How'd We Get here?

In our weekly discussions this past season, the issue came up several times. CFB is NOT as good as it used to be, why is that? How'd we get here anyways?

So I tabled it for the offseason, and low and behold here we are! 

A couple points of emphasis. To go a little LOT deeper in my research I found Ryan Nanni and Steven Godfrey's podcast "Who Killed CFB?" Over the course of the 2024-25 season they present the usual and some less usual suspects - the NCAA, the Conferences, Coaches and Agents, the NFL... It's a really great and in-depth look at the state of College Football.

Some of you may remember Godfrey from his longform piece about 12 years ago on how Bag Men function in the shadows and backrooms of college athletics - Meet the bag man: 10 rules for paying college football players.  

Anyway, even if you did read it all those years ago, give it another read in today's light of day. Oh the good ol' days! Anyway, we discuss that and more in this episode. Both this episode and the Who Killed CFB? podcast starts with this quote, hope you enjoy!

“So I’m saying to myself, ‘Maybe this doesn’t work anymore, that the goals and aspirations are just different and that it’s all about how much money can I make as a college player? I’m not saying that’s bad. I’m not saying it’s wrong, I’m just saying that’s never been what we were all about, and it's not why we had success through the years.”  - Nick Saban after retiring from coaching

Just for your ears version AND our YouTube version

Talking season blues

Still reeling over Sunday's Failure at Foley. Coach Johnson has me ever hopeful. But we have to be able to find better pitching than that. Ugh.

But a CWS run was a needed break from CFB talking season. It's a tough time to be a fan. Gone are the days when you just had to worry about how many days were left until kickoff. Now there's that, and all of the many and varied opinions about what is best for the sport we so dearly love.

Coach Smart took aim last week at the transfer portal. And rightly so. Like him, I hold an SEC Championship in very high regard. And while his staff and players were preparing for the 2024 SECCG, they were also dealing with players, both publicly and privately, readying to jump ship.

Can your Coach Goff era mind even imagine such a thing?! The playoff bracket hadn't even been dealt with and players are looking for "better" opportunities elsewhere.

Let's be honest with ourselves. We know Kirby Smart isn't leaving Athens for the NFL, much less any other program. But I can totally see the 24/7/365 recruiting of both future and current players, managing all of the egos, NIL deals, etc....driving him away. And I wouldn't blame him.

Speaking of the CFB playoff bracket, we do see one positive change. Unfortunately the talk of expanding the format from 12 to 16 seems to gain more traction, but at least they have fixed the seeding problem. Now the top four teams will get the top four seeds (hard to believe it took even this long to figure that out). 

Many years ago I wrote here that I just wished the SEC would secede from the NCAA and have it's own championship. Why does it need the Atlantic to Pacific conference or that diluted mixture of midwestern powerhouses and downright wannabes? Bring a nice cupcake in mid-season, keep any cross-conference rivalries if you want. Then make a 10 game gauntlet by GOD! schedule and rake in all the Mickey money you need want.

Oh well, just some words to dream by...

I am excited about the 2025 version of our Georgia Bulldogs that is shaping up. I bet Kirby already has the right message for them to start the season. Keep striking through those summer calendar days, then let's get after that ass!

SECCG Preview: Don't replicate. Just dictate.

It's Texas. Again.

With (almost) everything on the line, Texas comes to Atlanta to face a Georgia team that bullied them in Austin.

Both teams have (likely)^* secured a spot in the CFB Playoffs. So, just go out and win right?

Yes, but as we're all hearing, it's hard to beat a team twice in one season. Some recent examples:

In 2017 Georgia "got the dogshit" beat out of them on the plains by Malzahn's Tigers. Couple weeks later, it was ALL Dawgs in Atlanta. In 2021, Alabama jumped up and surprised Georgia in the SECCG, only to see the Dawgs take care of business with it all on the line in Indy.

This is a little different with the Dawgs having slowed the Longhorns' roll to a stop in Austin back in October. So now we're avenging our road win.

You can throw most everything out the window. I think this game comes down to these two points:

1. Which team runs the ball better consistently. We stuffed their run game on Oct 19th. Wisner had two yards per carry less than his season average. For us, Etienne had a great game, but even though he's upgraded to questionable, I doubt we see him. We need Frazier to have a night!
2. Protect the Mercedes Benz' real estate. Both teams turned the ball over back in October. Longhorns' were more costly. Don't give them a short field. Live to play another series and let Thorson do his thing when necessary.

I recall being very underwhelmed by the Longhorns' offensive line after the first meeting. Perhaps that was mostly due to our Muschamp-infused defensive gameplan, because they have played much better in recent weeks. Especially in College Station last week. They've reasserted their ground attack, which could mean Sark goes earlier to Arch Manning to see how we handle the RPO. Who knows.

But we do know it's going to be hard to replicate what happened in Austin. But that doesn't mean we can't dictate what happens tomorrow in Atlanta. GATA and Go Dawgs!

^*because you never know what shit narrative the committee is going to use week to week

Initial thoughts on Texas Dos

(No, I'm not here this morning to discuss Disney's Show on Brackets. We can talk about that when it matters - Sunday afternoon.)

It's hard to come up with anything we could sink our teeth into. Mainly, because if we've learned anything this season, Georgia has a knack for starting perilously slow. Many times it's the entire team (Kentucky, Bama, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Tech). Other times it's just the offense (Clemson, Texas).

In Austin, we punched them in the mouth. No, the offense wasn't blowing fuses on the scoreboard. But a 23-0 lead at halftime doesn't just come from their QBs on the sideline looking like they are deer stuck in the headlights.

So I think we're in for a closer match on Saturday at 4pm in the Benz. From what I can tell, their offensive line play (which was abysmal in Austin) has improved. Some. If our defensive front can create something similar to the chaos they did in Austin, that would be a good place for us to start constructing some keys to this all important SEC Championship Game victory.

Very muddy CFB Playoff projections

I stopped doing my weekly CFB Playoff rankings once the real deal came out. But this week I started doing some reading, took down some notes, and came up with this scenario that is somewhere between loosely accurate and bizarrely far-fetched!

One thing is clear about the CFB Playoff committee's thinking - they hold the SEC and Big 10 in high regard. At this point I don't see a second ACC or Big XII team getting in. So setting current, projected championship teams (Miami/SMU, BYU/Colorado) of those respective conferences aside, and assuming either Boise State or Army gets the at large spot...let's lay things out, with the playoff contenders in bold:

• November 23rd, 12:45pm - Georgia vs UMass
• Bama @ Oklahoma, Kentucky @ Texas, Ole Miss @ Florida, A&M @ Auburn
• Indiana @ Ohio State, Penn State @ Minnesota, Oregon (bye)
• Notre Dame vs Army
• November 26th, 7:30pm - next round of CFB Playoff rankings revealed
  
• November 29th, 7:30pm - Georgia vs GA Tech
• Bama vs Auburn, Texas @ A&M, Ole Miss vs Miss St
• Indiana vs Purdue, Ohio St vs Mich, Penn St vs Maryland, Oregon vs Washington
• Notre Dame @ USC
• December 3rd, 7:30pm -penultimate round of CFB Playoffs rankings revealed
• December 7th, NOON - Big XII Championship, teams TBD (doesn't really matter)
• December 7th, 4:00pm - SEC Championship Game, teams TBD
• December 7th, 8:00pm - ACC Championship Game, teams TBD (doesn't really matter)
• December 7th, 8:00pm - Big 10 Championship Game, teams TBD
• December 8th, noonish - (who the hell really knows!)

Let me be clear, nothing is certain. Of course. Notre Dame could lose to Army this weekend and somehow the committee still washes their feet in absolution. I can see a world where Indiana plays Ohio State close before losing, beats Purdue, and still gets in despite the Hoosiers best win coming against Michigan. (I mean, look at their schedule and tell me who they've beaten that matters.)

Looking deeper at the premiere conference - the SEC - Tennessee gets back in the mix only with help. So we'd have to lose to GA Tech and/or Bama loses to Auburn. Texas A&M gets back in the mix by beating the Longhorns. The rest is pretty simple as all five teams control their own destiny. With the exception of the Longhorns going to College Station to end the regular season, none of the contenders play each other until the SECCG. 

In the Big 10, Oregon obviously has the easiest path getting a bye week this weekend. After the Ducks, I don't like Penn State as a playoff contender considering their awful schedule. But if they beat the Gophers and Terps, they are likely in. Ohio State has the tougher schedule, undefeated Indiana and rival Michigan, but both are at home.

Indiana is a wildcard. They're undefeated for a reason: their opponents suck, but how much does that factor into the committee's ruminations...??

The ACC might be the most clear. SMU and Miami win and they are in their conference championship game. It would then be a winner goes to the playoff, loser does not. Turns out Clemson's loss to Louisville at home was an elimination game for the Tigers.

Like the ACC, I don't see two Big XII teams getting in. Which leaves this projected layout:

• SEC - Conference champion, runner up, and two others. I'll go with Bama upsetting Texas for the SEC Crown. Longhorns host while Georgia and Ole Miss go on the road in the 1st round.
• Big 10 - Also, conference champion, runner up, and two others. I'll go with Oregon beating Ohio State (again). Buckeyes host while Penn State hosts as well, and Indiana goes on the road in the 1st round.
• ACC - SMU vs Miami, winner gets a bye. Loser gets a bowl.
• Big XII - More convoluted than the ACC, but let's say Colorado vs BYU. Winner take a bye. Loser a bowl.
• Notre Dame
• Boise State

The seedings if you will:

1. Oregon (bye)
2. Alabama (bye)
3. SMU (bye)
4. Colorado (bye)
5. Texas hosts 12 Indiana
6. Ohio State hosts 11 Boise State
7. Notre Dame hosts 10 Georgia
8. Penn State hosts 9 Ole Miss

Why do I feel I've just completed an exercise in futility? If you've read this entire post, thanks. And I'm sure you and I can agree, weird that an Indiana team could slide in ahead of a team like Tennessee. But it does bring a smirk to my face!

Go Dawgs!

the Friday Misery is home for the Holidays

“I am at the moment writing a lengthy indictment against our century. When my brain begins to reel from my literary labors, I make an occasional cheese dip.” - Ignatius Reilly

John Kennedy Toole’s protagonist was pretentious, arrogant, and bloated - both by brain as much as stature. But in times like these…I just wish Mr. Toole had more than one novel to delve into.

Crimes by Committee

Because if you replace just a few words in the quote, it explains our state of discontent these last few days. 

century Committee

occasional frequent

cheese dip Old Fashioned

There we go! Because a gluttonous group of glory holes can’t have it both ways. Best or most deserving…? Can we add another subgroup here - cheaters or non-cheaters? How about GOATs or wannabe-GOATs? Oh wait, they actually covered that one pretty well.

No, I’m not going to harp on it too long. Because you’re tired of rehashing it too. But to punish a team that did everything they could do, won every game including their conference, but because their defense wouldn’t be as good without its star injured quarterback…sorry ‘Noles. And to reward one team SO much for beating your week to week #1 as to elevate them fours spots, all while dropping said #1 team five spots??

That’s enough. My brain is reeling again.

I’m just thankful to have one.

On the other hand, pass me a pacifier

We sure got greedy quick didn’t we dear Reader? I seem to recall in the not too distant past, a time when we would’ve given an appendage just to be in last Saturday and Sunday’s discussion. And not like a Mr. Mays’ pinky digit either. Like a full on, non-dominant or dominant, God-given limb!

Sorry momma, but them aughts and such was Hell!

So yeh, I knew when I woke up Sunday and recalled the final SECCG score, that we had about as much chance of making it into the College Football Championship as Bama did of converting a 4th and 31 for a tuddy on the final play of the game on the plains as an internet wanderer has of going surfing for an hour without stumbling on another 7-8 articles about the NFL’s new wonder couple. 

So, like you most likely, I was resigned to stop whining and reflect on the unprecedented 29-0 run. What a time! We brought back a trophy and Bama-Covid from Indy, and just kept rolling! How many games were there the last couple seasons when the team was not playing to their standard, that we thought we’d actually lose? At Missouri, nah. Homecoming for Kentucky, nope. Hell, the regular season closer against Tech with an interim coach had my 1990’s self in awe!

Peach Ball dropped wide short!

It wasn’t until last year’s Peach Bowl that we finally broke a sweat! Whew.

And then this season? Can you imagine being down at half to the gamecocks and not being bent out of shape? Two weeks later on the Plains…okay, had to get on our knees and pray to dear Ol’ Munson’s Ghost that Abuurn’s secondary got a sudden case of dyslexia and thought that was OWBRES lining up in the slot.

Again, whew!

Anyway, all that to say it’s been quite a run Dawg fans! And despite what those kissin’ siblings up on rocky top, and those toothless reptiles down in the swamp might think…hell, throw in the 2023 SEC championship gumps…just like Kirby told ‘em, “We ain’t going NOWHERE!”

Now, please bow your heads…dear layin’ in a manger Baby Jesus, please keep the lights bright this Christmas. For both those with 5 stars and those without. (Don’t let the tithing plate keep passing you by Vandy.)

Enjoy the Army/Navy game ya filthy animals! Go Army! #beatNavy

Epilogue

Yes, I found the keys to this thing somewhere around the intersection of Inspiration Ave. and Got a Lil Time on My Hands Cir. I’d like to keep posting somewhere between frequently and weekly. But most likely we’re coasting into a “let’s see how this goes” time period.

Full disclosure, we have moved to coastal Georgia and I won’t get to as many games as I used to. With the move, a new gig, a rebuilt engine and a cracked tooth, I managed only two this season. But rest assured we watch every game, relish any game we can get in Jacksonville and any opportunity to tailgate with our old crew, as well as see some of y’all OG readers in red and black!

Now I’m off to clean some things up around here. Somehow since I last logged in the spam filter caught tens of thousands of spam comments. Blessing and a curse and all that. So I’ll first try and get commenting figured out, but it’ll be regulated to some degree to start with. 

Until next time, I’m putting the keys in my pocket this time. Then I’ll text the daughters to remind me of how to drop on of those “pins” from my iPhone so I can keep finding that intersection. Go Dawgs!

"Coach, did you hear Bernie may be bloggin again?"
"Oh he is is he!"

the Friday Misery puts down the fork, and picks up the gauntlet

“Aww...look at these poor little Dawg fans,” she said as she came upon our table. Then, as she wiped away fake tears, “Did they get their wittle feewings hurt?” 

There was no logical retort to make, as indeed, we had.

Comfort food in an uncomfortable moment

Paul Dupre' has a cozy little restaurant in Baton Rouge where his staff serves food inspired by his grandmother's home cooked meals. Elsie’s Plate and Pie has everything a southern palate might find comfortable to a hard working fork - okra, tomato pie, red beans & rice, pork chops. And of course, plenty of fried catfish.

It is also true that this is where our crew sought comfort after witnessing Kirby’s Dawgs get spanked harshly and very publicly by Coach O’s bengal bayou tigers last season. It had been quite a day for our hungry appetites already, having been invited into the infamous JR Vendetto’s tailgate. Under the shadow of the campus' Memorial Tower he and his fellow Louisianans had graciously served up gumbo and boudin and jambalaya and enough shrimp to feed Ignatius Reilly for at least a week. 

Nick Offerman as John Kennedy
Toole's sardonic protagonist

Although Ignatius would probably wash em down with a glass of sherry instead of all that cold beer. And given his penchant for grandiose complaints, he’d even find a way to underappreciate and pick nits at anything that graced Miss Elsie’s dinner table. But last October, as our band of dawggone tired travelers gathered around an outside table under the evening sky at her restaurant’s namesake, we needed comfort. To travel and witness a loss is one thing, but to see the team get beat so soundly was even more devastating than humbling.

So we passed around plates and argued over which dish was best (and for the record, it was the seafood pot pie in my humble opinion. But the Natchitoches meat pie will likely be my order the next time I’m there) all while punishing ourselves by reliving this failed play and that bad call and DEAR GOD DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THAT FAKE FIELD GOAL! 

There's something about sharing a table being weighted down as much by great food as good friends' voices. On a day that ended badly on the playing field, it was comforting to find familiarity in conversation and used silverware. Not to mention napkins used beyond their ways and means.

Yes, looking forward to another visit to Elsie's. But next time I hope to not be interrupted by an LSU fan spewing hateful truths and logic.

this offensive echo chamber is offensive

Look. We've all been arguing about it for months. And I know by now I’m not going to convince you one way or the other. I know that. By now you’ve either decided to hate this Georgia offense until you’re blue in the face, or to support it despite it’s awkward and unwelcome visage. 

As a person who is himself very often awkward and also, at times, finds himself unwelcome, it should be no secret I’ve chosen the latter stance. When Jake Fromm turns one way to hand the ball off and the ball carrier of note has moved in an opposite direction, I can relate. Just a few months ago I fell head first into the backyard trying to catch my dog by the collar before he gobbled up his own excrement. (I know right? I was all like “WTF dude! Naw, don’t do...oof.”) Like Fromm, my intentions were true. But the dog zigged when I thought he had committed to the zag.

We all pay a price for our inadequacies. It’s just that mine are less public. And not punishable by a 300lb lineman barreling in on me.

But can we all agree that we’ve said everything that needs to be said at this point? Does it really do any damn good to rip the scab off again just to shove it in a fellow Georgia fans’ face?

Regardless, by tomorrow night around 7:30 you’ll have one of a couple options: 1) keep pissing in your own cheerios and wallowing in your own misery over the fact that this offense hasn’t lived up to its potential despite its 11-2 record and third straight trip to the December Dome, or 2) enjoy another incredible win over LSU on the grand national stage.

Kind of like we did here. And also here. And I especially enjoyed it when we did it here.

I hold true to the lifestyle of being a Georgia Bulldog fan where it means you take the good with the bad. In other words, I’m just as much a Dawg fan now as I was when we lost to Georgia Tech 40-23 my first year at UGA back in 1990. 

Ray Goff wore a UGA conductor cap. I wore a grimace.

People train don't run outta
Wichita huh Coach?

Transitioning stanza

But I won’t wear a grimace tomorrow. Nor a UGA train conductor’s cap for that matter. And not because I’m too proud to be upset over a season like this that we’ve been begging for. For years now we’ve wanted a program that took us to back to back to back SEC Championship contests where we could see how we could stack up against the conference's elite as well as the nation’s best.

During the Richt years we had a taste of it every now and then. His teams took the lid off the cardboard box that held the cake and we got to drag our finger through the icing a bit, During the Donnan years we got close enough to stare at the lid...until Quincy threw yet another interception in Columbia and we just settled for another Little Debbie.

During the Goff years we played with toy trains evidently. I don’t know. I can’t remember anymore. 

No, tomorrow I will not be wearing a grimace because we’re gonna win this damn thing. I’m sick of hearing about this unstoppable LSU Fightin’ Tiger offense and ready for Kirby to change the national narrative to “Hey, maybe this Georgia defense is really THAT good. Garsh!”

Have we faced an offense this good? Nope. Not close. But have they faced a defense as good as Tae and JR and company? I bet not. And I'll take the Dawgs in that fight.

All. Damn. Day!

We're already living rent free in Dabo's head. Tomorrow Fromm and Co. make Coach O drop another F-bomb on his way down to 4th in Sunday’s rankings. Joe Burrows gets next week’s Heisman, but Rodrigo gets carried off the field on Jordan Davis’ shoulder as the red and black confetti reigns down.

Strike your pose Burrows, but #RespectTheSpecs! Always.

Now, if you will, please bow your head...Dear Lord Baby Jesus...gives us one more shot of Herrien barreling downhill with sights set on an LSU defensive back. And then please, please let our defense get after their ass! Go Dawgs!

-------
For reference if you're interested - Elsie's Plate and Pie. You won't go wrong, promise.

Also, if you're unfamiliar with the Ignatius Reilly reference, go buy a copy of Confederacy of Dunces, Toole's only book, may he rest in peace. From his tragic end we must celebrate every incredibly vivid character he gave us.

the Friday Misery is not feeling entitled

They blew up the place where your five yards short was born. So I don’t know why everyone keeps talking about it. Are you the kind of husband that gives his wife the same gift every five years? Are you wearing the same shirt today that you wore back then? Did you save the last three cups of milk from December 1st, 2012 to tailgate with tomorrow outside the Benz?

Put your History books down. The bell rang and there’s a new sheriff in town.

The Official SECCG entrance exam

Step off Trebeck! This is my show. Contestants, please remember to phrase your answers in the form of a correct answer.

1. Which number is greater, Matt Lauer’s creep factor or the number of Auburn mascots?
2. Which has a bigger mouth, Mr. Ed or Cam Newton?
   
3. Celebrity quotation: who said it? … “We beat the dog crap outta them didn’t we?” ...Gus Malzahn or Mike Vick??
4. Per capita, which city’s teenage boy population takes more cows to their high school prom, Pakistan or Opelika?
5. Greatest running back of all time….Herschel Walker...or the Goal Line Stalker? (I’m sorry, Bo who?)
6. What one item do Auburn area Costco’s and local supermarkets stock more frequently than all other items combined?
7. Is it Plainsmen or Planes’ men?
8. Eric Ramsey is to cassette tapes as Cam Newton is to _________?
9. Greater man, Vince Dooley or Pat Dye?
10. Please spell your name here —-> _____________.

Answers: 1. Ironically, Lauer by a long shot. Congrats National Broadcasting Company Creepshow. 2. Cam. But, have you ever seen the two of them in the same room? At the same time? Hmmmm…. 3. Both answers are correct! But Vick has paid for his crime. Gus, you’re next dipshit! 4. Opelika up until 2010 when there was a sudden surge in goat dates and Pakistan took the lead. 5. Yes, even the Official SECCG entrance exam has a freebie. 6. Toilet paper. What else? 7. Who gives a shit? 8. Church Steeples. Also, bagman is an acceptable answer as well. We’d also accept sleaze bag, laptop thief, panderer of attention (aka attention whore), outfit pimp, Pimp of Cheese, misogynistic asshole, whiny ass loser, eternal three year old, and of course Fairley’s shower partner. 9. Son, it ain’t how you start it’s how you finish! Patty shouldn’t even be mentioned in the same sentence as St. Vincent. 10. If yu jist rote a “X” than u cuddint git ntwo UGA. Wur dam eegle!

Comparing apples to some other apples

Of course I considered going back to re-read my post prior to the 2012 SEC Championship Game. It’s still one of my favorite Friday Miserys of all time. Honestly. So it would make sense to at least give it a cursory glance.

But as I reflected back on how I felt back then to be in that position, as well as what I thought I could remember about my words that came forth from my keyboard before that epic GA Dome battle, I realized the vast differences between then and now.

Back then I remember feeling like it was our turn, it was our time. I’d be willing to bet there is an air of “Hey, we’re due!” in that post. I was eager to see our team stand up to the nation’s darling, the straw that stirs the college football postseason drink, the mighty Saban’s minions vs our talented squad of hard working Dawgs.

Yes, I felt it was our time. In other words, I felt that 2012 team was entitled to the national title game as a reward for a hard fought season. I felt those players, and by proxy us as fans, were even destined for it.

I don’t feel entitled to anything today. Sure, that 2012 team came so very close to earning it all. Nothing was going to be handed to them on that field, on that day. We knew that going in. Alabama gave us their best effort, as expected, and the Dawgs nearly stood taller in the end. Nearly.

But despite that near euphoric moment five years ago, I don’t feel entitled to anything today. I certainly don’t think that’s Kirby’s message. In fact, I know so.

"Hey guys, I read the quarterback's eyes, broke on the route,
and this is what I earned!"

We can argue at a later date as to whether the 2017 SEC East champions are better than the 2012 SEC East champions. It’s a little too early to gauge that honestly right now, other than to say that the 2012 team had a more competitive geographic environment to do work in. But at this point in the season, I do feel it’s safe to say that this team has worked harder than any other Georgia team in recent memory.

Some of you may bristle at that last sentence, but bear with me. You have to remember that those 2012 seniors were a foundation that had grown into men together under one regime. They were a group that had been to the SEC Championship game together the year before.

This 2017 team that will vie for the SEC crown against Auburn tomorrow is in their second year under a new head coach. Some of them have had more than three different position coaches since they left high school. They finished last season with five losses.

They lost to Vandy at home. They needed a late field goal to beat Kentucky. They lost to Tech.

Georgia Tech.

And they responded in the off season by lifting more weights, by running more reps, by pushing each other even further, and by buying into what the coaches were selling even more. Then they laid absolute waste to the SEC East this year. From the end of the Georgia Tech game in Athens last year to today, this team has grown leaps and bounds.

After losing to Auburn three weeks ago Kirby said that this team will be remembered by how they respond. Well, they’ve responded by beating two lesser teams soundly. That’s resiliency.

That’s the kind of resiliency that sees its quarterback go down in the early moments of the season and says, “This is just the next obstacle.” That’s the kind of resiliency that finds a way to force a turnover late on the road against the storied Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

It’s focus in the eye of the storm. It’s taking a punch and steadying yourself instead of falling. It’s not just Georgia. It’s the new breed. It’s not preparing yourself for the professional Sundays. It’s facing the here and now with a low growl and leverage against the man in front of you.

You want more? You need more?

Well, the pressure is on Auburn. They set a bar I don’t think they can continue to clear. Their coach used his mouth to write a check that his team can’t cash. Gimmicks are cute, but just like two-ply shitpaper dangling from trees, mall Santa candy canes, and Bobby Lowder’s checkbook, they’re a dime a dozen.

The pressure is on Auburn. Compared to three weeks ago, they’re trading in roughly 40,000 fans for a nice dinner in Buckhead and what they hope will be a front row spot on Finebaum’s show. They’ll bring their Walmart jeans and anti-Bama signs/slogans/chants, still clinging to the only bowl they truly care about.

Bless their hearts. We beat our state rival and calmly boarded the buses for home. Auburn fans will still be talking about beating Alabama last week when the cows’ calves’ calves come home in 2028.

Erk telling his captain Ros the best way to GATA!

Georgia knows their mistakes. Tucker and Pittman and Chaney have taught and coached and revamped just for this moment. Bellamy and Dom and Zo didn’t come back to lose to the same plain men twice in one season. Chubb and Sony can shoulder the reins; their thighs only get heavier as the fourth quarter wears on. Then, “Oh hey there Mr. Swift! C’mon in!”

Georgia has the talent. We also have the depth. And both are rested and ready. While Bama was separating shoulders Saturday evening, Swift and Herrien and Clark and Muckle were iced and ready for Monday’s practice. Fromm, perhaps the only player to show his true composure in the fourth quarter three weeks ago, has been patiently waiting for a moment to shine on this kind of stage.

Tomorrow is time. It’s not time to go through warm-ups and stand there ready to be handed a trophy. Tomorrow is time to earn every yard, fight for every first down, challenge every ball carrier. Tomorrow is only our time if we make it our time. Kirby’s crew ain’t coming to claim what we believe is rightfully ours. He’s coming to put his players on a field for the opportunity to prove they’re worthy, prove they’re ready.

It’s “your time” if you wait in line during recess for a swing on the playground. It’s “your turn” if you have successfully traversed the queue before finally getting to ride Space Mountain at Disney World. You’re entitled to take a seat and say “WEEEE!!!!”

I don’t want a swing and Space Mountain is just turns in the dark at a high rate of speed, like an Indy 500 during a solar eclipse. I’m ready to see to the finish what these Dawgs started Labor Day weekend. Are you ready? Are you going to just stand there with your hand out, or are you going to shove it into the turf, bend your knees and get your hips set to drive through whoever, whatever is in front of you?

It's SEC Championship weekend baby! And these Dawgs weren't bred to be hunted. Now bow your heads...dear Lord, please don't let these tigersmenplaineagles hoard our Charmin over the weekend. And may our Savages run as rampant as our running backs run free. In the name of Uga V and Auburn's own four sport letterman, the late, great Erk Russell! Amen!