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Mississippi State Preview | 2025 Georgia Football
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Jim and Jon preview Georgia’s matchup with Mississippi State and answer listener questions.
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Transcript
Intro and Humor with Mike Bobo
00:00:00
Speaker
As many times until it's not too many times, that kind of thing. Keep them honest, us keep them balanced, but otherwise, great play. I love i love that answer. As many times until it's not too many times. I'm going to tweet that to Mike Bobo right now.
Podcast Introduction and Georgia vs. Mississippi State Preview
00:00:18
Speaker
Welcome to My Got a Podcast. I'm Jim Wood. In this episode, John Smith and I preview Georgia's matchup with Mississippi State. We talk through what we're looking for in the game, and we answer questions from you, our listeners.
00:00:31
Speaker
As always, remember to check out the newly redesigned MyGottaPodcast.com to see our latest merch. And you can follow us on social media at MyGottaPodcast. Finally, if you need help with your website or your online presence, head over to WorkingWebMedia.com slash dogs.
00:00:47
Speaker
Now, let's join the conversation in progress.
Guest Host Introduction and Social Media Chat
00:00:53
Speaker
All right. um Different John, same pre-show. Should we be recording? ae Commentary happens. It doesn't matter. ah We have invoked the long-running joke of you know maybe sometime in a time of need ah when JP isn't available, we'll just swap out John for John and people won't notice notice that an H is missing. So John john Smith, John Tweet Sports, thanks for filling in ah for JP this week. Much appreciated.
00:01:20
Speaker
Hey, I'm excited to be here. Honored that you had asked me. I'm excited to see how many people don't even recognize that this is a different John. um and And let's just go for it I'm excited at the next tailgate ah for people to say, oh, I heard you. You're at Mississippi State episode. It was great.
00:01:35
Speaker
i get I get a lot of, ah of um I love my God of Podcasts when I introduce myself at tailgate. So great work. Continue doing the great work. I'm honored to be ah the fill-in, John.
00:01:47
Speaker
Amazing. Amazing. Since I've always heard about horrible about this, to help I know you've got like some things going on these days. Tell the tell the people ah about ah where they can find you and all the things going on. Yeah. A couple, couple of things. One, um we have ah the dog social club, dog social club.com.
00:02:04
Speaker
You can join us there as part of the Speakeasy Sports Network that we are building is number one. So Speakeasy Sports um is kind of the big thing that that we're working on and building right now.
00:02:15
Speaker
ah So Dog Social Club, but ah you guys go join there. And um the biggest thing is on November the 14th, Friday before Texas, Me and Seth Saunders from the Preferred Walk-On Podcast and Coach Hayes um from at Coach Hayes Huddle will be doing a live happy hour show um from Creature Comforts Brewery in downtown Athens at 4 p.m. We'll be there from around 4 to 7-ish hanging out. um Show is from 4 to 5, so come by and we'll get you I'll get you a drink on me and we'll have...
00:02:51
Speaker
A good time talking ball before Texas, which is now a night game, which should be a great way to kick off a Texas weekend at Creature Comforts for a live show with me and but the preferred walk-on podcast and Coach Hayes Huddle. So come join us.
00:03:06
Speaker
Perfect. Awesome. um I'm going to be coming in hot that Friday. So if you are, if you're going to be at the Georgia Georgia tech basketball game, which is a 9 PM tip off that Saturday night. e So you can go, you got time to do both, right? You can go see perfect John and and crew at creature comforts, come by and swing by and see my cohost from the last episode, Lily. She and I will be at the, at the tech game that Friday night.
00:03:31
Speaker
So, yeah, right, let's um let's do all the things.
Deep Dive: Georgia vs. Mississippi State
00:03:35
Speaker
um So got we know where you can find John and check everything out. um But that you you can always follow MyGottaPodcast on the socials, at MyGottaPodcast on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and the TikTok.
00:03:47
Speaker
um And then as always, just want to remind everyone, you can head over to homefield.mygotapodcast.com and check out all the, what HomeField Apparel has to offer. and You can always use code HUNKERDOWN 15% off your first order um Okay, let's go through the matchup. So kickoff Saturday at noon, nooner, which is an 11 a.m. m local time at Mississippi State ah Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville.
00:04:13
Speaker
Dogs come in seven and one five and one on the season. Mississippi State five and four one and four in the SEC. Although they finally got that win under their belt last week. um Let's see, the dogs are ranked number five everywhere, including the new CFP poll that came out last night, um which, by the way, off the rails.
00:04:31
Speaker
Side note, that would mean if the playoff were to start tomorrow, we would be hosting Memphis, I believe, in a home game and opening round, which would be Wild. ah The Bizarro Bulldogs obviously not ranked in the polls. This game is on yeah ESPN with the commentating crew of Dave Pash, Dusty Dvorak, and Taylor McGregor.
00:04:49
Speaker
I'm going to have to figure out how to get ESPN if YouTube and Disney don't come to an agreement by Saturday. um Maybe I'll listen on SiriusXM stations 138 or 191. I still don't. I love referencing those for some reason now.
00:05:04
Speaker
The official hashtag we will forget to use is hashtag UGA verse MSST for Mississippi State. And the dogs lead this series all time 21 to 6. So also still wild. So few, so few games between, ah you know, someone we've been playing for so long.
00:05:20
Speaker
Last meeting, the dogs won in Athens 41 to 31 October 12th on the day that the Chad Powers season one finale was filmed. Apparently I now know and weather looks nice if you're going to be there actually like high 76 looks like a little cloudy, et cetera. But i mean, that's great. It's been kind of cold here. So that that sounds like some good weather if you're heading to start Vegas.
00:05:42
Speaker
um Okay. And then we are, if you can't tell, we're on a bit of a different schedule. I'm going to drop in Hastie's Harvard history at a at a later time. So enjoy that now.
00:06:10
Speaker
All right, going to do a Hastie's Hargit History solo here. I believe I said this would be dropped in, so I'm going get right to it. All right, this is what Jason Hastie from the Hargit Library sent in to us ah for Mississippi State.
00:06:22
Speaker
In early November 1920, the University of Georgia Wildcats football team left Athens, bound for Charlottesville, in a game against the University of Virginia. When the Georgia team returned to Athens, they had fought the Orange and Blue to a 0-0 tie and had a new nickname, the Bulldogs.
00:06:37
Speaker
Before 1920, there was no particular nickname that had attached itself to Georgia's athletics. At times, they've been referred to in print as the Georgians, the Varsities, and the Athenians. Some fans in the early 20th century referred to them as the Bulldogs.
00:06:52
Speaker
Usually, they were simply known as the Red and Black. During the 1919 to 1920 season, Coach Herman Stegman's basketball team took on the nickname Wildcats. This was then adopted by the football and baseball teams, both of which were coached by Herman Stegman.
00:07:07
Speaker
Though to make things more confusing, the baseball team was also sometimes referred to in print as the Bulldogs during this time. In its edition of April 23, 1920, the Athens Weekly Banner newspaper delved into the question of why our teams were suddenly being called the Wildcats and confided no definitive definitive answer.
00:07:25
Speaker
They suggested that Atlanta Journal column columnist Morgan Blake had given the basketball team that nickname in reference to the fighting qualities of the lightweight five that represented the university in basketball the previous season.
00:07:37
Speaker
The basketball team had fought pluckily against the odds and were nicknamed the Wildcats as a result. The Weekly Banner noted that many red and black supporters seemed to favor discarding the basketball designation.
00:07:47
Speaker
The official explanation of why we took the Bulldog as a nickname is that the aforementioned Morgan Blake wrote a column in the Atlanta Journal on November 3, 1920, about why the Georgia teams should take on the Bulldogs as a nickname rather than the Wildcats.
00:08:02
Speaker
His reasoning was mostly that there were too many teams in the South using feline nicknames, and we needed something different. In his article, he mentioned the Golden Tornado of Georgia Tech as an interesting and distinctive nickname that Georgia should emulate.
00:08:16
Speaker
Then Jason adds here, on a personal note, I think Tech was absolutely insane for dropping the the Golden Tornado nickname for the Yellow Jackets. What is left out of the official explanation is that Blake concluded that if Georgia prefers Wildcats, the Wildcats it shall be.
00:08:31
Speaker
Blake held true to his disdain for the Wildcat name, and in his recap of the Virginia game, he simply referred to the Georgia team as the Red and Black. Of course, Blake had supposedly given Georgia the Wildcats nickname.
00:08:42
Speaker
The Red and Black, the newspaper, on November 5th, 1920, referred to the Georgia football team as the Bulldogs in recapping a big win against Auburn on October 30th. This was the day before the game in Charlottesville.
00:08:53
Speaker
never Never again after the trip to Virginia were the Georgia teams referred to as the Wildcats. So what to make of all of this? We must understand that during this time, the university had little to no interest in what we would call marketing and branding.
00:09:07
Speaker
The university administration in 1920 didn't hire a consulting firm to work up a marketing strategy for our athletics program. There was no advertising campaign to make sure that the fans and media were aware of a new mascot.
00:09:20
Speaker
The ideas for a mascot came organically from the teams, the fans, and most importantly, the media. Sometimes names just stuck, like how Alabama became known as the Crimson Tide and has an elephant as a mascot.
00:09:32
Speaker
It was the same for Georgia. There were several ideas floating around, and the fans tried to make the Wildcats nickname work, but ultimately the Bulldog nickname, which had been used by fans at times since the first years of the 20th century, took hold and the memory of the Wildcats nickname faded into obscurity.
00:09:49
Speaker
But isn't it strange to think of an alternate reality where Georgia fans were known for hissing at opposing fans not barking? Where Go Cats Scratch Them was our rallying cry? Where generations of Georgia fans would do their best impressions of Larry Munson talking about all of the cat people on St. Simons and Jekyll Island before launching into their best, man, is there going to be some property destroyed tonight?
00:10:10
Speaker
And where Ugga didn't exist. Wow. ah Jason, thank you as always. Great stuff. I don't know. That that is an alternate reality that I wish to not imagine. um But again, thank you so much. Just remind everyone, you can always stop by the Harvard Library on Fridays.
00:10:26
Speaker
ah Check out the latest exhibit from Jason. And I know we'll talk about it next week. He's got something special. There's a special ah event on Friday before the Texas game. I believe Will Leach is going to do an interview and they'll be hosted.
00:10:41
Speaker
in conjunction with the Hargert library. So give more information about that in next week. And thank you, Jason. And we'll get back to the
Coaching and Player Analysis
00:10:48
Speaker
episode. And man, what all the Mississippi state facts we had from Jason. Shout out Jason.
00:10:54
Speaker
and We, John, we're going to skip to the news and notes. um So for the news and notes, I was looking, I generally just look at the, the injury stuff. And i will say um the good side, I didn't see Kirby say like, use the word hopeful anywhere.
00:11:10
Speaker
ah The downside is Jordan hall situation. So really stuck to see him go down like in the hometown kind of deal last week against Florida. And he said he'll be out for some time is what he said that and said, like it's a tough injury, et cetera.
00:11:25
Speaker
So, That really stunk. But it sounds like we might get Chris Cole back and that DeMello Jones is better than originally thought. So good news on those. But um yeah, I don't know.
00:11:38
Speaker
Kind a bummer. Yeah, I mean, no no kiss of death ah for hope for the Hopeful to get them back. um Jordan Hall, man, that sucks for Jordan Hall. He's he's battled through a lot of injuries, and I think when Kirby says tough injury, I don't – I mean, obviously he means physically, but I think mentally as well. If you saw Jordan Hall, he was um very upset when that injury happened, um and so ah hopefully he – you know, recovers soon and works through that. Cause that's, that's a kid who's worked hard to get back.
00:12:08
Speaker
And then now had this happen. So you hate to see that continually happen to ah really good football player on Georgia's football team. Yeah, for sure. For sure. All right. We'll see the Mississippi state Bulldogs are led by head head coach, Jeff Levy.
00:12:24
Speaker
um John, what, what, what do we need to know about Jeff Levy for, for those who are not as familiar? Yeah, what do we need to know about Jeff Levy? Well, he wears a lot of camo. um He feels like, you know, the kind of guy that would be ah the ultimate um frat party kind of partner.
00:12:42
Speaker
when you just When you just look at him, you're like, okay, this is my wingman that I'm taking to the frat party. it doesn't And sometimes that works for SEC football coaches. I don't know that it works necessarily for Jeff Levy.
00:12:52
Speaker
um But, you know, it's kind of like He's got that vibe, but it's like, would you really want to take him with you? I don't know. ah But what i what what I will say about Jeff Levy is Jeff Levy comes from um the Bryles tree of ah of offense. um He is a guy who ah he spent a lot of time at Baylor.
00:13:14
Speaker
um on some of those offenses. I think i think when RG3 was there even, but he was at Baylor for about 10 years um as on the offensive side the ball, offensive assistant coach, um spent time ah with Josh Heupel at UCF um as Josh Heupel's offensive coordinator, I guess, in 2019. I don't know if he actually called any plays at UCF or if Josh Heupel called all those, but he spent time And then he spent, you know, I think his most notable claim to fame and why Mississippi State hired him is he spent ah four years with Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss. So he's a guy who, you know, he comes from that kind of veer and shoot um offensive school of thought.
00:13:55
Speaker
And i think with Jeff Lebby, he, you know. One of the things that he is really trying to figure out, which they got over the hump last week, ah but had a 16 game SEC losing streak um until last week. And he he's he's kind of the opposite of Kirby Smart in terms of how the game goes. Right.
00:14:16
Speaker
Georgia has been a notoriously bad first half team. But Kirby Smart has figured out how to, and staff have figured out how when it's winning time, Georgia has, for the most part, except for one game, figured it out.
00:14:30
Speaker
Yeah. Jeff Levy and Mississippi State are kind of opposite. When it's winning time, they have kind of collapsed. And so um I think that's the the interesting thing to know about Jeff Levy is that, ah you know, he's a guy, he he runs again, like the hypo offense. We've seen it happen with Georgia versus Tennessee where they come out, they start fast, um but he's had some of the, some of the same challenges, I believe with these kinds of offensive being able to finish late in the game.
00:14:56
Speaker
Okay. Yeah, man. they Especially when Brandon Walker goes down to the sideline. ah right Is Brandon Walker like the Arthur Blank? You remember when like Arthur Blank, like for the Falcons, he used to always go down to the sideline and people would be like, oh God, when the Falcons had a lead, he would go down the sideline and people were like, oh, we're about to lose.
00:15:15
Speaker
And it feels like maybe Brandon Walker is the Arthur Blank of Mississippi State football. football He just goes down and you're like, all right, go. And now this is where everything comes off the tracks. I don't know.
00:15:26
Speaker
He may be. i i love how like Josh Pate, like specifically, like he has like explicitly blamed the Texas loss on Brandon Walker. That's great. Yeah. but When you can blame something on Brandon Walker, you blame something on Brandon Walker. I feel like that's just a life at this point. 100%. are in agreement on that.
00:15:46
Speaker
ah Okay, let's let's kind of get into the game a bit. So just like kind of at the macro type stuff. So um we do have better net yards for play. That's what we always look at. Although we're still definitely not in that elite range. So we're at 0.81 net yards per play.
00:16:01
Speaker
Mississippi stayed at 0.42. um And then they've definitely got, or they're looking better thus far throughout their season on like turnover margins. So they're actually plus four in the turnover margin, whereas Georgia is still sitting there at minus two.
00:16:14
Speaker
So definitely something to watch about. Definitely a protect the football kind of situation going on here. Um, so things to kind of look for Georgia offense versus Mississippi state defense. So just kind of rattle off some of their defensive leaders. Uh, so the leading tackler is Jerron Manning. He's a senior safety, 64 total tackles and one pick.
00:16:34
Speaker
Uh, Brylin Lanier is a senior safety. he's got three picks on the season, also 43 total tackles. And then Will Whitson is a senior defensive lineman with two sacks in the season. Also, uh, eight total tackles.
00:16:48
Speaker
So and I think one thing that jumps out to me right there is your leading tackler is a safety. um i I do find that that interesting. That kind of tells me people are getting through that initial line and getting to the getting to that second level, I guess, a lot against this defense.
00:17:05
Speaker
um I think kind of numbers wise, I i do feel like our ah offense looks to, you know, have an advantage over their defense. This is where I'll be. I'll be honest. and it's like, I haven't watched a ton of Mississippi state. I've definitely seen some clips.
00:17:20
Speaker
I mean, you I've seen some highlight clips, et cetera. I did watch like the end of the, the Texas game in the overtime, but don't know. Is there anything that, you know, to watch out for as far as their defense goes?
00:17:32
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, you, so you said it. um I think, you, What's interesting is like if you talk about so shout out dog stats and the dog stat site on speed sports, ah because Josh has kind of broken down a lot of these things by actual pass versus run, etc.
00:17:51
Speaker
And a big thing that jumps out immediately with Mississippi state is, um, they actually have a decent, um, uh, defense, uh, success rate versus the past, but you look at their defensive, uh, rush success rate, and it's one of the worst in the sec.
00:18:06
Speaker
And so that kind of tells you, right. That you, you know, may be able to run the ball, um, on, uh, on Mississippi state. Um, and the other thing that, you know, when you look at and not surprising at all, um,
00:18:19
Speaker
you know, i I would say shouldn't be surprising at all is when you look at, you know, kind of versus power for opponents, um really their they're uh i think 105th in yards per carry on the offensive side of the ball right so their thing is they can defend the pass well they they you know uh throw it a lot sling it around a lot um they are clearly missing versus power for opponents uh an actual you know run game averaging 109 uh rush yards and 2.7 yards per carry and um and and having you know one of like i said one of the worst uh
00:18:56
Speaker
rush success rates in the SEC. So I think that for me is where this matchup really comes down to a cliche, cliche, cliche. We need like a bell when cliches are about to be, it's like, thing you know, like whatever ah word of the day, Pee Wee Herman's playhouse, we'll all scream.
00:19:14
Speaker
and But now now you' so ah my the mind is going, what do we need to add to the soundboard for this? Exactly. the sound is Yeah. The sound effects of cliche of the day, but this game is going to come down to what it seems like all these games come down to in November is line of scrimmage. Like can George, who can run the ball, who can stop the run?
00:19:34
Speaker
um I think running the ball is going to open up, open up, you know, the the passing game for Georgia as it has done. When it's been working well um all year long. and if you look at it on paper, again, you mentioned not watching a lot of Mississippi State highlights, but if you look at it on paper.
00:19:50
Speaker
um it It does seem like that's ah an advantage for Georgia, right? Where Georgia, you know, averaging 4.2 yards a carry versus power four teams, 175 yards a game rushing. um And so the ability to run the football on Mississippi State is going to be key, absolutely key.
00:20:06
Speaker
um And I also think this is the kind of game it feels like with Kirby Smart, where you get these kinds of games that feel little bit like a trap game um with Texas coming to town next week. And sometimes you do see,
00:20:19
Speaker
ah Georgia, you know, do that kind of we've we've seen it time and time again with Kentucky when we played Kentucky later in the year, you just see Georgia go and it's like, all right, cool, we're just gonna, you know, we might score 16 points, and we're just gonna run the ball like, you know, we like 55 times.
00:20:33
Speaker
um That could be that kind of game ah for Georgia versus Mississippi State. I don't necessarily think it will be just because I think Mississippi State has proven you know that they can score on relatively good defenses right like Texas defense is not necessarily elite but it's they've got a lot of dudes over there and Mississippi State put up a lot of points so it's going to be in the trenches and I am very curious to see um can Mississippi State establish any kind of run game and can they stop Georgia?
00:21:03
Speaker
Yeah. And I think that's where it's going to come down to, to it in this game. Yeah. It makes sense. A couple of the like skill players, et cetera, like notable folks from Mississippi state's offense. So quarterback ah Blake Chapin senior, he's putting up, you know A lot of stats. So 2,148 yards, 15 touchdowns, six picks.
00:21:23
Speaker
um And then that running game you're talking about. So great name. ah Fluff Bothwell, sophomore running back, is leading rusher. 490 yards and six touchdowns. ah Devon Booth is their second leading rusher, 475 and seven. So it looks like very like very much a 1A and 1B kind of situation with their running backs.
00:21:41
Speaker
um And then that air air attack, Brennan Thompson, senior receiver, 41 catches, 716 yards, six touchdowns. And then a familiar name, Anthony Evans III, junior wide receiver, transferred from Georgia, 52 catches, 653 four touchdowns.
00:21:57
Speaker
He he has some he is someone that has jumped out to me um when I have flipped over and watched a little bit of Mississippi State. um I think, you know, good for him. I think he kind of struggled getting on the field with us. He was a guy, JP was always asking, where's Anthony Evans? Where's Anthony Evans?
00:22:12
Speaker
You know other than punt returns, he never really consistently made it stayed on the field. um I still think it comes down to the whole, like, you have to block. At Georgia, I still stand by. I think that was the reason.
00:22:23
Speaker
um But that is something to watch out for. I think our secondary really needs to keep an eye on him because you know he's going to have a chip on his shoulder on Saturday. Yeah, I mean, no no block, no rock, right? I mean, that's the it's it's it's no block, no rock.
00:22:40
Speaker
And that is why... That's why Anthony Evans didn't didn't get on the field. um And you saw it, like you saw it toward the end of Anthony Evans' tenure at Georgia. um I mean, the staff, was trying they were trying to play him. They were trying to get him in position. And I think he had a couple of situations where he had a couple of drops and he struggled, you know, blocking. and And again, that's fine. um I don't want to – I'm certainly – let me be clear.
00:23:08
Speaker
I'm not belittling or talking down about Anthony Evans at all. I think Anthony Evans is a really, really good football player, and I am pumped that he is finding success. Just like I was pumped, you know, A.D. Mitchell went to Texas to be closer to his family and his daughter. It's like, yeah I want people to have success in their life.
00:23:26
Speaker
I do not want them to have success against my football team, but I do want them to have success in their life and, in you know, and and accomplishing their goals, right? Yeah, um but but Anthony Evans, you know, ah in this Mississippi State offense, you don't have to block that much, right? It's a lot of it's a lot of ah of of short, you know, kind of kind of screen game, a lot of one read that like I said, that veer and shoot kind of offense. And and so this is a good fit for him. It's a good fit for a guy who if you if you don't have to be a physical blocking wide receiver.
00:23:55
Speaker
um to get on the field this is a great it's a great fit and um and so I think Anthony Evans has not only found a good fit but to your point I think man shout out to Jeff Levy and shout out to the Mississippi State um staff for using Anthony Evans to his strength I mean this guy they are putting him in positions where he can win one-on-ones he's fast as hell where he can you know um run uh not complex you know kind of route trees he can just beat dudes and when you put a guy like that out there to just beat dudes he he's doing what those guys do he's beating dudes and um and it's going to be interesting to see how georgia plays anthony evans as a result right like i think he's definitely gonna have a chip on his shoulder um i think you also can't um
00:24:47
Speaker
We've seen it, you know, before it's like, can't be too high. You can't be too low. You can't, you know, one, one player is not going to win this football game ah for Mississippi state or for Georgia. And so I'm, I'm really interested to see um how Georgia, you know, plays Anthony Evans and also ah you know, how Mississippi state decides to ah decide to use them as well. But man, yeah.
00:25:09
Speaker
good on that kid. You know, his, his, his season PFF grade for run blocking is 44.2, which is terrible. um but yeah But, but, you know, but he's, he's catching the ball and he's running with it. So that's, that's exactly, it's exactly what you, you know, I think why he went to Mississippi State.
00:25:29
Speaker
Yeah, no, I think, i mean, there's so much to be said about the the fit, you know, players with teams. I mean, I i think Branch is a good example of that too, right? I mean, look at what he's doing at Georgia versus what he did at USC. I mean, huge difference.
00:25:41
Speaker
yeah Yeah, and the thing about Zach, about Zachariah Branch as well is that he, um, Kirby Smart talked about in the off season about how Zachary Branch really cared. You know, he's a smaller guy and he really cared about ah Kirby said something about, you know, he really, he cares about taking care of his body and bulking up. And, you know, he was like, he was basically saying, yeah, for a smaller ah guy comparatively to these other guys, he, he really wants to be a physical football player.
00:26:11
Speaker
And um I think you see that was Zach Branch, right? Like i think Zach Branch can be out there in some situational things where, yeah he could you know he can he can make a block or two for you um versus you know he's not just just that uh speedster guy but at the end of the day um that's it that's what you want right like mississippi state found a place for how to use anthony evans georgia brought zachary branch over and found a way to use them it's like yeah that's football um and i'm happy for uh for both those guys i hope this week that Anthony Evans has, you know, zero catches for zero yards on five targets and one of them is tipped for a pick six, right That would be like ideal situation. Like he just craters in this game.
00:26:54
Speaker
ah And then he turns around next week and, you know, has 12 catches for 150 yards and five touchdowns for all I care. But like I, yeah you know, but at the end of the day, um I'm excited to see, I'm excited to see that matchup for sure.
00:27:06
Speaker
Yeah, me too. i I will also add that i am I'm glad that they like got over the hump last week because they, as a team, have been so close to get notched in that first SEC win so many times. um And i know I'm glad it's not like hitting to a crescendo against us this weekend. Right. Yeah.
00:27:25
Speaker
they've already They've already done it. They've done it now. um There's not so much of that that buildup anymore. I guess that was all kind of like released, so to say. But like ah that does make me feel a little bit better. don't know if it should or shouldn't, but it does.
00:27:39
Speaker
Okay, quick on the special teams. um So Kyle Ferry is a junior. He's their place kicker. Nine of 12 on the season for field goals. So something to watch out for.
00:27:51
Speaker
Um, he is perfect on extra points. Um, and then I'm going to give them a pass. We usually say that if your punter isn't from Australia, you don't take special teams seriously. Uh, their punter is Ethan Pulliam. He's a sophomore.
00:28:03
Speaker
He is ah averaging almost 48 yards a punt though. Um, and he's from Starkville, so he's a hometown kid. So I'm going to give a pass. Uh, that's okay. You get a hometown kid that's like averaging 48 yards a punt.
00:28:14
Speaker
Um, I'll say you do take special teams seriously. So I'm going to pass it. Yeah. um i guess could this be could this be a situation where we see a big return down to zach zachariah branch i'm still waiting for those stars to align we'll see yeah yeah i mean i think i think you know special teams especially in the sec their teams are really there's two things teams are really good um you know you have a lot of good punters right um you have a lot of they go out and find guys who can really Who can really kick the ball. And number two, I do think just in general, I think coaches have um kind of de-emphasized returns to a certain extent, right? I think Kirby Smart, you know, in many situations would rather just have the fair catch um and, you know,
00:28:59
Speaker
you know, versus risking a turnover. But um you saw, you know, Texas A&M, that Concepcion kid return that punt for LSU. um That for me was like exactly what I feel like Zach Branch, you know, could do if given the opportunity.
00:29:16
Speaker
um And I actually, this summer was at a scrimmage for Georgia and saw Zach Branch like make some guys look silly on a punt return. And so he he definitely can do it. um I'm curious if it's more,
00:29:29
Speaker
you know, is he going to get an opportunity or is it like Kirby and staff just doing the, yep, let's just play safe and and catch, you know, catch the ball and and bring the offense out on field.
00:29:41
Speaker
Yeah. Nothing wrong with a fair catch, especially on a kick return. That's my, uh, I've gotten a Lily on that train too. Like whenever why we'll be watching a game and somebody, we we try to run a kickback. It's like, why? Why?
00:29:56
Speaker
yeah Yeah. I mean, i whatever goes yeah. but Yeah. I'm still, I mean, yeah, there's, there's a, there's this coach in FCS. Maybe I can't remember the guy. Maybe it's the guy who coaches at Presbyterian. I'm going to get that wrong, but there's a coach in FCS who basically like never punts.
00:30:13
Speaker
You know, he just like goes for it. Like he, ah he, he punts, but like rarely punts. Yeah. um Because the analytics and I feel like if you looked at kickoff returns, it would just be like, Hey, just fair cat. Like if you just look at the analytics, it's probably like stupid for anybody to ever try to return a kickoff.
00:30:30
Speaker
yeah um But you know, when they, when they take it to the house ah you know, it always feels like, you know it's kind of it's it's It's like when I go to the gas station and I see those ah those Christmas at Christmastime and I see the scratch-offs and I'm like, yep, nope, I don't need to buy those. i don't you know And then I buy them and I put use them as stocking stuffers and then somebody wins like $5 or a ticket or whatever.
00:30:54
Speaker
And you know you bought... 27 tickets and there's like you know one person won a dollar and everybody's like oh we're gonna go buy some scratch out you know it's like if somebody did it you know everybody's gonna do it yes situation 100 100 agree with you here's the example there is an example okay yes there's a there's an example but the law of averages probably not right it is possible but yes not the best idea uh cool
Listener Questions and Mike Leach Memories
00:31:20
Speaker
All right. You ready to, uh, I think we've got some, uh, some listener questions. If you're cool to hit those lists, I would love listener questions.
00:31:26
Speaker
All right. Lister questions, as always, are brought to you by Working Web Media. um So they helped us redo our MyGottaPodcast.com website over the summer last year. ah so you can go over there, check that out to see some of their work.
00:31:39
Speaker
um But they're they're available for you you. got a small business, you need to help with some help with your website or just your online presence. In general, head over to WorkingWebMedia.com slash dogs, and they will know that we sent you their way.
00:31:51
Speaker
All right. As always, we're going to kick it off with the building bonus TMTMTM from Brett Belding. You the, the listener question solicitation tweet had a Mike Leach gif in it. Uh, cause we still think of him as Mississippi state.
00:32:05
Speaker
Um, it was for when he was on Friday night lights. So he he opens with what is your favorite Mike Leach moment? Ooh, that's tough. It is. um Can I give you, can I give you, going to give you a couple.
00:32:18
Speaker
Okay. Because i'll be I'll give you, I'll do this. I'll give you one on field and one off the field. Okay. There we go. Let's do that. um The off the, off the field for me was at one of his press conferences when he was talking about, um,
00:32:33
Speaker
I mean, there's a number of them, but I'll just go with the one where he was talking about the hardest places to play and the loudest stadiums. And he started talking about the stadium in Arkansas um the in Little Rock where it was all concrete. And he's like, and he's just, it would you know, you would yell and he'd be he started doing the echo he's like he's just bouncing off everywhere and he's like it was so loud you know he was just going on for you know five minutes on how loud the stadium was because it's all made of concrete that one was really awesome and then the on field uh for me has to be because because mississippi state um i'll keep it mississippi state was when the offense was playing terrible and he walked over and started uh folding up all the chairs and laying them down
00:33:15
Speaker
i in the middle of the game so it instead the players didn't deserve to sit forgot about that the because of how bad the offense was playing and he just started like folding up chairs and laying them down on the ground uh so that the players couldn't have a chair to sit in when they came off the field i thought that was uh that one was exceptional That was good.
00:33:33
Speaker
um i I also can never come down to one. So my my two are the the lemon the shade tree drinking lemonade with your little – hold on. Sit behind ah ah a shade tree to fish sandwich and drink a lemonade with your fat little girlfriend. Like what?
00:33:52
Speaker
What was going on with that? I don't know. Uh, so that was another press conference moment. Mine mine are both from press conferences. yeah The other one is when he was at Washington state and he got asked which mascot would win in a fight.
00:34:04
Speaker
And the answer was unbelievable. And he like, like actually took it seriously and tried to figure it out. And it's go look that up on YouTube. It's that was so good. Uh, your fat little girlfriends was after a loss and he was basically talking about his team, caring more about, uh,
00:34:20
Speaker
you know, other things and not caring about football. So good. Yeah. Incredible moments. Okay. That's Brett's second question is if Georgia had an equivalent to the cowbell, what would it be?
00:34:31
Speaker
i thought I was trying to figure out something with a dog that I couldn't figure out exactly what it would be. I mean, I think i think it's barking. But I guess you're talking about like a, you know what I mean? I feel like we kind of have it.
00:34:45
Speaker
I feel like barking is kind of the cowbell. We don't want to admit it, but I do feel like, ah you know, other teams and fan bases view barking in a similar category as ringing a cowbell.
00:34:58
Speaker
um Yeah, I think that's the answer. Yeah, that's the answer for me. I think we have it. I think it's barking. And I think other teams will probably say yeah would say that too. I think if you wanted physical, though, I don't know. Yeah, I don't know physical.
00:35:12
Speaker
I think, yeah. Yeah, I was trying to think of like something with a dog collar or somehow making noise or something. Maybe like a squeak, like a squeak toy, like a dog. I don't know. A squeaky bone. A squeaky bone, but that makes a barking sound.
00:35:24
Speaker
but Hey, we don't need artificial noisemakers for our sound. I like that. We have our voices and we will bark at you. And I will. And I have absolutely apologized for nothing. Well, I keep saying that the problem with that all state commercial is that the boss wouldn't be mad if the guy barks at her. Like that's, you know, that's what you're supposed to do So anyways, absolutely.
00:35:43
Speaker
Um, all right, let's go to 51 to seven GATA. How many times would you like to see the toss sweep this week for a sale state? I think all the times. Um, yeah, I mean, I would love toss sweep to Chauncey bones over and over and over.
00:35:59
Speaker
um would I would love it. I think for me, I think, like I mentioned before, especially with Mississippi State's rush defense and kind of how they performed, um yeah, I think you ah as many times as you can, um i would ah would not like to see it.
00:36:17
Speaker
Yeah, maybe it's like the situations I would not like to see it. You know what mean? So it's like if it's if it's third and six to the short side of the field, maybe let's just not do that. But every other time we could do it.
00:36:30
Speaker
that sounds That sounds perfect. Yeah, to me, it's like as many times until it's not too many times. That kind of thing. keep him Keep them honest, keep them balanced. But otherwise, great play. I love i love that answer. As many times until it's not too many times. I'm going to tweet that to Mike Bobo right now. statistical It's an actual statistical category.
00:36:52
Speaker
I bet Craig could define how many times that is. And god I bet Craig could tell you how many times.
00:37:00
Speaker
All right. um Let's go to John Michael D. Let's see. He first, had he had a little stitious update. He said, ah had to listen to the world's largest outdoor cocktail party on radio the whole time.
00:37:10
Speaker
That was driving to attend a funeral a funeral visitation. So sorry for your loss. John Michael D changed to normal game day attire at halftime after leaving the funeral home. Hey, shout out. This stuff matters. a Little stitious.
00:37:22
Speaker
Um, okay. So he says the quarterback, uh, oh yeah. So he has two things first. I think this is just a learning moment. The quarterback can be called for enthusiastic clapping, trying to draw the defense off sides.
00:37:35
Speaker
Uh, yes, it is in the rule book. It is in the rule Yeah. Yeah. And it's, what's also in the rule book is that the defense, uh, cannot use clapping as a signal and right. You know Auburn fans, um,
00:37:51
Speaker
your safety was clapping in the whole like timeout debacle. So yeah that's also in the rule book. um But, but no, I don't, what i don't understand just real quick on a very like 10 second tangent, the rule book basically gives examples of interpretation and it talks about like throwing your shoulders forward and is basically describing an exaggerated clap.
00:38:16
Speaker
Yeah. Right. When 93,000 people or 90,000 people or 60,000, I guess, at Mississippi State are ringing cowbells and you and you need your team to hear you, like yeah how can you not exaggerate a clap? I don't i didn't think for me, my situation was not necessarily that – um I mean, I hated that they called it. It didn't really, I didn't really understand. I don't understand the rule, but my issue was mostly that when they called the false start, Drew Bobo had actually snapped the ball. So it wasn't like, you know, was like they called, they called an exaggerated clap after the ball was snapped, which for me was like, wait, why? You know, so I guess that was why my, issue with it was the timing. I get it if you do it and then you don't snap the ball, but like when you do it and you snap the ball, that feels like maybe you were just trying to,
00:39:08
Speaker
get your center to here ah hear clap. Yeah, it's like the mechanics of it, right? Yeah, for sure. The play continues if it's offside, if it's a false start, it should be blown dead kind of thing immediately. Well, it's like it's like eating at a restaurant, right? Like some people just eat and it's like, oh, they're a normal eater. Some people it's like they're an exaggerated eater. I don't know the difference. Like I, you know, I guess maybe I know it when I see it, but I do think it's up to an interpretation.
00:39:30
Speaker
yeah um And so that's the that's the issue for me is what's the difference between hard clapping and exaggerated clapping. Right, right. Hard hard to know. It's in the eye of the beholder, I suppose. um Two, what is your favorite rivalry turnaround under Kirby, and why is it his record against the slimy, ugly, nasty, rich, and
Georgia Football Insights and Trivia
00:39:51
Speaker
stinking Gator?
00:39:51
Speaker
And he tacked Luka Booker in that. i I think it's got to be that for me, because to be honest, I feel like most of the other rivalries, Richt had already kind of turned around.
00:40:03
Speaker
So like I would say Richt definitely turned around the Tech rivalry and the Tennessee rivalry. um I guess Auburn, I think that's still also true. So to me, this was the one that we still didn't have ah kind of under wraps that Kirby kind of finished off.
00:40:19
Speaker
So i think that's the right answer. Yeah, I think it has to be that, mostly because I think ah before Kirby came to Georgia, ah Florida had won. They won in 2014-2015. And so it's like they, you know, they had essentially they had a winning streak and then they won in the first year ah versus Kirby Smart as well.
00:40:37
Speaker
And so, yeah, before Kirby came, Florida had won, i had won five of the last eight. And so it feels like that was still a little bit one sided before he showed up.
00:40:49
Speaker
Okay. Okay. Yeah. I'm with you on that one. Um, okay. Let's go to Kevin. Uh, and for Kevin, it's time for jeopardy. Uh, John and Jim, which Hey, it still works.
00:41:02
Speaker
John and Jim, your category is infrequent bulldogs. And the answer is ah daily double.
00:41:10
Speaker
All right. ah Despite both teams being founding members, Georgia and Mississippi State have only played 24 times, making it one of the least frequently played games in the conference.
00:41:21
Speaker
However, the least played SEC game by founding members is between the Bizarro Bulldogs and this opponent. And I don't, I have a guess, but I'll let, do you want to take a guess first? Because I don't know the answer for sure. By founding members?
00:41:36
Speaker
Yeah. So you got. Yeah. So by another, my guess was going to be Vanderbilt. That was going my, my guess. Yeah. I don't, I, you know, I would, I would say that, but I feel, but I feel like Vandy.
00:41:50
Speaker
Hmm. Yeah. I feel like, yeah, I feel like Vandy. I feel like we've played them a lot though. No, it's between Mississippi State. so there Oh, oh ah between Mississippi State. yeah i in georgia I was thinking in Georgia. okay yeah i at least yeah The actual least played SEC game is vital between founding members is between Mississippi State and somebody else. okay okay then yeah Put my brain off of on the right track. I'm going to between founding members, I'm going to say Mississippi i say yeah i'm must say misssippi State and Vanderbilt.
00:42:21
Speaker
I think that has to be it. Okay. Okay. He sends the answers and I never, I don't look ahead of time. So give me a second while I pull myself together and open up Twitter. Okay. And okay.
00:42:33
Speaker
Okay. Hey, we're right. It is Vanderbilt. um Nice. So he said Vanderbilt, Mississippi state and Vanderbilt have only played 22 times. And since their first bout in 1904, where Vanderbilt defeated state 61 to nothing.
00:42:46
Speaker
um So that's a good poll. That's a good poll. I like that one. that's That's very cool. um You know, ah yeah, Mississippi State, they've only played Tennessee 36 times. I mean, it feels like, yeah, it feels like some of these founding members, they have not played them very often.
00:43:04
Speaker
I find that super interesting because like I get frustrated with like the current scheduling practices and things, but then you look like way back when in the early days of the SEC and like these teams weren't playing each other. it's It's kind of wild, honestly. No, they weren't. Yeah, even when they you know you and when there was 10 teams or whatever in the league and they had, it was still, they had five games a year.
00:43:23
Speaker
Right. They didn't play each other. Yeah. Yeah. That's so weird. All right. ah Appreciate it, Kevin. Love the love the double jeopardy. Okay. um Let's go to Addison, daughter of friend of the show, Tim Riley, who's still Addison. yeah I told your dad you could just email us or something. ah you know That's fine. but We'll take them that way. But so Tim tweeted at us and said, Addison says...
00:43:49
Speaker
Uh, our D it is, and she gave a poop emoji, uh, early in games. What needs to happen to spark a change for the rest of the season? but My joke keeps being, can we give the halftime speech at pregame?
00:44:00
Speaker
But I don't, I don't know what the actual answer is to that. um I yeah, the actual answer is that players need to play better football. Period.
00:44:12
Speaker
Yeah. Like it's just it's just ah yeah, maybe it's the halftime speech at the beginning of the game. But I when you look at what's happening on defense with Georgia, it's not teams have figured out where the mismatches are.
00:44:28
Speaker
and players have not adjusted to those mismatches. And i don't think um I don't think the coaching staff has adjusted to the level of talent on the team either. um so it's And I don't mean that to be derogatory, but it's just like I do think Glenn Schumann and Kirby Smart and that staff, they are used to having guys who are NFL caliber guys, and they're used to having guys who are making the NFL leap in the years that some of these guys are in, right? So they're used to having – uh, Dale and Everett is a good example where they're used to having a guy who that guy has made the NFL leap, um, this year is the year that he becomes, you know, Kamari Lasseter or Keely Ringo.
00:45:03
Speaker
Um, they're used to having, uh, you know, KJ Bolden, uh, make the Malachi Starks kind of leap. And so, and those guys just haven't. And so yeah that it does not saying that they won't, um, but, um, but they haven't yet. And I think we just keep rolling out, you know, the same,
00:45:19
Speaker
uh the same uh kind of approach and thinking like yep today's the day they're gonna make the plays and uh and and they haven't and so i think players just gotta play better and i know that's very like simplistic but i think at the end the day i there's it i believe with all of my heart firmly deep inside of my heart because i've seen it happen with kirby smart where tennessee 2021 is my best example where um joe milton and tennessee come right down the field and score I'm right down the field again, and kick a field goal. ah Kirby Smart moves Christopher Smith to star, takes Latavius Brinney out of the game puts Dan Jackson up high, and Tennessee didn't score again until like garbage time in the fourth quarter.
00:45:59
Speaker
yeah And a team that looked like we could not stop them, and we immediately shut it down. I don't think Kirby has those adjustments this year, or or he would be making them. i mean I firmly believe like he would be making them early if he had them.
00:46:12
Speaker
And so I think this year it's just players just got to play better, period. Yeah, I was, i do feel like, so one of those players, i feel like CJ Allen has turned a corner. um i feel like I saw that in the Florida He's flying around the field. So just need some more guys to do that.
00:46:27
Speaker
Yep. Agree. All right, let's head to Fletcher Proctor. What is more annoying, the missip the Mississippi State Cowbells or the 2010 World Cup South Africa Vuvuzela?
00:46:39
Speaker
I actually have kind of grown to like the Vuvuzela. Lily and I had talked in the review that a neighbor down the street was blowing his Vuvuzela in our direction, ah kind of heckling us during the game.
00:46:51
Speaker
um And there's a lot of soccer watching that goes around on around here, so we kind of we tend to blow the vu Vuvuzelas in the neighborhood bit. Oh, okay. Okay. um I'm going to say cowbells because I can't say the other word.
00:47:03
Speaker
the Amazing. Vuvuzela? Is that what said? Vuvuzela? Yeah. I'll just say cowbells. It's like this very long like horn. Yeah. Oh, I know what it is. it was it was I kept trying to fix my TV during the World Cup where in South Africa it was.
00:47:20
Speaker
Yes. I was like, what is going on? I know what it is. I just can't pronounce it. All right, and now we're going to get into the first like official hoops minute of the season because Fletcher says, also, Hoop Dogs start up this week.
Georgia's Future: Basketball and Football Strategies
00:47:31
Speaker
What are your thoughts on the non-conference schedule highlighted but highlighted by Xavier, Georgia Tech, Cincinnati, and Florida State? Fletcher says 12-0 start. um As for this game, against the Bizarro Dogs, Dogs by 18.
00:47:42
Speaker
ah So the Hoop Dogs are off. they know They're 1-0. They beat, i don't know if I'm going to pronounce this right, Bellarmine? I don't know if that's right or not, but that was Monday. Maybe so. The Knights the knights of Bellarmine.
00:47:54
Speaker
Yeah. um So I don't know. beat them I think they almost like doubled them up. Really cool to see a Wilkins wearing number 21 get a steal and a dunk in a game with his dad there cheering him on.
00:48:06
Speaker
That was pretty dang cool. um That's about all I've got right now. I'm right. I will say Fletcher. This is probably going to let you down a little bit. I am in the early season. i need to learn the roster phase of Georgia basketball. That is an annual tradition now for me.
00:48:19
Speaker
um lot of turnover. um You know, I know the guys that are back. Obviously we had blue cane and Samto and company, but I'm still in the learn the roster phase. Jim knows, Jim knows blue cane, Samto and Dominique Wilkinson that Jim will figure out his actual like first name.
00:48:39
Speaker
All right. That's right. That's right. Well, then we have a Wilkins and a Wilkinson, I think. and Yes. Jeremiah Wilkinson. It's very confusing. Yeah. No, this roster, this roster is very good. um I will tell you, Cannon Catchings is a name that ah Georgia fans need to know.
00:48:59
Speaker
um He's a guy who played at BYU and played for overtime in the overtime league that Santo Sarri also played for. And he ah versus Bellarmine, he didn't get, i think i think he played I think he had nine points or something, played 20 minutes. But that guy is an NFL player.
00:49:21
Speaker
That kid is an NBA basketball player. Cannon Catchings. Learn Cannon Catchings. Learn Jeremiah Wilkinson. Learn Jake Wilkins. Blue Cane, Santos, Ariel.
00:49:33
Speaker
um Dylan James. I mean, there's a number. But Cannon Catchings. That's my guy. I'll be fully up to speed by the time i make my way over there for the Georgia Tech game next Friday night.
00:49:45
Speaker
that's That's the goal. Yep. Okay, let's head to Bubby Dean. Bubby says... for he He's got a flurry. but We'll go through is these rapid fire. Can the dogs get a freaking sack this week?
00:49:57
Speaker
Man, I hope so. I know Dwight replied and was like, let's not talk about sacks on this season. um I don't know, though. They get the ball out pretty quick. So... Yeah, I, I don't.
00:50:08
Speaker
Yeah, I don't know, man. I don't know. Like, I think, I think Georgia, and think we played a lot of we played a lot of teams with quarterbacks that we should have racked up some s sacks on.
00:50:19
Speaker
Yeah, and we did not rack up s sacks on those teams. And so that for me makes me nervous to your point for a team that gets the ball out pretty quick. um And, and, and I think, you know, I will say with Mississippi state, I was trying to look it up cause I had it right here in front of me and then I clicked on it. Yeah. So Mississippi state there, they do allow a lot of sacks sacks.
00:50:42
Speaker
they're they've allowed 29 on the year which 129th out of 136 um but i don't know if those i don't know how i mean i guess they're they're clearly counted as sacks on the stat sheet but are they sacks like yeah is it you know what's the i i'm always curious like what's the actual like the definition that count yeah like is it like yeah definition right like is it a situation where uh you know is it ah is it a like a sack, like we like five, eight yard loss, or is it, you know,
00:51:13
Speaker
quarterback quarterback took off. to Yeah. Quarterback started to take off. Like you dropped him for, you know, yard loss. I think for Dwight, I don't think Dwight cares. I think Dwight's like count them all. ah so Every time the quarterback gets tackled is a sack.
00:51:25
Speaker
That's right. I feel like we got credited for one that was like on a trick play where like a running back was trying to throw and we got him in a game. I think that counted as a sack. So we'll take it. All right. um Let's see.
00:51:36
Speaker
These two we can do together. Who wins a turnover battle and who wins the penalty battle? I would say that is an important thing, especially with this early kickoff, you know, on the, on the road kind of thing that that's somewhere where I would, uh, I want to see us play a clean game in those, yeah in those categories.
00:51:52
Speaker
So I'm going to say the dogs. Yeah. I think George is goingnna win both of those. Um, I think, uh, I think George is, you know pretty, pretty disciplined team when it comes to turnovers. Um, and I think, I mean, pretty disciplined when it comes to penalties and I think turnovers, I mean, you know, maybe we'll force, maybe we'll force one.
00:52:08
Speaker
Maybe we'll, maybe we'll make turnovers happen this game. Um, and then is the size of one's cowbell inversely proportional to one's IQ?
00:52:18
Speaker
Well, I've been to a Mississippi State baseball game for the Georgia Mississippi State series in 2024 and was in the left field lounge. And there were a lot of guys out there that were making some incredible food. They tailgate right inside the baseball stadium.
00:52:32
Speaker
one The best college baseball experience I've ever had. um They were incredible on the meat smoking. They had some pretty large cowbells out there. Yeah.
00:52:44
Speaker
And I don't, I'll just leave it at that. I don't know. I don't, I, they were great on the grill. I don't know. i don't know if they were great anywhere else. So I, maybe that's, that could be true. You didn't give them like a wonder look test or anything. along those No, I didn't, I didn't test any IQs, ah but I can tell you,
00:53:02
Speaker
um It's a good thing that they know. It's good thing. They know how to grill. There we go. I'll just say that. They got, there yeah, they got that. Um, all right, let's go to Matt key. Um, he says Mississippi state game plan, something special for Anthony, evan Anthony Evans against his old team. So, yeah, I think I, we talked about that earlier. talk about yeah Um, who decided that a cowbell could double as a noisemaker at a football game.
00:53:26
Speaker
and Okay. go So here's little cow. we next and Yeah. I should have, I should have done the JP fun facts for this. So, uh, So in the early nineteen hundreds the legend goes that um a cow, a Jersey cow, wandered onto a field where Ole Miss and Mississippi State were playing each other. Mississippi State ended up winning the game. So the team the school kind of adopted you know the cow um as their good luck you know charm and kind of adopted the cowbell you know over time.
00:53:56
Speaker
So in like the 30s apparently, because they had like ah the cow, excuse me, as kind of their good look. ah good luck charm um they adopted the cowbell um as their kind of noisemaker um the sec what's been interesting is that the sec has banned and then legalized and then partially legalized and you know the cowbell has been has been a point of contention um but they banned ah artificial noisemakers in 1974 and then they actually this whole ringing of the cowbell
00:54:30
Speaker
in the stadium while the game is going on is relatively new. It was like 2008 or 2009 or 2010, somewhere around there, that the SEC decided to make a trial exception for ringing cowbells.
00:54:44
Speaker
As long as they did it you know before the – it's basically the shot clock. like You can do it up until there's a certain amount of time left on the play clock. And they strictly adhere to that.
00:54:55
Speaker
and Oh, 100%. Yeah, never. No, never. You will never hear cowbell ringing past the point. ah Yes. Yeah. All right. Last one from Matt. Zion Branch get more time now since the decent showing last week.
00:55:10
Speaker
uh yeah i mean i don't know man i somebody's again somebody's gonna make somebody's gonna make plays somebody's gonna make plays on the defense kirby what i did like with zion branch you know he had he had a couple of a bus he had a couple of situations and kirby kirby had him over there like coaching him up like he had there's a pass interference the pass interference that he had and kirby you could see him on the sidelines saying like you don't have to do all that like you don't have to you know yep ah Kirby has definitely taken a a vested interest in coaching, some one-on-one coaching with Zion Branch, which to me tells me that Kirby wants him to get more time because he sees something there, or either they just need him because of injuries, you know, DeMello Jones and that kind of stuff. but
00:55:47
Speaker
Yep, yep. And then if I'm not mistaken, um kageji Bolden's targeting was in the first half, I believe. Right. So he doesn't have to sit the first half of this game. I think he doesn't know. It was like his in the first half. Yeah.
00:55:59
Speaker
Okay. Cool. Cool. All right. Let's see. Let's go to our buddy Herman Wood. Herman's a member of the, of the Bulldog Brewery and Social Club. He Yeah. Um, he said Munson was right.
00:56:10
Speaker
You can't get there from here, but where can you get there from? And then he went ahead and answered it. He said, I hate to answer my own question, but you drive there for Birmingham. Go docs. So a Munson ism.
00:56:24
Speaker
All right. Then a friend of the show, Tim Riley, checking in with his own question. ah How much Florida hangover early kickoff Texas look ahead. Do we see in the first half Saturday, go dogs, the real ones.
00:56:37
Speaker
um ah So I think the benefit of this game is that it is a noon kickoff, which is 11 local time. um So I think that's actually a positive for Georgia because I don't,
00:56:49
Speaker
you know It's kind of like Mississippi State is going to be dealing with um an 11 a.m. kickoff local time. um And y'all you we we know for sure from our own experiences in Athens that that can be that can be challenging for teams to get up for. So um I don't expect...
00:57:08
Speaker
Georgia to have a fast start, but I also don't expect this to feel like a situation where a team is coming out and throwing haymakers like we felt, you know, the last few weeks, it feels like.
00:57:18
Speaker
Okay. Yeah. um Yeah. So I, I don't think there'll be a, um don't think it'll be as much as a hangover our Texas look ahead as, as it will be. I think Mississippi state will be more affected by the early kickoff than Georgia.
00:57:32
Speaker
Because I just think, george like when you're a road team, it's like you're not, you know, yeah it's like you're not hanging out on Friday night with, you know, at your whatever and then get giving up getting up Saturday morning for a game, right? You're yeah you're traveling, you're in the hotel, you're locked in, you're focused. I think that'll be to George's benefit.
00:57:49
Speaker
Yeah, I totally agree with that. All right, let's hit up Uggdog. Fireball.
00:58:00
Speaker
All right. The Hug Dog, Jason Huggins, checking in with back from the world's largest outdoor cocktail party and can confirm them dogs are hell. right. First one I think we've hit, cowbells or vuvuzelas.
00:58:11
Speaker
I believe we've gone vuvuzela on this podcast. um Okay. Two, if you were a defensive coordinator, how would you coach these young pups? John, I know you already said they need to play better. Yeah, I mean, well, i think I think the way that you coach him is exactly what Kirby was doing, right? Like when when Zion Branch made the pass interference, Kirby animated, you don't have to do all that.
00:58:30
Speaker
I think you just have to, it it literally is at this point, I think it is play by play. I think it is like, you have to give real time feedback. You can't be in a situation where a series is going and then they come off and then you're trying to make all these things. I think you have to be animated in the moment, pull them off if you have to rotate somebody else in.
00:58:50
Speaker
but do in the moment feedback play by play specifically. You don't have to do all that. This way you need, you know, whatever. yeah Cause I think it's what you have to do at this point is just get very, uh, very specific and very, you know, kind of like make their world a lot smaller because one thing, um, that is true about this Georgia defense is it's complex. It's complicated. There's a lot, you know, it's Georgia gets, uh, knocked on the recruiting trail a little bit for how complicated their defense is to learn and play.
00:59:18
Speaker
um And we they do a lot of blended coverages, and a lot of things. And I think at the end of the day, make their world smaller. Specifically, you don't have to do this specific thing that you just did yeah or do this specific thing that you just did again.
00:59:32
Speaker
yeah And I think maybe that's probably, like that's probably the but the the better part of it is like, I think what gets celebrated gets repeated. And so I think it's more of looking at the good stuff that they did and just say, yeah, do more of this, you know, and not, uh, not focusing maybe even on, on the negative stuff. that you Okay. I like that.
00:59:52
Speaker
yeah Um, then he says, is Gunner Stetson 2.0 or in a class by himself? Um, and I feel like it's the latter. Like, I feel like he's, I feel like they're pretty, feel like they're pretty different, honestly.
01:00:05
Speaker
Um, I think even in the men, I mean, I feel like physically, obviously different. I think Gunner, I mean, Stetson obviously had the wheels and would would take off. But I feel like Gunner is a little bit more physical with his running in Stetson.
01:00:18
Speaker
And then i will say, honestly, um i don't think Gunner has quite the gunslinger mentality that Stetson had. And I am not saying that as a bad thing. No, no. I haven't seen Gunnar argue with a coach on the sideline yet.
01:00:33
Speaker
So I think like there's a little bit of a difference immediately. i think the passion, fire, and energy is there with Gunnar for sure. I think it's a lot more maybe controlled um than than it was with Stetson Bennett at times.
01:00:46
Speaker
um ah But yeah, I agree with you. I think he's in a class by himself. And I also will say, I mean, yeah, it's hard for me, Hug Dog, is the damnedest, goodest of the damn good dogs. um But it's hard for me to say anybody's that's in 2.0 until I see him on that podium with a championship trophy. You know what I mean? There's like, yeah it's like, yeah. So he's, and he's by himself in terms of like, I think characteristics and I think like keep on winning. And then we can have a real conversation about like where he, where he fits in, but ah like what I'm seeing so far for sure.
01:01:21
Speaker
Yeah, agreed. Then he rounds us out with, I'd rather play road games at 11 a.m. m local time. And he's got a point that we didn't discuss. Less pre-gaming for the locals. How do you guys feel about that? So I think that's a well's a bonus point that we had. That is a bonus, except they're going to bring those damn cowbells.
01:01:37
Speaker
And so the, but you know, it's like, it's like, it's, how much pre-gaming do you need to just ring a freaking cowbell, you know, ad nauseum? And that's for me, it's like, I totally agree. They have less time to prepare.
01:01:50
Speaker
Team has less time to prepare. idle I'd rather play low road games at 11 a.m. local time. the the I think the X factor here is those stupid noisemakers.
01:02:01
Speaker
And it's like, it's like everything else is in your favor. But then, yeah, when they load 60,000 of those cowbells in there, Yeah. You know, it's like, yeah, how much, yeah.
01:02:12
Speaker
How much brown water do you need to stand up there and just ring a bell? I don't think very much. Um, so we'll see how it goes. Fair enough. Fair enough. Uh, all right. Thanks Jason. Uh, looking forward to seeing you, uh, next weekend.
Game Predictions and SEC Discussions
01:02:26
Speaker
All right. We got one more, I guess we'll say round of, of listening questions.
01:02:36
Speaker
Oh, my God. God. Trying to put glasses on. All right.
01:02:45
Speaker
It is time for Coach Dribbles over unders. I realize, John, i have not been sharing my same screen with you that I usually do with JP. I'm going to change. I can change my on my camera so you can see this.
01:03:01
Speaker
So we're going to hit the coach. I was coaches over unders. Um, I didn't clear this with JP. So we we were going to, uh, I'll text him before he listens to this to say, are, are we accepting John, the John for John swap here?
01:03:15
Speaker
um or does he wish to send in his own, but we're going to, you're going to pick here and then we'll, we'll see how we handle that. I think he just has to accept yours. And I think he has to accept it. Listen, if you don't show up to the party, you can't complain about what was served.
01:03:27
Speaker
You know it's like, that's right. That's right. Um, okay. So I am in the lead, so I'll choose. So I'm going to, I'm going to kick us off. So first off, um, on the offensive side of the ball, over under 40 rushing yards for Gunner.
01:03:41
Speaker
Um, I don't think he's going to have to use his legs as much in this game. So I'm going to say under, that's my guess. Yeah. I'm going to say, uh, going to say under as well. Okay. Uh, then over to you, Zach branch over under 65 receiving yards over.
01:03:55
Speaker
Yeah, I agree. Slam that over. ah And then players with a reception over under six and a half. um I still feel like we'd like to spread the ball in rounds. I'm going to say over.
01:04:07
Speaker
Yeah, this this one's tough. But yeah, I do feel like I'm going to have to go with over too. and i feel I feel like I was trying to name names in my head of people who would catch the ball.
01:04:17
Speaker
Right. All right. Let's go to over on the defensive side of the ball. I think this one's to you, John. So over under 285 passing yards for one Blake Chapin.
01:04:29
Speaker
Yeah, I'm going over. Yeah. Yeah. All right. I'm going to be hopeful. I'm going to say under. Okay. And then let's see. Over under two and a half tackles for a loss. ah I'm going to go over based on our conversation earlier.
01:04:44
Speaker
I want to go over as well. And then let's see over under 0.5 interceptions. What do you think, John? um yeah Give me over. I think we have a pick. I think so too. And I feel like and we should have had one. We had two chances last week and and didn't hang on to the ball.
01:05:00
Speaker
um I'm going to go over. All right. Special teams over under seven and a half total points for Peyton Woodring. I'm going to go over.
01:05:12
Speaker
um Seven and a half. So that's couple of field goals. I'm going to go under. I don't think can feel goals after, go after I heard you saying things out loud, I i didn't like my answer anymore. It's like, it's gotta be, you know, you to get the seven and a half, you basically have to have, i think you know, either at least get that two field goals.
01:05:33
Speaker
Yeah. And, uh, right, I'm not going to walk it back because I said what I said, but I my my intention there. Okay, and then the last one for Miscellaneous.
01:05:45
Speaker
Over, under, times, ah Bully and Ugga are shown on TV together at over, under, one and a half times. Going under. I'm going under. Yeah, I actually agree with that.
01:05:56
Speaker
I feel like we'll get the one in the pregame montage kind of thing, and then that's it. And then they'll show them separately. Yeah, yeah, agreed. Okay. All right. Shout out coach trail. Thanks for sending those in as always. And, uh, JP, we're going to see how John did for you.
01:06:10
Speaker
Uh, come on up here. All right. Let's, let's do our, um, our game predictions. So looking through the things we look at, uh, the dogs last I checked, which was the stuff was, I pulled all this last night. so I got Georgia as an eight point favorite from odd shark over under 57 and a half.
01:06:27
Speaker
So that gives you an implied score, basically like 33 to 25, Georgia. Um, their odd shock predicted, predicted score has Georgia 36 to 16.8, uh, Parker Fleming, uh, CFB graphs has Georgia,
01:06:41
Speaker
29.52 to 19.28. And then are what we do at my got a podcast, our scoring impact has Georgia 37.92 to Mississippi state 26.05.
01:06:53
Speaker
Um, so I feel like I'm kind of in, in line with that. Um, I looked through the recent history. Um, we've been tending to score 31 points against these guys. So I'm going to stick with that.
01:07:05
Speaker
I got dogs winning this one, 31 to 17. thirty one to seventeen 31 to 17. Hmm. That score sounds real good. Score sounds real good.
01:07:16
Speaker
um I think I'm trying to do a little bit of math in my head here, and I think... Yeah, Mississippi State scored lot. You know, i I don't think, I think Georgia is, I'll go back to what I said earlier.
01:07:28
Speaker
I think Georgia is going to be in a situation where this is going to be a game where I feel like Georgia is going to control the game for the most part, but maybe not score ton of points, but just control it kind of like one of those Kentucky games.
01:07:43
Speaker
yeah um I'm going to go with Georgia 27 and Mississippi State 17. I think it's going to be similar to you. I think Mississippi State put up 17, but I think Georgia, I think we're going to be in a situation where it's going um <unk> going to feel like the game was was closer than it actually was yeah from an actual stat standpoint. I think we're just goingnna run it a lot.
01:08:10
Speaker
Yep. No disagreement here. I think that sounds about right. All right. Let's see. We got a few games from around SEC. The coaches has sent us. You want to do a quick run the SEC pick them?
01:08:23
Speaker
All right. um If I can find my spot here. Okay. So for that, we've got Auburn ah with their interim coach, DJ Durkin. Is that right?
01:08:34
Speaker
Yeah. DJ Durkin. Man. ah They're heading to number 15 Vanderbilt. ah Vandy is favored by six and a half. That's a 4 p.m. kick on the SEC network.
01:08:46
Speaker
um ah got I got to go with Vandy on this one. um You know what? I'm going to go with Auburn. I feel like this the kind of game that DJ Durkin and Auburn defense has been really, really good. um I think Auburn you know is still, maybe I haven't looked at their game log, but in a minute, but I think there may still be one of the only teams in the SEC, in the, in the country, not just the SEC may still be one of the only teams in the country to have yet to give up more than 24 points in a game.
01:09:18
Speaker
Okay. Their defense has been, has been really good. And um I think, yep, yep, yep. They're still, they're one of the only, they're still one of, I guess there's three teams in the country now that have not given up more than 24 points in a game.
01:09:34
Speaker
And Auburn is one of them. So think their defense is really good. And I think DJ Durkin said in his press conference for the interim thing, he said, we're going to just basically like play wide open.
01:09:46
Speaker
um And, you know, it's kind of like nothing to lose. And so I'm to go with Auburn. Okay. Okay. I like it. um We got the the Gators, three and a half point favorites on the road at Kentucky.
01:09:58
Speaker
ah Kentucky coming off that Auburn win last week, 7.30 p.m. on SEC Network. Oh, man. i'm I don't know what to think about this one. um I don't think Kentucky's very good.
01:10:11
Speaker
Florida looked decent against us. I guess I'll take the Gators. Yeah. um i go I'm going to go with Florida, too. I think Florida, I think their their defense is better.
01:10:22
Speaker
Their defense matches Kentucky like physicality, and I think DJ Lackway is a really, really good quarterback. Okay. ah number three team in the country in all the polls. A&M, six and a point favorite at Missouri, number 19 Missouri. That's your 330 ABC game.
01:10:38
Speaker
um I think A&M handles them. I think Texas A&M is about to run Missouri out of the building. Yeah. think Texas A&M is really good. yeah just um And then the last one, night game, 730 on ABC, LSU at number four, Alabama.
01:10:52
Speaker
Bama favored by nine nine and a half. I feel like, again, I've loaded up Bama, I think. I want it. Yeah, I want so bad to pick LSU in the interim coach thing, but i just LSU, I think, is in much more disarray.
01:11:05
Speaker
Like the LSU, there you don't have a side of the ball to look at and say, that side the ball has been dominant. It's the other side, like Auburn, where defense has been dominant, the offense has just sucked. so they could figure out the offense. They could probably win a game.
01:11:18
Speaker
this one, I think a Bama is going going to blow the doors off. Yeah.
Closing Remarks and Streaming Tips
01:11:22
Speaker
Yeah. I'm with you. All right. Well, Hey, John, thanks for, uh, accepting my, my text message offer to come in and be the, be the guest, John, for the episode, much appreciated, uh, coming in and kind pinch hitting for, for JP.
01:11:37
Speaker
Always a good time. Anytime, anytime. Um, I am excited about it. I think, uh, You know, shout out to my buddy, Lounge Dog, biggest Mississippi State fan I know. um i hope that Lounge Dog has some really, really good food on the smoker this weekend, because I think that's probably going to be the only good thing about his weekend.
01:12:00
Speaker
Especially because he's a george he's a Mississippi State fan and a Dallas Cowboys fan. alice cowboys fan So, tough tough life for Lounge. I think them dogs are about to about to open up one. ah Finally, go control a game, hopefully from start to finish, even if the score isn't a complete blowout.
01:12:20
Speaker
Heck yeah. I like, I like that train of thought. Um, yeah I'll be, uh, I think sitting on the porch watching it, just have to figure out how I'm going to get yeah ESPN by this weekend. If the whole YouTube TV thing isn't, isn't figured out.
01:12:32
Speaker
So hopefully we get that squared away. Yeah, it's terrible. I know some people have checked out the, have tried like the Sling Day Pass. i don't know if you've heard of this. have. I actually used to have Sling TV. So yeah, I did hear about that.
01:12:44
Speaker
Yeah, that's the that's the officially recommended of M-Dub's ah brother, um brother M-Dub's Michael, my brother. He says, hey, $5.99 Day Pass will give you sports apparently.
01:13:00
Speaker
Well, brothers do, brothers know best. So they do. i do know this. Brothers do know best. That's one other place you can go check out John. All right, man.
01:13:12
Speaker
Much appreciated. Thanks again for coming on and go dogs. Go dogs.