The special and amazing ride ended for the Diamond Dawgs in the College World Series on Wednesday night in Omaha, Neb., as Georgia’s fortunes ran out of gas in an 11-4 loss to Oklahoma. The Sooners now advance to face North Carolina in the CWS Championship Series.

Thus ends a magical season for Georgia, one in which records were set for wins and homers as Foley Field became an even more special place that it is by default given that it exists within Athens, Ga. during the springtime.

For the first time since 2008, Georgia found itself in college baseball’s holy land. In perhaps a cruel twist of irony, the Bulldogs, who had a 53-win season, were done in on Wednesday by the very thing that helped define them this season. Georgia may have won the SEC regular-season and tournament title. But the Sooners, who lost multiple SEC weekend series and lasted one game in the SEC Tournament, kept up a postseason hot streak at Georgia’s expense, smacking five homers against Georgia pitching on Wednesday.

Such is the cruel mistress of the College World Series. Sometimes, the team that steamrolls in comes up short to a team that catches fire at the right time – a truth Georgia knows well on both sides from its CWS history.

Speaking of homers – the long ball, something that powered Georgia all season long, apparently got lost somewhere over the flyover states on the way to Omaha, as the Dawgs had to scrape and scrounge for runs in Omaha, something that makes the fact of getting two wins there over Texas impressive. A load of credit, obviously goes to Georgia’s pitchers.

That trend continued on Wednesday as UGA didn’t get on the board until a fifth-inning Ryan Black RBI single, the first frame in which Georgia had more than one runner aboard.

By then, the Bulldogs were playing catch up, down 4-1 after starting pitcher Paul Farley went 3.1 innings before giving way to Matt Scott. Farley gave up four runs and six hits before Scott’s four runs saw him yield four runs and five hits in four innings.

The Bulldogs got back in it in the fifth, taking advantage of a pair of bases-loaded walks to trail 5-3. But a single Sooner run in the seventh and two homers in the eighth by OU helped the Sooners put the night away, ending hopes of the program’s second national title.

But as much of a letdown as the loss was, there was a bit more of Diamond Dawg magic. Yes, the game was wrapped up in the ninth, but Kolby Branch’s final at-bat was one to remember, as he blasted a ninth-inning homer.

The outcome on Wednesday was disappointing for the Bulldogs and fans watching from near and far, but Branch’s blast was a reminder – that this team was special and will be one of Georgia baseball’s most revered.

Go Dawgs!

Happy Saturday morning ‘Dawg fans. I don’t know how you plan to spend your weekend. I hope you make smart decisions. But whatever decisions you make, it’s unlikely that they’ll be better than the decision to give the ball to freshman Nick Chubb on a toss sweep against a Clemson defense that’s already been tenderized by a heavy dose of Todd Gurley:

That was Nick Chubb’s first college touchdown, during the game in which the Georgia Bulldog offense pounded Dabo Swinney’s Clemson defense to the point that they just didn’t want to play football anymore. The Ground Hound from Cedartown would score 44 rushing touchdowns over the course of his career in the Classic City. And in retrospect that outcome seems like a foregone conclusion after watching that first one. Freshmen aren’t supposed to do that against elite competition.

In that 2014 season opener Todd Gurley set a UGA single game record for total yards with 293. 100 of those came on a kickoff return to which I am certain we will return ere the summer, and this series with it, ends.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The app formerly known as Twitter isn’t nearly as fun or as useful as it once was. If you’re like me, you occasionally saddle over there, get a costed by a series of bots and spammers, and then log right back off. But occasionally, it still comes in sort of handy. For example, while scrolling this weekend, I came across the below handy graphic, showcasing, the University of Florida’s current state of gridiron futility.

I think it is worth noting that the University of Florida currently has a losing record against every SEC school which they would rightfully consider a rival and coeval except the University of Tennessee. That is of course, because the Hillbillies have been in even worse straits for even longer than the lizard people.

but I think the thing that truly puts a spring in my step and a song in my heart is the fact that Florida has a winning record against a mere six out of sixteen SEC schools. In historical terms, the McElwain/Mullen/Napier era has seen the Sunshine State Saurians slowly sink from the upper echelons of the Southeastern Conference to no higher than the sunburned, probably pierced midriff of the league.

Remember, the Spurrier and Meyer eras were the aberration, not the rule. And while it may still be said that nothing sucks like a big orange, it can also be noted that nothing crawls lower than a gator.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Maestro, the music if you will:

The Diamond ‘Dawgs have bowed out of the postseason. Collegiate track, softball and golf have closed up shop for the year. Friends, it is officially the offest part of the offseason.

That’s not my problem. It’s not your problem. It’s our problem. And collective problems call for collective solutions. In that spirit we present Free Form Friday, an open-ended community exploration of, well, all kinds of stuff. It’s sort of like the in-season Friday Tailgate, only without the structure a forthcoming opponent provides. Think of it as the gateway to your weekend.

This Friday I pose to you, fellow Dawg Sporters, a simple question: what letter grade would you assign to Georgia’s 2025-2026 sports season? I don’t mean just in the recently concluded baseball season or the football season that draws so much of our attention. I mean as a collective athletic endeavor, across all sports.

My grade? A solid A. Not an A+, but also not an A-. Here’s how I arrived at that mark:

I don’t think any college football season that ends in an SEC-By God football championship is a bad one, even if it involves an earlier than hoped postseason exit. Basketball likewise made the men’s and women’s tournaments, which is sort of the expectation In Athens from where I sit.

Womens track took home a national title and the men were national runners (pun intended) up. You can’t get much better than that. Gymnastics returned to national prominence with a top six national finish. Golf and tennis were both national title contenders, and obviously baseball had its best outing in over a decade.

Football remains the straw that stirs the drink for this fanbase, and there was certainly some disappointment to bow out of the CFP at the earliest available opportunity for a second season in a row. I don’t think that’s the result Bulldog fans (or Kirby Smart and his staff) would consider their annual goal. And if the ‘Dawgs had made a deeper run or once again hoisted the Dr. Pepper Championship Trophy I would have bumped up that grade. Had the Hoop Hounds made an improbable Sweet Sixteen run I perhaps might also have given the year the highest mark possible.

But for an athletic program whose bogey for many years has been excellence, true national title contention in every sport, you have to say this was a season that met that goal. Unlike in some past seasons I can’t name a high profile UGA sporting team that was just bad this year.

In an era of budget cuts for non-revenue sports and even some SEC schools outright cutting teams, Georgia’s athletic performance this year was dangerously near unparalleled. I don’t always agree with how Josh Brooks and his team have handled the shifting tides of college sports. But they and the Bulldog coaches, staff, and athletes across all sports deserve a hearty pat on the back for this season. It remains great to be a Georgia Bulldog.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Few Georgia football players have ever been so legendary and at the same time so lost to the sands of history as Andre “Pulpwood” Smith. The bruising fullback out of Coffee County emerged in the post-Herschel days when Georgia was definitively “Running Back University.” Smith ran with a combination of bruising power and blazing speed that made him seem like the next great UGA backfield star.

That may have never been more evident than when Georgia took on Vanderbilt in 1984.

That electrifying touchdown run was vintage Pulpwood, and it keyed one of the most explosive offensive efforts of the Vince Dooley era in Athens. Dooley’s offenses were never known as point-a-minute affairs.

But on this afternoon in Sanford Stadium they couldn’t stop finding the endzone. Vanderbilt began the 1984 season on a tear, going 4-0 to start the season, including beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa and rising into the AP poll for the first time since 1958. But on an October afternoon they ran into an absolute buzzsaw in Red and Black.

The Athenians would run over, around and through the Commodores, piling up 562 yards of total offense and lighting up the scoreboard to the tune of 62 points, the most they would ever score in Dooley’s 26 seasons as the top ‘Dawg.Interestingly the game was actually tied 21-21 with three minutes to go until halftime. But Georgia put three touchdowns on the board before intermission, then two more in the third quarter, including that Pulpwood jaunt, to put the game out of reach. Unfortunately Pulpwood’s Bulldog career would come to an end just when it looked like it was about to take off.After leading the team in rushing in 1984 with 655 yards (an impressive 6.0 yards per carry) Smith was dismissed from the team for academic reasons. How great he could have been remains one of the biggest unanswered questions in UGA history. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Welcome to the Morning Memory, in which we take a brief stroll down Bulldog memory lane to look back at a special moment from UGA football history.

I think I could make a compelling argument that the 2018 Rose Bowl against Oklahoma was no lower than the third most memorable Georgia football game of the Kirby Smart era, perhaps even the twenty-first century. It was just an evening when all the elements aligned to create pure magic. The scenery was spectacular. The stakes were high. The opponent was formidable. The outcome? Absolutely one for the ages.

And there were certainly a ton of memorable moments in the game. Baker Mayfield’s “It’s over!” exclamation that turned out to be far from the truth. A clutch Rodrigo Blankenship field goal. Nick Chubb and Sony Michel running like Clydesdales. Lorenzo Carter soaring for a critical blocked field goal. And of course Sony rocketing around right end to put the game away in overtime. Again, an instant classic.

But one aspect of that game that bears remembering but seems to have been a bit lost with time? Roquan Smith’s trail of Sooner carnage.

Fresh off winning the Butkus Award as the nation’s top defender the Montezuma Missile bullied Oklahoma ball carriers all night, finishing with a team-leading 11 tackles, including 4 solo stops. It’s no stretch to say that a couple of those arrested Oklahoma’s momentum at times when failing to do so may have been the end for the Bulldogs. The Smart era has produced some of the best linebackers in recent college football history. But there will only ever be one Roquan.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

My standing rule is that you cannot, under any circumstances, own too many items of Georgia Bulldogs clothing. Especially when that clothing commemorates a special moment in Bulldog history. I believe qualifying for a trip to Omaha for the College World Series is just such a special moment.

Luckily our friends at Breaking T’s have just released a commemorative teeshirt for Georgia’s 2026 College World Series run.

Like all Breaking T’s designs this stylish shirt (or sweatshirt if you’re a winter wear fan) is officially licensed by the University of Georgia and the NCAA. All Breaking T’s clothing is soft, durable and designed and printed in the USA. Plus all items come with free returns and exchanges, allowing you to buy with confidence.

You can pick yours up here at the Breaking T’s site. You can also peruse other Bulldog designs while you’re there.

Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

This morning we look back at the time Georgia broke Auburn’s cheatin’ little hearts. Again.

The 1994 season will not go down as one of the highlights in the pantheon of Georgia Bulldog football. In many ways it was the epitome of the pre-Mark Richt era at Georgia. The Bulldogs began the season by beating South Carolina and getting waxed by Tennessee. Ray Goff’s Dawgs beat Ole Miss, but then lost a one point game on the road at #11 Alabama.

And that, as they say, is when the ship hit the sand. After beating Clemson the Red and Black found a way to lose at home by two touchdowns to Vanderbilt. Then they went down to Gainesville and. in their only post-WWII appearance in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, took an absolute shellacking at the hands of the Florida Gators, 52-14.

And so it was a battered, bruised, and rightfully unranked Bulldog team that limped into Jordan-Hare Stadium on November 12, 1994 to take on Terry Bowden’s undefeated and #3 ranked Auburn Tigers.

True to expectation the Tigers jumped out to a 23-9 lead and appeared set to cruise to victory before heading into a top five Iron Bowl showdown with Alabama. Then the strangest thing happened: the Athenians decided to wake up and play ball. Cornerback (and future tailback) Robert Edwards picked off Plainsmen QB Patrick Nix to stall the Tiger offense. Then this happened:

Eric Zeier hit Juan Daniels across the middle for an 80 yard touchdown to pull the Dawgs within a score. Zeier would lead another drive to tie it up 23-23. Auburn still had a chance to pull out the win, but a last ditch field goal attempt fell wide of the uprights with 8 seconds remaining.

So shocking was the result that the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the next day declared “Georgia wins 23-23.” The Bulldogs would end the year by trouncing Georgia Tech 48-10, finishing 6-4-1 on the season and buying the foundering Goff a one year reprieve. Auburn, still on probation from one of their many and varied cheating scandals, was banned from the postseason and ended their ‘94 season with a 21-14 loss in the Iron Bowl.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The Diamond Dawgs are set to take on Oklahoma at 7 PM Eastern tonight from Omaha, Nebraska in their second appearance of the 2026 College World Series.

Oklahoma was last seen shutting out the Alabama Crimson Tide behind a tour de force performance from freshman pitcher Cord Rager. Georgia also reached this stage thanks to some masterful pitching from ace Joey Volchko. It will be interesting to see if both teams can similarly hold the other’s powerful lineup free of offensive fireworks. I sort of suspect that we’ll see some runs in this one.

Television coverage and streaming will once again be live on the ESPN family of channels and apps. We will be here through the evening to keep an eye on the game, talk about what’s happening, and wrap it all up when the action is done.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The eyes of the college sports world may have been on Omaha this weekend, but the Bulldog track team was busy making history elsewhere.

Powered by record-setting performances from redshirt freshman Adaejah Hodge and senior Dejanea Oakley, the Lady Bulldogs captured their second consecutive NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship on Saturday in Eugene, Ore. Georgia’s 50 point total placed the Dawgs well in front of second place finisher Florida (43) and third place Arkansas (38).

The victory gives Georgia back-to-back outdoor national championships after also winning in 2025. The win also off capped off a memorable season that also included the 2026 NCAA indoor championship back in March.

Hodge delivered one of the meet’s most electrifying moments, turning in a 200 meter time of 21.68 seconds to set a new collegiate record. Earlier in the evening, Hodge also finished runner-up in the 100 meters with a time of 10.93 after establishing the collegiate record during the semifinal round.

Oakley won the 400 meters in dominating fashion, turning in a 48.79 lap of the University of Oregon track. That set not only a personal best for the Texas transfer, but also new UGA, NCAA, and NCAA championship records.

On the men’s side, the Bulldogs finished runner-up to Arkansas. Graduate student Kimani Jack won the high jump, and the 4×400 relay team also took home top honors in the 400 meters Dawgs Jonathan Simms and Sidi Njie finished second and third respectively to key a strong showing for the men.

With the victory Director of Track & Field Caryl Smith-Gilbert joins Texas’ Bev Kearney (1998-99) as the only female coaches to win two consecutive women’s outdoor titles. Smith-Gilbert also becomes the first female head coach to win four NCAA outdoor women’s championships (two in Athens, two at Southern Cal).

Even for a program which has produced some dominant performances over the years both individually and in the team ranking, 2026 has to go down as among the most impressive seasons in school history.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Your Georgia Bulldogs return to action tonight in Omaha in a loser goes home rematch with the Texas Longhorns.

The Bulldogs couldn’t recover from a sloppy, three run first inning last night and a late rally fizzled as they fell 4–3 to the blazing hot Oklahoma Sooners. Now, West Johnson’s squad looks to put that behind them in a must win losers bracket contest with the ‘Horns.

If you’d told me that two games into the Series the Dawgs would have yet to use a reliever and had given up five total runs I’d have never thought they were in the losers’ side of the ledger. But on the bright side, the Red and Black have a fresh bullpen to deploy. Also, hopefully they won’t repeat last night’s, well, whatever adjective is the opposite of “clutch” performance at the plate. When you go 0 for 12 with runners on base and 0-3 with runners in scoring position you can’t really complain about a loss.

Texas got here by destroying Alabama, 14-2, in Monday’s elimination game, exploding for the most runs by a Texas team in a College World Series game since 1992. The star of the game for the Burnt Orange was Adrian Rodriguez, who hit for the cycle, making him just the third player to do so in CWS history.

The Longhorns scored in only four innings, but each time they plated at least three runs: three in the 1st, four in the 2nd and 6th and three in the 8th.

Georgia has to avoid giving up that kind of offensive explosion if they want to have a shot in this one. First pitch is scheduled for 8 PM Eastern, with television coverage again live on ESPN.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Summer is the time for travel, and Bulldogs of all kinds are hitting the roads.

The UGA Women’s Track & Field team was in Eugene, OR the last few days, just wrapping up consecutive Outdoor National Championships (and completing the sweep after taking the Indoors Natty earlier). The Men’s squad finished a respectable 2nd place to champ and powerhouse Arkansas.

You’ve seen the Diamond Dawgs hit up Omaha, and beat down Texas University-Burnt Orange Campus.

Now the pro golfing ’Dawgs are driving the Long Island Expressway on their way to swanky Southampton. Because nestled just inland is a hunk of real estate known as Shinnecock Hills. And if the best golfers in the world are descending on Shinnecock, that means the USGA is ramping up to deliver some carnage.

That carnage is more commonly known as the United States Open, the toughest test in golf. The United States Golf Association who puts on the tournament is infamous for selecting tough courses, then over the span of months setting up the track to be as tough as possible. Tighten fairway landing areas, shave false fronts, lengthen and thicken the rough, and eventually cut the greens slicker than Lane Kiffin at a 5:30 am small town hot yoga class.

And Shinnecock Hills is already a tough test, often ranked as one of the most difficult courses in America (and the world) on a daily basis. Usually called a “links style” course, the land is actually quite arable. Links courses are of course the “link” between fertile, arable land and the beach/salt water. It can’t be farmed, it can’t be fished, so it links the two valuable geographic features and is only good for 18 holes. Shinnecock has more undulation than a links course, and is surrounded by farmland, vineyards, and 8-9 figure real estate parcels. It is wide open, windswept, tons of tall, wide fescue, plenty of bunkering, and looks like a links course. But it is more accurately a B****-slap to anyone who can’t control their golf ball.

And the USGA drools over their appropriation of Shinnecock Hills every few years. The land and daily conditions contribute a perfect canvas that they can tweak, distort, and pervert to their heart’s content. If you doubt, just check out YouTube highlights from the last 3 US Opens held here in 1995, 2004, and 2018. Or you can check out how fan favorite and multiple major winner Phil Mickelson handled a poorly struck putt in such challenging conditions. Phil not accepting responsibility and looking for a short-cut against the rules when things don’t go his way? Perish the thought. Or perish the insider trading. Or the soul sold. Or the unwanted attention given to club staff. Sorry Phil – I know today’s your birthday. And it’s best to sit this out for a while.

World #1 Scottie Scheffler comes to Long Island with his first attempt at the career grand slam, having already captured a couple of green jackets, a Wannamaker, and the 2025 Claret Jug. Brooks Koepka returns to friendly confines for him, but he’s got an upper extremity issue. Rory McIlroy has been mostly quiet since his consecutive Masters, but would love a 7th major.

And there’s a host of former Georgia Bulldogs ready to take this test. Russell Henley, already a winner on Tour this year, comes in with good form. Harris English is not far behind, and was 2nd at the British last year. Brian Harman, Sepp Straka, Chris Kirk, Keith Mitchell, Davis Thompson, and even incoming ‘Dawg Mason Howell will be on site and ready with sharpened #2 pencils.

We’ll be back with tee times and some other stats to get you ready. For now, gird thy loins, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

If Georgia wants to last longer in Omaha, it’ll have to now do the job with its backs against the wall.

Despite Caden Aoki being strong over the game’s final eight innings on Monday night in the College World Series, Oklahoma starting pitcher Xander Mercurius was a bit better. The result: A 4-3 win for the Sooners, who took full advantage of a three-run first inning. Georgia, having lost for the first time in nearly a month, now faces Texas on Tuesday night in a loser’s bracket matchup where the winner will have to knock off Oklahoma twice to advance to the best-of-three College World Series Championship Series.

Much like Saturday’s CWS opener against Texas, the first inning saw multiple runs pushed across the plate. This time, however, it was Georgia that was unable to recover after an RBI groundout followed by a two-run homer off of Aoki gave the Sooners a 3-0 lead.

Georgia never got the big inning that it has seemingly become used to in recent weeks thanks to the pitching of Mercurius, who held Georgia to one hit through the first three innings.

The Diamond Dawgs would break through in the fourth on a two-out homer by Kenny Ishikawa.

That was one of three dingers ripped out of Charles Schwab Field by the Bulldogs on Monday night, but if Georgia was sunk by what happened around those homers, as each of them, also by Brannan Hudson in the fifth and Dan Jackson in the eighth came with no runners aboard. That, combined with Oklahoma’s Brendan Brock hitting a solo shot in the fourth, ended up being the difference. The Dawgs were not only 0-12 with runners on base, but 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position.

Georgia tried its best to stage some late-inning magic in the eighth, when Jackson’s homer cut the Sooners lead to 4-3, chasing Mercurius from the game. But after Rylan Lujo singled, the Bulldogs could draw no closer as pinch hitter Jack Acramone popped up before Ishikawa walked and Ryan Wynn flew out to deep right field, ending the threat.

Aoki settled in after the first inning, holding Oklahoma to just one run. Georgia has now used just two pitchers through to games in Omaha. That ability to save the bullpen so far could prove vital if the Diamond Dawgs extend their stay with a few more wins.

Starting Tuesday night, they get that chance.

Go Dawgs!

Your Georgia Bulldogs are once again taking on the Oklahoma Sooners in the College World Series, this time with even more at stake.

The Bulldogs dispatched the Texas Longhorns last night and now need two straight victories over the red hot Sooners to avoid elimination. If they can pull that off, they’ll book a trip to the finals and secure a shot at the school’s first baseball national title in 36 years.

First pitch is at 7:00 p.m. eastern. As has been the case all week the game will be carried live on ESPN, and we’ll be here for all your in-game commenting needs.

Tournament: The 126th United States Open Championship, June 18-21, 2026

Course: Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, par 70, 7,440 yards. In Southampton, Long Island NY.

Purse: $21.5 million in total, $4.3 million to the winner.

Defending Champ: JJ Spaun. The Aztec from SDSU had shown positive signs earlier in the year when he took Rory McIlroy to a playoff at the Players. Solid ball striking, good putting, and staying away from the big number at Oakmont kept Spaun near the lead every day, and even after a 40 on his first 9 holes Sunday. But steady as she goes and watch your fellow competitors wilt, which they did. Spaun was the only player to finish under par for the tourney.

Fun Fact: Shinnecock was one of the 5 founding clubs of the USGA in the 1890’s. It held the second US Open in 1896 at a grand total of 4,432 yards… for 12 total holes. Of course the players were wearing vests and tweed jackets, and hitting leather balls stuffed with feathers.

TV Times: NBC has the rights for USGA events, so get ready for some Dan Hicks. The plus side is we get a lot of Kevin Kisner. Another downside is swapping channels, apps, feeds, etc. because… NBC.
Thursday is 6:30 a.m.-5 p.m. (USA); 5-8 p.m. (NBC Sports Network, Peacock).
Friday is slightly different: 6:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (NBC Sports Network, Peacock); 1:30-7:30 p.m. (NBC); 7:30-8:30 p.m. (NBC Sports Network, Peacock).
The weekend is thankfully a little more straightforward and available on common cable channels.
Saturday: 10 a.m.-noon (USA); noon-8 p.m. (NBC), and similarly…
Sunday 9 a.m.-noon (USA); noon-7 p.m. (NBC) **All times Eastern**

‘Dawgs in the Field and Thursday Tee Times (also displayed in Eastern Daylight Time):

Keith Mitchell #10 tee, 7:19 am EDT

Harris English #1 tee, 8:03 am

Sepp Straka #10 tee, 8:03 am

Mason Howell (a) #1 tee, 8:14 am (with Scottie Scheffler and defending champ JJ Spaun)

Brian Harman #10 tee, 8:14 am

Chris Kirk #1 tee, 12:52 pm

Davis Thompson #1 tee, 1:14 pm

Russell Henley #1 tee, 1:36 pm

So now you know when to watch, how to watch, who to root for, and where they’re playing, and what they’re playing for. It’s a very strong field with no overwhelming favourite. Yet storylines abound and I’m sure there will be new ones popping up every day that no one saw coming. Enjoy watching the best players in the world humbled and struggle to shoot even par. And as always…

GO ‘DAWGS

Thanks to what’s become a tried and true formula, the Diamond Dawgs are still alive in the College World Series.

For the third time in as many games in Omaha, Georgia received strong starting pitching. The end result? A gritty 2-0 win in Tuesday’s night’s elimination game against Texas to move on to the bracket final against Oklahoma, where the Dawgs need to beat the Sooners twice in order to advance to the best-of-three championship series.

For the first time in this College World Series, Georgia had to look to its bullpen. That dip into the depth of the pitching staff stood tall, as well. After Dylan Vigue’s four innings of work in which he gave up two Longhorn hits and struck out eight, Justin Byrd entered. To say that there was no dropoff would be an understatement, as he allowed just two hits, fanning four UT batters.

And with a low-scoring game, an anomaly in this era of big offensive numbers, there was little margin for error. Byrd delivered, getting out of a two-aboard jam in the eighth before setting the side down in the ninth to clinch the win.

Offense has not come easy for Georgia the past two games in Omaha, and Tuesday night continued that. Part of that at Charles Schwab Field had to do with Texas starter Luke Harrison, who Georgia’s skipper rightly compared on the TV broadcast to Sandy Koufax. Through the first three innings, Georgia hitters struck out eight times. But the Diamond Dawgs finally broke through in the fifth, when Tre Phelps broke out of his Omaha doldrums to double in Brennan Hudson, who drew a leadoff walk. Georgia would later add a shred of insurance off of Texas reliever Sam Cozart, who had been unflappable all year long. He was at first on Tuesday, entering the game with two outs and the bases loaded in the sixth, striking out Kolby Branch. But Georgia would break through an inning later, getting a single run as Ryan Black barely beat the tag at the plate from a Rylan Lujo sacrifice fly. That score was inexplicably challenged twice, both from the play at the plate and to also review whether or not Black left third early. Both were upheld, as the gutsy call to send the runner home paid largely with an extra run.

Its bullpen mostly untouched, Georgia now has to win twice against Oklahoma. It’s a definite upside that key reliever Matt Scott is yet to be used, and Saturday’s starter Joey Volchko also stands to be a likely option in the next two games, where the goal is to go 2-0.

Go Dawgs!

The Georgia Diamond Dawgs haven’t taken part in the spectacle that is the College World Series since 2008. They got there this year by taking on a rigorous SEC schedule and emerging as the regular season and conference tournament champions.

Their reward? Yet another trip through the gauntlet of Southeastern Conference elites.

Georgia’s path to its first baseball national championship in 36 years will start Saturday night at 8:00 pm when the ‘Dawgs take on the Texas Longhorns. The winner of that matchup will take on the winner of another SEC tilt between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oklahoma Sooners, who will take to the Schwab Stadium field at 3:00 pm on Saturday.

That winners bracket game will be on Monday, immediately following the losers bracket game between the losers of UGA/ Texas and Bama/Oklahoma. The loser of that Monday 2:00 pm game goes home.

All games are set to be televised live on ESPN.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

As Georgia prepares to head to Omaha for their first College World Series outing in 18 years, I thought it might be worthwhile to hop in the way back machine and take a look at the 1990 Diamond ‘Dawgs, winners of the school’s only NCAA baseball championship. Fortunately YouTube remains undefeated. You can watch the final two and a half innings of the Red and Black’s thrilling win over Oklahoma State to take home the title.

A few interesting notes about that 1990 team:

• The Bulldogs had actually made it to Omaha in 1987, but were sent back to Athens without winning a single game. That 1990 squad was in large part led by the freshmen from that 1987 team, all grown up.
• The 1990 national champions weren’t loaded with star power. In fact, only one player from that squad, All-American relief pitcher Dave Fleming, logged any significant time in the major leagues.
• They also weren’t a model of consistency. The 1990 Dawgs lost three out of their first five games, then reeled off a fourteen game midseason win streak. But they then managed to drop their last five regular season contests to finish second to LSU in the regular season SEC title chase.
• But they did play defense and pitch well down the stretch, which remains a great way to go deep into the postseason. Fleming shut out Mississippi State in the Omaha opener to win 3-0, then Mike Rebhan gave up two runs to the Mike Mussina-led Stanford Cardinal in a complete game victory. All told the UGA pitching staff gave up only 7 runs in 4 games leading up to the title matchup with Oklahoma State.
• On a final note, I also happen to believe they wore the most iconic baseball hat design in Georgia Bulldog history. That block “G” on a red background with the black bill was much sought after in the days before the campus bookstore had online ordering, and was a bit of a status symbol among junior high schoolers in my neck of the woods. My aunt, a recent grad, was able to snag one for me for Christmas in 1990 and I still miss that sucker.

I hope you enjoy this walk down memory lane. We’ll be back shortly to talk about this year’s College World Series. Until then…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

For the first time since 2008, the Diamond Dawgs are headed to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

And for the second day in a row during an absolutely thrilling super regional at Foley Field against Mississippi State, Georgia pulled off another round of late-inning theatrics.

After seeing a 7-2 lead through four and a half innings evaporate and trail 9-8 after eight innings, the Diamond Dawgs would once again pull themselves up off the mat. After Brennan Hudson’s ninth-inning single scored Kenny Ishikawa to force extra innings, Daniel Jackson’s riveting two-run blast in the tenth put Georgia in front. From there, Justin Byrd sealed the deal for the second day in a row, getting out of a two-aboard situation in the tenth as Georgia won 11-9.

“I tell our guys all the time I think toughness gets a bad rap. People think it’s some kind of physical element, and it’s not. You have to learn to be capable of great endurance and understand that our game is really long. They got to get you out. Teams are going to get emotional,” Georgia head coach Wes Johnson said. “Those emotions are going to carry you out of what you normally do every day. That’s what we talk a lot about. Not only do we talk about it, we practice it. We try to try to give our guys something hard to do every single day, whether it be physical or mental. And you just saw a bunch of resilient guys, and you saw the fruition of all that work come through.”

After multiple seasons of bad postseason breaks, close calls, and one Omaha-contending season halted by COVID-19, this team is going to college baseball’s promised land. It’ll also be the Diamond Dawgs’ first CWS trip since it moved across town to Charles Schwab Field from Rosenblatt Stadium. One of those heartbreaks, a 2024 super regional loss to NC State, was on the mind of Kolby Branch this weekend.

For the first few innings on Sunday, the agenda was simple for the Bulldogs. Take advantage of a sterling pitching performance from Caden Aoki and slowly pad an early lead. That shook out nicely through the game’s first half with Georgia leading 7-2 despite missed early chances to plate more runners. Aoki was more than up to the task, throwing more than 120 pitches into the sixth inning, giving up four runs on eight hits and striking out nine.

Georgia put two runs across in the first inning a Rylan Lujo sac fly and Ryan Wynn groundout with a 3-0 lead coming in the second on a Kolby Branch homer and Ryan Black drawing a bases-loaded walk. A pair of second-inning runs by MSU was answered by a Brennan Hudson solo homer for a 5-2 third-inning lead, and single runs in the fourth and fifth on a Lujo RBI and run-scoring groundout by Tre Phelps extended the UGA lead to 7-2.

In most cases, that’d of seemed like a safe lead. But not against this MSU team that slammed balls out of the park the day before, and Sunday was more of the same, starting with a homer and RBI single to trim the Georgia lead to 7-4, one that would be a 8-7 Georgia lead after seven before a two-run homer in the eighth put the Maroon Dogs in front 9-8, setting the table for yet another day of late-inning Foley Field magic.

“When you’re winning together, it’s fun and it’s true. The locker room is a much happier place after a win,” Jackson said. “The whole sour power thing, like that’s been a crazy thing that’s united us just because it’s turned into this fun thing.” 

Go Dawgs!

There are places in the sports lexicon that have a certain air of reverence when coming to mind, even more so when mentioned. Wrigley Field, Lambeau Field, Augusta National, and Indianapolis. Those are all places that when they get brought up in conversation, they mean something.

Omaha, home of the Men’s College World Series, is firmly nestled alongside those places, whether you are talking about its iconic history at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium or the current venue of Charles Schwab Field.

The exchange in Field of Dreams is well known – “Is this heaven? No, it’s Iowa?” But if there is indeed a baseball heaven, it’s probably something a lot like how Omaha, Neb. will be within a day or so as fans converge for the CWS. And interestingly enough, Omaha is a very short drive from Iowa itself.

Just getting to Omaha is an experience in itself. Once you get there, anything else that happens is usually icing on the cake. If you want to see baseball players act like kids on Christmas morning, just hang out near them during their walk-through if they are CWS-first timers.

The specialness of Omaha even begins depending on how you get there.

I was fortunate enough to be there in 2006 when Georgia was in the College World Series. With more flights per day at the time being from Atlanta to Kansas City compared to Omaha, flying into KC made more sense. That means on the way from Kansas City to Omaha, it can actually be a fun trip with stops, if desired, like touring Kauffman Stadium, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and the Dwight Eisenhower Presidential Library.

From there, it’s a mostly desolate drive, but one that will make you feel at home if you enjoy the drive from Macon to Savannah on I-16.

But like an obelisk rising up over the desert, downtown Omaha awaits as you make your way toward Council Bluffs, Iowa and across the Missouri River. Back when the CWS was at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium, it was one of the first things you encountered after crossing into Nebraska on I-80, a gleaming emotion that you had arrived at somewhere special.

The College World Series is much like the Indy 500 in that many there are fans of the game of baseball itself.

Sure, each team’s fans travel there too, but others nearby know how much this event means. Over the course of the CWS, locals adopt teams as their own….even if the week before they knew zero names of the players making Omaha their home for the week.

As Georgia fans sadly know, that can be a bad thing if you are playing against an underdog team such as the 2008 Nike bat debacle.

But it’s not just locals that love this event. I still vividly recall seeing Mississippi State fans tailgating outside Rosenblatt Stadium in 2006, and the Maroon Bulldogs were not even playing in the College World Series that year. Fans like those were there not for a team, but because they loved the event itself and what it means – that it’s a pure celebration of baseball.

Of course, this is the same city that makes you think of steak. And Omaha veterans will tell you that The Drover is legendary (I can attest to this personally), a place where at least two associated with UGA in 2006 ate at not once, but twice.

Omaha is indeed special. Georgia certainly heads there with a goal to win it all this week. But regardless, if you are one of eight teams that’s there this week, it’s a perfect slice of baseball heaven.

Go Dawgs!

This is the first in a new series known as the Morning Memory, in which we help you get your day off to a roaring start by showcasing a classic Georgia Bulldog highlight of years gone by. Today, Mr. Tuberville may have gone to Washington. But Mr. Thurman is the one who actually won the race.

Auburn came into Sanford Stadium in November 2003 looking to spoil #6 Georgia’s SEC title aspirations.
As has so often been the case in the ensuing two decades, it didn’t turn out well for the Plainsmen. The Bulldogs jumped out to a 19-0 lead on Tommy Tuberville’s torpid Tigers.

But early in the fourth quarter Auburn was still looking to put points on the board deep in Bulldog territory. But instead quarterback Jason Campbell’s third-down pass into the end zone was tipped and caught by linebacker Odell Thurman. The rest is pure Barner burning magic:

There’s so much to admire about this play. The blindside pressure to force Campbell’s throw. Thurman’s ahoestring grab. Tim Jennings flying down the field like he’s on rocket skates to throw the final block. Cinema. Absolute cinema.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

It’s the college sports beef you never saw coming.

Yesterday news broke that a Texas judge has issued an injunction preventing the NCAA from barring Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby from playing college football. The NCAA is seeking to do that because Sorsby has admitted to betting on college football. A lot.

Sorsby admitted to placing over 9,000 sports wagers valued at over $90,000 in total. That included bets on the University of Indiana while he was playing for the Hoosiers. For the vast majority of the history of college sports that would have been completely disqualifying, and no one would have dared to argue it shouldn’t be. It wasn’t that long ago, you may recall, that Rick Neuheisel was forced to resign from his coaching job because he’d taken part in America’s totemic sports betting enterprise: a March Madness pool.

Again, Sorsby’s conduct would have been completely unacceptable even five years ago. It’s probably still unacceptable to most college football fans, journalists, and administrators. Just not to the folks at Texas Tech.

Among the folks who still find Sorsby’s conduct unacceptable, and the rootin’, tootin’ west Texas ruling that shrugged it off just as bad was UGA athletic director Josh Brooks. Brooks hasn’t been a shrinking violet as college football goes through generational upheaval. On the contrary, he’s gone to bat to advocate for Georgia and the SEC. His response to the Sorsby ruling was no different.

Word also came out yesterday that a memo went around the UGA athletic department clarifying that no Georgia athletic squad will be allowed to schedule Texas Tech. Some have described this as a “leak.” I don’t think that’s an accurate characterization.

I can’t remember the last time news like this made it out of Butts-Mehre unintentionally. I think it was calculated to clarify where Brooks and Georgia’s administration and compliance staff land on this issue. I believe Brooks has decided to step forward as one of the national leaders on issues like this because he’s the athletic director of one of the nation’s top five athletic programs in one of the premier conferences. If not him, who? If not now, when?

Brooks’ statement apparently rankled Texas Tech booster and energy executive Cody Campbell, who fired back on Twitter:

I think one can make an argument that Brooks’ post was begging for a response. It was a strong, categorical statement of principle and there was no mistaking at whom it was aimed. And Georgia is a ripe target for allegations of hypocrisy. Admittedly the Bulldogs are no strangers to the police blotter. That’s a whole different discussion which we’ve had on this site for almost two decades.

But here’s the thing. Zachariah Branch standing on a sidewalk smirking lawlessly or Jordan Love misspelling his middle name or any number of Bulldogs driving 87 in a 25 mile per hour zone does not, in any way at all, affect the integrity of the game of college football. It doesn’t call the veracity of the outcomes into question.

Having a compulsive gambler, who has admitted to a voracious gambling habit, on the field directly influencing the outcome of games does. And saying that’s okay opens the door for countless other such players to likewise influence every single game. Or not. We’ll likely never know. And that’s why it’s a major problem.

You may believe that emerging from an alley on a scooter is abhorrent, anti-social behavior. But it doesn’t call the legitimacy of the outcome of the game into question.

That’s the distinction Cody Campbell isn’t making. The one he can’t make. Because admitting that it’s a problem lays bare the fact that he and his fellow power brokers in Lubbock are willing to destroy the integrity of college football in pursuit of a national title they feel they desperately deserve, and which the traditional powers of college football are trying to shut them out of.

I’m not sure why a man with all the things Campbell has still feels such a phenomenal level of grievance. But his swing at Brooks missed the point like a hitter looking for the curve and trying to catch up to a 99 mile an hour fastball. What he and Texas Tech are arguing that the NCAA has to accept would call the outcome of every NCAA sporting event into question. While the folks at the NCAA may not have a lot of integrity generally, they care about at least the appearance of integrity in the games. If you’re a fan of college sports you should too. And that’s why you should side with Josh Brooks in this middle school beef between grown men.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

A lot of words describe all that’s around the Georgia baseball program right now.

Euphora. Joy. Thrill. Jubilation. Drought-ending. Pride.

Needless to say, as excited as the Georgia fan base may be right now, there’s a lot for anyone within the Diamond Dawgs program to excitedly contend with this week. In addition to practices and workouts, there’s also the prepping to travel halfway across the country to begin the College World Series, where Georgia will play Texas on Saturday night.

Getting ready for college baseball’s biggest and brightest stage has a lot of moving parts, and if there’s a way that Georgia and head coach Wes Johnson would like to do things, it has that right. In other words, if it does not want to add unneeded weight to an already hectic week, that’s Georgia’s right to do so. No matter who is asking.

But at least one outlet appears to think that does not apply to them.

Less than 24 hours after Georgia clinched its first CWS berth since 2008, the Barstool brand decided to try to tarnish Georgia’s moment with a hissyfit that’d make my youngest child blush.

For the crime of apparently deciding that one of its star players was not going to be made available for a segment on Wake Up Barstool.

In case you don’t care to listen, Barstool’s Dave Portnoy, went even further, stating “screw Georgia. The Georgia Bulldogs are dead to me” as well as “I will never root for Georgia, I will never side with Georgia.”

Perhaps Barstool should be dead to anyone who has any affiliation with The University of Georgia, from a fan all the way up to those who proudly call themself alumni.

It’s very notable that the very same outlet that is upset about Georgia rightly did not make Daniel Jackson available for is the same one that vehemently dismissed college baseball a week ago.

The University of Georgia Athletic Department was blessed to have one of the best…scratch that…the best Sports Information Director in the business for many years with Claude Felton. He may have taken a well-earned retirement in recent years, but there are plenty of people within that team that do things very similarly to Claude Felton, and Georgia’s outstanding baseball SID Christopher Lakos is one of them.

This is an enormous week for Georgia baseball, and it has every right to do things that way it chooses, regardless of what someone who cared nothing of the Diamond Dawgs existence until 72 hours ago.

Go Dawgs!

Welcome to the Morning Memory, in which we take a brief stroll through the storied past of University of Georgia football, pausing to admire a work of art from the treasured past.

Today I’d ask you to join me in October 1985. Vince Dooley’s Georgia Bulldogs, until recently the clear top team in the SEC, only four seasons removed from a national title, came into the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party ranked outside the top ten for the first time since 1979, and coming off a 27-0 beating by the Gators in 1984, their first loss to the Sunshine State Saurians since 1977.

As if that wasn’t enough indignity, the Gators came into the game undefeated and ranked #1 in the country for the first time in program history. Bulldog fans filed down to the coast justifiably apprehensive about the annual matchup, and understandably concerned that the rivalry may have reached one of its occasional turning points. Gator fans tapdanced over to the banks of the St. John’s River imagining that a victory over the Red and Black was all but in the bag.

But to paraphrase John Lennon, “Tim Worley is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.”

A Bulldog defense that had only three weeks earlier surrendered a tie to the Vanderbilt Commodores held the Gators all but scoreless through three quarters. Then, with the Athenians backed up to their own 11 yard line Georgia called on freshman tailback Tim Worley to move the ball out of the shadow of the goalpost. Instead he cut right, shucked a Gator, and rambled 89 yards for the touchdown. Worley’s jaunt tied the record for the longest touchdown run in Bulldog history, and was the nail in the coffin for the Gators in a 24-3 upset win for the good guys.

Unfortunately this would be the high point of the season, as Georgia would finish the shear with losses to Auburn and Tech, falling out of the polls and into the Sun Bowl, where they would tie the Arizona Wildcats 13-13 to finish off a disappointing 7-3-2 season. That however was cold comfort for a Florida fanbase that would have to wait a decade for Steve Spurrier to return them to the top of the polls. Until later,

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The Georgia Diamond Dawgs have a difficult road ahead in Omaha as they prepare to face some of the toughest competition in the country, much of it familiar SEC opposition. Georgia finds itself on the Bracket Two side of the Men’s College World Series alongside Texas, Oklahoma, and Alabama. The Dawgs will open their Omaha run on Saturday night against the Texas Longhorns.

Georgia enters the College World Series riding a wave of momentum and confidence after earning its first trip to Omaha since 2008. After everything this team has accomplished throughout the season, it would be easy for players and coaches alike to get caught up in the excitement of the moment. However, Head Coach Wes Johnson has made sure his team remains focused on the ultimate goal.

Johnson has repeatedly emphasized the importance of this opportunity, not just for the program but for the players themselves. To him, this is a business trip, not a vacation. Earlier this week, Johnson said, “I don’t want these young men living with regret 20 years from now.” The message is clear: enjoy the experience, but finish the job. If the Dawgs’ skipper is locked in, there is little doubt his players are as well.

Standing in Georgia’s way is a Texas squad that has been one of the most complete teams in college baseball all season. Interestingly enough, the two programs have not faced each other this year, making Saturday night’s matchup even more intriguing.

The Longhorns are led by Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle, who is making his first College World Series appearance with Texas in just his second season at the helm. While it may be his first trip to Omaha with the Longhorns, Schlossnagle is no stranger to the sport’s biggest stage. The 2026 College World Series marks his eighth appearance as a head coach. He previously guided TCU to five Omaha appearances and Texas A&M to two, making him one of only four coaches in college baseball history to lead three different programs to the College World Series.

Despite all of those appearances, a national championship has remained elusive for Schlossnagle. That fact alone should make Texas an even more dangerous opponent as the Longhorns chase the first title of his accomplished coaching career.

Texas possesses an outstanding pitching staff, headlined by sophomore left-hander Dylan Volantis. Volantis has been dominant throughout the season, leading the Longhorns in strikeouts with 126 while posting a stellar 2.03 ERA. The 6-foot-6, 220-pound southpaw does an excellent job using his frame to create extension and keep the ball at the bottom of the strike zone. His fastball typically sits between 92 and 94 mph, but it is his elite sweeping curveball that serves as his true out pitch and allows him to finish hitters.

Another key arm on the Texas staff is freshman right-hander Sam Cozart. While primarily working out of the bullpen, Cozart has provided valuable innings all season and could potentially earn a start depending on how the tournament unfolds. Cozart leads the team with a remarkable 1.59 ERA and uses his imposing 6-foot-6, 260-pound frame to overpower hitters with a fastball that reaches the upper 90s.

Needless to say, Georgia’s lineup will have its hands full Saturday night if Volantis gets the ball.

The Longhorns also feature one of the most dangerous lineups in the country, particularly at the top of the order with Anthony Pack Jr., Aiden Robbins, and Carson Tinney.

Pack Jr., the SEC Freshman of the Year, has been a catalyst for the Texas offense all season. A high-contact hitter with plus speed, he leads the team in batting average (.359), on-base percentage (.485), and stolen bases (20). His ability to get on base and create havoc makes him a constant threat.

Batting alongside Pack is perhaps Texas’ most complete offensive player in Aiden Robbins. Robbins has put together an exceptional season, leading the Longhorns with 24 home runs and 64 RBIs while hitting .342. Like Pack, Robbins can impact the game on the bases and is widely viewed by scouts as a potential first-round selection in July’s MLB Draft.

Rounding out Texas’ dangerous trio is junior catcher Carson Tinney, one of the Longhorns’ biggest transfer portal additions. After arriving from Notre Dame, Tinney immediately became one of the most productive hitters in the lineup. He leads Texas with a 1.194 OPS while batting .333 and launching 22 home runs. Tinney is also a quality defender behind the plate, and his combination of power and defensive ability should make him a top-three-round selection in July.

With all of that talent packed into one lineup, Georgia’s pitching staff, led by Joey Volchko and Caden Aoki, must be sharp from the first pitch. Location will be critical. Volchko should be getting the starting nod for game one. Georgia cannot afford a repeat of its Super Regional pitching performance, where the staff surrendered 10 home runs across two games. Like Foley Field, Charles Schwab Field has shown that the ball can carry when hitters square it up, making execution even more important.

If Georgia wants to secure a massive Game One victory and put itself in a favorable position for the remainder of the tournament, the pitching staff must consistently locate and avoid costly mistakes.

Of course, Georgia’s offense has been the story of the season and may ultimately provide the toughest test Texas has faced all year.

The Diamond Dawgs enter Omaha fresh off a Super Regional performance that saw them launch 12 home runs in just two games. The biggest of those blasts came from Golden Spikes Award finalist Dan Jackson, whose postseason dominance has only strengthened an already incredible season. Jackson leads Georgia in virtually every major offensive category, hitting .396 with 31 home runs, 86 RBIs, a staggering 1.329 OPS, and 26 stolen bases. His rare blend of power and speed has rapidly elevated his draft stock, with many believing he could hear his name called in the first round this July.

The rest of Georgia’s lineup has been outstanding as well. Players such as Michael O’Shaughnessy and Brennan Hudson have consistently delivered in big moments and have played major roles in the Dawgs’ postseason success.

Overall, this matchup has all the ingredients of a College World Series classic and is more than deserving of its 8:00 p.m. ET primetime slot on ESPN.

Georgia has finally made it back to the dance. The question now is whether the Dawgs can finish what they started and bring home a national championship.

GO DAWGS!!!

Contrary to the national championship success that Alabama has traditionally enjoyed in college football and softball, the Crimson Tide baseball program has found itself in the national title conversation for the first time in nearly three decades.

Alabama has been one of the hottest teams in the country throughout the NCAA Tournament, breezing through both regional and super regional play with a perfect 5-0 record while outscoring opponents by a combined margin of 52-17. The Tide enter Omaha with an overall record of 42-19 and is playing with confidence and carrying momentum that few teams can match.

Offensively, Alabama is led by senior Brady Neal, who has put together an outstanding season at the plate. Neal enters the College World Series hitting .328 with 10 home runs while leading the team in both OPS (1.004) and RBIs (51). His ability to consistently drive in runs and get on base has made him one of the most important pieces of the Crimson Tide lineup.

Senior outfielder Bryce Fowler has also been a major contributor throughout the season. Fowler ranks second on the team behind Neal in both batting average (.322) and on-base percentage (.418), giving Alabama another reliable bat at the top of the order and helping provide stability throughout the lineup.

While Alabama features several key offensive contributors, the unquestioned star of the roster is junior infielder Justin Lebron. Entering the 2026 season, Lebron carried significant hype as a projected top-10 MLB Draft selection, and his production has largely lived up to those expectations. Although his batting average dipped slightly to .277 this season, Lebron has continued to impact games in a variety of ways. He has blasted 16 home runs while swiping 41 bases, showcasing a rare combination of power and speed. Defensively, he remains one of the premier shortstops in college baseball, making him a true five-tool player and one of the most dynamic talents remaining in Omaha.

On the mound, Alabama boasts a deep and talented pitching staff, beginning with impressive freshman right-hander Myles Upchurch. In 15 starts, Upchurch has posted a 3.57 ERA while striking out 77 batters and holding opposing hitters to a .198 batting average. Equipped with big-league velocity and advanced stuff for his age, Upchurch appears poised to become one of the SEC’s premier arms over the next couple of seasons.

Upchurch is joined in the rotation by a pair of quality starters in Zane Adams and Tyler Fay. Adams, a junior left-hander, relies heavily on a strong offspeed arsenal but can also mix in a fastball that typically sits around 92 mph and reaches as high as 96. His ability to change speeds and keep hitters off balance makes him an ideal second-game option for the Crimson Tide.

The ace of the staff, however, is redshirt junior Tyler Fay. Serving as Alabama’s Friday night starter throughout the 2026 season, Fay has established himself as one of the most dominant pitchers in the country. He attacks hitters relentlessly with a fastball that routinely sits between 96-98 mph and can occasionally touch triple digits.

Earlier this season, Fay authored one of the more memorable performances in college baseball this season, throwing a no-hitter against Florida, striking out 13 batters in the process. He enters Omaha with 121 strikeouts on the season and possesses all the tools necessary to take control of a ballgame from the mound.

If Alabama hopes to advance, Fay’s command will be critical against the Oklahoma lineup awaiting the Tide on Saturday. While his elite velocity can overwhelm opposing hitters, fastballs of that caliber can leave the yard in a hurry if they aren’t located effectively. Expect Fay to get the starting nod in game one.

Alabama and Oklahoma will open play on the Bracket Two side of the Men’s College World Series on Saturday, with first pitch scheduled for 3:00 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN.

Look, this is a high-pressure, big-stage moment this weekend. But it’s pretty simple. Two wins against Mississippi State, and Georgia plays in the College World Series for the first time since the cursed era of the Nike bats in 2008.

Larry Munson was not known to have broadcast UGA baseball (as far as we know), but I’m sure he’d be giving us all sorts of reasons if he were around to feel like poor little old Georgia is trying to beat the 1927 Yankees this weekend.

All that aside, however, there are reasons to feel really good going into this Super Regional.

1. The Silver Lining of Tre Phelps’ Suspension

Was it unjust to boot Tre Phelps for Saturday’s first game of the Super Regional? Yes. Can anything be done to rectify it? Sadly, no. A pedestrian view is that the Diamond Dawgs are at a disadvantage for Saturday’s first game. But it could be just what is needed. If you hear a crunching noise just before Saturday’s first pitch, it’ll be the huge chip on this team’s shoulder from hearing doubters surmise that Georgia can’t get the job done without a Tre Phelps. You don’t need motivation for a Super Regional to start with, but this team should be even more locked in to prove pundits wrong.

2. Is The Earlier Start Actually A Good Thing?

In a word, yes.

Sure, it’d of made Foley Field, as Munson would say, “worse than bonkers.” for a primetime first pitch on Saturday night. But without a full day to sit around and wait, it allows Georgia to have a chance to lock in, take care of business, and hopefully be ready to go for a two-game sweep on Sunday. It’ll also amp up the crowd, too.

Let’s pivot to football briefly – remember the 2021 game against Arkansas when fans were challenged to make Sanford Stadium an Arkansas nightmare? That day was honestly a moment where you knew this team was special, and it was because fans took it as a challenge to overcome an early start time to be that extra advantage.

Yes, the 11 am Saturday start is earlier, but I’m pretty sure fans will be ready to go…and that many a Blackstone or similar items will be rolling heavy with the breakfast items for everyone heading to Foley Field.

3. History Is On Georgia’s Side

Yes, I know. it’s hard to beat a team five or six times in a season. But it can be done. In fact…the last time Georgia had to topple an SEC team that it had swept in the regular season and in the SEC Tournament, it did just that in 2006, beating South Carolina 2-1 in the Super Regional to advance to Omaha. Clearly, no players from this team were around the program then, but it’s a reminder that beating a team two more times with Omaha at stake can be done.

4. Bullpen Versatility

If you have a one-route bullpen plan, the postseason can be dicey. What if your setup or closer, for example, has a bad day. That’s no problem for Georgia, and that showed itself last weekend against Liberty. On Saturday, Matt Scott and Justin Byrd were absolutely rock solid, giving up a combined no runs and one hit in 7.2 innings of combined work. A night later, Zach Brown closed things down with three innings to wrap things up, giving up no runs and one hit. Wes Johnson will have plenty of late-inning options this weekend, and that will be a very good thing.

Go Dawgs!

The Georgia Diamond Dawgs are now just two wins away from returning to the Men’s College World Series for the first time since 2008.

Georgia enters Super Regional weekend riding the momentum of a dominant performance in the Athens Regional. The Dawgs went a perfect 3-0 while outscoring their opponents 30-5, showcasing both an explosive offense and a pitching staff that delivered in crucial moments. The regional sweep secured Georgia’s sixth Super Regional appearance in program history and has the Bulldogs positioned among the final 16 teams competing for a trip to Omaha.

Standing in Georgia’s way is a familiar foe: the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The all-SEC matchup should provide one of the most entertaining Super Regional series of the weekend. While Georgia owns a perfect 4-0 record against Mississippi State this season, none of those victories came easily. Every contest was tightly contested, proving just how evenly matched these two programs are despite Georgia’s season sweep.

Mississippi State enters Athens for its 11th Super Regional appearance and its first since 2021. The Bulldogs have reached the College World Series in five of their previous ten Super Regional appearances, demonstrating a long history of postseason success. Like Georgia, Mississippi State cruised through regional play, sweeping its competition to punch its ticket to the Super Regionals.

The Bulldogs are also led by one of the most accomplished coaches in college baseball. First-year Mississippi State Head Coach Brian O’Connor is no stranger to deep postseason runs. Before accepting the Mississippi State job in June 2025, O’Connor spent 22 seasons leading the Virginia Cavaliers program, building what many consider a Hall of Fame-caliber coaching career. During his tenure in Charlottesville, O’Connor guided Virginia to 18 NCAA Tournament appearances, multiple ACC Championships, seven College World Series appearances, and the program’s first National Championship in 2015. He finished his Virginia career with an astounding 917-388-2 record, good for a .705 winning percentage.

Statistically, Georgia and Mississippi State are remarkably similar teams.

The Dawgs hold a slight advantage offensively, entering the weekend with a team batting average of .324 compared to Mississippi State’s .320. Where Georgia truly separates itself is in the power department. The Bulldogs have launched 171 home runs this season, 42 more than Mississippi State, making Georgia one of the most dangerous lineups in the country.

On the mound, however, Mississippi State owns a slight edge. The Bulldogs enter the series with a staff ERA of 4.29, compared to Georgia’s 4.91. Mississippi State has also excelled at limiting free passes, issuing roughly 100 fewer walks than Georgia this season, with 414 walks allowed as a pitching staff.

With both teams holding advantages in different areas and each playing some of their best baseball of the season, this matchup has all the ingredients to become one of the most competitive and entertaining Super Regionals in the country.

As mentioned earlier, the stakes could not be much higher for Georgia. Not only does the program have an opportunity to return to the College World Series for the first time in 18 years, but it also has a chance to further cement itself among the nation’s elite college baseball programs. Wes Johnson has quickly elevated expectations in Athens, and this weekend presents another opportunity for his club to make history.

Game One is scheduled for Saturday at 11:00 a.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN. Georgia will be forced to navigate the opener without one of its biggest stars, Tre Phelps, who was ejected during the final game of the Athens Regional against Liberty and will be unavailable for Game One.

Game Two is set for Sunday at 12:00 p.m. ET and will also air on ESPN.

If necessary, Game Three will be played on Monday, with the first pitch time to be announced at a later date.

Two teams. One trip to Omaha on the line.

GO DAWGS!!!

Summer is a great time to revisit some of the sublime writing that has appeared in these digital pages over the nearly twenty (wow, that sounds weird to say) years that this site has been talkin’ ‘bout the ‘Dawgs. This morning we revisit DavetheDawg’s classic tale of a wild ride through the Classic City. —MD

Long before a generation of UGA students and fans came to know the Nowhere Bar, Sky’s Place and even the short-lived Uncle Billy’s (bar ribs to die for), there was a drinking establishment that used to exist on Broad Street, known to an entire generation of former Georgia students and locals alike. The long-gone Fifth Quarter was my very own version of “Cheers” back when I matriculated at Georgia from 1980 to 1985. It was located roughly where a bank now sits on the north side of Broad Street just before Hawthorne, and basically across the street from my former high school and college employer, the old Kroger (store 238), that sat in the parking lot down the hill next door to the ABC Package store.

Kroger used to pay me in cold, hard cash every Thursday, and the Fifth Quarter was almost directly across the street. This quirk of geography was hard to resist. Just a quick hop across 6 lanes of traffic and nirvana! Long-neck Buds were $1 (when they went up to $1.50, a near riot ensued until I realized that no one riots at the Fifth Quarter) and Monday Night Football night was also fifty cent hot dog night. I remember this vividly because I was sitting at the bar, watching the game while dispatching approximately my 3rd hot dog on a particular Monday night in December, 1980, when Howard Cosell announced to the world that John Lennon had been murdered. One of those, “where were you when” moments, I reckon.

Craig “Sky” Hertwig, at least in my mind, ran the best bar that ever existed, although I’m pretty certain that Sky wasn’t the original owner/founder of the Fifth Quarter, but he perfected it. This was a place where I truly felt comfortable as I was never into dance clubs (remember the old Mad Hatter?) or the like. I admit it took a lot of courage just to set foot in the place for the very first time. In the parking lot, there was a mix of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, pickup trucks and shiny new vehicles that some of the well-to-do college kids drove. Never judge a bar by its parking lot I suppose. I’m glad I didn’t.

Downtown Athens did not nearly have the same number of bars (what city does?) as it has today, although The Odyssey was a favorite of mine some years later. The original and 2nd iteration of the 40 Watt Club was the place to be if I wanted to witness history as the Athens music scene was exploding as soon-to-be-famous acts (either locally or nationally) seemed to perform in town on a weekly basis. I also tipped a few at the B&L Warehouse. I remember going to Tyrone’s about a week or two before it burned down and always enjoyed The Normaltown Flyers at Allen’s. I don’t care how dirty the grill was, I lovedtheir hamburgers with the bowl of onions they’d supply. No truth to the rumor that the onions were marinated in formaldehyde. Next door to Allen’s was “Foxz.” I nearly got into a rumble there, but thought I should exercise caution and backed down as I sized up my adversary. She looked damned mean.

The Fifth Quarter, though, was my “hang.” It was my base to connect with friends, or just be myself and just blow off steam and the proximity to my employer made it convenient . I think anyone (who enjoys a drink) should experience a bar like this at least once in their life. The ‘Quarter eventually closed a few years later and a new bank went up in its place. That was a sad day. Why reminisce about something from 40 years ago? Because a recent “Old School Athens” Facebook page triggered something in me as I perused a bunch of collective memories from various contributors. Now, I’m waxing nostalgic all of a sudden. So, I put pen to paper…er…fingers to keyboard and here we are.

Sky used to call me “Poodle Head.” Never, ever did he call me Dave, or David. Back when I was still in High School, I was old enough to drink in his bar, at least briefly. I turned 18 in October, 1979 while still going to Oconee County High. The Drinking age went up to 19 on January 1, 1980. So, for two glorious months I played Asteroids (it was all the rage), shuffle board, pin ball and pool while enjoying adult beverages. I did remain a non-drinkin’ patron that lasted nearly 11 agonizing month until I turned 19, but did refine my pinball machine skills. Oh, and the “Poodle head” thing? I got a perm when I was 17. That, too, was all the rage back in the day. Mercifully, that particular fashion statement faded, although it did morph into The Mullet and seemed to gain traction in Gainesville, Florida and vicinity. I sure as hell never sported that particular style. Anyway, Sky got a ton of my hard-earned Kroger money, for sure. And I have absolutely no regrets.

One regret that I do have in life is that I didn’t visit Sky for over 25 years prior to his passing in 2012. I had moved to Texas after graduation, then to Alabama, then North Carolina and eventually south Florida where I remain. I guess I figured that Sky would just live forever because he seemed larger than life, both literally and figuratively. Everyone who knew Sky regarded him as a friend. How could you not? But in those days, Sky actually looked after me. He knew my older sister and they were friends. Sky probably realized I was a bit of a pin-headand needed watching over, so he genuinely came across as “big brotherly,” with all the barbs and teases that any diligent “big brother” would throw your way. I remember playing pool against some random dude and having a modicum of success, for a buck a game. Big money, right? As I was winning, I was talking a bit too much “smack” and the guy was getting a bit tweaked and mumbled an outright threat to do me bodily harm. Sky overheard this, walked over to the table, put his massive hand around the back of my neck and simply said, “how’s it goin’, little brother?” while smiling at the other guy. I got paid as loser left the bar.

Sky used to drive a blue and white two-toned Chevy S-10 pickup back then. It seemed way too small for him and definitely had some worn shocks on the drivers side with a perceptible lean, but whenever I saw it in the parking lot of the bar, I knew there was a friend inside.

I was Poodle Head long before “DavetheDawg.” I can’t imagine why?

The Fifth Quarter had a jukebox that had about 40 or 50 songs on a loop, unless you actually wanted to pay to hear a selection immediately. Only the “newbies” would actually put money into the machine. Sooner or later, you’d hear every song in its repertoire if you were patient. Crackly speakers were piped to the outside of the bar’s front deck, so upon walking into the establishment you might hear Waylon Jennings’ Let’s go to Luchenback, Texas, Kim Carnes’ Betty Davis Eyes, or Jefferson Starship’s Jane. The regular music rotation was about as varied – albeit somewhat limited – as the clientele. A musical certainty on any given night was that you would hear David Allan Coe’s most famous standard at least once. It was your by-God-given, civic beer drankin’ duty to sing this phrase with the passion that the song deserved:

Well, I was drunk the day my mom got out of prison
And I went to pick her up in the rain
But before I could get to the station in my pickup truck
She got run over by a damned old train

The late-great John Prine co-wrote this tune (uncredited) along with the late Steve Goodman. Back when men were men and music was real.

If you didn’t belt this last verse out, there’s something wrong with your DNA and ‘Merican loyalties.

I remember a particular snow storm was developing and headed toward north Georgia (the winter of ‘83, I believe). WSB-TV’s meteorologist Johnny Beckman, who inspired me to follow a similar career path, was warning people of the approaching situation and that station actually ran “Snow Jam” movies all night to keep people entertained. I made a few calls just before leaving work to ask some friends to meet me at the ‘Quarter. If we were going to be snowbound, I didn’t want to be stuck in my east Athens rental. If Kroger called needing me to work, how could I answer the phone if I wasn’t home? I wanted to be in a bar. Thisbar. I think the bar game “quarters” was invented right then and there on that particular occasion. I’m gonna take credit for it anyway.

During football season, the bar would open early for home games. Back then, the kickoff was always at 1:30 PM and games were rarely televised. By 4 P.M., you were filing out of Sanford Stadium, usually basking in glorious victory. The first night game ever was the ‘82 opener vs. Clemson on Labor Day. It was so unbelievably hot that evening. It was hotter than hell. It was Macon hot, which was actually described in the original draft of Dante’s Inferno, but he left that reference out because he didn’t want to scare anyone especially his publisher.

The best blocked punt in Georgia history happened that night. (The second best blocked punt in UGA history came in ‘85 against ‘Bama. But we gave up the lead and lost late. We should’ve won that game).

Queue it to 1:28. “Dale Carver blocked it…Stan Dooley caught it on the 1 and they wrestled him in there!” 

That game also conjured up some other memories. Not the game itself, but the method of transportation which deserves its own thoughts.

The Fifth Quarter used to run these two old Chevy-powered school buses. Small-block V-8’s with 3-speed manual transmission (1 reverse gear, 1 stripped gear, and maybe 1st and 3rd). They were certainly mid-to-late 60’s models, probably procured from some surplus school board and could have been from anywhere in America. I’m assuming Sky bought these old buses and had them painted official Georgia Bulldog Red (RGB 186, 47, 12) with the “Fifth Quarter” logo carefully stenciled on all sides and some other catchy phrases embossed in white, like “How ‘Bout Them Dawgs,” and “Look What’s Comin’ Down the Tracks!” One of the buses died of unnatural causes at some point during the ‘81 season (if memory serves) on the way to the stadium, so the bar was down to a single bus for the remainder of its existence. Legend has it that one of the Fifth Quarter buses made it back from Lexington, Kentucky a year or two earlier with the help of a chicken bone from someone’s lunch that was fashioned to replace a broken carburetor butterfly linkage. That’s another story from another day. Point is, none of these buses were pristine. More on the surviving bus in a bit…

On the day of the Clemson game, the bar was absolutely packed. People arrived early and often throughout the day. As you can imagine, folks were fully saturated with anything and everything alcohol related that Sky had provisioned behind the bar, and the outside decks were open and the kegs of beer were flowing. In fact, I was pressed into service to pour beer from the tapped kegs that were mostly floating in semi-ice filled Rubbermaid trash cans. David Allan Coe never sounded better through the outside blown speakers, the beer never tasted so good and the entire vibe in Athens as people were rolling westbound into town down Broad Street was just incredible. Sky had the sole remaining bus parked in front of the bar, parallel to the highway, and when people driving into town saw the old bus, they began honking and whoopin’ and cheering and it was just the best thing ever. If you were driving into town from Atlanta and your excitement level wasn’t appropriate for the occasion, by the time you passed the Fifth Quarter and saw the party and the big red bus, it surely went up a notch – as did your heartbeat. I really miss this.

So, as the afternoon began to slowly fade into dusk and the game time inexorably approached, which seemed to take forever as the anticipation was growing throughout the summer and during the week, thoughts began to turn on how we’d actually fare on this night of nights. Clemson was the defending National Champions; we won it in ‘80. This was a big-time game on ABC to be nationally televised, on Labor Day night! Remember, Herschel had a broken thumb and was sporting a hard cast; not a 3-D printed graphite, latex and Flex Seal wonderment of modern technology that we have today like the one Sony Michel wore a few season ago after his ATV accident. Nah, this was a goddam plaster/concrete forearm battering-ram of a club that forced #34 to carry the ball in his wrong hand. I remember thinking that Herschel was going to fumble at some point, although he lost very few during his career. He did fumble a few times the year before…at Clemson. Bad omen, perhaps? How do I remember this? I swear I have no idea if I left the coffee pot on just now, but I remember obscure stats from 41 years ago. The mind is a very strange thing. Aging is funny that way.

As the traffic began to lighten up as the kickoff hour approached, those who were riding the bus to the game were summoned on board. The Fifth Quarter bus always waited until the Atlanta Highway traffic trickled down before it departed the bar. It was first-come, first-served, so if you wanted a seat, you’d better be ready to go! That particular night, the big old red bus was packed. Folks were standing in the aisle. The driver, a Fifth Quarter regular named T-Bird (I never knew his first name) cranked up the beast and we slowly pulled out of the grass-less front yard in front of the bar onto Broad Street in a sweeping arc of a curve to begin the trek to Sanford Stadium. Right away, we turned right onto Alps Road off of Broad.

“Everybody lean to the right!” someone yelled from the back because the bus was literally in danger of tipping over on its left side as we took the right hand turn. It needed a counter balance. These were the first moments of mild terror. There was more to come. We hadn’t gone a ¹⁄₂ mile before we’ve got to navigate another turn, this time onto Baxter Street.

“Everybody lean to the left!” This time, a left hand turn could have us tipped right over on the right hand side. The fact that St. Mary’s hospital is just down the road was of no comfort. We navigated that like we had done many times before, but the bus was never this full of liquored up Georgia fans like it was on this day.

You could already smell the burning asbestos, and the clutch plate made a high-pitched whine as the RPM’s increased once the bus began to ascend Baxter Street. Although a gradual slope, it was not an easy climb for that old rig. That part of the trip was relatively uneventful as we approached Clarke Central High School just before Milledge Avenue.

By now, you began to see throngs of people on foot, decked out in their Red ‘n Black, walking towards the game. As the bus began to travel beyond Milledge, the cheers from the crowd began to ramp up because every soul on the bus were yelling, “Goooooooooooooooooooo Dawwwwwwwwwggggggggggggssssssssssss!” at the top of their lungs and folks were yelling right back. You’d have to be a statue or Clemson fan to not get wrapped up in that. We were like temporary rock stars and everyone just smiled and just went bananas. A few probably muttered under their breathe, “I’m glad I’m not riding on thatthing!”

Now, we’re descending Baxter Street and the smell of clutch and brake pad is beginning to actually replace the smell of Budweiser, Jack Daniels and Wild Turkey. Things are about to get interesting.

By now, we’re beginning the long descent down Baxter hill. Thankfully, we are virtually the only vehicle on the road because it’s only about 45 minutes before kickoff and I’m beginning to think that if we had to stop, could we?

The bus is really rolling now, the engine and high-pitched squeal of the transmission has briefly quieted because we’re in neutral. T-Bird is on the brakes a bit more as we roll past Church Street. There are more people now on the sidewalks headed toward the bottom of the hill and the stadium. Our cheering gets louder and all those Dawg fans’ whooping and hollering does, too.

By the time we pass Brumby Hall, T-Bird is literally standing on the brakes and you can smell them burn. I mean, he’s upright, and down shifting at the same time.

By the time we reach Russell Hall, the throngs of Georgia fans are now really into it because here comes the Fifth Quarter Bus and it is loud, full of drunks, and someone hits a button and “Glory, Glory!” begins to play through the horn system. We are rock stars! From the sidewalk, that bus looks great; sounds great. From inside, it’s increasingly becoming unnerving.

I’m up front looking out a window and swear I can see a faint glimpse of gray, acrid smoke from the front wheels. This is probably what Chernobyl smelled like. The engine is really protesting like a high pitched banshee now and I’m thinking, if we survive this (just gotta get to the bottom of the hill), there’s no way this bus is making it back to the bar.

We’re past Russell Hall now and the folks sitting in the back where the beer is kept are seem oblivious to our dilemma of Newtonian physics and ancient Detroit engineering. Anyone up front can see and smell and hear everything as the old V-8 is now screaming in a low gear while the shimmy from the brakes is probably setting off a Richter scale somewhere in the Geology/Geography building on campus.

We’re now beyond Russell and I’m convinced the brakes have failed. The bus stops shimmying and is now literally lurching a few feet at a time as the brakes grab some, then let go. Up ahead, is Lumpkin Street and the confluence of pavement, curb and people is slightly in the way. T-Bird is laying on the horn at this point as the bus is in a semi-controlled deceleration, but we have to stop soon and the issue is in doubt. Everyone in Georgia gear is cheering us on and some are even whacking the side of the bus with their hands, seat cushions, purses, whatever. Don’t they know they’re about to be witness to a great calamity that will be made into a documentary one day?

The smell, at least up front, is literally burning my nostrils as the brake pads have surely melted away and what’s left of the clutch is probably up the hill by Guthrie’s. I don’t think we are going to stop, until we do. “Stop” is actually a liberal term. We have slowed enough to mitigate my panic as we take the left turn onto Lumpkin…horn blaring…”Glory, Glory!” and a good helping of “How ‘bout them Dawgs!” from all on-board.

“Everybody lean to the left!” as the faster-than-comfortable turn onto Lumpkin needed more counter-balance for the short trip up to Baldwin Street and the our eventual parking spot, reserved in advance, somewhere near the Journalism School.

When we finally arrive and disembark, I feel like I want to kiss the ground, but don’t want to be seen as “that guy” who had no faith in our safe arrival. I could tell by the look on T-Bird’s face that this might have been a miracle journey after all. “I hope we make it back now. We’re going via 5-Points. Not as many hills.” That’s all I needed to hear. Maybe I would ride the bus back “home” after all.

Relief. I (we) survived. There’s a feeling of accomplishment after going through something like that. Sorta’ like when you rode “The Great American Scream Machine” at Six Flags for the very first time as a little kid. You feel like you can do anything. Invincible. Now, all that’s left is to find my seat and watch Georgia kick Clemson’s ass.

So, we all went our separate ways towards the stadium to find our seats and witness a defensive struggle that had its share of big plays and physicality. It was really a helluva game. Herschel played sparingly and was a decoy for any time he actually appeared. Tron Jackson scored on a perfectly timed end-around, but holding negated it. I’m pretty sure Penn Wagers threw the flag; could be wrong. In the end, our special teams saved the day, and the defense intercepted Athens native Homer Jordan a couple of times on the night and kept Clemson from doing anything for the entire 2nd half.

The ‘82 team would play for the National Championship and nearly win it. We just couldn’t stop Penn State’s running back consistently enough, and one big pass play did us in late in the game, but that was a helluva year, and the first game of the season was a helluva memory.

I didn’t take the bus back to the bar that night. I rode that bus just one more time, on the way to the ‘83 Auburn game. As we turned right onto Alps Road from Broad Street (everybody lean to the right!), a lady pulled right out in front of us and we hit her. Not much damage, and no one was hurt but I recall someone (maybe Sky?) getting out of the bus to deal with the aftermath and to take care of the police report. Once the cop showed up, we went on our way to the stadium. Auburn beat us that day. This wreck was a bad omen.

Looking back, the Labor Day night of 1982 was something to remember. The first night game, national television hype, an all-day party at my most favorite watering hole ever and a great Georgia victory. And a short, if not terrifying, bus trip that has never left me. That was the evening the brakes burned all the way down Baxter Street.

Never graduate.

Go Dawgs!

Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs landed one of their most coveted recruiting targets on Friday evening, securing a commitment from four star quarterback Colton Nussmeier out of Denton Ryan High School in Denton, Texas.

If that name sounds familiar, there’s a good reason. Nussmeier is the younger brother of former LSU QB standout Garrett Nussmeier and the son of longtime coach Doug Nussmeier, who worked with Kirby Smart at Alabama as the Tide’s offensive coordinator in 2012 and 2013.

The commitment is welcome news for a Bulldog program that had struggled to lock down an elite quarterback in the 2027 class. Nussmeier committed to Georgia coaches on Friday night, forgoing his planned official visit to Arkansas. In addition to the Razorbacks Nussmeier also claimed offers from the likes of UCLA, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Indiana, LSU, and Texas Tech.

Nussmeier visited LSU, Georgia, Florida, and Alabama for camps and unofficial visits as he navigated a deliberate recruitment. Many thought the family connection to LSU and the hype surrounding Lane Kiffin’s impending tenure in Red Stick made Baton Rouge a real possibility for much of the process. For years, many assumed the younger Nussmeier would eventually follow his brother’s footsteps to Baton Rouge.

Instead, the relationship between the Nussmeier family and Kirby Smart appears to have proved decisive. Nussmeier had been in consistent contact with offensive coordinator Mike Bobo for awhile, and repeatedly pointed to the staff and program culture as reasons Georgia stood out. As much as Bobo’s playcalling may frustrate some Bulldog fans, he’s put his students in the NFL. That means a lot for discerning recruits.

Scouting Report

Nussmeier has the potential to develop into an elite college QB under this Georgia coaching staff. He has solid size (6’3.5, 195 pounds) and a big arm. Obviously Nussmeier comes from a football family, and has seen what it takes to succeed in the SEC. While he missed some time as a junior in 2025 with a knee injury, he has put plenty of high-level throws on tape and performed well in camp settings.

Nussmeier’s solid lower body mechanics and efficient release mean he shines in the short to intermediate passing game. He has the football IQ you’d expect from a coach’s kid, and a little of the gunslinger attitude Georgia fans may remember from watching his older brother at LSU. While he needs to work on being more consistent in his mechanics and needs to continue to develop physically, Nussmeier is certainly one of the top ten signal callers available in this class. While he may not have over-the-top athleticism, he’s a “high hit rate prospect”, the kind of player with a high floor coaches can sleep well at night having picked up.

Big Picture

With Nussmeier’s pledge (and with a rapid-fire series of five other commitments over the past week), Georgia now has 13 commitments in the Class of 2027. Landing a quarterback of Nussmeier’s pedigree should also help the Bulldogs attract additional offensive talent, as elite recruits tend to follow elite signal callers.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

I think that’s a no.

College football’s media rights framework is under immense pressure these days. With NIL payments to athletes driving up costs some lawmakers and sports reformers have floated a bold fix: pool all conferences’ TV rights into one centralized package, sell them together, and redistribute the proceeds across college sports.

The proposal envisions a centralized body taking charge of selling pooled media rights, generating more total value than the current conference-specific deals. What’s the selling point for big dollar-generating programs like Georgia? Well, ideally revenues distributed in a way that lets the biggest brands (like the SEC and Big Ten) keep a larger share while still lifting smaller conferences and funding women’s and Olympic sports, both of which have been imperiled by the decreased profitability of athletic departments as a whole.

The SEC and Big Ten, however, aren’t buying it. A study they jointly commissioned concluded that pooling media rights would actually generate less revenue than the current system, where each conference sells its own games independently.

There are some other related problems bound to arise as the details get ironed out on this kind of proposal. For one, giving up the media rights to a third party means schools would likely lose at least some degree of control over how their images and content are used down the line. While many schools (including Georgia) currently have digital content deals and licensing partnerships galore, this would add one more layer of bureaucracy to those agreements.

The grant of rights would also come with certain requirements designed to safeguard the value what the third party trust is buying. Put another way, it would be yet one more party in addition to the conferences and TV networks with its finger in the scheduling pie. Currently there aren’t a lot of things keeping a school like Georgia from scheduling Ohio State then replacing them with Tennessee Tech. Why give someone the power to suddenly veto that kind of change?

Ultimately it feels like we’re getting closer and closer to the SEC and Big Ten breaking away from the smaller/less football-centric conferences. It remains to be seen if a solution can be crafted prior to the ties that bind being completely severed. But the root problem remains that there are definite haves and have nots in the college sports landscape, and the haves now have less than they did before. The have nots are, in some cases, barely hanging on. Either college sports needs a bigger life boat or fewer passengers. And the ice berg isn’t getting farther away.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Kickoff times and television info for the Dawgs’ first three games of the 2026 season were announced today. My advice? Stock up on sunscreen and start hydrating now. It’s gonna be one hot September:

Admittedly when you open the season against Tennessee State and Western Kentucky you probably shouldn’t count on the television executives to hold the primetime slot open for you. When you get the season cranking with a TSU Tiger team that went 2-10 last year in an FCS Franken-conference known as the OVC-Big South Football Association you have to realize no one but Bulldog fans is really going to be tuning in. C’est la vie.

But however mad you may be about standing in the noon day sun of September Athens, rest assured that you’re probably not as perturbed as Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek, who took to social media to vent his frustrations at the tough hand the Razorbacks had been dealt in a quick turnaround from week 2 to their week 3 date with the Red and Black.

I understand why Yuracheck is whining. I just don’t have a lot of sympathy for him. For one, when you’ve been as bad as Arkansas has at football and you’re breaking in a new staff you have to realize you’re not going to bump FSU/Alabama or Michigan State/Notre Dame out of the prime TV slots. Yurachek can’t acknowledge his school’s placement in the SEC pecking order, so it’s up to me to do so; it’s the bottom quartile. Arkansas is in the bottom quartile of SEC football programs as a television draw.

It also occurred to me that the time for Yurachek and the Razorbacks brass to worry about this might have been before scheduling a road game in Salt Lake City. Utah is in the Mountain Time Zone, a fact well-known to 88% of Americans, none of whom apparently is Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek. When was he under the impression that the Utes play their home games? 9:00 a.m.? A 7:15 local time start for a game against a visiting Power 4 opponent isn’t exactly unprecedented.

Will Yurachek’s threat to get in the ears of the SEC office and ESPN bear fruit? Unlikely. Moving the Arkansas/Georgia game would require moving other games, and probably puts someone else playing an early kickoff time they’d rather not. But the Razorback faithful probably expect him to raise a little cane on behalf of his team, even if it’s going to be fruitless. So I guess good on him for making a nincompoop of himself for the home folks. I’ll make a point of congratulating him when I see him sweating his tusks off in September.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Some schools are football schools.

Some schools are basketball schools.

Vanderbilt is a bowling school, and good for them I guess.

But as this graphic making the rounds on Twitter makes clear, there are a vanishingly small group of athletic programs currently firing on all cylinders across the college sports landscape, and Georgia is one of them.

It’s also worth noting that if you include gymnastics (in which both the ‘Dawgs and Tide made the “Sweet Sixteen” group of regional finalists) the list would still be only those two schools. But if you include the NCAA men’s tennis tournament (in which Georgia made the round of 16) and women’s tournament (in which the Red and Black made the final four) the Classic City Canines stand alone in athletic excellence.

There’s another SEC athletic program that weirdly bills itself as the “Everything School” because they won a baseball championship that one time. I hope you’ll take this opportunity to laugh at them just as you have for every one of the 27 seasons that have passed since the last time they won a conference football championship.

But this is also a good time to say a hearty congratulations to Josh Brooks and the rest of the team in Butts-Mehre for the work they’ve done to build an elite athletic program. In this day and time when some league schools are even cutting non-revenue sports programs fielding nationally competitive teams across the spectrum is perhaps an even more amazing achievement.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

After losing several key contributors from the 2025-2026 team that made a second consecutive tournament run, Mike White isn’t backing off on scheduling for next season. Reports indicate that the Bulldogs have been tabbed to take on the Duke Blue Devils in the upcoming Jimmy V Classic in Madison Square Garden.

The Jimmy V Classic is of course named for former college coaching legend Jim Valvano, and has been played annually since 1995. The event raises money and awareness for the V Foundation, which supports cancer research and awareness.

It will be the Bulldogs’ first trip to the event, but Duke is no stranger to the Garden. The Blue Devils have won in the Jimmy V Classic four times, more than any other program in the nation.

The Jimmy V Classic takes place just before Christmas during the traditional “holiday tournament” season. By the time the Red and Black arrive in the Big Apple we should have a decent read on what kind of team Coach White has, and the matchup should provide a good gage of exactly how ready (or not) the Dawgs are for conference play. Until later…

Go ‘‘Dawgs!!!

An open letter from the fans who actually show up

The announcement hit like a bad snap on fourth and one: Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks has confirmed that he and Clemson AD Graham Neff “are in talks” to convert the scheduled 2029 and 2030 home-and-home series between the Bulldogs and the Tigers into neutral-site games, with Atlanta, Charlotte, and Dallas floated as possible venues. The reasoning, stripped of all its polished athletic department language, is straightforward: money. Revenue. NIL dollars. The cold arithmetic of maximizing every dime from a marquee non-conference matchup.

Here’s what the administrators in their Ritz-Carlton meeting rooms seem to have forgotten: the fans are the ones who make this rivalry worth anything in the first place. And from the perspective of anyone who has ever bled red and black in Athens or orange and purple in Clemson, this decision (if it goes through) would be yet another profound betrayal of what college football is supposed to be.

Death Valley Is Not a Rental Property

Let’s start in Clemson, South Carolina, because what is being casually bargained away there deserves to be said plainly: Memorial Stadium, “Death Valley” is one of the most sacred venues in all of American sport. Perched on the edge of a hill in a small university town, Clemson becomes something like the center of the college football universe on game days.

I am cynical about most college football stadiums. I’ve been to many of the cathedrals of the sport, and frankly I have found most of them wanting. Williams-Brice is a parking lot with turf in the middle. Jordan-Hare is barely fair, and the flight of the war eagle is the most overhyped 14 seconds in all of college football. Neyland Stadium is the best argument for high powered explosives and multi-millio. Dollar construction bond campaigns that was ever formulated. Starkville is Milledgeville without the charm or history.

But Clemson, and this pains me greatly to admit, is worth a visit. The tradition of running down the Hill, with players touching Howard’s Rock before sprinting into the roar of a capacity crowd, is a worthwhile experience. It is a living inheritance passed from one generation of Tiger fans to the next. When a team like Georgia comes to Death Valley, that tradition gains new weight. The visiting team runs down that hill into something. The home crowd is the game. Georgia has not played in Clemson since 2013 (a 38-35 Tiger victory). That is more than a decade of a rivalry between schools situated only about 70 miles apart. Conducting that reunion in impersonal NFL arenas that belong to neither school feels like a travesty.

Clemson fans deserve to host Georgia at Memorial Stadium. They deserve to give their children the experience of watching the Bulldogs walk into Death Valley as the crowd reaches a decibel level that the NFL has genuinely never matched. When you move that game to a corporate sponsor’s stadium in Dallas or Charlotte, you do not merely change the address. You remove the soul from the event entirely. Death Valley becomes just another stadium on the map rather than the most intimidating venue in college football.

They Paved the Hedges and Put Up a Parking Lot

In Athens, the argument is no less powerful. Sanford Stadium is a venue of such distinctive character that it has become synonymous with the Georgia Bulldogs themselves. The phrase “Between the Hedges” is not merely a slogan. It is a geographic and spiritual claim.

Clemson has not played a game in Athens since 2014. Apropos of nothing, it went great. But I digress. That means an entire generation of Georgia students has never watched Clemson come into Sanford Stadium and face what every visiting team faces: 92,000 of the most raucous fans college football has to offer. You cannot manufacture that in a neutral venue. You cannot pack the hedges into a shipping container and reassemble them at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. You cannot recreate the particular electricity of a crowd that is defending its home.

There is a reason that the home teams won both times the last home-and-home was played — Georgia at Sanford in 2014, Clemson at Memorial Stadium in 2013. Homefield advantage is real, earned, and meaningful. When you strip it from both teams by playing in a neutral city, you are not creating a fairer game. You are creating a lesser one.

The Hollow Logic of the “Better Atmosphere” Argument

Proponents of neutral-site games often argue that playing in a larger stadium, an NFL venue in a major metro area, create a better atmosphere and more excitement. This argument collapses immediately on examination.

Consider what actually happens at a neutral-site game. Each school receives a ticket allotment. Fans make travel plans and book hotels at inflated rates in cities like Dallas or Charlotte that have no organic connection whatsoever to either program.

The student sections are thin or absent entirely, and the students who make up the beating heart of any college football atmosphere simply cannot afford to travel. Corporate sponsors fill boxes. Season-ticket holders who live near campus , the retired alumni, the multi-generational families who have held those seats for decades, often find themselves priced out or geographically excluded. The local color that makes Athens and Clemson Athens and Clemson is completely gone.

What you get in exchange is a sanitized, premium-priced event that resembles a college football game the way a theme park resembles a real city. It looks sort of right. The scoreboard works. The concessions are fine, if uniformly overpriced. But something essential is missing, and every genuine fan knows it. The 2024 game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta drew attention and television ratings, but ask any fan who was there whether they would have rather been on campus, and the answer will tell you everything you need to know.

Fans Are Not ATM Machines

The financial argument deserves to be addressed directly, because it is the only argument the administrators are actually making. Neutral-site games generate more revenue. The site fees from a stadium operator, the added sponsorship opportunities, the larger footprint of a major-market game — it all adds up. Josh Brooks pointed to the financial success of the annual Florida game, played on a neutral site in Jacksonville, as a model.

But the Florida-Georgia game is a special and irreplaceable case, a game so embedded in regional culture that Jacksonville’s “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” has its own mythology stretching back nearly a century. It was never supposed to be a home-and-home. Clemson and Georgia, by contrast, agreed in what somehow feels like simpler times to play a home-and-home specifically because both fan bases were hungry to reclaim the on-campus experience.

But now your experience is a revenue stream, not a priority. The money will flow regardless. But the trust, once broken, is considerably harder to replace.

What Gets Lost Cannot Be Recovered

There is a generational dimension to this decision that rarely makes it into the athletic board meetings, but it is perhaps the most important one. College football rivalries are transmitted family to family, not broadcast to broadcast. A grandparent who took their child to Death Valley in the 1980s to watch Dooley’s Dawgs try to survive the Tiger roar is connected, through memory and story, to the grandson who should be sitting in that same stadium in 2029. That continuity is the living tissue of a rivalry. I just don’t know that you build those memories by traveling to Nashville or New Orleans to play in a bland NFL venue surrounded by a city that couldn’t care less what’s going on inside.

When you move those games to NFL venues in cities that don’t care about either school, you interrupt that transmission. You replace a chapter in a family story with a sponsored content moment. You tell the next generation that the place doesn’t matter, only the product does.

This is not a minor scheduling adjustment. It is a statement about what college football is for and about.

The Answer Is No

Georgia fans want Clemson on their turf, in their stadium, under their lights, with 93,033 Bulldog voices bearing down on the visiting team. Clemson fans want Georgia in Death Valley, running toward Howard’s Rock’s legacy and into the wall of sound that has made that stadium legendary. Both fan bases agreed to this. Both fan bases have been waiting for it.

The administrators should honor that. The game is not really theirs to sell. It belongs to the fans who have shown up, generation after generation, in the places where it was meant to be played.

Keep it Between the Hedges. Keep it in Death Valley. Keep the money out of it.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Good Friday morning, Dawg fans!! We have officially reached the Road to Omaha as the Georgia Diamond Dawgs and 63 other teams begin their quest for a National Championship, with Regional tournaments starting up today, including in Athens.

Game one of the Athens Regional will feature the Liberty Flames from Conference USA taking on the Boston College Eagles from the ACC. Let’s start with Liberty. The Flames have put together a very solid 2026 season so far, compiling a 41-19 record and falling just short of a Conference USA Tournament Championship against Jacksonville State.

Liberty is led offensively by senior outfielder Nick Barone and junior infielder Tanner Marsh. Marsh leads the team in batting average and on-base percentage, hitting .333 with a .418 OBP while also swiping 22 bags. Barone provides the power in the lineup, blasting 12 home runs to go along with his .320 batting average, impressive 1.000 OPS, and 55 RBIs.

On the mound, Ben Blair stands out for the Flames. Blair leads the team in strikeouts with 106 in 15 appearances while posting a 3.61 ERA during that span.

The Boston College Eagles also put together a strong 2026 season, finishing with a 36-21 record and earning a top-four seed in the ACC Tournament before eventually falling to the Miami Hurricanes in the Finals. The Eagles are led offensively by graduate senior infielder Nick Wang and sophomore infielder Julio Solier.

Solier has hit an impressive .357 while posting a .436 OBP and stealing 28 bags, making him a major threat once he gets on base. Wang supplies the power for the Eagles lineup, leading the team with 16 home runs and 61 RBIs while batting .303.

On the mound, A.J. Colarusso has carried the bulk of the workload for Boston College with 15 starts. During that span, Colarusso has posted a 4.62 ERA while leading the team with 71 strikeouts.

Liberty vs. Boston College is set to begin today at 12:00 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ESPN+.

Now, moving on to our Georgia Diamond Dawgs. Georgia will begin its Road to Omaha in an opening matchup against the Sharks of Long Island University. The Sharks have compiled a 30-20 overall record in 2026 and are coming off a Northeast Conference Championship.

Offensively, the Sharks feature a quality lineup with six players batting over .300, although there is not a ton of power throughout the lineup. Nick Matson, Elijah Fairchild, and Ryan Rivera will lead the way offensively for Long Island, as all three are hitting over .350. However, it will be interesting to see how they match up against Georgia’s SEC-caliber arms.

As for the pitching staff, the Sharks are led by Nicholas Finarelli. Finarelli has made 14 starts for Long Island and has posted a 4.96 ERA with 91 strikeouts during that span. Finarelli and the rest of the Sharks’ pitching staff will certainly have their hands full against Georgia’s potent lineup.

As for Georgia, it has been an exciting last few days for Dawg Nation. The Dawgs are coming off their first SEC Tournament Championship in program history and earned the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament following an impressive 46-12 season. However, Georgia and the rest of Dawg Nation know that the job is NOT finished.

Georgia is led offensively by several standout players, but none stand out more than SEC Triple Crown winner Daniel Jackson. Jackson enters regionals boasting a stat line that includes a .391 batting average, .485 OBP, 78 RBIs, and 27 home runs. The rest of Georgia’s lineup will look to carry over the momentum from the SEC Tournament and continue producing at a high level throughout the NCAA Tournament. Honestly, I could list every player producing at the plate for Georgia, but that would require a completely separate article.

On the mound, the Dawgs will be led by Joey Volchko. Volchko has been Georgia’s number-one arm all season, posting a 4.18 ERA while recording 88 strikeouts and earning nine wins. While the ERA may seem a little high, Volchko possesses Major League-level stuff to go along with his Major League frame.

Alongside Volchko, Georgia’s bullpen has stepped up tremendously, especially Caden Aoki and Justin Byrd, both of whom had excellent SEC Tournaments. With such a dangerous lineup, Georgia will only go as far as its pitching allows, and hopefully, this staff is beginning to hit its stride at the perfect time to send the Dawgs to their first trip to Omaha since 2008.

Georgia vs. Long Island is slated to start at 5 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ESPN+.

Enjoy the rest of your Friday and have a great weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

By the time you finish reading this, a Vanderbilt fan will have quietly switched to watching tennis.

Every great conference needs a floor. The SEC, even as the self-proclaimed pinnacle of college football, the home of championships, and first round draft picks is no exception. While Alabama hoards Lombardi Trophies and Georgia builds pipelines to the NFL, someone has to occupy the basement. Someone has to be the team that gets circled on the schedule as a guaranteed win. Someone has to make a 52-0 blowout feel like a mercy killing.

I’ve crunched the numbers. I’ve pored over the history. I’ve consulted the record books.

And it turns out that someone is Vanderbilt.

Over the past decade, no program in the Southeastern Conference has managed to be less consequential, less watched, less feared, and just less felt from a gravitational perspective than the Commodores of Nashville, Tennessee. This is not a takedown born of malice, dear readers. It’s a statistical, atmospheric, and vibes-based reckoning with a football program that has spent ten years being consistently, aggressively forgettable.

The Record Speaks For Itself (Quietly, From the Corner)

Let’s start with the numbers, because numbers don’t lie, even when the scoreboard is embarrassing. Vanderbilt has spent the better part of the last decade oscillating between 2-win and 5-win seasons like a metronome set to “mediocre.” Multiple years of bowl ineligibility. A 2022 campaign that produced a 2-10 record so bleak that opposing offensive coordinators reportedly used it for confidence-building.

The 2020 COVID season saw them go 0-9 which, yes, was shortened, but finishing 0-for-anything requires a special kind of commitment to losing. And as you may recall that season ended with a stifled whimper as the Commodores found the will and a way to duck out on playing Georgia for what would have been their tenth defeat of the year. I may forget a lot of things from the COVID-shortened season. I may forget Dwan Mathis overthrowing receivers, and proto-Stetson Bennett going feral on occasion. But I will never forget Vanderbilt pulling a Karen Smith from Mean Girls.

To be fair, 2025 brought a genuine surprise: a 10 win season under head coach Clark Lea that had Commodore fans cautiously celebrating as if they’d discovered electricity. It was relatively impressive. It was genuinely fun. And it was one season in a decade of darkness that doesn’t undo the pattern, any more than one good quarterly earnings report wipes out a decade of a company losing money.

And as a reminder, it was a relatively good season. The 10-3 record the Commodores were jubilant about last year put them squarely in 5th place in the final conference standings. 10-3 and ending the year with a loss to Iowa in the Reliaquest Bowl would put you on the hot seat at no fewer than six SEC schools under the right circumstances.

Conference Title Picture? They’re Not Even In The Frame.

In SEC title races over the past decade, Vanderbilt has played the role of a background extra who wanders into the shot only to later be edited out. Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Auburn, Missouri, Florida, Texas, and even Ole Miss have shaped the conference landscape. Vanderbilt has shaped nothing. Their wins have not altered division standings in any meaningful way. Their losses have not stunned anyone. Vanderbilt football is, in the words of the old Blues Traveler song, “like a bad play, where the hero’s right and nobody thinks or expects too much.”

In a conference where a single upset can crater a national championship run, Vanderbilt is the team that other programs schedule mental rest on. Coaches don’t gameplan for Vanderbilt; they gameplan through it, already thinking about the following week. That’s not an insult. That’s just the reality of a program that has produced zero SEC Championship Game appearances and zero College Football Playoff consideration.

Bowls, Playoffs, and the Great Void

The Playoff? Don’t make the Commodores laugh. Bowl games have been a luxury item for Vanderbilt in the past fifteen years, earned sporadically, never celebrated beyond a polite press release. While programs like Mississippi State were at least making it to the Liberty Bowl or the Music City Bowl with some regularity, Vanderbilt spent several seasons not even qualifying for the sport’s lowest postseason rung. Six wins, in an era when you could schedule the Citadel or UL-Monroe with impunity, is not a mountain. It’s a mole hill. And Vanderbilt has rarely climbed it.

Mississippi State, it should be noted, is the honorable mention in this conversation and deserves a gentle ribbing of its own. The Bulldogs had one glorious moment in 2014, ascending to the No. 1 ranking in the very first College Football Playoff rankings behind genuine program icon Dak Prescott, and then proceeded to spend the next eight years reminding everyone that it was, in fact,um, a moment, not genuine momentum.

Hiring Mike Leach was exciting. Mike Leach’s tragic death mid-contract was not the closure anyone wanted. I miss that crazy son of a gun every day of the football season and half of the offseason. And perhaps the Bizarro Bulldogs wouldn’t come in for this pounding if he were still with us. But Mississippi State football is basically that friend who had a great story from ten years ago about meeting Sturgill Simpson at Bennigan’s or hitting a hole in one or singing with Trisha Yearwood* that they still bring up at every party.

South Carolina, meanwhile, has its own ignominious stretch, though the Gamecocks at least have the good grace and testicular fortitude to occasionally beat Clemson and act like they’ve won a Super Bowl. Their energy is less “irrelevant” and more “bless their hearts.”

The Ratings Problem

Television networks love the SEC. They love it so much they pay billions of dollars to broadcast its games. But even within that arrangement, someone has to get the 9:00 pm slot on the SEC Network, watched primarily by die-hards, insomniacs, and people who fell asleep on the couch with the remote out of reach.

That slot belongs, spiritually and often literally, to Vanderbilt. Last season the six most watched college football teams in America were all from the SEC. None was Vanderbilt.The Commodores did, in their most relevant season of college football in nearly a century, manage to crack the viewership top twenty. In doing so they barely beat out Auburn, whose fans had by and large given up on 2025 by the 4th of July. So I guess there’s that.

Ratings for Vanderbilt games are more often the SEC’s dirty little secret. The graphics department in Birmingham does not often get called upon to create social media eye candy about the record viewership for Commodore games against Missouri. Unless the opponent is Alabama or Georgia, teams whose fanbases would watch a tape-delay broadcast of a scrimmage, the Commodores do not move the needle. Advertisers are not fighting over these commercial breaks. When Vanderbilt’s matchup gets flexed to a worse time slot, no one calls the network to complain.

The Attendance Situation

Vanderbilt Stadium holds approximately 40,000 people. It is the smallest venue in the SEC by a significant margin. I can’t swear that Mississippi State doesn’t pack in more fans than that for a mid-week baseball game. And yet, for most of the past decade, they have struggles to fill it. Tarps cover the upper deck not as a temporary fix but as a permanent aesthetic feature, like a tarp that has simply become part of the architecture.

In a conference where Neyland Stadium fits over 100,000 and Death Valley shakes on autumn Saturdays, Vanderbilt’s game-day atmosphere is closer to a well-attended farmers market. Visiting fans frequently outnumber the home crowd. This is a fact that Vanderbilt fans dispute with the wounded dignity and versatile vocabulary of people who went to a very good school and know it.

The Vibes in Nashville: A country song played the right way ‘round.

Which brings us to the intangible category, and the one where Vanderbilt’s irrelevance achieves something almost poetic. The vibes are not bad. They’re not hostile or sad or angry. They are simply neutral in a conference defined by passion.

Nashville is of course not just the home of Vanderbilt University, it’s also the spiritual home of country music. There’s an old joke that asks ““What do you get when you play a country record backwards?” The punchline in response is that “You get your wife back, you get your truck back, you get your dog back, you get your job back…”.”Vanderbilt football exists under the type of perpetual black cloud that a forlorn country troubadour could have gotten some real mileage out of. It’s a program for whom the other shoe is always about to drop, and sometimes when it hits the ground it contains a live rattlesnake.

Vanderbilt is arguably the SEC’s premier research university. Its students are pre-med, pre-law, and pre-occupied with things that matter more than third-down conversions. The mascot, a Commodore, a naval designation nobody under 70 and/or not watching a Russell Crowe historical drama thinks about, has all the menace of a persnickety hall monitor.

There is no rival game that defines the season. There is no “we live for this moment” energy in Nashville in November. There is only the quiet, dignified acceptance of a football program that exists because the university is in the SEC and the SEC requires sixteen teams.

The 2025 season was a genuine and welcome disruption. Clark Lea may be building something real. But relevance, once lost for a decade, is not reclaimed in a single autumn. Vanderbilt has earned this crown in the most Vanderbilt way: gently, consistently, and without much fuss while focused on more important things.

The Commodores kick off the 2026 season on September 5th against Austin Peay. Tickets remain available. Seriously, just call up and make them an offer.

* Actually in this instance I’m that friend, and I never fail to bring it up. Always will.

Tre Phelps hit the go-ahead homer and was not around to see the end of Sunday night’s regional contest between Georgia and Liberty. Neither was Diamond Dawgs’ head coach Wes Johnson.

In the end, Georgia’s determination and a frenzied Foley Field crowd exceeding 3,600 was more than enough to douse the Flames as the Bulldogs won 6-1 to win the Athens Regional and advance to the Super Regionals for the second time in three years.

The Bulldogs were stymied early, their first ten batters being set down by Liberty starting pitcher Cooper Harrington after the Flames drew a first-inning run.

“For those first six innings, I thought their starter came out, threw the ball well. Kind of kept us off balance. I thought we got off some good swings and were just missing some balls,” Johnson said. “That’ll happen when you see a guy like that who’s kind of unique. He had a lower release height, was really commanding his pitches. He kept us off balance but really proud of our hitters. [I] thought we just kept grinding and didn’t give in and made it hard on them.”

That’s when everything changed on multiple fronts at Foley Field.

Phelps parked a Harrington pitch over the left field wall in the sixth inning, but the drama was only starting. Phelps was quickly ejected by game umpires who were also apparently auditioning for the fun police, and Georgia head coach Wes Johnson quickly got the same fate.

Georgia’s skipper had no regrets.

It’s also of note that seated behind the Liberty dugout that Phelps was gesturing toward were…Phelps’ parents.

“As far as the Tre (Phelps) situation, for the record, Tre’s family was sitting up in the stands. Tre was waving at his family. The umpires – whatever, you know I’m not an umpire – they thought he was talking to their dugout,” Johnson said. “Tre got ejected. Tre will miss game one of the super regional. I also was ejected. I have no further penalties. That’s the only statements that we can give and the NCAA will not be making a statement.”

As for what exactly Phelps said? That’s a big mystery.

But what is not a mystery is that the Bulldogs got a career night from starting pitcher Caden Aoki, who gave up a hit and struck out a career-high 11 hitters in six innings, getting out of a two-on, one-out jam in the fifth inning.

“You have to go out there every inning. It’s like a new game every inning, every pitch. You have to stay locked in,” Aoki said. “You’re at your best pitching when you’re not looking at the score. So, I knew the job I had to do, and I wanted to go out there and execute.”

What’s also not a question is that for the second night in a row, Georgia’s bats poured it on late, making it easy for Zach Brown to slam the door with three scoreless innings.

The Bulldogs wore down Liberty’s pitchers with four insurance runs in the eighth, and I began with a heavy dose of poetic justice. Michael O-Shaugnessy, who replaced Phelps after his ejection, slashed a solo homer over the scoreboard, and an RBI double by Rylan Lujo and two-run Ryan Wynn single capped off the big offensive inning.

Georgia now awaits the winner of the Starkville regional and will most likely host next weekend’s Super Regional. If the opponent is Mississippi State, it’ll be a team Georgia is 4-0 against this season.

Go Dawgs!

It is fitting that as legendary UGA Men’s Golf Coach Chris Haack hangs up his spikes that his charges, current and former, do what he did best: win.

Russell Henley has just emerged victorious in a playoff against mythical mini-tour champion Eric Cole in a PGA Tour playoff at Colonial Country Club, taking the trophy for the Charles Schwab Challenge.

And the current Men’s Golf program is now competing in the stroke play portion of the NCAA National Championship, the 24th time the Bulldogs qualified for Nationals under Coach Haack. If they do not make it to the top 8, that will end the season for the Bulldogs and unofficially be Coach Haack’s last meaningful task at the helm.

Henley now continues a run of 17 consecutive years a former Bulldog has won a PGA Tour event. He also moves to 2nd place (in my admittedly limited research) of ‘Dawgs in PGA Tour career wins with 6. Chris Kirk also has 6, and Bubba Watson remains at 10 (with 2 Masters titles included).

The Macon native (and I hear the current Macon resident) was hanging around the top of the leaderboad all week, opening in Fort Worth with consecutive rounds of 4 under par 66. As the weather warmed and the course firmed up, those low scores became scarce, but Henley still shot 69 Saturday to move within 3 of the lead.

That lead was held by Eric Cole, the 2023 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, after a blistering 3rd round 63 on the bouncy greens of Colonial. Cole began Sunday with a 1 stroke lead but a pack of chasers just behind. Playing 1 group ahead of Cole, Henley opened Sunday with a 20 foot eagle on the first and a birdie on the 2nd. Unfortunately he fell victim to the “Horrible Horseshoe”, and bogeyed holes 3, 4, & 5. Another bogey on 9, and Henley’s chances appeared doomed.

But the leaders never distanced themselves, and everyone carded a bogey or two as the play moved to the 2nd nine. And Henley took advantage: a birdie on 11, then closing out with clutch tweets on 16, 17, and a huge 15 footer on 18 to take the clubhouse lead.

Cole meanwhile played steady, and held serve with pars to close out an even par round of 70 and to tie Henley at 12 under par. A playoff ensued.

After a solid drive on 18 again, this time as a sudden death playoff, Russell hit a wedge to just inside 5 feet. Cole hit an admirable approach within 16 feet but couldn’t get the birdie to drop. So Russell did the admirable thing and drained the putt to cap his win, pick up $1.4 million, 500 FedEx Cup points, a restored and modified 1982 Jeep Scrambler, a ton of consideration for the President’s Cup team this fall, and great momentum heading into some big summer tournaments.

A tip of the cap to Coach Chris Haack, his many SEC accomplishments and two national championships for UGA, and for turning out the most productive school alumni in the most competitive golf tour in the world. Congrats to Russell, fingers crossed for the current Men’s team, happy retirement Haacker, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

Georgia’s road to the Super Regionals is now a lot smoother.

After beginning Saturday with the absurdity of having to complete the final three innings of a lopsided win against Long Island in a game suspended by the previous night’s weather, the Diamond Dawgs fended off a fiesty Liberty University team 6-2 on Saturday night at Foley Field.

Now, Georgia gets to sit back and rest in the Athens Regional. It’ll play the winner of Sunday’s early loser’s bracket game between Liberty and Boston College on Sunday night, needing just one win in two tries to advance to the Super Regionals. Sunday night’s game is scheduled to start at 5:06 p.m.

“We gave up three hits today, and we gave up two yesterday,” Georgia head coach Wes Johnson said. “Our offense is extremely, extremely good, but other offenses are good as well. I thought our pitching and defense was outstanding today.”

It was, needless to say, a long day at Foley Field on Saturday. It all began on Friday night, when, leading 15-1 against Long Island, play was suspended by weather. And since NCAA postseason rules do not permit a mercy rule, the game had to be resumed Saturday morning.

When “The 15 Hours of the Athens” resumed on Saturday, the Bulldogs put the closing touches on an 18-2 win in which a school record was tied with nine homers with Joey Volchko hurling six shutout innings.

The day of homers was just beginning for the Diamond Dawgs, who got all of their runs against the Flames via homers. The contest was one in which Georgia, despite being the No. 3 national seed, SEC champion, and regional host, had to play as the visitor per NCAA postseason rules. But that lack of earned advantage didn’t shake the Diamond Dawgs’ resolve, either when it came to clutch pitching or big offensive hits toward the trees of Foley Field.

Georgia went deep in the first on a two-run shot by Dan Jackson, and a pair of solo homers by Kenny Ishikawa and Ryan Wynn put the Dawgs in front 4-2 in the third.

“We’ve always known that Ryan [Wynn] can get it done and come up in big spots,” Georgia shortstop Kolby Branch said. “He’s a great player. His mindset when he’s not playing is wonderful. It’s one of the reasons I think that we’re a good ball club is because when you have guys like Ryan who gets in the game, plays well and then goes back to the plan.” 

Round-trippers by Rylan Lujo in the sixth and Brennan Hudson in the ninth padded the lead.

But this win was not one limited to outscoring an opponent. It was also one in which Georgia ended up leaning on its bullpen after starting pitcher Dylan Vigue was chased after just an inning and a third, having allowed two runs. The bullpen was up to the call, however. Matt Scott held the Flames to no runs and one hit through five innings before Justin Byrd fanned four of the nine batters he faced to close out the game. Byrd’s biggest moment was in the seventh when he inherited two runners aboard. After walking the first batter he faced, he retired the next two Flames to get out of the bases-loaded jam.

“I thought what Matt [Scott] did today was elite. It’s what big-time players do. Matt came in the game, things were a little sideways. There was some momentum leaving our side,” Johnson said. “Sometimes as a coach, you have to go out there and make a change. We did. Our team believes in Matt so much. We just do. He believes in himself. You want guys in the game when you need to stop momentum like Matt.”

Go Dawgs!

Under Kirby Smart the University of Georgia transformed from a sleeping giant into the winningest program in college football. The program produced back-to-back national championships, a dynasty-level run of NFL Draft talent, and a roster depth that most programs could only dream about. The question is a tantalizing one for any Bulldogs fan: if you could pluck one former Georgia player from the Smart era and drop him magically back onto the 2026 roster, who would have the biggest impact?

To be clear, this is not simply a question of who was the “best” player. Impact at the college level is shaped by position value, scheme fit, the current state of the team’s roster, and the degree to which a single player can elevate the players around him. With those factors in mind, here are the five strongest candidates — and a verdict on who wins the argument.

5. Roquan Smith, Linebacker (2016–2017)

Roquan Smith has became one of the most dominant linebackers in the NFL, a four-time Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro with the Baltimore Ravens. Before that however he was a two-year force in Athens who redefined the standard at the position for the Red and Black. Smith was the 2017 winner of the Butkus Award, given annually to the nation’s best linebacker, and his ability to apparate sideline to sideline was simply breathtaking.

At 6-foot, 236 pounds, Smith possessed an almost uncanny instinct for reading opposing offenses. He could stack and shed blockers, blow up screen passes before they developed, cover tight ends and slot receivers in man coverage, and still arrive like a sledgehammer as a pass rusher when needed. In college, he recorded 97 tackles and seven sacks across two seasons and was widely regarded as the best linebacker prospect in the country upon leaving for the 2018 NFL Draft.

Dropping him onto the 2026 Georgia defense would be a delightful luxury, but perhaps less transformative than the names above him on this list. The Bulldogs have consistently recruited and developed elite linebacker talent under Coach Smart. In 2026 veterans Chris Cole, Justin Williams, and Raylen Wilson all return inside along with promising sophomore Zayden Walker. Smith would be extraordinary, but the position is not one where Georgia is really lacking. His impact would be enormous, but it would represent an upgrade rather than a revelation.

4. Andrew Thomas, Offensive Tackle (2017–2019)

Perhaps the most underappreciated name on this list, Andrew Thomas was a dominant left tackle during his three years in Athens and became the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. He has since developed into one of the premier offensive linemen in the entire league, earning Pro Bowl recognition with the New York Giants.

At 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds with exceptional length and footwork, Thomas was the kind of anchor that allows an entire offense to function at a higher level. Quarterbacks throw with more confidence. Running backs find cleaner lanes. Play-action develops more naturally. The ripple effect of an elite left tackle is enormous and often invisible until he’s gone.

The reason Thomas ranks fourth rather than higher comes down to Georgia’s current offensive line identity. The Bulldogs have consistently signed and developed NFL-caliber linemen. Earnest Greene’s return was surprisingly less of a splash than I would have figured, perhaps owing to some of his injury-I diced struggles in 2025. If Greene stays healthy in 2026 he has All-SEC potential. If he doesn’t, I would expect sophomore Juan Gaston to move over to that spot, and he could also play at a high level. Inserting Thomas would make Georgia’s offense significantly more explosive, but as with Roquan the marginal gain at a position of existing strength keeps him from the top tier of this exercise.

3. Stetson Bennett, Quarterback (2019–2022)

No player in Georgia’s dynasty era captured the program’s spirit quite like Stetson Bennett. A walk-on who left and came back, who was benched and returned, who climbed every mountain put in front of him, who simply refused to be denied. The Prince of Pierce ultimately became a two-time national champion and the most decorated quarterback in program history.

His numbers speak for themselves. In his final season in 2022, Bennett threw for 3,425 yards and 27 touchdowns, leading Georgia to a 65-7 destruction of TCU in the national championship game. He was composed under pressure, a natural leader in the huddle, and an expert at operating within Todd Monken’s system, controlling the game when needed and attacking when the opportunity arose.

The argument for Bennett is primarily emotional but also substantive. Quarterback is the most important position in football, and a veteran, battle-tested signal caller with national championship experience is worth its weight in gold at the college level. I love Gunner Stockton, he won a SEC title while playing some of his best football toward the end of the season, and he will almost certainly be a better player in 2026. But the Georgia quarterback room still feels like it has a void that a figure like Bennett would fill decisively. His competitive fire alone would be invaluable.

However, Bennett was never a transcendent physical talent. He succeeded through intelligence, toughness, and extraordinary preparation. Against elite competition, those traits matter enormously. Gunner Stockton’s seems to have them as well, and assuming he develops he would make Bennett unnecessary as well, hard as that may be to believe.

2. Honorable Mention: Brock Bowers, Tight End (2021–2023)

Brock Bowers was not merely the best tight end in Georgia history. Many who watched him play consider him the most dominant tight end in the history of college football, full stop. In three seasons in Athens Bowers caught 175 passes for 2,538 yards and 27 touchdowns. He is the only player ever to win back-to-back Mackey Awards, given to the nation’s best tight end, and he did so at ages 19 and 20.

What made Bowers historically unique was his combination of size, speed, hands, and run-after-catch ability. He was impossible to cover with a single defender. Safeties couldn’t keep up with him in space. Linebackers could not match his precise route-running. Cornerbacks could not handle his physicality after the catch. Defensive coordinators across the SEC and in two College Football Playoff runs were simply left without answers.

Bowers was the Las Vegas Raiders’ fourth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, and he has continued his excellence at the professional level. Returning him to Georgia in 2026 would immediately make the Bulldogs’ passing offense a nightmare to defend.

Don’t get me wrong, Georgia’s current crop of tight ends including Lawson Luckie, Elyiss Williams, and Jaden Reddell (to say nothing of five star freshmen like Kaiden Prothro) are elite talents. But no one has ever played it at the college level the way Bowers did.

He misses the top spot by the thinnest of margins, and only for one reason.

1. Nick Chubb, Running Back (2014–2017)

Nick Chubb is the answer, no matter the question. In four seasons at Georgia, Chubb rushed for 4,769 yards on 758 carries and scored 48 touchdowns. He averaged 6.3 yards per carry across his career and was, by any metric, one of the best running backs in the history of college football. He did all of this while sharing a backfield first with Todd Gurley, then with Sony Michel and recovering from an injury that would have ended many players’ careers. He still managed to rank among the SEC’s elite ball-carriers in every healthy season he played.

What separates Chubb from Bowers in this exercise is position scarcity meeting historic ability. Running back is the position most responsible for controlling tempo, shortening games, and reducing the margin for error in close games. A back like Chubb, who gained yards after contact the way few players ever have, who broke tackles with a combination of power and burst that seemed physically impossible, would take enormous pressure off Gunner Stockton and a youngish receiver rotation.

Chubb’s 2017 season, in which he rushed for 1,345 yards and 15 touchdowns while sharing touches with Michel, came on a team with a first-year starting quarterback in Jake Fromm. The parallel to 2026 Georgia is striking. A dominant running back transforms a program’s identity, and Nick Chubb was the most dominant running back of the Kirby Smart era..

Brock Bowers would make Georgia’s passing offense elite. Nick Chubb would make Georgia’s offense simply unfair. While I like Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens, and have confidence in both to deliver in 2026, Chubb would be a substantial, even transformative, upgrade.

Final Verdict

Each of these five players would be extraordinary in their own right. Roquan Smith would anchor a great defense. Andrew Thomas would anchor a great offensive line. Stetson Bennett would stabilize the most critical position on the field. Brock Bowers would create a nightmare matchup at tight end that no coordinator in college football could solve.

But Nick Chubb, at full health and in his prime, playing behind a veteran Georgia offensive line in 2026, would be as close to an unstoppable force as college football allows. He is the answer, and it isn’t particularly close. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

A high national seed in hand, Georgia now knows more about the roadblocks in its way when it comes to a trip to Omaha and the College World Series.

As expected, the Diamond Dawgs were highly rewarded on Monday for sweeping the SEC regular season and tournament titles, being awarded a No. 3 overall national seed.

Liberty and Boston College will begin the Athens Regional on Friday afternoon prior to Georgia hosting Long Island in a 7 p.m. contest. The winner of the weekend’s double-elimination regionals will advance to face the winner of the Starkville Regional in a best-of-three super regional next weekend. What that means is simple for Georgia – that Foley Field will host both regionals and next weekend’s super regionals should the Dawgs advance.

If the Bizarro Dogs, seeded 14th nationally, win that regional,‘ it’d be the fifth matchup of the year between Georgia and MSU with the Dawgs winning all four times so far.

Of those teams, Liberty could have the argument of being the most dangerous to Georgia with the Flames being Conference USA runner-up and boasting an RPI of 32 that’s just below that of Miami and Tennessee…and two spots above the regional’s No. 2 seed, Boston College.

Liberty will be used to the spotlight, having lost two-of-three this season to national-seed West Virginia and has also played ACC teams such as Duke, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Wake Forest. Liberty has made eight NCAA regional appearances in its history, advancing to the regional final twice.

Georgia’s the highest seed among all SEC teams. As expected the selection committee again highly regarded the rigor of the SEC, as the Dawgs are one of five national seeds from the SEC. Those other teams are Auburn, Texas, Alabama, and Florida.

When it’s conference tournament-time in college baseball, the goals for teams with their postseason fate in good hands are complex. Sure, you want to play well in those few days and be in a good place going into regionals. But a conference tournament matters little in comparison to the weight held by regionals, super regionals, and the College World Series.

You want to play well, and anything else is gravy.

The Diamond Dawgs may as well be riding the gravy train.

For the first time in program history, Georgia has won an SEC Tournament title with Sunday afternoon’s 11-1 win by the fourth-ranked Dawgs over tenth-ranked Arkansas 11-1.

Georgia used a whole-staff approach to hold down the Razorbacks on Sunday, starting with Paul Farley’s four scoreless innings followed by work from Zach Brown, Caleb Jameson, and Jordan Stephens. At the plate, a four-run on five-hit outburst was led by Rylan Lujo, Brennan Hudson ripping RBI doubles and Jack Acrahome blasting a two-run homer.

Georgia made it to Sunday with a furious rally the day before, coming back from being down 6-0 to beat Florida 8-7. The Bulldogs pushed three runs across in the fourth, one in the fifth, and two more in the seventh and eighth to complete the comeback.

Georgia opened play in Hoover with a 5-3 win against Mississippi State on Thursday.

The Dawgs now await Monday’s NCAA Regionals announcement, following a weekend that should solidify their standing as a national seed. That should help Georgia’s draw going to a place where they have been snakebit in recent seasons.

No, this past weekend is no reason to make your reservation for a steak dinner at The Drover in Omaha yet, but it does not hurt any reason to dwell on that possibility even more.

Go Dawgs!

Coach Cecile Canqueteau-Landi made a splash in recruiting this week with former Arkansas standout and Olympian Joscelyn Roberson’s Thursday announcement that she is transferring to Georgia.

Roberson picked the Red and Black over fellow finalists and college gymnastics heavyweights Florida and UCLA. The Bulldogs had been a favorite to land Roberson in part because the Texas native trained as a junior gymnast with Canqueteau-Landi at World Champions Centre in Spring, Texas, where Simone Biles also trained.

To say the new GymDog is a big time pickup would be an understatement. Roberson was a part of the gold medal winning U.S. team at the 2023 World Championships, then earned an alternate spot on the 2024 Paris Olympic team. She also was the bronze medalist in the vault at the 2025 World Championships.

Roberson spent the past two collegiate seasons at Arkansas, earning Second Team All-American honors last season on the floor and regular season First Team All-American on the beam. Roberson earned All-SEC nods on all four collegiate events. She scored a 9.850 on the vault at the SEC Championships, including completing the Mustafina, making her the first athlete to execute the technical vault maneuver in NCAA action.

Roberson never scored below 39.425 in her four all-around appearances for the Razorbacks in 2025-26, with a season high of 39.575. That consistency is something the Bulldogs need to reach the next level in cutthroat SEC Competition. Georgia is coming off a season that ended with a #6 national ranking, the highest for the squad in recent memory Adding an elite world-class gymnast like Roberson, who has two years of collegiate eligibility remaining, should help with taking that next step.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Good Thursday afternoon, Dawg fans!!

Before getting into the SEC Tournament, the Dawgs wrapped up the regular season on an impressive high note. Georgia swept the LSU Tigers and secured a series win over the Auburn Tigers, finishing that stretch with a dominant 5-1 record while outscoring opponents 51-39. The strong finish helped solidify Georgia’s place as one of the top teams in the country heading into postseason play.

This past week also brought plenty of individual recognition for the Bulldogs. Head coach Wes Johnson was named SEC Coach of the Year after leading Georgia to a 43-12 overall record and an outstanding 23-7 mark in SEC play. In just his third season at the helm, Johnson guided the Dawgs to the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament, continuing the rise of the Georgia baseball program under his leadership.

On the player side, Daniel Jackson was named SEC Player of the Year while also capturing the SEC Triple Crown following a monster regular season. Jackson finished the year batting .394 with 27 home runs, 77 RBIs, and a staggering 1.328 OPS, cementing himself as one of the most dangerous hitters in all of college baseball.

Now, let’s talk SEC Tournament baseball. The Georgia Bulldogs have officially advanced to their first SEC Tournament semifinal appearance since 2019 after defeating the Mississippi State Bulldogs by a final score of 5-3 minutes ago. Georgia battled through a competitive matchup, but it was Brennan Hudson who delivered the game-changing moment. Hudson launched a three-run go-ahead home run in the bottom of the fourth inning, giving the Dawgs the momentum they needed to punch their ticket to the semifinals.

Georgia will now take on the winner of the Florida vs. Alabama matchup in the SEC Tournament Semifinal, setting up another huge test for the Dawgs as they continue their push for an SEC Tournament title and build momentum heading into the NCAA Tournament. I’ll also be making the trip down to Hoover tomorrow to cover the tournament this weekend and hopefully witness Georgia capture its first SEC Tournament Championship. Hope all of you have a great rest of your week and a safe Memorial Day weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

There are a lot of elements that go into making the perfect football tailgate. Good friends are critical. Delicious food is a must. But underlying all of it, always there in the background, is the perfect tailgate soundtrack. The right songs serve as the perfect aural backdrop for good times with good friends. The wrong music marks you out as a weirdo, maybe even a closet Gator fan.

And the answer to the question “What is the right soundtrack?” is probably a resounding “it depends.” The late 30s alums listening to Olivia Tremor Control and the late 70s alums listening to Sam and Dave are both right in their own way, and

1. Orange Crush/Finest Worksong, R.E.M. My tailgate music is and always has been Athens-centric, and it doesn’t get more Athens than R.E.M. Plus, these songs are both anthemic in their own way. When I hear them I’m back in sophomore year tailgating at the fraternity house. As Eric Church put it, it’s funny how a melody sounds like a memory.
2. Driving Song, Widespread Panic. Athens-born? Check. Worthy of bobbing along to? Check. Awesome fiddle part that your drunken buddy can get down to? Checkity check check. An all-time classic from the band that shut down Athens and threw a party.
3. Right Hand On My Heart, The Whigs. An absolute banger from one of the quintessential Athens bands. I once advocated for this song, with its powerful opening drum line, to be played pregame in Sanford Stadium. I wasn’t successful in making that happen, but I also wasn’t wrong.
4. Jessica, The Allman Brothers Band. Not strictly Athens based, but certainly a Peach State Classic. The unbridled joy of the Allman Brothers instrumental opus sounds like a crisp fall in the Classic City feels.
5. Love Shack, the B-52s. If you’ve never shouted ““Tin roof!….Rusted.” I think you may have to turn in your Bulldog card.
6. Where the Devil Don’t Stay, Drive-By Truckers. It wouldn’t be an Athens tailgate without the Truckers. While I could go with any of a dozen songs in this spot, I’m landing on the blistering opening track from The Dirty South, no lower than my third favorite DbTs album. Other kickass rock n’ roll songs are available, and your mileage may vary, as they say.

So what’s playing over the speakers at your Bulldog tailgate?

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

We’re fast nearing the end of the 2025-26 academic year sports schedule, yet those who already matriculated the hallowed halls of Athens are earnestly plying their trades. And some former Bulldogs are heading to Philadelphia to earn a fair wage.

These aren’t a result of the NFL draft. These are members of the PGA Tour and they’re part of the 156 man field eligible to compete for the PGA Championship. Here’s a primer and what you want to know.

Tournament: 108th PGA Championship, May 14-17, 2026

Course: Aronomink Golf Club, par 70, 7,394 yards. Newton Square, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia on the northwest side.

Purse: $20,000,000 total, with $3,600,000 to the winner.

Defending Champ: Scottie Scheffler. With no Louisville PD to impede his march to victory, thee world’s #1 gradually built up a 5 shot lead over the first 3 days, until he didn’t. Scheffler played uninspired early Sunday, while Jon Rahm heated up. About 2.5 hours later, those roles reversed, Scottie returned to form, and Rahm folded like a LIV event in New Orleans.

Fun Fact: Jordan Spieth can win the career grand slam with a win, having already captured a British, US Open, and Masters. Gary Player won his first PGA Championship at Aronomink in 1962 – after Arnold Palmer won the Masters, then Jack Nicklaus won the US Open and Palmer captured the British Open. The Big 3 showed up that year.

TV Times: Extended coverage since it’s a major, but also a little different lineup. ESPN has Thursday’s coverage from noon ET through 7 pm, then it switches over to ESPN2 for another hour. Friday is straight ESPN mothership from noon – 8 pm ET. Saturday and Sunday are 10 am ET – 1 pm on ESPN, then 1-7 pm ET on CBS. There are some extended streaming options early in the week on ESPN+, and then some featured groups, etc. on ESPN+ during the main broadcast times.

‘Dawgs in the Field: 6. Brian Harman, Harris English, Russell Henley, Chris Kirk, Keith Mitchell, Sepp Straka.

In terms of players, remember that this is the championship put on by the PGA of America, not the PGA Tour. As the organization that credentials and supports club professionals, 20 of these working stiffs are in the field. That’s right, most of these 20 are guys running the pro shop and supervising the Tuesday Night Ladies League at your local course. And yes, Michael “Blockie” Block is one of them (google him – better than googling Cignetti).

Bryson DeChambeau will be there and probably petulant. Jon Rahm will be there looking for a fight (cut him some slack – his employer may be going out of business). Rory McIlroy will be as light and relaxed as possible, and his wife might show that she cares. Brooks Koepka will be having a good time but not look like it. The field will also include former PGA Champions and totally-not-forgotten players like Shaun Micheel, Martin Kaymer, YE Yang, Jason Dufner, and Jimmy Walker.

Aronomink is an old-school Donald Ross course. At just over 7,300 yards it is the shortest PGA in several years. Plus the fairways are fairly generous. Add in that this is golf in the Northeast where courses are still soft early in the golfing season, and we could see some low scores.

The main defense this track has are typical Donald Ross greens. The course went through a redesign a few years ago to restore the original Ross shapes and contours. And the greens have contours in spades. One of the best amateurs in golf history, Jay Sigel, played here regularly and purportedly said “don’t shoot at the pin – shoot at quadrants” in reference to putting your ball on a safe part of the green to reduce the risk of an impossible putt or short-siding yourself into a bogey.

We’ve got a traditional backdrop to a traditional major, played at a semi-traditional time of year. And like tradition, a bunch of former ‘Dawgs making up one of the best fields in the world of golf. Enjoy all the spoiled good walks, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

If you’re of a certain age, you may remember the SNL skit Taco Town, a satirical send up of American restaurants’ tendency to embiggen portion sizes until they challenge the very concept of human dignity. In the sketch’s most memorable line, a babyfaced Andy Samberg yells “Pizza! Now that’s what I call a taco!”

I yelled that same thing myself with the recent news that the NCAA basketball tournament is expanding to 76 teams starting next year. I’m not terribly sentimental about college basketball since I only watch it in the spring as tourney time nears, but this is a craven decision that no fan wants and that will only make the sport worse and less interesting. It signals, once again, a growth-at-all-costs mindset on the part of the sport’s leadership (meaning Greg Sankey and Tony Petitti) with no regard for the fans or the student-athletes (are we still calling them that?).

What concerns me more is that this probably means a 24-team football playoff is inevitable. 

Realistically, the 24-team format was probably a foregone conclusion as soon as the BCS shuffled off this mortal coil. I suppose we should count our blessings that it took more than a decade for the greedy vampire squids who run this sport to decide to woodchipper it beyond recognition. If you’re in favor of a bigger playoff, I won’t try to change your mind. But as I remain a disciple of Senator Blutarsky, here are my reasons for skepticism. 

The Regular Season Is Meaningless (for Some Teams)

On this week’s episode of Split Zone Duo, Bill Connelly said that a 24-team playoff means Ohio State will never play another meaningful regular season game again. The same is probably true for a dozen other major brands in the sport who are never going to be in danger of missing the playoff. Even as a fan of a team in that group, that’s bad!

The traditional narrative about college football is that it had the Most Important Regular Season of any sport because so few teams earned a title shot. For most of the sport’s history, a team had almost no margin for error if it wanted to fulfill its greatest ambitions. Now, with 24 spots, mulligans for the bluebloods will abound. Losing to a rival may sting, but it won’t derail a season like it once did. Of course, thanks to NIL and more player freedom, a dark horse may break through — Indiana is the reigning champion, after all — but more chances for established powers with better player development systems and better prep recruiting will likely serve to consolidate titles in the same hands. 

I’m not saying we have to stuff the genie all the way back in the bottle, but 12 playoff spots is enough. Sometimes we need a postseason without Ohio State, Alabama, and even GASP Georgia in it for the games to have stakes. 

It’s Not About Inclusion

I think most people are cynical enough about the motives of college football leadership to know that the expanded playoff isn’t designed to give the G6 more opportunities. But take a look at the final CFP rankings from last year. There are only three G6 teams on the list, with two of them ranked below an 8-4 Iowa team despite having fewer losses. Plus, the committee has already implemented rule changes to prevent two G6 teams from ever making the 12-team field again after the debacle with Duke winning and ACC and Notre Dame getting left out last year.

Sankey and Petitti aren’t going to advocate for a bigger playoff so they can see Navy or East Carolina vying for a championship. In a 24-team field, spots 18 through 24 are primarily going to an 8-4 Mizzou team. What you’re going to get is the Reliaquest Bowl rebranded as a playoff game.

The Expanded Playoff Won’t Solve Coach Firings/Buyouts

One of the reasons I’m most certain that expansion is coming is because coaches are consolidating around the idea. That’s probably because they believe a bigger playoff means better job security. Coaches can point to making the playoff field as evidence of success for their program to engender goodwill and keep themselves employed. 

Well, coaches, I have bad news for you. When you take this job, you’re holding a wolf by the ears. What the boosters want is a championship, not making the field, and they behave as responsibly with their money as a sailor on shore leave. Gone are the days where a Mark Richt-type will get a decade-plus to deliver a national title. 

Do you think I’m wrong about this? Well, let’s look at some recent trends. Gus Malzahn set a record with a buyout of just over $21 million when Auburn fired him at the end of the Covid season in 2020. That’s after he nearly won a national championship in his first year and almost made the playoff again in 2017 to say nothing of his work as OC there prior to his head coaching stint. Since then, Jimbo Fisher, Brian Kelly, James Franklin, and Mark Stoops have all eclipsed that total. Fisher has a national championship, Kelly is the winningest coach in the history of one of college football’s legacy programs, Franklin is the second-winningest coach in Penn State history, and Stoops is the winngest coach in Kentucky history. But none of them won a title at that current school, and that’s what mattered.

One team out of 138 can win a championship each year. Everybody else is in danger of the pink slip, and making the tournament as a 15 seed isn’t going to save you for long.

The Controversy Won’t Go Away 

After last season ended with a stupid, engineered controversy, I wrote about how further expansion wouldn’t solve the problem. There is no way to objectively determine a champion in a sport with this bizarre structure. That’s the whole point! If anything, expanding the playoff will just make the arguments worse and more annoying.

I don’t know what it will take to get me to stop watching college football, but I have a feeling I’m going to find out.

Good Thursday afternoon, Dawg fans! The Georgia Diamond Dawgs continue to assert themselves as one of the elite programs in the country, and with the end of the regular season rapidly approaching, the timing couldn’t be better. Sitting at 38-11 on the season with an 18-6 conference record, Georgia is currently riding a six-game winning streak, fueled by back-to-back conference series wins over the Ole Miss Rebels and Missouri Tigers, along with a midweek victory over Troy.

Over a seven-game stretch, the Dawgs’ offense has continued to be downright punishing, plating sixty-four runs while the pitching staff, which has been a story of growth all season, surrendered just twenty-six. That kind of run differential is a sign of a team that’s heating up at exactly the right time, and the arms finding their groove heading into the postseason is about as encouraging as it gets.

Offensively, the story remains the same, in the best possible way. Daniel Jackson and Tre Phelps continue to be the heartbeat of this lineup, and both are having seasons that deserve national recognition. Jackson has been ascending draft boards at a remarkable pace; where he might have been projected as a mid-to-late-teens round selection entering the year, he now has a legitimate shot at first-round consideration in this year’s MLB Draft. That kind of jump doesn’t happen without consistent, elite production.

The two are running nearly parallel stat lines, especially in terms of batting average, Phelps sitting at .372, Jackson at .373, and together they’ve combined for forty home runs on the season, with Jackson accounting for twenty-three of those and Phelps adding seventeen. That kind of power-and-average combination from two players in the same lineup is exceptional at any level, and Georgia fans should be savoring every at-bat remaining.

Georgia will now shift their focus toward closing out the regular season on a high note. The Dawgs open a crucial three-game home series against the LSU Tigers at Foley Field tomorrow night, with first pitch scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET. LSU is never an easy out, making this series a meaningful measuring stick as Georgia tries to position itself for a deep postseason run.

After that, the Dawgs head to the Plains to take on Auburn in another three-game series, the final chapter of the regular season. From there, it’s postseason baseball. The SEC Tournament is set for May 19th-24th, and Georgia will have their sights locked on something historic: the program’s first SEC Tournament Championship.

Hope all of you have an incredible rest of your week and weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

The PGA Tour heads to Miami this week, the first time playing at Doral since 2016. The reasons for not playing at a decidedly Tour-level venue are both varied and soaked in nuance, but we’ll skip those and just address the basics.

Tournament: Cadillac Championship, April 30-May 3, 2026.

Course: Trump National Doral’s Blue Monster Course; par 72; 7,739 yards. It used to be just the Blue course, but got renamed like everything else at the property (the name is justified – the course is a big track, and the 18th hole is a beast of a par 4, usually into the wind). Just outside downtown Miami, but practically across the street from Miami International Airport. You will both see and hear planes on the broadcast.

Purse: $20 million, with $4 million to the winner. Yes, another Signature Event aka cash grab for the rich.

Defending Champ: Adam Scott. The Boss clothing-sponsored and part-time supermodel won the WGC Cadillac Championship 10 years ago. Remember the WGC events? Man, I miss those simple times.

Fun Fact: Winners on this course are a Who’s Who of golf history. Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Lee Trevino, Nick Faldo, Tom Weiskopf, and many other hall of famers. It also boasts Craig Parry – another Aussie winner. Parry was a decent player 20 years ago, and won the tournament when he holed a fairway shot on the tough 18th. The best is that holier-than-thou broadcaster Johnny Miller had been bashing Parry’s swing all week on TV. And then ate some crow late Sunday.

TV Times: Thursday and Friday are on Golf Channel from 3-7 pm ET. Golf Channel also has the early coverage Saturday and Sunday from noon-3 pm, when CBS (okay, Paramount too) takes over from 3-7 pm ET.

‘Dawgs in the Field: It’s an 80 man limited field, but we have 5 former Bulldogs qualified and ready to tee it up. Russell Henley, Harris English, Brian Harman, Sepp Straka, and Keith Mitchell. A good finish by Mitchell will qualify him for the PGA Championship in 2 weeks.

We had the Masters 3 weeks ago, a Signature Event in Hilton Head right after, the fun but weird team event in NoLa last week, and another Signature Event in Charlotte next week. The PGA Championship is the week after that. Someone really needs to rework the PGA Tour calendar.

Because of the weird schedule, and possibly some personal beliefs, the #2 and #3 players in the world are skipping (Rory McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick) as well as a few others in the top 30. But most of the top sticks are here, including Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood, and a host of crowd favorites like Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth. But we know who you’re really rooting for.

So tune in to see if our boys can put some Red & Black on the Blue Monster. Enjoy, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

Good Friday morning, Dawg fans!!

The Georgia Bulldogs have wrapped up another demanding stretch of SEC play as the regular season begins to wind down, and the margin for error continues to shrink. With just 13 games remaining, every inning now carries postseason implications for a team with its sights set firmly on Omaha.

Over the past two weeks, the Diamond Dawgs faced a challenging slate that tested both their consistency and resilience. Georgia battled through two three-game SEC series against Florida and Arkansas, while also squeezing in midweek matchups against East Tennessee State and a high-profile, top-five showdown with in-state rival Georgia Tech. Across those eight contests, the Bulldogs posted a 4–4 record, a mark that reflects both their explosive potential and lingering inconsistencies.

At the plate, Georgia continues to prove why it is regarded as one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the country. The Bulldogs erupted for an eye-popping 64 runs during this stretch, highlighted by a dominant 26-run outburst in the series finale against Arkansas. Performances like that continue to showcase the lineup’s ability to overwhelm solid pitching staffs and flip a series on its head in a matter of innings.

However, the same cannot be said for the pitching staff, which remains the primary concern as postseason play approaches. Georgia surrendered 69 runs over those eight games, including 10 or more runs allowed in half of them. For a team with national championship aspirations, those numbers are difficult to ignore. While the offense has more than held its own, the inconsistency on the mound has created a dangerous imbalance that could prove costly against top-tier competition.

Despite the uneven stretch, Georgia still finds itself in an enviable position. The Bulldogs hold a strong 32–10 overall record, including an impressive 13–5 mark in SEC play. That resume has them sitting at No. 5 in the national rankings, firmly in the conversation as one of the top teams in college baseball heading into the final weeks of the regular season.

Individually, the Dawgs continue to be powered by standout performances from Daniel Jackson and Tre Phelps, who have emerged as two of the premier players in the country. Both are making compelling cases for the Golden Spikes Award, college baseball’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. Jackson has been electric, hitting .378 with 20 home runs, combining elite contact with game-changing power. Phelps has been just as impactful, batting .370 with 14 home runs while boasting an impressive .492 on-base percentage. His ability to reach base has been amplified by his toughness at the plate, as he has been hit by pitches 25 times this season, tied for the most in college baseball.

Looking ahead, the Diamond Dawgs now turn their attention to another critical SEC road test as they travel to Oxford, Mississippi, for a three-game series against Ole Miss. Game one is set for tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, and it presents another opportunity for Georgia to tighten up its pitching and build momentum heading into the final stretch.

As always, it’s a great time to be a Georgia Bulldog. Be sure to tune in not only to this weekend’s series, but also to rounds two and three of the NFL Draft tonight, where several former Dawgs are expected to hear their names called.

Have a great Friday and an even better weekend, GO DAWGS!!!

There was some doubt whether Georgia would even have a player taken in the first round of tonight’s NFL Draft. Monroe Freeling erased that doubt when he went #19 overall to the Carolina Panthers.

Freeling’s college career at Georgia was defined by both early responsibility and sustained consistency. Those two traits explain why he could have a solid NFL career.

Freeling was unexpectedly thrust into a big role as a true freshman in 2023, seeing action in eight games for the defending national champions. But he quickly proved he could handle elite SEC competition. That’s a true rarity for offensive linemen who typically require longer development timelines, even blue chip prospects like Freeling. His immediate impact in Athens was made possible by a combination of advanced technique and mental readiness, particularly in pass protection and assignment discipline. 

Across subsequent seasons, Freeling established himself as one of the most reliable pieces on the Bulldog offensive line. His combination of size (6’7, 318), strength, and technical refinement has made him a cornerstone player rather than a rotational contributor. Importantly, his consistency (not just peak performance) has elevated his draft profile, as NFL evaluators often prioritize linemen who minimize mistakes over those who flash intermittently. 

With limited roster spots scouts also prioritize guys who can play multiple positions, and that’s definitely Freeling. While his work in Athens was mainly at left tackle, he also cross-trained at both guard spots. His ability to realistically play at least three of the five OL spots is both a testament to his football IQ and a huge selling point.

Projecting forward, Freeling’s NFL potential appears significant. His early starting experience against top-tier competition mirrors the developmental path of many recent first-round offensive linemen. His polish and toughness as likely reduce the risk associated with high dollar first round offensive line prospects. While Freeling may not have the same ceiling as former Alabama tackle Kadyn Proctor, I’d argue he has a much higher floor because he doesn’t have the same conditioning and work ethic concerns scouts highlighted with Proctor. Freeling might not be a perennial Pro Bowler, but I’m confident he also won’t be a first round bust. Congrats, Monroe, and…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Few players in recent Georgia football history have been by turns as exhilarating and maddening to watch as Daylen Everette. I’m happy for Pittsburgh Steelers fans to witness first hand exactly what I mean now that the Norfolk, Virginia product is headed to the Steel City.

Everette projects as something of a developmental prospect, but with definite starting cornerback potential. He arrives with clear NFL-caliber tools, but some technical refinement still needed. At Georgia, Everette was a three year starter who appeared in 55 games (41 starts), compiling 150 tackles, 5 interceptions, and 21 pass deflections while earning First-Team All-SEC honors in 2025. His production reflects consistency more than elite ball-hawking volume, though he showed a knack for stepping up in big moments, including multiple SEC Championship interceptions. 

That’s to say nothing of the Daylen Everette-shaped indention Quinn Ewers still has in his torso.

Athletically, Everette checks all the key NFL boxes. He ran a 4.38-second 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine, along blasting off with a 37.5-inch vertical and 10-foot-4 broad jump. Those numbers confirm what Bulldog fans have seen on the field: his explosive speed and lower-body power. These traits translate to strong recovery ability and closing burst in coverage. His strengths lie in zone awareness, physicality in run support, and prototype CB1 size (6’1”, 195 lbs), allowing him to disrupt passing lanes and match up with bigger receivers. 

However, his weaknesses cap his immediate ceiling. Everette can struggle with hip fluidity and transitions in man coverage, making him vulnerable to sharp route runners and double moves. Everette’s technique can also be inconsistent and occasional lapses in coverage discipline contributed to uneven play (and a full 32% of my game day swearing) during his UGA career.

Overall, Everette’s NFL potential right now is likely that of a scheme-dependent CB2 with upside, particularly in a zone-heavy system. But his physical talent is next level, and his issue isn’t ability, it’s consistency. If he hones his craft Everett also could develop into not just a reliable starter but a potential lockdown corner in the City of Bridges. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Another Georgia Bulldog has found a new home in the 2026 NFL Draft. Wide receiver Colbie Young was taken in the fourth round by the Cincinnati Bengals. He is the third pass catcher from the Dawgs to be taken in this draft behind Zachariah Branch and Oscar Delp.

Young came to Athens in 2024 after a stint at the University of Miami. His 6’4 frame was intriguing for Mike Bobo and the Georgia offense. He quickly became a reliable target for quarterback Carson Beck in one-on-one situations, as he scored his first Bulldog touchdown in week one of the 2024 season against Clemson.

During his two seasons in Athens, Young caught 37 passes for 507 yards and three touchdowns. His numbers were limited due to a foot injury he suffered during the regular season game against Ole Miss in 2025 and a suspension in 2024 for charges that were eventually dropped.

Beyond his height, Young has shown flashes of explosiveness. At the NFL Combine, he ran a 4.49 40-yard dash. His physicality makes him difficult for defensive backs to bring down. He can also be a deep threat for quarterbacks, as he demonstrated often last season for the Bulldogs.

Young will be entering a crowded receiver room in Cincinnati, with guys like Jamar Chase and Tee Higgins already cemented as Joe Burrow’s top targets. With his tangibles, however, Young could carve out a role for himself with the Bengals as they look to return to the playoffs. We wish Colbie the best of luck as he begins his pro football career!

The New Orleans Saints became the latest NFL team to pilfer the Georgia tight end room in the third round of the NFL Draft on Friday night, selecting Oscar Delp with the 73rd overall pick.

With Delp’s selection, a Georgia tight end has been drafted for the seventh time in eight seasons.

Casual NFL fans may not have seen as much highlight-wise of Delp during his Georgia career, and sharing time at a position with Brock Bowers part of his time in Athens clearly had a bit to do with that. But in times when Georgia has leaned on the tight end the past few years is when Delp thrived as a blocker and receiver.

“I think it’s the most important thing you can do as a tight end is to be able to block and bring that to your game,” Delp told Nola.com “I love being able to dominate another man, and in a successful offense, you have to have a tight end that can dominate the perimeter and own the C gap.”

It’s also of note that Delp was not targeted more than 32 times in a single season at Georgia, so the thinking is may be what he showed in Athens could be magnified even more with additional passes thrown Delp’s way.

That, combined with an impressive pro day that included a 4.49 40-yard dash time makes Delp a nice pickup for New Orleans, a team seeking to beef up its offensive arsenal and build on quarterback Tyler Shough’s growth.

Someone with Delp’s measurables and capabilities plays right into that agenda for the Saints.

Go Dawgs!

Christen Miller steps into the New Orleans Saints facility carrying more than a duffel bag. He brings the hardened identity of the Georgia Bulldogs defensive front.

Perhaps no player in the past three seasons has epitomized the blue collar work ethic of that group quite like Miller. He waited his turn behind future first rounders Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, and Jalen Carter. Like them, his college numbers didn’t scream superstardom: 64 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, and 4 sacks across four seasons. But they told a subtler story of control, discipline, and reliability in the trenches.

At his best, Miller is immovable. His excellent lower body strength allow him to anchor well against double teams, clog rushing lanes, and free linebackers to make plays. His hand placement is consistent, and his awareness against the run makes him a natural fit for early downs in the NFL.

But the league demands more than strength. Miller’s biggest question mark follows him from Athens to New Orleans: pass rushing. His burst off the line is good, but not super explosive for a defender of his size, and he can stall once initial contact is made. Too often, plays end with him holding ground rather than collapsing the pocket. For a defensive tackle hoping to elevate his role from a rotational player to a three down fixture, that matters.

Still, the Saints see something worth shaping. In flashes, Miller has shown he can push the pocket and disrupt timing, even if it doesn’t always translate into sacks. If he develops a deeper pass rush arsenal his impact could expand quickly.

For now, Miller projects as a dependable interior player who does the dirty work, absorbs contact, and quietly makes everyone around him look better.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

CJ Allen was one of the leaders of the Georgia Bulldogs’ defense last season. Now, he will be taking his talents to the Indianapolis Colts thanks to the announcement from former Colts’ punter, College Gameday host, part time WWE commentator/wrestler, and host of a weekly sports show with his namesake, Pat Mcafee. He will look to be the next great Georgia linebacker in the NFL.

Allen, a native of Barnesville, GA, burst onto the scene in 2023. The then-true freshman was thrown into the starting lineup against top 10-ranked Ole Miss after starting linebacker Jamon Dumas-Johnson suffered an injury the week prior. He proceeded to lead the team with nine tackles and a sack on his way to being named SEC Freshman of the Week.

He would only improve over the next two seasons. In 2025, he led the team with 88 tackles and eight tackles for loss. He also made one of the biggest plays of the season against Auburn, when he punched the football out of Jackson Arnold’s hands to force a fumble to prevent the Tigers from taking a 17-0 lead into halftime.

NFL.com’s scouting report wrote that he “plays with toughness and control, sorting through run fits with patience and leverage in pursuit. He has average trigger quickness and pursuit speed, which forces him to work harder to get to junction points when facing climbing blockers. He has adequate size and strength with good hand strikes to play off blocks. He doesn’t blow up blocks or disrupt on the other side of the line all that often, though. He’s an effective blitzer with average man-cover talent and is capable on all three downs. Allen is a dependable starting Mike ‘backer who raises the floor of a defense.”

Allen will look to help improve Indy’s defense, which ranked 23rd in total defense last season. His leadership abilities could be crucial for the Colts as they seek to return to a Super Bowl for the first time since 2010. Congratulations CJ and best wishes for a long and productive NFL career!

Losing is no fun.

If it’s to the North Avenue Trade School in any aspect of competition, it’s even worse.

In one respect, it was a let-down that two top-five teams faced off Tuesday night at Truist Park and that it was not able to be watched on TV.

On the other – perhaps it was for the best that Georgia fans did not have to see what looks to be the weakness of this team – the depth of the bullpen in a 14-4 loss.

It’s tough to swallow as fans of The University of Georgia, but at the end of it, games like this don’t really matter. It’s why in the past when Georgia and Tech had games impacted by weather, little effort was made to reschedule them.

What does matter? Big conference series’ that’ll decide whether or not Georgia can gain a national seed. Both Georgia and the Rebels are slotted in at least one recent projection to be regional hosts. I’m pretty sure that a series win helps a lot more than a pedestrian midweek series.

Per Baseball America, the Dawgs are currently in line as a regional host and No. 7 national seed. Five spots lower, though, and that national seed goes away as well as hosting a super regional.

Florida lost to Jacksonville this week for the second time this season, but odds are fairly good that if you stack them up weekend starters vs. weekend starters, UF prevails.

In the end, midweek games are a good chance to do things well and be in good shape for when it matters – weekend series in the nation’s toughest conference.

Go Dawgs!

Zachariah Branch enters the 2026 NFL Draft as one of the more polarizing wide receiver prospects on the board. A former five star recruit who starred at both Southern Cal and Georgia, Branch combines elite athletic traits with a somewhat unconventional (some would say uneven) production profile, making his evaluation highly dependent on projection and scheme fit.

College Production and Statistical Profile

Branch’s college career can be split pretty neatly into two phases: his early explosiveness at USC and a more refined, high-volume role at Georgia. Over three seasons, he totaled 159 receptions for 1,634 yards and 9 touchdowns across 37 games. 

That’s a pretty solid record of production against some of the best competition college football has to offer. At USC in 2024 Branch recorded 47 catches for 503 yards and 1 touchdown, averaging 10.7 yards per reception. While those numbers were solid, they represented a bit of a letdown for some from expectations after a standout freshman campaign in which he caught 31 passes for 322 yards and averaged over 22 yards of punt returns per game. His usage included screens, quick passes, and significant work in the return game, reflected in his 699 all-purpose yards that season. But still, USC fans were curiously

After transferring to Georgia for 2025, Branch saw a major uptick in both volume and responsibility. He led the ’‘Dawgs with 81 receptions for 811 yards and 6 touchdowns, establishing himself as a primary offensive weapon in the SEC. This production demonstrated his ability to handle a larger workload against elite competition, though his yards-per-catch figure remained modest, reinforcing his short-area usage profile.

Branch’s most defining traits are elite athleticism and playmaking ability in space. He possesses top-tier acceleration, change of direction, and speed, evidenced by a 4.35-second 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine. These traits translate directly to his effectiveness after the catch, where he can turn short throws into explosive gains.

Another major strength is his versatility. Branch has experience as both a receiver and return specialist, winning the Jet Award as a freshman and contributing in multiple phases of the game. His all-purpose skill set makes him attractive to NFL teams looking for a multi-faceted weapon rather than a traditional wide receiver.

In addition, Branch shows strong vision and instincts with the ball in his hands. Scouts consistently highlight his ability to navigate traffic, set up blocks, and maximize yardage on designed touches. This makes him particularly dangerous in modern offenses that emphasize screens, motion, and run-pass option concepts.

Despite his dynamic traits, Branch’s draft potential is limited by several concerns. The most obvious is his size. At an official 5’9″ and 177 pounds, he lacks the ideal physical profile of a typical outside receiver, which raises questions about durability and his ability to win in contested situations, especially downfield. It is worth noting that Branch’s size hasn’t been an issue in the run game, where he’s a tenacious blocker. But he will struggle one-on-one against bigger pro defensive backs.

His receiving skill set is also not pristine. Branch has a tendency to focus on yards after the catch before securing the ball. Drops and ball-tracking issues could limit his reliability at the next level.

Route running is another area of concern. At times in 2025 Mike Bobo used Branch in screen situations that manufactured touches rather than running a full route tree, and his production was heavily skewed toward short-area targets. This creates uncertainty about whether he can get separation consistently against NFL defensive backs on intermediate and deep routes.

Finally, Branch’s projected role is somewhat narrow. He’s like a slot receiver or a situational player, at least early in his career, rather than a true WR1 or even WR2 option. That limits his ceiling unless he significantly develops his technical skills, and the size concerns will always be there.

NFL Projection and Team Fits

Branch is likely a Day 2 pick, going in the second or third round, though opinions vary depending on how teams value his unique skill set. Some analysts rank him among the top wide receivers in the class based on production and pure athleticism, while others see him as a more specialized contributor.

The New York Giants are a logical fit due to their preference for smaller, explosive receivers and creative offensive schemes. Branch’s ability to operate in space aligns well with offenses that emphasize quick passing and yards after catch. However the Giants don’t currently have a 3rd round pick, and I do not see Branch as a 2nd round selection. The Big Blue would need to move into the 3rd to snatch him, but I wouldn’t rule it out.

Other potential fits include teams that prioritize offensive creativity and motion-heavy systems. The San Francisco 49ers could maximize his skill set, given their track records of utilizing versatile playmakers in space. Similarly, teams needing special teams impact alongside offensive upside may view him as a dual-threat contributor. The Kansas City Chiefs fall into this category, and it’s not hard to see Branch in the type of speedy role Tyreek Hill has ably filled, along with Mecole Hardman before him.

Overall Outlook

Branch’s draft outlook ultimately depends on how teams weigh his elite athleticism against his developmental needs. Yes, there is also that thing in Athens with the sidewalk and the smirking. I don’t think it will be a factor. The circumstances of that arrest are so preposterous that they could only happen in Athens, and Kirby Smart has been effusive in his praise of Branch’s work ethic and character since he arrived in the Classic City. That carries weight with a lot of folks in the League.

Branch’s ceiling is that of a dynamic offensive weapon capable of changing games with limited touches, similar to hybrid receivers who thrive in space-oriented systems. However, his floor is that of a situational player who struggles to expand beyond a gadget role.

If he lands with a creative offensive coordinator willing to design touches the way Georgia did in 2025 and gradually expand his route tree, Branch could outperform his draft position and become a high impact player. Conversely, in a more traditional system that demands polished route running and physicality, he may struggle to carve out a consistent role.

Zachariah Branch then represents the classic high-variance prospect: electrifying with the ball in his hands, but still a work in progress as a complete, every down receiver.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The Georgia Bulldogs will wrap up spring practice 2026 this afternoon in the Classic City with the traditional G Day Game. The Red and the Black will square off in Sanford Stadium at 1:00 pm Athens time. While there’s no television coverage per se, the game will be streamed on ESPN+ and SEC Network+.

If you’re watching expecting to see a lot of familiar faces, you will be disappointed. The Bulldogs brought in roughly 37 new players from the high school ranks and transfer portal.

Seth already brought you a list of players to keep an eye on, LugnutDawg has the run down of what to look for on defense. And earlier today we went over what to look for on offense.

This thread will be the hub for updates and commentary throughout the afternoon. Y’all grab a beverage if your choice and pull up a chair.

Now let’s have a healthy, stress free, injury-free day in the Classic City.

Go ‘‘Dawgs!!!

It’s a warm, sunny morning in Athens, Georgia, just perfect for a little spring football between the hedges. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs will square off against…, Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs, this afternoon in Athens. LugnutDawg already brought you a handful of things to keep an eye on defensively. Let’s take a look at some of the key points to keep an eye on on the offensive side of the football.

#1 Somebody’s got to play wide receiver. The Bulldogs are losing six out of their top seven pass catchers from 2025. London Humphreys is the only returning wideout with more than 10 receptions. And while the ‘Dawgs are loaded at tight end (more on that in a moment) Mike Bobo’s offense only really works if there’s someone to stretch the field vertically and horizontally. Today will be our chance to see young receivers like CJ Wiley, Craig Dandridge, and Thomas Blackshear in their most extensive action. Sophomore Talyn Taylor showed some flashes last year. Could today be a bit of a coming out party for him?

#2 Why couldn’t you play five tight ends at once? If there’s a way to build the whole offense out of tight ends I hope Todd Hartley figures it out. Lawson Luckie returns as an All-SEC candidate, and Elyiss Williams should be even more of a matchup nightmare than he was as a freshman. Jaden Reddell has drawn praise from the coaching staff, and freshman Kaiden Prothro has drawn favorable comparisons to none other than Brock Bowers. I expect we’ll see at least a handful of multiple tight end sets and some downfield passing to the big guys that make Bulldog fans salivate about this unit’s potential.

#3 The quarterback. No, the other one. No, the other, other one. It’s nice to go into spring with Gunner Stockton the clear starter. And if we’re honest, we’ve also got a pretty good bead on what Ryan Puglisi brings to the table as his backup. But I’m curious to see redshirt freshman Ryan Montgomery. Montgomery suffered a serious knee injury as a high school senior in 2024 and sat out G Day last year. But he’s impressed so far this spring with his live arm and maturity in the pocket. Could he show enough to create a real battle with Puglisi for the backup role?

#4 Playing for Peanuts. Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowen’s return as arguably the top Thunder & lightning running back tandem in the SEC. But Dwight “Peanut” Phillips has been an underrated contributor to the offense for each of the last two seasons. I’m curious to see his physical development entering year three, as well as how he might figure in the passing game.

#5 Let’s be upfront about what’s happening up front. Georgia has a new offensive line coach in Phil Rauscher, fortunately Rauscher has a lot of returning material to work with. While the left side of the line loses starters Monroe Freeling and Micah Morris, Drew Bobo returns at center, and a whole boatload of players with experience on the right side are back. This will be our first chance to see how Rauscher redistributes all that bulk. Dontrell Glover has practiced through injuries this spring and may get a break. But I’m curious to see if Juan Gaston is in shape, as well as where Earnest Greene fits into the rotation.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The 2026 NFL Draft gets rolling this evening in Pittsburgh with the first round selections beginning some time after 5:00.

The odds of any Georgia Bulldogs getting picked this evening are up in the air. Some mock drafts have Monroe Freeling creeping up into the first round for a team looking for a guy who could cut his teeth at guard and eventually take over a tackle slot. Some draft analysts love CJ Allen and think a team with one of the first 32 picks will fall for him as well, while others are worried that his measurables will kick him to day two.

We’ll be here all evening to talk picks. Also head over to SB Nation’s NFL Draft feed. There’ll be news from across the network, and I’ll be chipping in comments and coverage of any Bulldogs whose names are called throughout the weekend.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Just over three months ago, as I watched Trinidad Chambliss do his best Nightcrawler impression in the Superdome, I unleashed a torrent of profanity that would’ve turned Andrew Dice Clay the color of a firetruck and swore to Quetzalcoatl that 2026 is the year I finally kick my college football habit. Of course, now that we’re coming up on G Day, I’m scouring every source I can find for news about spring practice. 

This weekend, we’ll get our first look at the 2026 iteration of the Georgia Bulldogs. Kirby Smart and company will likely play things pretty close to the vest, of course, but we’ll start to get a sense of what the team will look like. At a minimum, we should be able to tell who’s likely to end up starting come Labor Day weekend based on who gets assigned to the Red squad versus the Black. 

During my time in the Classic City, I used the G Day game to run a scrimmage tailgate to work out the kinks in my process ahead of the fall. With that in mind, this is something of a scrimmage post, knocking the rust off the ol’ blog to gear up for the next season. Here are the five (plus one, kind of) players I’m most interested in seeing this weekend. For the purposes of this exercise, I’m only considering players who will be new to UGA this fall. 

1. Kaiden Prothro, Tight End

You guys remember Brock Bowers? On the off chance you don’t, meet Kaiden Prothro. He’s the highest-rated member of Georgia’s 2026 recruiting class. Like Bowers, he’s technically classified as a tight end, but he’s got a receiver’s skill set. At 6’6” and 230 pounds, he’s a big target for the quarterback, and he excels at making contested catches and breaking tackles with the ball in his hands. And despite his size, he’s deceptively fast once he gets going, which means we could see the welcome return of the Bowers-esque “dumpoff pass that turns into a 75-yard touchdown.” As a testament to his receiving prowess, Prothro finished his high school football career with 66 receiving touchdowns, a record for the state of Georgia. 

Prothro is going to be a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses. If it’s close to him, he’ll probably catch it. And if he catches it, the defense will need more than one guy to get him on the ground. I cannot wait to see him in the Red and Black. 

2. Isiah Canion, Wide Receiver

For my money, the biggest loss from last year’s team is Zach Branch, who’s off to the NFL draft. He had a strong rapport with Gunner Stockton, racking up more than twice as many receiving yards as anyone else on the roster. He combined track star speed with an actual ability to catch the damn ball, something the 2024 receiving corps often struggled with. Thankfully, Stockton offers continuity at the most important position, but someone is going to have to step up at receiver if the passing game is going to avoid taking a step back.

Perhaps that someone will be transfer wide receiver Isiah Canion, newly arrived from just down the road in Atlanta. In his sophomore season for the Engineers, he led the team with four receiving touchdowns. That may not seem like much until you remember Tech’s offense was mostly based around trying to void Haynes King’s warranty in increasingly baroque ways. At 6’4” and 215 pounds, he’s got the size and toolkit of a possession receiver, which makes him well-suited to attacking the middle of the field in the type of passing game Georgia likes to deploy. He doesn’t have Branch’s top-end speed, but he makes up for it in toughness. If Talyn Taylor can take a step forward this year as a deep threat, the two of them will be a formidable one-two punch for any defense. Add in Prothro, and the offense could be extremely explosive.

3. Khamari Brooks, OLB/EDGE

The most frustrating aspect of last year’s otherwise stout Dawgs squad was an inability to generate consistent pressure on the quarterback, most disastrously in the Sugar Bowl when Chambliss managed to escape no matter how many guys were in the backfield. The stats bear this out. In 2024, Georgia sacked the opposing quarterback 37 times. In 2025, that number dropped to 20. The good news is that Chris Cole and Raylen Wilson are both back, but losing CJ Allen and Christen Miller from the defensive front isn’t going to make things any easier.

The plan seemed to be to shore up the pass rush with Auburn transfer Amaris Williams. Unfortunately, he suffered a season-ending injury in spring practice. In his absence, freshman Khamari Brooks has an opportunity to make an immediate impact. As a testament to his athleticism, he played both wideout and linebacker at North Oconee High School, earning a four-star rating as a recruit. On the defensive side of the ball, he excelled as a pass rush specialist, tallying eight tackles, including 1.5 sacks in the 2024 state championship game. He’s listed at 6’3” and 245 pounds, so he’s going to be a problem to block, and his technique is already quite sharp for an incoming freshman. As he adds weight and sharpens his abilities, he’s only going to get more dangerous.

Last year, Ellis Robinson IV started the season with some growing pains, getting burned badly in coverage on a big stage. But the coaching staff stuck with him, and by season’s end, he was among the most valuable players on the defense. It’s entirely possible we see something similar with Brooks this year, and I’m very excited about getting a first look at him soon.

4. Khalil Barnes, Safety

With Daylen Everette off to the NFL and Joenel Aguero relocating to Oxford, the back end of the defense will need some help. Say hello to Khalil Barnes, who fled the sinking ship S.S. Clemson to join a functional team to boost his draft stock ahead of his senior year. He established himself as a ball hawky safety in his first two years there, notching seven interceptions across two seasons. He took a bit of a step back last year, but 2025 Clemson was so juiceless it’s hard to say whether that was on him or the team’s badly broken development program. 

We’ll find out when Barnes comes to Athens. He’s an aggressive playmaker over the middle who will make a receiver pay for hesitating on a ball. That aggressiveness means he gets burned sometimes (though what safety doesn’t?), but his speed means he can run down receivers and running backs who get behind him. That speed and his physicality also mean that you can bring him on a disguised blitz, which should provide some more options for generating QB pressure too. 

5. Wade Register, Punter

Maybe this is shades of Vince Dooley worrying about the long snapper (or snappah, if you prefer), but we’ve been spoiled with Brett Thorson handling punting duties. He was extremely reliable, which is vital for one of the most high-leverage moments in a game. Punting is like my lack of a real retirement plan: I don’t wanna think about it. Fortunately, incoming freshman Wade Register was the top-ranked punter in the state of Georgia by most rating services, and it’ll be good to get a look at his abilities in a semi-live-fire situation. 

Of course, now that I type it out, I realize “I’m excited about seeing the punting” is the kind of thing only an absolute degenerate would say. But it’s true!  

6. Bonus! Tie: Zach Lewis, Zykie Helton, Tyreek Jemison, Graham Houston, Ekene Ogboko

Another Achilles’ heel for the 2025 Dawgs was the inconsistent offensive line play. Whether due to injuries or personnel problems, Stacy Searels just couldn’t seem to figure out a regular combination up front. Two of the group’s better players, Monroe Freeling and Micah Morris, are gone too. Hopefully, these five new linemen can get some playing time and start getting up to speed.

What piques your interest this Saturday?

By no means is any G-Day scrimmage a be-all end-all of where things stand, but it is a good outward sign of how the fabric of any Georgia team is coming together as the summer draws near. 

The defensive side of the ball will be no exception as Saturday’s spectacle wraps up spring practice in Athens. 

Here are some key things to watch for on Saturday, either in person, watching at home, or in other ways that we cannot legally endorse.

On-field chemistry

Georgia’s defense was a ride last year, and a bit too adventurous early-on.

As headache-inducing as stretches of the Alabama and Tennessee game were, there were also the Ole Miss and Texas games, for instance. Finding footing early this fall will be key, so it’ll be of note to see how the back-and-forth communication on the field is and if there are many blown coverages or missed assignments or not. If we see a good number on Saturday, it’ll show how far off away from getting on the same page this group is. 

How much do we really want to see the starters?

We already know what the KJ Boldens and Raylen Wilson of this defense can do. If you are aiming to see what younger or newer faces can do, how much do you really need to see well-established players in what’s a part of multiple weeks of spring practice? 

Are injuries a silver-lining? 

Spring ball is about seeing what the up-and-coming part of the roster can do. Given that, could the injuries to Jordan Hall and Amaris Williams be a blessing in disguise? If you want to see what the second and third group of a rotation can do, that task is a lot easier now with a handful ofvplayers sidelined.

Bigger roles for Dawgs on the rise

All that leads to by far the most exciting part of G-Day. For those who either are new to the roster or played sparingly, they now get their chance for more of the spotlight. The list is here each year of players that were highly touted, and it’s settings like this where you hope to see how much of that promise will be realized soon.

Isaiah Gibson and Zayden Walker absolutely come to mind in the front seven, and it’s intriguing to see how this defensive staff will try to use Khamari Brooks from nearby North Oconee as well.

In the secondary, we all know what Ellis Robinson can do. But how will Clemson transfer Khalil Robinson look within this group at safety. The same goes for Braylon Coney and Gentry Williams are corner, opposite of Robinson. 

So set a nice table for Saturday. The spread of appetizers going into the summer look to be very tasty.

Go Dawgs!

The highest holy week of Georgia sports…not related to football, of course, is upon us.

No, it’s not laughing at Tennessee or Florida fans whose only path to contending for a national title is by pulling out old VHS tapes.

Nope, it’s the Tradition unlike any other – The Masters.

But one of the layers of the pageantry that will grace Augusta National this time of year is off the course in the annual Champions Dinner.

This year’s, served in honor of Rory McIlroy is highlighted by yellowfin tuna carpaccio.

And then there was last year’s version where at the request of Scottie Scheffler was basically…a Sunday night at Texas Roadhouse

Personally speaking, yours truly would have a menu of fried shrimp from O’Steen’s in St. Augustine as an appetizer, entrees being a pig sandwich from Fincher’s BBQ as well as some Chicken Parmesan with it all being finished off by an orange creamsicle cheesecake.

So, what would be on your Master’s menu? Weigh in below!

Within the span of a weekend, Georgia’s women’s basketball program saw one coach exit and found their replacement.

After Saturday morning’s announcement that the school had mutually agreed to a parting of ways with Katie Abramson-Henderson after a four-year Mark of 69-59 with two NCAA Tournament berths, Ayla Guzzardo was announced as the fourth full-time head coach in program history.

If it’s a coach on an upward trajectory that Georgia desires, it certainly has that in Guzzardo. She’s coming off a season in which she guided McNeese State to a school-record 29 wins. But there’s more to it than that for Guzzardo, as it also stood as the greatest single-season turnaround in the history of NCAA women’s basketball.

The Cowgirls were 10-21 the year before her arrival a season ago. Before that, Guzzardo guided Southeast Louisiana to a 47-9 record over her final three seasons there, a run that included an average of 22 wins and an NCAA Tournament berth.

Given her ties to Louisiana, it’s not a shock that one of her contemporaries is that of current LSU head coach Kim Mulkey.

Guzzardo isn’t exactly having to take on a massive rebuild for Georgia. Yes, it has some portal losses, as is the case in the current NIL landscape, but this team is coming off a season in which it went 22-10, its most wins since 20171-8. But the other sentiment is that just getting to the NCAAs should not be the ceiling.

For sure, there is portal work to do with Trinity Turner, Mia Woolfolk, Zhen Craft, and Angie Gonzalez having announced plans to transfer.

Even if players do not stay put as long, there are way too many good players in-state for a program to just be happy to be postseason-bound, and the last part of the quote from Georgia Athletic Director Josh Brooks on Saturday morning may be telling:

“We have an outstanding group of alumni and a dedicated fan base. Our search for a new head coach will focus on someone who will carry on this legacy and connect with our student-athletes, alumni and supporters in an impactful way.” 

Is Guzzardo the right person to elevate the level of this program to that?

Time will tell.

Go Dawgs!

The good news for fans of Georgia Bulldog golfers is that four of the six former or future ‘Dawgs in the Masters field will be playing the weekend. 

The bad news is that they are all playing for second place. 

Rory McIlroy turned in a 65 on Friday, including one of the most dominant back nines in recent Augusta history to take a commanding six stroke lead into the weekend. A pair of Georgia alums, Russell Henley, and Harris English, sit 12 strokes back at even par. That however, is only six strokes back from 2nd place, where Sam Burns and Patrick Reed sit at -6. There’s still plenty of time for either or both of them to play their way into a top ten finish and a handsome payday. 

Sepp Straka sits at +1, tied for 32nd. And Brian Harman shrugged off a rough Thursday to put up an impressive three under par 69 on Friday to make the cut at +4 (47th). Again, after carding a seven over 79 just playing their way into weekend is a real accomplishment.

The news wasn’t so good for Bubba Watson and Thomasville native Mason Howell. Bubba’s 73 on Friday wasn’t quite enough to make it to the weekend, as he was among the first cut of golfers to miss the weekend field at +5. Howell, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion and an 18 year old incoming freshman at UGA, went +5 then +4 in his first time in the Augusta field. That being said, he’ll absolutely be back and has a very bright future in the game. 

The story of Friday however was the diminutive Irishman looking for a second consecutive green jacket. McIlroy bogied no. 10, parred no. 11, then birdied six out of his final seven holes, a stretch of golf course that has been known under the right conditions to literally drive some of the best golfers in the world to tears. To paraphrase an old Chuck Norris joke, Amen Corner starts praying when Rory arrives. 

While there’s still time for a historic collapse (Paging Greg Norman to the courtesy phones…Mr. Norman to the courtesy phones…) that sort of thing isn’t really in McIlroy’s character. Instead I suspect we’ll be watching one of those historic Masters moments that’s impressive if not suspenseful. 

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Good Thursday afternoon, Dawg fans!! The Georgia Diamond Dawgs are arguably the hottest team in college baseball right now, riding an impressive eight-game win streak that has quickly turned heads across the national landscape. During this stretch, Georgia has dominated SEC competition with back-to-back series sweeps over the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs, while also picking up convincing midweek victories against the Georgia State Panthers and Presbyterian. As a result, the Dawgs now boast an outstanding 28-6 overall record, including a strong 10-2 mark in SEC play, positioning themselves firmly among the nation’s elite.

This recent surge has propelled Georgia to No. 4 in the national rankings, sitting just behind UCLA, Texas, and in-state rival Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. While the pitching staff has shown flashes of inconsistency at times, Georgia’s offense has more than made up for it, establishing itself as one of the most dangerous lineups in college baseball. The Dawgs have displayed explosive run production throughout the win streak, highlighted by a staggering 28-run performance against Presbyterian that showed just how potent this lineup can be when firing on all cylinders.

At the heart of Georgia’s offensive dominance are Daniel Jackson and Tre Phelps, who have emerged as the driving forces behind this Dawgs’ lineup. Both hitters are batting over .400, with Phelps leading the way at .413 and Jackson close behind at .408. After a disappointing redshirt sophomore campaign, Phelps has responded in a major way this season, reestablishing himself as a potential first-round pick in the upcoming MLB Draft. Jackson, on the other hand, has elevated his game to another level, solidifying his reputation as one of the premier power hitters in college baseball while also showcasing an impressive ability to hit for average. Together, the duo has combined for 30 home runs, 14 from Phelps and 16 from Jackson, accounting for a significant portion of Georgia’s nation-leading 98 home runs. To put that into perspective, Vanderbilt, the next closest team, sits well behind with 73, further emphasizing just how dominant Georgia’s offense has been.

What makes this team especially intriguing is the balance between its offensive firepower and the question marks surrounding its pitching staff. If Georgia can find more consistency on the mound, this team has all the tools necessary to make a deep postseason run and potentially secure a trip to Omaha. Even as it stands, the Dawgs’ ability to outscore opponents at such a high level makes them a serious contender every time they take the field.

Georgia will look to keep its momentum going this weekend as the Florida Gators travel to Athens for a key three-game SEC series at Foley Field. With first pitch for Game 1 scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Friday, the Dawgs will aim to extend their winning streak and continue making a strong statement as one of the top teams in the country.

Hope all of you have a great rest of your week and weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

On the morrow, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, and an increasingly bitter South African will hit ceremonial tee shots and the 90th Masters Tournament will officially begin. If you have a badge, you’re probably debating if you’ll get to the grounds early enough to watch it in person, weighing that against a long day of walking hills in warm spring sunshine.

If you’re stuck at home or work, you will still be able to see and hear those traditional opening drives, because the Masters annually teaches a masterclass in sports coverage and availability. The concessions are simple and delicious. The grounds are natural and verdant. The parking is free. The golf never disappoints. But maybe the thing the Masters is best at is giving everyone access.

There’s the traditional over-the-air broadcast via CBS. (If you’re of a certain age, you waited all year to watch 6-7 hours of Masters TV coverage… in total.) But CBS now has one of the smaller content windows of all the broadcast partners, just Saturday and Sunday from 2-7 pm ET.

For the other times, it is an interesting mix. Thursday and Friday, there’s no “television” broadcast until 1:00 pm ET. And that will be on new media partner Amazon Prime Video. They have coverage until 3:30, when ESPN will start broadcasting until close of day.

Saturday and Sunday are a litle different. Only CBS (and Paramount+) will start at 2:00 pm ET.

That being said, CBS Digital, CBS Sports Network, Paramount+,Golf Channel, and ESPN+ will carry early day content pretty much every day. That might only be showing players on the range, or special shows they produce, but it is more content.

Of course there is ALWAYS content on Masters.com and the Masters app. Thursday and Friday early day will be a little fragmented, as they have a choice of Featured Groups, holes 4-6, Amen Corner, and holes 15-16. But starting early afternoon, the Masters media will also feature the typical full-field coverage you’re used to seeing on TV.

Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up: get the Masters App, or cast Masters.com to your big screen, and you’re fine. If you have access to all the CBS/Paramount stuff, get that loaded up in the meantime. And you can always catch “main feed” broadcasting early afternoon on ESPN the first 2 days and CBS on the weekend.

So that’s how. Now let’s talk about when.

Bubba Waston tees off Thursday at 8:08 am ET.
Russell Henley starts his tourney at 10:19 am.
Brian Harman puts peg to ground at 12:03 pm.
Sepp Straka follows a little later at 1:32 pm.
Harris English can sleep in, as his start is 1:56 pm.

And as bonus ‘Dawgs in the Masters content, I inadvertently left off a future Bulldog. Winner of the 2025 US Amateur, Thomasville native, and University of Georgia Men’s Golf commit Mason Howell gets to play with defending champ Rory McIlroy the first two days, and they start at 10:31 am ET. He’s the 3rd youngest winner of the US Am, and will be the youngest player (18) in the Masters field. And that grouping with the defending champ is a decades-old tradition at the Masters, in deference to tournament co-founder and greatest amateur ever Bobby Jones.

I feel like that TikTok pajama-clad DJ who inspires people to get out of bed and start their day. I’m as pumped as can be, and I want you to be as well. The Masters is now just hours away. I hope you’re not an accountant in public practice, or a urologist, because you’re going to be busy and you won’t get to devour all the Masters content like most of us. Either way, Happy Masters to all, and let’s root on another Bulldog to take the Green Jacket. And as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

We’ve made it to Masters Week! This is when Dawg Sports becomes Dawgs Golf. It is a nice table setter for the end of Spring Practice in Athens and the sadly not-televised G-Day game. So don whatever Masters logo gear you were able to snag (or had your father-in-law give you for your birthday), mix up a batch of Azaleas to sip on, and set right down for a preview of the former Bulldogs plying their trade at the most famous golf tournament in the world.

Only 5 ‘Dawgs are in the field, but that’s 5 more than Tigers in this year’s field. Scottie Scheffler is planning on playing, but he pulled out of another tournament ostensibly to attend his expecting wife. Collin Morikawa withdrew from The Players (and this past week) due to a back injury, but the rest of the world’s top 10 look to be in pretty good shape.

The course will be pretty much the same to the naked eye, but the 17^th hole was elongated to 450 yards, and other holes will have subtle contouring changes around the greens.

So here’s who you’re going to be rooting for come Thursday morning.

Harris English: T-12 in 2025, so that automatically gets you an invite back the next year. Has played 6 times before and made 5 cuts. He tied for 22^nd in 2024, tied for 43^rd in 2023, so he’s definitely trending up. He’s also had three top-3 finishes in majors in recent years, so he could be ready to break through.

Brian Harman: this will be the wee lefty’s 8^th Masters, yet he’s only made the cut 3 times. And only 6 rounds under par. He tied for 36^th last year (and a top 10 at the British Open). His best finish was T12 in 2021.

Russell Henley: the Maconite has competed in 9 previous Masters. Surprisingly he missed the cut here last year, arguably the best of his career. A T38 in 2024, T4 in 2023, T30 in 2022 having missed the previous 3 Masters, but a T15 in 2018, T11 in 2017, 21^st in 2015, and T31 in 2014.  His only missed cut in August was his inaugural appearance in 2013.

Sepp Straka: his 5^th trip to Washington Road, having made the cut 3 out of 4 tries. His best finish was T16 in 2024, T46 in 2023, and T30 in 2022. So his only year missing the weekend was last year – like Henley, arguably his best season in his fairly young professional career.

And then there is Bubba. Gerry Lester Watson Jr. is of course a Masters Champion; the first former Georgia Bulldog to win a major. But he liked his win in 2012 so much he did it again in 2014. He’s made it to Amen Corner 17 other times, making the cut in 14 of them. Augusta National is often referred to as a “second shot” golf course, and Bubba does like to take unconventional lines which ANGC offers in spades. He’s 47 years old now, having played the last several year on the LIV tour, and I honestly have zero assessment of his game. But he does love UGA, he married another Bulldog athlete, and he returns to Athens frequently.

We’ll be back with more coverage, specifically tee times and how to watch. Thanks for reading, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

Tis the season to take a look back at the college football season that was. We could of course do a basic game by game recap of the Georgia Bulldogs’ 2025 football season. Just go over the stats and storylines from that point in the season. Talk about the things we thought we’d learned (that often turned out not to really be true). . But where’a the fun (or challenge) in that?

Instead, I’ve decided to once again recap every game played by the Red and Black last year in the style of a different literary great of the past. We begin by revisiting the opener against Marshall in the style of one of the most stylish writers of the 20th century, that chronicler of the idle rich of the British Isles, the great P.G Wodehouse.

The Bulldogs of Georgia, and Their Afternoon’s Work

It would be misleading to suggest that Georgia approached the matter of the Marshall Thundering Herd with anything resembling elaborate preparation. One does not, after all, bring out the good silver for Tuesday supper. The Bulldogs, sensible fellows to a man, simply attended to the fundamentals with the quiet competence of a well-trained but unsettlingly violent butler, and the result was precisely the sort of outcome that causes Athenian enthusiasts to press loved ones warmly by the hand and emit small but audible pips of satisfaction.

The offense, that sometimes temperamental engine, produced four hundred and eighty-eight yards of progress, which is the sort of figure that puts a spring in the step. More gratifying still was the democratic distribution of the spoils, two hundred and forty-nine yards through the airier regions, of Clarke County and two hundred and thirty-nine along the terrestrial firmament, a balance that would have brought a tear to the eye of a haughty gentleman’s gentleman who appreciates things being properly shared out.

One Dwight Phillips contributed sixty yards on a mere five carries, which represents a commendable rate of knot. It was the sort of economy of effort Bertram Wooster would admire, sparing of actual perspiration for ample reward. Some might call it sloth, but only because they lack the vision to recognize genius.

But it was the young Stockton (Gunner, as his intimates know him) who topped the red and black rushers with seventy-three yards merely upon ten attempts, and who further distinguished himself by becoming the first Georgia quarterback since the estimable Stetson Bennett, in that celebrated championship business of 2022, to motor across the goal line on multiple occasions in a single afternoon. One felt that Stockton, a young man who appears to have been assembled with an excess of energy, rather enjoyed himself.

Now, I should note that Coach Bobo — a man who, one gathers, has views on the proper deportment of a quarterback — may not have intended for the lad to do quite so much galloping about in the early exchanges. But the film, as they say, does not lie, and by the time the rougher fellows of the SEC come snorting onto the schedule, opposing coaches will have spent any number of sleepless nights attempting to devise counter-measures for this tiger from Tiger. This is the sort of reputation that takes years to shake.

The pass protection, one must confess, was not uniformly of the highest order. In truth it was more akin to the fare at a roadside pub than supper at the Savoy; sufficiently filling, but lacking in any panache. There were moments when the offensive line presented something of an open-door policy to the Marshall rush, and it fell to young Stockton to extricate himself by means of his legs, a resource his predecessor Carson Beck, (a perfectly decent chap in his way, acclaimed the Gussy Fink-Nottle of his generation) was rather less richly endowed with.

A portion of the blame for the sporadic hijinx at the front may be laid at the door of injuries to guards Morris and Gaston, and to the tackle Greene, which is the sort of personnel setback that tends to complicate matters. Morris, to his credit, dusted himself off and returned to the fray after taking his lumps. The coach, Smart by name and one assumes by nature, was heard to speak warmly of one Bo Hughley, who stepped in for Greene in a manner that gave general satisfaction. Gaston, however, was dispatched for what the medical profession terms an MRI, and may find himself resting on his laurels for some time to come. If the laurels are draped over a set of crutches that would be all the worse.

Defensively, the Bulldogs performed in more or less the fashion one would expect from a sound outfit confronting an opponent who had not previously been identified as a source of particular danger. The total yardage conceded was two hundred and seven, and the bulk of that accumulated only after the backups had been introduced, which is the sort of mitigating circumstance that any fair-minded observer would take into account. Georgia will shortly encounter opposition of a considerably more muscular stripe than a Marshall eleven still engaged in the philosophical question of who ought to be throwing the ball. But on this particular afternoon the gents did what was asked of them, which is all any reasonable employer can demand.

The matter of turnovers, it is true, remained untouched. No fumbles recovered, no interceptions plucked from the muggy, hazy Georgia sky. Yet the Herd was held to three successes from fifteen attempts on third down (a conversion rate of twenty percent) which is the sort of statistic that causes defensive coordinators to exhale through the nose with quiet approval. This is particularly worth noting given that the 2024 unit had displayed a certain, shall we say, reluctance to remove opposing offenses from the premises when requested. And the tackling — ah, the tackling! — while it could not be described as the work of artists, was by and large what one would call passable to good. Given that Coach Smart had spent no inconsiderable portion of the fall training camp period expressing certain anxieties on precisely this subject, ( and in his customary quiet, calm manner) one takes it as a promising portent.

The Classic City Canines, for so the cognoscenti style them, now prepare for another engagement, this time against the Austin Peay Governors who are not, one understands, expected to trouble the scorers unduly. There are limits, naturally, to what a thinking man can deduce about his team from such airy exercises. But Georgia, on this September day, showed encouraging signs of having squared up to certain of last season’s demons and given them a firm talking-to. As fresh starts go, one has seen worse.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Good Thursday afternoon, Dawg fans! The Georgia Diamond Dawgs began conference play last week and have turned in a decent performance overall in this opening stretch.

Georgia opened SEC play against the Tennessee Vols in a highly anticipated series. In game one, the Dawgs fell 7-4, with all four of their runs coming in the fifth inning. It ultimately wasn’t enough, as Tennessee chipped away throughout the game to secure the win.

Georgia quickly turned the page in game two, showing a more consistent offensive approach paired with improved pitching, taking down the Vols 4-2 to even the series.

Game three proved to be the most exciting of the weekend, with the outcome coming down to the very end. Tennessee appeared to be in control for much of the game, holding a 6-3 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. That was until Georgia’s lineup erupted for five runs in the inning, highlighted by Bryce Calloway’s three-run blast over the right field fence, giving the Dawgs an 8-6 lead.

By the ninth inning, Georgia still held that lead, but Tennessee refused to go quietly. Blake Grimmer launched a solo home run to cut it to 8-7, and tension quickly built inside Foley Field. With the game on the line, Cole Johnson delivered a highlight-reel moment, robbing the Vols of a go-ahead two-run homer to seal the win and the series for Georgia. A play like that is always special, but doing it against Tennessee makes it even sweeter.

With the series win secured, Georgia returned home for a midweek matchup against The Citadel as they prepared for a road trip to face Texas A&M. The Dawgs came out sluggish, clearly still riding the high from the Tennessee series, and found themselves trailing 5-0 heading into the seventh inning.

That’s when things flipped. Georgia began to wake up offensively, scoring two runs in the seventh, three in the eighth, and three more in the ninth. The comeback was capped by Kolby Branch’s dramatic three-run walk-off home run, sealing an impressive and resilient victory.

Georgia then traveled to College Station to take on the Texas A&M Aggies. In game one, the Dawgs delivered a steady performance, putting up nine runs offensively while the pitching staff held strong against a talented Aggies lineup in a 9-4 win.

Game two saw an even sharper performance, particularly on the mound. Georgia limited Texas A&M to just two earned runs while continuing their consistency at the plate, scoring eight runs to secure both the game and the series with an 8-2 victory.

However, game three told a much different story. Georgia struggled significantly on the mound as the Aggies’ offense erupted for 18 runs through seven innings, handing the Dawgs a tough 18-5 loss.

Following their return to Athens, Georgia faced Kennesaw State in a midweek matchup. It was another uneven performance, as the Dawgs struggled offensively for much of the game before breaking through late. Georgia scored four runs in the seventh and added three more in the eighth to reach seven total runs. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, as continued pitching struggles allowed Kennesaw State to put up ten runs and secure the win.

Georgia now sits at 20-6 overall with a 4-2 record in conference play. The Dawgs will now turn their attention to hosting the South Carolina Gamecocks, who are currently struggling, particularly in SEC play. South Carolina is also in the midst of a coaching search, as head coach Paul Mainieri recently stepped down and announced his retirement.

Game one of the series is set for tomorrow night at 6 p.m. ET in Athens.

Hope all of you have a great rest of your week and weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

Even though the football season has ended, the free agency period of the NFL has gotten off to a hot start. Several former Bulldogs have earned some massive paydays over the past few days. Some have joined new teams, and some received record-breaking contracts.

Over the past few seasons, we have often referred to the Philadelphia Eagles as the “Philly Dawgs” because of the large number of former Dawgs on the team. The Las Vegas Raiders saw this and decided to get in on the action as well. The Raiders signed multiple former Dawgs this month, most notably linebackers Nakobe Dean (three years, $36 million) and Quay Walker (three years, $40.5 million). They will unite with former tight end Brock Bowers and cornerback Eric Stokes.

Last season with Philadelphia, Dean recorded 55 tackles with seven tackles for loss and a career-high four sacks. He was limited to 10 games last season while he recovered from a torn patella tendon. Walker posted a career-high 128 tackles and eight tackles for loss with the Green Bay Packers last season. Both Walker and Dean, who were teammates on Georgia’s 2021 CFP National Championship winning team, will provide a boost to the Raiders’ linebacking core, which was a position of need for Las Vegas.

Speaking of former 2021 team members, Eagles’ defensive tackle Jordan Davis signed a new contract earlier this month. The North Carolina native signed a three-year, $78 million contract, which includes $65 million guaranteed. He is now the highest paid nose tackle in the NFL.

Davis has become a staple of the Eagles’ defensive line. He has been a key player in their multiple playoff trips and had a key sack in their Super Bowl LIX victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. Oh, and he also did this last season:

Other former Dawgs signed with new teams, such as Azeez Ojulari and Channing Tindall returning to the red and black with the Atlanta Falcons. More players, such as Leonard Floyd and Nick Chubb, are still awaiting their new teams. Stay tuned for more free agent news from former Dawgs.

First, there’s the good news for the Hoop Dawgs.

There’s no drawing a much lower-seeded than they should be seeded team like it did in Gonzaga last year. But that’s no reason to pop a celebration just yet.

No, Georgia does not draw a team that should be seeded much higher in Saint Louis. Yes, there is something to be said that the Billikens are not a team used to being in the Field of 68 as this is their first berth in seven years.

But Saint Louis has come from the Atlantic 10, a conference of teams that grinds down one another as the season goes on. During the season, the Billikens’ conference wins included both VCU and Dayton. VCU’s an NCAA tourney regular, as is Dayton – the latter of whom edged Saint Louis by one point in the conference semifinals. That loss, by the way, came after the Billikens were the class of the A-1o, claiming a regular-season title for the first time in 12 years.

But the success of the Billikens goes back further, as they started 24-1 and ascended to being ranked as high as 18th nationally.

A big reason for that success? The Billikens being able to get up and down the court fast and well. Saint Louis may have ranked fifth-fewest in points allowed, but it also led the A-1o in points per game. That’s exactly the kind of team a Georgia has to worry about in this format – one that once it gets hot, can be hard to stop.

The offensive heart of the Billikens, on and off the court, is center Robbie Avila. He became a household name in recent years at Indiana State, and that play continued with Saint Louis.

With his physical play and tight-rimmed glasses, he’s every bit of a folk hero and one that if he plays big, can be one of those March Madness feel-good stories – unless Georgia wrecks that narrative of the preseason all-conference pick.

Avila has plenty of support in Dion Brown and Trey Green, both of whom average around 11 points with Brown being key in the paint with nearly six boards per game.

The key for Georgia seems simple – don’t go on a cold streak (looking at you, Ole Miss game in the SEC tourney) and don’t let an underdog swing the momentum of an arena not close to either team’s home.

Go Dawgs!

We have always been at war with the Billikens.

Well, not really. But for tonight we will be locked in mortal athletics combat with the imaginary gremlin champions of the Atlantic Ten regular season.

Tipoff should be somewhere in the general neighborhood of 9:40 pm eastern on CBS and Paramount+. I’ll be popping in here with updates and stats.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Georgia will take on the St. Louis University Billikens in the night cap of this evening’s Midwest Regional, tipping at roughly 9:40 p.m. Athens standard time.

Georgia is the higher seed and a slim 2.5 point favorite according to Fan Duel’s odds, but the #9 seeded Billikens are a dangerous team. They finished as the top team in the always tough Atlantic Ten conference, logging an impressive 27-4 regular season record. How can Mike White’s Hoop Hounds knock out the Billikens? I have some ideas.

Five Keys To A Bulldog Win

Show up: No, Georgia can’t win this one just by showing up. But as we saw last year against Gonzaga it’s easy to lose in the tournament when you don’t get off the bus on time. A slow start in this one feels like not only a sure way to get sent home, but a good reason to ask exactly why Mike White’s teams come out flat in tournament games.

Contain Robbie Avila. Steph Blurry. Larry Blurred. Looks like the manager of a Jiffy Lube but makes it rain from inside and out. Avila averages 12.9 points a game for a very balanced St. Louis attack. If the 6’10 big man can be bottled up (and if Georgia’s bigs don’t get in foul trouble trying to stop him) it will take a major cog out of the Billiken scoring machine.

Break serve. Both of these teams score a lot of points. And this Georgia team, when it has struggled, has just flat out given up a lot of points in only a little bit of time. If the ‘Dawgs can get a couple of stops and force the Billikens to play from behind, however, I like our odds. 

Turnovers, both ways. A big part of breaking the Billikens scoring flow is going to be creating some turnovers. At. Louis, like the Red and Black, pushes the ball up the court, and that should create some turnover opportunities. Likewise, Georgia absolutely cannot give up easy baskets to a high octane Billiken offense that averages 87.2 points per game.

Know thy enemy. What is a Billiken? According to Wikipedia, the most trusted source on the Internet for totally reliable reference information:

The Billiken is a charm doll created by an American art teacher and illustrator, Florence Pretz of Kansas City, Missouri, who is said to have seen the mysterious figure in a dream.

Why is that important? Honestly I’m not sure it is. I just found it interesting. And now you can add that knowledge to your quiver of useful data.

We’ll be back this evening with an actual Georgia basketball live thread. Because why not? Until then…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The tournament committee has spoken, and what they had to tell the Georgia Bulldogs actually could have been worse.

The Hoop Hounds have been slotted into the Midwest Regional and given a #8 seed. They’ll open the tournament Thursday against the St. Louis Billikens, most recently seen dropping a tough, back and forth Atlantic 10 conference tournament semifinal matchup to the Dayton Flyers.

To be clear, the Billikens (28-5, 15-3 in conference) won’t be an easy out. They’ll open are a tough midmajor opponent, and were the top seed in the Atlantic Ten tournament. Nevertheless the Red and Black have opened as 2.5 point favorite over the Billikens at FanDuel. Some of that could be attributable to the Billikens’ lack of quality wins against Power 4 opponents this season. They’ve been consistently good against mid-major competition, but Georgia will definitely present a physical test.

In light of the Bulldogs’ early exit from the SEC Tournament, I was a bit worried about falling to a 9 seed and potentially getting an opening tilt against one of those 8 seeds who really deserve to be a 7 or 6. This matchup isn’t that (see Georgia’s matchup with Gonzaga last year for an idea what that looks like). Still, if Mike White’s team picks up a round one win they’ll be rewarded with a second round contest against top-seeded Michigan in Chicago, a locale chock full of Michigan fans and alums. That would be…. difficult, to say the least. But for now, the Bulldogs are dancing, and we intend to enjoy it. And who knows, history confirms that somebody’s going to pull an upset. Might as well be us. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Let the Madness commence.

The college basketball postseason is here with Selection Sunday and the reveal of the 68 team NCAA Tournament bracket this evening. Coverage will begin on CBS, and streaming on Paramount+, at 6:00 pm eastern. You can also watch live streaming coverage on the NCAA’s March Madness Live

As a reminder, 31 teams will punch their ticket to the Big Dance by winning their respective conference tournaments. 37 will be selected by the tournament committee as at-large selections. That is the route your Georgia Bulldogs will need to take following a pretty ignoble exit in the SEC Tournament. The ‘Dawgs earned a first round bye but then fell 76-72 on Thursday to #15 seed Ole Miss, which had only won 4 conference games all season. Yeesh.

Picking up arguably your worst loss of the year three days before Selection Sunday is no way to improve your seeding. Mike White’s squad could have landed as high as a 7 or even a 6 seed with a deep run in a strong SEC Tournament field. As it is they’re definitely in the field, but will likely be a #9 seed, meaning a tough first round game against a #8 seed and a likely second round date with a #1 seed. To loosely paraphrase John Wilkes Booth, thus always to those who don’t take care of business against 12-19 Ole Miss when it matters.

Still, today looks like the day when your Bulldogs will make their first repeat trip to the Big Dance since 2001/2002. That’s something to celebrate. This will be the thread for all Selection Sunday discussion and news, right up until the Hoop Hounds’ matchup is announced. At that point we’ll break down the matchup, including a look at the odds from our friends at FanDuel, as well as key stats and player comparisons. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Good Thursday afternoon, Dawg fans!! The Georgia Diamond Dawgs have put together a solid 15–3 record, earning the #8 spot in the National rankings as they are currently riding a four-game win streak. Last week, Georgia earned a win over Kennesaw State and completed a four-game sweep over Queens University of Charlotte, with their lone loss coming at the hands of Western Carolina in a 10–9 final.

Georgia put up double-digit runs in all four games against the Royals, outscoring Queens 50–10 over the course of the series as the Dawgs’ offense continues to stay red hot.

Game 1: UGA-12 Queens-2

Game 2: UGA-13 Queens-5

Game 3: UGA-11 Queens-0

Game 4: UGA-14 Queens-3

Senior catcher Daniel Jackson has been the early catalyst of the Dawgs’ offensive attack at the plate. Jackson earned Co-SEC Player of the Week honors last week after smashing five home runs, two of which were grand slams, while also posting a .478 batting average and 13 RBIs.

While the Georgia offense has continued to produce at the plate, there is still a question mark surrounding the pitching staff as the Dawgs prepare to enter the grind of SEC play. Through the first 18 games, Georgia’s arms have shown flashes of dominance, but consistency has been an issue at times. The loss to Western Carolina highlighted some of those concerns, as the Bulldogs surrendered ten runs in a game where the offense still managed to put up nine.

The margin for error will only grow thinner once conference play begins. Lineups across the SEC are among the most talented in the country, and every weekend series presents a new challenge on the mound. Georgia will need its starters to provide length while allowing the bullpen to settle into defined roles if the Dawgs want to remain competitive in the conference standings.

Still, there are plenty of positives to build on. Georgia’s offense has proven it can score with anyone (per usual), and when the pitching staff limits free passes and keeps the ball in the park, the Bulldogs have looked like a very complete team.

All eyes now turn to the SEC opener as Georgia welcomes the 13–4 Tennessee Volunteers, who are still settling into the Josh Elander era following the departure of Tony Vitello. This series should provide an early test for the Dawgs, but Georgia has the opportunity to prove itself as the better team.

If the bats stay hot and the pitching staff rises to the moment, the Dawgs will have a great chance to start conference play on the right foot and compete at a high level throughout the remainder of the season.

Hope all of you have a great rest of your day and finish out the week strong. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

Yes, Bulldogs are headed to Duval but not for the Coctail Party. One of the biggest week’s on the golf calendar, and we’ve got some ‘Dawgs in the field. But first a quick recap of what went down at Arnie’s place at Bay Hill for the big bucks and elevated FedEx points:

Brian Harman never got anything going, blew up Saturday, and finished last of those making the cut. Chris Kirk wasn’t much better, and he tied for 47^th. Keith Mitchell both opened and closed with solid 68’s, but Friday and Saturday rounds took him out of serious contention (T33).

Harris English also started strong yet did not recapture any magic and tied for 24^th. Sepp Straka improved every day and started the final round in the top 6, but a bad Sunday bumped him back down to T13. And Russell Henley, who was the defending champion, hung around until a 4 under par final round got him into the top 10 at 6^th.

So that’s 3 former Bulldogs in the top 25, 2 in the top 15, and a top 10. Let’s see if we can make a little more headway as the Tour heads up the Florida coast to St. Augustine and the PGA Tour’s signature, signature event.

Tournament: The Players Championship, March 12-15, 2026

Course: TPC Sawgrass (Stadium Course), 7,352 yards, par 72. A former swamp outside of Jacksonville turned into some of the priciest golf real estate in the country.

Purse: $25 big ones. As in the richest purse in golf. The winner gets a cool $4.5 million. This is frankly ridiculous, but it does make for some drama.

Defending Champ: Rory McIlroy. JJ Spaun led going into Sunday, but was just able to hang on with an even par 72. McIlroy charged from a little further back, shooting a 68 and forcing Spaun to make some crucial putts coming in just to make the playoff. The early sunset pushed the 4 hole playoff to Monday morning and a sparse crowd. And McIlory was comfortable enough to not make mistakes, Spaun the opposite, and the Irishman captured the Players as a prelude to what would happen in Augusta 4 weeks later.

In 2024, Brian Harman captured 2^nd place, and Kevin Kisner forced a playoff in 2014 but eventually lost to Rickie Fowler. Other than that, there haven’t been too many high finishes from our boys, but we said the same thing about the British Open.

TV Times: The Golf Channel will have live coverage Thursday and Friday from 1:00 – 7:00 pm ET. But they also have live look-ins almost all day. NBC will have extended coverage Saturday from 2-7pm ET, and Sunday from 1:00 pm ET to end of coverage. PGA Tour Live via ESPN+ is essentially all day (roughly 7-7 ET all four rounds).

Dawgs in the Field: 7. Harman, English, Henley, Kirk, Mitchell, Straka, Thompson.

Whethere this is a “5th major” or not, it is quantifiably the toughest field in golf, with 123 of the top players (outside of Jon Rahm and a couple of other LIV members). It is also the richest purse in golf. And on one of the toughest tests in terms of course setup. Add that up, and it’s a big week for everyone in the golf world.

Rory McIlroy is a game time decision (little after 1:30 pm ET Thursday) with a bad back, Scheffler is coming off his worst finish in forever (a top 25, but consecutive non-top 10s – poor guy), and plenty of other storylines. You might be distracted with the SEC basketball tournament or other items of March Madness. At least Georgia plays at 7 pm tonight, hopefully after the golf coverage concludes.

Whatever you’re watching, have yourself a day. And as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

The SEC Tournament begins today in Nashville, Tennessee, with the first-round slate of games. LSU and Kentucky get things started from Bridgestone Arena at 12:30 eastern, followed by Mississippi State and Auburn. The whole bracket is available over at the SEC website, along with game previews and results/stats.

Georgia begins the tournament as the #7 seed, and won’t play until Thursday night when they take on the winner of #10 Texas and #15 Ole Miss. While the Red and Black are more than likely securely in the Big Dance, the conference tournament isn’t without some significance. Most model brackets have the Bulldogs situated between a 7 and 9 seed, which means a tough first round matchup with a fellow 8 or 9 seed, and presumably a second round date with one of the #1 seeds. A deep run in the SEC Tournament could set up a much smoother road to the Sweet Sixteen.

By the way, if you’re thinking about taking a flyer on the Fightin’ Mike Whites to win it all, the odds are not exactly in your favor. FanDuel has the Dawgs at +50,000 (500 to 1) to have their one shining moment. Obviously as Bulldog basketball fans we understand that’s not the realistic goal here. Getting past the first round seems realistic, making it through round two and into the Sweet Sixteen would make this the most successful UGA basketball season since before any player on this roster was born.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Only a couple of weeks ago the Georgia Bulldogs were squarely on the March Madness bubble. However, a decisive home win over the Alabama Crimson Tide and a come-from-behind road victory over Mississippi State to finish the conference slate put Mike White’s team squarely in the tournament. The question is, where?

Some bracketologists had the Dawgs as high as a #7 seed following the win in Starkville, but events elsewhere on the college hardwood seem to have pushed other teams ahead of them. That may turn out to be a bad break. ESPN for example has the Hoop Hounds at a #8 seed taking on a solid Ohio State team in the Greenville region. The winner of that match up would get a second round date with the top overall tournament seed, Duke. In the words of great basketball philosopher Jeffrey Lebowski, that’s a bummer dude.

On3 Sports’ latest projections have the Bulldogs and Buckeyes playing as well, but as a 7/10 matchup in the Houston. That same bracket has the hated Florida Gators as the top seed following their season-ending victory over the Kentucky Wildcats (what? Like that’s hard?).

HoopsHQ also has the Gators earning a top seed, but their UGA projection is also an interesting one. That site has the Dawgs a #8 seed traveling to Chicago to take on the always feisty Utah State Aggies. The winner would likely earn a second round matchup with #1 seed Michigan, playing in a city in which the Wolverines have a huge alumni presence and would likely enjoy a solid home court advantage. Again, do not want.

The bottom line for Bulldog fans is that Georgia could substantially increase its odds of a deep tournament run by having a solid showing in the SEC Tournament that tips off tomorrow, and in which the Dawgs are the 7 seed. A run to the tournament final could push Georgia into the top third of the region brackets, which allows you to avoid the #1 seeds and also can allow you to pick up a second round game against an underdog that has enough magic to slip through one game but not two.

Speaking of odds, you can find the odds for all the conference and March Madness action over at FanDuel, just remember to wager responsibly. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

Welcome to Freeform, Friday, the close cousin to football season’s Friday tailgate. This is a place for us to kick around life’s weighty questions during the off-season. Sort of a virtual rec room if you will. Maestro, queue the extended music, live from the fabulous 40 Watt:

The Georgia Bulldogs will enter play in the SEC basketball tournament next week, and spring practice for football will begin the week after that. In short, spring sports have sprung in the Classic City. Be that as it may, it is never, ever a bad time to talk about University of Georgia football. so I thought this inaugural Free Form Friday for the year 2026 should probably begin with a quick look back at football 2025.

Specifically, my question for you is this: what was the one shining moment you will take from the 2025 Georgia bulldog football season? Obviously the entire SEC championship game was magical, but I am really looking for a single play or sequence of plays that you will smile or chuckle about years from now. London Humphreys’ amazing catch of Gunner’s amazing throw in Knoxville? Auburn fans (and Hugh Freeze) losing their minds along with the ball? Arch Manning once again rolling snake eyes against the Bulldog defense? There’s a lot of great stuff to look back on, and a long way until August. So let us know what really lit your fire this fall. Until later…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

As a reminder, the stated policy of Dawg Sports regarding University of Georgia basketball is to ideally acknowledge its existence once annually. It’s not because we aren’t hoops fans. We would love to see the ‘Dawgs win every game, and in fact for my part, I can say I watch a decent amount of bulldog basketball. But harsh experience has taught us that the Hoop Hounds’ success is a bit like a timid baby deer traversing the forest floor. Adorable, but the moment you turn your eyes toward it, it dashes away in terror.

But on this morning, I am excited enough to break the rule. In case you missed it Coach White’s team down number 16 Alabama last night 98-88 in the Stege. The effort was keyed by a monster night from sophomore Kanon Catchings, who put up a career high 32 points.

If you’d have told me during the Mark Fox era that a Bulldog hoopster could score 32 points in a single game I would have wept. But this Bulldog team, now 21-9 overall and 9-8 in the SEC, is quite literally built different. They’re, and I think I’m using this word correctly….fun? The Red and Black are second only to the Crimson Tide in scoring at 90 points a game despite no player on the squad averaging over 20 points per night. Lest you get too concerned, they do still follow the grand Bulldogs basketball tradition of turning the ball over like Shriners handing out candy at a July 4th parade. But that kind of thing is a lot less damaging when you can actually shoot the basketball and rebound. Which, weirdly, it seems this team can. I’ve seen it. With my eyes.

And this emergence is even more enjoyable given that the league’s media picked the Athenians to finish 14th in the league, and placed no ‘Dawgs on the SEC first, second, or third team preseason lists. It’s fun to be right. It’s more fun to prove your doubters wrong.

Though to be fair, this season has been a bit of a revelation for Bulldog fans too. Roster turnover is now just a fact of life in college sports, perhaps nowhere more than college basketball. And Georgia came into this season without Silas Demery, Jr. (who transferred to UConn) and Asa Newell (currently doing work off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks). So perhaps the league’s scribes had some reason for skepticism.

But they fell victim to one of the classic blunders. No, not getting involved in a land war in Asia. I mean underestimating Mike White, who now sports a 77-55 record in Athens. Most importantly, that ninth conference win against the Tuscaloosers essentially clinched a spot in the NCAA Tournament, the second appearance in a row for the Classic City Canines. That last happened during the 2001-2002 tournaments. Not sure how that streak came to an end. Like Lewis Grizzard, frankly, I don’t want to talk about it.

But I digress. The Hoop Hounds will travel to Starkville on Saturday to take on a Mississippi State team that’s lost four in a row and sits at 5-12 in the SEC. Then the SEC Tournament tips off a week from today on March 11th. At some point thereafter this Bulldog basketball team is going to mildly disappoint me by bowing out of postseason play in a frustrating and/or wholly predictable manner. But before that occurs, let me go on record stating that we’ve got one heckuva basketball team in Athens.

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

The college baseball season has officially begun, and the 2026 Georgia Diamond Dawgs are back on the Foley Field diamond with their sights set on another postseason run and ultimately a trip to Omaha.

Georgia opened the season with a solid four-game week, taking a weekend series from the Wright State Raiders before closing things out with a midweek win over the USC Upstate Spartans. It was a balanced week that featured Georgia’s signature power at the plate, solid pitching, and multiple players stepping up in big moments.

Game 1 vs. Wright State

Georgia opened the weekend with a steady, dominant performance. The Dawgs wasted no time applying pressure, jumping out to a 2–0 lead in the first inning thanks to Tre Phelps launching a two-run opposite-field homer that also scored Kenny Ishikawa.

The offense broke the game open in the middle innings. Across the fifth and sixth, Georgia strung together hit after hit and capitalized with runners in scoring position. Daniel Jackson highlighted the offensive surge with a three-run blast to left-center that pushed the Dawgs’ total to 13 runs.

From there, Georgia’s pitching staff took control, pounding the strike zone, limiting free passes, and never allowing Wright State to find an offensive rhythm. The bullpen slammed the door to secure a convincing 13–1 win and a strong start to the series and season.

Game 2 vs. Wright State

The Dawgs followed up with another complete performance in Game 2.

Kenny Ishikawa was electric on the mound, striking out eight batters over four innings while allowing just one hit. The two-way transfer is already making a serious impact in Athens.

Offensively, Georgia kept rolling. Four different Dawgs homered in the game, with Brennan Hudson leading the way. Hudson finished 2-for-2 with three walks, two RBIs, and a home run in a dominant all-around performance at the plate.

With a 9–0 lead by the seventh inning, the bullpen again handled business, shutting down any hopes of a comeback and securing the series victory.

Game 3 vs. Wright State

Georgia’s opening weekend momentum hit a bump in Game 3, as Wright State responded with a strong performance to take the finale 6–3.

The Dawgs had their chances offensively but stranded eight runners on base. Henry Allen provided a spark with a solo home run in the seventh inning, but Georgia couldn’t close the gap as Wright State capitalized in key moments to earn the win.

Georgia vs. USC Upstate

Georgia bounced back in the midweek matchup against USC Upstate with an aggressive offensive start. Daniel Jackson and Ryan Black both homered early, helping the Dawgs build a 5–1 lead by the third inning.

The offense stayed hot through the middle innings with several extra-base hits, and freshman Cole Johnson stood out as part of Georgia’s deep lineup, contributing throughout the night.

On the mound, Georgia mixed and matched arms effectively. Multiple pitchers logged quality innings, using the midweek opportunity to gain experience while still maintaining control of the game. Although Upstate chipped away at times, the Dawgs never let things get tense, closing out a 12–6 win.

Dawg Sports Diamond Dawg of the Week

The first Diamond Dawg of the Week goes to two-way standout Kenny Ishikawa. His impact on both the mound and at the plate was undeniable, and his early-season form is a major boost for Georgia moving forward.

Coming Up

The Diamond Dawgs return to Foley Field tomorrow for a three-game series against the Samford Bulldogs. First pitch for the opener is set for 3:00 p.m. ET. Following that series, Georgia will welcome the Troy Trojans to Athens for another early-season mid-week test.

Hope all of you have a great rest of your day and week. As always, GO DAWGS!!!

Welcome to Thursday, and another edition of ‘Dawgs on Tour. But let’s check in to see the final results from the Genesis Invitational in La-La Land.

The field was cut from 72 down to 50 players after 2 rounds, and that score was even par/142 strokes. Unfortunately Russell Henley recorded 144 strokes, so he slammed his trunk and went home.

Brian Harman made the cut on the number, but he shot 76-71 over the weekend to tie for last place (and $51,500 in earnings).

Sepp Straka was 4 under par Saturday, and apparently decided that was too good. His Saturday 80 pretty much ensured he would fall to the bottom, and ultimately tied with Harman for the same score and same cash.

Harris English only made the weekend by a couple of shots and held serve with an 1 under 3rd round, but made some serious cash with a closing 65, jumping 16 spots on the leaderboard and $224,500.

The winner was Jacob Bridgeman, SC native and Clemson Tiger. His first PGA win was worth 700 FedEx points and $4 million. His wife of about 2 months is supposedly pleased with the outcome. Now onto this week’s Tour stop:

Tournament: Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches, February 26-March 1, 2026.

Course: PGA National, (the Champion Course), par 71, 7,223 yards. Just outside of West Palm Beach, FL.

Purse: $9.6 million total, $1,728,000 to the winner. Less than half of what is offered in the Signature Events.

Defending Champ: Joe Highsmith, formerly of Pepperdine, made the cut on the number, and shot consecutive 7 under par 64s on the weekend to hold off a few others and overtake Jake Knapp (who choked on the last nine to give up the lead).

Fun Fact: The Nicklaus redesigned PGA National Champion course is one of 5 on the property. At one point, this course was home to the most balls in the water on the PGA Tour, and there is water on 15 holes. The 3 hole stretch of 15-17 is known as “The Bear Trap” thanks to Nicklaus’ tweaking, and is supposed to frighten everyone and remind you of Amen Corner at AGNC. It is definitely a tough combination, but the statue and naming makes it a little contrived.

TV Times: Thurs-Fri 2-6 pm ET on Golf Channel; Sat-Sun 1-3 pm ET Golf Channel and 3-6 pm ET NBC. CBS has given over to college basketball until after the Final 4, and will pick up golf at the Masters in early April.

‘Dawgs in the Field: 4. Brendon Todd, Davis Thompson, Chris Kirk, Keith Mitchell.

So now you get the title. After being the Honda Classic for a decade, Cognizant and apparently the Convention & Visitors Burea of Palm Beach County got together for a perfectly bland tournament title picking meeting. But the course is very difficult, and gives fits to every Tour pro.

The problem is that several big names aren’t competing. Thanks to having two Signature Events in a row, and Bay Hill next week with the Players 2 weeks after that, this tournament is getting skipped for rest by some of the top pros like Scheffler and McIlroy. And some highly ranked former Bulldogs like Henley, Harman, and Straka. No matter – this place is where ‘Dawgs come to win.

In the last 7 years, a Bulldog has finished in the top 10 every year here. That includes Sepp Straka’s first Tour win in 2022, Chris Kirk’s personal redemption win in 2023, and Keith Mitchell’s first Tour win in 2019. And going back further, Russell Henley’s second Tour win in 2014. So it’s a place both familiar and comfortable. And I expect more good things from Mitchell, who has shown early season flashes and won on this course.

If you don’t want to pin your hopes on a Georgia mens’ basketball team that is back to .500 in conference play and looking to secure its 20th win on the season, you might just forget those hoop dreams and come watch ‘Dawgs chasing little white balls. Either way…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

I’ll address the article photo a little later. Before that, last week at Pebble Beach started with ideal conditions and devolved into a challenge as winds swept in off the Pacific to the very exposed Pebble Beach Golf Links. While the event was eventually won by Collin Morikawa in the final group, a few former Bulldogs hung around the first page of the leaderboard and earned some good finishes.

Chris Kirk and Keith Mitchell finished at 8 under par in a tie for 52, but slightly different ways to get there; Kirk was very steady while Mitchell had a little more volatility round to round.

Harris English opened with a 73 but followed it with a 63 and 2 more under par rounds to finish t24.

Brian Harman started Sunday T19 but eagled both par 5s on the front and started to scare the leaders at 6 under for 15 holes, but faltered at the finish at ended back at T19.

Russelll Henley started back in the pack but a hot front 9 moved him up the leaderboard and a eagle at 18 secured a top 20 standing.

And Sepp Straka started in the final threesome but early bogeys seemed to doom his chances. That is until a birdie on 14, 16, 17 and an eagle on 18 jumped him over all but Morikawa and gave him a T2 finish. Now the Tour moves down the Pacific Coast to LA.

Tournament: The Genesis Invitational, February 19-22, 2026

Course: Riviera Country Club, par 71, 7,384 yards. Located just a few miles north of Santa Monica and the Pacific Ocean in the Los Angeles metro.

Purse: $20 million total, $3.6 million to the winner. Another Signature Event, another bloated purse with another exclusive field.

Defending Champ: Ludvig Aberg. Due to the fires in LA last January, the decision was made to move the tournament from it’s home at Riviera (LA) down to Torrey Pines (San Diego). There, the young Swede captured his 2nd Tour title with a clutch final 9 holes. Davis Thompson and Brian Harman were the only two ‘Dawgs in the top 20.

Fun Fact: Bubba Watson won this tournament 3 times – Northern Trust in 2014, 2016 and the Genesis Open in 2018 (hence the cover art). The caddy for all 3 of those wins was Ted Scott. Who is now the caddy for #1 in the world Scottie Scheffler. The same player who has finished in the top ten in his last 18 tournaments, and 6 of those were wins. You might not get much value from placing a bet on Scheffler to win, top 5, or top 10, but at least you’re shekels are pretty safe.

TV Times: Thursday-Friday 4-8 pm ET on Golf Channel; Saturday 1-3 pm ET Golf Channel and 3-7 pm CBS; Sunday 1-3 pm Golf Channel and 3-6:30 pm CBS. Plus all the streaming on satellite radio and ESPN+.

‘Dawgs in the Field: 4. Harris English, Brian Harman, Sepp Straka, Russell Henley.

This is a Signature Event with a smaller, invitation only field, yet the tournament has a 36 hole cut, thanks to the insistence of host Tiger Woods (who famously never won on this course in his PGA Tour career). It is essentially the same as last week so we’ll only see a couple more new faces, but more importantly (to most viewers and definitely the networks) is that the top players on Tour will all be in attendance facing off against each other. Even though the season is 6 weeks old, this will be only the second event of the year for players such as Rory McIlroy and last August’s FedEx Cup winner Tommy Fleetwood. But this is about as close as you can get to good on good outside of the 4 majors.

We’re about to conclude the West Coast Swing and head to the Florida Swing, but it is interesting to see how the schedule sets up. Last week’s first Signature Event was at Pebble Beach – iconic by every measure. This week is at Riviera, a close runner-up tier in iconography and it is hosted by Tiger Woods. Next week is the Cognizant – PGA National is a good challenge but while not on any Mount Rushmores, it is hosted by Jack Nicklaus. The following week is Bay Hill – founded and named after Arnold Palmer. The next week is the Players at Sawgrass. That is quite the stretch of golf for February/March.

Though only February, it’s never too early to earn FedEx Cup points to get into the post-season via top 100 in point rankings. Of our Bulldogs, Chris Kirk and Davis Thompson have the most work to do at 124th and 116th repsectively. Brian Harman is 77th after last week, Keith Mitchell 47th with lots of cuts made but no high finishes, Harris English 39th from a mixed bag, Russell Henley 25th with a very good Sunday scoring average, and Sepp Straka 9th thanks to his runner up in the point-boosted AT&T last week.

The golf world is still splintered and in an arms race for purses, players are making surprising moves in and out of tours/leagues most every week, and there’s plenty of griping about field sizes and pathways, but the sport of golf is no more messed up than every other sport: just the issues are different. The good news is that a lot of very good golf is on TV every weekend and the sport is about to start playing some of the best venues in the world. That’s worth watching. Enjoy, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

This is a tumultuous time in the world of college athletics. Name, image and likeness, as well as changes to the playoff scheme in football and resulting conference upheaval have upended the world as many of us knew it for the past three decades.

It’s a world gone mad, and someone needs to bring a bit of sanity to it. You could be just the person for the job.

Our open question to you on this afternoon is simple. Imagine you have been crowned the king or queen of college athletics. Like the head of the NCAA if you didn’t have to worry about school presidents, meddling congresspersons, or television executives telling you what you can and can’t do. Once vested with this enormous power (and equally weighty responsibility) how would you exercise it?

For my part, I think at a minimum I would require that no college sports conference at the FBS level can have a geographically non-contiguous layout. That is, you can’t skip states to get to another school to add to your conference. The Big Ten for example spans coast-to-coast but doesn’t have any schools in most of the states its student athletes are currently flying over to get to that big UCLA/Rutgers matchup. I think this simple rule would do a lot to rein in some of the far flung, stitched together Frankenconferences now emerging.

Drop your ideas for how to fix this mess in the comments. And as always…

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

No backdoor top 10s for the Bulldogs last week, and none were contending on an exciting final 9 holes ultimately won by Chris Gotterup over Hideki Matsuyama on the first playoff hole. But money was earned, and FedEx Cup points were awarded. Brian Harman, most recent honoree of the 2026 UGA Young Alumnus Award, never got anything going and missed the cut by a few strokes. Chris Kirk couldn’t get the ball in the hole in Round 2 and missed the cut by 1. Davis Thompson was in decent shape for the weekend, but slid down to T64 at the end. Keith Mitchell played steady if uninspired golf and he finished T41. Harris English climbed up a few spots each day, and Sunday showed him in a tie for 28th. And Sepp Straka also kept hanging around, ultimately to T18. Now onto this week’s Signature Event.

Tournament: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, February 12-15, 2026

Course(s): Spyglass Hill Golf Course: Par 72, 7,071 yards and Pebble Beach Golf Links: Par 72, 6,989 yards.

Purse: $20 million in total with $3,600,000 to the winner. And no cut. Last place gets $32,000. 35th place is over $100k. Thus the title of the article. Think of it like the inflated contracts Power4 QBs are getting – it is ultimately unsustainable without some change.

Defending Champ: Rory McIlroy. At this time last year, McIlroy was but a fresh-faced kid off the boat from Ireland. Okay, he was already a multi-millionaire, but he was NOT a Grand Slam and Masters Champion. Last year, Georgia’s own Sepp Straka actually held a 1 stroke lead going into Sunday, but it was bunched and there was a lot of movement early with the lead bouncing around. Then McIlroy got his irons and putter to work, and he closed with a 66 and a 2 stroke lead (Straka finished 7th, Henley raced up to a T5, Mitchell was T33, Harman was T53, Thompson was T58, Kirk T62, English T73 and Todd T78. )

Fun Fact: It’s Pebble Beach. It’s the old Bing Crosby Clambake. It’s Clint Eastwood prowling around, Bill Murray shanking and not coordinating, and Jim Nantz getting to sleep at home (a proprety on the course that is probably north of $15 million).

TV Times: Golf Channel will have coverage Thursday and Friday 3-7 pm ET, also on Saturday and Sunday 1-3 pm ET. CBS will have the main weekend coverage Saturday and Sunday 3-7:00 pm ET. Set your DVRs to record 60 minutes as appropriate.

And a reminder that if you have ESPN+, you have coverage from essentially 11 am ET every day, and with mutlitple streams to view (featured groups, featured holes, main feed, etc.). And SiriusXM has coverage from 1:00 pm every day.

‘Dawgs in the Field: 6. The usual suspects thanks to finishing top 50 last year. Harris English, Sepp Straka, Russell Henley, Brian Harman, Chris Kirk (thanks to a good Fall season a few months back), and Keith Mitchell (via a sponsor’s exemption).

It is the first “Signature Event” of the 2026 season, which means a smaller field, an elite field for those qualified, and bloated purses. If you qualify for this tournament, you were already rich from your recent success. And now you get guaranteed money, about double what is available at a normal Tour event. So the rich get richer.

My bitter pill is wearing off so I’ll mention the highlights. First, it’s Pebble Beach, widely regarded as one of if not the most picturesque places to play golf on earth. Hugging Carmel Bay along 17 Mile Drive on the Monterey Peninsula, the Pacific Ocean is actually in play on several holes. Unpredictable weather, scenic vistas, and some of the most expensive land in the US is where these millionaires will ply their trade.

And it’s a pro-am. In the old format, with a full field across 3 courses, the players were still faced with 6+ hour rounds thanks to pandering to the crowd and foursomes including the amateur partners who would lose balls and play poorly on a course set up for PGA pros. But it’s fun, provides a few TV moments, and is one of the last tournaments to have amateurs play alongside pro during the competitive rounds.

Keith Mitchell seems to have some magnetism. He previously paired with Josh Allen of the Bills, and this year is teaming with Taylor Swift’s fiance.

Chris Kirk will play with David Kohler, CEO of the Kohler Company which owns Whistling Straits and some sink accessories.

Russell Henley is teamed with Ted Fike, who I believe is an entrepreneur and founder of Investco (among others).

Sepp Straka with Chris Reyes, co-chair of the 6th largest private company in the country.

Brian Harman with Bill Rogers. There are a lot of famous people with that name, but I think this is the CEO of Truist.

Harris English with Ralph LaRossa, and I’m guessing this is the CEO of PSEG, one of the big power companies in the US and specifically NY/NJ.

There are a few other celebrities which I recognize, but I won’t bore you with details. More importantly, the vast majority of the world’s top 50 golfers will be going head to head at an iconic venue with a lot on the line. Enjoy, and as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

Hello. My name is MaconDawg (well not really, not on my driver’s license because that would draw some weird looks, but go with it…) and I am still paying for cable.

For years I have vowed that I would be joining the ranks of the cord cutters, those who no longer pay ever-escalating fees just to have access to the Hallmark Channel (which I never watch) and Animal Planet (which I watch precisely once a year when my wife and daughter turn on the Puppy Bowl). The prices keep going up. My television viewing continues to go down. It is a horrible value proposition , one which no sane person would accept.

Except for college sports. As you can imagine, writing several hundred thousand words about college sports every year requires one to actually watch a fair amount of college sports. Unlike commentating on college sports for a television network, which requires either a weird tie, frosted tips, or a Labrador retriever, and preferably some combination of the three.

But I digress.The point is that every year I say I’m going to figure out which streaming services offer me the greatest variety of college football programming for my hard-earned buck, and every year I get into the fifth draft of my presentation to the family and say “Forget this, saving $10 a month ain’t worth it.” Except that now, I suspect it probably is. And that’s where you come in.

Assuming I have no need to catch up on Ted Lasso or Magnum P.I. or Bridgerton (wait, wasn’t that the name of Tom Selleck’s old Navy buddy on Magnum P.I.?) what is my best streaming option for college sports, commentariat?

I’m not averse to paying for more than one service if it gets me all the college football, most of the college basketball, and a surprising variety of college baseball/gymnastics/quidditch. But if there is indeed one streaming service to rule them all in 2026 I’d love to hear about that too. Remember, by sharing your experiences you’re not just helping one doddering oaf, you’re helping our entire community watch sports better. And if you help us save a little coin here and there maybe we can redirect it to NIL and pick up a reserve long snapper. It couldn’t hurt.

I’m counting on you, Dawg Sports readers. What are your current favorite college sports streaming options, and why?

Go ‘Dawgs!!!

We are just a few days away from Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara, CA. The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks will battle for the privilege of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, capping off a season of hard work and sacrifice for the players and coaches. For the 25th consecutive season, the Georgia Bulldogs will be represented in the big game.

Of course, winning a Super Bowl often requires standout performances from individual players. In the history of Georgia football, there have been several former players who have shined on the biggest stage.

The first Super Bowl MVP in Bulldogs’ history was Jake Scott, a safety and punt returner for the Miami Dolphins. He earned MVP status in Super Bowl VII against the Washington Redskins thanks to his two interceptions off of Washington quarterback Billy Kilmer. The Dolphins would win the game 14-7 to finish off their undefeated 14-0 season.

Other Georgia players would become staples of the Super Bowl over the next few years. Offensive lineman Guy McIntyre, a standout on those great early 1980s Georgia teams, won three Super Bowls as a lineman for the San Francisco 49ers. Six-time Pro Bowler Ray Donaldson won Super Bowl XXX as a member of the Dallas Cowboys in 1996.

When you think about all-time great Super Bowl performances from former Dawgs, however, one name stands out about the rest: Terrell Davis. The former sixth round pick of the Denver Broncos had a relatively short NFL career, but his impact has been remembered even to this day. A three-time All-Pro and the 1998 league MVP, Davis played in two Super Bowls. His best performance came in Super Bowl XXXII against the Green Bay Packers. Davis had 30 carries for 157 yards and three touchdowns. His third touchdown was a go-ahead score with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Broncos would go on to defeat Brett Favre and the Packers 31-24, giving Denver its first Super Bowl title, and Davis would earn Super Bowl MVP. They would win it all the next season against the Atlanta Falcons, with Davis rushing for 102 yards in that game.

The 2000s saw former Dawgs like Richard Seymour collect multiple rings. During his career, Seymour won three Super Bowls with the New England Patriots as an anchor of their defensive line. The player with the most notable Super Bowl performance of the decade is former Bulldog utility man Hines Ward. Drafted as a wide receiver. The 1998 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ward played multiple positions as a Bulldog, including receiver, running back, and even quarterback.

Ward carved out a nice career for himself with the Steelers, earning four Pro Bowl berths and winning two Super Bowls. He was the MVP of Super Bowl XL against the Seattle Seahawks, catching five passes for 123 yards and one touchdown. All but one of his passes were throw by Steelers’ quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Funny enough, the one not thrown by Big Ben was a 43 yard touchdown pass from receiver Antwaan Randle-El the fourth quarter. This score would ultimately seal the 21-10 victory for Pittsburgh and help them win their fifth Super Bowl victory.

In the last few years, there have been other standout Dawgs who have made big Super Bowl plays. During the Patriots’ historic comeback against the Falcons in Super Bowl LI, wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell caught six passes for 70 yards, with five of them coming in the fourth quarter. Sony Michel was almost the entirely of New England’s offense in Super Bowl LIII against the Los Angeles Rams, as he rushed for 94 yards and scored the game’s only touchdown. Matthew Stafford, the 2025 NFL MVP, was clutch in his first Super Bowl appearance. He threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns, including the game winner to Cooper Kupp with less than two minutes left in the game.

Of course, the most dramatic moment from a former Dawg in the Super Bowl occurred in the 58th game between the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs. Mecole Hardman, who was initially drafted by the Chiefs in 2019, found himself as a member of the New York Jets at the start of the 2023 season. He was traded back to the Chiefs in October of that year.

Hardman did not have a touchdown catch the entire season up until the Super Bowl, but his lone catch in the endzone will be remembered by Chief and Dawg fans forever. Trailing 22-19 in overtime, quarterback Patrick Mahomes found a wide open Hardman, who ran an excellent route, for the game winning touchdown to give the Chiefs their third Super Bowl win in five seasons.

As we continue towards the big game on Sunday, I hope you enjoyed this look back at some former Dawgs the Super Bowl. Will we see new legends be made on Sunday? We’ have to tune in and see, and I’ll be sure to write about them next week.

First a quick glance at last week’s results in San Diego, likely the last time that tourney is sponsored by Farmer’s Insurance (We are apparently not Farmer’s. Bum ba-dum bum bum bum bum.) Davis Thompson started hot but cooled off quickly in the back half of his opening round, and really didn’t get anything going en route to a T43. Harris English started off cold, but slowly warmed up and ended up T22 at 10 under par. Keith Mitchell fell back to the pack after his 2nd round, and had spectacular front 9’s both Saturday and Sunday. Unfortunately he also had to play the back 9 both days, and those tougher holes spoiled otherwise really good rounds. He still finished at 12 under par, and got a T11 for his efforts. Now onto this week’s event:

Tournament: WM Phoenix Open, February 5-8, 2026

Course: TPC Scottsdale, par 71, 7,261 yards (Scottsdale, AZ)

Purse: $9.6 million total, $1,728,000 to the winner.

Defending Champ: Thomas Detry turned this mostly into a runaway at the end of Round 3, and even though some other players made noise Sunday, the Belgian kept his foot on the accelerator and cruised to a 7 shot victory. And also became the first Belgian to win on the PGA Tour. For the Red & Black contingent, Sepp Straka finished 15th, Mitchell & Harman tied for 25th, Greyson Sigg T32, Davis Thompson T36, while Chris Kirk and Brendon Todd missed the cut.

Fun Fact: Almost every tournament has an outdoor concert on the grounds at some point, but these guys do it up more than anyone else. The “Birds Nest”, an area cordoned off specifically for concerts (and a 360 degree stage no less) will feature Bailey Zimmerman/Chase Matthew on Wednesday; Zach Top with Ernest Thursday; Nelly/Ludacris/Ja Rule Friday; and John Summit with BUNT Saturday. I guess this will appeal to people.

TV Times: Thurs-Fri 3:30 – 7:30 pm ET on Golf Channel, Sat-Sun 12-3:00 pm ET Golf Channel and 3-6:30 pm ET on CBS (NBC picks up this tourney when CBS has the Super Bowl).

‘Dawgs in the Field: 6. Harris English, Brian Harman, Chris Kirk, Keith Mitchell, Sepp Straka, Davis Thompson.

Welcome to Spin City. No, not a mid-week Michael J. Fox sitcom vehicle, but an allusion to what branding and marketing departments are good at.

The Phoenix Open has been around since the 1930s, and followed suit in the early 2000’s with corporate sponsorship naming rights. The FBR Open (Friedman Billings Ramsey, I kid you not) lasted a few years before Waste Management took over. Waste Management was a mainstay in business school ethics courses, along with its founder Wayne Huizenga (yes, that Wayne Huizenga). The iteration of Waste Management that sponsors the tournament had severed all ties to that distasteful regime, and they saw sponsoring a golf tournament popular with the young crowd as a wonderful opportunity to sportswash. Or at least get the public thinking about things other than corporate malfeasance and market fraud.

Along with the large local philantrophic Thunderbirds organization which mans and manages the operations, they leaned into big crowds, rowdy crowds, and a unique atmosphere for heretofore stuffy professional golf. They increased ticket supply, drew in local Arizona State students, pumped up fan experience kiosks/events, and basically turned the tournament into a Coachella for the country club adjacent. The decidedly young crowd in the tens of thousands can’t be contained, so quickly the Waste Management Open became the “Wasted” Management, and for good reason. Just search for “waste management drunk fans” and you’ll have plenty of entertainment.

“Waste” and “Wasted” may be accurately descriptive monikers, but it isn’t necessarily a feel good connection. So the Mad Men of Trash rebranded the company “WM”, and the tournament is now the “WM Phoenix Open”, trying to nip the projection of drunk frat bros. They’re moving from “The Greatest Show on Grass” to “The People’s Open”. The tournament website now more prominently displays a Fan Code of Conduct and a banner pleading visitors to “respect the game”.

This is a tournament that encouraged caddy races (literally caddies running races), schleps more beer than a Sigma Nu rush party, told players to engage with fans by throwing out swag/merch on certain holes, built a Colosseum around a par 3, allowed fans to construct a 30 foot+ “beer snake” out of beer cups, and let players take off their shirts and dance during play. Yeah, good luck with that.

Our Beloved Boys in Red and Black haven’t fared that great here in the desert. Bubba Watson had a 2nd place back in 2012 and a T3 a few years later, and Harris English tied for 3rd 10 years ago. To be honest I don’t think there has been anything else other than some top 15s through their collective efforts. It is one of only a handful of PGA Tour events that does not list a former Bulldog as a past champion. But as a lifelong Braves fan, just wait ‘til next year. Enjoy this instead of 4 hours of Super Bowl preview drivel. And as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

The 60th Super Bowl in NFL history has been locked in following a captivating conference championship weekend. The Seattle Seahawks will look to avenge one of the most egregious Super Bowl losses in history as they face the team that defeated them in the big game 11 years ago, the New England Patriots. Despite not having Tom Brady or Bill Belichick, the Patriots will play in their 10th Super Bowl this century. They are officially football’s version of Thanos.

The Patriots punched their ticket to Super Bowl LX by beating the Bo Nix-less Denver Broncos on Sunday by a score of 10-7. The game turned into what the South has been over the past few days: cold and snowy. Patriots’ quarterback Drake Maye iced the game (no pun intended) by scrambling on a third-down run with less than two minutes left to secure the victory. 

There really weren’t many highlights from this game, but for Georgia fans, the biggest news is that former offensive lineman Jared Wilson will have a chance at an NFL ring as a rookie. He could become the first rookie Dawg to win a Super Bowl since Sony Michel, who did so with the Patriots by scoring the only touchdown in their Super Bowl LIII win over the Rams.

Speaking of the Rams, their season came to an end Sunday after a 31-27 loss to the Seahawks. Despite the loss, Matthew Stafford had one of his best games of the season, throwing for 374 yards and three touchdowns. The likely league MVP stated that he will make a decision on his football future over the offseason. If this was the curtain call for the Texan Dawg, he went out with one of his best games and individual seasons of his career. 

I mentioned last week that Kenny McIntosh was the only former Dawg on Seattle’s roster. He will not be active for the Super Bowl due to an ACL injury, however. Amazingly, I completely forgot about head coach Mike Macdonald’s connections to the University of Georgia. 

Macdonald grew up in Roswell, GA and played football at Centennial High School. Injuries ended his football career, and he would enroll at UGA to earn a degree in finance after graduating. He was still determined to pursue a career in football, and in 2010, he joined Mark Richt’s staff as a graduate assistant. From 2011-2013, he worked as a member of the defensive coaching staff before joining the staff of the Baltimore Ravens. He ultimately returned to college as the defensive coordinator at Michigan in 2021 before returning to the same position with the Ravens. 

Shortly after he was hired by Seattle as their head man, Coach Richt praised Coach Macdonald as a “sharp guy” and someone who has a strong work ethic and has what it takes to succeed. 

The storylines leading up to this game in Santa Clara will be interesting to follow. Nonetheless, this should be a great game between two teams that were at the top of the NFL for most of the regular season. Best of luck to the players, especially all the former Dawgs playing (or coaching) in this game.

A quick look back at the American Express which concluded Sunday afternoon in Palm Springs, California. Scottie Scheffler started hot, jumped to the top of the leaderboard on Day 2, stayed there Saturday, and blitzed the field on Sunday. That was his 20th win on Tour (a lifetime exemption) and put him over $100 million in on-course earnings. Defending Champ and former Bulldog Sepp Straka missed the cut as did other Bulldogs Brian Harman, Chris Kirk, and Davis Thompson. But Keith Mitchell got a T44, Harris English tied for 27th, and Russell Henley got a back door top 10 (T8) after a Sunday 67. Now onto this week’s event.

Tournament: Farmers Insurance Open. January 29-February 1, 2026

Course(s): Torrey Pines Golf Club has a North and South course. Players will rotate between the courses the first two days, then a 36 hole cut and the remainder is played on the South course. North: 7,258 yards par 72; South 7,566 par 72.

Purse: $9.6 million total with $1,758,000 to the winner.

Defending Champ: UGA’s own Harris English. He was in pretty good shape at the midway point last year, but a Saturday 66 pushed him out in front and he was able to hold everyone off on a blustery final round Sunday. This was the 5th Tour title for English, and his first in almost 4 years.

Fun Fact: The namesake of the course, the Torrey Pine, is an endangered tree and is only found on these seaside bluffs and on Santa Rosa Island off the coast of Santa Barbara.

TV Times: Because Brooks Koepka is making his first PGA Tour appearance in almost 4 years, ESPN will broadcast Thursday and Friday noon-3 pm ET (and available on Hulu and Disney+. Golf Channel will pick up those first two days from 4-7 pm ET. Weekend coverage is Golf Channel 1-3 pm ET and CBS airs its first golf of the season from 3-6 pm ET. This will be the first CBS golf production without Ian Baker-Finch, and the first with Colt Knost in a tower and Johnson Wagner on the course.

‘Dawgs in the Field:3. Harris English, Davis Thompson, and Keith Mitchell.

For the 2nd week in a row, the PGA Tour event’s defending champion is a former Georgia Bulldog. And the week before that has a ‘Dawg as a past champion. In fact, there are only a handful of PGA Tour events that have not been won by a golfer who matriculated in the Classic City. This could be a decent storyline for the golf press, and one you might have seen on a national scale.

Except the bigger story this week concerns a golfer who defected from the LIV Tour back to the PGA Tour. He also happens to have 5 major championships in his trophy case, married a girl from Winder, GA, and had a public beef with Bryson DeChambeau. Yep, Brooks Koepka is back with the PGA Tour and golf media and golf Twitter are all atwitter about it.

This is why ESPN will broadcast a non-major golf tournament for probably the first time ever, and they elevated the normal streaming ESPN+ coverage to be included on both Hulu and Disney+. And Golf Channel extended their Thu-Fri coverage by an additional hour. And now we hear that one-time UGA golfer and multiple-time cheater Patrick Reed has left LIV and is in talks to rejoin the PGA Tour as well.

Whoever you’re rooting for let’s hope for a strong finish by our boys in Red & Black. And as always…

GO ‘DAWGS!!!

Good afternoon, Dawg fans. I hope everyone has managed to stay warm over the last few days while enduring the winter storm. Like many of you, I’ve been cooped up at home on this fine Monday, and before total boredom fully sets in, I figured I should do something productive. So why not hop on the 2016 trend and take a look back at Coach Kirby Smart’s first recruiting class, specifically, the crown jewel of that class: Jacob Eason.

Man, writing this article really takes me back. I can still remember watching Eason’s highlights when I was in middle school. The hype surrounding him was very real, and the tape absolutely backed it up. When Coach Mark Richt and the Georgia administration mutually agreed to part ways after 15 successful seasons of Georgia football, Eason’s commitment to the Dawgs suddenly felt uncertain. Eason, Coach Richt, and the rest of the UGA offensive staff had built a strong relationship, and it was fair to wonder what might happen next.

There’s no denying that Richt was an outstanding coach during his time in Athens, but the program had struggled to get over the hump and consistently contend for national titles. It was time for a change. Just eleven days after Richt’s departure, Kirby Smart accepted the head coaching position at his alma mater, ushering in a new era of Georgia football.

Smart arrived in Athens fresh off his fourth national championship as defensive coordinator at the University of Alabama, determined to bring that championship culture with him. While instilling a winning mindset is crucial, talent, especially at the quarterback position, is what truly jumpstarts a program. For Smart, that process began with recruiting and, more importantly, keeping Jacob Eason committed to Georgia.

Despite all the coaching turnover, Eason’s commitment to the Dawgs never wavered. He went on to sign with Georgia and headline Coach Smart’s first recruiting class. A native of Lake Stevens, Washington, Eason stood 6’5” and weighed 205 pounds, possessing all the physical tools needed to eventually become a franchise NFL quarterback. A five-star recruit, Eason was ranked as the No. 4 overall player in the 2016 class and the No. 1 pro-style quarterback. He was widely viewed as the next Matthew Stafford, boasting elite size, impressive accuracy, and an absolute cannon for an arm.

During his high school career, Eason threw for 9,813 yards, 102 touchdowns, and just 18 interceptions. His senior season was especially dominant, as he passed for 3,585 yards and 43 touchdowns, earning National Gatorade Player of the Year honors.

Once Eason arrived on campus, he immediately pushed for the starting quarterback job, competing with Greyson Lambert. Although Eason had a strong spring, Lambert was ultimately named the starter as the Dawgs opened the 2016 season against the North Carolina Tar Heels. Midway through that game, Lambert played solid football, but Georgia needed a spark on offense. Enter Eason.

Eason completed 8 of 12 pass attempts for 133 yards and one touchdown, while leaning on the Dawgs’ run game, led by Nick Chubb, to secure a 33–24 victory and begin the Kirby Smart era with a win. Eason would go on to start the remainder of the season, finishing with 2,430 passing yards, 16 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.

Heading into the 2017 season, expectations were sky-high. Many believed Eason was poised to become one of the premier quarterbacks in college football. Unfortunately, fate had other plans. In the season opener against Appalachian State, Eason suffered a knee injury. Backup quarterback Jake Fromm stepped in and never looked back, leading the Dawgs to victory and eventually guiding them on a run all the way to the National Championship game.

Eason’s time in Athens effectively came to an end, and following the season, he elected to transfer to the University of Washington. Due to the NCAA sit-out rule, Eason waited until 2019 to take the field for the Huskies. In his lone season at Washington, he threw for 3,132 yards, 23 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. After the season, Eason decided to forgo his senior year and declare for the 2020 NFL Draft.

He was selected in the fourth round by the Indianapolis Colts and spent time with the Colts and Carolina Panthers, appearing in two regular-season games and completing 5 of 10 pass attempts for 84 yards with two interceptions. Eason also had brief practice-squad stints with the Seahawks, 49ers, Giants, and Green Bay Packers. Now 28 years old, Eason is currently a free agent, and unless another opportunity arises, his playing days are likely over.

Regardless, he’ll always be a DGD in my book and will forever be remembered as the face of Kirby Smart’s first recruiting class, the class that helped turn Georgia from a good program into an elite one.

I hope you all enjoyed this article and that it helped cure some of your boredom today. I know it certainly cured mine. As always, GO DAWGS!!!