Daily reminders that Florida's transition year roster is going to be uncharacteristically thin have got us thinking - What if, hot seat be damned, 2011 is shaping up perfectly for those maligned Georgia Bulldogs?
Even though we spelled out a potential 1-3 doomsday scenario for Mark Richt's mid-season firing like, four days ago, it's July 6, we're bored, and the SEC seems inoculated to whatever current strain of program-imploding sanction virus is infecting the national landscape (Amazing, no? We reckon it's just like bee pollen - you inject a consistent amount of rule breaking into the system to avoid a fatal response later!).
So, let's send some sunshine UGA's way.
Take that Florida name off their helmets, and Will Muschamp's rookie squad is just another young offense ripe for an upset early in conference play. Say BoomGator 1.0 falls against Tennessee or Kentucky - can you find more than seven wins left on this schedule? Oh, that Tennessaw: The Vols have the same upperclassmen atrophy and shaky QB play as the Gators, with none of the freshman coach excuses.
As for South Carolina, their "breakthrough" has been so incredulous we've spent most of 2011 trying to convince ourselves they're a legitimate incumbent. The road team loves this game (it's in Athens this year), but Richt is still 7-3 all-time vs. USC.
When boiled down to division standings and then inflated by key returning talent, Georgia's season and Richt's future is very much a three-game schedule, provided Kentucky and Vanderbilt do their usual thing (thing = nothing). Their SEC West rotation is very palatable (at Ole Miss, home for Mississippi State). Boise State and Tech aside, a division title and the assumed Florida bowl game it provides would at the least keep Richt around for another season or two.
Then again, this scenario assumes Richt wins, but not necessarily in a big way (eight-ish wins?), makes no large scale concessions as requested by fans and earns two more years to inexplicably flounder all over again with nationally ranked recruiting classes. Hm. Sorry. Even when we lift you up, Dawgs, it's just to see if you'll fall back down in some kind of funny way.