Recruiting Roundup: 25 days til NSD

Georgia is pretty deep at ILB. But we could definitely use some quality depth at OLB, especially if Cornelius Washington decides to declare for the draft. So I would put Josh Harvey-Clemons' recruitment at the top of my watch list.


Harvey-Clemons can play almost anywhere on the field. Add his natural athleticism to the fact that he's still growing into his frame and it becomes difficult to project exactly which position(s) he will play at the next level. However most write-ups I've read easily project him as an outside linebacker. And a few more pounds onto a 6'4"/210 lb frame would make him a beast there.


Regardless of whether Mike Davis let the cat out of the bag or not ($$), Harvey-Clemons' recruitment is going down to the wire. He likely won't announce until National Signing Day. It looks like a two team race between Florida and Georgia, with Florida State and Louisville trailing. He visits Athens officially next weekend. His family likes UGA and Grantham.


I bet the feeling is mutual.

Bonus links:

- DawgNation scouting report

- DawgPost profile

- Socrates predicts

Recruiting, conditioning and other off season crap

It's times like these you learn to live again...


The weight of Old Man Winter can be worse than bothersome. Once the bowl is over the tendency is to disperse, cave in to what the wife has been nagging you to do...or worse...pick up exercising. But if there's one thing the loss to MSU did for me it was to assure me that there is much work to be done. So here's my immediate agenda.

Really Bernie, I get it. You're not a Kernkraft fan.

1. Speaking of the Athletic Director, sometime soon we will all engage in an activity called "Letters to McGarity". I'll provide a sample letter I've used almost once a week this season, you provide your own fingers for the typing. My topic of interest is the use of a certain "song" (for lack of a better word) at Sanford that drives me effin' batty. You can join me in that endeavor or choose another one. Either way, the innerwebs are our medium. Let's not keep our voices muted.
2. RECRUITING!!! We have less than a month until national signing day. I'll have updates on prospects and some analysis of how we're doing and how we project to close. NSD 2012 may not have the sexiness of NSD 2011 yet, but there are some definite needs to address as the last two games showed us in ugly 3D detail.
3. PLUS, I'll be there at Butts-Mehre as usual to bring you information, pictures, videos and doughnuts. If you're stuck at work, just keep the http here at BDB and your finger on the F5 button.
4. Speaking of which, on Monday I'll be launching a special month of supporting your local Dawg. The Dawg Nation is lucky to have plenty of podcasters, great media guys and tons....TONS of bloggers. Why not give back, even a little, to show some support for their efforts. 
5. BotW - I'm determined to make these posts once a week. Slowly the offerings around my neck of the woods are much more diverse. Plus I now listen to 2.78 beer podcasts a week and have my own Oxford Companion. So, I has some knowledge y'all. Still, if there's something more you'd like from these just let me know. 
6. And if you'd like to guest post a review of the brew in your glass, PLEASE let me know. Your efforts will be paid handsomely with a beer at a 2012 tailgate.
7. DOT COM!!!! Some of you may have noticed, but if you haven't I adopted my own domain this week. A few months ago I didn't know what the hell that meant either. But for you there shouldn't be much different around here other than the fact that you can now reach my little corner of cybersphere using the blogspot address OR....(....awkwardly long drumroll....)...berniesdawgblawg DOT COM!!

Seriously though, a little exercise isn't going to kill you. Maybe dust off the treadmill this weekend. And lay off the pork rinds too Junior.

Logan Stewart, chopped off the block

Dawg fans will remember Logan Stewart as a Commie d-bag. Kwame Geathers' knees will remember the commie d-bag as the weapon James Franklin used against them back in October.


This week "Coach" Franklin dismissed Stewart because he kicked Santa in the nuts Christmas Eve and assaulted Rudolph with his Nerf gun violated team rules. May he rot in the ACC and get manhandled by future current former team in Miami.

Help in the trenches from Beard

Monday we had no answer for William Gholston and the rest of the Michigan State's defensive front. Even though we used our tight ends as an extra lineman we couldn't stop the Spartans off the edge or up the middle.


Well, Mark Beard is here to help this Spring and going forward.

Making onto the Coffeyville Community College squad was no easy task. The Red Ravens have a 55-man roster, and only 12 of those spots can go to an out-of-state player. Beard made the team and was voted this season’s MVP by his teammates. 

“He is one of those guys that you are never going to outwork,” Cook said. “He is not going to bring any, and I mean this from the bottom of my heart, any bad media on any program that he is associated with. He is just a high-character guy.” 

Georgia can definitely use leaders off the field, but with losing three starters on the offensive line, the Bulldogs need someone who can step in and play this spring. 

“Mark is a good one,” Cook said. “I think he has an opportunity to play. He has been up at the school with me working out. He hasn’t missed a day except the 21^st when he signed with Georgia. He could probably handle another 10 pounds, and I think they will put that on him rather quick. 

“He has great feet. And the good thing about him is once he gets on you -- look out. His arms are as long as his legs. He is pretty agile for a big man, excellent footwork. That is something he works on. He doesn’t just get after it in the weight room. He works on everything. He is trying to be the total package.” 

$100,000 field goal for UGA student

Don't you just love the "Mayhem" commercials by All State? I bet UGA student Johnathon Pahlas does. He'll get a chance at kicking a 40 yard field goal during halftime of the BCS game Monday night for six figures worth of prizes.


Just hope he doesn't eat a pregame meal of all you can eat calimari.

Beer of the Week - Fresh Sticky Nugs

Ever have your anticipation for a brew alter your experience drinking it, even a little? Maybe a friend explained a beer in a certain way that lead to some expectations that weren't there when you tried it. Or something on the label led you a certain direction before the beer redirected the route.


To some degree that was my experience with Sweetwater's November release of Fresh Sticky Nugs from their Dank Tank series. I had read some about it for about a month and figured I better grab a bomber before it was gone. When I came across it I read the label and immediately fell into the sensation of thick hoppy goodness that puts your tongue into a position of submission. I was eager to try it, but I had to wait for the beer fridge to work a little magic first.


Once it was ready it poured out a brownish red with a thick head. The smell was deliciously malty and had a hint of citrus. I dove in and it was really hoppy. A brewer can't use super cascade without giving the finished product some bittery goodness. That being said, the malt overpowered the taste eventually. A lot at first, before it became really balanced, both sweet and piney. I REALLY liked this. So much it might be my favorite libation to stir into existence from the tank that is dank. The label alone was practically worth the price of admission.


Sorry for posting this BotW so late. I hope you can find one of these near you. But if you can't, perhaps the guys at Sweetwater might make it again one day. You can't really go wrong with a Sweetwater in your glass. They know their stuff. So try something else...here's their 2012 lineup that came out yesterday. 


And to cross reference (that's blogging 2.0 if you're keeping track at home) my earlier post on the podcasts I thought I'd also throw in this video I found of the HopCast guys visiting Sweetwater a couple years ago where they talk to marketing director Steve Farace and head brewer Nick Nock. Good stuff.

Hop Cast - Episode 86 from Hop Cast on Vimeo.

On the air with Coach Fox

As league play opens this weekend, Coach Fox talks to the media about the HoopDawgs, the new conference structure and the development of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Humpday Hilarity - The Top Three

Let's start the New Year off right. These "humpday" posts are almost always non-Dawg related. But I love to laugh nearly as much as I do cheering on my Dawgs. So to start 2012 I'd like to give you my top 3 YouTube videos that the kids and I absolutely love. And by that I mean, if one of these videos has "2,388,987 views" we've accounted for the 987.


So first one is the Ultimate Dog Tease. This is just pure comedic genius. Written and scripted perfectly. And the acting by the german shepherd mix....Oscar worthy if I've ever seen it.

The dog's name is Clark Griswold too, which only makes him more endearing if you ask me. If you'd like to see the original video of Clark without the voiceover check out his own YouTube channel. The comedian that drops the voices is Andrew Grantham.


Tune in next week when we go all ham.

Tuesday's Outback Thoughts

We just ran all the way around a win to get to a loss. Let's separate this out.

Offensively. Tavarres King just uncovered another Spartan jock strap on the Ray Jay turf. I didn't mind the patience in the first half. It looked like we were stretching the defense laterally while taking shots downfield. Murray threw some spectacular deep balls while we tried a variety of tailbacks and tried to contain the relentless pass rush of the Spartans. The two best play calls were the waggle to move Murray's pocket away from the rush where he hit King for 80 and the underneath to Boykin out of the backfield. Just terrific.

But in the end, Bobo couldn't make up for the lack of protection or the failure of the tailbacks. At one point I simply pleaded with him to leave Samuel in to pass protect and simply give up on the run. Yep, it was that frustrating.

What I don't understand is not attacking the edges with quick passes or toss sweeps. Bobo continually called runs into the heart of the Spartan rush. We were never able to establish the play action and for some reason left the screens at home.

Despite evidence to the contrary, the stats show that Orson Charles was indeed in Tampa yesterday. Like Murray, Bobo never saw him.

Defensively. John Gruden's crush on Alec Ogletree is second only to this blogger's. We were able to get Cousins flustered as I expected, however we never kept our cleats on his confidence's throat. Eventually they neutralized Jarvis by cutting him at the line. There was an adjustment to that by bringing him up the middle some, but all in all we just never threatened Cousins consistently. He had time to work through his checks and did a decent job of managing the game.

The stats show they struggled as much as we did establishing the run. However, LeVeon Bell found enough room to open up the field for Linthicum and BJ Cunningham. Boykin, Smith and Commings all pitched in and did a good job against Cunningham but overall our route coverage wasn't up to the challenge. That was unexpected. Throughout most of the season our pass rush has benefited the secondary and the d-backs have been there when the pass rush was managed. Not so much yesterday though.

If that was Washington's last game, he went out with a wimper.

Individually. As for Walsh, crappy way for his career to end after becoming the points leader. And I admire him for taking responsibility for the misses. But this loss isn't his alone by any measure. Murray frequently looked to be on a different page than his targets. Richt has to be second guessing himself after going all in early with the 4th down call (that backfired) and then playing as conservatively as possible in the first OT (which also backfired). Saw a lot of questions last night about Jenkins' injury. I saw him in OT with his jersey off and his left arm in a sling. I think he landed on it funny after the tackle on his interception.

On the plus side, Malcome played hard while injured and Boykin had a career game, as did King for that matter. Mitchell made some clutch grabs in traffic and special teams looked solid.

All in all, more questions than answers. A lot like the middle of September.

Post game interviews: players

Courtesy of abhsports

Post game interviews: coordinators

Courtesy of abhsports

Underclassmen, to stay or go

I had some early prognostications on what some underclassmen would do in terms of the NFL draft prior to them getting some feedback. Then I put a poll up and now they've all received their analysis. So let's update things with what I think some will do (in bold). And for that matter, you should be able to go back and change your responses if you feel the need to.

• Rambo - stays   goes
• Jarvis - stays   definitely stays
• Washington - goes  goes
• Orson -stays....goes...stays, I hope  goes, I think
• Commings - stays  stays

I'm pretty sure Rambo's the only one on the fence as of right now. By that I mean he's truly 50-50. Jarvis has only moved north of 100% in Athens and he's also keeping Jenkins in town as well. Orson...if I had to put a percentage on it I'd say there's a 30% chance he stays. I'm guessing he's pretty frustrated after yesterday. On the surface that doesn't seem to help us retain his services. Maybe his mom can talk him into finishing up. Commings I put up there a few weeks ago because I heard he was requesting info on his NFL stock. I think he along with a number of others (such as Murray) are just curious.


Washington, no I don't think he's ready. Yes, I do think he could benefit from another year. But I still think he leaves.

Dawgs lose. I blame this guy....

YGBFKM. Draw sign...THEN bourbon. Don't be just another dipshit with a Sharpie. More tomorrow.

 - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Gameday: Outback edition

The 2011 season comes to an end in a New Year for the Dawgs, and that's about what we had hoped for back in the heat of August. No travelling to Shreveport or Memphis to meet our bowl opponent this season. It's the Spartans. In Tampa.


Here's some last minute thoughts:

• The fact that Ken Malcome will start at tailback says everything you need to know about that position this season. It's the perfect ending to what has been a turbulent season there when a guy who's left the team, come back and then was suspended a game can make the start in the bowl game.
• Actually, the perfect ending will be Malcome (and/or Samuel...and/or Crowell) going for a large number today to help slow down this defense that is heavy on the blitz.
• A big game for some DGDs that will be wearing the G for the last time. Would love to see a big day from the likes of Cordy Glenn, Aron White, Bruce Figgins and Brandon Boykin.
• Boykin will be especially important in shutting down the MSU offense's key threat in BJ Cunningham.
• Have the special teams gotten specialer in the bowl preparation? Richt has already made this a key focus for the off season. We have the depth and talent to beat Michigan State. But an error in special teams or a key turnover could start 2012 on a sour note.

It's been a great season. Would love to go out on a positive note and set the momentum in the right direction heading into off season conditioning and recruiting. 


Enjoy the game. Go Dawgs!

Feliz YdosKdoce Muchachos!!

Wakey Wakey...eggs and rapies!

Again...BDB wishes you and yours a very 

Happy New Year!!

Hope you didn't see your life flush before

your eyes this morning...