Sports Page Atlanta

How will the high pre-season ranking that UGA will receive at the end of the summer affect the mentality of the team in the fall? This question has been going through the heads of the people of the Dawg nation since the University of Georgia ending their season as arguably the best team in the nation last year.

In the past the Dawgs have not done well with the high pre-season ranking. In recent history the Dawg fans have had to live through this bad omen before. Everyone remembers the dreaded 2004 season which had Georgia pre-season ranked no. 3. We crushed the national champion LSU tigers at home and then we got our hearts broken the next weekend by the Vols in Sanford stadium. Also, who could forget the Terrence Edwards drop in 2002 against Florida that would have cemented Georgia’s national title appearance? We were ranked eighth in the pre-season polls that year and before that game we had moved up into the top five.

With the season ahead of us the schedule looks very demanding. With away games like South Carolina and Arizona State back to back and the four game away gauntlet that consist of LSU, Florida, Kentucky, and Auburn can the Dawgs navigate this schedule without a loss?

Normally, with the recent history that we have gone through as Georgia fans I would have a negative attitude saying “no way not going to happen,” but I have never seen a Georgia team with this much enthusiasm and drive to be the best. Did the pile up in the Florida game, which brought every player to the middle of the field, change the mentality of this Georgia team for the next few years; will that momentum carry on to the season where the Dawgs will certainly need it the most? Well, the Dawgs have won seven in a row since that afternoon in Florida and I haven’t seen any indication that suggests the momentum won’t continue on especially since Georgia is returning a ton of people. I have never seen a more dominate Dawgs team in my lifetime. Regardless of schedule this team has the confidence, rarely seen in a Dawgs team, which can keep the Dawgs on top. Fall can’t come soon enough for college football fans. For the Dawg fans this might be a special one.

The Honda Classic is this week’s PGA Tour stop and it is also the event where in 2002 that former Georgia Tech’s Matt Kuchar has his only PGA Tour win.

Matt won the 1998 Fred Haskins Award as the nation’s top collegiate golfer, but hasn’t lived up the professional hype. Then again, he would destroy me in golf a million times in a row.

He is currently even par through 2 rounds

Different year, same results…at least, as far as the Braves bullpen goes. Non-roster invitee Matt DeSalvo entered the game in the 8th inning and promptly gave up two hits, four earned runs, and five walks over only 1.1 innings, to blow the lead and earn the loss, as the Braves fell to the Dodgers, 5-4, at Holman Stadium in Vero Beach, Fla. Prior to the “Ricky Vaughan-like” implosion on the mound by DeSalvo, Tyler Flowers, another non-roster invitee, hit a two-run home run off former Brave (thankfully) Tom Martin to break a 2-2 tie in the top of the ninth inning.

Two of the Braves regulars appeared to be in mid-season form. Jeff Francoeur was 1-3 with a double, a run, and two outfield assists, while Tim Hudson (War Eagle) struck out one and gave up one run over two innings. Hot shot prospect Jordan Schafer went 2-3 with a run, batting out of the two hole and splitting time with Gregor Blanco in centerfield. Brian McCann and Scott Thorman each added RBI’s for the Braves. And hey, after all, it isn’t who wins and loses in Spring Training, it’s how the regulars looked, and the Braves regulars looked just fine.

So, with DeSalvo already establishing himself as this years front-runner for the Dan Kolb Award (awarded to the Braves pitcher each year most likely to have a 15.00+ ERA), the Braves head “home” to The Magic Kingdom to host the Dodgers at Champion Stadium at 1:05pm EST. Jair Jurrjens, who came over in the Edgar Renteria trade, gets the start for the Braves. Andruw Jones will not travel with the Dodgers to Orlando to face his former team…presumably because he’d rather sit at Burger King and eat Whopper’s all day. The game can be seen on ESPN, so set your DVR’s.

Watch many Georgia Bulldog football games? Listen up. The Dawgs are at the point in the spring time where the number battle begins. Here is a list of the Dawgs that have changed their numbers for the next season.

• QB Sophomore Logan Gray is swapping from number 19 to snag Lumpkin’s number 6
• Tailback Sophomore Caleb King switches from 22 to 4.
• RT Redshirt Sophomore Kiante Tripp who wore two numbers last year (92, 64) finds his permanent number with former bulldog Fernando Velasco’s 75
• Linebacker Redshirt Sophomore Akeem Hebron is now going to be (37)

Now that the number changes are out of the way lets move on to the new guys. With a great recruiting class coming in, it seems that there will be a mad scramble to pick a number in which the player feels that he can be successful. The early enrollees get first dibs on numbers, and here is a list of those players.

• WR Tavarres King picks (12)
• RB Richard Samuel goes with (22)
• RB Dontavious Jackson settles on (27)
• OL Ben Jones reaches a decision on (61)

Hopefully the numbers that these guys picked will provide that extra surge to make them the dominate players that the dawg nation hopes they will become.

With the NFL combine wrapping up, it made me think of the NFL Draft. The Atlanta
Falcons will be selected 3rd in the draft (unless they trade it)
…. they have selected 3rd overall twice before…

In 1968, Claude Humphrey, a defensive end from Tennessee State was taken. He ended
up being NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and was selected to 6 Pro Bowls. Later
on he was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

In 1991, Bruce Pickens, a cornerback from Nebraska was taken. It was one of two
first round picks selected that year, by the Falcons. He played four seasons in
the NFL for four different teams and recorded just 2 career interceptions.

Who will this year’s 3rd pick be??????

Mike Bibby played his first home game as an Atlanta Hawk yesterday and it was against his former team, the Sacramento Kings.

Bibby - 24 points 12 assists 5 rebounds

The players he was traded for:

• Anthony Johnson - 2 points 3 assists
• Shelden Williams - 0 points 0 rebounds
• Lorenzen Wright - did not play
• Tyronn Lue - did not play

FINAL SCORE — Hawks 123 Kings 117

It looks like Atlanta got the better end of this trade (well at least on Wednesday night).

Former Georgia defensive back and assistant coach Kirby Smart
has been named defensive coordinator at Alabama.  Although,
Kevin Steele was just named Associate Head Coach/Head Defensive Coach.

Besides the Dawgs, Kirby coached at LSU (with Nick Saban), FSU and
Valdosta State.  He was also with Saban when he coached the Miami
Dolphins.

As a player Kirby was named All-SEC in 1998 and had 13 career interceptions.

Last year, the Crimson Tide was 27th in the nation and 4th in the SEC in
scoring defense last year allowing 22 points per game.

The Dawgs face Alabama on September 27th in Athens.

photo credit: BullsEyesOrg

Whether or not Shaquille O’Neill fouled out on December 19th in the Miami Heat game versus the Atlanta Hawks, one thing is probably true. The Phoenix Suns aren’t going to let Shaq return to his old club and play the last 51.9 seconds of the replay game.

The NBA is supposed to hand down a decision by the end of the week as to who is eligible to play when these two teams meet for just under a minute to replay the December fiasco that saw Shaq booted from the game when he really didn’t foul out.

The problem with this replay is that the cast of characters has, shall we say, changed. Shaq is in Phoenix now. And you can imagine that the Hawks don’t want Shawn Marion to play. The Hawks also have a different look and the Heat may not want to face Mike Bibby in an Atlanta uniform. If the new players on both teams have to sit out, will we be watching 3-on-3 cross-court action? Can you see a situation where the Suns and Kings would lend the players in question back to the Hawks and Heat for 51.9 seconds of action?

What a mess!

photo credit: angel_shark

The Atlanta Braves will travel to Vero Beach today to play the Los Angeles Dodgers in their first official game of Spring Training. The game starts at 1:05 and the lineups will look decidedly different than they did for the game yesterday.

Yesterday’s exhibition game against the UGA Bulldogs featured most of the starting hitting lineup but saw five pitchers who had very little major league experience. Only three of yesterdays pitchers threw in the big leagues last season and only notched 16 innings total.

The pitching staff today packs a little more punch. Tim Hudson is slated to start and throw two innings. He’ll be followed by Blaine Boyer, Chris Resop, Matt DeSalvo and Manny Acosta. Most of the starting infield will not make the trip, as Brian McCann is the only starter on the infield and Jeff Francoeur and Matt Diaz the only outfielders with major big league experience playing today.

photo credit: Valerie Reneé

Okay, so it doesn’t count in the standings, it shouldn’t be competitive, and it certainly didn’t feel like spring at Champion Stadium in Orlando, Fla. on Wednesday (from all accounts); but baseball officially has arrived as the Atlanta Braves knocked off the Georgia Bulldogs, 8-0 (boxscore), in the first exhibition game of the spring.

Chipper Jones and Gregor Blanco each had two-run 2B’s to lead the offensive charge for the Braves, while starting pitcher Charlie Morton (who is getting more and more attention within the organization of late) gave up one hit over two innings, striking out one. Morton will be an interesting player to watch this spring. He doesn’t have much of a chance to travel north with the Braves once they break camp, but could solidify himself as “the next in line” with a strong showing in March.

The Braves take the field to start Grapefruit League play tomorrow tomorrow against the Dodgers at 1:05pm EST at Holman Stadium in Vero Beach, Fla. Tim Hudson will get the start (War Eagle), and Brian McCann will be behind the plate.

(side note…The Mets TIED the University of Michigan yesterday, 4-4, and had to score two in the bottom of the 9th to do so. I know…it’s not relevant to this story at all…but still funny nonetheless).