Counting the Days – Day 36

Welcome to our countdown! We have less than six weeks remaining until the first game. Each day leading up to the season opener, Patrick Garbin and I will each show three unique and creative ways why we think that number is special to the Dawgs. Named after a Jackie Chan film, 36 Crazyfists is a heavy metal band from Alaska. Their guitarist, Steve Holt, produces and engineers their albums. Still, I can’t help but think of something else when I hear the name “Steve Holt.” While Steve Holt is a legend on “Arrested Development,” the following are legendary moments and players in regards to Georgia football and the number 36:

By Dave McMahon—Twitter @dave_mc_stats

3 – Established three times, including twice by the same quarterback, the Georgia record for most completions in a game is 36. One of the two signal callers is probably one Bulldog fans might have guessed, while the other might come as a shocker: Eric Zeier completed 36 passes against Florida in 1993, and again versus Kentucky a year later, followed by Cory Phillips doing the same against Georgia Tech in 2000. Of the three games, Georgia was victorious for only the 1994 game against the Wildcats. Notably, Zeier currently holds seven of the top 12 single-game completion marks in Bulldogs history.

2 – From the passing game to the running game, here are three instances where 36 is important to Georgia in terms of running the ball... First, Todd Gurley rushed for 36 touchdowns in 30 games. Second, Lars Tate rushed for 36 touchdowns in 42 career games (okay, he scored four more in bowl games, but I forgot to mention him on day 40). Their official rushing totals of 36 touchdowns rank second all time in Georgia history. In case you couldn’t guess, Herschel Walker ranks first (officially with 49). Finally, this “36” concerns someone that did not even play for Georgia: Ron Dayne of Wisconsin, who officially rushed for 6,397 career yards, or 7,125 yards including bowl games. In his 47-game career including bowls, Dayne’s 36 yards rushing against Georgia in the 1998 Outback Bowl was the second-fewest he ever gained, whereas his 2.6 yards per rush against the Bulldogs was the lowest for his career.

1 –One of Georgia’s all-time greats is David Pollack, a three-time All-American and two-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year, who finished his Bulldog career with 36 sacks. Pollack’s 36 is the most in Georgia history, and seven more than the next-closest Dawg (Richard Tardits, 1985-1988). Pollack tallied 2, 14, 7½, and 12½ sacks, respectively, in his four seasons.

By Patrick Garbin—Twitter @PGarbinDT

3—It’s one of the most unusual, yet remarkable plays in Bulldogs’ football history: executed at Vanderbilt in 1975, a 36-yard “Shoestring Play” for a Georgia touchdown. With the Bulldogs leading 7-3 with around five minutes remaining until halftime, and possessing the ball at the Commodores’ 36-yard line, quarterback Ray Goff approached the football, spotted on the right hash mark, as Vanderbilt stood in its defensive huddle. Goff knelt in front of the ball and pretended to tie his shoe as the other 10 Bulldogs nonchalantly gathered at the left hash mark on the wide side of the field. Instantly, Goff, acting as the offense’s center, flipped the football to junior flanker Gene Washington. Acting as a running back, Washington raced down the left sideline with a convoy of nine blockers. Only one Commodore defender had the possibility of reaching Washington but he was quickly blocked out of the play by split end Steve Davis. As a confused Vanderbilt defense chased to no avail, Washington easily galloped 36 yards for a touchdown and what seemingly sparked an eventual 47-3 blowout. Video of Georgia’s “Shoestring Play” has been readily available for years; however, Larry Munson’s call of the play just recently surfaced. I’ve combined the two here:

2—Out of the Greater Atlanta Christian School, 6-foot-0, 245-pound No. 36 Brannan Southerland proved to be an extraordinary blocking fullback for Georgia, but he also contributed offensively. From 2005 through 2008, Southerland rushed 83 times for 170 yards—a hard-nose 2.0 yards per carry—and made 35 receptions for 289 yards. More so, the bruising fullback had a way of finding the end zone. Two days ago, I mentioned how Southerland’s career rushing touchdown percentage of 20.5 is a school record. In addition, his 22 career touchdowns scored (17 rushing, five receiving) are the most in Georgia football’s entire 124-year history of players who primarily played the fullback position for their careers. The top five:

1—Slotted at linebacker when he initially arrived at Georgia, No. 36 Willie McClendon finished his career in 1978 as the school’s third all-time leading rusher with 2,228 yards and still remains ranked 11th after nearly 40 years. The Bulldogs’ primary running back for only his senior season, McClendon played behind Kevin McLee in 1976 and 1977, rushing for more than a combined 900 yards. In 1978, and finally getting the majority of the carries at Georgia’s tailback position, McClendon rushed for 1,312 yards, including 100 or more in each of the Bulldogs’ first eight games of the season. His eight-game 100-yard rushing streak still ranks as the fourth longest in school history.