UGA Men's Swim & Dive vs the Football team doing Harlem Shake

Harlem Shake videos have swept the Internet in the past few weeks, and are set to the tune of Baauer's Harlem Shake from the 1980's.  Now the UGA Men's Swim and Dive team have taken on the challenge and created their own video, now it has gone viral.  They have been all over the morning shows and the local shows in Georgia.  In case you haven't seen it yet, check it out below.

The swim team's version was shot underwater and had more than 2 million views as of Wednesday night.

So the Bulldogs of the gridiron tried their best to pull out all the stops — theirs includes a Winnie the Pooh costume, as well as Tigger, Hairy Dawg on a moped and several other odd costumes!  Check out their version below.

Both are pretty crazy!  I don't get it, but then again, I am getting old!

Murray decides to stay for one more year

On Sunday night, through a tweet, UGA QB Aaron Murray announced he was coming back to Athens for his senior year.  Here is the tweet he sent out to his 64,000 + twitter followers:

Georgia coach Mark Richt reacted to Murray’s decision in a statement Monday morning: “I’m certainly pleased that after weighing his options Aaron has decided to remain at Georgia for his senior year. His leadership and productivity have been tremendous during what has been an outstanding career. This is great for Aaron and great for Georgia.”

This is great news for the Dawg Nation and now the offense will return all of the offensive starters next year except two; receivers Marlon Brown and Tavarres King.  I can’t say the same about the defense, since most of those guys are graduating or leaving early for the NFL.  That includes All American LB, Jarvis Jones and his opposite side LB in Alec Ogletree.  Those guys will be missed as will the rest of the defensive starters. 

This news should put the Dawgs in the top 10 in the preseason polls for next season.  But that is not always a good thing, Georgia was ranked #1 in the preseason polls 4 years ago and didn’t even make it to the SEC Championship game! 

Anyway, I think that is a smart decision Aaron and I can’t wait for next season!

Go Dawgs!

SEC Championship Game!

The stage is set, the winner of the SEC Championship game this weekend will face the Fighting Irish from Notre Dame in the National Championship game in January.  So the SEC Championship game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide is basically a semi-final game.  This picture basically shows how most SEC fans feel about the pending National Championship game.

As you know, I am part of the Dawg Nation and I feel like the Dawgs will come out victorious against Bama.  I feel like Coach Richt's team matches up well with the Tide but we are better in key positions.  All of the athletes on both teams are top notch, but the Dawgs have a better QB, better running backs and better linebackers and defensive backs.  The Tide's offensive and defensive lines are strong so who knows how it will turn out.  Either way, I feel like the National Champion will once again come from the SEC!  I just hope the trophy ends up in Athens and not Tuscaloosa again!

Go Dawgs

The Cocktail Party!

It’s back! The game all Georgia and Florida fans look forward to every year! The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party is taking place this Saturday in Jacksonville. This is what it is all about! The Dawgs are ranked 10th in the BCS polls while the Gators are ranked 2nd so this is yet another top ten matchup for both teams.

I am really worried that the Dawgs are going to have trouble stopping the Gators running game, but if the defense actually plays the way they should play and stop their strong ground game and force them to throw the ball, the Dawgs have a real chance of winning. Also, the special teams needs to perform without any major mistakes. I feel that Georgia QB Aaron Murray has the edge and the experience to guide the offense down the field and score ample points to win, but if Coach Mike Bobo continues to be predictable with his play calling, the Dawgs could be in trouble.  This will be a huge stage for the true freshman running backs to announce their presence to the college football world with the game being televised on CBS in the coveted 3:30 time slot!  Get ready world, here comes Gurshel!  (Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall)

As with most of the matchups between these two teams, I think it is going to be a competitive battle and I think that Georgia will upset the Gators.  I do know it is going to be a great atmosphere and there are going to be a lot of jabs back and forth between both fan bases. Also, I know there will be lots of Gator fans that look like this guy!

This is my favorite picture of the typical Gator fan! They all don’t look like this guy, but they all wish they could!

Go Dawgs!

#5 vs. #6

       
It is games like this one that makes me love college football!  The Georgia Bulldogs will be traveling to Columbia, SC this weekend to play Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks.  This match up puts the fifth ranked Dawgs against the sixth ranked Gamecocks.  I am already nervous about the game! 

This should be a dandy of a game!  The Dawgs are averaging 48 points a game with 536 total yards per game but the Gamecocks defense has only allowed 11 points per game and 289 total yards per game.  So something will have to give! 

I predict is going to be a low scoring, knock down, drag out fight with the Dawgs barely getting by.  The difference is going to come from the lines.  The Gamecocks have one of the toughest defensive lines in the country while the Dawgs have a young and inexperienced offensive line.  But if they can contain the two stud defensive ends for South Carolina and make some holes for Gurshall (Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall) the Dawgs might be able to get some yards.  If the Dawgs can win the turnover ratio, I think they can win the game. 

Also, ESPN’s Gameday will be broadcasting from outside the stadium, so I am not the only one who thinks this is a big game!  I just hope Lee Corso doesn’t pick the Dawgs to win!  He record is horrible! 


Go Dawgs! 

Russ promoted to UGAIX

(From the AJC) - After two stints as the University of Georgia’s interim mascot, “Russ” will be promoted to Uga IX, the school announced Thursday.

Georgia, in a news release, termed the removal of Russ’ interim tag a “battlefield promotion.”

A ceremony will be held before the Sept. 15 football game against Florida Atlantic to crown Russ, the 8-year-old half-brother of Uga VII, as next in Georgia’s continuous 56-year line of official English Bulldog mascots.

“Like many great and memorable Bulldogs, Russ has earned the opportunity to serve in this capacity,” UGA president Michael Adams said in a statement. “I am confident that he will represent the Bulldog Nation very well and continue the grand tradition of Ugas.”

Russ first served as interim mascot following the November 2009 death of Uga VII, filling in for the final two games of that season and the first six games of 2010. Georgia turned the job over to Uga VIII in the middle of the 2010 season but again called on Russ when illness sidelined the new mascot from the 2010 Liberty Bowl. After Uga VIII’s death in February 2011, Russ remained interim mascot for all of last season.

Georgia is 14-9 with Russ on the job.

“Russ has endeared himself to the Georgia people over the last three years,” UGA athletic director Greg McGarity said in a statement. “His dedication to duty when called upon has been exemplary, and it’s fitting that he takes his place in the official line of Georgia mascots.”

Russ will be on the sidelines on Saturday when the Dawgs open the season against Buffalo. This should be another win for Russ and an opportunity for the players to shake the rust off! I am looking forward to see the Dawgs on the field and getting the season started!

Isn’t this a great time of year!

Go Dawgs!

Coach Richt gets new deal!

It has been well known in Dawg Nation that Coach Mark Richt was going to get a contract extension after the dawgs went 10-2 in the regular season last year. Discussion about the contract started in December of 2011 and it finally seems the discussions are over and they have come to an agreement. Only Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity has made a point to mention that it is not merely a contract extension, but it is a whole new deal.

“It is a different contract,” McGarity said of the five-year deal that will pay Richt through the 2016 season. “In other words, we’re blowing up the old contract. I shouldn’t say blowing up, but we’re basically starting over with new terminology and things like that that will probably make it easier to read, easier to understand.”

Sounds like the main reason for the new contract is the buyout clause but Richt continues to say he has no desire to leave Athens. “I’ve never really changed my stance on how I feel about Georgia from the first day I got the opportunity to be here,” Richt said. “My goal and my wife Katharyn’s goal was to build our life in Athens, Ga., and raise our children here and finish my coaching career here. That thought has never changed for me.” So Dawg fans and the fans of CMR, we are set for a few more years!

Meanwhile, defensive coordinator Todd Grantham did receive a true contract extension. He was given two more years of his current contract. This will solidify the defense and help with recruiting on the defensive side of the ball.

Go Dawgs!

Another College Football Season in the books!

Now that the BCS Championship game has come and gone we can officially close the books on the 2011 College football season. The BCS Champions are the Alabama Crimson Tide and congratulations to Coach Saban, his team, and the fans of the Tide. They completely dominated LSU on both sides of the ball. It wasn’t a high scoring game but still exciting to watch.

With the win by Bama, that gives the SEC six straight National Champions, it give the University of Alabama two National Championships in the last three years and it gives the state of Alabama 3 straight National Titles with Auburn winning last year. That is pretty impressive and proves the best football is played in the south and in the SEC.

So now what? Well, for me it is exciting to follow the recruiting battles that are currently going on. By the way, UGA landed the top defensive player in the state of Georgia this week when Jordan Jenkins committed to play in Athens on Monday. There is still a good deal of top talent that hasn’t made any commitments so it will be interesting to see where they go.

Of course there are still the NFL playoffs but with my Falcons out, I am not nearly as interested. I will continue to watch because I love football and I am also intrigued by the Tebow phenomenon! The NBA is in full swing and the Hawks are playing pretty good, but I just don’t see them stacking up against Miami and Chicago this year. They will have a descent season and make the playoffs, but I see them losing in the first or second round of the playoffs. I wish I could say the Thrashers were hanging in there in the NHL but we all know what happened to them. As a matter of fact, the former Thrashers are actually doing pretty good in the standings. Winnipeg is currently 2nd in their division and in a playoff spot. The PGA tour also starts back up this month so that is a good thing and of course, Braves spring training are just around the corner.

So there are things sports related that interesting to watch and follow. Maybe now I will have time to get back in shape and work on my new years resolutions!

MIA!

Sorry I have been slack lately on posting on this blog. I have been busy at work and home as well as traveling and of course the Thanksgiving holiday. Here are some of the topics I probably would have written about in the last couple of weeks:




• The USA retaining the Presidents Cup with a comfortable margin in Austrilla
• The Dawgs beating Aurburn
• The Penn State and now Syracuse child abuse scandals – makes me sick
• Beaujolais Day
• The Dawgs beating Kentucky and clinching the SEC East Championship
• The passing of Larry Munson
• Family trip to New Orleans – More of that in the future
• Thankgiving
• Black Friday
• The Dawgs still run this state with a win against Georgia Tech
• The screwed up BCS system
• The SEC Championship is set
• Cyber Monday

Yeah, those would have all been great reads I am sure! Anyway, I hope to get some pictures up from our trip to New Orleans soon. I will try not to be away as long in the future.

24-20 Dawgs!

What can I say, a Win is a Win! Georgia finally got back in the win column against hated rival Florida this past weekend by the score of 24-20. It was not a pretty game by either team but once it was over, the Dawgs came out on top. The defense was the only bright spot of the game. The special teams were horrible and the offense was flat most of the game. They were able to make some big plays when needed but still have a lot to work on this week.

This win continues the streak to 6 wins after dropping the first two games of the season. That win might have saved Coach Richt’s job even if we don’t make it to the SEC Championship game. Now the Dawgs need to focus on winning the remaining conference games (which is not a given since we have to play the defending National Champions) and need a little help from either Arkansas or Florida when they play South Carolina. For now, I will just enjoy the long awaited win against the Gators!

Go Dawgs!

Ga/Fla Weekend!

The air is crisp, the leaves are falling and football season is in full swing. What a great time of year! The last weekend in October have several constants, fall festivals, Halloween and the World’s Largest Cocktail Party! NCAA officials don’t like me calling the annually border bash that, but what are they going to do to me? It’s not like I am Cam Newton or anything! Oh wait, they didn't do anything to him either so we are both good!

OK, on to the game. This is a huge game for Coach Richt and his team. After two opening loses, the Dawgs have come back to rattle off 5 wins. Granted they weren’t playing top 10 teams, but 4 of those wins came against SEC opponents and we all know the SEC is the best conference in the country, so that is nothing to sneeze at! Anyway, Coach Richt needs to get his team focused on playing the Gators and not worrying about him being on the hot seat if he loses to the Gators again. On the other side of the ball, the Gators are currently on a three game losing streak and are desperate to stop their skid. Basically both teams need this win badly!

On paper, the Dawgs have the edge but the game is not played on paper. In years past the Dawgs have had a much better team on paper, but still ended up losing the game so that means nothing. Each team is dealing with injuries to some of their big time players and the game is played on a neutral field (sort of) so it is going to come down to execution and coaching. Again, the Dawgs would seem to have the edge in coaching since Richt has been a head coach for 11 years and the Gators have a 1st year head coach in Will Muschamp, who by the way, played at Georgia.

I am sure it is going to be another exciting game full of ups and downs for both teams. The Dawgs have had some sort of mental block against the Gators in the last 20 years and I hope this year the Boogie Man doesn’t come out and spook them again. Kick off is at 3:30 on CBS and it is setting up to be another battle on the St. John’s river!

If you can’t be in Jacksonville on Saturday, here are some of the UF fans that you will be missing:

Nice Jorts!

My personal favorite!Go Dawgs!

Happy Birthday Larry!

Today’s Larry Munson’s 89th birthday! It has been a couple of years since he left the both calling the Georgia games and the new crew is good, but nothing compares to Larry. I could post a long drawn out post about some of his most memorable calls since 1966 when he started calling Georgia games but I don’t have the time and I would have a real hard time narrowing down the best calls.

I do know one of my top three calls and that was after the end of the Auburn game in 1982 – “Look at the Sugar falling from the sky!” Winning that game got the Dawgs into the Sugar Bowl that year! Love it!

Anyway, Happy Birthday Larry! You will always be the “Voice of the Dawgs!”

Countdown to kickoff!

I feel like it is close enough to start talking about the return of college football. It is now less than two weeks away and I couldn’t be more fired up about it! All of the preseason polls are out and they are interesting to look at but don’t really mean much. A majority of the polls have Oklahoma ranked #1 with Alabama, Oregon and LSU ranked 2, 3, and 4. Then it starts to get varied depending on the poll. Georgia is ranked either 19th or 22nd in the three major polls and their opening opponent is ranked either 5th or 7th.

The Dawgs will be taking on Boise St. in the Georgia dome for the Chick-fila-a Kickoff game on September 3rd. This is a huge game for the Bulldogs! If they can pull the upset it will put them on track for a great season. Since Boise St. is not in the SEC, if the Dawgs don’t win, it won’t be the end of the world. They will have to jump back and get ready to kick off their SEC play the following week against South Carolina. There is a good chance the Dawgs could go 0-2 in their first two games, but I don’t see that happening! I guess that is the Dawg fan in me, but I feel like both of the games are winnable!

Boise St. is not used to playing in places like the Georgia Dome with 70,000 screaming Dawgs fans! They have played in some big time games in the past but none of those games had the home field advantage that the Dawgs are going to have. Also, the Dawgs will be wearing special unis for the game and that will only add to the excitement for the team and the fans.
Here are the Nike Pro Combat uniforms, not very traditional!

It is going to be a tough test for the Dawgs and I am already a little nervous about it. The Broncos have a well seasoned QB and some great receivers. Also, they are used to playing on a quick surface like the Georgia Dome. But they Dawgs have some pretty impresive play makers as well! So I expect a close and exciting game and I can’t wait to get into the dome that Saturday night. The best thing is, win or lose, football is back!

Go Dawgs!

Classy Organization!

I meant to write about this last week but due to being incredibly overworked recently I haven’t had the time to make as many posts as I would like. Anyway, this is a heartwarming story about a major league baseball team and a recently injured Georgia Bulldog baseball player. This is part of the article that can be found on Georgiadogs.com, for the entire article, please click here.

June 8, 2011

ATHENS -- Georgia junior outfielder Johnathan Taylor has been selected by the Texas Rangers in the 33rd round of the Major League Baseball draft Wednesday.

"This was truly a classy move and a great gesture on the part of the Texas Rangers organization," said Georgia coach David Perno. "J.T. is definitely a player worthy of getting drafted. He's been a big part of our program, and we are all very excited for him. When I talked to him after he got the call, he was in the middle of his rehabilitation work, laughing and having a good time and was thrilled to be drafted."

Currently, the 5-8, 181-pound Taylor, is an outpatient at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta after suffering a broken neck in a March 6th outfield collision this year with teammate Zach Cone. The accident happened while the Bulldogs were playing Florida State in Athens.

Taylor, a native of Acworth, Ga., is the son of Tandra and John Taylor. Johnathan has appeared in 117 games in his Bulldog career including 91 starts. He owns a .312 career batting average. A Consumer Economics major, he was named to the SEC Freshman Academic Honor Roll in 2009 and the UGA Athletic Director's Honor Roll in 2010.

"We're all very proud of him," said Tandra Taylor. "It's just amazing, and when he got the call, his face lit up, and we were all very excited. It was awesome news."

Cone was the 37th overall pick in the draft, going in the first round to Texas on Monday. "I was pumped up when the Rangers told me they were thinking about drafting J.T., and then I got a call saying that they had drafted him," said Cone. "I was already planning on going over to see him and now we can talk about the Rangers. This made my day, it's just awesome, and I'm so happy for him."

Fans can donate to the Johnathan Taylor Fund through the UGAA website, georgiadogs.com, An account has been set up at First American Bank and Trust (FAB). Donations can be mailed to the following account or dropped off at any FAB location.

Nice move Texas Rangers and congrats J.T.!

Drafted Dawgs

This past weekend the NFL draft was held even thought there is currently a player lockout. The lockout will probably get settled soon, so I am not worried about not having NFL football next season. It will be a little tougher for the guys that were drafted this weekend to get up to speed due to the fact they can’t talk to any coaches or see any of the playbooks until the legal issues are settled.

The Dawgs had six players taken during the three-day draft. It marked the second time in three years that six Bulldogs were drafted. UGA tied for 4th overall in the nation for the most players picked in the draft. They tied LSU for most in the conference this year. For the 12th time in the past 14 seasons, and fifth year in a row, the Southeastern Conference had the most players selected in the NFL draft with a total of 38 players. Is there any doubt that the SEC is the toughest conference in college football?

The newest pro players from UGA are as follows:

A.J Green – 4th overall pick to the Cincinnati Bengals

Justin Houston – 3rd round, 70th overall pick to the Kansas City Chiefs

Akeem Dent – 3rd round, 91st overall pick to the Atlanta Falcons

Clint Boling – 4th round, 101st overall pick to the Cincinnati Bengals

Kris Durham – 4th round, 107th overall pick to the Seattle Seahawks

Shaun Chapas – 7th round, 220th overall pick to the Dallas Cowboys

These guys will join the 41 other former Dawgs that are currently active in the NFL.

Good luck guys!

G-Day / A-Day games!

From what I have read, it seems it was a nice showing by the Defense this past weekend in Athens for the G-Day game. I wasn’t able to attend or watch due to the fact that I was at the Alabama A-day game. Meg and I went to Tuscaloosa with some friends to see a concert and then the spring game. Due to the tornado's that whipped through Tuscaloosa on Friday, the concert was cancelled but the weather was great on Saturday and we were a few of the 92K people to see the Crimson beat the White. We also saw the unveiling of the new Nick Saben statue. Every coach who has won a National Championship for Bama has a statue.

Back in Athens, the crowd wasn’t as big, (43K) but I am sure the excitement level was just as high. It sounds like the first half was a little slow with a score of 5-3 at the end of the half. There were some big stops by the “D” and unfortunate fumbles by a couple of guys that lead to the low score. The QB’s seemed to pick it up in the second half and there were some big plays made by both sides. At the end of the day, the Black team beat the Red team 18-11. In just watching the highlights from Athens, it seems that the G-Day game was a little more exciting than the A-Day game. Not that it really matters right now. There is still a lot of work to be done before kick off in September for both teams.

Here is Aaron Murray throwing a pass in the second half

It was fun to be on another campus to see how things are done on a game day. Being in the South, most of the campus experiences are going to be similar. There was a lot of excitement even if it was just a controlled scrimmage. It really makes me look forward the fall and SEC football! There is nothing like a Saturday in the fall on a SEC college campus! I know it is still April, but for one day in the spring, it fell like that fall. There was a chill in the air and the love for college football. It was a lot of fun!

Now bring on the Boise St. Broncos!

Go Dawgs!