Monday's Meatloaf - Socializing with Winners

I remember when the only social network was the one that ended at the back of the neighborhood. And if you went back that far, it was only because your friends dared you to go touch Ol' Man Crazy's mailbox.

Socially...awkward.

Nowadays socializing has a much different meaning in many contexts. Case in point, I finally watched The Social Network the other night. If you're unfamiliar, it's the movie about how Facebook was created and the oh so many tangled webs it caused. It seems Mark Zuckerberg is quite the a-hole. Surprise! He enlists help from others then slowly cuts bait with them as they get less and less important in his life's endeavour.


Don't get me wrong, Zuckerberg is the driving force behind the website's creation. But intellectual property is a tremendously gray area. But as a show of respect, I decided to reach out to the little twerp; perhaps even invite him on my little blog here to help him gain some credibility in the online world. I figured the best and most appropriate way to do this would be to Friend him on BookFace. So I logged on, typed in his name and instantly his page link pulled up.


But I guess the BookFace owners get special privileges on their little social site there. You can only Like Zuckerprick's page as opposed to counting him among your actual cyber friends. How is he ever gonna get that thing off the ground that way? I mean, he's not even one of the official BDB BookFace page's Likers. Talk about putting the cart before the horse. If I can be friendly with Eminem or Lady Gaga...why can't I click steady with the guy who once blogged about his girlfriend's inferior genealogy and bra size?


But it may be for the best that Zuckerdouche and I don't cross paths. The whole time I was watching the movie I just kept thinking "this is the dude that introduced AJ to Chris Hawkins...what fantastic bag of fail".


I'd bet all of my friends' farm animals that Zuckersmuck ends up in the old dark house down at the end of the road in a couple of decades. Guess we'll know for sure when he updates his profile pic to include all those cats that come and go from his yard.

Today's Ingredients

• And no, that movie was no where near as good as Inception (and The King's Speech from what I hear). It was interesting, kinda cool to see how it all started and the trainwreck it has become legally (assuming it sticks closely to the actual story). But as far as a movie experience, I'll take Nolan's film every day of the week.
• Coach Perno spoke about his outfielder's injury. Continue to raise up your prayers and thoughts for Jonathan Taylor. When his status is updated I'll be sure to post. (UPDATE: Taylor had will have surgery to realign his spine this morning.)
• In the mean time, be sure and come by tomorrow for the official BDB Gwinnett Baseball Classic preview. If you still need tickets, you can still obtain them...HERE.
• Exile's SEC Power Ballot is out and he thinks a loss to Abuurn Thursday would leave us teetering. But perhaps that's just NIT picking.
• And hoopdawg also thinks 10 would be a number to dance to.
• Bubba 'n Earl are hosting a bracket challenge.
• Looking forward, Carvell looks at two future Dawgs who squared off against each other in the Class A playoffs.
• Felton's hounds ran that hardwood, and now the Thrillerdome may be an omen for Hewitt's fate...?? NNNNOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
• the Senator wonders if the new eating regimen is having a secondary beneficial impact. The Lady Sportswriter also weighs in.
• ecdawg has the 2011 helmet schedule.
• The AJC had a nice spring preview for CMRs squad. I went back later to grab it as an ingredient and can't find it. Their site needs less Zuckerberg Fail. (UPDATE: here it is.)
• In case you missed it, Noops is back on the blogroll and wants to know if you would tryout for a spot on Coach Richt's roster.
• In the wake of the BYU pre-marital sex scandal, both the school and Brandon Davies continue to get support. Click here to find out which side Timmy Tebow falls on.
• Last week Pittsburgh became the poster program for pugilism, and not in a good way. Now the former coach is defending the Panthers. 
• But Wannstedt's currently in Buffalo, so I think he's contractually obligated.

My distaste towards Zuckerberg is probably seasoned too heavily with my aversion to his little site. My wife and I have an agreement, she can have all the BookFace she wants as long as I get the Twittah. It's a far superior network and if there's any mafias hunting down livestock, it's evidently very low key. If these social networks were in high school, FB would be the popular kid at the table surrounded by hundreds of future soccer moms and college bound standouts.

If you've ever lost custody of your kids,
you're more "wild" than "winning".

Meanwhile, Twitter is chilling at the corner table spreading awesomeness like a cool breeze through a forrest of tree limbs. Catch it, breathe it in. Or simply let it pass by, a casual glance requires no commitment. Like when a former young gun goes public with his tiger blood, coked out habits and very non-BYU lifestyle...then decides to bring all that losing to Twitter, you can filter it out about as easily as his brother Emilio does. There's no reason log off or check your privacy settings' fine print.


But I wish those Harvard dropouts plus the Napster freeloader the best in their future endeavours. If it ever gets off the ground completely maybe we can all be friends. Until then I'll stick to a little saying that's popular within the boundaries of 140 characters:

BookFace is where you go to find out you don't like the people you know. Twitter is where you go to find out you like the people you don't know.

Before my mom and some others get their self all in a tizzy, it's not a hard and steadfast rule. But it's an accurate description for the most part. As for you, don't let Monday clog up your timeline Reader. Here's an extra napkin in case Sheen drips any winning on the buffet line ahead of you. Zuckerwhore will be around with the mop shortly.

Bernie

Diamond Dawg Taylor injured, awaits more tests

Jonathan Taylor injured his neck in today's 7-5 loss to FSU at Foley. In the third inning Taylor collided with Zach Cone in the outfield. He was eventually carted off the field after being stabilized, now awaits more tests at St. Marys.


This is especially hard for Perno's squad after suffering through Chance Veazey's scooter accident in 2009.

“I don’t know what to say. I really don’t,” Perno said. “It’s very unusual to have to go through this (stuff) again. I’m not a doctor and I don’t have the answers right now. I don’t know how we’ll hold it together. JT’s a pretty special kid. There are not too many like JT. It’s gonna be hard.”

On how the team reacted after the game, Perno said: “They’re devastated. It’s as bad as it gets.”

When you bend a knee tonight, send a special one up for Taylor.

SEC Tourney Bracket

Plan accordingly.

Little Fight, Bad Loss

The biggest difference between Fox's previous Georgia team and this one has been the play on the road. Saturday it seemed like we went back to our old selves and really stunk up the joint. The HoopDawgs 65-57 loss to Alabama is its worst of the season. Instead of pressing into the off season riding high, the team seemed to be content with the body of work thus far.

"The last game of the regular season, I wish we would have gone out with a bang," said Travis Leslie, who scored 15 points. "It just didn't go our way."

Said Gerald Robinson, who endured a 2-for-12 shooting day: "We were just a little offbeat. I don't know what to attribute that to, but we just weren't on the right page. ... It's definitely disappointing, especially with the scenarios we had at hand."

A victory would have kept alive the possibility of a No. 2 seed and, significantly, a first-round bye in the SEC tournament, which begins Thursday at the Georgia Dome. But the loss reduced Georgia's seeding scenarios: The Bulldogs will be the East's No. 4 seed if Tennessee loses at home to Kentucky on Sunday afternoon and the No. 5 seed if the Vols win.

As a No. 4 seed, Georgia would open against the winner of Saturday night's Auburn-LSU game; as a No. 5 seed, the Dogs would open against Arkansas.

"The next game, we have just got to do better than what we did [Saturday]," Leslie said. "We had a lot of mental mistakes, a lot of turnovers. ... They just played harder than we did."

Georgia is now either a 4 or 5 seed in the SEC tourney, which begins Thursday in Atlanta. With 4 days off, I hope to see a team emerge that is eager for the post season, and not content. There's little doubt that this team has yet to play its best basketball. At least from what I can tell. The only question is will we get to see dance with a purpose before it ends.

Trivial Update - Herschel IS Bo!

#ThursdaysRTrivial ep 69 is coming up after this PSA: Wear your Tweet Bio Hazard suit this week. I think Sheen spilled tiger blood all over the twittah.


#ThursdaysRTrivial episode 69 "Happy Birthday Goalline Stalker" Welcome to the Twitter Twivia Show that flattens Bates like a pancake. REPLY back your answer for a chance at a fabulous prize. In his autobiography "Breaking Free", Walker goes into great detail about his childhood experiences growing up in Wrightsville GA. What was his family nickname?


Before the world knew Bo Jackson, Herschel was being referred to as "Bo" around his home growing up. Years later, even on the field Jackson couldn't emerge from Herschel's enormous shadow.

h/t Garbin

Bo is a simple name, and last night's episode was also short and to the point. Ally had the right answer and for her knowledge gets some sugar that fell from the sky. Winning on the plains is always a sweet endeavour. 


Bo may know Diddley, but the ball seemed a little heavier to him than it did to the Goalline Stalker. That's just my casual observation. Tune in next week you trivialists when Coach Perno makes a guest appearance.*


* guest appearances on #ThursdaysRTrivial are always subject to availability and cannot assure future employment beyond said date and time.

Ogletree Movin' on UP!

Alec Ogletree is moving closer to the line of scrimmage. And the way it came about makes you wonder if this wasn't negotiated prior to Coach Olivadotti's move to Athens...(j/k)

Ogletree’s size (6-foot-3, 224-pounds) brought forth questions regarding where he would play as a heralded incoming freshman out of Newnan High School. Although he remained at safety last season, many speculated the move to linebacker was inevitable.

That move has now been made.

Newly hired linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti requested Ogletree be moved into his unit shortly after his arrival last week. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham granted that wish.

This move was inevitable. I like the idea of putting defensive playmakers closer to the ball. And it will pay off in spades as long as our secondary makes great strides this Spring and Summer.

Fine Line between a Douchebag and a Straight Up Playah

Is it wrong that I may be crossing the line? Stephen Garcia used to be just a dumbass with a set of car keys. Now I'm wondering if he might be the one who taught Charlie Sheen just what "winning" is all about.

Multiple sources tell FITS that Garcia – who is known to party like a rock star – was involved in a massive, all-night bender in his hotel room the night before the bowl game. In fact, Garcia’s alleged party became so raucous that the S.C. Highway Patrol – which provided security for the team during its stay in Atlanta – was called to investigate.

Upon entering Garcia’s hotel room, they are said to have discovered the quarterback in a highly-intoxicated state in the company of five different young women – two of whom were completely naked.

h/t Leftover HotDog 

Afterall, who can blame the guy when his head coach wrote the book on being an a-hole. No, I don't blame Garcia for much anymore. I say to him, drink all the tiger blood you can get your hands on.


As for Connor Shaw, you got some catching up to do boy.

My God...a Forty-Nine Year Old

Call me a bad blogger, but I just can't write a better post to celebrate the man that is Herschel Walker. So what follows is a repost of last year's celebration. You can also check out these videos if you really want to do some pushups!

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Campus Crimes and a Flawed System

Somewhat of a follow up to Tuesday’s post about crime, college athletics and the differences in media coverage. This Sports Illustrated article by Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian is about as conclusive a read on the subject of crime and college football that you will find. On the surface you’ll find the ranking of the top ranked criminal teams/bottom dwellers in the nation.

But looking deeper into Benedict and Keteyian’s work, we find national programs with little regard to the safety of the other students on campus, at best. At the forefront is last season’s leader for rosters with criminals, Pittsburgh. To fully frame this, you'll recall that Dave Wannstedt’s team was a preseason favorite to win the Big East and was ranked in the top 20 back in August. They finished 8-5 and went to the BBVA Compass Bowl to play Kentucky.

Wannstedt had 4 players arrested for violent crimes in a little over two months to start the 2010 season. And just yesterday another (now former) player was arrested for being drunk and belligerent. Fernando Diaz was tasered multiple times after being warned by a fellow teammate, that Coach Wannstedt was not there any more and new coach Todd Graham would make an example of him.

Hasn't been a good year to be a Panther from Pittsburgh. But on a larger scale, here's some of the findings of the CBS/SI study:

• Seven percent of the players in the preseason Top 25 -- 204 in all (1 of every 14) -- had been charged with or cited for a crime, including dozens of players with multiple arrests.

• Of the 277 incidents uncovered, nearly 40 percent involved serious offenses, including 56 violent crimes such as assault and battery (25 cases), domestic violence (6), aggravated assault (4), robbery (4) and sex offenses (3). In addition there were 41 charges for property crimes, including burglary and theft and larceny.

• There were more than 105 drug and alcohol offenses, including DUI, drug possession and intent to distribute cocaine.

• Race was not a major factor. In the overall sample, 48 percent of the players were black and 44.5 percent were white. Sixty percent of the players with a criminal history were black and 38 percent were white.

• In cases in which the outcome was known, players were guilty or paid some penalty in nearly 60 percent of the 277 total incidents.

While the sport as a whole tries to cover the Cam Newton loopholes from this past season, now's a good time for individual programs to evaluate how they decide which athletes are worthy of their scholarships and what plans/procedures are in place to protect the collegiate brand...as well as the student-athletes' classmates and neighboring citizens as a whole. As Groo pointed out, how does a program like Georgia Tech not have a more definitive system in place to handle DUIs in today's society?


It seems simple, check your kids' backgrounds early in the recruiting process (in the study referenced above, only two teams of the 25 regularly do this) and install procedures to punish offenders fairly and swiftly. But privacy laws and juvenile records are potential hurdles for programs wanting to reform. Or is it just a way of prolonging inaction? For all of the castigation UGA receives publicly for stolen helmets and alley emergence, our beloved institution as a whole has a well defined and strict system in place in regards to punishment for infractions. At the very least it's time for other college presidents and athletic officials to follow suit.


It's always better to work from the proactive side of things, as opposed to getting tasered.

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Similar posts - Somewhere Between Len Bias and A-Fraud & A Dimebag Debate

Looking Back at 1995

As always I thoroughly enjoyed this post by Garbin, which takes us all the way back to Goff's last season and one that was as injury riddled as any I can ever remember. Hard not to agree with one of his commenters that 1995 was Goff's best season coaching. Unsurprisingly, it was also Hines Ward's most impressive as a player.

When "news" broke the other night that Ward would be a contestant on the next season of that dancing show Mrs. Bernie likes so much, I joked that Coach Goff approved. Because in that one season Ward did just about everything but drive the bus to Clemson (and it is rumored he may have even done that).


But back to Garbin's post, it sets up pretty well for this upcoming season. I certainly don't hope to see any more injuries of any significance or large number, but like Goff sixteen years ago, Richt is shouldered with the responsibility of improving the team's record. And the expectation is that it should come regardless of who's on crutches.


Luckily the schedule sets up a little better for Coach Richt than it did for Goff, who helped his team limp to an impressive 6-6 record despite half of them being hobbled. I remember being at that 1995 Peach Bowl with my future Wahoo in-laws and thinking we had finally broken free of our bad luck when Jason Ferguson scooped up a Virginia fumble and scored a tying TD with about a minute left. The GA Dome was practically swaying as we all roared for the ensuing kickoff. I'll never forget the audible shift in cheers as we watched them run the kickoff back for the winning TD.


It was a kick in the gut, but it was a fitting end to that season. Not one that the Dawgs deserved though. Let's hope we can keep 2011 off of the crutches.