There's a Storm Bleauxing In...

A storm, perhaps, but I wouldn't go so far as to say it's reached hurricane strength winds as of yet. As all of you know, this week we will be welcoming the Bayou Bastard Children of Louisiana State to our humble stadium for one one the three ranked vs. ranked match-ups of the weekend. While the visitors come in sporting a nubmer four national ranking, nearly all of the prognosticators will agree they might not be so deserving, which is why I would assume our fellas in the metallic trousers are somehow favored by three as of this posting.

So what do we need to know about the Incestual Inbreeders from the lowlands? Despite their gaughty nubmer four ranking, the Bengals struggled mightily last weekend with the Westside Bulldogs, generally perceived by most experts (myself not included), as the 11th worst team in the SEC, just ahead of Vandy. The LSU offense relies heavily on their ability to run the ball to open up the passing game for their dual-threat sophomore QB Jordan Jefferson. However, last week they managed a measly 30 yards on the ground against a less than stellar MSU defense. I have no doubts that they should easily hit the 150 yard mark on the ground this week. Jefferson has long been touted the next Charlie Ward and is beginning to come into his own. Last week he threw for a career high 233 yards and two TD's against MSU. Though there is plenty of potential on the offensive side of the ball, LSU has yet to top 30 points and continues to struggle moving the ball with any consistency.

Unequivocally, the biggest issue facing our boys this weekend will be the defense of the Swamp Donkeys. For the first time this year, AJ green will meet his match in a defensive back. Patrick Peterson, 6'1" 211 lbs., will be given the duty of covering AJ. Contrariwise, our undersized backs will again be given the task of trying to cover much larger receivers in Brandon LaFell (6'3") and Terrance Tolliver (6'5").

While the LSU defense has had issues with dual-threat QB's, they are built to defend the traditional pocket passer. Their front seven is as good as any in the country when it comes to such. With a fairly strong performance last week as a building block, I look for our guys to turn in another good showing against a legit SEC opponent. I think we find a way to pressure Jefferson into making some poor decisions, and we should be able to stop their running game as we have done the majority of the season. It's going to be a close one, but, being the blind homer I am, I think we get it done with the home crowd backing. We won't cover, but don't be surprised if BW wins us two in a row in the waining seconds of the game.

Prediction: UGA 27 LSU 24



Recipe of the Week

Crawfish Dip

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp lime juice
1/2 tsp creole seasoning
1 tbs mayonnaise
1-1/2 tsp ketchup
Hot pepper sauce to own taste (2 tsp or more)
1/4 tsp onion powder, or substitute 1/4 cup fresh diced onion
1/2 cup boiled crayfish pieces

1. Soften Philadelphia cream cheese.
2. Add lemon juice, mayonnaise, ketchup, hot sauce and onion.
3. Mix together well, add crayfish pieces and mix again.
4. Serve as dip with chips or spread on crackers.

Serves six, you will probably want to triple for your tailgate.

Honor Roll

Two bulldogs were honored this week after their performances against ASU Saturday. One should come as no surprise, the other, maybe not as clear to some. Nevertheless, here is the entire list of SEC honorees.

OFFENSE

A.J. Green, WR, Georgia: Caught a game-high eight passes for 153 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown, in the Bulldogs' 20-17 win over Arizona State. The eight catches and 153 yards in receptions are both single-game bests in the SEC this season. Green also blocked a field goal attempt in the fourth quarter.

DEFENSE

Eric Norwood, OLB, South Carolina: Collected a game-high 10 tackles, including two sacks, in South Carolina's 16-10 win over Ole Miss. Norwood also partially blocked a punt and added two quarterback pressures. He leads the league with six sacks and has a school-record 28 for his career, which is tied for eighth all-time in the SEC.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Chad Jones, FS, LSU: Returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown to open the fourth quarter in LSU's 30-26 win over Mississippi State. Jones also had seven tackles and tipped away a third-down pass at the goal line to save a touchdown in the final minute.

OFFENSIVE LINEMAN

Marcus Gilbert, OT, Florida: Graded out a "Champion" for the fourth consecutive week in Florida's 41-7 win over Kentucky. The Gators rushed for 362 yards, the most they've rolled up against an SEC team since Vanderbilt in 1989.

DEFENSIVE LINEMAN

Justin Houston, DE, Georgia: Filling in for the injured Rod Battle, Houston finished with four tackles and recorded the Bulldogs' only sack in the 20-17 win over Arizona State, which managed just 204 yards of total offense.

FRESHMAN

Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama: Scored the Crimson Tide's first touchdown of the game on a tackle-breaking 52-yard run in the 35-7 win over Arkansas. Richardson is now second on the team in rushing with 280 yards on 38 carries.

Wet, Wild, and...Willie?

I'm not going to harp on too many of the bad things this week, because, quite frankly, I'm starting to sound like that damned 'ole broken record that keeps playing on every other blog/vent/newspaper. Instead of telling you how giddy I am at work and how awful we played, I'll just stick to the good stuff kids go for and keep the negativity (and the fire Willie comments) to a minimum. Just to forewarn you, my tone may drastically change following the results of next weeks game.

In my last post I made what was believed to be quite a bold prediction, forecasting that our defense would have a respectable showing against a formidable PAC-01 opponent, and hold them somewhere close to 14 points. However, little did I know that predicting our defense to allow a beggarly two touchdowns would not be good enough. Amazingly, and obviously through some kind act of a much higher power, our defense held an opponent to 10 points (in case you were too drunk, or couldn't see through the torrential squalls, I will remind you that 7 points came via an interception return). The same beleaguered group, plus two new faces, who had just allowed 78 points in the previous 8 quarters and was in danger of resurrecting Erk from his permanent resting place to come down and donkey punch DC WM in the face actually had a good showing. And none too soon.

The ASU offense managed a total of 204 yards on the night, about 80 less than in the first half of the previous weeks' game. There were no defenders getting burned deep, no clueless corners getting arrested for loitering, and no stupid penalties that led to free first downs. Instead, we had defenders trying to jump routes, deflecting passes, and overall making plays. Our line finally came to the party and decided to put pressure on the opposing QB for the majority of the game for the first time this year. Overall it was a very solid defensive showing, one that Dawg fans have been waiting to see for the better part of a year now.

Offensively, we reverted back to the ways of week one, looking largely ineffective with the exception of all things AJ, and we continued to turn it over too many times. We again struggled to run the ball, and went to the fullback well about five too many times in short yardage situations. What I would like to know is if our QB has the authority to audible at the line as he sees fit, does that apply on third and one with ten defenders in the box? Our short yardage play calling definitely left a good bit to be desired, stalling multiple drives, but I'm not putting that on the players. On the bright side, we cut our penalties in half, though we still committed some bone-headed procedural mess that shouldn't have happened, especially on back to back plays.

So where does that leave us heading into next week's enormous showdown with the Bayou Bleaux'ers? As far as I can tell, we're in the exact same situation we were in heading into week one. Nobody knows how good we are, yet, nobody knows how bad we are either. We've had three straight weeks that didn't teach us anything except how inconsistent we can be. We know we have weapons, we just don't know how they need to be utilized; we know we can play good defense, we just don't know which week that will happen; we know we can play good offense, we just don't know which week that will happen; we know we turn the ball over too much, and thankfully, we know exactly which weeks that will happen. Check back in a few days for any updates that trickle my way and for the weekly recipe and prediction.

The Devils Came Down to Georgia

Ladies and gentleman, I'm going to finish my week with a bold prediction for the ages, and I haven't even started drinking yet. However, before I do that, I'm going to tell you what you need to know about the Sunflowers of AZ State.

As far as the all-time series is concerned, the Metallic Trousers are the epitome of dominance in this one, winning every meeting between the two schools and leading the series 1-0. As you may recall, last year our boys traveled out west for an early season showdown and handed the 'Flowers a 27-10 smackdown, and Knowshon handed us his best Superman impersonation.

This season, State is coming into the game flaunting a stout 2-0 record, having defeated two powerhouses hailing from Louisana-Monroe and Idaho State. In these two games the AZ offense has amassed a total of 98 points while the defense has surrendered a mere 17. Regardless of whom they have played and beaten, everyone out west thinks they can make a statement by jumping on an SEC opponent, so they will certainly be ready to play.

Offensively, the 'Flowers had to replace Rudy Carpenter, a three year starter at QB, with Danny Sullivan, who has managed to not thrown an interception yet this season. Actually, ASU leads the FBS in turnover margin thus far, while our boys rank 116th.

Defensively, State returns two big-time playmakers. DE Dexter Davis will be looking to put Cox on his back from his position on the line, while 26 year old senior LB Mike Nixon will be searching for the ball once it is airborn. Nixon tied for the PAC-01 (that's not a typo) lead with 5 interceptions last year. All in all, ASU appears to be fairly solid, yet largely untested. Just don't be expecting many 55 yard bombs this week.

Perhaps the biggest storyline of the game for ASU is the announcement that Thomas Weber will again be unavailable for the second week in a row. Weber, the 2007 Lou Groza Award winner as the nation’s top placekicker, has made 48 of 56 career field-goal attempts but he was unavailable last week because of a hip flexor injury.

As for our crew this week, everything seems to be going pretty well thus far. It turns out that Cuff only has a sprained MCL, not a tear, and as far as I know he will be available Saturday. Also, we have managed to make it through Wednesday without losing anyone during practice, knock on wood.

Willie Martinez did announce after practice yesterday that he will be giving some of our highly touted freshmen a look on the defensive side of the ball, so keep your eyes peeled for the new faces. Two names specifically mentioned were Bacarri Rambo and Sanders Commings (who is listed as a safety but will likely see some action as a corner this weekend).

When it comes to the prediction for this week, I've been tossing around a lot in this measly little head of mine, and have come to quite a scary conclusion. I think we have a good defensive showing on Saturday. I honestly feel that the players on the defensive side of the ball were genuinely ashamed of the way they performed last week, and will try to redeem themselves with a stellar showing against a somewhat formidable opponent this time around. Aside from that, I'm pretty sure DC WM understands the true meaning of "hot seat" right now, and with another poor showing he isn't long for the UGA world.

Prediction: UGA 34 ASU 14



Tailgating Recipe of the Week

El Grande Diablo Dip

2 cans of refried beans
1 pound of cooked ground beef
1 cup of chopped onion
1 large can of chopped green chilies
1 can Herdez sauce
3 cups of grated cheese, divided
1 cup of sliced jalapenos
sour cream
chopped green onions for garnish


1. Brown beef and onions in a large saucepan over medium heat. Drain and remove from heat.
2.Add all of the other ingredients except 1 cup of the cheese, the jalapenos, green onions and sour cream. Mix well.
3.Pour mixture into a 9x13 inch casserole dish.
4.Top with remaining cheese and jalapenos.
5.Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes until bubbly.
6.Remove from the oven and cool slightly.
7.Top with dollops of sour cream and green onions. Serve with torilla chips

SEC TV Schedule for October 3rd

The SEC television schedule has been released for October 3rd, and surprisingly enough, we don't have another night game. The showdown against LSU will be the CBS game of the week and will be played at 3:30. The entire line-up is as follows:


* Alabama at Kentucky, 12:21 p.m. ET, SEC Network/ESPN Regional

* LSU at Georgia, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS

* South Carolina State at South Carolina, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN Classic

* Ole Miss at Vanderbilt, 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU

* Arkansas vs. Texas A&M, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

* Georgia Tech at Mississippi State, 7:30 p.m. ET, Comcast Sports Southeast

* Auburn at Tennessee, 7:45 p.m., ESPN

Fool Me Five Years, Shame on Who?

Once again I returned to work this week with a little hitch in my giddy-up after our fellas had an impressive offensive showing during their roll in the mud with Petrino's Pigs. For two weeks in a row now I've successfully forecast the games (not the scores), right down to the suspense at the end, and I'm beginning to think I might not be so bad at this stuff.

So, what did we learn this week? We learned that Richard Samuel might be the speediest back we've had since Robert Edwards and that he's a legitimate 25 touch per game guy. We also learned that he still can't hold on to the ball. We found out that Caleb might finally provide part two of our one-two punch on the ground, as he looked very impressive during his limited game time Saturday and showed the decisiveness that made him successful in high school. We learned Big Red is a bona fide QB and leader. For his efforts he was just awarded the Walter Camp Offensive Player of the Week honors after his 375 yard, 5 touchdown performance. We learned (or were at least reminded) that we could possibly have the best receiving corps in the nation, led by the best individual undergraduate receiver in college football, and that Orson Charles will continue to be a DC's nightmare.

We learned that Mallett might possibly be the best QB in the SEC when the Christ Child leaves for seminary (or when he's drafted in the 6th round). We learned that we still turn the ball over too many times. We were somewhat reminded of why MB was handed over the offensive reigns, though it doesn't take much to look impressive against that defensive unit. We learned the Porkers have a worse defense than we do, after being reminded of just how bad ours is for the better part of three hours. We learned DC WM still can't make in game adjustments, nor can he make halftime adjustments anymore. Sadly, we learned that until drastic changes are made, 40 points will no longer be enough to win games.

All in all, it was a thoroughly exciting game to watch, but it just went to further prove we HAVE to make some changes. I will never complain about a victory, especially one against a conference foe, but what has taken place over the last two weeks is bordering on insanity. As impressive as our offense has been (though we can't expect 40 points each week), if we only had a defense that was partially inept we could honestly be a legit top 10 team. At 10pm on Saturday night, poor Erk, God rest his soul, literally rolled over in his grave thrice and shat himself. I'm sure he is wondering what has happened to our "Junkyard Dawg" defensive days as the rest of us are. There is no pride, no glory, and certainly no sense of "we are flat out better than you" that our defensive units used to carry. What we have seen is a deplorable insult to our team and our school. If I can see it, everyone else, including our oblivious DC, should be able to see it as well. There should be no more sympathy, no more excuses, and no more Willie.

Pig Jig Pork Roast 2009

Well folks, it's about that time for some good ol' game time discussion. Having recently become a complete blogaholic, I have been scanning the pork posts for the past few days, and quite frankly, it's encouraging material. I've never encounter a fan base outside of Louisiana-Lafayette that thinks less of their team than do the porkers. Even though the early line has the Track Star and his relay team as a 1-2 point favorite coming in, the Arkansas faithful seem genuinely worried about our mediocrity (I saw one post go so far as to say our defense "scares me with their speed").

Now I know we showed vast improvements last week on the offensive side of the ball, but, our lack of D still allowed 37 points to a team who scored all of one touchdown the week before. Some people say we did well, allowing mostly field goals when it counted, but come on folks, 37 points is 37 points.

This week we meet up with an offense that is still largely unproven after an opener in which they racked up nearly 600 yards of offense against a Single A high school defense belonging to Missouri State. Ryan Mallett could be the next big thing in SEC quarterbacking after the Christ Child leaves Florida, but, how much can you really gauge success against an opponent as inferior as the one they faced in the opener? Petrino has long been known for his offensive mastery, but until they prove themselves against an SEC defense, regardless of how poor they might be, I'm not sold. The porkers have a history of solid ground attacks though this year they seem to be leaning more towards the air assault. I have no doubts they will score their points and create some huge gains, I just don't think they can do what needs to be done to beat a road worthy SEC team.

Defensively, our opponent returns 9 starters from the lackluster squad of last year, but they as well are still largely unproven. By all written accounts their D honestly seems worried about our offensive attack. I look for big things from our TE, and I see this as a coming out party for Orson Charles. AJ will get his touches and hopefully will provide us with a big play or two, but keep an eye out for the new faces.

Everyone knows the 'Hogs have had this game circled on their calenders since the end of last season and hope to make a statement with a victory come Saturday. I for one don't see them being able to hang with us for four quarters. It would come as no shock to me to see us get down early, just to have Big Red lead us to a second half comeback that concretes him as our staring QB. UA will be fired up from the start, and I can only hope our squad will be able to match their intensity. We get down early, pull it out in the end in another nail biting finish.

Prediction: UGA 34 Hogs 27



Tailgating Recipe of the Week

Spicy Pork Sausage Dip

2 packages Jimmy Dean hot sausage
1 can Rotel Habanero Tomatoes
2 8oz packages cream cheese
1 jar hot salsa
Tortilla chips for dipping

1. Brown sausage in skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through, drain excess grease.
2. Combine tomatoes and cream cheese with sausage and cook for additional 10 minutes, or until mixture becomes creamy.
3. Move dip to a crock pot or other heated vessel to keep warm.
4. Enjoy!