Odds and Ends

I've been out of town all week (and actually, for the better part of the past month) so a few things happened that I didn't get around to commenting on immediately. Rather than write up long responses to each issue, I figured a quick (OK, not so quick) around the horn might suffice...

-- Big thanks to ESPN's Chris Low for linking to my post on returning offensive production in the SEC this week. One of his commenters, however, wondered why I ranked the schools by percentage of returning offense rather than gross production. The answer is that I was curious about both, but assumed you could eyeball the gross numbers easier than the percentages. But, since it was asked, here's a quick rundown of the rankings based on yardage returning for 2009.

Receiving Yards

Arkansas, 2999
LSU, 2580
Alabama, 2098
Ole Miss, 2091
Kentucky, 1880
Georgia, 1775
Florida, 1596
S. Carolina, 1370
Miss St, 1354
Auburn, 1212
Tennessee, 1066
Vanderbilt, 725

Rushing Yards

Florida, 2414
Ole Miss, 2331
LSU, 2011
Arkansas, 1362
Auburn, 1317
Alabama, 1208
Kentucky, 1204
Miss. St., 1192
Vanderbilt, 940
Tennessee, 500
S. Carolina, 499
Georgia, 479

-- I ran into Andrew Williams last night. He said he's been working in an advisory capacity with Knowshon Moreno and is planning to move out to Denver with him. No deal done yet for Knowshon with the Broncos, but Drew said they're not too far apart.

-- The MLB draft reminded me what a joke the NCAA is. This had already been on my mind, but then ESPN's Jemele Hill wrote a fantastic column about it. Why is it that a baseball player can be drafted and then return to school, but the same isn't true for basketball or football players? Why are baseball players allowed to sign right out of high school but basketball and football players are not? Why is it that a baseball player can sign a contract, play professionally, but still return to school and participate in another sport, but something as petty as extra textbooks or attending a high school graduation are violations in football?

Hill argues, quite rightly, that it's all about money for the NCAA, which seems a bit ironic since the NCAA flips out whenever a player or his family receives a dime for their work. And chalk this up in the "I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'" category, but here's the racial breakdown in college sports: Football, 51 percent minorities. Basketball, 67 percent minorities. Baseball, 19 percent minorities. Oh, and as for the high-level "decision maker" jobs in the NCAA... the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports estimates that as much as 97 percent of those gigs belong to white people.

-- Bleacher Report stirred up some controversy this week with a story criticizing Georgia strength and conditioning coach Dave Van Halanger. I'd love to link to it for you to read firsthand, but Bleacher Report -- the bastion of journalistic integrity that it is -- deleted the story from its site already.

Nevertheless, the AJC's Bill King linked to it earlier this week, which drew plenty of comments from his readers.

Now, I'm not in any way endorsing the Bleacher Report story which was essentially no more than one man's opinion, but I don't think there's anything wrong with bringing up a topic of debate and challenging the status quo a little. And after talking to one NFL talent evaluator (who asked that his name not be used), I found there was at least a little bit of legitimacy to the story. He said several NFL people feel that Georgia's strength and conditioning program has "the wrong emphasis" and players from the Mark Richt/Bobby Bowden/Chuck Amato coaching tree have entered the league "undisciplined and not well prepared."

Is there reason to believe the critique? Potentially. Here's a bit of analysis of Mark Richt's draft classes done by reader Jim Franklin back in April examining the early selections of UGA players by year...

Year	Round	Player
2008	5 (161)	Marcus Howard
2007	3 (51)	Quentin Moses
2006	2 (30)	Tim Jennings
2005	1 (14)	Thomas Davis
2005	1 (17)	David Pollack
2005	2 (35)	Reggie Brown
2005	2 (48)	Odell Thurman
2005	3 (85)	David Greene
2005	4 (131)	Fred Gibson
2004	1 (32)	Ben Watson
2003	1 (6)	Johnathan Sullivan
2003	1 (20)	George Foster
2003	2 (34)	Boss Bailey
2003	2 (37)	Jon Stinchcomb
2002	1 (25)	Charles Grant

(By year, Georgia had four players taken in 2008, four in 2007, seven in 2006, six in 2005, four in 2004, seven in 2003 and eight in 2002.)

Obviously the 2009 draft turned around the recent trend illustrated in the statistics above with four Georgia players being selected in the first three rounds, including two of the top 12 overall. But if you look at those high draft picks from 2002-08, there's a pretty fair number of busts (at least by NFL standards) in there, too.

The case could also be made that there has to be a reason for all the injuries last year, although I'm not sure any explanation given could be specifically traced back to the strength and conditioning staff, particularly since the injury bug had never been that bad in the past.

Now, the other side of the coin: At the start of the 2006 season, Georgia was tied for third with 36 former players on NFL rosters, and at least a half-dozen more will be added to the mix in 2009. (Also of note, Bobby Bowden's boys have the second most players in the NFL). So if NFL folks are so displeased with the preparation of Richt's players, why are they so prevalent on NFL rosters?

Of course, success in your S&C program isn't all about putting players in the pros either. At least ostensibly, it's about winning in college, and few people have done a better job of that than Van Halanger. His teams have made it to a bowl game for 28 straight seasons, an unofficial record among college coaches as far as Van Halanger knows.

The Bleacher Report story discusses Georgia's defensive woes as the product of poor conditioning, but that seems like an odd critique. For one, no amount of conditioning teaches Reshad Jones to wrap up on a tackle (and, in truth, it's probably time I stop picking on Reshad, too). No strength program will keep Jarius Wynn from hitting the quarterback late or ensure that the defensive ends can handle a cut block. Plus, if Van Halanger's preparation caused the defense to suffer last season, then why was Georgia's offense so good? Both sets of players are trained by the same staff.

Again, I don't think there's anything wrong with having the discussion about Georgia's conditioning program, but until a former player or two speaks on the record saying they were ill prepared for life in the NFL (or games on Saturdays during their college careers) I'm inclined to think Van Halanger and his staff are doing as good a job as anyone.

-- Lots of questions about the new deal with ISP Sports that Georgia just signed. I'll have a more detailed story in the next few days (I'm just starting to sift through a mountain of information on it) but here are a few tidbits I got from ISP's general manager in Athens, Jeff Huffman...

On changes to the UGA Web site...
"We're going to re-launch our site this year. We're making improvements to it to make it more cutting-edge, offer our fans something that they've never had access to before. That's our biggest investment from an upgrade standpoint. We're going to invest a lot of resources into making that a real fan-friendly place."

On the all-important upgrades to the game tracker software at GeorgiaDogs.com...
"That's in discussions right now. We're working to improve all facets of our Web site and that is a piece that we're obviously looking to upgrade."

On when the new Web features might be available...
"We're shooting for a target date of the end of August. We want to have it up and ready to go so people can get acclimated with it and have time to learn and have it ready before we kick off (for football). This is something that's been in the works for several months now, so we didn't just start on it."

On the TV side of things, including the coach's show...
"We're going to introduce new programming which will be unveiled in the next several months. With the coach's show, the biggest thing is distribution. We're working to make sure if you want to be able to watch the coach's show, you can find it. We're also going to upgrade just the overall look and feel of the show. This new media team that we have in place, they will be not only working for our Web site, but they'll be shooting game-day activities, working with the coaches behind the scenes, shooting the coach's show. We've got the HD equipment and the necessary tools to be able to produce a first-rate quality program."

On who'll be doing the radio broadcasts...
"Scott Howard will be our play-by-play man and Eric (Zeier) will continue to be our color analyst for football broadcasts. The other positions that we have from a sideline perspective, from a pregame show, from some of the ancillary programming that we have with this new hour, we're working closely with UGA to determine who those talents are going to be, but we haven't released that yet."

-- I wanted to wish a happy father's day to all the dads out there and remind you that Mark Richt will be hosting the All-Pro Dad event tomorrow if you can make it.

-- And finally, I made a bit of a big deal over a comment by Rivals' Radi Nabulsi on UGASports.com's messsage board over the weekend. I received emails from both Radi and Anthony Dasher explaining their side of the situation, and in fairness to them, I thought it was important to publicly note that we've cleared things up and there are no hard feelings on my part. I highly doubt any of you really cared, but since I called them out on the blog, I figured I should be as up front with the results.

OK, that's it for now. Have a great weekend!

Georgia, ISP reach deal

NOTE: I was on the road nearly all day today but I'll have a bunch more on this tomorrow.

From UGA athletics department:

ATHENS, Ga. --- The University of Georgia Athletic Association has in principle reached a comprehensive eight-year agreement valued at $92.8 million with ISP Sports to serve as the exclusive multi-media rights marketer beginning July 1, 2009, according to an announcement Wednesday by UGA Director of Athletics Damon Evans.

"We are extremely pleased to partner with ISP Sports to deliver Georgia Bulldog programming to the Bulldog Nation and beyond," said Evans. "This agreement will provide the infrastructure to deliver our content and message through various mediums that will continue to make the University of Georgia a leader in intercollegiate athletics."

Currently, ISP manages Georgia's sponsorship and marketing rights which includes corporate sponsorships, presence marketing, print publications and corporate hospitality. Under a separate agreement, Cox Radio WSB 750 has managed the Athletic Association's radio and coach's television show rights. Under terms of the new agreement, ISP will assume the responsibility of radio and coaches show television rights as well as add additional television and digital media rights to complete its Georgia portfolio. However, ISP and WSB have reached an agreement for WSB to remain the flagship station of the Bulldogs for the term of the Georgia/ISP partnership.

"I'm especially pleased that WSB News/Talk 750 will continue to be our flagship station," said Evans. "We have a long history and tradition with WSB which is one of the country's premier radio stations. That relationship will continue providing the very best coverage for Georgia sports teams."

"We are elated to extend our relationship with an outstanding university and one of America's truly elite athletic programs," said Ben Sutton, ISP Chairman of the Board and CEO. "We have enjoyed an excellent relationship with Damon and his remarkable team of administrators and coaches and look forward to an even greater partnership in the years to come. We appreciate the university's confidence in ISP and are committed to providing the Bulldog Nation with the finest in programming, corporate marketing, sales and service.

"The addition of the Georgia Bulldog Radio Network to our partnership with UGA Athletics is an extremely positive one. Our talented radio production team is looking forward to the opportunity to build on the long and rich tradition established by WSB and Cox radio in bringing the millions of Dawg fans the very best in sports broadcasting!"

About ISP Sports:

ISP: America's Home For College Sports-- is the country's largest and fastest growing collegiate multimedia rights holder, with partnerships involving more than 60 NCAA member institutions, conferences, bowl games and venues. The ISP family of leading universities and conferences reaches into 34 states across the country. The company, which is based in Winston-Salem, NC, produces a variety of sponsorship opportunities and services for its partner schools and corporate clients, including publications, radio/TV networks, internet sites, game event promotions and stadium/arena signage. With more than 50 regional offices throughout the country and over 300 employees, ISP is nationally recognized for its quality performance, professional workmanship and unrivaled service.

About the University of Georgia Athletic Association:

The University of Georgia Athletic Association sponsors a 21-sport athletic program featuring 12 women's and nine men's sports. Georgia sports teams have won a total of 37 national team championships, 35 of which have come since 1985.

Cash Cow

From SEC release...

The Southeastern Conference will distribute approximately $132.5 million to the 12 league institutions in the revenue sharing plan for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, which ends Aug. 31, 2009, according to league commissioner Mike Slive.

The $132.5 million is the highest total ever distributed in SEC history and represents a 4.0 percent increase from the $127.6 million distributed to the schools in 2007-2008.

The revenue sharing plans include money generated by football television, bowls, the SEC Football Championship, basketball television, the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament and NCAA Championships.

Broken down by categories and rounded off, the $132.5 million was derived from $52 million from football television, $25.4 million from bowls, $14.3 million from the SEC Football Championship, $13.6 million from basketball television, $4.1 million from the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament and $23.1 million from NCAA Championships.

The average amount distributed to each school was $11.1 million.

Not included in the $132.5 million was $11.6 million retained by the institutions participating in bowls and $744,000 divided among all 12 institutions by the NCAA for academic enhancement.

Other yearly money distributions, since 1980, are as follows: 1980 ($4.1 million); 1981 ($5.57 million); 1982 ($7.24 million); 1983 ($9.53 million); 1984 ($18.4 million); 1985 ($9.34 million); 1986 ($13.1 million); 1987 ($13.56 million); 1988 ($14.34 million); 1989 ($13.85 million); 1990 ($16.3 million); 1991 ($20.6 million); 1992 ($27.7 million); 1993 ($34.34 million); 1994 ($34.36 million); 1995 ($40.3 million); 1996 ($45.5 million); 1997 ($58.9 million); 1998 ($61.2 million); 1999 ($68.5 million); 2000 ($73.2 million); 2001 ($78.1 million); 2002 ($95.7 million); 2003 ($101.9 million); 2004 ($108.8 million); 2005 ($110.7 million); 2006 ($116.1 million); 2007 ($122.0 million); 2008 ($127.6 million) and 2009 ($132.5 million).

NOTE FROM DAVID: Pay close attention to those numbers in the last graph... the revenue has doubled in the last 10 years and increased nearly 400 percent in the past 15 years. Wow.

SEC Notes: UGA Closing in on Deal

Georgia is closing in on a new deal for its marketing and media rights with ISP Sports, and an agreement could be reached within the next few weeks, associate athletics director Alan Thomas said.

The deal was first reported in March and could be worth up to $10 million annually. Georgia's current contracts with multiple rights holders expire June 30. Georgia's current contracts generate about $8.3 million annually, according to the Sports Business Journal.

"We're moving right down the track," athletics director Damon Evans said. "We don't have a signed deal with them yet, but it's imminent."

Evans said he didn't anticipate the new contract would create significant changes for the school, but it would allow Georgia to increase its media presence in multiple platforms.

"Same dimensions, just a different rights holder," Evans said. "Now there will be some new twists from a multimedia rights to get ourselves more exposure. I don't know all the details, but one thing is we're trying to brand ourselves better and get more people to see the University of Georgia."

MODERATION IS THE KEY

A team gets 80 scholarships for its football players and the NCAA considers 25 players a complete recruiting class, but that didn't stop plenty of schools from inking more than 30 players on signing day in February. With that in mind, the topic of a firm limit on the number of players a school could sign became a popular topic of debate Tuesday, but its one Mark Richt thinks should be tabled for the time being.

"I wouldn't change that rule," Richt said. "A lot of things happen between February and August, and if you hit your number (of 25) on the head, you may end up with 79 (scholarships) when the season starts. But like anything, things can be abused and then someone has to pay for it, and I don't want to do it at the expense of a young man who is already on our team and say, ‘You know what? We found a guy better than you.' I don't want to do that."

FAIRLY FOND FAREWELL

After more than a year of fighting his way back onto the field, wide receiver Tony Wilson's Georgia career ended abruptly this month with the news that he had received a medical disqualification and had been found in violation of team rules.

The parting ways with Wilson, who would have been a fourth-year junior in 2009, won't have a significant affect on the team in terms of production -- he had just one catch last year -- but he had long been one of the more vocal players in the locker room and had spent significant time working with the coaching staff last season has he recovered from an ankle injury.

Richt refused to comment on Wilson's future beyond the medical disqualification, but said there was no hard feelings on his part.

"He's still one of my very good friends, and he's going to stay that way." Richt said.