octoBER 1-7, 2010 CHECK US OUT aT SCOrEaTl.COm 6 No 36 · october 1-7, 2010 ScoRE AtlAntA | 3...

octoBER 1-7, 2010 CHECK US OUT aT SCOrEaTl.COm Vol 6 No 36

2 | ScoRE AtlAntA Get In The Game!

A lw Ay s At s c o r e aT l . c o m

october 1-7, 2010 ScoRE AtlAntA | 3


Publisher/editor I.J. RosenbergGeNerAl MANAGer Bob HoughtonMANAGiNG editor Stephen Black

Art/CreAtiVe direCtor DJ GalbiatibusiNess MANAGer Marvin Botnick

sAles Mark MayobeAt Writers Josh Bagriansky (Hawks), Stephen Black

(UGA), Dave Cohen (Georgia State), Joe Deighton (Thrashers), Ricky Dimon (Falcons), Fletcher Proctor (Braves),

Thomas Watson (Tech), Brian Jones (Preps)stAFF Writers Jamie Walker, Jay Thomason

CoNtributors C.C., Brian Katrek, Alex Ewalt, Tad Arapoglou, Dean Zindler, Zander Lentz, Kevin Dankosky, Mitch Evans, Matt

Judy, Tony Schiavone, Richard Diamond, Joe Haines, Chris Dimino, Mike Bell, Matt Stewart, Fred Kalil, Nick Cellini, Phillip

Leopold, Dave Marshall, Greg Smith, Steak Shapiro, Mike Cather, Beau Bock, Hal Lamar, Chris Cotter, Roy Hickman, Dave Cohen, John Olah, Jeff Woolverton, Chris Voss, Bob Rathbun, Courtney Capps, Bill Hartman, Chuck Dowdle, Shannon Alderman, Dan

Kamal, Dennis Scott, Hal Lanier, Jeff Batten, Micah Hart, Ben Wright, Alan Vasquez, Andrew Vedlitz

sPeCiAl CoNtributors Mitch Albom, Dave Kindred, Barry Bloom

STarTinglinEUp

CheroKee/ForsYth: Cherokee, Creekview, Etowah, Forsyth Central, North Forsyth, Sequoyah, South Forsyth, West Forsyth, Woodstock

Cobb: Allatoona, Campbell, Harrison, Kell, Kennesaw Mountain, Lassiter, Marietta, McEachern, N. Cobb, N. Cobb Christian, Pebblebrook, Pope, S.

Cobb, Sprayberry, Walton, WheelerdeKAlb: Arabia Mountain, Chamblee, Columbia, Decatur, Druid Hills,

Dunwoody, Lakeside, Marist, Miller Grove, M.L. King, Paideia, Redan, St. Pius X, Southwest DeKalb, Stephenson, Stone Mountain, Tucker

FultoN: Alpharetta, Blessed Trinity, Centennial, Chattahoochee, Douglass, Grady, John’s Creek, Lovett, Mays, Milton, Mt. Pisgah, North Springs,

Northview, Riverwood, Roswell, Tri-Cities, Westminster, Woodward AcademyGWiNNett: Berkmar, Brookwood, Buford, C. Gwinnett, Collins Hill, Dacula,

Grayson, Greater Atlanta Christian, Meadowcreek, Mill Creek, Norcross, North Gwinnett, Parkview, Peachtree Ridge, South Gwinnett, Wesleyan

FAYette: Whitewater, Sandy Creek, Starr’s MillNeWtoN: Eastside

SCHOOlliSTing

Poor PrAdo: Manager Bobby Cox helps Martin Prado off the field on Monday night. Prado suffered a hip pointer and a torn oblique during the game and will miss the remainder of the season. It’s a tough break for the Braves, as the All-Star utilityman was their leading hitter. Photo Courtesy of Jacob Warhaftig.

SHOT OF THE WEEK...

Can’T miSSCan’T miSS

“the Fletch” reviews media talk about the Falcons’ huge win at New orleans and compares how different media outlets perceive Mark richt in the wake of Georgia’s 1-3 start.

Georgia southern head football coach Jeff Monken, who recently sat down with score Atlanta at the touchdown Club of Atlanta, is featured in this week’s “dimon Club”.

in our cover story, Josh bagriansky recaps Atlanta’s overtime scalp of the saints and discusses how it could impact both the NFC south and the entire conference as the season progresses.

Georgia tech and Georgia are reeling after another weekend of losses, but all is not lost according to their respective beat writers. Find out what each team must do in order to turn its season around.

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14TEam ScOOp and VOicES

On T

HE score Atlanta is looking for new sales associates

as well as writing and graphic design interns. For sales positions, e-mail Bob Houghton at [email protected]. For writing in-ternships, e-mail Stephen Black at [email protected]. For graphic design internships, e-mail DJ Galbiati at [email protected] free to call 404-256-1572 to speak with someone about any of these positions.

COVER dEsign by dJ galbiatiCOVER PhOtO COuRtEsy Of Jimmy CRibb/atlanta falCOns

6 ScORE LiST - mEaSOR

11 ScORE mORE 12 GSU

13 caLEndaR 14 UGa - TEcH

THiS WEEK

GeorGiA teCh Qb JoshuA Nesbitt

inSidE aT ScORE



Falcons draw positive attention; media outlets comment on Richt situationWith the first month of the football season

coming to a close, the airwaves and news-papers have plenty of fodder to keep the listeners and viewers coming back for more everyday. The Atlanta Falcons have been by far the most successful football team in town as Georgia Tech is idling in mediocrity and Georgia is free-falling into the depths of the SEC cellar typically occupied by Vanderbilt. The Atlanta Falcons earned some major kudos from both of the sports radio stations as well as the AJC for going on the road and knock-ing off the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints in overtime.

FAlCoNs drAW AtteNtioN … The Falcons’ game was far from prime-time, shown regionally on Fox in the first shift of games, but with the game going into OT and Fox not having an afternoon game, the football-watching nation was able to look in on the game’s exciting conclusion. After the game, Jeff Schultz wrote a column for the AJC entitled, “The Falcons just turned into the team we expected last season,” and the team was praised over and over by the local radio stations. On 790 The Zone’s Falcons postgame show, Sam Radin and John Michaels agreed that this was perhaps the best game for At-lanta since the Matt Ryan-led rally against Chicago two years ago. Then, on Mayhem in the AM, Steak, Chris and Nick all were positively pro-Falcons with Steak offering up that this was the best the Falcons have looked in two years. The callers and bloggers were even glowing as several were saying that Ryan’s arm strength shouldn’t be questioned any-more and others saying they enjoyed Ryan’s

fire while calling out the offensive line. Chris Dimino seemed to relish Matty Ice putting a charge into left tackle Sam Baker, and he admitted that he had never seen Ryan show the emotion he did after the missed field goal by New Orleans in OT. One quick note about some of the local fans calling up the radio stations: several Saints fans called up to “congratulate” the Falcons but then slid in the excuses of “the Saints played their worst game of the year while the Falcons played their best.” JUST GIVE CREDIT WHEN IT IS DUE! BE A GOOD SPORT. Score Atlanta’s own Brian Jones was glowing in his summation of the game on the Score Atlanta website. Jones wrapped up his thoughts with “To say this was a big win for the Falcons would be an understatement. Not only (does) the win put the Falcons one game above .500, it puts them in first place in the NFC South.” Ricky Dimon of Score Atlanta also broke down the Falcons win on the Score site, crediting Atlanta’s ability to overcome adversity as the biggest reason for the W. bitter bulldoGs … Going from happy to sad in regards to foot-ball in the state of Georgia is as easy as 74 miles up 316. The Georgia Bulldogs dropped to 0-3 in SEC play after a dismal showing in Starkville, Miss. in a loss to the SEC West Bulldogs. Geor-gia looked so bad that on Sunday’s Score Atlan-ta Scoreboard show, we were flooded by callers that wanted to fire head coach Mark Richt. One upset fan had a three-point plan which I cannot repeat here, but it did involve renting a U-Haul and driving to Athens. The local writers from the AJC and some of the 790 talking heads were a little more lenient towards Richt. Tony Barnhart of both

the AJC and 790 said in the paper that he be-lieves that Richt should be given a chance to fix the problems, granted with some internal changes. Mark Bradley of the AJC finally admitted that Richt might be in some trouble after he was beating the “Richt is safe” drum for the last two weeks. Said Bradley in the AJC, “Too many SEC programs have caught and passed Geor-gia, and this has nothing to do with the super-powers in Tuscaloosa and Gainesville…. No longer does an opponent tremble at the sight of Georgia approaching.” On 790’s Ford Football Show last Sun-day, Beau Bock defended Richt but Steak was on him, saying that he is losing the games Georgia never lost before. And one FM radio station named Richt its weekly “d*******g,” but I’ve never put too much stock into FM stations talking sports because that isn’t what they do. They do music. Leave the sports to SPORTS TALK RADIO.

AluMNi AdViCe … I must say, as a Georgia alum, while I am upset with the way the program has fall-en, I am tending to fall on the side of Tony Barnhart. I believe Richt should get anoth-er season between the hedges based on his track record and his two SEC titles, but some changes must be made on the offensive side of the ball. The playcalling should go back to Richt and the offensive line coach and strength coaches should be held accountable for the o-line this year. If Richt decides to make changes or not, next season will be the one I’d look at if I’m Richt’s boss. Though, if a change IS made, perhaps give Georgia alum Will Muschamp a call in Texas or go radical and have AD Greg Mc-

Garity get out his rolodex from his Florida days and see if he still has the Utah number. He and Jeremy Foley had some success when they plucked Urban Meyer from the Utes. Perhaps Foley’s protégé McGarity would have some success if he hired Meyer’s pro-tégé Kyle Whittingham. One local football team LOVING Geor-gia’s struggles is the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The Jackets are struggling as they try to defend the ACC crown, but the attention and panic isn’t being thrown at Tech simply because the Bulldogs are the bigger story in town. While most Tech fans hate that, the coaching staff that SURELY doesn’t pay attention to the media-wink-probably is relieved that the spotlight isn’t on the defensive struggles. Proctor can be reached at [email protected].

can YOU BELiEVE......HE Said THaT?

somebody up there must really like these atlanta braves that was the headline for Mark bradley’s blog in the AJC about how the braves, despite dropping two of three to the Washington Nationals and going 1-5 on a crucial road trip. i realize the braves can still make the playoffs by tak-ing care of business at home and hoping that the Padres and Giants and rockies cannibalize each other out west, but don’t blow smoke up my butt. the braves struGGled on that road trip. they face an uphill task in making the playoffs. don’t spin the trip as a positive. Please. We are smarter than that.



new coach, return to triple-option has Georgia Southern thinking playoffs againHaving been forced to watch the FCS play-

offs on TV the past two years, Georgia Southern’s football team is turning it all around in 2010. Not coincidentally, the Eagles are playing under the direction of former GSU as-sistant and new head coach Jeff Monken. A protégé of current Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson, Monken worked on Johnson’s staffs at Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech. During the John-son-Monken era at GSU from 1997 to 2001, the Eagles posted an overall record of 62-10, won two NCAA FCS National Cham-pionships (1999 and 2000), made five consecutive playoff appear-ances, captured five Southern Conference titles and produced the school’s second undefeated regular season (1998).

the triPle-oPtioN is bACK iN stAtesboro … Given his illustrious history with Johnson, it should come as no surprise whatsoever that Monken has restored Georgia Southern’s identity—the triple-option offense. The system had been in place ever since 1985, when Johnson became GSU’s offensive coordina-tor under Erk Russell in 1985. It remained intact—and with great success—during the tenures of the next four head coaches; Tim Stowers, Frank Ellwood, Johnson and Mike Sewak (now co-offensive line coach at Georgia Tech). Sewak, who took over at GSU when Johnson bolted for Navy, left after the 2005 season. With him went the triple-option offense. “There was a thought that maybe the option wasn’t the thing for Georgia South-ern anymore,” Monken explained earlier this week in an exclusive interview with Score At-lanta. “They went away from it and Georgia Southern hasn’t been back to the playoffs.” But Monken is back, and so too is the triple-option attack. “It’s kind of a transition

back to the roots,” he continued. “(It’s) how Georgia Southern started when Coach John-son first implemented this offense when he was the offensive coordinator. So the fans have a sense of ownership in what we’re do-ing and really feel like this is Georgia South-ern’s offense. … We’ve changed gears com-

pletely. It’s a different defensive scheme and an entirely different offensive scheme. So that takes time.”

sPreAdiNG their WiNGs … But how much time does it take? Maybe not too much, after all. Just as Johnson im-mediately turned the Georgia Tech program around in his first season (2008), Monken appears to be doing the same for Georgia Southern. The Eagles are 3-1 overall and 1-0 in Southern Conference action following a 38-21 rout of Elon last Saturday. Their only loss? A 13-7 defensive strug-gle on Sept. 11 at Navy, the lone FBS team on GSU’s 2010 schedule. While the Eagles may not be in the market for moral victories, they did well to go on the road and put a scare

into a team that is 2-1 following a tough 17-14 loss to Maryland and a 37-23 win over Louisiana Tech. Georgia Southern’s offense stalled to the tune of a mere 109 total yards against Navy, but Monken was proud that his team held the Midshipmen to just 193. “For our players to play in that kind of

environment and to play a great Navy team, it was a thrill for them,” Monken noted. “They put forth a great effort. Credit to Navy. Having been an assistant there for six years, I hold the Naval Academy in high regard. I think it’s one of the most special places in the entire world. The regimen they go through each day; it wears on ‘em. They fought and played an outstanding game and beat us.” Through four games, how-ever, no other team has been able to accomplish the feat of beating Georgia Southern; not even close. The Eagles pummeled Savannah State 48-3 in their Sept. 4 season opener, amassing 540 total yards to the Tigers’ 172 while churn-ing out 431 yards on the ground. After the setback at Navy, GSU traveled to Coastal Carolina and used a more balanced attack to

subdue the Chanticleers 43-26. The virtually unstoppable rushing game returned against Elon as Southern ran for 379 yards while racking up 508 yards of total offense. GoiNG ForWArd … Still, Monken says there is plenty of room for improvement as the team gears up for the remainder of its Southern Conference schedule following an off week. “We’re not a great football team,” he cautioned. “We’re just a team that’s really a work in progress. We’re trying to get better every week and trying to get our kids to play with the effort, enthusiasm, and toughness that is necessary to be a championship team. I’m proud of our team; I’m proud of the effort that they’ve put in to try to do what we’re asking them to do

as coaches. We’re improving each week.” If Monken’s squad continues to improve at this rate, from the doldrums of the past two years to this season’s blistering start, it might be ready to contend with more ambi-tious schedules on the horizon. The Eagles will face Alabama in 2011, Georgia in 2012, Florida in 2013 and Georgia Tech in 2015. Monken is not particularly looking for-ward to a mind-game with his old friend. “I can’t say I’m excited about playing a Paul Johnson-coached football team,” he said. “It wouldn’t matter what school it is. He’s one of the best coaches in America.” Just four games into his head coaching career, Monken isn’t there yet. But he is off to a darn good start. Dimon can be reached at [email protected].

the Falcons pulled off one of their biggest wins of the Mike smith era last sunday, going on the road to upset the defending super bowl champion saints 27-24 in overtime. Although its still early, Atlanta ap-pears to have established itself as a serious NFC south and conference contender. see page 9 for the Fal-cons cover story.

OUT FROnT

FlYiNG hiGh: Georgia southern’s Jeff Monken, who spoke earlier this week at the touchdown Club of Atlanta, is off to an impressive start in his head coaching career. Monken, a long-time assistant under current Georgia tech head coach Paul Johnson, has led the eagles to a 3-1 record, including 1-0 in southern Conference play. Photo courtesy of rob saye.



SCOrEliST

cRUncHinG THEnUmBErS

bY briAN JoNes bY riCKY diMoNbirds oN toP: the Falcons got one of their biggest wins in two years last sunday when they beat the New orleans saints at the superdome. that’s put Atlanta in a three-way tie for the NFC south lead with the saints along with tampa bay. Great win guys, but watch out for a letdown on sunday vs the 49ers.

dAWG GoNe it: i thought i would never see the day the Georgia bull-dogs would lose to Mississippi state. it was uGA’s first loss to the “other” dogs since 1974 and the first in starkville since 1951. the loss put the dawgs at 0-3 in the seC for the first time since 1993. but Colorado should be a win… Probably? Maybe?

lost JACKets: After a disap-pointing loss to NC state, Georgia tech is 2-2 and are not looking like the team that won the ACC last year. the biggest problem might be the de-fense is struggling to get off the field. Al Groh was brought in to improve the unit, but it seems to be getting worse.

CoNGrAts bobbY: the braves end their regular season with a series against the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend. saturday afternoon will be the time fans will honor bobby Cox for his service with the braves. i have to say congratulations, bobby, for all you have achieved. You are one of the best and you’ll be missed.

sAturdAY NiGht sPeCiAl: A lot of sporting events will be hap-pening on saturday. if you have a hard time choosing where to go or what to watch, go to GPb.org/sports at 7:00 p.m. and see Valdosta take on M.l. King in a special saturday night game. Also, check out any archived ondemand games on the site as well.

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Bobby coxWhen the Braves play their final game of the 2010 regular season on Sunday night, it will be Bobby Cox’s last regular season game as manager. Cox has had a stellar career with the Braves, winning 14 consecutive division titles, five Na-tional League titles and a World Series title in 1995.

atlanta FalconsThe Falcons got their biggest win of the season by defeating the New Orleans Saints at the Su-perdome last Sunday. Matt Ryan threw for two touchdowns while Michael Turner and Jason Snelling rushed for over 200 yards combined in the win.

atlanta HawksWith the season right around the corner, the Hawks opened training camp Tuesday and they are looking to have a better season than last year. Joe Johnson, Al Horford and Josh Smith will be the captains and will lead the team to their first preseason game Oct. 7.

Georgia BulldogsWith a 0-3 start in the SEC including a rare loss to Mississippi State, it’s safe to say the Bulldogs are in a world of trou-ble. They will have some help Saturday with the return of A.J. Green, but UGA still has more issues on offense, defense and special teams that will not go away with one player coming back.

Georgia TechThe defending ACC champions are not having the start to their season they would have liked. After an inspiring win at North Carolina, the Jackets were routed at home by Russell Wilson and N.C. State. Let’s hope another trip to the Tar Heel State will be fruitful as Tech travels to Wake Forest this weekend.

martin prado’s injuryThe Braves may reach the playoffs as a wild card, but they are going to do it without their star utility man. The all-star tore his oblique along with suffering a hip pointer last Monday against the Florida Marlins.

TRiVia

QUESTiOnBobby cox has won one World Series as manager with the

Braves. What team was he with when he won his other world title and what year

was it?

SaniTY

aT LaST“This is a huge victory for us. We have a lot of high expectations of ourselves and we

fought the entire game to get us in position to

win it at the end.”

- Falcons QB Matt Ryan after the win against the New

Orleans Saints last Sunday answer on page 14

the NFl-leading aver-age time of posses-sion for the Falcons in 2010.

interceptions made by the Falcons through three games, which leads the NFl.

sacks by John Abra-ham as a Falcon. he ranks seventh on the NFl all-time list.

Matt ryan’s quarter-back rating in the win over the saints.

the last time uGA was on a three-game losing streak.

the last time uGA lost to Mississippi state in starkville.

Manager of the Year awards bobby Cox has won with the braves and the blue Jays.

World series Cox has won as a player and manager.

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2a cOacH’S diaRY: JEFF mEaSOR

Last week was one of the most humbling moments in my professional career. We were embarrassed by a team we should have beaten - after a week when I thought we practiced and prepared very well. We embarrassed our community, school, families, and -most importantly - our-selves. We simply didn’t show up Friday night, and as the head coach, that falls directly on me. I watched with bitter familiarity the Texas/UCLA game the next day, especially the postgame press conference with Mack Brown. Our game was obvi-ously a much smaller scale than the Texas game, but I knew exactly how Coach Brown felt Saturday after-noon. It is very humbling when you feel your team is prepared, you know they have the talent to win the game, and they play with little effort, execute terribly, and show virtually no emotion from start to finish

However, as a leader you have to move on and get ready for the next week. This week we have

preached emotion, hard work, and details. There is no shame in losing a game if the

effort and desire is there. Ultimately, when two good teams play each other, one is going to lose. The one thing every player and coach can control is their effort in preparation and their effort during the game. Football is one sport where usually the harder you try, the better you play, and it is also a sport where if you don’t play hard, you can be beaten by an infe-rior team. Hopefully we have learned

our lesson, and regardless of winning or losing, we can play hard, fly around

the field, and represent ourselves and our fans much better than last week.

Centennial High School head coach Jeff Measor will share his thoughts here throughout the football season.







Falcons overcome adversity, then grind out victory over world champsWhen the Atlanta Falcons visited the Su-

perdome last Sunday, only a select few predicted them to win. Outside of the Falcons themselves, there was plenty of evidence to support the majority opinion. It had been five long years since Atlanta had defeated their NFC South rivals away from home. The underdog Falcons entered New Or-leans as an intriguing darkhorse in the divi-sion race. They left with the early inside track to a division title after beating the defending Super Bowl Champions. ANsWeriNG the bell … What may have been most impressive about the win was Atlanta’s response when trailing. In fact, quarterback Matt Ryan was 15-for-18 with two scores when his team was be-hind. Down 14-7 in the first quarter, the Saints appeared to be marching down the field once again, driving into Atlanta territory. But then Brees gave Atlanta a gift, tossing a terrible in-terception into the arms of Thomas DeCoud. Atlanta came up with two massive drives in the first and second halves after falling behind. “I told the guys [before the game] that you’ve got to fight through adversity to win games in this league,” head coach Mike Smith said. The first of those drives came right after Brees’ pick. Atlanta embarked on an 80-yard drive they will hope defines their offensive performance this season. The methodical and physical 19-play drive included two fourth-down conversions and ate up an un-believable 10:39 of game time. Mike Mular-key’s offense began to wear down the Saints’ defense, giving them a steady dose of Mi-chael Turner and Jason Snelling. Meanwhile, Ryan was beginning to play at his absolute best, buying time and hitting Tony

Gonzalez on a third-down conversion and also passing for the two fourth-down conversions. In the end, Turner ran over Saints line-backer Jonathan Vilma at the goal line to fin-ish off the drive and help Atlanta draw even. “I am so proud how we converted most third downs,” Ryan said. “That was a huge fac-tor throughout the game, keeping our drives moving and also running down the clock.”

tAKiNG CoNtrol … Atlanta took the lead midway through the third quarter on a Matt Bryant field goal. But the Saints weren’t going to go away qui-etly. They snatched the lead back after the Atlanta defense appeared to have held New Orleans on the ensuing possession. Thomas Morstead’s punt made contact with an unsuspecting DeCoud as it hit the turf close to the sideline. The ball bounced straight up in the air and Jimmy Graham would grab the loose ball before tossing it back to long-snapper Jason Kyle as he fell out of bounds. Kyle made the catch and got both feet down to give the Saints the ball right back. They made Atlanta pay. Five plays later, Lance Moore and Brees hooked up for a 16-yard score and the home team took the lead heading into the final quarter. The response from Atlanta was again strong and swift. Ryan went 5-for-5 on an 80-yard scoring drive and he capped it off with a beautiful 22-yard pass up the right sideline to White, who made the catch in the endzone as his team took the lead. Gonzalez’s play was essential once again, as he drew a pass inter-ference penalty on second-and-16 from Ro-man Harper to get Atlanta to midfield and get the drive rolling. The Saints have made a habit of winning dramatic games, and they didn’t look at all

nervous trailing 24-21. But it was a risky call from Smith that gave them good field position on their final drive. Atlanta drove 43 yards to the New Or-leans 37 as Turner began to run rampant. But the drive stalled on third-and-six with just under four minutes to play. No one could be-lieve it when Smith kept his offense on the field, and Ryan came up empty as he rolled to his right and couldn’t find an open receiver. “We were about at the 37-yard line and I felt like we had a play that we had for that situation,” Smith said. “We got the match that we wanted and the ball was tipped down at the line of scrimmage.” The Saints had life, and this time they made due on it. They cashed in on a fourth-and-one when Brees found Jeremy Shockey for a 6-yard gain. And, soon after, Garrett Hartley only need-ed to hit a 32-yard kick with 12 seconds left to send the game to overtime. The struggling Hart-ley’s kick was true, and Atlanta was headed to overtime for the second time in three weeks.

ClosiNG the deAl … Just like they did in week 1 against Pitts-burgh, the Falcons won the coin toss and got the ball first in OT. And just like in their visit to Heinz Field, their drive went nowhere and ended with Will Smith hauling down Ryan in the backfield to force a three-and-out. The Saints quickly jumped on an op-portunity to finish off the pesky visitors and drove into Atlanta territory. Then, on third down at the Atlanta 25, Brees found Devery Henderson for a 14-yard gain to make the winning a field goal a simple chip shot for Hartley. Saints fans were abuzz throughout the Dome, as it appeared they were ready to win yet another game over Atlanta at home. But Hartley let the Falcons back in. He pulled

his kick wide left, shocking the home crowd and giving Atlanta the ball back at its own 20. “I was absolutely stunned,” Gonzalez said. “I thought for sure the game was over.” The final Atlanta drive showed that the Saints’ defense indeed had nothing left. Their valiant effort had been nullified by Hartley’s miss. And now they had no hope of stopping Atlanta’s brutal offensive attack that saw them run the ball an astonishing 50 times. The Falcons continued to run the ball down the home team’s throat, and this time it won them the game. Ten runs for 51 yards helped Atlanta into field goal range against a Saints defense that looked worn out and beaten. “Our offensive line did an outstanding job after the missed field goal,” Smith said, “We kind of took over control of the line of scrimmage. Ultimately that is at the core of what we want to be as a football team.” Unlike Hartley, Bryant would finish the deal soon after. The former Tampa Bay kick-er, once won a game with a 62-yarder in 2006, and his kick from 46 in New Orleans easily had the distance. The win in Louisiana had the NFL tak-ing notice. Perhaps this won’t be the wild-card team that many predicted. Maybe, just maybe, Sunday’s win proved to everyone that the Falcons’ lofty goals aren’t so unreachable after all. A win in New Orleans did plenty to legitimize the team’s desires. “This is a huge victory for us,” Ryan said. “We have a lot of high expectations of ourselves and we fought the entire game to get us in position to win.” Fight and win they did. Now it’s time to build on a victory that the Falcons hope changes the landscape of the NFC. Bagriansky can be reached at [email protected].





First official practice in the books A new season is officially underway

for the Atlanta Hawks, as the team met for their first official practice with a long season ahead. With the core of the team mostly unchanged, much of the attention is on Jamal Crawford, who made no bones about his desire to sign an extension before he becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer. “I honestly don’t know,” Crawford told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “I would love to work something out and be here long term. Last year, I would have thought this was home and I’m part of the team’s future.” But Crawford stressed that he didn’t feel disrespected by the lack of talk between him and general manager Rick Sund. Although the Hawks have advanced to the second round the past two sea-sons, they have been swept both times in a bid to reach those conference finals. But All-Star shooting guard Joe Johnson thinks the sky is the limit. “I’m looking at the Eastern Confer-ence finals or better this year, I’m sure the guys are looking at it the same way

as well,” Johnson told NBATV. the three AMiGos … It didn’t take long for new head coach Larry Drew to pick his team cap-tains, as he named a trio of experienced Hawks to lead the team. The first was Johnson. A longtime team captain under Mike Woodson, Johnson is not a vocal leader by any means, something he has come under fire for during his time as a Hawk. But his on-court production makes it diffi-cult not to anoint “JJ” as a captain. Fortunately, the Hawks’ other two captains will have plenty to say. Center Al Horford asserted himself as a leader from day one in Atlanta. The third captain may surprise some. Josh Smith has made plenty of headlines in past years, but has also been in the news for bust-ups with teammates and coaches. But Smith was a much more mature player last season, achieving of-fensive consistency by shooting over 50 percent while continuing to be one of the league’s elite defensive players. Bagriansky can be reached at [email protected]

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phils clinch, Braves eye wild card Ramsay making final cuts of preseasonThe dream of one final division title

for manager Bobby Cox is over, but the Braves as of Wednesday morning were still in the lead for the National League wild card. Atlanta rebounded from a 4-5 road trip which ended 1-5 thanks to a sweep in Philadelphia and a lost series to the Nationals to take the first two games of a three-game set with the Florida Marlins. The Braves will wrap up the regu-lar season with a six-game homestand, three against the Marlins and three against Philadelphia. Cox will be hon-ored prior to Saturday’s game against Philadelphia. The Phillies became the first Na-tional League team to qualify for the playoffs last Sunday and then Monday clinched the NL East with an 8-0 vic-tory. The Phillies have won the last four NL East crowns with the Mets snagging the 2006 division title.

hooKiNG the MArliNs … In game one of the Marlins se-ries, Braves starter Tommy Hanson unleashed his second straight dominat-

The preseason is winding down and, by this time next week, the regular

season will be getting underway against Washington. For now though, coach Craig Ramsay still has some decisions to make with the lineup. “There‘s a number of different people that we are looking at,” said Ramsay. “Everybody‘s going to get a good look.” There has been a whole group cut from the roster this week as the team trims players in order to meet the 23-man roster requirement for the regular season. Patrice Cormier was placed on injured reserve after he broke his foot. Forwards Riley Holzapfel, Spencer Machacek, and defenseman Noah Welch were as-signed to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, the Thrashers “minor league team.” A few players have stood out through the first three exhibition games. Fredrik Pettersson has looked right at home at left wing. The speed and puck control of Pettersson has been something to take note of. Puck control leads to good things like goals and penalty kills. “Pettersson has been good at getting the puck out and killing penalties,” said Ramsay. “The offense starts in your own zone and we

Was there a changing of the guard in the NFC South last Sunday? It sure

felt that way when the air was taken out of the New Orleans Superdome and the jubilant Atlanta Falcons were left cel-ebrating on the field following a wild 27-24 overtime victory. Saints fans will say no; that their team would have won had Garrett Hartley sim-ply converted a 29-yeard field goal during the extra frame. On the contrary, the Saints were lucky just to be in overtime having been dominated on the time of posses-sion clock 45:50 to 27:15. Atlanta also outgained New Orleans 202-42 on the ground and turned the ball over just once compared to the hosts’ three giveaways. While Sunday’s result could have serious implications on both the divi-sion and the entire NFC as the season progresses, it is a thing of the past for head coach Mike Smith heading into Week 4. “I think you can carry it with you in terms of moving forward, but it’s really not going to have any bearing on the next game,” Smith said during his press conference on Monday. “We’ve got to go out and compete against the

ing performance, though for the second straight start he was given a no-deci-sion. Jonny Venters came on to retire the Marlins and get Hanson off the hook for the potential loss. Omar Infante would eventually drive home the winning run on a two-out single to plate Nate McLouth in the 11th inning. Brian Mc-Cann provided the game’s first run with a solo shot, his 21st of the season. It was the 25th win in the team’s final at-bat, but the first since September 11.

PrAdo doNe … The news wasn’t all good though from last Monday’s contest. Third base-man Martin Prado left the game after suffering a hip-pointer on a diving play in the fourth inning. Prado, who has suf-fered this season from an injured hand as well as a groin injury, tried to gut it out but left after his at-bat to end the fifth inning. Prado was at first declared day-to-day, but an MRI later revealed that Prado is out for the season due to a torn oblique. Proctor can be reached at [email protected].

want to control that.” The young Swed-ish forward scored a goal against Colum-bus and he looked comfortable skating with right wing Bryan Little. Little also scored a goal against Columbus, in what turned out to be a 5-2 loss. “After our line calmed down a bit in the first we started to get some chemistry going,” said Little. “I thought I’d feel more comfortable. I felt pretty comfortable though.” There has been talk about Dustin Byfuglien moving to defense. This may or may not be the case when the regu-lar season starts. It might work against some teams, but Byfuglien’s game doesn’t really lend itself to the defense-man position. Byfuglien gives Atlanta an edge in front of the net, especially on the power play. If he plays defense, be-ing in the crease is something that will prove to be impossible. The Thrashers will play their final three preseason games with two against Nashville, Carolina and Columbus this week. The final three exhibitions will determine who is in the lineup when they face Washington. Deighton can be reached at [email protected].

next team up on the schedule.”

here CoMe the NiNers … That next team is San Francisco, which is positively reeling having lost three straight games to start the season. Although they showed some promise in a 25-22 home loss to the Saints in Week 2, the 49ers took a step back last Sunday by suffering a 31-10 rout at the hands of Kansas City. In a 2009 meeting between the two teams, the Falcons went on the road and clobbered San Francisco 45-10. Despite last year’s lopsided result and the way this season has progressed, overconfidence will not be a factor. “Last year’s game will have no bearing on the outcome of the game this week,” Smith explained. “They’re a com-pletely different football team. Anytime you go play a game, records have no mean-ing. That’s how we approach it.” Atlanta hopes wide receiver Mi-chael Jenkins and safety Erik Coleman will be available for the contest. Neither Jenkins (shoulder) nor Coleman (knee) has played this season. Dimon can be reached at [email protected].

Falcons make statement, now face SF



panthers win first-ever road game; soccer teams begin conference slateThe Georgia State football team returned

from its first road trip with a win, beating the Camels of Campbell University 24-21 on an Iain Vance 30-yard field goal with .5 seconds re-maining. At the same time, the Panthers evened their record at 2-2 in this inaugural season. It looked early on like GSU would run easily all day after Darren McCray returned the opening kick 96 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead. But as the Panthers found out, it was not going to be that easy. With Campbell’s of-fense dominating the time of possession during

the second and third quarters but managing just one score, the Panthers reclaimed a 21-14 lead in the fourth quarter on Drew Little’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Danny Williams that capped a 13-play, 80-yard drive. Campbell, though, wasted no time com-ing back to tie the game, marching 64 yards down field in only six plays with quarterback Daniel Polk scoring on a 7-yard keeper with 3:14 remaining. That’s when Georgia State’s offense kicked into gear again with Little leading the Panthers on a 10-play drive set-

ting up Vance’s field goal for the win. “We’ve put him under pressure in prac-tice every single day since Aug. 11, 2009, just so that he would be ready for this,” said GSU head coach Bill Curry. Little completed 16 of 23 passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Tra-vis Evans amassed 53 yards on 11 carries. “I’m proud of my guys for one thing, which we’ve shown every day since we got here, and that is resilience,” said Curry. “We will fight back ev-ery single time. We’re 2-2 and we’ll take that.

Give credit to a very valiant Campbell team.” Georgia State men’s soccer team opened CAA play with an impressive 2-1 victory over Delaware and moved to 4-1-2 overall on the season. Women’s soccer (7-3-1) split its conference openers, beating Drexel 2-0 be-fore falling to Delaware 3-2. Join us each Monday afternoon (4:00-5:00 p.m.) for the Bill Curry call-in radio show on WCFO-AM, News talk 1160. Dave Cohen is in his 28th season as the “Voice of Georgia State Athletics” on WRAS-FM (88.5) and WCFO-AM, Newstalk 1160.

iJ rosenberg (17-7)President

dJ Galbiati (14-10)Creative Art director

bob houghton (12-12)General Manager

Fletcher Proctor (11-8-4)“the Fletch”

brian Jones (11-13)reporter

stephen black (10-14)Managing editor

49ers @ FalconsFalcons

oklahoma @ texasTexas

Florida @ AlabamaAlabama

Pope @ KellKell

brookwood @ south GwinnettSouth Gwinnett

Valdosta @ Ml KingValdosta


oklahoma @ texasOklahoma


Pope @ KellKell




oklahoma @ texasTexas


Pope @ KellKell






Pope @ KellAbstains (calling for GPB)


Valdosta @ Ml KingAbstains (calling for GPB)




Pope @ KellKell






Pope @ KellKell


Valdosta @ Ml KingML King



BASKEtBAllhawks. (Preseason). October 7 vs. Memphis 7 PM. October 11

at Detroit 7:30 PM. October 12 at Washington 7 PM. (Regular season). October 27 at Memphis 8 PM.

Club sport, “Where Atlanta Comes to Play!” Registration Ongoing - Men’s League plays on Sunday evenings at the Brookhaven Boys & Girls Club. For more info or to register visit www.usclubsport.com

open recreational basketball. Gsl — Georgia Sports Leagues. Georgia’s Best Sports Leagues. Registration ongoing. We offer “Top Gun,” “B,” “C” and Co-Ed styles of play around Atlanta. We play ALL year round. For more information please contact (678)799-0159 or email [email protected]. Visit www.georgiasportsleagues.org.

roundtable Fundamental basketball Camp boys and Girls. Ris-ing 6th-10th Graders (Current 5th-9th Graders) June 7-11. 9am-2pm. St. Francis High School, Alpharetta. Contact Coach Huff [email protected].

BASEBAllbraves. October 1 vs. Philadelphia 7:35 PM. October 2 vs. Philadel-

phia 4:10 PM. October 3 vs. Philadelphia 1:35 PM. Prospect Watch. Ongoing - Buckhead. Baseball pitching and hitting

lessons by a former college and minor league coach. For infor-mation call 404-869-7966 or visit www.eteamz.com/tryouts.

Adult baseball league Metro Atlanta. Ongoing. MSBL 18+, 28+, 38+, and 48+. Sunday League contact info is 770.785.2588, e-mail [email protected]. MSBL 18+ Saturday League contact info is 770-436-8114, e-mail [email protected]. MSBL 18+ Midweek Wood bat league contact info is 770-436-8114, e-mail [email protected]. MSBL 18+Fall League contact info is 770-436-8114, e-mail [email protected]. For more information about our Atlanta Adult Baseball League, please visit our website at www.AtlantaMSBL.com.

tNt sports. Ongoing. Baseball pitching and hitting lessons by Rob Blair, former college coach, Snellville. To set up a free pitching or hitting analysis call. 678-344-5876.

Jack City baseball. Ongoing. Baseball pitching and hitting. In-struction with former pro Keith Whitner. 18-y looking for high school players. The new location is inside Velocity Sports in North Gwinnett. For more information call 770-633-0948 or visit jackcity.net.

FootBAllFalcons. October 3 vs. San Francisco 1 PM. Georgia. October 2 at Colorado 7 PM. Georgia tech. October 2 at Wake Forest. Georgia state. October 2 vs. Morehead State 1 PM. Collins hill Athletic Association. Ongoing. Accepting applica-

tions for qualified coaches in all age groups. For informtion email Craig Deneau at [email protected]

Grayson Athletic Association. Ongoing. Football coaches needed for eighth grade and all age groups. For information call Duane Davis at 678-300-0282 or visit www.gaasports.org.

Flag Football. Gsl -- Georgia sports leagues. Georgia’s Largest Flag League. Registration ongoing. We offer 7-Man, 8-man, Youth and Co-Ed styles of play around Atlanta. We play ALL year round. For information please contact (678)799-0159 or

email [email protected]. Visit www.georgias-portsleagues.org.

Arena indoor Football. Ongoing. Youth and Adult Leagues. Youth 7 vs. 7; Adult 6 vs. 6. For information, call 678-714-7454 or e-mail [email protected]. www.atlantasil-verbacks.com/indoor.

Capitol City officials Association. CCOA is accepting ongoing registration for the upcoming GHSA High School season in football. We hold weekly training meetings. For more infor-mation, contact Irvin Seabrook at 404-957-3331 or e-mail [email protected].

HocKEY thrashers. (Preseason).October 1 at Carolina 1:30 PM. October

2 at Columbus 6 PM. (Regular season). October 9 vs. Wash-ington 7:30 PM. October 10 at Tampa Bay 7:30 PM. October 12 at Los Angeles 10 PM.

Peachtree booster Club. Ongoing - Pickneyville Roller Hockey Rink. Fees: $95 for 12-game season, $30 out-of-county fee. For information visit www.pbcsports.org.

SoccER Atlanta beat. September 11 at Washington 7 PM. Challenged soccer. Ongoing. For mentally and physically dis-

abled youngsters. For information call Ken Higgins at 770-985-0434.

hall of Fame soccer clinics. Ongoing on Fridays Clarkston Com-munity Center. For under-6 through under-12 players. Fees: Free. For information call 404-508-1050 or visit www.clark-stoncommunitycenter.org. 5:30-7 PM.

tENNIS technique Clinics. Ongoing - Bitsy Grant Tennis Center. Tues-

days (serve/volley) and Saturdays (forehand/backhand). Fees: $18. For information call 404-790-4772 or email [email protected]. 2 PM on Saturdays, 6:30PM on Tuesdays.

tennis camps for kids. Ongoing weekly. Lost Mountain Tennis Center. For information call 770-528-8525.

lAcRoSSElacrosse. Ongoing. Registration for 1st-8th grades. For informa-

tion call 404-216-5870, email [email protected] or visit www.bagatawaylacrosse.com.

double stixx lacrosse. Ongoing - Leagues, Travel Teams and Tournaments for youth, high school and adult’s boys and girls. More information about the best lacrosse programs in Georgia can be found at www.doblestixxlacrosse.com or by contacting Chris Smith at [email protected] or 404-550-5322.

RUNNING ryder’s Carve out Cancer 5K/Mile. Oct. 9. Marietta, 7:30 AM. 404-

847-1270.Athletes helping Athletes 5K. Oct. 9. Kennesaw, 8:30 AM. 770-

222-2235.Mcdonough lions Club run for the Cubs 5K/10K. Oct. 9. McDonough,

7:30 AM. 678-491-0286.spartan sprint 5K. Oct. 9. Smyrna, 9:00 AM. 678-842-6850. tanger outlet Fit for Families 5K. Oct. 9. Locust Grove, 336-

834-6826.

tanger outlet Fit for Families 5K. Oct. 9. Commerce, 336-834-6826.10th Annual Cobb County Make-A-Wish 5K. Oct. 9. Marietta, 8:00

AM. 770-528-3809.dog dash 5K. Oct. 9. Atlanta, Cabbagetown, 678-787-1838. 2010 hihope 5K & 1K. Oct. 9. Buford, 8:30 AM. 404-925-5976 .Come smell the Coffee tiger trot 5K. Oct. 9. Douglas, 8:00 AM. 912-

260-4276.

VollEYBAllGwinnett sports Center. Registration ongoing. For information call

Jerry Robison at 678-491-0203 or visit www.gscfun.com.

SWIMMING & DIVING swimming lessons. Ongoing - Alpharetta City Pool - Alpharetta, Ga.

- 1825 Old Milton Parkway. For information call 678-297-6107. dynamo swim school. DynaBabies, Preschool, Grade School,

Adult Classes. Youth Swim Team. Call us (770) 457-7946 Ext 16 www.dynamoswimschool.com

Gwinnett Aquatics. Ongoing - 2800 Quinberry Drive and Bethany Church Road. For ages 5-18. Swim team and lessons avail-able. For information call 770-972-4055.

senior Water-exercise class. Ongoing - Mountain Park pool - Lilburn, Ga. Fees: $1 per class. For information call 770-546-4650. 10-10:50 AM.

swimAtlanta sugarloaf at Kid’s Village. Ongoing. Swim team, lessons, lap swimming, master’s program, water aerobics and scuba available. For information call 678-442-7946.

YoUtH REGIStRAtIoNsoccer-soccer Alley. Ongoing - 3265 Roswell Road- Atlanta. For in-

formation call 404-266-0762 or visit www.starsoccerclub.com.tucker Youth soccer. Ongoing - 2803 Henderson Road Tucker, Ga.

For information call 770-414-0538 or visit www.tysa.com.track and Field - Peachtree City Flash Youth Track Team regis-

tration. Ongoing - Riley Field - Peachtree City, Ga. For ages 6-14. For information call 770-631-3552 or email [email protected].

Gymnastics - Georgia Gymnastics Academy. Ongoing. For regis-tration in Lawrenceville call 770-962-5867; in Suwanee call 770-945-3424.

Gym elite. Ongoing. Registration for ages 2 and older. Cheerlead-ing for ages 6 and older. For information call 770-242-0678.

Youth soccer training. Ongoing. Start age 3 and up. For infor-mation, call 678-714-7454, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.atlantasilverbacks.com/indoor.

Corpus Christi Youth basketball league Registration is now under-way for our 29th season! Boys and girls ages 5 through 14, any skill level, are welcome. Cost: $90 per child/$85 for siblings. Fee includes uniforms, field trips, skills clinics, 9 games and maore! Register while space is still available Saturdays October 11 & 18, 2008, 10 AM to 12 PM. Location: Corpus Christi Church Sports Arena, 600 Mountain View Drive, Stone Mountain, GA 30083. For info, call 770-469-0395, email [email protected] or visit the league’s website (www.ccybl.net).

SoFtBAll AYsA spring season. Ongoing - North Park - Cogburn and Bethany -

Alpharetta. Fees: If Alpharetta Residential Property Tax IS NOT PAID at the primary residence of the player, then the Non-City Resident Fee must be paid. After Jan. 13, $10 late fee is charged.

GYMNAStIcSGymnastics Classes at Gymnastics AcademyofAtlanta. Ongoing

- 3126 Cobb Parkway Kennesaw, Ga. For information call 770-975-8337 or visit www.gymnasticsacademyofatlanta.com.

Gymnastics Classes at Gwinnett Gymnastics Center Ongoing - 927 Killian Hill Road Lilburn, Ga. For information call 770-921-5630.

Atlanta school of Gymnastics in lawrenceville. Ongoing. Class-es for tots through teens. Cheerleading classes for ages 5 and older. For information call 770-277-9434.

the little Gym of snellville. Ongoing. Noncompetitive gymnas-tics and motor-skills development classes and camps. For ages 10 months-12 years. For information call 770-982-0901 or visit www.tlgsnellvillega.com.

RAcINGNAsCAr racing experience. Oct. 1-2 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.sweet repeats Consignment sale. Oct. 7-9 at Atlanta Motor

Speedwaybuck baker racing school. Oct. 9-10 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.Petit le Mans. september 29. Oct. 2 at Road Atlanta. WerA Grand National Finals. Oct. 8-10 at Road Atlanta

oFFIcIAtING 9rCorp sports officials. Ongoing. Provider of sports officials for

multiple sports including basketball, flag football, & softball. Looking for additional officials. For information call Dennis Reagan at 404-213-0588 or email [email protected].

Georgia lacrosse officials Association. Needs boys youth and High School officials for 2010 season. Games are played Spring, Summer, and Fall. Great way to earn extra money and get some fun aerobic exercise. For more information, please visit www.GALAXREF.com or email [email protected].

Atlanta Peachstate Football officials Association. High School Football Officials needed. We are in need of people who want to officiate high school football in the Atlanta Metro area. No experience is necessary. We have weekly training sessions. For more information go on our web site www.apfoa.com or call Keith @ 678.592.1194.

AtlANtA SPoRtS coUNcIl Chick-Fil-A bowl. Dec. 31, 2010. Georgia Dome. For tickets, call

404-444-4444. To reach the Atlanta Sports Council call 404-586-8510 or visit www.atlantasportscouncil.com.

MISc.Club sport. Club Sport opens registration for summer leagues on

May 1st with league play beginning in June. Club Sport is At-lanta’s recreational sports and social group with over 10,000 participants each year on 1200 teams in 120 leagues. Each season Club Sport offers leagues in flag football, softball, soccer, sand and indoor volleyball, basketball and more. Club Sport is where Atlanta comes to play! For more information about Club Sport, upcoming events, photos or interviews with the owner, please contact Rich Alvarez at 678-994-0793 ext. 818 or visit www.usclubsport.com.

Gokickball “Atlanta’s Premier social experience”. Providing social, co-ed adult kickball leagues throughout metro-Atlanta centered around having a good time, meeting new people, and playing recreational games of kickball at local parks. Registra-tion is open now for spring season. Join the fun! For more in-formation and to register, go to www.gokickball.com/atlanta. Special Score Atlanta 15% off discount code: “Score15”.



Copyright 2010 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.Score Atlanta is published every week on Fridays. Views expressed in Score Atlanta are not necessarily the opinion of Score Atlanta, its staff or advertisers. Score Atlanta does not knowingly accept false or misleading editorial content or advertising nor is Score Atlanta responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. No content (articles, photographs, graphics) in Score Atlanta may be used for reproduction without written permission from the publisher.

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With the onset of cool, fall weather and the return of wide receiver A.J. Green,

Mark Richt and his Bulldogs hope the air of change in Athens will bring on-field success sooner rather than later. Without Green in the fold, the Dawgs have managed to start SEC play 0-3 for the first time since 1993. Georgia’s offense, while receiving decent quarterback play from freshman Aaron Murray, has sputtered since a season-opening romp over outmanned Louisiana-Lafayette. The hope of Bulldog Nation is that the return of Green will jump-start not only the offense, but the entire team. With impending games against Colorado and struggling Ten-nessee, the Bulldogs could turn their season around quickly.

After his Georgia Tech team lost its second game of the season to fall to 2-2, Paul John-

son has had all the blown assignments he can handle. “It doesn’t change,” the coach said in his weekly press conference after falling to North Carolina State 45-28. “You have to stay in your rush lanes, you have to make a block, you have to make a tackle. It isn’t complicated stuff.” Mental mistakes have been key in each of the Yellow Jackets loses this season. In the first loss to Kansas, Georgia Tech committed nine penalties with a total of 26 on the season for 222 total yards. That is 55 yards a game and 8.5 per penalty. A rushing team like Tech

But before getting ahead of itself, Richt’s team will have to get past a fired-up Colorado squad in Boulder. “They are a very solid team,” said Richt of the Buffaloes. “They are 2-1, and I’m sure they will be very fresh after an open date and very well-prepared by virtue of the fact that they’ve had time. I know Coach Dan Hawkins does a great job. It will be a really good chal-lenge for us. So it’s time for us to, starting to-day, have a really good day of preparing for this ballgame and this team and the challenges of the distance that we’ll have to travel.”

oreGoN series sCrAPPed … Georgia announced Monday that the 2015-2016 series with Oregon has been can-

just can’t put itself behind the 8-ball like that on a consistent basis and hope to win. The mistakes aren’t just the penalties; turn-overs have caused the Jackets trouble as well. Quarterback Josh Nesbitt has just thrown one interception, but that is in only 43 pass attempts on the season. The Jackets offense has fumbled 11 times; and six of those have been recovered by the offense and five have been turned over. Six total turnovers is not horrible, but the Jack-ets are fumbling way too often. Johnson said of the turnovers, “We put the ball on the ground way too much. That is coaching and fundamen-tals and tucking the ball away and squeezing it.”

dawgs eagerly welcome Green back as losses mount

Johnson growing tired of mental mistakes; deacs up next

celled. It was a mutual decision between pro-grams, as the Bulldogs are introducing a new philosophy with out-of-conference schedul-ing while Oregon wants its slate clean for the impending conference expansion. “I’m sure a lot of fans enjoy taking some of those trips, but it is tough on your team, your players and coaches,” Richt about non-confer-ence road trips. “For example, we are sched-uled to get in about 6 a.m. after the game. So that’s tough. It’s tough to really get some sleep that night between a plane, a bus and different time zones. We are rolling into the next game, a very important Southeastern Conference game with that kind of night, which is tough.” Black can be reached at [email protected].

Against the Wolfpack, turnovers were part of the problem (four fumbles, two that were lost), but blown assignments were what caught Johnson’s ire. “We had 43 missed as-signments on one end and 42 on the other. There were so many -- from turning guys loose on pass protection to us going the wrong way, we were busted the first play of the game on offense. These are guys that have played for two or three years and it is not new stuff.” If Tech is going to get back on the right track, eliminating these mistakes will be crucial. Watson can be reached at 404-256-1572.

TriviaANsWer

the 1977 New York Yankees. he was an assistant under billy Martin.



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