Monday's Meatloaf - Let's get Rivalrous

Let's talk about rivalry. One of the greatest debates I see Dawg fans enter into is whether Florida or Georgia Tech is our biggest rival. I always give the jort heads the nod here since they're both a conference and divisional foe. 

But is Georgia/Florida still a rivalry? We haven't been much of a competitor in Jacksonville (and on respective campuses for the 1994-95 seasons) the last two decades. And before that Georgia really dominated the series overall, 44-22-2. So along that line, has it ever been a rivalry?


To answer the question I enlisted the help of something called a dictionary. Rivalry: the act of rivaling : the state of being a rival : competition. Ok. That wasn't much help. Let's look up the word Rival: 1. One who attempts to equal or surpass another, or who pursues the same object as another; a competitor. So far so good. But there's another definition as well.... 2. One that equals or almost equals another in a particular respect. 


Phooie. We "equaled" the gators for four quarters last year. Other than that, not so much over the last 21 competitions. So by definition the WLOCP is barely hanging on as a rivalry, on the field. Kind of depressing I know. I hate those sumsabitches and now some ancient tome that no one even uses anymore is telling me we're not a rival of floriDuh. We're not worthy of the party and barely have been stirring our cocktails with fake juice.


But stay with me now, cuz here's where I think this gets interesting heading into the 2011 season. Are the team and its fans on the same page as far as Jacksonville? Do we share the same investment? Do we all have the same mindset? Questions I intend to explore deeper in the coming weeks.

Beat. The. Gators.

Easy to think. Easier to say. Just rolls off the tongue. But not so easy to do. Alfred Hitchcock once said, "The more successful the villain, the more successful the picture." Georgia, as a whole, needs to do a better job of getting in the picture.



Today's Ingredients

• Was perusing SicemDawgs' TV schedule posting and lo and behold, Tuesday afternoon there is Georgia-Florida, 2004. Greene, Pollack go out on top in Jax.
• As the good feelings fade ever so slowly from the Rangers drafting Johnathan Taylor, the former Georgia outfielder is holding steady to his goal of playing again.
• Isner v Mahut, the sequel starts tomorrow. Make sure you pay the power bill. It could take awhile.
• As Crowell settles into Coach T's idea of conditioning, Garbin looks at the program's top 10 impact freshmen. 
• Mackie looks back fondly at the 2002 meeting with Bama. After all, he was man enough to see it from the student section.
• As usual, really enjoyed Hedges to Hardwood's countdown posts this weekend: a tribute to Trinton and a look back at 1976.
• Martin van Dawgin also plans to have hoops star Jordan Adams' commitment ceremony live on their blog. (But you'll still have to attend in person if you want cake.)
• Bill King entertains some fan talk, including whether or not the Dawgs should run the spread.
• Given our great need for offensive linemen in this upcoming recruiting class, in his latest recruiting update Socrates takes a look at where things stand with John Theus.
• Meanwhile, Chad Simmons reports ($$) that Chaz Elder should be committing sometime in August.
• Catch em if you can...PWD points out that the NCAA is well behind the times when it comes to playing the game with cheaters. 
• Paschall has a new series on Sundays. Yesterday he tackled the 3 most intriguing OCs in the SEC. (Warning: picture of Charlie Weis in size 63 shorts)
• the Senator found some more fowl afoul of the law. Spurrier will surely toss and turn over this one.
• Barrett Sallee ranks the top SEC non-conference games and has Georgia losing its opener.
• "This is Tyler Bray's team now." Year2 continues TeamSpeedKills' look at the HillBillys.
• Lastly, I've long been a big supporter of the SCAN Foundation. Saturday is their annual Save Our Skin 5K Walk/Run. Great event for a great cause.

I trust everyone had a nice Father's Day. I'm sure it was somewhere short of the one Rory's dad enjoyed, but good nonetheless. I was reminded yesterday that hugs are always welcome. But they're even better after the kids have showered.


I've long enjoyed watching the US Open on Father's Day afternoon. One of the fondest was the day I also took Mrs. Bernie to meet the folks for the first time. While she finished a shift at Georgia Square Mall I reclined and watched Corey Pavin hit the finest 4 wood Shinnecock has ever seen. By the time she was ready to impress my parents Pavin had Norman in his rear view mirror by a slim two strokes...and the margaritas were more than ready to be poured.


A few years later the tournament was at Pinehurst and I had a chance to go. Unfortunately the logistics just refused to allow it. While the media jumped all over Mickelson's expectant wife, Payne Stewart put together a fantastic Sunday...and a spectacular putt on 18 to win his second US Open trophy. Logistics should've been a minor hurdle.


Of course, a few months later Payne left us wanting much more, dying in a freak plane incident. But not before he helped breathe new life into the Ryder Cup rivalry with Europe. Maybe Coach Richt should have the players dress in knickerbockers...


I'm kidding! C'mon, that's fake juice. But this napkin is for real. You've got lunch all over your face Reader. Have a great Monday!


Bernie