Game Day: Mean Green Edition

So. I made the silly mistake of thinking our game against South Carolina would be a lower-scoring affair that we would win based on a much improved defense:

So what do we do? We win it with defense. Yes, the defense that gave Clemson 38 points last week. We get two great players back this week (Josh Harvey-Clemons and Corey Moore) that should help, and Clemson is just that good. The key to this game is holding South Carolina’s offense to as few points as possible to leave our offense a margin of error. Because Clowney will force errors. Remember, to win we just need enough points to have more than them. And with Clowney on the prowl, it’s going to be easier to shut them out than to outscore them.

Ahem. So my prognostificator was a bit off. Defense was still important though.  Amarlo Herrera basically won the game with a goal line stop on 4th down.  And we held them to 30, which is an improvement from the 38 we gave Clemson

Anywho.  After a week off, we now get another week off this we — oh, wait.  What’s that? We DO play this week?  Who do we play? Who?

Well, that’s just great.  My people tell me the Bulldogs do play a game this week.  Against North Texas.  Who for some reason has decided to call their team the Mean Green. What am I supposed to do with that? It’s not even an animal. It’s not even a person. It’s not even a mineral or a vegetable. What is a Mean Green? Is it really just a color? Can a color be mean? If a color could be mean, would it be green? I think red and black are much meaner colors.

Alright, fine. The Bulldogs take on the North Texas Mean Green today.

Yeah. That’s intimidating guys.

So, I haven’t done any research on the Mean — Wait, what? Oh good grief.

My people have now informed me that we have a hype video for this game. So here it is:

To recap:

(1)We’re playing a color this week.

(2) We have a hype video for the game with a soundtrack by Katy Perry.

We are going to win.

45-14 Dawgs.

Game Day, Beat Clowney Edition

Gameday again. I was going to recap last week’s 38-35 loss to Clemson first. But we lost, so I don’t want to. So I’m not.

This week we take on the other big team from South Carolina, the Gamecocks.

Mmm.

Unlike tiger, I am allergic to chicken. It makes me lose my hair and turn pink.

And yet it’s so tasty. Very deceiving, Chicken. Not cool.

South Carolina’s Gamecocks also make me lose my hair. Georgia has lost to them three years in a row. I miss the mediocre South Carolina of old. One more reason to hate Steve Spurrier, I guess.

Still, this year it’s new teams, new game. The big question, of course, posed by ESPN in a ridiculous College Gameday feature this morning, is How Do You Stop Clowney? Jadeveon Clowney, that is. The 6′ 6″ beast of a defensive end who strikes terror in the hearts of quarterbacks and offensive linemen alike.

Consensus seems to be that you (1) throw lots of blockers at him and (2) play fast so he gets tired. Maybe so, and I think Georgia will try that, but I think the better answer is DEFENSE. Yes, defense. Look, Clowney, despite his goofy name, is going to get his. (Can you name an offensive lineman at Georgia who can block him? After last week, I can’t.) Georgia can’t expect to score a bunch of points with Clowney prowling, and they can probably expect a couple of turnovers from the Clowney Effect. What they can do is dominate the side of the Carolina team that Clowney doesn’t play on.

South Carolina’s offense is fine, but it’s not elite. Connor Shaw, their quarterback, is a good runner, but not a scary one. Their running backs are solid, but neither is Marcus Lattimore. Unlike their defense, their offense doesn’t have a single player who scares you. (I admit it, Clowney scares me. Have you seen the guy? Here, watch this.)

So what do we do? We win it with defense. Yes, the defense that gave Clemson 38 points last week. We get two great players back this week (Josh Harvey-Clemons and Corey Moore) that should help, and Clemson is just that good. The key to this game is holding South Carolina’s offense to as few points as possible to leave our offense a margin of error. Because Clowney will force errors. Remember, to win we just need enough points to have more than them. And with Clowney on the prowl, it’s going to be easier to shut them out than to outscore them.

So my prognostifications will be all defense today. I think:

Josh Harvey-Clemons gets a sack (or at least a TFL) and an interception. We get about five sacks. Brendan Langley or Damian Swann gets another pick. We hold South Carolina under 17 points.

If we do all that, and we let Gurley do his thing on offense, we will win despite Jadeveon Clowney.

Dawgs 24, Gamecocks 13

Go Dawgs!

Stupid Rules.

Yesterday was a big day. It was the kick off of the UGA football season. Good game. Disappointing results. Losing our kicker to a BUI really hurt us.

Before the big game, I had big game of my own. I played agility (which is just running around on an obstacle course) as part of my pregame for the football game. Gotta tell you. I think our running backs could learn a thing or two from me.

Agility is fun. I get to run, jump, climb over things, and go through things.

Sometimes I get distracted.

…I caught another squirrel this morning. Still weird…

I mess up if I get distracted.

Yesterday, I did everything right in one of my runs. Not too distracted. I still didn’t get any swag (ribbons) for it because I left without my leash on. Stupid rules…

Got a little distracted in this one. Still pretty good though.