A Look Inside: Belin's ILBs Will Be Center Stage in 2010

I'm putting together a story for later in the week on the inside linebackers and new ILB coach Warren Belin. I figured I could share a few of the quotes I got for the story here though, for those of you sick of talking QBs and ready to hear more about the new-look D...

Warren Belin on Christian Robinson...
“Christian is improving each and every day. I’m very pleased with his progress. He’s playing multiple positions for us at the inside linebacker, and he’s a young man that’s a hard worker, works really hard at being the best he can be at doing the fundamentals and the little things right, and as he continues to grow into our defensive package, he’s going to make a great contribution to our football team.”

Belin on Marcus Dowtin...
“Marcus is very talented, and we’re excited about what he brings to the table as a student-athlete. Again, as he said and as I would also agree, we’ve got to consistently be the best, know our assignments, and physically do everything we’re asking him to do. Mentally he’s very, very close to where we need him to be right now. He’s had a few mistakes here and there. As a linebacker coach, the No. 1 thing that I’m going to ask is that he does things the right way all the time. And there are no excuses for missed assignments and missed alignments. There’s just none. We get beat if you don’t do things the right way.”

Todd Grantham on Robinson and Akeem Dent...
“Dent and Robinson have played both Mike and Mo, so they give you some flexibility there. We’re also working to progress Richard Samuel, because he does show up as far as his ability to run and chase and we’re trying to work with him to see if we can find a role for him as we move forward.”

Grantham on where Richard Samuel must improve...
“I just think the key and diagnose of blocking schemes. He has a feel for where the ball’s going, but is it a downhill run? Is it a wide play? I just think it’s more the recognition of the blocks and where do I need to fit based on the recognition of the call. That’s based on experience, but the guy was in here last Friday after meetings watching tape trying to get ready for the scrimmage because he wanted to get better. If our guys will do that and work to improve, I think we’ll be fine.”

Christian Robinson on the mix at ILB...
"To us, it’s really not a battle. We’re just trying to put the best guy forward. Everybody is working really hard. We have different groups for different situations. Coach [Todd] Grantham will take me and put Downtin in, or Darryl, or Dent. It’s a group of guys who are going to put our best foot forward every time. Some guys are bigger, some guys are faster. Whatever coach Grantham wants from his linebacker corps, he’s going to do it."

Robinson on the leadership of Akeem Dent & Darryl Gamble...
"Having Darryl and Dent, they’re just great leaders and great people. If we have a rough day, they’re the first ones to get on us and bring us up. They were just as influential as Rennie (Curran) was. They’ve been here, this is their fifth year, so everybody knows them, everybody respects them. They’ve earned their time, and they’ve been playing since they were freshmen. When they say something you listen. Coach comes first, but those guys are second.”

Akeem Dent on Belin's expectations...
"With him he just wants everybody to go out and play with great energy, have a great attitude, and give great effort. There are a lot of things that you can’t control, but you can your attitude and effort. He wants us to go out every day and just play."

Practice Notes: Richt Cracks Down After Latest Arrest

A second player in three weeks was arrested for misdemeanor traffic violations Wednesday when offensive lineman Vince Vance was taken into custody by the Athens-Clarke County police for driving without a license.

Head coach Mark Richt said Vance, 22, had a learner’s permit, which would allow him to operate the vehicle if another adult was present, but that was not the case at the time of the arrest. The violation is the second in the past year for Vance, who was arrested on a similar charge last November.

“He doesn’t have a car, and he claims that he never drives unless he has someone 21 (years old) with (him) which is legal to do," Richt said. "So here’s a kid who doesn’t have a suspended license. It’s a legal license. Now, why he has a learner’s permit at this age, everybody’s asking the same question. But he drove by himself and had a traffic violation and when they ran it, he broke the law."

Richt said the arrest will not affect Vance’s playing time in this week’s game against Florida.

“It’s not affecting his playing status at all,” Richt said. “If he starts, he was going to start, if he doesn’t start, he wasn’t going to start.”

Richt said further punishment is being handled in-house, but said that the team’s focus on these minor traffic offenses has increased in recent weeks.

Three weeks ago, cornerback Vance Cuff was arrested for driving a scooter with a suspended license, and linebacker Rennie Curran also had a bench warrant issued for him after he failed to appear in court following a speeding violation.

“I can’t even tell you what we’ve been trying to get done in regard to making sure these things don’t happen,” Richt said. “I’m highly frustrated. I’ve taken things a little bit more into my own hands to make sure these things get resolved.”

The problem, Richt said, is that rules are often nearly impossible to enforce. While the school tries to ensure each player has a valid license, situations like the one faced by Vance result from players not having the proper class of license, which is forcing Richt to take a firm stand on the issue.

“My feeling is, every single Georgia football player must have not only a valid license, but a Class C license,” Richt said.

Still, Richt said, it remains difficult to keep tabs on any potential moving violations, parking tickets and other minor issues that can, if ignored, become more serious. Finding a foolproof plan to combat the issues will take some time, he said.

“I can’t snap my finger and get it done overnight,” Richt said. “If a kid gets a ticket and he can’t take care of it quickly enough, he could find himself with an issue there. So it’s a real pain in the rear, quite frankly.”

While neither Vance nor Cuff were charged with anything more serious than a misdemeanor, Richt said the problem is more about image than substance.

"It’s one thing to get stopped and get a citation," Richt said. "I don’t think anybody gets too bent out of shape. But if a guy gets stopped and he’s arrested, that’s a more serious matter. These are misdemeanor issues, but it’s an arrest nonetheless, and it’s embarrassing. It’s embarrassing to the program and to them. So we’ve got to do a better job, and I’m taking the blame for not making certain these things were taken care of, but we’re going to get it straight.”

Richt said he would personally take account of players' driving status and make an effort to constantly remind players that moving violations and other traffic citations must be reported to the coaching staff.

In Curran's case, a traffic ticket went unpaid, and a bench warrant was issued. That's not uncommon, Richt said, as the busy schedule of classes and football can often cause a player to forget to follow up on such issues.

While Richt is understanding of why the problems can arise, however, he's unwilling to tolerate further excuses.

“I don’t think anybody’s purposely trying to do those things, but if they don’t follow through, that’s another problem," he said. "So all these things can happen and they seem little … but those little things if you don’t handle your responsibilities, then you get bigger problems. That’s part of growing up, that’s part of college, that’s part of what we’re trying to help these guys understand. They’ve got to grow up, be a man, handle your responsibilities so we don’t have to deal with this. But we have got to make sure we’re monitoring these things so we don’t have these things blow up on us.”

RECORD CHASER

As far as the record books go, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow is currently tied with former Georgia great Herschel Walker for the SEC’s record for career rushing touchdowns, meaning the much-reviled Gators star could set the mark against Walker’s old team this week. That doesn’t exactly sit well with some of Georgia’s players.

“It seems like everybody is trying to make history on us,” defensive tackle Jeff Owens said, referencing Eric Berry’s attempt to set a record for interceptions against Georgia three weeks ago. “We want to keep him out of the end zone. He’s a tough player, always trying to get that extra yard, so we’ve just got to scratch and claw and try to stop him.”

Tebow has 49 career rushing touchdowns, five of which have come against Georgia. While that officially ties the record, Walker has five additional touchdowns that came in bowl games, which were not counted toward official totals at the time.

Regardless of the caveats, Georgia isn’t interested in seeing Tebow break Walker’s record – officially or unofficially – this week.

“Just knowing the type of player that Herschel was and the type of guy that he is now, we just want to represent for the guys who played before us,” linebacker Rennie Curran said. “That would be huge for us to hold their offense and Tebow and not let them score. We know they like to put the ball in his hands on the goal line so that is going to be our main goal. Not just because it is going to be a record but because as a defense we just want to play our best game.”

Of course, that’s as much a compliment to Tebow as anything. For as much as Georgia’s players hope they can maintain Walker’s record, quarterback Joe Cox admits he has a great deal of respect for Tebow, too.

“He’s unique being such a big, powerful runner,” Cox said. “You see a lot of quarterbacks nowadays that can run, but it’s not like a guy that runs like a fullback. You don’t have a lot of guys that play quarterback that are your goal line back. I think he’s different in that sense. I don’t know how many guys can take that many carries in a conference like this. I don’t know how many you’ll see that are like him. You’ll see a lot of guys that are dual-threat, but guys that can take that many carries and be the goal-line back? I don’t know.”

HAPPY TO BE BACK

Cox is making his first start in a Georgia-Florida game this season, and he’s happy to be doing it in Jacksonville, Fla.

There was a great deal of debate over the future of the game in recent months, but a deal to keep the game in Jacksonville appears imminent, and that’s just the way it should be, Cox said.

“I know there are people that think this game needs to come to Atlanta, but it doesn’t matter because wherever you are, it’s going to be a 50-50 crowd, and it’s always really cool to see it like that,” he said. “Two teams that are big rivals, they get to share the stadium, and it’s one of the best games in college football and it’s always fun to be a part of.”

NEW FACE EARNS PRAISE

Early in the season, Christian Robinson was buried on the depth chart at linebacker. But with injuries to Akeem Dent and Marcus Dowtin, the redshirt freshman has seen significant playing time the past two weeks, and he’s made the most of it.

In the past two games, Robinson has made six tackles – including one for a loss – in reserve duty, and linebackers coach John Jancek said his progress has been impressive.

“Christian has a very bright future here,” Jancek said. “He’s only a freshman, but he’s really caught on to things very well. He’s a dedicated player, he plays very hard. I look for him to continue getting better and better and better. His biggest thing will be his physical development once we end this season.”

EXTRA POINTS

-- Georgia practice in full pads today, a change from its normal schedule following a bye week. The Bulldogs were making up for yesterday’s indoor workout, which was necessitated due to bad weather. The team will practice in shorts Thursday and have a brief walk-through Friday in preparation for Saturday’s game against Florida.

-- Richt said he was not sure who would start at tailback this week but indicated several of Georgia’s five scholarship tailbacks could play. He said, to this point, no one back has emerged that can handle all of Georgia’s playbook to the standards necessary, so different backs will be used for different play calls. Of the backs on the roster, however, Richt said sophomore Caleb King is closest to being a full-time player.

-- Richt still would not comment on a starting lineup for the offensive line, but Clint Boling (LT), Cordy Glenn (LG), Ben Jones (C), Chris Davis (RG) and Josh Davis (RT) handled the first-team reps during the early periods of Wednesday’s practice.

-- Richt said linebacker Akeem Dent went through a full practice today and will be able to play Saturday. Defensive end Kiante Tripp has also been cleared to play after missing most of the season with a neck stinger.

From the Mailbag: Murray Hurt, Reshad's Flag and Talking About Kickoffs

Happy Wednesday ladies and gents. I wanted to take a quick moment to remind you that we'll be continuing with our weekly chat sessions once again, and I'll be chatting live at Macon.com/ugachat tomorrow (Thursday) at noon.

Here's what you can do: Go to Macon.com/ugachat now. Press the "play" button and submit your questions early. Then check back tomorrow at noon (or any time after) and get the answers. Or if you're bored at work and you take a late lunch break, just check in live as the chat is happening.

In the meantime, let's whet your appetite with a few mailbag questions today...

Chip F. writes: do you know why aaron murray did not throw at all during warmups saturday?

DH: Yes, Murray is currently day-to-day with what is described as triceps tendinitis. When I spoke with him last week, he had his elbow wrapped. I inquired as to the reason, and he said it was just normal soreness from throwing. But as Chip points out, he didn't throw during Saturday's warmups, and the "soreness" turned out to be a bit more serious. At this point, however, it's just something being controlled with some rest right now and nothing to be too worried about. What it does signal, however, is that unless something happens to Logan Gray or Joe Cox the rest of the way, both Murray and Zach Mettenberger will be headed for redshirts.

Anonymous Suckup writes: I'm just curious whether the officials thought the hit was illegal in and of itself (facemask, blow to the head, etc.) or whether the officials flagged him for hitting the ball carrier after he stepped on the sideline a couple of steps earlier. In short, was it supposedly a late hit or a dirty hit?

DH: I spoke with Willie Martinez about this yesterday. He said the original call he got on the field Saturday was for a late hit out of bounds. He spoke to league officials later, however, and they clarified that it was actually a personal foul for a horse-collar tackle. Martinez said the coaches have reviewed the film and agreed with the call.

To your first point, however -- yes, the runner pretty clearly was out of bounds before the hit even occurred.

Jason writes: Following up on a couple of your points, I'm really curious to see if you could get a real answer as to why Samuel was out of the game for so long.

DH: Mike Bobo's answer is that it was a combination of wanting to rest Samuel after he had five touches on one drive followed by a series of play calls that required Carlton Thomas to be on the field, particularly the reverse to Branden Smith that went for a 61-yard touchdown. All of that is fine, but it still seems to me that 15 minutes of game time without your top running back touching the football is a mistake, particularly on a third-and-four on a crucial drive on which Georgia ended up being forced to punt.

jferg writes: Can you do a little digging into why our "nfl" DTs aren't making more plays? i just assumed that one of those two would get to the qb on a fairly consistent basis. yet, it seems as if so far this season, they are getting shut down. thoughts?

DH: Well, for one, those NFL DTs are playing a lot of DE. Geno Atkins was there throughout the first half of the Oklahoma State game and Jeff Owens took more than 30 snaps at defensive end against South Carolina. Georgia's coaches are essentially doing a lot of mixing and matching right now, but the return of Justin Houston this week should help calm the waters, so to speak.

Moreover, after talking to coaches, they seemed pretty pleased with the pressure the DTs got against South Carolina. What they were unhappy with was the containment. Georgia had plenty of men in the backfield -- Martinez estimated more than 50 percent of South Carolina's snaps resulted in significant pressure from Georgia's line -- but they couldn't bring Stephen Garcia down, and the Gamecocks QB was routinely able to step up in the pocket, avoid the rush, and either use his feet for short gains or dump the ball off to a receiver in the middle of the field.

Anonymous writes: Are Neland Ball and Christian Robinson still on the roster? Just curious as I have not seen them and apparently Ball's little brother turned to the dark side.

DH: Yup, they're both on the team, but neither is playing much. Ball and Jeremy Longo have been slow to recover from offseason injuries and have not seen the field. Robinson actually got some positive reviews during fall camp, but a mix of depth at linebacker and the missed reps he had during his freshman season last year have kept him shuffled to the back of the pack. Charles White and Akeem Hebron are in a similar situation. We may see a bit more of at least one or two of them this week, however, with Nick Williams questionable and Darius Dewberry out for a second straight game. That being said, the coaches have already taken the step of moving Marcus Washington back to linebacker to help fill the void, so they obviously aren't particularly enthused with the idea of using Robinson, White or Hebron in key situations.

Michael writes: kickoffs? we're talking about kickoffs? its the simplest, most fundamental play of the game. the coach has been here for how many years now? and we're still discussing our strategy on kickoffs? seriously. we're talking about kickoffs. kickoffs. kickoffs? not the game, not the game. kickoffs. not the game, the university of georgia bulldogs are debating what they should do on kickoffs. kickoffs.

DH: Not a punt… not a punt… talkin' about kickoffs. What are we talking about here? Kickoffs. They might return one deep kickoff this year, and that's enough. If I can't kick deep, I can't kick deep. It's as simple as that. You know what I'm saying? We're just talking about kickoffs. We're sitting here… Georgia's supposed to be a franchise program, and we're sitting here talking about kickoffs. Not the game that they go out there and die for. Talking about kickoffs. I'm not shoving it aside like it don't mean anything. But what are we talking about, man? We're talking about kickoffs.

Dekalb writes: I am a Bulldogs Blog enthusiast and avid reader. I read the blog on my Blackberry a lot of times, and lately I can't read it on there because the page is too large to load with all the updates on it. Not sure if it is something you can fix, but I was talking to some of my buddies while we were in Athens this weekend, and they have been having the same problem.

DH: I heard this complaint from a few people, so I checked into it. Apparently the problem is that I've simply been posting too much. The settings on the blog left all posts from the previous seven days up on the main page, and since I've been posting more during the season, that managed to overwhelm the Blackberries. I changed the settings so now just the last 15 posts are on the main page, so hopefully that will help. If anyone is still having trouble though, let me know and I'll continue to work on the problem.

OK, that's it for now. Don't forget to submit your questions and check back tomorrow for our live chat at Macon.com/ugachat.

Practice Notes: QBs Struggle Early

If Mark Richt has an early complaint after two days of practice, it's about his quarterbacks. A handful of fumbles and a fair number of interceptions – including two picks and two fumble recoveries by Darryl Gamble – have been the result of some sloppy play early on by his group of passers.

"Most of the picks happened because of the quarterback just throwing the ball where he shouldn't have thrown it, making a bad decision," Richt said. "They've got to take better care of the ball."

It's all about fundamentals said sophomore Logan Gray, who currently is second on Georgia's depth chart at quarterback.

"Just getting back to the little things that are kind of sloppy the first couple of days," Gray said. "We've got to make sure we're touching up on those every single day – not fumbling the snap, fumbling giving the ball to the running back, missing a read and throwing into traffic – whatever it might be, every quarterback needs to be careful with the decisions they're making with the ball."

For now, however, Georgia's secondary is enjoying the early gifts, and they're making sure the quarterbacks know how much they appreciate it.

"We've got to talk a little smack to them," safety Nick Williams said. "That's what makes it fun."

SO FAR, SO GOOD

The first two days of fall practice have been the first full workouts of any kind in quite a while for a hefty contingent of players returning from injuries. While the Bulldogs haven't reached a particularly grueling part of their routine just yet, the early results for players like Jeff Owens, Trinton Sturdivant and Vince Vance have all been positive.

"You see no ill effects," Richt said. "You don't see them favoring anything. Again, until we have that first day of contact, you won't really know how that guy is feeling on the inside. I'm sure they're a little anxious about that first hit, but they no their best shot is to play full speed, and they're doing that now."

Richt said tailback Richard Samuel's wrist has not limited him at all thus far and said that he didn't expect any players to be held out of contact drills when the Bulldogs begin two-a-days Monday.

A HARD-LINE APPROACH

Georgia was one of the most penalized teams in the country a year ago, and Richt said he's taking steps this fall to ensure there isn't a repeat performance in 2009.

During practice, he's pulling players out of drills after they commit a penalty, and numerous players are being singled out when they're flagged. Assistants are tracking each penalty during practice, as well, and for the first time, Richt is personally monitoring the results.

"You've got to drill it, discipline it and the guys have to be serious about never wanting it to happen again," Richt said. "But so far, I see a good healthy attitude toward it."

The hard-line tactics even apply to Georgia's assistant coaches, Richt said.

In the past, assistants could argue a flag with the team's practice refs, but this year, they're not even allowed to joke about it.

"It's, 'Yes, sir, thank you for your help,' and go discipline your player," Richt said. "We can't let anything at this point get in the way of taking a very serious attitude toward every flag that's called."

A MINOR PROBLEM

Linebacker Christian Robinson played with his hand wrapped after a minor thumb sprain, Richt said. The injury may require a cast, but surgery would not be needed and Richt expects Robinson to continue practicing.