Yes, I have wandered through the desert for 40 years (and more) and finally was delivered in 2021 by the finest Bulldog team ever assembled. Yes, maybe the finest college football team ever. They were so good that their fortune has spilled over into ensuing years and I have become used to seeing Georgia’s banner high at the top of all charts. Ironically, I now become morose and despondent when their performance doesn’t align with my expectations. I analyze the work habits and motivations of everyone associated with the program from the eighteen year old millionaires and their Scat Packs to the program directors who play Seven Nation Army over the loudspeakers incessantly rather than allow the band to show their chops. I try not to level scorn at individuals on the team because I know they are teenagers playing a game. Alas, I am human, and do occasionally fail in this endeavor. But the coaches, oh man, the coaches. They are the alpha and omega. From evaluating talent and refining athletes’ skills to fostering team productivity both on the field and in life, the responsibility lies with the coaches.
We have been blessed beyond description with Kirby Smart. He is karma rewarding us for enduring plagues of bugs, chickens, alligators, poly morph eagle/tigers and the occasional elephant while we wandered in the desert looking for someone to lead us to the promised land. While there are no infallible leaders, he comes awfully close. If one considers the number of real time decisions he makes under intense pressure (8 OTs?) and still maintains the respect and love of his charges you would wonder why MIT isn’t asking to do some brain scans.
If there’s a significant flaw in the program—and opinions on this may vary—for me, it lies in his development of assistants capable of advancing to the next level and independently managing their own programs. Here’s a list of the 2021 staff, follow their careers. The list is missing the Oregon coach that we will likely face in the championship game. That constant “brain drain” is why we are experiencing so many hiccups this year, IMO. There’s a plethora of 6’5″ tight end recruits out there but only one Todd Monken. “Reload and repeat” doesn’t work for him.
I feel that another reason for the repeated cases of singultus this year has been our schedule. Coach Smart addressed the issue directly at the SECCG awards celebration. In addition to playing more games this season, all of the “big” games, but one, were on the road. Here’s Kirby speaking truth to power at the end of the SECCG.
If Kirby was less of a classy guy, he might have told Greg Sankey, “You did everything you could to gift wrap Texas an SEC championship in their first year, which not only diminishes the hard-earned credibility of the league, but makes you look like you only follow the money.” To his credit, he didn’t say that. He did point out the wear and tear that the schedule places on young men who have been thrown into battle for almost six months now. I believe Kirby truly does care about his kids above all, unlike any number of coach’s names we could rattle off.
The best part of the season, so far, has been snatching the candy right out of the thumb-sucking, bottle-throwing Texas degenerates’ mouth, twice. Beating a team twice in one season is nearly impossible, particularly when both games are away. We did it, and now Matthew McConaughey, that well known jock sniffer, can return to Texas in his role of Safe Sex Administrator to continue his work in painting large X’s on all of the cows known to kick.
In Kirby we trust.
Damn, Bud! You didn’t leave any meat on the bone for the rest of us!!
I’ve been trying to solve the puzzle all season of the Jekyll-Hyde nature of the team. How a potential Heisman quarterback played early on like he’d been give a pre-season diagnosis of brittle bone disease. How portal WRs that caught everything in their zip code when playing against us, couldn’t seem to catch anything in 30606. How charging DL’s don’t raise their hands or, conversely, hold the edge. How safetys seem to be knocking CBs out of the play.
Plenty of the meat still on the bone, I just believe that there’s some changes coming and that Kirby is on the mother.
The teams that somehow figure out how to maintain continuity with coaches and players will be the winner in this inherently unstable system.
Minor nitpick: as Kirby pointed out to Mr. Sankey, most of the WR opportunities took place well outside of 30606. At night. In hostile territory. Under threat of Dasani strafing. But your point still stands.
“Dasani strafing” needs to go in the Lexicon ASAP!
Mr. budlite,
The best post I have seen in many a year.
Great job Sir.
Thanks, the end of season and the SECCG were inspiring beyond belief. Hope we can do this again in just a few weeks.
Worthy of much more than a Budlite. 🙂
Amen
Damnit Budlite. I don’t care what pronoun you prefer, that was a good read.
It and Its
Very good.
‘ppreciate it.
Bud, while I don’t always agree with some of the things you present, this is a damn good write-up. GOOD JOB!!
Thanks
Nice write-up. I think you can move up to Bud Longneck from Bud Lite.
Bud longnecks bring back fuzzy memories of my youth
Great post! Even the GOAT could not always plug in new success stories when the over-achievers departed. Kirby does seem to quickly find a fix for his mistakes (or miscalculations), so I’m excited for what January and February bring.
Good write-up and gets right to the heart of the matter. Being able to hire effective assistants despite the constant poaching is the biggest priority alongside recruiting & is probably the most difficult. Special kudos for use of the phrase polymorph eagle/tigers. This should become Awburns official mascot!
Great insight, Bud! Your next to last sentence made me spit my McDonald’s half-cut ice tea.
My wife has always objected to my use of the term “jock sniffer” to describe individuals that had no business being in the locker room, but, IYKYK.
Over nearly 50 years now, I’ve been occasionally stunned at how good we’ve looked out there. I’ve been mortified occasionally by how bad we are. I’ve wondered whether the run of bad luck and kicks in the teeth would ever end. I’ve questioned a fair share of coaching decisions.
But I have never been more proud of a football program than I was this past Saturday night. Everything you could possibly ask for from the players and coaches, we got.
We may not be a team that scares anyone. I’m sure to everyone’s eyes, including my own, we look beatable.
DC’s will be salivating about facing a green qb from here on out.
But would anyone with any damn sense bet against us?
Only if we’re betting on point spreads!
Channeling the late, great Senator there I believe Bud. Great post! I too share a 50 year history with this program and would only add in context that DGD in Ray Goff was the wrong guy at the wrong time. Jim Donnan stabilized things in the face of one of the all time great innovators (and biggest jerk). Richt brought us back to prominence. Kirby has built upon all of that foundation. It is, indeed, great to be a Georgia Bulldawg!
Well done, sir. Bringing the Texass hate in a big way.
I think I posted preseason that we all liked Texas at that moment more than we ever would. Holds true today.
I think I remember that.
You’ve proven yourself to be a seer!
“Like!”
These are definitely the best of times. I was a 40 year wanderer with you. We’ve lost two games this year, but man this team is starting to remind me of 1980. We had two 4Q fumbles and a miracle “how did he not fumble” Saturday, any of which kill us, but we recovered. Haynes King’s fumble and the target no-call. How many times have we seen that flag come in to derail us? It’s starting to feel like 1980, George Rogers’ late fumble when they are about to beat us, \cott Woerner single-handedly beating Clemson, Lindsay… Old Lady Luck just might be smiling at us.
Great read budlite. This road Kirby has us on was one I thought we might never see in my lifetime. I’m loving every minute of the ride. With all the warts this team has including playing the backup QB. It’s amazing how many pundits are still picking Kirby to lead this team to another national championship.