only 2 of the last 10 preseason No. 1’s have won it all,” say the aforementioned trivia geeks, who just last year were telling 2007 preseason chart-topper LSU that only 1 of the last 9 teams that started # 1 also finished # 1. LSU, for the uninitiated, is now the defending champion. Score one for the Cajuns.

I’m no Dr. Phil, but I am here to help you cope with being at the preseason pinnacle.

In LSU’s journey of last year lies the explanation why no Bulldog, anywhere, should despair or wish for anything different than the preseason # 1 ranking if, in fact, it is a national title that we want. The reason is simple, but not one many in DawgWorld wish to speak aloud:

Like loaded LSU a year ago, THE 2008 DOGS ARE NOT GOING TO GO UNDEFEATED.

Repeat it with me no matter how much it may pain you, oh sergeant at arms of the Dacula Optimist Club and keeper of the eternal 1980 memorial flame:

THE 2008 DOGS ARE NOT GOING TO GO UNDEFEATED.

If you really think they can, God bless you. I mean really, God bless you. And if they do, at least two things will be clear: (1) it won’t matter what or where we were ranked in the preseason because we had the greatest team since probably Nebraska in 1995 and the talent just took over and we were destined to win it all from the start, like Presbyterians, and (2) my mojo hex of declaring something so vociferously as impossible that it actually comes true has actually worked (and by the way, I am currently Presbyterian, and pray for an undefeated season). But I digress.

The Dogs really won’t go undefeated as bad as we all want to channel 1980 again only because the schedule just won’t let us. Everybody is talking about our “tough schedule” from Lee Corso to the ladies on “The View” (I made that part up), but I haven’t seen any historical research or real data about just how tough it is. For kicks and giggles, I actually did some research, compiled what some may call “data.” But first, an observation.

The SEC is loaded top to bottom, but let’s face it, in the modern era, there are six Hall’s (Georgia, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Tennessee, LSU) and six Oates’ (Ole Miss, Miss State, Kentucky, Vandy and the two teams I’m still not 100% sure are conference members, Arkansas and South Carolina. Could we possibly trade them for Clemson and Texas? Can you imagine? But again I digress.)

Since 1990, only two members of the SEC elite have played and beaten all five of the other members of the conference’s elite in the same year. One was Tennessee, in ’98, which goes down as one of those “Presbyterian-team-of-destiny-wouldn’t-be-denied” kind of things like I was talking about before could happen this year, but won’t (by the way, the Vols’ closest call came at Syracuse, in week one, where they squeaked by 34-33). The other team was Florida, in 1991, in Spurrier’s second year -- before Fulmer and Krispy Kreme kicked in to make Tennessee a power, while pre-Zaxby’s Goff was at our helm, while LSU was suffering from a bad case of Curley Hallman (remember that guy?), and while Pat Dye was still running the power-I at Auburn, just without Bo Jackson or Brent Fullwood. That Gator team swept the then-watered-down other elite and went undefeated in the SEC mainly because Spurrier was offensively about 10 years ahead of his time and had speed before speed was cool, but even that squad did not go undefeated, even in the regular season. Why? Because facing all that other SEC mess, they went on the road, in week three in a hostile out of conference environment (Syracuse), and got bushwhacked pretty badly, 38-21.

Anybody jumping ahead here?

Like the 1991 Gators, the 2008 Dogs face all five of the other elite, including LSU and Auburn on the road. Unlike 1991, all five of those teams are or will be in the top 20 and have actual head coaches. Plus the ’08 Dogs have Spurrier on the road at his new digs in Columbia in a classic trip up game, like every South Carolina meeting, then a flight to the desert to play a ranked out of conference team (Arizona State) in, you guessed it, week three, a la Syracuse and the Gators in 1991 and sorta-kinda-like Tennessee in ‘98. There are no Mississippis, no Arkansas, and even Kentucky and Vandy have improved and can no longer be overlooked. And then there’s a season ending meeting with a Tech team with a new gimmick offense, likely nothing else to lose at that point, and the law of averages on its side (Georgia has never beaten Tech 8 straight times, and the current win streak is at seven. Get out your slide rule! Yikes!).

But wait, there’s more. Go through that gulag and the SEC Championship awaits, where even if we beat them all the first time we’d have to re-defeat either LSU, Auburn or Alabama in Atlanta to take the title, the apparent prerequisite to a national title shot.

Not to be Debbie Downer, but doesn’t that put a little more meat on the “tough schedule” bone and give you some reason why I resorted to all CAPITAL LETTERS just a few paragraphs ago to proclaim that even the calming influence of Mark Richt and a bevy of talent cannot guide us home unscathed?

Who will we lose to, you ask? I’m bold, but not that bold. I personally think Arizona State, Auburn and of course Florida -- and maybe two of those three -- rank highest on the list of upset suspects, but that’s as far as I’ll go. Hell, it could be Central Michigan, the two-time defending MAC champs, for all I know, and at least that would not be a conference loss.

Rather than speculate, what I’d rather do is get to my point. If you accept my somewhat-historically annotated premise that an undefeated season is probably out of reach despite all best efforts and absent real destiny, then what we are really playing for at this point is “track position” (to borrow a NASCAR phrase) when the inevitable stumble occurs. The rule of track position is get to the front of the pack and into clean air, so that later, when you need to get back into the race after a problem, you have far fewer backs to climb over and some energy left to do it. Fortunately, we find ourselves on the poll from the start (yes, that was a pun. Involving NASCAR. Perhaps a first.).

Does anybody believe that if LSU starts lower than # 1 a year ago that they weather two losses down the stretch and still make it to the title game for the annual SEC whitewash of Overrated, excuse me, Ohio State and a national championship? Surely not. They had to start at the top to end at the top, and like purple is the new black, we are the new LSU.

So, from my view, pragmatically, realistically, historically, there is no better position for the Dogs than number 1 preseason at this point in time in the college football universe, if for no reason than it gives us more room to fall softly when a loss occurs. And if we do somehow go undefeated a la Tennessee in ‘98, no one will unseat us anyway, so it’s all good. In highly technical terms, that’s called a “win-win.” So do not fret about targets or pressure or 10-year statistical compilations. Instead, take a gander at the big picture, the ring on smirking Les Miles’ hand, imagine all the high school recruits looking at the cover of SI as they ponder their college choice, and be thankful we are where we are at the start. It may be the key to a happy ending.

Feel better about being number one? At least I do.

Cale Conley is a UGA graduate and the author of War Between the States: The History of the Georgia-Florida Football Rivalry, originally released in 1992. He is currently working on an update of that book to be released in time for Christmas 2008, so put it on your holiday wish list. When not obsessing about college football, he’s a lawyer in Atlanta, and can be emailed directly at cale@conleygriggs.com. If you want to pre-order a signed copy of War Between the States (2^nd Edition) now, shoot him an email and he’ll set you up. (Ed. And UGA School of Law classmate of Hunker Down Dawg and fellow member of the 1994 Law School Softball champions.)

IF YOU AREN'T THE LEAD DAWG,
THE VIEW NEVER CHANGES

A few thoughts going into the first week of practice...

Pre-Season Ranking: So we are Number 1 in the Coaches Poll and on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Bullseye, jinx, big head, blah blah blah. While I think pre-season polls are as close to useless as a one-legged man at an ass kicking contest, it is better to be number one than any of the other integers. I embrace it and hope that the coaches and players can keep it in proper perspective as they prepare for the first couple of games of the season. Let's be honest, we all have the highest expectations for our team this season and whether we are currently ranked 1, 2, 3 , 4 or 5 is mostly inconsequential at this point. We know that out of the top 6 teams, no more than two of them can be undefeated by the end of the SECCG. Still, it is best that we are in a position that we can completely control our own destiny from day one. Embrace it. Own it. Prove it.

Off The Field Issues: I am done with them. As Rafiki says in The Lion King, "It's in the past." Practices have started. These kids now have no more idle time to find trouble. As Matthew Stafford admonished the team Sunday... it is time to focus on football.


Pre-Season All SEC Team: Even more so than pre-season polls, this is a total exercise in futility. However, it will be interesting to go back after the season and see who the surprises were. I firmly believe that Rennie Curran will finish higher than the third team. I can't wait to watch this missile play defense this season.


Rennie improved dramatically throughout his freshman season to the point where he was making more plays than any other defender by the end of the year. He could average double digits in tackles this season and many of those will be tackles for losses. He has the nose for the football and is our next great one like Hoage, Champ, Boss, Pollack, etc.

COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF 2008

Here is an important service announcement... I know this is a great event for a great cause. Attend if you are able and have a great time.

This is a charity event hosted by David Greene and Jon and Matt Stinchcomb and sponsored by Synovus Bank. It will be fun for the entire family.

UGA Countdown to Kickoff

Go Dawgs!

To join the 1990 Diamond Dawgs (pictured here) ...

2008 DAWGS Need a Short Memory Tonight

Moreau needs to give us three good innings. He will have to throw his curve for strikes because those guys will crush his not-so-fastball if it is across the plate. Mendonca should NOT see another fastball under any circumstances. He looks worse than Andruw Jones flagging at curve balls, but groove a fast ball and you better have a flight attendant onboard – going to be a long trip. Both Mendonca and Susdorf are left-handed hitters and Moreau’s curve ball could slow down their bats if it is thrown for strikes. Can’t fall behind in the count against those two (or any of their hitters for that matter.) And for God’s sake, do not walk the nine hole every time tonight.

We have Weaver and McRee coming out of the bullpen. Those are our best two middle relievers and they should be ready. McRee made a mistake on Monday night, but previously in the CWS, he has pitched 6 innings allowing only 2 hits, 1 run, 3 walks and 8 Ks. His curve ball can also give Mendonca and Susdorf trouble if he is ahead in the count and they can’t afford the luxury of waiting for a fastball strike.

Weaver has thrown 4 and 2/3 innings allowing 7 hits, 4 runs, 0 walks, 2 Ks. He’s a righty, so he will not have an advantage against their two biggest bats, but if he can continue to not allow any walks, he should be able to limit base runners and thereby reduce the chances for more monster innings from their obviously corked bats.

In a perfect world, I would prefer that Joshua Fields remain a spectator tonight because we are two touchdowns ahead of them in the ninth. But, I wonder if he can be effective for 6 outs? If so, we will need McRee and/or Weaver to give us less than 3 innings apiece – assuming Moreau gets through no less than three innings. Ideally, Moreau would get us through the 4^th without allowing more than 2 or 3 runs. Then McRee gets us through the 6^th and possibly the 7^th. Weaver gets us through the 8^th and hopefully they have been limited to 6 runs or less. Then we can hand the ball to Fields for the 9^th. If all goes according to plan, we won’t be batting in the bottom of the 9^th.

Their bullpen... any live arms remaining? Seems like if we can get to The Cajun Cook, Justin Wilson, early and often we could be the team putting up a football score tonight.

Sprague and Hower each threw 3 innings last night and Sprague threw an inning Sat. and an inning Sun. I think those two are probably done.

Miller and Allison are also probably both done, but Allison, who pitched 6 against UNC Sun. may be available.

That leaves Bonesteele (3 on Mon), Breckley (2 on Mon), Tomlinson (1.1 Mon), Floethe (0.2 Mon) and Burke (2 on Sun and 1 on Mon). Other than Burke, those are all 6+ ERA guys - not that that seemed to matter much at times on Monday night. But, I still think that if we can get their starter off the hill, we can rough them up sufficiently to bring home the hardware. It may take double digit runs, but our Dawgs are plenty capable. Regional Final vs GT = 18-6; Super Regional Final vs NC State = 17-8. In fact, in our 5 elimination games thus far this post-season, we have outscored the bad guys 66 to 25. That is an average of 13.2 runs per game for our Dawgs and 5 runs per game for the other guys. How about one more football score for our Dawgs tonight!

If FSU musters more than a dozen again, then we will be talking football by midnight tonight.

Go DAWGS! GATA!

UPDATE - Congrats to FSU. They played great baseball and continued their unstoppable run through a gauntlet of highly seeded teams. No one could stop them. Hats off to those Bulldogs and a large hand for our Dawgs and their outstanding season. They have much of which to be proud. Go DAWGS!

Rich Poythress scoring the tying run in the bottom of the 8th inning.




IT WAS THE WINE!

Throughout the first game of the College World Series Championship tonight, I could not get any rhythm going with my various superstitions. No matter what I tried, we kept swinging at the first pitch and bouncing balls on the infield or popping up to the shallow outfield. There were moments when I thought I had found the combination, but then Fresno State would nullify any gains achieved. Finally after sitting in three different locations, after Fresno scored three in the top of the 8th to take a 6-3 lead, with my nerves frayed, I did something I should have done much earlier. I poured a glass of wine. For good measure, I also changed my shirt. I ditched the shirt that got us through the Miami game and replaced it with the shirt that I wore during the first Stanford game - which is an 11 year old gray Polo tee shirt that I wear to sleep.
The superstitious delicious wine of choice was 2005 Evil Chardonnay from Australia - 90 points from Wine Advocate.

If you are wondering why it took me so long to think about turning to alcohol, your point is well taken. But, I was at my son's baseball game and did not get home to watch the UGA game until the bottom of the 4th inning. Then I was eating dinner and had kids running around the house for about an hour and it just slipped my mind that I had a nice glass of wine left in a bottle that did not get finished Saturday night. Once this oversight was remedied, the Dawgs rallied for 4 runs and took the lead 7-6 going into the ninth. Joshua Fields then came to the hill and mowed down the feisty and dangerous FSU hitters 1-2-3.

Now the Dawgs are one win away from a second National Title in baseball in what has been a tremendously fun post-season. However, this is baseball and the other resilient Bulldogs are sure to put up another fight tomorrow night. Our guys will have to remain focused and hopefully play a little looser than they did tonight.

My son also has another game tomorrow night at 6:45, so I will again miss the first 3 innings or so. But, when I do get home, you can be assured that I will waste no time in pouring that glass of wine!

Go Dawgs, GATA.

GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?










Dawgs Hunker Down against Stanford and rally for a 4-3 win in a nail-biting, nerve-wracking affair that lifts them to the driver's seat in their bracket. There is a lot of baseball left, but our odds just got exponentially better to make the finals.



This game featured 7th inning heroics and near-heroics of legendary proportion. With two men on base and trailing 2-3, Bryce Massanari lifted an arching opposite field slice that would hit the top of the wall on or near the painted yellow foul line and would then bounce high and to the right into foul territory. It was ruled a foul ball. It may have been a foul ball. But, it could have equally as well been ruled a home run. Upon replay after replay, it appeared to me that part of the ball lined up with the foul line, which ironically, is actually fair territory. This is what I saw despite Orel Hershiser's telestration trying to indicate that the ball hit the padded fence 6 inches to the right of the foul line - which it clearly did not. I could also not tell if the ball caromed off the foul pole, which is also deemed fair territory, after it bounced off the top of the padded wall. As a biased Dawg fan, I was seeing a home run replay after replay. However, the first base umpire called it foul and that was that. Now that we won the game, I may concede that it was foul. But, I still do not know whether it was fair or foul. Inconclusive at worst, home run at best, but not clearly foul under any scenario that I saw.

Anyway, Massanari was able to load the bases when he was hit by a subsequent pitch. Then tonight's hero, Matt Cerione, drilled a line drive into short center field to score the tying and winning runs. Cerione had 3 RBI on the night.

Our bullpen had another phenomenal outing allowing only one hit and zero runs in 6 innings. Starter Nick Montgomery pitched well mostly until he challenged All American Jason Castro with a repeat low fastball that traveled about 400+ feet for a two-run shot. It was a good time for a breaking ball in the dirt - as Hershiser proposed.

In two games, our bullpen has gone 11 innings allowing 4 hits and one run, a solo homer by first round pick Yonder Alonso of Miami. That is unbelievable.

Now the Dawgs get three full days of rest before facing the winner of the Miami-Stanford who play on Wednesday.

To put into perspective the significance of winning the first two games of the College World Series, only 2 of the past 18 National Champions won it all after losing one of the first two games. Indeed, I believe the Dawgs have been heard in Omaha!

Go Dawgs!!!

HUNKER DOWN WINS BLUEWATER TOURNAMENT - AGAIN





Our family fishing machine is a 28' Carolina Classic aptly named "Hunker Down." We have had it four years and have entered the local Fernandina Beach Bluewater tournament each of the four ears. We won it the first year as rookies - but we had a great captain, Cliff Thrift, and experienced fishermen Scott and Doug Gies onboard. Well, here we are on the top of the leaderboard again in 2008 with most of the same crew. The article in the Fernandina Beach paper is here.


Ironically, our crew is an even mix of Dawgs and Gators. Somehow we put away our differences when it comes to fishing.

Go DAWGS!

Erik Weihenmayer

This is hilarious... (I lifted it from EDSBS)



Last year, I was fortunate enough to get to hear Erik Weihenmayer speak here at Amelia Island and present a viewing of his film, "Blindsight." If you are not familiar with Erik's accomplishments and the fantastic work he is doing, go to his website and check it out.

Now, back to the gaff, what the hell was the woman thinking about? Or did someone in the news room prank her by placing the word "gay" in the teleprompter a la "I'm Ron Burgundy?" I love it.

DAWG Gone!

Oh well. The DAWGS looked good for the first 25 minutes. What I don't follow is how every time we made contact with a Xavier player, it was a foul. But every time a Xavier player made contact with a UGA player, it was aggressive defense and no foul. The most egregious example was with a minute left and down by 5, Gaines dumped down to Bliss who went up strong and dunked through a total hack by the Xavier defender. The Xavier player clearly smacked Bliss across the arm right at the rim. It was a good foul in an attempt to stop an automatic bucket... except no foul was called. It could have shaved the Xavier lead to two points right then. Not that this missed call cost us the game, but it seemed to me that we were whistled for even minor contact and Xavier was scarcely whistled for any reason.

I don't generally complain about the officiating because it usually works both ways with little net difference. But the fouls and free-throw differential in this game was huge. What's done is done. Hopefully the returning players can build upon this uptick to end the season as a starting point for next season.

On a brighter note, Uga got some decent press here: Petside.com.

Now we need to turn our attention to the Gym Dawgs, Diamond Dawgs and Spring Football.

GO DAWGS

HOW BOUT THEM SEC CHAMPIONSHIP HOOPS DAWGS!!!

Dawgs win 4 straight against Ole Miss, Kentucky, Miss St and Arkansas to sweep the tornado-tossed SEC Championship. Winning the last three games on the Techies floor makes it even sweeter.

GO DAWGS! Beat Xavier.

2007 College Football Blog Award Nominations from Hunker Down Dawg

The categories can be found at EDSBS. I don't often read blogs outside the SEC, so my handful of nominations will reflect my opinions about the blogs I do read. While it would be fairly easy for me to nominate EDSBS for almost every category, I will try to nominate a few others along the way...

Best Community: I have enjoyed reading and following the discussions and debates over at DawgSports for a few years now. Kyle and Macon Dawg do a good job of soliciting and encouraging their readership to contribute in the comments, diaries and polls.

Best Writing: This is a tough one. I love Kyle's thorough logic and dead solid perfect grammar, vocabulary and logic. But, for this award, I will nominate Doug at Hey Jenny Slater so long as the topic is FOOTBALL. Doug is to college football commentary what Dennis Miller is to social-political commentary. His writing is creative, intelligent and replete with biting sarcasm. Among CFB bloggers, he is the king of metaphor - even if Orson is the Emperor.

Funniest Blog: I have no choice but to nominate for first, second and third place - EDSBS. While I suspect that most people are not truly laughing out loud when the overuse "LOL" in their texts, IMs, emails or forum posts, when I read Orson's finest work and the hundreds of comments, I do LOL and sometimes LMFAO. But never do I ROFLMFAO. Nobody does this, so how did it ever get its own acronym?

Best Analysis: First of all, how do some of these people have time to maintain their blog, a family and a real job - like lawyering for example? I know there are many significant CFB bloggers that have tremendous analysis. But, if you are analyzing Michigan or Oklahoma, I just don't have time to read it. I don't even have enough time to read all of the UGA blogs - for which I have a substantial vested interest. So my apologies to the great analysts who are not UGA bloggers. My nomination is for Kyle at DawgSports. To say that Kyle is "thorough" in his logical reasoning and statistical analysis is a gross understatement. I once, semi-famously, opined that Kyle is to statistical analysis what Keith Richards is to moderate drug use. I think it fits. In fact, if I didn't know better, I might have thought that Kyle was an attorney in the following case:

United States District Court, M.D. Georgia, Albany and Americus Divisions.

SHARED MEDICAL RESOURCES, INC., Plaintiff,
v.
AMERICUS AND SUMTER COUNTY HOSPITAL AUTHORITY, d/b/a Americus and Sumter County Hospital, Defendant.

Civ. A. No. 85-195-ALB-AMER.

Oct. 30, 1987.

Jerome M. Rothschild, Young, Layfield & Rothschild, Columbus, Ga., for plaintiff.

Randolph B. Jones, Jr., Smith, Jones & Jones, Americus, Ga., James V. Towson, Jones, Cork & Miller, Macon, Ga., for defendant.


*510 FITZPATRICK, District Judge.

Summary judgment is appropriate “after adequate time for discovery and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552-53, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Against this recently enunciated standard, the court must measure the Parties' Cross-Motions for Summary Judgment. This case is a good example of the adage that the term “legal brief” is an oxymoron. While the case simply involves a contract clause of 32 words and two decisions of the Georgia appellate courts, it developed into a record measuring 10 inches in thickness and weighing 21 pounds. Although the court asked for a brief of authority from both sides, what was forthcoming reminds one of the drunk on the Titanic who said, “I ordered ice, but this is ridiculous.” Perhaps counsel for both sides, although very competent and extremely diligent, are somewhat confused as to what is meant by “weight of the evidence.” Nevertheless, the court finds that the undisputed facts warrant the granting of Plaintiff's motion on the issue of contract breach. The court's findings of fact and conclusions of law are set forth below.

Yes, when Kyle weighs in on the argument, trees die (or in our case, bandwidth dies.) But for his diligence, I truly appreciate his writing and hope he gets due recognition from around the blogosphere. Having said all of this, and having outed myself as a fan of Kyle's work, now you know why I don't have time to read many other blogs of note.

My runner-up vote would go to Senator Blutarsky at Get The Picture. The Senator probably loses few, if any, arguments because his logic is typically bullet-proof. Even when you disagree with him, somehow you feel like you must be wrong.

Best MSM Blog: David Ching at Georgia Bulldog Blog. The reasons why have been most succinctly stated by the Senator so I defer to his explanation as such...

***If you follow Georgia football blogging at all, you know about the righteous work that David Ching does at his site, the mundanely named Georgia Bulldog Blog. Ching gets my nod here not because he’s tireless - which he is - or that he manages to dispense his information without a trace of condescension (hear that, New York Times?) or without engaging in trivial potstirring (I’m talking about you, Chip Towers). And it’s not because he’s dishing out info on the team I follow (admittedly, that doesn’t hurt). The reason he deserves this award is that I think his blog represents a paradigm of how to dispense that part of the wealth of information that a good beat writer like Ching accumulates through the course of a season that doesn’t make it into his newspaper. Ching in his blog also manages to give us a feel for what he’s like and what his job is like. All in all, he’s close to invaluable for anyone who closely follows the program. Kudos to his employer, as well, for letting him dispense his work product in this way.***

Best Regular Feature: Kyle picks up another nomination here with this BEAUTIFUL feature (and no, it does not involve Kristin Davis): The Mark Richt Victory Watch. Why? Well...duh!

Best SEC Blog: I have a problem here. There is no category for "Best All Around" or "Most Informative" so I am using my nomination in this space for what is a must-read blog for me - Georgia Sports Blog. Paul Westerdawg and his crew keep all of us Dawg fans apprised of all relevant UGA football news. You will also find any worthwhile Dawg-related YouTube videos and audio files as well as great photos from the games. In short, if it is Dawg-related and it is on the internets, it will be linked at Georgia Sports Blog. In addition, Paul has valuable insight into various logistical issues facing Dawg fans, such as ticket, parking, lodging, dining and tailgating information for home and away games. Because this is the most useful blog on a daily basis for Dawg fans, it receives this Dawg's nomination as Best SEC Blog.

Best YouTube: The BullDawg Blawg nailed it with his video titled "Colt Brennan's Nightmare." While it is a collage of highlights from the Sugar Bowl, the consistent theme of the video is tied to an Eminem song that perfectly describes the crushing blow that the UGA defense delivered to Colt Brennan's life-essence. It is brilliant. Runners up go to all "Back in Black" and "Celebration" videos.

Best Post: This is a tough one because there are som many great posts that I cannot begin to remember when and where they are. But here is one that made my sides ache from laughter - because I love making fun of Lou Holth. My nomination goes to EDSBS for this post about Crazy Lou's motivational speech to 0-2 Michigan before playing 0-2 Notre Dame.

COLT BRENNAN'S NIGHTMARE

The Bulldawg Blawg has done great work with this video of the Dawg's annihilation of Colt Brennan.



Now, review Mark May's stern warning to the Georgia defense...



Of course, fathead May never came back to acknowledge that his dumbass had no idea what he was talking about.

99 WORDS FOR BOOBS

Whenever you haven't posted for a while, it is always a good idea to come back strong. Like this...



Happy Friday!

DAWGS HOOPS

I am generally not too concerned about UGA Basketball, but that could change if they ever show any signs of life. I am thankful that they beat Ga Tech, again, because it is always good to dominate the nerds.

Today, I watched the Dawgs poor performance at Miss. State. I don't know the stats, but it seemed like we shot about 10% from the field and 25% from the line in the second half. My one observation is that we were missing 8 footers and three-pointers with equal clanginess (as in clanging of the iron all day.) So, it looked like the strategy was, if you are going to miss almost every shot, you might as well shoot contested threes on every possession. You know, just in case. I know we were missing every inside lay-up or put back attempt and that much credit goes to the defense played by MSU. But, my limited basketball strategy would say that if you can't make jumpers, then you should exercise patience and use ball movement and picks to try and get a man open inside for a higher percentage shot. That theory was not put to the test today. I can tell you what strategy did not work... attempting three pointer with less than two passes on every possession. That didn't work.

HAWAIIANS FOR GEORGIA

This Hawaii Farm Credit Office honors their bets! Good people, I'm telling ya. A lady from their office wrote this...

"Boy, we not only lost the Sugar Bowl game but now we lost our head coach and Athletic Director. Your team did a full blitz on us. We’d like to see LSU play Georgia. I bet Georgia would tame the Tigers."

We would like to see that too!


Best of luck to the Warriors until we meet again!

PICS FROM NEW ORLEANS -
A good time was had by all!

The Horror, the Horror...

I am finally recovered from the three days of insanity in the French Quarter. But the headline does not refer to Bourbon Street, it refers to the extreme carnage that took place on the turf of the Superdome - from Colt Brennan's perspective. I truly began to fear for his safety as our guys were putting a BIG HURT on the most prolific passer ever. Brennan wasn't the only Hawaii Warrior getting pummeled in the sUGAr Bowl, but he was pounded the most. It was, in short, a painful end to Hawaii's dream season and a great first game for the Dawgs' 2008 title run.

I was in the Dome, was loud, obnoxious and then later, bored. The TV timeouts dragged on endlessly and the second half lasted forever. But, it was a joyous evening and was special to see Marcus Howard finish his career with such a bang. It was also great to see Fernando Velasco overhead press Thomas Brown one more time following Brown's final touchdown as a Dawg. I have not been able to see any replay of the game because I don't have Tivo and haven't found someone here who has the game. But, from what I saw, it was brutal physical domination on both sides of the ball. I have seen Georgia beat teams by 31 points before, but never have I seen us physically punish people to the extent that Hawaii was hammered. Even in games against Western Kentucky or other directional schools, the physical carnage did not match what happened in the Superdome Tuesday night. It was a wonderful end to the most fun UGA season since #34 toted the pigskin in Athens. I am proud of the seniors who worked so hard to make this season a success. I am proud of the underclassmen who have bought into the program and worked to set the stage for what should be a run at the National Title next year. Of course there is a lot more work to do and 14 other football teams standing in our way, but this group will be in the conversation from the outset. Lastly, I am proud of Coach Richt and the entire staff for making this such a fantastic season and so much fun to watch. I hope that CMR can keep the mojo working for years to come!

ABOUT NEW ORLEANS...

I made the trip with my brother, Drew, and three other boys from Douglas: Jeff Hennessey, Brian "Crack Rock" Norris, and Luke Christian (aka Chuck Christianson.) In NOLA, I stayed with Andrew Rothschild at the Royal Sonesta - although we did not spend much time sleeping in the fine accommodation. I had the pleasure of spending time with friends Whit and Stephanie Yates, Marshall Wellborn, Jonathon Hayes, Kent Morrison, Big Jim Hickey, among others. Made lots of new friends, including some fine LSU and Ole Miss folks. Had dinner at The Commanders Palace, lunch at Felix's Oyster Bar and a great pregame meal at Galatoire's. Killed a bunch of brain cells at The Cat's Meow, Pat O'Briens, and The Old Absinthe House. Needed three days to recover! Now, I am prepared to say that I could do it again in 2009. But at the end of the 2008 season, I am planning on being in Miami!

Go DAWGS!

GEORGIA WILL BEAT HAWAII AND HERE IS WHY...

Moreno, Brown, Stafford, Bailey, Henderson, Massaquoi, Chandler, Ellerbe, Howard, Atkins, Curran, Johnson, et al. Too much for the Rainbows to handle. I give credit to Hawaii for winning all of their games and for showing a high-flying passing attack that puts tons of points on the board against the teams they played. But, the teams they played could not provide much resistance and that will make all the difference in the Sugar Bowl.

Colt Brennan has a great, accurate arm and has three bona fide outstanding receivers. They will execute amazingly well at times and wil score a few touchdowns in this game. At other times, we will be on Brennan so fast that he won't know what hit him, a la Tebow. We will sack Brennan at least 6 times. I can see us blitzing from all angles throughout the game. With the amount of pressure, that will begin in the middle with a strong push from Atkins, Owens and Weston, Hawaii will not see the end zone more than four times. So, let's go ahead and give them 28 points. In some contests, this could be a troubling figure. But, since we will score 48 or more, it isn't much cause for concern.

So, Hawaii is supposed to have defense to go along with their offense this year. But, the one defense in the WAC that was higher rated than Hawaii (Boise) got scorched by 7-5 East Carolina for 41 points. I just cannot envision us not scoring on almost every possession. Turnovers will stop drives and we may have to punt once or twice. But, Brian Mimbs will not have a busy evening. We will see Moreno and Brown ripping off 15 and 20 yard carries with regularity. A couple of 50+ yard runs are also likely. We will rush for over 250 yards. All this success running the ball will set up some easy big pass plays off of play action. Bailey, Massaquoi and Henderson will all have the ability to get behind the Hawaii secondary and if Stafford puts a few balls on the money, there will be some big plays like we had against Florida and Auburn.

I am predicting GEORGIA 48 and HAWAII 28. I am leaving for New Orleans in 30 minutes. I may update my blog from my HQ at The Royal Sonesta on Bourbon Street, or I may not.

Happy New Year and...

Go DAWGS! GATA!