Buck Blanz
Tournament Time
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
For college basketball fans around the country, we are just under two weeks away from the tournament season that each of us felt robbed from a year ago.
Thankfully, the sports world has been able to work around those obstacles and resume play.
With that time of year rolling around again the spotlight appears to be on the SEC Tournament more than recent years due to the fact there is a new frontrunner.
The SEC Tournament beginning March 10th, is held at Bridgestone Arena, in Nashville Tennessee and with Alabama leading the with a 13-1 conference record it is shaping up to be a good one.
Let’s take a look and see how each contender is looking heading into the last week of regular season conference play.
Alabama 18-6 (13-2): Ranked 6th in the country, The Alabama Crimson Tide has dominated the SEC in conference play only giving up losses to 18th ranked Missouri and 24th ranked Oklahoma team in the BIG12 vs. SEC Challenge.
Nate Oats and The Crimson Tide have relied on the “Three and D” play style (often shooting over 40% from three) and it paid off pretty well most of the season with a couple of hiccups recently.
The Alabama squad should be well rested coming off of a double by and not playing until noon on March 12th.
Arkansas 18-5 (10-4): Ranked 20th in the country The Razorbacks are on an eight-game conference win-streak currently with a huge test against LSU on Saturday.
Adding to their win-streak with an impressive victory Wednesday night over Alabama, the Razorbacks appear to be playing their best basketball confidently at the right time.
LSU 14-7 (9-5): This is an LSU team that can flat out score with Guard Cameron Thomas (Averaging 22.7 ppg) who leads the league in scoring, putting up 104 on the Auburn Tigers.
After their statement across the league against Auburn I think they have put the SEC on notice.
Florida 12-6 (8-5): After the unfortunate loss of the Gators key player Keyontae Johnson (Preseason SEC Player of the Year) back in December, many people wrote Mike White’s squad off.
Against all odds Florida has played themselves into maybe a four seed in the SEC Tournament and maybe an eighth seed in the national tournament.
Tennessee 16-6 (9-6): Currently ranked 25th in the country, the Tennessee Volunteers have been famous for their defense these past few years. However, in recent games the Vols are giving up over one point per possession while also being inconsistent with their scoring.
Ole Miss 13-9 (8-7): Considered a bubble team with some work to do, according to Bracketology expert Joe Lunardi, but the Rebels have been on the move recently.
Winning five out of their last six games has allowed Ole Miss to have the opportunity to use the conference tournament to add to their resume for an at-large for the national tournament.
Missouri 14-7 (7-7): This 24th ranked Missouri team is a team that is trending in the wrong direction at the wrong time losing four out of their last five games.
Missouri is another team that will look to try and add to their resume in the SEC Tournament but with quite a bit of work to do it seems nearly impossible.
Kentucky 8-13 (7-7): Obviously Kentucky is considered one of college basketball’s “Blue Blood” programs but has had an unfortunate year nonetheless.
With their only hope at a national tournament appearance is through winning the SEC Tournament, it is fair to say that goal is out of reach.
Teams that are eliminated from an at-large NCAA Tournament bid. Better luck next year…
Georgia 14-9 (7-9)
Mississippi State 12-11 (6-8)
Auburn 11-13 (5-10)
South Carolina 5-11 (3-9)
Texas A&M 8-7 (2-6)
Vanderbilt 6-13 (2-11)
The SEC Tournament starts March 10th and although Alabama has seemingly run away with the regular season, the conference championship is up for grabs for anyone.
Only time will tell if we will get to see an SEC team appear in the FInal Four for the third time in four years.
Descending Hawks
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Hawk fans across the country seemed to be optimistic about this season with Atlanta looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017 when they played the Washington Wizards.
In order to reach those goals, Atlanta needs to win games and losing to the Knicks like they did recently 123-112 isn’t going to cut it.
Almost exactly a year ago the Hawks traded for Houston center Clint Capela but fans had to wait until this season to see him in action due to a heel injury.
However, so far this season Capela has averaged 13.9 ppg, 14.0 rpg, and 2.2 blocks per game which, to a team that ranked 27th out of 30 teams in defensive efficiency, is a tremendous addition to a team with great shooting ability.
The Hawks appear to be a team stacked with a young talent, and with young talent in today’s NBA that usually suggests many jump shots.
Atlanta does fall into the stereotype but they do it quite well. Behind the fan favorites in Trae Young, Cam Reddish, and Kevin Huerter, the Hawks have no shortage of shooting.
Hawks General Manager, Travis Schlenk even added depth for the shooters with additions of Gallinari and Bogdanovic, while also bringing in veteran leadership.
The numerous offseason moves made Atlanta look like they were going to be able to compete with everyone this season. The Hawks had people buying what they were doing early on while they were able to hang with the Nets on back-to-back games.
Now, with Atlanta sitting at 12-16 and third in the division (11th in the East), they are just a few spots out of the playoffs and Hawks All-Star hopeful Trae Young wants nothing less.
There is no doubt that Trae Young and company can sell tickets, but in a world where nobody can buy those tickets these consecutive losses seem much larger to the fans at home.
The Hawks are currently on a four-game skid beginning with their first nationally televised game of the season a week ago against the Mavericks.
Since then, they have taken losses from the Spurs, Pacers, and Knicks, all of which by more than 10 points. So, I think it is fair to say that Atlanta is in a slump and giving up 120 points a game isn’t going to make it any easier.
Although Clint Capela is having a career year, he can’t do it all. The Hawks need to have the veteran leadership from Gallinari and Rondo (who just won a championship last season) begin to assert themselves for the young and inexperienced players.
The three best defenders for Atlanta are Capela, Hunter, and Collins, all of which are consistently in the starting five for Head Coach Lloyd pierce. So, while the Hawks added many shooters to try and keep scorers on the floor, they have not been able to add depth and strengthen the defensive side of the ball.
I am not saying it is abandon ship mode in Atlanta, however, I am saying it is gut wrenching time. With the All-Star break a month away, teams and players will be putting their best foot forward to try and set themselves up to be in contention for a top eight seed within the conference while others will look to distance themselves from the pack.
If Atlanta cannot begin to turn things around, Hawks fans will begin to point a finger at someone here soon.
Crean Of The Crop?
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It has been three years since The University of Georgia moved on from former head basketball coach Mark Fox and hired Tom Crean, who seemed to be a perfect fit for what the Bulldogs were looking for at the time.
However, looking back at his past three seasons with the Bulldogs, things do not appear to be getting any better.
Before coming to Athens, Crean coached at two basketball powerhouses in Marquette and Indiana also coaching two of the NBA biggest stars to date in Dwyane Wade and Victor Oladipo.
The resume Crean had established seemed promising for Georgia fans and were hopeful to be able to return to the NCAA tournament in a few short years after his hire but so far, the only thing to show for it is a first overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft in Anthony Edwards.
Upon Crean’s hire the main focus of the Bulldog basketball program was to be competitive not only within the conference but also earning NCAA tournament bids and winning tournament games. After a 9-34 start in conference play, it is safe to say that Crean has definitely underachieved to this point.
Crean began his tenure at Georgia by talking about his recruiting successes at Indiana and Marquette with the idea that would be able to do something similar in Athens.
He was able to come through on his quest to sign the nation’s top guard in 2019 in Anthony Edwards.
Since the signing of Edwards, the Bulldogs have let some of the best recruits coming out of the state slip away. Other schools like Auburn, Alabama, LSU and even some mid major schools are poaching recruits from my home state.
However, heading into the 2021 season the Bulldogs had some solid pieces coming back from last year with Sahvir Wheeler and Toumani Camara.
They were also able to add some transfers as well to improve their roster. The Bulldogs began their season with an undefeated 7-0 non-conference record, but their biggest win was against an unranked Cincinnati team.
The Bulldogs dropped to 7-4 after going 0-4 in the first four SEC games of the season losing to Mississippi State, LSU, Arkansas (by 30), Auburn (by 18).
So, it is safe to say that although it was the best start since their 1982-83 season it wasn’t as good as some thought.
These losses triggered some “worrisome” emails in the newly appointed AD in Athens Josh Brooks’ inbox.
Patience is key for Brooks, if you look at head baseball coach in Athens Scott Strickland, who had four straight losing seasons in Athens before the Bulldogs appeared at number 8 in top 25 back in 2018.
Athletic Director Josh Brooks is adamant that if you want to build a successful program ‘the right way’ it takes some time.
Although Crean is just 39-43 overall in Athens, it seems that Tom Crean has the right people believing in his abilities to get the Bulldogs where they need to be.
Signing Day
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The most challenging year recruiters have ever faced is finally over as one of the most anticipated days for college football fans on National Signing Day came and went.
Alabama was once again able to grab the top ranked class followed by Ohio State, Georgia, Clemson, and Oregon to round out the top-5.
Once again, the legendary Nick Saban brings in the top ranked recruiting class of 2021. Alabama was able to land arguably the best class of offensive linemen Tuscaloosa has ever seen.
Scary to hear those words coming off of a National Championship season as well as landing the third best running back in Camar Wheaton out of Texas.
It feels like Alabama is always grabbing the number one spot in anything football related, and they don’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Saban’s protege, Kirby Smart, has modeled his program at Georgia to be much like the one he came from in Tuscaloosa back in 2016.
Since Kirby was hired, he has been nothing short of a great asset in recruiting for the Bulldogs and this year proves no different as they got their 11th top-10 recruiting class in a row.
The Bulldogs came in at number three this year with a lot of help from the late dual-threat QB commit Brock Vandagriff, who is the latest addition to the very talented UGA QB room.
The other name often mentioned along with Georgia in the SEC east are the Florida Gators.
However, I would say that Dan Mullen bringing in just the 10th best recruiting class this year is a little bit of a letdown.
The Gators had a phenomenal 2020 season through a tough schedule, earning the SEC east championship and a shot at Alabama in the SEC Championship game.
Many of those players have declared for the NFL draft bringing Dan Mullen and company back to the drawing board. However, with the 10th ranked class in this year’s recruiting race Mullen was able to reload in some key positions for the Gators.
Mullen Landed tight ends Gage Wilcox and Nick Elksins as well as bringing in Caros Del Rio and Jalen Kitna at quarterback replacing one of the most famous duos last year in Kyle Pitts and Kyle Trask.
As for the other national powerhouses, Clemson and Ohio State were able to make their presences felt once again by reloading what have been two great programs for the last five to seven seasons.
Lastly, many high school athletes dream of becoming a college athlete but few are able to achieve it. Each recruit signing on NSD is giving themselves an opportunity to make an impact at the next level, make your mark!
Congratulations to all of the 2021 signees on the Georgia Coast!
Brunswick High School
Amarion Whitefield – Georgia Military College
Tyrease Jones – Savannah State University
AJ Wilson – Georgia Military College
KJ Lee – Georgia Military College
Josiah Bess – Greensboro College
David Newbauer – Greensboro College
Keegan Carroll – Greensboro College
Kyle Rehberg – Rose Hulman Institute of Technology
Kaleb Hampton – Reinhardt University
Glynn Academy
Jordan Swain – Georgia Military College
Chase Gabriel – Florida International University
Marvin Dallas – Louisville University
Ryan Seay-Savannah State University
MCA
Trenton Johnson-Savannah State University
Ryan Burkhart-Savannah State University
Miles Wood-Washington and Lee University
Khay Loyd-Army
Camden
Darryl Williams-Georgia Military College
Deterias Glover-Austin Peay University
Spreading Their Wings?
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Looking around the NFL as the Super Bowl gets closer, teams that didn’t make the playoffs this season have begun making beneficial moves for their future.
The Atlanta Falcons, much like the Jacksonville Jaguars, had some soul searching to do while figuring out how to put their best foot forward.
Leaving the fans to speculate on what will happen throughout the crucial 2021 offseason for the Atlanta Falcons.
The Atlanta Falcons franchise has a clean slate, without a General Manager or a Head Coach, to make the 2021 offseason the most important in Franchise history.
First, the Falcons hired former Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who throughout the past two seasons led one of the most balanced offenses in the NFL.
This past season Smith’s offense ranked second in defensive efficiency, fourth in points per game at 30.7 and third in yards per game at 396.4.
Looking at Smith’s numbers alone is encouraging for Falcon fans as they have seen their best offense turn into a stand still through the last four seasons.
Unfortunately for Smith, Falcons fans are not going to be easy to work with as the young offensive minded coaches before him (Sean Mcvay, Matt Lefleur, and Kyle Shannahan) have set the bar very high with little time to make their mark.
Arthur Smith will look to do something very similar in Atlanta as he hopes to turn around a franchise with a horrendous record of 4-12.
After the Falcons found their guy to lead them out of the locker room on Sundays, their next mission was to find the best fit for General Manager for the future of the Franchise.
The Falcons decided to hire 40-year-old Terry Fontenot, who has spent the last 18 years working with the New Orleans Saints in various positions.
Fontenot was most recently acting as the assistant general manager and began in the marketing intern before moving his way up through the ranks.
Fontenot attracted the Falcons attention considering the position by demonstrating tough decision making that resulted in championship contending teams year in and year out.
Where does this leave the Falcons?…
For starters… Anyone that is entering the 2021 offseason $37 Million over the salary cap after going 4-12 the season before is in a rough spot.
That is exactly where the Falcons are sitting, so Terry Fontenot and Arthur Smith have their work cut out for them in their first season.
Fontenot’s New Orleans experience shows that he has been a part of an organization that has prioritized winning over money and finding ways to make it work. Given his background and the recent success in New Orleans, it seems like the Falcons franchise is in good hands.
The only question that remains is whether or not the Falcons are going to try and win now or begin to rebuild for the future.
From ownership down to newly hired head coach Arthur Smith the goal is to make it possible for the franchise to establish consistent success.
As far as Matt Ryan and Julio Jones’ future in Atlanta, Owner Arthur Blank says that those decisions are completely in the hands of Smith and Fontenot to be able to create their own clear path for success within the Franchise.
Changing Times
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Change is coming in Jacksonville and it’s coming fast.
After concluding the 2020 NFL season with a horrendous record of 1-15 (earning them the first overall pick) the Jaguars have quite a bit of soul searching to do.
The Jaguars are looking to hire a new General Manager as well as Head Coach, and with the number one pick most people are looking at this offseason as one of the most important offseasons in franchise history.
The first two items on the list for the Jaguars this offseason is to find a Head Coach and General Manager, but not in a rush.
Jacksonville has been given an extremely unique opportunity to gut the franchise and rebuild to a talented roster all in the same offseason.
While it is a unique opportunity for Jacksonville, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a tall task. Ideally, the Jaguars would like to look for candidates that will be able to engage with the young talent within the franchise getting them to buy in, in order to create a winning culture.
The Jaguars met with former Ohio State and University of Florida Head Coach Urban Meyer about the Head coaching position. Meyer has since begun to put together a coaching staff in case he is able to get the job.
If the Jaguars do decide to go with Meyer, the Jacksonville fans as well as Meyer are going to have to deal with a few changes.
Meyer would come out of college having won three National Championships and a record of 187-32 as a college coach, which is incredible. However, in the NFL a three loss season is terrific where at Ohio State he might’ve been fired after three losses in a season, so both the fans of Urban Meyer and Meyer himself will have to be ready to handle some tough losses.
Also, throughout Meyer’s coaching career he has been one of the best recruiters, but that won’t transfer to the NFL very well, Jaguars fans will quickly be able to see how Meyer is able to develop the talent given.
All-in-all, whoever is able to get the Head Coaching job for Jacksonville next year is faced with turning around the worst record in franchise history.
The Jaguars are looking for leadership throughout the offseason, the franchise needs a clear vision and a plan of action for the franchise to get back on track.
For many fans, getting back on track would mean executing with their first overall pick this year.
Having said that, the Jaguars don’t have a good track record in recent years with quarterbacks, Jacksonville has passed on two marquee picks in Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes.
With the Jaguars getting their first number one pick in franchise history this upcoming draft they are looking to capitalize on it, helping change the culture.
However, fans will get more insight as to how Jacksonville will use their first overall pick after they find a General Manager and Head Coach.
Jacksonville is looking to greatly improve their status heading into the 2021 season and hoping to compete in another AFC title game in the near future.
2021 Cocktail Party
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Heading into the 2020 college football season the Georgia Bulldogs looked to be a force to be reckoned with in the SEC east.
That came crumbling down relatively quickly for the Bulldogs.
A two-loss season would normally not be worrisome for Georgia fans but when you are limited to ten games and they’re all conference games, it makes it a little more difficult.
Georgia fans always expect to be in Championship contention and with the news of quarterback JT Daniels returning to Athens next season, that puts the Bulldogs back in the conversation for next year.
After just four games of action this past season Daniels accounted for 1,231 yards, 10 touchdowns, and only 2 interceptions, which gave the Bulldogs a much-needed passing presence on offense.
Daniels is fortunate enough to have a good group of wideouts to throw to, including Kearis Jackson, Jermaine Burton, and George Pickens; allowing Bulldogs fans to enjoy some home run pass plays for the first time in a while.
Complementing the passing game next season will be, once again, very reliable running backs that get the final push when it matters. Along with an experienced offensive line the Georgia Bulldogs look to be a championship contender once again in the 2021 season.
However, down in Gainesville things will look a little different next year for the Florida Gators.
After winning the SEC east and coming up short in the SEC championship game against top-ranked Alabama, the Gators got manhandled against the Oklahoma Sooners 20-55 in the Cotton Bowl.
However, Dan Mullen led the fans to believe that there were more players out than there were ‘I thought our scout team guys played well’.
Either way, it didn’t put a good end towards what seemed to be a step in the right direction for the Gator program.
Florida was able to put an end to Georgia’s three-year SEC East title streak in Jacksonville this season, one of the first items on each Gator fan’s annual checklist.
Along with the win in Jacksonville, the Gators put up historic numbers, while being led by Heisman candidate Kyle Trask alongside Kadarius Toney and Kyle Pitts, both of whom proved to be matchup problems all season long.
It was only Todd Grantham’s defense that seemed to be the weak link throughout Florida’s season falling from seventh in efficiency a season ago to out of the top 30 this year.
As for next season, the Gators have some searching to do, as they lose all three of Kyle Trask, Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney to the NFL Draft.
With Dan Mullen as head coach Florida will most likely come back with another stout offense looking to get the ball into the endzone often.
Hot Start
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
A season ago, Tom Crean was entering his second season as Head Coach and the Bulldogs had a future first overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft in Anthony Edwards.
Despite having such an elite talent as Edwards, the Bulldogs failed to finish the season above .500 on the year.
With Crean being able to bring in a talented group of freshmen along with Edwards, the bulldog faithful hope to see much more success without Edwards than we were able to see with him wearing the red and black.
The Bulldogs two leading scorers in Anthony Edwards and Rayshaun Hammonds left for the NBA the Bulldogs after last season, leaving Tom Crean and the rest of the Bulldog coaching staff having to replace the team’s top two leading scorers for the 2019 season.
Point Guard Sahvir Wheeler (9.0 PPG and 4.5 Asst.) and Center Toumani Camara (6.6 PPG and 4.3 RPG) were the best two returning players for the Dawgs in terms of numbers and in-game experience.
In 2019, the Bulldogs were 16-16 overall and 5-13 in SEC play giving them the 13th spot out of 14 in the SEC tournament. Heading into the 2020 season Tom Crean and the Bulldogs look to improve the program that has seen much improvement since Mark Fox left in 2018.
The Bulldogs were off to a Hot 7-0 start that carried them through the non-conference without losing a game.
Although, having their best win in that span being against the Cincinnati Bearcats at home in Athens, it doesn’t discredit the Bulldogs best start since the 1982-83 season where the Bulldogs had their one and only Final Four appearance.
As conference play begins with SEC Men’s basketball, let us take a look and see what the 7-1 Bulldogs look like and what to look for moving forward.
As expected, leading the way for the Bulldogs this season is the duo consisting of Sahvir Wheeler averaging 13.7 PPG and 7.4 Asst. and Toumani Camara averaging 14.8 PPG along with 8.3 RPG so far through eight games this season.
As the Georgia Bulldogs get further into the season, they will need Wheeler to take better care of the ball as well as being able to feed the hot hand down the stretch of games.
The biggest and best change for the fans of the Georgia basketball team is that the Bulldogs currently have five players averaging double figures and the Bulldogs also rank 11th in offensive rebounding and 18th in adjusted tempo.
Although not much was expected from the Bulldogs this season, they seem to be out to prove their worth on a campus that has had its eyes on the College Football Playoff for the past four seasons.
Wheeler, Camara and company look to better their conference record from a year ago, which ended up in just five SEC wins.
After a 7-0 start for the Bulldogs, they finally gave one away at home on December 30th to the Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-3) ending Georgia’s hopes at breaking a school record for best start in program history.
Soaring Down South
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Atlanta Hawks have devoted the last three seasons to growing and building their organization since parting ways with then head coach Mike Budenholzer in 2017.
However, this season looks different as the 2021 NBA regular season is underway.
Preparation for the 2021 season began early last February by making moves to bring former Houston Rockets Center Clint Capela to the city of Atlanta.
General Manager Travis Schlenk continued to work to add more talent through a lottery pick to catapult Atlanta to an NBA championship contender in the upcoming season.
This move landed names such as Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, reigning NBA champion Rajon Rondo, Kris Dunn and sixth pick Onyeka Okongwu from University of Southern California, putting Atlanta in a position to be one of the eight-best teams in the Eastern conference.
Adding to the mix, the talented young superstar Trae Young, who is looking to achieve some milestones.
Young is a key component to the Hawks success this year and with his ability to showcase his talent, he is certain to receive a contract extension when his rookie contract ends in 2022.
Atlanta’s talent pool combined with the NBA’s new play-in format to get into the playoffs, Atlanta just has to be a top 10 Eastern Conference team to earn a position in a three-game series to determine the two final seeds.
Moving into the season, the Hawks strength is offense. Last season, the Hawks were fifth in the league in their offensive rating at 111.2 points per game, proving that they can score on anyone.
The Hawks entire offense, centered around Trae Young, accompanied by John Collins and Kevin Huerter, is modeled after Golden State’s offense using Young as Stephan Curry in Atlanta’s system.
With the addition of Bogdanovic and Gallinari, who are two solid role players that can put the ball in the hoop, the Hawks open up more scoring options for the team.
The Hawks offense will also be strengthened by allowing Trae Young to take on a leadership role on the floor, playing off the ball as well as allowing him to play freely within the system.
It is important to circle back around to the addition of two-time NBA Champion Rajon Rondo.
By acquiring Rondo, the Hawks balance the team with some much needed veteran leadership after the retirement of the long-time great Vince Carter.
Rondo is a great role-player. Throughout the Lakers Bubble appearance last season, Rondo averaged 8.9 points per game along with 6.6 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game.
The Hawks needed a key role-player that has been in the league long enough to know how to approach each day with a one-day-at-a-time mentality.
Even though there were many significant improvements made to the offense this offseason, Atlanta is sure to see struggles ahead in their already weak defense.
The additions of Bogdanovic and Galinari will provide entertainment to fans and they will put up a lot of points, but they do not provide much reprieve in the Hawks defense.
