In '80, It was simply Herschel vs. George

I'll go ahead and warn you, the two videos below are rather awful in quality; however, I couldn't pass up showing footage of an interview with freshman Herschel Walker, George Rogers' memorable fumble, and, perhaps most of all, Keith Jackson with a beard.

The first clip is a piece ABC-TV put together on Herschel and shown just prior to the start of the Georgia-South Carolina game from 30 years ago.  It is apparent people believed the Bulldogs definitely had a freshman phenom on their hands but in actuality, they hadn't seen nothing yet...  Including his game against Carolina, Walker's best performances of 1980 were still ahead of him.

By the way, I can see why Coach Dooley labelled assistant Mike Cavan “Vice President in Charge of Herschel."  Again, please bear with the poor quality: 

There was a big buildup going into the 1980 Georgia-South Carolina game; a hype that Gamecocks football was certainly unaccustomed to.

Fourteenth-ranked South Carolina was at its highest position in the AP Poll since during the 1959 season, while its 6-1 record was the team's best in 56 years.  The Bulldogs, on the other hand, were undefeated and ranked fourth in the country. 

The ABC-TV broadcast was only the third nationally televised game in the history of Sanford Stadium.  It was a telecast only made possible because of a couple of particular running backs.

Carolina's George Rogers, a Georgia native, had led the Gamecocks to wins over the Bulldogs in both 1978 and 1979, rushing for a combined 280 yards on 57 carries in the victories.

The week of the game, George Rogers' father - George Rogers, Sr. - was in the news nearly as much as his celebrated son.  Nearly eight years prior, the elder Rogers was imprisoned for unpremeditated murder and he had been paroled and released only 10 days prior to the game, just in time to see his son play the Bulldogs in person.

Rogers and Georgia's star running back, Herschel "Hercules" Walker, put on quite a show, undoubtedly not disappointing the 60,000 in Sanford Stadium and the millions of television viewers.  Walker rushed for 219 yards on 43 carries while Rogers tallied 168 yards on 35 rushes; each accumulating nearly 60 percent of their team's total yardage.

However, Rogers' performance was marred by a critical fumble with just over five minutes remaining in the game and with the Gamecocks trailing 13-10.  Rogers' fumble would turn out to cost South Carolina the game and be the eventual Heisman winner's final carry ever against the Bulldogs.



How intriguing is it that Rogers fumbles after getting injured, sitting out one play, and then being reinserted back into the game?  On the play, he probably should have been still standing on the sideline with Ray Goff recuperating instead of carrying the football.  

And how fortunate were the Bulldogs to recover the fumble?  The ball first flies into the arms of a teammate of Rogers before popping out of his grasp, before being recovered by Georgia's Tim Parks.  

Of course, the ball seemed to always bounce and breaks consistently go Georgia's way in 1980 en route to a national championship.

Three decades later, the Bulldogs could certainly use some of those bounces and breaks again, starting tomorrow in Columbia.

We Forced 3 Turnovers?!?

I wanted to give my thoughts on the 55-7 blowout of Louisiana-Lafayette and acknowledge the historic, in a way, victory it was for the Bulldogs, both offensively and defensively.

First and foremost, I want to thank the handful of this blog's readers that stopped by my signing at the UGA Bookstore prior to the game.  I really appreciated you guys (and gal) coming by to say "hi" and mentioning the blog.  It's events like that which show me that any work/research that goes into writing and upkeeping About Them Dawgs! is well worth my time and efforts.  Thank you.

Defensively, you have to be optimistic after what you witnessed on Saturday from Grantham's defenders.  Granted, the performance was against the Rajin' Cajuns; nevertheless, they are a program that defeated Kansas State last season and against South Carolina in 2007 and Illinois and K-State a year later, lost by an average of just over eight points to the three BCS teams.

I, like many other Bulldog backers, have been screaming and begging for turnovers for two years and we got them in the form of three interceptions.  Georgia's three forced turnovers were the most for the team in 19 games since gaining three against LSU in 2008, while it has been 27 games (2008 Sugar Bowl vs. Hawaii) since the Bulldogs forced more than that amount. 

Georgia yielded only 5 first downs and 128 total offensive yards.  I did some quick, unscientific research and found that against Division I-A/FBS teams (in other words, excluding Tennessee Tech from last year when the Bulldogs allowed only 55 total yards), the 128 yards given up were the Bulldogs' lowest since allowing only 99 to TCU during the national championship season of 1980.  That was 30 years ago, folks.

I got another that's even better: The five first downs allowed were the Dogs' lowest against any team since yielding the same amount to Auburn way back in 1968.  To show you how long ago that was... That's (the photo) what Georgia's team, the Seilers, and Uga looked like back in 1968 when we beat Auburn. 

On Saturday, I wasn't quite as thrilled with the offense.  I'm afraid some of the things that worked against the Cajuns won't at all against the 'Cocks.  As far as what did work offensively, let's remember, ULL is a program that lost to LSU and Nebraska last year by a combined 81-3 score.

Once again, the offensive line did not surrender a sack.  Going back to last season, the Bulldogs have allowed just one sack in 113 passing attempts and more than four games.  That's rather amazing.

Apparently against Louisiana-Lafayette, backup quarterback Hutson Mason joined an exclusive club in FBS history.  I discovered another select group the freshman is now a part of in Bulldog history.

Since 1972, when the NCAA allowed freshmen eligibility in college football, the Bulldogs have had only five true freshmen quarterbacks (by my count), including Mason, to see action in a season-opening game.  

Recognizing Quincy Carter as a true freshman in 1998 is a bit of a stretch, so we'll say Mason is now one of only four Bulldog signal callers since '72, who were playing high school football the year before, to see playing time in the first game of a true freshman season.  He joins some pretty good company:

1978: Buck Belue (Baylor): Belue was inserted early in the third quarter against the Bears and, on his first pass attempt in college, was intercepted. 1991: Eric Zeier (Western Carolina): 15 of 22 passing for 172 yards, 2 TDs and no interceptions

2006: Matthew Stafford (Western Kentucky): 59 total offensive yards on 6 plays and a passing touchdown

2010: Hutson Mason (Louisiana-Lafayette): 2 of 5 passing for 33 yards and a touchdown

As far as the A.J. Green thing goes, let's just hope the NCAA can hurry up already and make a decision.  If he's gone, suspended, not allowed to play in a game or so, or whatever, that certainly stinks, but I'm sure the team can move forward. 

But if he can play...wonderful!  I'm pretty certain we could use him this Saturday in Columbia. 

Previewing Tomorrow

I'm now a contributing writer for Sports Direct Inc., covering the SEC during football season.  My first assignment was to preview Georgia's game with Louisiana-Lafayette.  You can find my preview HERE; it's short and (somewhat) sweet.

Book Signing

I wanted to let y'all know that I'll be at the UGA Bookstore tomorrow morning prior to the game from 9:30-11:30, signing my newest book. 

For past signings, I've usually been seated with a UGA football dignitary or two, but I'm pretty sure I'll be all by my lonesome tomorrow.  In other words, if you come by, there won't be a line and you and I should have plenty of time to chat.  Stop by if you can, so I'll have someone to talk football with... Go Dawgs! 

Cheat Sheet

The Bulldogs could very likely cover the 28-point or so spread against Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday, but will Coach let them?

Over the years, Mark Richt has earned the reputation as being tender hearted to those that are less fortunate, and that includes to non-BCS and FCS football teams.  There are several examples since 2001 when the Bulldogs could have defeated a lesser opponent (and covered the spread) handily - Western Carolina, Georgia Southern, and Tennessee Tech, just from the last three seasons - but Richt called off his Dogs later in the games, so not to run up the score. 

Someone asked me yesterday if I thought Georgia would cover the 28-point spread on Saturday.  For several reasons, I definitely think the Dogs would do so when looking at the two teams on paper.  However, when the "Richt Factor" is figured in, I could only give this answer: Never take Georgia when you're laying more than 21 points.

I was asked by Covers to do a weekly "cheat sheet" for the college football games involving top-25 teams.  For these games, I give a reason why each team will cover the spread and a tip for every game's total.  Coming up with why Louisiana-Lafayette might cover was easy... You can view this week's games HERE.

A Fine Replacement

The 2010 Georgia football season kicks off in just four days.  Whenever I think of season-opening games in Athens, I cannot help but to recall one of my first attended, most memorable, and favorite season openers at home for Bulldogs football.

I recently posted on Amp Arnold - a Hometown Hero of Georgia football - but perhaps the best example of hometown Bulldog heroics, particularly in a season opener, is Athens' own, Charlie Dean.

Dean started in the defensive backfield as a sophomore in high school on Clarke Central's state championship team of 1977.  Two years later, Coach Billy Henderson had moved him to quarterback, where he guided the Gladiators to their second state championship in three years with Dean picking up All-State honors along the way.

Upon arriving to UGA, Dean was moved back to his old position and would play sparingly over his first three years as a Bulldog, recording just 10 combined tackles in 1981-1982 after playing exclusively on the JV squad during Georgia's national championship season of 1980. 

Dean would finally get his big break, but it would come at the expense of  Bulldog standout Jeff Sanchez in the form of a broken arm.

During spring practice of 1983, Sanchez - an All-SEC safety in 1982 - closed in on tailback Melvin Simmons, who was running a toss sweep during a scrimmage.  Sanchez's arm got caught between Simmons' shoulder pads and the helmet of, of all people, Charlie Dean, who was trailing teammate Sanchez for a gang tackle.  Sanchez's arm would break in a collision and he would be forced to miss the entire '83 season.

The player that inadvertently broke Sanchez's arm would ironically be his replacement at Georgia's lone safety position.  Dean would have to take the place of an All-American candidate, who had only one less interception in 1982 (9 - second-most in the nation) than Dean had career tackles.

In being named the "Biggest Defensive Surprise of the Spring," Dean apparently made the most of the unforeseen opportunity, at first.  However, during summer practices, Dean's performance slipped and Coach Dooley momentarily thought of dropping him from the first team to make room in the defensive backfield for an even more inexperienced Gary Moss, who had to yet to a play a down on the Bulldogs' varsity.

Georgia had already lost the great Herschel Walker to the pros and now its unsettled defense - a unit that returned just four starters following Sanchez's injury and a suspension handed down to Stan Dooley - was forced to face a pass-happy, defending Rose Bowl champion UCLA team in the opener at Sanford Stadium.

In an ugly game, which featured a sporadic, driving rain, a 12-0 second-quarter lead for the Bulldogs was only 12-6 with just over two minutes remaining and with the Bruins knocking on the door inside Georgia's 10-yard line.  The Dogs forced UCLA to turn the ball over on downs and it appeared Georgia had escaped with a victory.  But the Bruins weren't finished yet.

Unable to move the ball from deep in their own territory, the Bulldogs were forced to punt after just three plays and took an intentional safety so not to give UCLA good field position.  Nevertheless, behind the direction of quarterback Rick Neuheisel, the Bruins soon were in great position at Georgia's 31-yard line with 33 seconds left.

Then Charlie Dean came to the rescue.

Neuheisel first looked to throw deep but couldn't find anyone open, which seems almost inconceivable since Georgia's game-clinching play came with only 10 Bulldogs on the field.  So, the future NCAA Basketball Tournament pool participant decided to pass short instead for his tight end, Paul Bergman.

Dean may have been somewhat inexperienced to big-time football but he knew enough to bait Neuheisel by laying off Bergman, and just as the quarterback threw, Dean closed in and made a big-time play.

By the way, why does Dean get credit for only a 69-yard return?  It's always been recognized as a 69-yarder and listed that way in Georgia's records.  While the play was from the 31-yard line, Dean intercepts the pass at his 26 (maybe the 27), returning it for a 74-yard return.  I always thought an interception return starts from the actual return, not the original line of scrimmage.  Am I missing something here?  But I regress... 

You gotta love what Keith Jackson says (almost as much as Coach Dooley's red Gilligan hat) soon after Dean's 69- or 74-yard return: "The hometown boy does it... Charlie Dean...a senior from Athens, Georgia."      

The hometown boy did finally do it as a Bulldog, and how.

Only Because You Asked...

My newest book on Bulldogs football - Historic Photos of University of Georgia Football - is being released early this week.  Since, and only because, a couple of readers emailed me, asking for information about the book, I'm posting its ordering details.

First off, the book is exactly what the title entails - 200+ archived photographs of UGA football, spanning from 1892 through, appropriately so, the 1980 season.  My writing primarily consists of only a few short chapters and extended captions for all photos; the photo-heavy book is certainly one for the coffee table.

You can find the book's sales sheet HERE and there is also some information about it at my WEBSITE.

So, if interested, you can visit your local bookstore and find it for $40.  Or, you can order from me at a bit of a discount for just $29 (plus $3 if I ship it).  If you so desire, I'll even sign it free of charge.

Please email book@patrickgarbin.com for any requests.

By the way, it makes a great, um, Georgia Football Season Opener gift for all the Bulldogs in your life... 

My God, a Freshman!

In great anticipation of the 2010 football season kicking off in just a little over a week, I wanted to post video from arguably the most memorable (for several reasons) season-opening game in Georgia football history.

Most of us have heard countless times Larry Munson's version of Herschel Walker's first touchdown.  However, until a friend sent me the video, I had never heard a different version, in particular, by an opposing announcer.  (I'm pretty sure that's Tennessee's John Ward narrating the clip for some type of UT football highlights reel/show.)

I'm putting Herschel in...Don't be afraid to let him carry the ball.

- Coach Vince Dooley to offensive coordinator George Haffner in the second quarter of the 1980 Tennessee game

Talk with most any Bulldog fan who attended that game in Knoxville 30 years ago and they'll usually mention two things: 1) Seeing Herschel Walker for the first time and 2) how dadgum hot it was that night in Neyland. 

Although the official gametime temperature was 87 degrees at kickoff, because of the humidity, it supposedly felt like triple digits.  As one of my relatives recalls, "I felt like I was literally sitting in fire... and when it was 15-to-nothing, they were the flames of Hell!" 

It sure didn't help (and I'm sure you've heard this from some of those that were in attendance) that the stadium's concessions apparently ran out of ice that night.  At some point, the only Coca-Colas to drink were ones straight up.

Everyone recalls Bill Bates getting bulldozed by Herschel but it was also Bates who fumbled the Bulldog punt, leading to the craziest, most hard-earned two points most will ever witness.  Walker's first touchdown is legendary but it was the Georgia safety that was the game changer, swinging the momentum finally in the Bulldogs' favor.  

The recruitment of Herschel Walker is a story in itself.  An NFL scout suggested that Herschel, besides Earl Campbell six years earlier, was the only high schooler that could have skipped college altogether and played immediately on the professional level.  However, there was one, small question concerning the youngster from Wrightsville...

Herschel had played Class A high school football - the lowest and smallest level in the state.  The average weight of Johnson County's offensive line Walker's senior year was a scant 150 pounds - 60 to 65 pounds less than Herschel weighed.  Could one playing on the Class A level make the transition to big-time, SEC football?

During the freshman's initial practices as a Bulldog, it certainly didn't seem so.  There were some left wondering if Georgia had been fooled by the hype surrounding Walker.  He was far from spectacular in practice, in fact, so average that Coach Dooley believed that instead of a freshman phenom, Georgia might have landed merely a "big, stiff back."

Entering the Tennessee game, it is widely well-known that Herschel was the third-string tailback behind Donnie McMickens and Carnie Norris.  What many don't realize is Walker was nearly the fourth stringer if not for Matt Simon, the team's leading rusher in 1979, suffering a hip pointer in the early summer. 

Few third- or fourth-string true freshmen play as early as the second quarter of their first game, like Walker did.  Dooley has always claimed he put Herschel in the game simply on "instinct."  Maybe, but part of the coach's instinct may have been McMickens and Norris combining for only 39 yards on 12 carries coupled with a 9-0 deficit.  

Early on, there were flashes of Herschel being a suitable player: a couple of good runs, a nine-yard reception, an alert recovery of a teammate's fumble, but nothing that affirmed he was ready to start at tailback, much more, carry the Bulldogs' offense.  That is, until he plowed through Bates and split two other would-be tacklers on into the end zone.

Following Herschel's touchdown, running backs coach Mike Cavan - the  assistant primarily in charge of the recruitment of Walker - declared, "I don't want to hear anything else about Class A football."

On a team with several concerns, its star recruit had suddenly answered a few questions of some of the critics. This freshman was undoubtedly special, playing on a team that would turn out to be the program's most special of them all.

One thing was especially clear: There was no question that Georgia had a new, first-string tailback.

A Peculiar Poll Position

Georgia football is in a preseason position it hasn't been in since not long after the above hiring.  (Photo: GeorgiaDogs.com)

The AP Poll was just released and the Bulldogs find themselves at an unfamiliar standing, ranking towards the bottom of the preseason poll.  Georgia's number-23 ranking is its lowest since the 2001 season when the Bulldogs entered Coach Richt's first year unranked.  Nevertheless, don't fret Dawg fans; Georgia football has a long history of its preseason ranking having little to no similarity to its final position in the AP Poll.

It all started 50 years ago...  The Bulldogs were coming off an SEC championship season of 1959 and a No. 5 national ranking - their first AP final poll appearance in 11 seasons.  Returning most of its team, including Fran Tarkenton and All-American Pat Dye, Georgia was positioned at 13th by the Associated Press pollsters.  It was the first time the Bulldogs were preseason ranked since the AP first released preseason rankings in 1950.

En route to a disappointing 6-4 season, a favored Georgia team dropped its season opener to Bear Bryant's third Alabama squad by 15 points, falling out of the poll where it remained unranked for the next five-plus years. 

After three final poll appearances after not being ranked in the preseason (1959, 1966, 1968) and three times ranked in the preseason but not finishing in the rankings (1960, 1967, 1969), in 1971, Georgia started (18th) and ended (7th) the same season ranked for the first time.  However, there has been much inconsistency between where the Bulldogs began and finished many of their seasons as it relates to rankings. 

The 1975 Bulldogs were suppose to be even worse than the six-loss team from the year before, but led by a "Junkyard Dogs" defense, Georgia won nine games and achieved a top-20 ranking.  The 1978 team was forecasted to be dreadful; one media outlet predicted Georgia's game with Vanderbilt that year would decide who was the ninth-best team in the 10-member conference.  Instead, the "Wonderdogs" shocked the nation, recording a 9-1-1 regular-season mark and an eventual No. 16 final ranking.

Georgia's national championship team of 1980 started off ranked only 16th.  Of course, few writers knew how much an impact a freshman from Wrightsville would have.  In fact, during the Bulldogs' historic run from 1980-1983, their average ranking in the preseason was 12th but they finished higher in  each of the four seasons, averaging a ranking of better than 4th.

Recently, in five of Coach Richt's first seven seasons, the Bulldogs exceeded their AP Poll expectations.  Notwithstanding, the last two years have been disappointments, ranking No. 1 in the preseason two years ago and 13th last season, only to finish 13th in 2008 and not ranked at all last year.

In the distant past, there were other unfortunate letdowns: The 1977 Bulldogs returned two backs - Kevin McLee and Willie McClendon - from the '76 SEC title team, who would finish their careers ranked first and third in rushing at the school, and three other players recognized as All-Americans, but the team handed Coach Dooley his only losing season in 25 years.  Of course, no one imagined the '77 Dogs, who were preseason ranked 19th by the AP, would lose a school-record 35 fumbles and end their season playing a quarterback who was the sixth-stringer in summer practices.

In 2000, Jim Donnan made the infamous quote: “I’ve been waiting 55 years to be the head coach of a football team that has this much potential, and I guarantee you that we’re going to get it done.”  The AP writers seemingly agreed with the coach, ranking the Bulldogs 10th in the nation.  What followed was a four-loss campaign, a number-20 final ranking, and Donnan losing his job. 

Three other Georgia teams - 1969, 1979, 1993 - started their seasons ranked 13th or better only to finish unranked and with a record of 6-5 or worse.

So, how does Georgia's varying beginning and ending rankings from past seasons relate to the current Bulldogs that kick off in two weeks?  Probably very little, if at all.  But, for those who might be feeling somewhat down regarding the lowly 23rd ranking, perhaps, here's a little comfort:

Besides the fact that Georgia has finished eight seasons in the AP Poll when they weren't ranked in the preseason...  Of the seven seasons the Bulldogs were preseason ranked from 16th to 25th, they actually finished ranked higher in five of the seven years.

A few months ago, I showed that Georgia returning only a handful of starters on defense - something the media has pointed out ad nauseam - has no real historical significance.  Now, it also appears that media members, at least those that have voted in the preseason AP Poll, historically have had a difficult time assessing the Bulldogs in the preseason. 

Let's hope this is the case for 2010 as well.

When the Butler Did It (the first time)

A couple months ago, I posted a video clip from Georgia's 1985 game at Clemson and commented on the bitter hatred that existed in this one-time, preeminent Bulldog football rivalry. 

Just two years prior, the same two teams had met in the same Valley, but the game was most unlike the meetings that came before or followed in the series.  The 1983 affair featured a passing Georgia squad, whose running game had been stymied, and an unusual finish  involving a duel of mile-long field-goal attempts, ending in a tie game - a result that seemed to shockingly cease much of the aforementioned hatred, that is, momentarily.

When I get home, I'm going to French kiss my sister, and I don't even have one.
- a UGA grad following the Bulldogs' 16-16 tie in Death Valley

Entering the 1983 Georgia-Clemson contest, the 11th-ranked Bulldogs were fresh off a thrilling win over UCLA and were actually a slight favorite to defeat the Tigers in their own backyard. 

Clemson was on probation - the reason the game was televised by Raycom/ESPN on a tape-delay basis - and had lost to Boston College by 15 points the week before.  These Tigers seemed far separated from the ones that had won the 1981 national championship while handing Georgia its only regular-season loss from 1980-1982.

Some details of the game can be found in a great post by Kyle King a while back.  In a nutshell, a 6-0 Bulldog lead in the second stanza suddenly was a 16-6 Georgia deficit only a quarter later.  Clemson's 10-point lead should have actually been greater but two Terry Hoage blocked field goals kept the Dogs reasonably close.

As one would imagine, the Bulldogs sorely missed Herschel Walker.  Georgia averaged a lowly 2.9 yards per rush in its first two games of 1983 while its 299 combined rushing yards against UCLA and Clemson were the team's lowest in consecutive games during a season since the second and third games of 1979.

Trailing by 10 points with a struggling running game, the Bulldogs were forced to throw the football.  Coach Dooley promptly benched senior quarterback John Lastinger in favor of an inexperienced Todd Williams - a sophomore who entered the year having attempted just seven collegiate passes. 

In the final quarter, the Georgia offense resembled the BYU Cougars of the time, passing on nearly every down.  For the game, Williams completed 11 passes for 169 yards with 10 of those  for 157 yards coming in the fourth quarter alone.  The Bulldogs' 16 completed passes for the game was one of the highest completion totals in school history before the arrival of Eric Zeier eight years later.

Another one for the record books was the 12 combined field-goal attempts by the two teams (each made 3 of 6 attempts), which was an NCAA record for more than 23 years until 2006.  The final two of the 12 tries came in an unconventional ending of Clemson's Donald Igwebuike failing on a 68-yard game-winning attempt, Georgia flipping the field, and then the Bulldogs' Kevin Butler missing a 66-yard attempt - all occurring in the final seven seconds of the game. 

Butler missed only five field goal tries the entire 1983 regular season, three of which came against the Tigers.  Nevertheless, he made his most important attempt - the game-tying 31-yarder, capping a tremendous Bulldog rally for the 16-all draw.  As Kyle posted, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution declared the next day, "The Butler did it," a year and five days before the Bulldog kicker would really do in the Tigers.

Soon afterwards, a newspaper article indicated, because of the non-decisive outcome between the opposing teams, there was surprisingly an apparent lack of animosity between opposing fans.

"Clemson fans were nicer today they've ever been," said one Bulldog fan.  "We got more static from Tech people at the Simon and Garfunkel concert at Grant Field this summer," stated another.

At eight-years old, I personally remember having a rather difficult time dealing with the tie to the hated Tigers...almost as much of a struggle as the kid towards the end of the video, attempting to get Danny Ford's autograph.  Remember, Georgia had kicked off each of its last three January 1st bowls with a chance at a national championship. 

How are we going to play for a national title, I recall wondering, when we can't even beat a team that lost to Boston College.

Despite my pessimism and color-man Kevin Kiley's belief that the draw was a "setback" for Georgia, the Bulldogs would do just fine in 1983.  There would be no championship but achieved was a 10-1-1 mark, a Cotton Bowl victory, and a number-four national ranking for one of my, and many other Bulldog fans', favorite Georgia teams.

Remembering the '83 Bulldogs, I have to ask, what time is it in Texas?