Greene Can Always Come Home

Reading over Hale's Catching Up with David Greene earlier this week got me thinking about a day...way back in...2004...'tween the hedges...

Some thoughts:

• not enough shots of Darth Saban
• Uncle Verne...is that you singing?
• I've got a picture of that second Greene to Brown TD autographed by each to my daughters
• Raiders obviously took pity on Jamarcus after watching film on this game...otherwise I can't explain him being drafted to another team that can't protect the passer
• Saban coaches DBs...??
• not enough shots of Saban
• Thomas Brown can obviously squat two LSU LBs if needed
• David Greene = DamnGoodDawg
• Saturday...October 3rd....2009....here comes the Hat

Have a Pollack-sized Saturday Reader. And if you play the lottery...45 and 16 sound like good numbers today.

Just sayin'.

When in Doubt...Eat a Doughnut

Doubt can be a bond as powerful and sustaining as certainty.

It's a line early in the movie Doubt. Seymour Hoffman and Streep lead a terrific cast; a lot of cinematography and dialogue instead of action, adventure. But overall, a great movie. 

And like all great movies, it got me thinking about college football. More specifically, the Dawgs.

A year ago, we were certain of our talent. The grandest dreams not only had CMRs crew in contention for titles, but had Stafford and Knowshon pitted against each other for the Heisman. 

Right up until a night in late September, certainty was nice and comfy.

This off season there is much that is uncertain. Sure, it helped allay some fears during the spring when Houston showed a tenacity for backfield disruption. But he's not following us to Stillwater.

And as nice as it will be to see a 5th year senior trot out 'tween the hedges as the QB, his claim to red and black fame came against a Colorado defense three years ago (h/t Mackie). And don't get me started on RBs who can't pick up a blitz...

Certainty can breed complacency. Perhaps a little doubt will create some hunger...some fire in the belly. 

Friday Feedbag

• We're gonna need to tidy up around here...Exhile's comin' home.
• Branden Smith committed to CMR before Nat'l Signing Day and didn't back down from that commitment. True to form, recently he refused to back down from the Great  Hale's questions.
• Just as decisive as his dad was in the pocket, Nick Montana is near a decision on his college choice. Jensen has the latest on his recruitment.
• Over at Bulldog Illustrated, Jeff Dantzler has comprised an All Donnan-Richt team and Vance has some good news for golfers who enjoy the scenery that Robert Trent Jones bestowed upon us..
• Dawgs play ball...but also crack the books.
• Get your remotes retuned before the SEC season gets into full swing. Finding the best college football games is gonna take a savvy surfer this fall.
• Mack of Blogging Pantsless fame is providing an opportunity for you to meet a really rich guy tomorrow.
• And in the best for last category, the Chicago White Sox didn't take long to realize that Gordon Beckham is show-worthy.

Without a doubt and with every certainty, Stillwater is only 92 days away now. So close, you can almost start to smell T. Boone Pickens' pit sweat.

Speaking of counting these Dawg Days of Summer down, be sure to click on over to Bubba 'N Earl's neck of the internets. They've got a countdown going that is sure to bring a smile to your face....daily. 

And before you go, be sure to grab your free doughnut - after all, it is National Doughnut Day. We'll celebrate anything in the name of carbs and sugary sweetness.

Much to Homer's delight.

Bernie

Backfield Battles

Stumbled across this article from enemy territory (h/t bhenry). For Okie State fans, I say let them worry about Jeff Owens...I don't blame them.

But for Dawg fans it begs the question: which position battle are you most worried about, RB or QB? Naturally, when two stars like Stafford and Moreno take all of their TDs and yards to the NFL, it's gonna draw questions all around.

But, for my bottle of antacids...I'm much more concerned about replacing Moreno. Cox is a fifth year senior and has taken the keys from Stafford with a calming influence. His leadership has been evident since September 23, 2006....

CMR has been effusive in his praise of his senior signal caller. And I would expect to see some sets installed primarily for Gray's athletic ability as soon as Stillwater.

I say let the green rub off the freshmen's horns from the sideline this fall. They can carry a clipboard, sport the crew cut....let their canine teeth grow in some more.

But replacing Knowshon is gonna be much more problematic. While Cox won't have a wealth of game experience to draw from on September 5th, he'll certainly have much more overall relative to whoever is in formation behind him.

Logic says a committee approach is in order....but most fans (and coaches) would like to have one feature back; a set of legs to depend on down the stretch and in a pinch.

Feel free to weigh in. Talk...er...type is cheap. But it's all we got right now.

Mack Brown's Phone...

...will be getting quite the workout the next several months. 

The highly recruited RB out of Martin Luther King HS in Lithonia is shaping up to be the Dawgs' top target at the position for the upcoming class. Yesterday, Marcus Lattimore of Duncan, SC trimmed Athens from his list of destinations.

That should bring Brown to the forefront of the Dawgs' recruiting. It appears the gators are the favorite for the Under Armour All-American. 

Here's a summary of Brown and here's TotalUGAs latest story.

Monday's Meatloaf - Weaselin' on a Half Tank of Gas

Well, it's not a convertible and it hasn't been driven by Angelina Jolie's dad...but BDB has a new company car.

Seinfeld - Jon Voight's '89 LeBaron

You know it's time to trade in the old truck when part of its appraisal hinges on how much gas is in the tank. Luckily I had just put a half tank in the previous day, which allowed me to weasel with the weasels a little more.

And while I waited on them to agree on exactly how much under wholesale they were going to give me the car for, I wondered why Arkansas always hires its football coaches off of the used car lots. Think about it: Lou Holtz...Bobby Petrino...Houston Nutt...all had to be great car salesmen. They all have the right mixture of sleaziness and talkability.

I'm thinking Danny Ford's more like a tractor dealer. Bein' a hayseed and all....

Oven's almost preheated. So mix these up and let em get to know each other a while.

• Lots of action from the diamond this weekend. We'll start with the guys, who owned Ohio State Friday, but then fell to host team FSU Saturday to get thrown into the losers' bracket. That is where Ohio State exacted some measure of revenge Sunday, giving the Dawgs a flat tire on the Road to Omaha.
• Meanwhile the women were within a handful of runs of punching their ticket to the Women's CWS finals against the gators. The dream ended too soon...
• Luckily, both Coach Perno and Coach Lu have young teams that earned some valuable experience. Let's hope that carries into Spring '10.
• The Track and Field team found Greensboro quite accommodating during the NCAA Regional Championships.
• Wanna know which UGA mens coach has the greater metabolism, Richt or Fox? Hale is on it.
• Jon Knox is transferring to GMC for academic reasons. Good thing Bryan Evans has locked down that safety position.
• Who better to explain what an NCAA kicker goes through as he approaches the ball than Rex?
• I have a mental picture of this year's Phil Steele with post-it notes sticking out of it at all angles and a bottomless coffee mug on the Senator's desk...
• Big shout-out to Bernie's mom as she is now hours away from retirement. Papa Bernie says he'll give it another year. I guess then the real fun will begin. So enjoy it while it lasts mom!

To wrap things up, I feel the need to apologize to all those commuters who grew frustrated with me driving 50 in the right hand lane these last few months. It was out of necessity, but you won't be bothered again. 

Despite being forced to change lanes and go around me, you always took the time to shoot me some props. And I appreciate that about as much as those timeouts Slurban took back in early November. Perhaps one day soon I'll be afforded the opportunity to return the finger...er...favor.

It's a Monday Reader. Let's make the most of it!

Bernie