UGA Sports Blog (ajc.com)
Recent dismissals, arrest leave Georgia with secondary concerns
Tue, 02/07/2012 - 11:52The dismissal last week of three Georgia football players coupled with the legal trouble facing Sanders Commings has left put the Bulldogs in a pinch in the secondary.
Initially thought to be a team strength heading into the 2012 season, Georgia’s defensive backfield is suddenly left precariously thin and extremely vulnerable after head coach Mark Richt booted off the team Nick Marshall and Chris Sanders. Including the departure of three other defensive backs since the start of last season — Jakar Hamilton, Derek Owens and Jordan Love all left, allegedly of their own volition — that leaves the Bulldogs with just nine scholarship defensive backs heading into spring practice next month.
Included in that number is senior and starting cornerback Sanders Commings. However, Commings is not expected to be available for at least the first couple of games next season due to his arrest on a domestic violence/simple battery charge last month. Unless those charges end up getting dropped, …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Q&A: UGA freshman TB Keith Marshall says ‘competition is a good thing’
Mon, 02/06/2012 - 12:32
Georgia coach Mark Richt and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner introduce the Bulldogs' early enrolles (L-R) Keith Marshall, Faton Bauta and Mark Beard. (AP photo)
Q&A WITH KEITH MARSHALL
Lost in all the craziness of last week’s national signing day drama and shocking player dismissals was the introduction of Georgia’s three early enrollees. Quarterback Faton Bauta, offensive lineman Mark Beard and tailback Keith Marshall had been shielded from interviews by UGA since arriving in Athens to begin spring semester in early January. But the three players were made available on the afternoon of national signing day. I’ll be sharing a little about each of them in a story that will run in Tuesday’s printed edition. In the meantime, I don’t think there is any question that Marshall, the five-star tailback from Raleigh, N.C. , is one of the most anticipated addition of the early enrollees and really of the entire 2012 class. So here’s some of what I heard from him this past …
Categories: UGA Blogs
3 players dismissed by Georgia for team rules violations
Fri, 02/03/2012 - 09:12ATHENS — Three players have been kicked off the Georgia football team for an undisclosed violation of team rules.
UGA coach Mark Richt announced this morning that defensive back Nick Marshall, wide receiver Sanford Seay and defensive back Chris Sanders have been dismissed from the team. All three are freshmen and were members of Georgia’s 2011 “Dream Team” recruiting class.
The school did not address what precipitated the dismissals.
“It’s a privilege to play college football and to be a part of this team and University,” Richt said in a statement. “Along with that privilege comes certain responsibilities. Mistakes were made, and part of our job is helping them learn from mistakes. Going forward, we are committed to assisting them find opportunities where they can continue their education.”
Marshall’s high school coach, Mark Ledford, was reached by the AJC this morning.
“I don’t want to comment on what Nick did,” said Ledford, head football coach at Wilcox County High. “All …
Categories: UGA Blogs
UGA has to report NCAA secondary violation due to comments on Harvey-Clemons
Thu, 02/02/2012 - 15:40ATHENS — Georgia will have to report an NCAA secondary violation regarding its recruitment of Josh Harvey-Clemons. But as far as secondary violations go, they don’t get much more secondary than this one.
Jim Booz, UGA’s senior associate athletic director for compliance, confirmed to The AJC Thursday that coach Mark Richt ran afoul of NCAA bylaws when he commented on Harvey-Clemons shortly after the highly-touted prospect announced on national television his decision to sign with the Bulldogs on Wednesday. Harvey-Clemons’ signing ceremony at Lowndes High School in Valdosta was televised live by ESPN and the sports network also had a reporter and camera crew with Georgia coaches in Athens.
Shortly after Harvey-Clemons made his announcement in Valdosta, ESPN reporter Cara Capuano asked Richt for his reaction and for his thoughts on prospect’s athletic abilities. Turns out that violates NCAA bylaw 13.10.2, which states that no one from a member institution can comment on a …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Video: UGA recruiting class even more impressive with Harvey-Clemons secured
Thu, 02/02/2012 - 14:03Videochat with CineSport about Georgia’s 2012 recruiting class . . .
Categories: UGA Blogs
UPDATED: Harvey-Clemons never wavered on UGA, just had to convince granddad
Thu, 02/02/2012 - 08:57ATHENS — Josh Harvey-Clemons said he never wavered on his decision to sign with Georgia. He just had to convince his grandfather that it was the best move.
“I just had to sit down with my family and get everybody on the same page,” said Harvey-Clemons, reached by phone Thursday morning in Valdosta. “He was looking at it as Florida was closer. I’ve got a cousin who still plays at Lowndes and my little brother is going to be in high school next year. Florida is only like an hour and 20 minutes away, so he was thinking about going to games on Friday and being able to drive down to Gainesville easy. That’s why he liked Florida.
“Georgia’s a little farther away but I told him that’s where I wanted to go.”
Harvey-Clemons said he sent over the letter-of-intent via fax Thursday morning at 8:05 a.m. He said Georgia’s coaching staff never panicked and helped him through the dilemma.
“They were fine,” he said of the coaching staff. “They were just telling me to let them know what was …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Despite Harvey-Clemons drama, Georgia brings in strong class
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 19:39ATHENS — Greetings from Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall. Yeah, I’m still here.
Been an interesting day, as you may have noticed. It looked like it was going to be a nice smooth national signing day and a largely positive one for Georgia. The Bulldogs had gotten good news on two of their main targets early in the day, missed out on a couple of other targets later, and coach Mark Richt and Rodney Garner told us all about what was right about the 2012 recruiting class early in the afternoon.
The plan then was to breakdown the class, disseminate all the information, write it up for our readers and get home in time for a late supper.
But then that letter-of-intent for Josh Harvey-Clemons went AWOL. Apparently the young man’s grandfather and legal guardian did as well. And though we all watched the highly-touted outside linebacker from Valdosta tell a national television audience he intended to sign with Georgia, the Bulldogs’ couldn’t announce him as a signee and we haven’t been able to …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Richt: O-line recruiting not an issue, happy with ‘guys we got’
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 13:02Juggling a bunch of things at the moment so haven’t had much time to craft a comprehensive report for you. But in the meantime here’s is a raw transcription (please forgive typos) of some of the main points Mark Richt and his assistants made while briefing UGA fans in Heritage Hall a little while ago. About to have a session with richt and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner so I’ll have more information coming soon. . . .
Richt on how many Georgia might sign . . .
“I don’t know for certain because the day’s not over yet. I know I’, thrilled about the ones we’ve already signed on the dotted line. The biggest issue we thought we had was at the tackle position and I feel like we did a tremendous job there.”
Offensive line coach Will Friend on his newbies . . .
“We’re real excited about the guys we’ve got signed. Mark Beard is already on campus and we’re real excited about him. We thought we did a good job with guys that are athletic who will start out at tackle but could be …
Categories: UGA Blogs
UPDATED: UGA’s class gets big boost by signing Lowndes OLB Josh Harvey-Clemons
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 09:41ATHENS – Greetings from Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall, or recruiting central here at UGA, where the Bulldogs just received their biggest news of the day.
Josh Harvey-Clemons, the athletic defensive end/outside linebacker from Lowndes County, announced during an awkward live telecast by ESPNU that he was signing with the Bulldogs. He chose UGA over Florida State, Florida and Miami.
This is a huge acquisition on a couple of fronts. Never mind that he is considered the No. 1 player in the state. The truth is, Georgia would have been fine without his addition as it is well stocked at the position. But it’s more important from the standpoint of the Bulldogs re-establishing themselves in the city of Valdosta and at Lowndes High in particular.
There has been a pipeline that has run between Valdosta and Tallahassee for a number of years now and still gets some pretty good use. But the Bulldogs have secured the best players out of that city the last couple of years, including Malcolm …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Lots of recruiting drama on horizon as Georgia welcomes national signing day
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 06:01ATHENS – Happy National Signing Day to you.
For college coaches and recruitniks everywhere, today is the big day. Today we find out who’s going where and, in many cases, if they’re going where they said they would. The latter may apply quite often today for Georgia. The Bulldogs have been working hard to try to flip a few elite prospects who are committed elsewhere, while also fighting to hold onto some of their own, of course.
I’ll be at Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall following the drama all day long, and there figures to be plenty. For up-to-the-minute news on commitments, be sure to follow me on Twitter.com @ajcuga and get the news as soon as I do.
Here’s what we know:
- Georgia has 17 commitments coming into national signing day.
By rule it could sign as many as 10 more but is not expected to do so. But ideally the Bulldogs would land five or six more than they currently have — assuming, of course, all the commitments remain committed.
- It appears to be a solid class that …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Georgia loses another member of football strength staff
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 00:14ATHENS — Georgia is losing its second strength coach in a month.
Keith Gray, who has been an assistant on Georgia’s strength and conditioning staff for 13 seasons and worked under three different directors, is leaving to accept a similar job with the Philadelphia Eagles.
“The guy called me on Friday and wanted to know if I was interested in the position,” Gray said Tuesday evening. “He said he wanted me up there but he needed to talk to the GM and the head coach first. He called me back on Monday and formally offered me the job.”
Gray said he accepted the position between “lifting groups” on Monday afternoon and immediately informed current program director Joe Tereshinski.
“He was genuinely happy for me,” said Gray, a former linebacker at Virginia Tech. “Everybody’s just been so great at Georgia. They’ve been happy for me and pulling for me. It’s just been an outpouring of affection people have shown me.”
Gray is the second member of the football team’s strength staff to step …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Ten@10: UGA gets first DB in Dawson, now needs more O-linemen
Tue, 01/31/2012 - 10:05With national signing day bearing down on us and a plethora of UGA news swirling, it seemed like a good time to dust off . . .
THE TEN AT 10
1. With the commitment of Memphis defensive back Sheldon Dawson on Monday, the Bulldogs now sit at 17 public commitments heading into national signing day. It does not appear that they’ll receive any more announcements before the official letters-of-intent start rolling in at Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall early tomorrow. Meanwhile, don’t let Dawson’s original commitment to Memphis fool you. He committed to the Tigers before last season when he lit it up both offensively and defensively for Ridgeway High and showcased what has been reported as 4.4-second, 40-yard speed. By the end of his recruitment, Dawson claimed more than 20 offers and the majority were from major BCS programs such as Ohio State, Tennessee, and North Carolina.
2. Now Georgia looks to close strong, and it has the opportunity to do that. Probably the most important …
Categories: UGA Blogs
After flurry of late interest, former UGA commit Chester Brown decides on UCF
Tue, 01/31/2012 - 09:31The Chester Brown saga finally has a conclusion.
The 6-foot-5, 340-pound lineman from Bradwell Institute, who had to back out of his longtime UGA commitment due to an immigration issue, has decided to sign with Central Florida after all. Brown committed to the Knights over the weekend during an official visit, but had second thoughts upon returning to Hinesville.
Coach Jim Walsh said charted calls and visits from 29 different schools over the weekend that were either inquiring about Brown’s availability or stepping up with actual offers. Among the schools showing late interest were Auburn, Missouri, Miami, North Carolina and Southern Cal, Walsh said.
“We had schools coming in from everywhere,” Walsh said. “It almost became more of a burden. Just overwhleming is a better way to put it. Up until [Monday] night our intention was to take it past signing day. It got sideways there for a minute. But once Chester could clear his head and talk it over with his family he was able to …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Georgia lands commitment No. 17 in Memphis athlete Sheldon Dawson
Mon, 01/30/2012 - 20:48Sheldon Dawson is built in the mode of Brandon Boykin and "did it all" for Ridgeway High in Memphis, according to coach Duron Sutton. (Photo by 247Sports.com)
Georgia conducted its first successful flip of the recruiting period on Monday as Sheldon Dawson announced his intention to sign with the Bulldogs on Wednesday.
“I have committed to Georgia,” Dawson, a 5-foot-11, 178-pound athlete from Ridgeway High School in Memphis, Tenn, said Monday night. “I did it about an hour ago.”
Dawson had been committed to play for his hometown team, the University of Memphis, since July of last summer. But he re-opened his recruitment after the school fired head coach Larry Porter. He chose UGA over Ole Miss and he also considered Arkansas and Cincinnati.
“It just felt like a better fit for me,” Dawson said. “It was like a do over for me, a place to start over. I started from scratch and that’s the place I wanted to go.”
Dawson becomes commitment No. 17 for the Bulldogs. Georgia hopes to …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Recruitment of former UGA commitment Chester Brown ’still open’
Mon, 01/30/2012 - 09:30Technically, the NCAA recruiting calendar entered the dead period overnight. But the recruitment of Chester Brown is anything but quiet.
Brown, a 6-foot-5, 340-pound offensive lineman from Bradwell Institute and former UGA commitment, took an official visit to Central Florida over the weekend and apparently committed to coach George O’Leary while he was in Orlando. But Bradwell Institute football coach and athletic director Jim Walsh indicated Brown’s recruitment remains a fluid situation.
“I’m not sure of the accuracy of that,” he said of Brown’s UCF commitment. “We’ve had some recent things going on.”
Walsh said some “major schools” entered the picture for Brown over the weekend
“Some of the top SEC and ACC schools called me on Saturday and Sunday,” Walsh said. “I’m actually going to meet with Chester today. We’re going to talk a little and go from there. I would say things are still kind of open.”
Walsh would not say which schools are involved. Most of Georgia’s surrounding …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Recruiting: Dogs have work to do but have addressed needs for 2012
Thu, 01/26/2012 - 16:19ATHENS – We’re inside a week until national signing day and the Georgia Bulldogs’ “recruitniks” are about ready to panic.
At this point, the Bulldogs have only 16 commitments with room to sign as many as 12 more in the 2012 class. And while Georgia traditionally ranks among the national top 10 in recruiting every year, the Bulldogs currently hold a relatively pedestrian average ranking of 14.75 between the four main services. ESPN has UGA at No. 5 but Rivals and Scout have the Dogs at 21 and 22, respectively.
Rusty Mansell, who covers recruiting for 247Sports.com, says Georgia fans need to relax. While the Bulldogs still have some work to do, he said they’ve already done quite well and have a chance to close strong.
“Georgia has helped itself for 2012,” said Mansell, whose service currently has the Bulldogs at 11. “But what everybody is trying to do is prepare for down the road and it’s hard to tell how they’re doing with that right now because they have so many spots open. …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Ex-UGA recruit Chester Brown and immigration policy
Wed, 01/25/2012 - 00:09Here’s an update on Chester Brown, the Bradwell Institute offensive lineman who de-committed from UGA on Monday for “personal family reasons.” (Go here to read the full story by the AJC’s Chip Towers)
ATHENS — A relatively new Georgia Board of Regents policy regulating the admission of undocumented students and illegal immigrants has prevented a football recruit from gaining admission to the University of Georgia. Chester Brown, a 6-foot-5, 340-pound offensive lineman from Hinesville, committed to the Bulldogs in July, but he confirmed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and several other media outlets late Monday night that he was withdrawing his UGA commitment “for personal reasons,” declining to elaborate. However, a variety of people with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to the AJC on Tuesday that Brown’s change of heart was because his admissions application to UGA was rejected because of a controversial Board of Regents policy that was adopted in …Categories: UGA Blogs
Police: Family violence complaint may not be first against Commings
Mon, 01/23/2012 - 14:38ATHENS – Details of the arrest of Georgia football player Sanders Commings on charges of simple battery/family violence this past Saturday were made available Monday in the official police report, obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution through open records laws.
According to the “family violence incident report” form that was included in the documents released by police, this may not be the first such incident between Commings and the female victim. Next to a line asking for “number of previous complaints as advised by victim,” a box labeled “1-5″ was checked. The other options were zero, 6-10, more than 10 and unknown.
Following are some other details, according to the report filed by UGA police officer James Simons:
- Simons and another officer were flagged down by individuals in a white Nissan Xterra at 1:19 a.m. at the entrance of University Family Housing Building D on East Campus Road. The driver told the officers she was trying to get their attention “because one …
Categories: UGA Blogs
UGA football coaches remember Joe Paterno
Mon, 01/23/2012 - 08:56
Joe Paterno is carried off the field on the shoulders of his players after his 1983 Penn State team defted No. 1 Georgia 27-23 in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 1983. (AP photo)
ATHENS – The University of Georgia has a connection to Joe Paterno and Penn State. Vince Dooley’s undefeated 1982 SEC championship team played Paterno’s Nittany Lions in the the 1983 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.
As any Dogs’ fan from those days can tell you, the Bulldogs lost 27-23. It was a great game in which the Todd Blackledge-led Nittany Lions came in as the consensus No. 2 team and Georgia No. 1. The Bulldogs were led, of course, by Heisman Trophy recipient Herschel Walker, who finished with 103 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. However, he was out-shined that day by another pretty good running back. Curt Warner had 177 yards and two TDs on 18 carries.
Penn State led throughout the first half, but the Bulldogs came roaring back in the second and closed it to 20-17 in third quarter. But Blackledge …
Categories: UGA Blogs
Giants’ Danny Ware only UGA representive in Super Bowl
Mon, 01/23/2012 - 05:42Well, the Super Bowl has been set. It’s the New York Giants versus the New England Patriots. You’ll have to look hard to find your Bulldog representation this year.
Ware
Traditionally, Georgia has been well represented in Super Bowls. But the only individual Bulldogs fans have to focus on this year is Danny “D.J.” Ware of the New York Giants. And it’s not likely the fifth-year running back will be a big part of the game plan.
Ware, who now wants to be called “D.J.” now, has had just three carries for four yards in the postseason and none in Sunday night’s 20-17 overtime win over the 49ers. He has had 46 carries for 163 yards this season and 324 yards in his career.
But Ware has done quite well for himself in the NFL. Despite being undrafted in 2007, he has managed to stay employed by the Giants for five seasons and already owns a Super Bowl ring from 2008. Pretty good as a reserve back who wasn’t even starting when he left UGA.
Ware had an interesting Georgia career. His …
Categories: UGA Blogs