Nevada Dawg

I don't know anything about Smith and have no direct link to insiders in the know about the Ducks roster. I know more about Raiola as he was a Georgia commit before flipping away to Nebraska. On the positive side, he does have ample starting experience in the B1G where he had his experiences, both good and bad. But I certainly would not compare him to Nix, who was good at making plays with his legs when necessary. The big rap on Raiola from the Georgia insiders was that he was a statue back in the pocket with no real elusiveness. Whether he has improved over time is not knowable to me, but it is a caution that COULD limit his effectiveness. Time will tell I guess.

I've always liked CKW and wish him buen suerte in Ann Arbor (except when facing he Ducks, that is).

Yeah Tae is a good one. Special teams is where he was going to play during his first 1-2 years had he signed with Georgia. But the thinking in Athens was that he could be developed into a meaningful contributor.

Ducks have the far more talented roster playing at home and should win this one. But Boise may stick around a while and will not be intimidated. They love these underdog roles and it wouldn't surprise me to see them pushing the Ducks well into the 3rd Quarter. Hard to believe that we still have 60+ days till we kick the football. How time drags this time of the year!

I've always had the impression that Boise recruited talented football players who felt they were ranked lower than they should be and who came in and worked their butts off to prove that the analysts had dun em wrong. I still remember the kickoff classic game when the Broncos came to Atlanta and embarrassed my highly ranked Dawgs. They were clearly the better team on that particular night and I was quick to acknowledge that to my ex-college roomie who was an insufferable Broncos fan who had missed the game while on an Elk hunting trip in the Idaho Rockies.

Men's Georgia track team lost too many contributors to be serious contenders think. On the other hand, the Lady Dawgs repeated as national champs if my information is correct.

Dawgs came through big-time tonight against those arrogant Texas Longhorns. I don't know if this qualified as the snot-beating my great Duck buddy was hoping for, but I kept telling myself all game that this one, in my sentiments at least, was not only for the Dawgs but also for the Ducks. Hopefully, Ducks Baseball will be back stronger than ever next year.

The statement about " :...that is Baseball, isn't it?" shows me you are a true fan of the sport. Indeed when my best Duck buddy and his wife (both true fans of baseball) responded to my text about last nights game being a "really tough loss", he replied "Barb and I hope that the Dawgs beat the living snot out of Texas next week." I replied "I think they will, but as you well know, this is baseball you know." It can be a damn frustrating game to be sure.

Yep, I kept waiting for a couple of timely hits that could change the complexion of the game. Watched the Bulldogs bowl from Athens this morning and Georgia was fortunate to get such timely hits that erased an early 7-0 deficit. But hang in there my Duck buddies--it is a DOUBLE elimination tournament.

Great game times for the Ducks! My Dawgs, the highest remaining seed in the tourney, got abysmal starts: 11AM Saturday and 12PM on Sunday. Neither Georgia or their opponent Mississippi State (a CDT team) are happy about this draw. As the games are in Athens, which is said to be prone to afternoon thunderstorms this time of the year, should we use a similar logic to move the World Series from an even more storm prone venue, Omaha, to a more benign location like Los Angeles?

As an 80-year-old, I think that the importance of the regular season has already been lessened to some extent by expansion of the playoffs from 2 to 4 teams, although favored that move, as well as a move to 8 or 12 teams. But as much as I value tradition and the pageantry of college football, I think that a 24 team field erodes the fabric of the game I have followed for 70 years. As you have pointed out, there are some solid points to be made for a doubling of teams in the dance, so I guess I'll cross my fingers and hope for the best. But suspect I will be skipping the games that project as blowouts. This isn't college basketball in which a team with far fewer resources can catch lightening in a bottle and make deep runs. Teams like the Dawgs Ducks, and anybody else with millions to invest are at far greater advantage than, say, a Michigan vs. a San Diego state on the hardwoods.

Given the number of uninteresting/noncompetitive first round games last year with only 12 teams in the field, I can only imagine how bad that round will be in a 24-team field. More money to more teams has little meaning if the games become so boring that viewers tune out and/or gravitate heavily to the NFL playoffs for postseason excitement. I fear we could end up killing the Golden Goose if we are not careful and grovel too hard for the all mighty $$$$. Call me a cynic but that's my opinion and I'm sticking with it until proven wrong

Love the renewal of a traditional rivalry! The focus on money is, unfortunately all too often, pushing tradition aside to the detriment of the game IMHO.

I think these roster rankings are reasonably accurate. Part of the reason Georgia isn't top 10 is that Kirby Smart doesn't break the bank to land unproven high school recruits, and part of the reason for that is, as Jon notes, that he prefers to spend to retain his proven entities. Plus, Georgia is not one of the weathier teams in college football, ranking only 8th in the SEC in fan donations.