Pick Your Players: Two Georgia Bulldogs We'll Be Watching

T Kyle King — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 00:46:48 -0000

In case you haven’t noticed---and, judging by the comment thread, you haven’t---basketball season just ended, which means the countdown to G-Day officially is underway!

G-Day means a lot of things to a lot of people. For me, G-Day is about tailgating, friends, family, Athens in the springtime, drunks climbing trees, the mixed emotions that come from the knowledge that every good sign is also a bad sign (e.g., a 40-yard touchdown pass means the offense is in rhythm, but it also means our secondary is suspect), and the determination of which players are going to be "my guys" come autumn.

You know what I mean. You root for the team, first, last, and always, but, within that context, there are particular players you want to see do well. Oftentimes, these players are identified at G-Day. When Asher Allen broke the rules and blocked an extra point at the spring game as a youngster, I became an Asher Allen fan, and I have never stopped being an Asher Allen fan.

I’m sure one or two incoming athletes will make their mark at the spring scrimmage, but, for the moment, aside from the obvious guys for whom everyone who bleeds red and black is rooting (i.e., Orson Charles, Joe Cox, Jeff Owens), these are "my guys" for 2009:

1. Chad Gloer: I will admit up front that I have a bias here. Chad’s dad, Jon Gloer, is a history teacher at Starr’s Mill High School, where my wife also teaches. Consequently, I keep an eye out for No. 17 on special teams and I want the Fayetteville walk-on to do well. I have praised Chad’s gritty play before, and I’d like to see him get more opportunities to make his mark on Saturdays.

2. Tavarres King: In spite of the fact that we have the same last name, Tavarres and I are not related. However, he has a couple of things going for him, starting with the fact that his father, Anthony King, was a tight end for Clemson. While Georgia’s exchange program with Auburn generally is reciprocal (z.B., we got Vince Dooley, they got Pat Dye; we got Erk Russell, they got Shug Jordan; we got Stacy Searels, they got Will Muschamp, etc.), our swaps with our nearby border rivals from Lake Hartwell (a/k/a the New Testament Auburn) have been distinctly one-sided: Georgia coach Mark Richt’s son, Jon Richt, played for Clemson (albeit temporarily); Georgia tackle Jeff Harper’s son, Cullen Harper, played for Clemson; Georgia receiver Zippy Morocco’s son, Chris Morocco, played for Clemson; Georgia chancellor Patrick H. Mell’s son, Patrick Hughes Mell, became president of Clemson. It’s about time we got something in return. Moreover, an old friend of mine recently was introduced to Tavarres King, and, when he told the promising young athlete that he was looking forward to football season, the receiver replied, "Good. It is going to be a lot of fun." That’s the spirit. (Not only for that reason, incidentally, my friend came away with the sense that Tavarres King was a fine fellow, which is to his credit in this era of the Fulmer Cup.)

Those are two Bulldogs for whom I’ll be cheering especially enthusiastically this fall. Now it’s your turn to pick a player or three; which Georgia athletes will you be rooting for with particular gusto when it’s time to tee it up between the hedges?

Go ‘Dawgs!

Sprints // 03.11.09

cocknfire — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:01:59 -0000

Basketball Awards. Coach of the Year goes to LSU's Trent Johnson, no real surprise after Darrin Horn's South Carolina team had trouble handling success. Johnson's team was the best of a down SEC, so we'll likely have to wait for the NCAA tournament to find out how good they really are.

Marcus Thornton, also of LSU, was Player of the Year.

The First Team All-SEC selections:

Pos	Name	Team
G	Nick Calathes	Florida
G	Jodie Meeks	Kentucky
F	Patrick Patterson	Kentucky
F	Tasmin Mitchell	LSU
G	Marcus Thornton	LSU
F/C	Jarvis Varnado	Mississippi State
G	Devan Downey	South Carolina
F	Tyler Smith	Tennessee

The rest of the awards are here.

Play ball! Auburn beats Alabama, 8-7, in your first SEC baseball game of the year. All other SEC teams win, except Arkansas, who managed to make four errors in three innings to lose to Centenary. Yes, Centenary. The most impressive non-conference win of the day might belong to Vanderbilt, which shellacked Lipscomb, 22-4.

Now might be a good time to mention that there are actually two SEC baseball games on television Sunday. For those of you with Cox Sports Television, Florida visits Arkansas at 2 p.m. ET. On CSS, Alabama hosts Georgia at 3 p.m. ET.

Another view on crime and punishment. Alligator Army reminds us that athletes are really just students -- and that many students face heavy-handed punishment without all the publicity.

While [Florida baseball player Stephen Kendall] Locke is an extreme case, an athlete who gets his charge dropped, the average student who gets a DUI is out of school before they can get kicked out. The last thing a student needs is a suspension, so it is better to withdraw before the university can get you. But, that student won't have his name in the paper or lose her athletic scholarship.

C&F is still not as comfortable about the resolution of the Carl Johnson situation as AA appears to be, but in the absence of prosecution, Johnson is innocent.

Auburn out of the NCAAs? So says Seth Emerson, though he adds a this-is-pre-tournaments caveat. A few from his bubble team rankings:

9. South Carolina
10. Florida
13. San Diego State (last in)
18. Auburn

It's an interesting list from someone who has spent a lot of time watching the bubble for Gamecocks fans.

'I said busing tables.' Lane Kiffin denies slurring every South Carolina-bred Gamecock in program history.

"I never said that to Alshon, nor would I say anything like that," an obviously concerned Kiffin said during a meeting in his office. [EMPHASIS C&F's]

Boy Wonder, you've already said many, many things like that. So color C&F skeptical. (HT: Joe Person)

In the meantime, practice gets underway in Knoxville. No reported outrageous quotes from Boy Wonder. Yet.

Leavin'. Jon Richt is transferring out of Clemson, reportedly to go to a smaller program. Or to escape the sinking feeling that he's stuck in an episode of Green Acres. One of the two. (HT: The Mayor)

The last thing they needed. Arkansas, not expected to be long for the SEC tournament? They are down by one (G/F Jason Henry), by virtue of the dreaded "violation of team rules."

Billy Gillispie is not worried. Good for him. Kentucky fans are.

SEC Alumnus News. Former Vanderbilt QB Jay Cutler's relationship with the Broncos is dissolving, in a story not at all leaked by anyone in Culter's camp. I mean, there is absolutely nothing in the story that transparently reveals that Cutler's side is the one talking here.

SB Nation - Jon Richt

Pick Your Players: Two Georgia Bulldogs We'll Be Watching

Sprints // 03.11.09