SB Nation User Blog: vineyarddawg

And in Breaking News... Alabama cheats

vineyarddawg — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:18:35 -0000

ESPN is reporting that Alabama may have to vacate as many as 21 wins from the 2005-2007 seasons because some athletes used the "free textbook" program to get free textbooks for students that weren't eligible to get them.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that this isn't as bad as some of the other violations that Alabama has been penalized for recently. At the same time, however, while not exactly being academic fraud, this practice could certainly be characterized as fraud.

The important issue, however, is that the NCAA doesn't see this as just another minor violation like mentioning a recruits name in public, or contacting a recruit during a non-contact period, or talking to a recruit in front of ESPN cameras. Alabama is, once again, placing themselves right at the top of the "repeat offender" list.

In all seriousness, Alabama is about one more booster scandal away from receiving the death penalty. The NCAA said exactly that when they handed down the Tide's multi-year probation for the Albert Means fiasco. They had better watch themselves and keep their noses super-clean for the next 4 or 5 years (if that's even possible).

You might wonder at first why I'm linking to a fan video of Tech fans celebrating at Sanford...

vineyarddawg — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:24:38 -0000

You might wonder at first why I'm linking to a fan video of Tech fans celebrating at Sanford Stadium.

Well, much like Corrine Brown did with her boasting, the Yellow Jacket nation has once again given us reason to point and laugh at them, even in their victories. I would assume the person howling nerdishly in the background is the cameraman, but who knows.

Gradulations to the Yellow Jacket and Corch Paul Johnsons... this video demonstrates how well nerds celebrate.

Or, "How I learned to stop worrying and hate the NCAA"

vineyarddawg — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 02:12:20 -0000

Just when we thought the NCAA couldn't possibly come up with another situation that was more asburd, we get this ruling, saying that even though he inquired about a waiver, Mark Richt still will not be able to (legally) keep his promise to attend the graduation address by Troup County's Chris Burnette.

This situation highlights ~~all that is~~ some of the things that are ignorant and stupid about the NCAA. Any average moron can understand the situation. Mark Richt promised this kid that if he graduated as valedictorian, he would attend his graduation to hear his address. Well, as it turns out, the Burnette didn't make valedictorian, but is still high enough in the class to speak at graduation (where I came from, that means you were in the top 4). The NCAA's ruling, however, was that unless Burnette were actually the valedictorian, they couldn't grant the waiver for Richt to attend. Not salutatorian, not speaking at graduation... only valedictorian.

As a matter of fact, while I'm complaining, why would a college football coach be banned from simply attending a graduation ceremony, anyway? He can't attend on the off chance that he'll make contact with a recruit at the ceremony? Yeah, I'm sure Nick Saban and Corch Urban Meyers are going to be patrolling all of the high school graduations to try to catch a few extra seconds of face time with those recruits.

How silly. Just let the man reward the kid by going and hearing his graduation address. It doesn't take an elitist bunch of know-it-all's perched on their ivory throne in Indianapolis to figure this one out.

Now it's time to get crazy

vineyarddawg — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:12:38 -0000

Well, now that both coaches who, by most accounts, are at the top of Damon Evans' wishlist have been eliminated from the tournament, it's time to commence the crazy spectacle that is new coach speculation.

One of the more ~~fascinating~~ ~~disturbing~~ fascinating trends I've seen happen recently is how some folks will pore over the publicly available list of arriving and departing flights from the Athens-Ben Epps airport, trying to decipher meaning from the comings and goings of a small-town airfield with no special significance other than the fact that the end of its primary runway is positioned exactly 3 miles away from Sanford Stadium.

So, if we were going to join in that fray, I'd be very curious about the fact that there are a lot of flights leaving today that are going to various places in Michigan. Is Damon et al trying to surreptitiously meet with a coach while in the guise of a Final Four visit?

The best lost recruit ever?

vineyarddawg — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:08:05 -0000

Please forgive the hyperbole in the title, but this is what I thought when I read the article about Greg Reid in the AJC today.

To quote Reid directly from the article, "I really like Georgia and the coaches. It’s a fun place. I just felt like it was too far from home and I’d probably have to work a little harder [to compete for a starting position] with the other people in front of me."

If "not having to work as hard" is the deciding criteria for you when selecting your collegiate football home, then, son, welcome to Florida State. (Or, for that matter, Alabama, or anywhere other than Athens.)

Reid might turn out to be a fantastic college DB, and he might be in the pro football hall of fame 20 years from now. With that attitude, however, I suspect he's equally likely (if not more so) to end up as one of those guys you see on FSU's backup roster 4 years from now and say, "Hey, wasn't that guy supposed to be good?"

The General at Georgia?

vineyarddawg — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:51:44 -0000

Furman Bisher at the AJC is reporting that Bobby Knight is interested in the Bulldogs' head coaching job.

My first reaction is that, despite his checkered past in the area of personal discipline, he could definitely do a lot of good. I'm not sure that I like the idea of a coach seeing UGA as his "final job," though, espcially when he's not in a position to stay more than 4 or 5 years, tops.

One thing you have to say about him... he's graduated his players at every stop he's had.

Allen bolts for the NFL, too

vineyarddawg — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:15:40 -0000

The AJC is reporting that Asher Allen has declared for the NFL draft, too. Let me just be the first to say...

huh??

I mean, Danny Ware bolting 2 years ago was understandable. He knew he wouldn't be drafted, but he also knew his window of opportunity at Georgia was closing, with Knowshon coming off his redshirt year. Allen is our best cornerback. Why would he declare now for the draft?

Personally, I wonder if he doesn't have some sleazebag agent whispering into his ear that he'll get him drafted in the first 2 rounds. He'll be lucky to be drafted at all, IMO.

The Munson Tribute

vineyarddawg — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 06:39:49 -0000

It occurred to me, recently, that amid the gnashing of teeth and vitriol aimed at our defensive coordinator and his charges, the most emotional and poignant event of the day has been almost completely forgotten.

Immediately after the first quarter ended, a red golf cart puttered onto the field, stopped at the 10-yard line, and for the first time in 4+ decades in Athens, Larry Munson stepped onto the Sanford Stadium field during a football game.

Munson had already been given a virtual "farewell tour" last season, with the Sanford Stadium souvenir cup series commemorating his career, and the awarding of an honorary varsity letter to Larry at halftime of one of the home games. I think most fans, however, (myself included) felt some sense of shock and loss when Munson abruptly resigned after the Central Michigan game this year. (Some friends of mine, who are in a position to know, have said that he was "gently encouraged" by the athletic department to quit after what I understand was a pretty poor performance against the not-really-a-directional-school from the north.)

Larry Munson has literally been the voice of Georgia football for the entire adult life of any fan that's over 60. Whenever a Georgia fan recalls their favorite plays from the past, they inevitably are hearing Munson's call along with that play. (The only notable exceptions are probably last year's "one and done" play against Bama and the "so long everybody" Massaquoi TD against Florida.) Munson's most famous
calls are a veritable list of the best Georgia highlights of the last 42 years: "Appleby to Washington," "Run Lindsay," "Hobnail boot," "Look at the Sugar falling from the sky," "Oh, you Herschel Walker," and the list goes on and on.

On Saturday, Georgia officially said "farewell and thank you" to Larry Munson. From where I was sitting, I couldn't hear more than 2 words that Brook Whitmire, the stadium announcer, said during the entire tribute. The only time I've ever heard the Sanford Stadium crowd sustain a cheer that loud and that long was for the handover from UGA V to UGA VI about 10 years ago, and I'm not even sure that matched up to the tribute the Dawg fans paid Larry.

I pride myself on trying to keep the game in perspective (it is, after all, only a game), but I have teared up and gotten a lump in my throat twice in my 20+ years of attending Georgia games. The first was when we went to the SEC Championship Game for the first time in 2002 and the Recoat Band first struck up "Glory Glory" in the Georgia Dome during the pregame festivities. The second was on Saturday.

You could feel the crowd's love for Larry, and his love and passion for the fans, the team, and the University. Larry sat there, listening to the tribute and the crowd, and he started to tear up, his lip quivering. Then, he took his hat off and saluted all four ends of the stadium, igniting an even bigger roar, before he got back into the golf cart and rode back off the field.

In that time, which couldn't have been more than 5-7 minutes, the feeling in the crowd was palpable, and went something like this: "Larry, we love you, and we've loved the way you've called the games while unabashedly supporting the Dawgs for as long as most of us can remember. We really wish you didn't have to leave, but we understand that it's time." And you could feel Larry's response, which I imagine to have been something like, "Damn, I'm really touched and humbled, and I've had a great ride. I wish I didn't have to give it up, but I've enjoyed the time I've had, and I thank you for the opportunity to do it for so long."

There was a ceremony to commemorate the unveiling of Vince Dooley's statue at halftime, but it didn't come close to getting the response that Munson did. Larry will always have a special place in the hearts of Georgia fans, and even though he won't be able to call games, I wish him a long, healthy future.

This is the best video I've seen that accurately conveys what it was like when the Dawgs ran out at...

vineyarddawg — Wed, 14 May 2008 22:58:16 -0000

This is the best video I've seen that accurately conveys what it was like when the Dawgs ran out at the 2008 Auburn Blackout game (wait for it... at the 2:06 mark). (via GeorgiaDawg19)