For most Dawg fans, any glowing comments made by head coach Mark Richt about the upcoming season are reminiscent of Jim Donnan's infamous "I've waited 158 years to coach a team like this."
During all the Bulldog Club meetings, preseason interviews, and general off-the-cuff statements, head coaches typically walk the very fine line between tempering expectations while still drumming up enthusiasm in anticipation of the season to come. Some, like Vine Dooley, erred on the side of temperance, while others, such as the aforementioned coach Donnan, went a bit too far on the enthusiasm side.
With Richt and the Dawgs coming off their worst season during his tenure, it really only made sense to fire up the Bulldog Nation this time around. While a new season, regardless of the previous year's record, tends to bring new excitement (just ask South Carolina fans), spirits and hopes of Dawg fans have been noticeably lower. Furthermore, if Georgia turns in another 7-5 season (or worse), a little verve and garnish during some summer speaking engagements really isn't go to make things worse for Coach while he's answering for his crimes, so to speak.
The bottom line is that, this time around, Richt really has nothing to lose and, not everything, but some things to gain by pumping up the various Bulldog Club crowds. Besides, this team might really have "The Right Stuff."
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Just remember what Spurrier said about Ray Goff: "He recruits all those great players, but what does he do with them!"
ReplyDeleteHard to forget that, pcsjax. At the end of the day, talk is cheap. One thing I've yet to read from a coach (other than, perhaps, the aforementioned Spurrier) or the players is, "Boy, we're really not looking too good. People are kinda loafing around and are not in shape, and nobody's really bonding with their teammates."
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