Counting the Days – Day 32
Welcome to our countdown! And, we have less than five weeks remaining before the first game.Each day leading up to the season opener, Patrick Garbin and I will each show three unique and creative ways that why we think that number is special to the Dawgs. They Might Be Giants, an alternative rock band, had a self-titled album in the mid-1980s with some quirky hits such as “Don’t Let’s Start” and “(She was a) Hotel Detective.” But, one of the more obscure songs is “32 Footsteps.” TMBG was one of the first bands I saw in college at the Georgia Theatre (I think Radi was with me).I liked the band then more than now because it was just two guys having fun. Now, it’s a full band and seems more commercial—maybe that’s just me. Speaking of liking, hopefully you’ll enjoy these Georgia football memories in regards to “32”:
By Dave McMahon—Twitter @dave_mc_stats
3 – One of the biggest games on Georgia’s schedule this season seemingly is the matchup up in Oxford against Ole Miss on September 24th. The Bulldogs have won 32 games against the Rebels, leading the all-time series, 32-12-1, and currently having a 10-game winning streak. Georgia’s longest win streak against Ole Miss is 12 consecutive victories from 1977 to 1988. The Rebels won the series’ first meeting in 1940, and actually led the series 3-5-1 through 1970, but the Dawgs have dominated since. Georgia is 9-5 all time at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, and they will likely need another win there this season if they want to compete for an SEC title in December.
2 – If you live anywhere in close proximately to Atlanta, you have probably heard Buck Belue from time-to-time on the radio, and perhaps have seen him on television. Whether you agree with what he says, or not, he was a big part of Georgia winning the National Championship in 1980 (yes, I know anyone can hand the ball off to Herschel Walker). But, he did more than that. Belue didn’t put up the most amazing numbers as a quarterback, but he was a great leader, guiding the Dawgs to impressive and important victories. He was 27-4 as a starting quarterback, and passed for 32 career touchdowns (one in particular to Lindsay Scott that Bulldog fans remember more than others). Belue was also intercepted 32 times during his Georgia career.
1 – Musa Smith played three seasons for the Dawgs in the early 2000s, including being an integral member of the 2002 SEC Championship team. Hailing from Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, No. 32 Smith rushed for 2,202 career yards and 19 touchdowns. His 1,324 yards rushing in 2002 marked the first time in a decade a Georgia player had rushed for 1,000+ yards in a single season since Garrison Hearst had accomplished the feat in 1992. The 1,324 yards rushing remains the third-highest total by a junior in Bulldog history. Smith’s final three games as a Dawg—against Georgia Tech, Arkansas in the SEC Championship, and Florida State in the Sugar Bowl—might have been his best, whereby he averaged 124 yards per game, six yards per rush, and scored three big touchdowns.
By Patrick Garbin—Twitter @PGarbinDT
3—Of the 790 wins by Georgia in its football history entering this season, four were by a 32-to-0 score, three of which resulted during the Bulldogs’ “Dream and Wonder” 9-1 campaign of 1927. What’s more, the three 32-0 victories in 1927, occurring against Virginia, Furman, and Clemson, resulted within the first six weeks of the season, and were Georgia’s first three home games of the year. In each of the three 32-0 decisions, the Bulldogs scored their points via five touchdowns while making two of five PATs.
2—Entering the 1978 season, a media outlet predicted that Georgia’s game against Vanderbilt that year would decide which team would finish ninth and 10th in the 10-member SEC, and for good reason. Losing 26 lettermen from the Bulldogs’ squad the year before, Georgia returned only 32 lettermen, including just two starters from a defense which was essentially the team’s lone bright spot during a 5-6 losing campaign in 1977. Nonetheless, winning three games within the first month of the season whereby it was the underdog, Georgia’s 1978 team transformed from underdogs to “Wonderdogs,” finishing with a 9-1-1 regular-season record despite the dim preseason forecasts. Makes you wonder…
1—“Lars! Tate! Lars! Tate! Lars! Tate!”—I can still hear the North and South sides of Sanford Stadium during the 1984 season opener against Southern Mississippi cheering on/greeting Georgia’s much-heralded, No. 32-wearing freshman tailback, just as they had done with Herschel Walker a few years before. Hailing from Indianapolis, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Tate, who could run the 40 in 4.4, was regarded by some as Georgia’s “next Herschel.” And, although his career fell short (but, wouldn’t anyone’s?), it was still an admirable tenure. Sharing the backfield with a number of prominent Bulldogs, Tate rushed for just over 1,000 yards and scored six touchdowns as a freshman and sophomore combined in 1984 and 1985. However, as Georgia’s primary tailback as a junior and senior, he rushed for nearly 2,000 yards, scored 31 touchdowns, and earned First Team All-SEC honors both seasons. Tate finished with 3,017 career rushing yards and 37 touchdowns—both marks ranking second behind you-know-who upon the Indiana native’s departure from the school. My fondest memory of Tate is his performance as a junior against Georgia Tech in 1986. The Bulldogs entered the game having dropped two in a row to the Yellow Jackets (can you imagine?!?), and were essentially in a must-win situation. Tate seemingly couldn’t be stopped, rushing for 154 yards on 27 carries and three touchdowns, including a five-yarder with around five minutes remaining which proved to be a game-winner in Georgia’s 31-24 victory. Two years later as a rookie with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, playing in only his third professional game, the second-round draft pick rushed for a 47-yard touchdown which, personally, is one of the most remarkable scoring runs I’ve ever witnessed: