Zimanek: Has Richt learned his lesson?

Second-year Bulldog coach's late-game decisions still suspect

Posted: Wednesday, September 18, 2002

   Most teen-agers learn painful lessons at some point. You know the party at your house when your parents left town for the weekend? You thought you could handle it, thinking there won't be too many people coming over.




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But, in reality, the whole school finds out. Things get broken. Fights break out. People are throwing up everywhere. The neighbors call the police and they break it up and cite just about everyone for under-age drinking.

   You are in a big doghouse. Your parents plan to send you to Siberia, but you hope you get away with just being grounded and having your driving privileges taken away, not to mention any possible legal ramifications.

   Did you learn your lesson (other than just don't get caught) the hard way? You did something wrong, something bad happened and you had to pay for it.

   Mark Richt, the second-year Georgia coach, is the teen-ager in this scenario except he's already got off the hook, not once, but twice this season.

   In the first two games, Richt made unusual choices in the final minutes and the eighth-ranked Bulldogs were still able to win both games.

   After last year, Richt sought the guidance of longtime coach Homer Smith to work on his late-game decision-making after his party got busted several times, primarily against Auburn and Boston College in the Music City Bowl.

   When Richt admitted the problem and sought help, most Georgia fans were able to write it off as mistakes from a rookie head coach. Meanwhile, opposing fans were drooling over the possibilities, thinking that if they are ever in a close game with the Bulldogs, Richt will find some way to screw it up.

   Richt needs to call Smith, or other prominent veteran coaches, for a refresher course. Because his fourth quarter thought processes in wins over Clemson and South Carolina are not exactly instilling confidence in Bulldog fans.

   The scenarios of both games are etched in many people's minds.

   Against Clemson, the Bulldogs led 31-28 while facing a fourth-and-one from their own 38-yard line with 40 seconds left. Rather than punting the ball away, Richt elected to send Musa Smith over the top. Smith gained two yards, David Greene kneeled down on the next play and the game was over.

   But what Richt did was dramatically decrease the Bulldogs' chances of securing victory while greatly improving Clemson's. Tommy Bowden, the Tiger players and every Clemson fan who happened to squeeze into Sanford Stadium that night were thanking Richt for an early Christmas present.

   Clemson stops one play, and with no timeouts remaining, they are one first down from a game-tying, field goal attempt or a jump ball in the end zone, with their quartet of Fred Gibson-like receivers, from winning it.

   A 40-yard punt angled out of bounds and the Tigers have to go at least 50 yards with no timeouts to attempt a game-tying field goal. Thoughts of a punt getting blocked or a return for a touchdown appear remote considering that special teams was then, and has been since, the strongest part of his team.

   And, even if you agree with Richt's reasoning of taking the bull by the horns, showing confidence in his offense, which of course the players loved, then why did he change his spots and turn into a pussy cat in much more favorable circumstances in the final minutes at South Carolina?

   The Bulldogs led 10-7 with 2:54 remaining when they faced a fourth-and-two from the Gamecocks' seven-yard line. Richt sent Billy Bennett on to kick 25-yard field goal which gave them a six-point lead which nearly disappeared before the Gamecocks' self destructed at Georgia's two-yard line.

   Why didn't Richt go for it in those circumstances?

   That appeared to be the perfect opportunity to take the bull by the horns, challenge the offense and say something like, ''You want to win this game? ... We haven't scored an offensive touchdown against these guys in two years, let's get this first down, punch it in and end this thing.''

   And, if they didn't make the first down, the Bulldogs were still in good position. The Gamecocks were backed inside their own territory, as they had been most of the second half, and they were not exactly feeling confident.

   Corey Jenkins definitely would have had visions of David Pollack the first play he dropped back to pass from his end zone. The clock, with nearly three minutes left, could have also worked in the Bulldogs' favor.

   It wasn't all out desperation time yet. If the Gamecocks threw several incompletions, Lou Holtz would have been considering the possibility of punting on fourth down and using his two timeouts to get the ball back.

   At best, the Gamecocks still had 65 yards to go to even set up a game-tying field goal attempt from a kicker would had already missed one and would be under considerable pressure. And, if he makes it, there's still overtime.

   As it was, Richt clearly defined the situation for the Gamecocks.

   They knew as badly as they had played, they could win it with a touchdown in their final possession while using all four downs to do it.

   They had the enthusiastic home crowd egging them on.

   And, they had a Georgia defense playing on its heels, allowing easy completions underneath to a team that had struggled completing a pass beyond the line of scrimmage most of the game, thus adding to South Carolina's confidence.

   Despite making two awkward decisions with the game on the line, Richt's Bulldogs are 2-0 against stiff competition, while still on course for their goal of an SEC title, when they very easily could have been 0-2.

   It seems like Richt is the Phil Mickelson of football coaches. He doesn't know when to go for the green in two with the three-wood over the lake and when to lay up, cutting his losses momentarily, but improving his odds at winning.

   If any of these situations crop up in the next two weeks against Northwestern State and New Mexico State, that's another story altogether.

   But they will pop up again, probably at Alabama on Oct. 5 or at home against Tennessee on Oct. 12, and no one is exactly sure how Richt will handle them.

   If he makes a decision that decreases the Bulldogs' chances of winning and they win again anyway, people will shake their heads and say Richt is one lucky son of a gun and it might be divine intervention that they win the SEC.

   If he makes a decision that increases the Bulldogs' chances of winning and they lose, people will at least be comforted in the fact that Richt seems to be getting a hang of this thing and is just growing up as a head coach.

   But if Richt makes a decision that decreases the Bulldogs' chances of winning and they lose because of it, watch out.

   Because mid-way through the fourth quarter of every game from then on fans everywhere are going to want to turn him over their knees (no timeout corner here for parents who think hitting a child is wrong), send him to his room without supper, ground him and take away his car keys.


Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Wednesday, September 18, 2002.


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