The Morning Memory: Erk’s Letter

So, when it comes to the 1980 National Championship season, what really set the tone?

Was it a bond of unity formed by five players ‘borrowing” a pig from the agriculture research farm?

A pretty solid hard-nosed defense core?

The signing of some kid named Herschel?

All of those played significant parts, for sure.

But none of them pegged things in the prime direction than what was written this week in 1980 than none other than defensive coordinator Erk Russell.

With preseason camp and a season ahead, the revered defensive mind wrote a letter to his defensive charges.

By the end of the season, it’d be a piece of Bulldog lore.

Here’s a look back at a piece of Bulldog lore.

Gentlemen: (and Linemen)

It starts off with gusto – making it clear that if you played in the trenches, you were a different breed.

The football season of 80′ will be my seventeenth as a Georgia Bulldog. During this time there have been many thrilling Saturdays of competition, each with it’s individual memories, because each game has it’s own personality.

There are two Saturday traditions and experiences which have remained basically the same throughout the years for me and I would like to share them with you.

This is key – it sets the table for not just the fact that someone is a Georgia Bulldog, but what putting on the red & black represents.

The first one concerns THE RAILROAD TRACK CROWD. These are my people because they love the Dogs almost as much as I do. Oh, I know they do some crazy things- like turn over our opponents’s busses sometimes and now and then they throw one another down the bank and into the street below. But they stamp out Kudzu and they pull for us to win and that ain’t bad.

Changing of times sadly mandated the end of the special time and place that was the railroad track crowd. Were things there basically Talladega Boulevard on a NASCAR weekend? Probably. Did this group inspire the Dawgs? Also, true.

If you can get off the bus to cheers of THE RAILROAD TRACK CROWD and walk down those steps to the dressing room and not be inspired to play football as best you possibly can, something important is missing beneath the Georgia jersey you wear. It is impossible not to be inspired. They choke me up!

To quote the late Larry Munson: “There is no tradition more worth of envy, no institution worthy of such loyalty, as the University of Georgia.“

The season of 1980 will be the last for THE RAILROAD TRACK CROWD A great Georgia tradition will have passed with the new addition to our stadium. The view from the tracks will be no more.

Your team will be the last Georgia Team to be greeted and cheered by THE RAILROAD TRACK CROWD. Wouldn’t it be fitting if their last team was also the best Georgia Team ever. Think about it!

It was indeed fitting. This 1980 team was not flashy, it was hard-nosed and found a way, somehow to win every game, a fitting tribute to the Railroad Track Crowd.

Another Saturday tradition which has meant so much to me over the years can be stated very simply.
“THERE AIN’T NOTHING LIKE BEING A BULLDOG ON SATURDAY NIGHT AFTER WINNING A FOOTBALL GAME.”
I mean like whipping Tennessee’s ass to start with, then ten more and then another one.

This is the game plan. We have no alternate plan.

Sincerely,
Coach Russell

Go Dawgs…hope you all have a drywall repairman nearby…