Monday Links (12/14)

Happy Monday, folks. The Dawgs get back to regular bowl practice on Wednesday, so we'll have a lot more news by then. Right now, things are pretty quiet -- in fact, a little too quiet.

Most of the reports I've gotten from sources about the vacant coaching positions have been pretty similar:

1.) They think a hire will happen soon.

2.) They are amazed at how little information has been leaked.

No. 2 sort of negates my confidence in No. 1, so take it for what you will. I do know that several candidates have been contacted already, but beyond that, there has been precious little information to come out of Butts-Mehre. And as a general rule of thumb, when it comes to hires, it's best not to put too much confidence in the "rumors" coming from outside sources. There's generally an agenda attached.

Anyway, stay tuned, and hopefully we'll have a good bit more info for you in the coming days.

One other off-field issue that cropped up a few weeks ago was the Montez Robinson arrest. We haven't had a chance to talk to Mark Richt about it yet, but I did chat with Rodney Garner about the situation, and here's what he had to say:

“It’s a difficult situation, but like I told him, he can’t let this one thing define the rest of his life. He’s got to pull himself together and re-evaluate what he’s doing and change the course to stop the cycle, the cycle of the type of life he grew up in. Hopefully as the thing goes through the system, it will work out favorably toward him and he can regroup and get his life back together.”

Also, if you haven't been voting in our Dawgs of the Decade poll, you can still vote on each category now by going to Macon.com/Decade. I'm also looking for comments from fans about what they liked about the players they voted for and some of their favorite memories of those players. We'll be running it all as a part of a big spread in the Dec. 27 Telegraph.

OK, enough for the preliminaries, now on to a few links...

-- I have a story in today's Telegraph on how Georgia is approaching recruits while the questions about the coaching staff still linger.

-- I got this stat on fumbles from our buddy Marc last week and planned to write about it today, but The Senator beat me to it: Anyway, while Mark Richt does indeed have a case about the ball not bouncing his way, he's hardly the only one.

-- Dawg Sports throws another name into the speculation ring for defensive coordinator. I'm not sure that Georgia can match his royalties from the Coors Lite commercials though.

-- Buck Belue settles the whole debate though.

-- And just a question to ponder: I'm not saying Kirby Smart isn't the right man for the job, but it's worth asking -- how do we know he's a great DC? Yes, he was the national award winner as the country's top assistant this season, but Tim Tebow was also a finalist for the Heisman. A lot of thought doesn't necessarily go into award voting. Smart has presided over the nation's top defense statistically, but how much of it has been Smart and how much of it has been Nick Saban? Heck, how much of it has been the remnants of what Kevin Steele built? And how much of it is the luxury of having remarkable talent on the defensive side of the ball? After all, Mount Cody and Rolando McClain don't come around every season.

Again, I'm not suggesting Georgia shouldn't want Smart, but I am curious as to whether there is ample enough evidence to support the offer he would invariably have to receive in order to leave Tuscaloosa for Athens.

-- The Bulldog in Exile points out a hilarious bit of irony from Saturday's Army-Navy game.

-- This article points out a couple of solutions I've mentioned over the years to reduce the silliness of silly season among college head coaches. (h/t GTP)

-- The Big Ten is talking about expanding to 12 teams, and Dr. Saturday offers up the most likely candidates for the job.

-- Well it was only a matter of time before this surfaced. I have a feeling these will continue to trickle out like Tiger's mistresses until we've all had more than a few good laughs.(But don't worry, it's all part of Lane's plan.)

-- If I could change lives with any one person, I'm not sure Peter Gammons would be No. 1 on my list, but he'd be darned close. When you get into sports writing, it's with the hope that someday, you'll have stories as good as these to tell.

-- Looks like the "Teen Wolf" remake is a go, and it's going to be worse than I had feared.

-- On the flip side, Sigourney Weaver leaked some interesting tidbits about the planned "Ghostbusters 3."

-- Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... the least exciting sitcom reunion in the history of television!

-- Another decade list: The top sports moments in pop culture of the 2000s. It's a pretty solid list, but the mention of Artie Lange at the end reminded me -- did you guys watch "The U" 30 for 30 documentary over the weekend? Hasn't Bernie Kosar morphed into Artie Lange over the years? That guy has spent too many winters in Cleveland.

-- And finally, it's not just dia-bit-iz that Wilford Brimley has it in for -- he's talking like he's Mike Vick in this YouTube video. (Seriously, one of the most bizarre things I've seen in a while.)