Good morning!
Here is card #1 for 1 day to go!…
Well, folks we’ve made it. At 1500 tomorrow the season kicks off. Hopefully a season to remember. I’m all out of football cards for next season’s countdown. The floor is open for suggestions on what to do next season. Let me know in the comments. See y’all tomorrow for the game day posts, football season is here!
The Pontoon Playlist hopes you’ve enjoyed the countdown and the frivolous music…
Go Dawgs!
We were on a cruise years ago, and an even older gentleman saw my UGA shirt and came over to talk. He had grown up in Mobile and played small college basketball. All he talked about was how good of a basketball player Vince Dooley was. He even tried to mimic some of his moves on the court. It made me think of how, away from football, how accomplished Vince was, as a historian, horticulturist, Marine Corp officer and donor to the UGA library. Pretty solid life. PS, my high school teammates that played for him in the 1970’s told me that they loved Coach Russell and feared Coach Dooley. Not always the kindly Grandpa from later years when he was coaching.
Dooley himself said that in high school he was a better basketball player than a football player. He played for Head Coach Joel Eaves on the basketball team until he suffered a knee injury, at which point he became a full time football player.
My Uncle insisted that my Dad played basketball against Dooley in a high school game but my Dad said he didn’t remember that.
His head coaching career spanned eras of big changes. When he started at UGA the NCAA had more restrictive in game substitution rules, meaning that at times guys had to play both ways. Preparation for upcoming games meant actually sending staff members to upcoming opponents’ games to watch and scout.The pass blocking rules prevented OL from extending their arms and defensive players could hit receivers anywhere on the field until the ball was in the air. And, of course, the SEC was segregated. By the time he coached his last game substitution rule changes fostered specialization, the game timing rule changes created more plays per game, video made scouting easier, the rule changes to the passing game created a new era of strategy and, of course, the SEC had integrated.
Dooley was smart enough and flexible enough to adjust to a changing college football world as a head coach and was successful across each era. Some could not do that.
Still no Natty?
A Pitt Panthers fan must have edited the bios.
Did the card set have Vince at #1 and #3?
Yep. This card set was designed by Jim Ignatowski.
Suggestion for next years countdown (God willing we are still here and college football has not imploded). Take the February-March time to poll for 100 greatest plays in UGA history, then run the highlight clips as the countdown.