Georgia sports roundup--Monday Nov. 10th

Atlanta Falcons / NFL --

The Falcons continued a surprising season with a 34-20 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday in Atlanta. Rookie quarterback Matt Ryan proved steady again at the helm, tossing a pair of touchdown passes. The Falcons also benefitted from intercepting the Saints three times. The Falcons improved their record to 6-3. They're also undefeated in 4 games this season inside the Georgia Dome.

College football weekend --

The Georgia Bulldogs escaped Lexington Saturday with a 42-38 win over the Kentucky Wildcats. Georgia scored their 8th win in 10 games on the season. Georgia Tech's Yellow Jackets were not so fortunate--losing their road game at North Carolina 28-7. Tech fell to 7-3 on the season. Georgia Southern's Eagles were also losers on Saturday, beaten on their home field in Statesboro by Samford, 27-17.

High school football --

Georgia's high school football season has reached the playoff stage following the final weekend of regular season action. Please check out gpb.org/football for all the latest on coverage.

Atlanta Hawks / NBA --

The Hawks are 5-0 to start their season, following an 89-85 win at Oklahoma City last night.

Atlanta Thrashers / NHL --

The Thrashers skated to a 5-2 win over division rival Carolina in Raleigh. It was the 4th straight win for Atlanta.

Georgia sports roundup--Friday, Nov. 7th

College football--

The weekend ahead features Saturday games for Georgia, Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern. Georgia's 14th-ranked Bulldogs are on the road to face Kentucky in Lexington at 12:30. The Bulldogs are off a blowout loss to Florida last week--Georgia looks to improve a 7-2 record. Tech's Yellow Jackets are ranked 22nd in the nation, also on the road at #19 North Carolina for a noon kickoff Saturday. Tech brings their 7-2 record to the contest. In Statesboro, Georgia Southern with their 5-4 record will play host to Samford at noon.

High School football--

Getting close to the playoffs, GPB offers another featured webcast game of the week tonight at 7:30. Brookstone plays at Schley County. You can watch the game online at gpb.org/football.

Georgia sports for Monday, September 1st

Georgia Bulldogs/college football--

The top-ranked Bulldogs opened their season Saturday afternoon with a 45-21 domination of Georgia Southern in Athens. The Bulldogs rolled to a 30-0 lead in posting the victory. The game also marked the debut of UGA VII, the schools latest Bulldog mascot.

Atlanta Braves--

A dismal season continues for the Braves, punctuated by their weekend in Washington D-C. The Braves were swept in 3 games, capped by the Nationals' 8-4 Sunday win. The game turned in the 8th inning, when the Braves allowed 5 Washington runs. The Braves open a 3-game series this afternoon in Miami, facing the Florida Marlins. The Braves have faded to a 59-78 record--17 games out of first in the NL-East division. 25 games remain on the Atlanta schedule to close-out their 2008 season.

Georgia sports for Friday, May 23rd

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves continued their hot-play at home, completing a 4-game series sweep of the rival New York Mets at Turner Field with the 4-2 win on Thursday night. The 3 runs scored in the 7th inning to turn a 2-1 deficit was highlighted by Chipper Jones' go-ahead RBI-single. ]
Tim Hudson earned the pitching win with a strong effort, his 7th victory already this season. The Braves are 6-1 on this current homestand, and winners of 13 of their past 14 at Turner Field. The homestand concludes with a 4-game Memorial Day weekend matchup against the Arizona Diamondbacks, opening tonight.


College baseball-State teams' conference tournaments--

Georgia's Bulldogs were eliminated from the SEC baseball tournament with their 5-2 loss to Alabama Thursday. Georgia was the top-seed in the SEC tourney.

Georgia Tech was a loser in their Thursday game from the ACC baseball tournament, 15-12 to Miami. Tech will play next on Saturday morning, facing Clemson at 10am.

Georgia Southern's Eagles ended their Southern Conference tournament game at 2am this morning, falling to Elon College 16-5. GSU plays an elimination game this afternoon in Charleston against UNC-Greensboro.

Georgia sports for Friday, February 1st

Signs that the Atlanta Braves are closer to spring training come today. Many of the team's pitchers begin conditioning workouts and throwing sessions at Turner Field. The sessions will go through much of the next two weeks. New to the pitching staff is Tom Glavine, who in the off-season returned to his original club after five years with the Mets in New York. The Braves hope for the return of Mike Hampton to the rotation. He's been out for the last two seasons rehabbing from a pair of elbow surgeries.

The struggles continue for the Georgia women's basketball team. The Lady Bulldogs lost in Athens to visiting Kentucky 47-44. Georgia's record fell to 16-5, and 3-3 inside Southeastern Conference play. The news was better for Georgia Tech's women, as they beat Clemson in Atlanta 77-59. From men's play, Georgia Southern lost on Thursday to Chattanooga 96-91.

From pro hockey, the Atlanta Thrashers will be without their top scorer for two games over the weekend, but the news could have been worse. Ilya Kovalchuk injured right knee during the team's Wednesday win over Pittsburgh. An MRI test was taken as a precaution. Kovalchuk hopes to return to action next week.

The Atlanta Hawks' Joe Johnson has been selected as a reserve for the NBA's All-Star Game on February 17th.

Former Georgia Tech defensive coordiantor Jon Tenuta has landed a new job. After serving as D-coordinator for six years with Tech, he now joins Notre Dame as assistant head coach of defense.

Georgia sports for Friday, January 18th

The Atlanta Braves Thursday got some off-season work done with players on their roster. The team has avoided arbitration with 1st baseman Mark Teixeira and signed him to a 1-year contract worth 12.5 million dollars. Teixeira came to Atlanta last season in a late-July trade. In his time with the Braves to round-out the 2007 campaign, Teixeria batted .317 with 17 homers and 56 RBI's. In other moves, the Braves also agreed to 1-year deals with pitchers Mike Gonzalez and Tyler Yates, as well as with infielder Omar Infante. The Braves also traded infielder Willy Aybar to Tampa Bay, getting left-handed pitcher Jeff Ridgway in return.

Women's college basketball action from last night: 12th-ranked Georgia lost to Vanderbilt, 67-59. Ga Tech's women scored a victory against NC State 67-63.

Men's college hoops action included a Mercer win at Florida Gulf Coast, 99-77. Georgia Southern won on the road at Elon College, 67-57.

From pro hockey, the Atlanta Thrashers lost at home in a shootout with Montreal, 3-2.

Georgia sports for Tuesday, December 11th

With the news of Michael Vick’s prison sentence still fresh in their minds, the Atlanta Falcons in the prime time focus of Monday Night Football were blistered at home by the New Orleans Saints, 34-14. Saints-QB Drew Brees shredded the Falcon-defense for 328 yards passing and 3 touchdowns. Chris Redman got the start at QB for the Falcons—he threw for 298 yards and 2 touchdowns. The 34 points surrendered by the Falcons was a season-high. In their last 4 games, the Falcons have been outscored 124-50.

In the game, a few Falcon players showed their support for teammate Michael Vick. Defensive back Deangelo Hall ran onto the field before the game holding a Vick-poster, and had MV7 written on his eyeshades. Receiver Roddy White lifted his jersey after scoring a touchdown to reveal a shirt that read Free Mike Vick. Earlier in the day, Vick was sentenced in Virginia federal court to 23 months behind bars for his admitted role in a dogfighting operation.

The Georgia Tech athletics family has lost a Hall of Famer. George Morris, who starred at linebacker during the Yellow Jackets’ perfect 1952 season, died at the age of 76 of an apparent heart attack. Morris played on teams coached by Bobby Dodd that went 23-0-1 in 1951 and ’52. The perfect season of 52 included a win over Mississippi in the Sugar Bowl. Morris is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

Pro basketball from last night saw the Atlanta Hawks win their 3rd straight game, 98-87 at Orlando.

Monday men’s college hoops action: Georgia Southern a winner at home over Fort Valley State, 93-78.

Johnson Leaves Navy for Georgia Tech Job

Johnson. (AP Photo)

Navy football coach Paul Johnson is headed to Georgia Tech after turning around a struggling program in six years at the military academy.

Johnson informed the team at an 11:45 a.m. meeting at Ricketts Hall, where the football offices are located, said Scott Strasemeier, Navy's associate athletic director for sports information.
Georgia Tech has scheduled a news conference for Friday at 5:30 p.m. EST, when athletic director Dan Radakovich will announce a new head coach.

Johnson, a former Georgia Southern coach, also negotiated with Southern Methodist and Duke this week.

He will replace Chan Gailey, who was fired one day after a 7-5 regular season ended with his sixth straight loss to Georgia. Gailey had four years left on his contract at $1 million per season.

The Midshipmen had a miserable 1-20 record in the two seasons before Johnson took over. He had a 2-10 record in his first season, but turned things around quickly. He led the Midshipmen to five straight bowl games, a school record. Navy will play Utah in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 20 in San Diego.

Johnson was 45-29 at Navy. He was also successful against the other service academies. He got his sixth straight win against rival Army last week, an unprecedented streak.

Click here for more GPB News coverage.

(The Associated Press)

Georgia sports for Wednesday, November 14th

Georgia Bulldogs men’s basketball player Billy Humphrey has been arrested by university police on a felony weapons charge. Newspapers in Athens and Atlanta report that Humphery is charged with possessing a pocket knife more than two inches long--a violation of university policy. Humphery is the Bulldogs’ starting guard, and scored 13 points in the team’s opening win Friday night. Georgia plays Grambling State tonight.

In men's college basketball action from Tuesday evening: The Mercer Bears were unable to pull another early-season upset, as they lost at home in Macon to visiting Alabama, 90-83. The game drew the first sellout of the history of the nearly 4-year old arena, which seats 3,200. On Saturday, Mercer opened their season with a stunning upset over Southern California. Other action included a win for Savannah State at home over SC-Aiken, 71-65. Kennesaw State was a loser at Auburn, 74-66.

Women's college hoops had Georgia's club improve to 3-0. The 8th-ranked Lady Bulldogs at home in Athens turned back Georgia Southern easily, 105-66. Tasha Humphrey scored 18 points.

From pro hockey, the Atlanta Thrashers at home scored a late comeback to top the Florida Panthers 3-2 in overtime. Marian Hossa scored with 3 seconds left in regulation to tie—-Ilya Kovalchuk netted the winner 27 seconds into OT.

Georgia sports for Monday, November 5th

The Falcons returned to action and recorded a win in the 20-16 decision over the San Francisco 49ers inside the Georgia Dome Sunday afternoon. Warrick Dunn ran for 100 yards, including a 9-yard TD run. Fullback Ovie Mughelli also had a 1-yard run for score, while Morten Anderson provided a pair of 4th quarter field goals. The win pushes Atlanta’s record to 2-6 for the season.

Recapping the college football action from Saturday-—the Georgia Bulldogs outlasted Troy in Athens, 44-34. Georgia is ranked 10th in the nation, and will host number-18 Auburn on Saturday.

Georgia Southern is in a three-way tie atop the Southern Conference standings, after their 38-35 win at Wofford Saturday. The Eagles are 7-2 overall, and 4-2 in the conference. They are tied with Wofford and Elon atop the conference.

NBA action last night had the Atlanta Hawks suffer a tough loss at Detroit 92-91. The Hawks are now 1-1 – they won their opener Friday night against Dallas.

From pro hockey, the Atlanta Thrashers complete a good trip with 4 wins in 7 games, including a 6-4 win at Tampa Saturday. The Thrashers are now 5-9 overall.

Georgia sports for Monday, October 22nd

The Atlanta Falcons saw their record fall to 1-6 on the NFL season, losing on the road at New Orleans Sunday 22-16. Byron Leftwich made his first start of the season at quarterback, replacing Joey Harrington. Leftwich was effective in leading the Falcons to a 13-7 halftime lead. However, he injured his right ankle in the 3rd quarter and had to leave the contest. Leftwich posted 15-of-23 passing for 145 yards and a touchdown. Harrington finished the game at QB.

Recapping the college football weekend: Ga Tech scored the 34-10 win over Army in Tech’s homecoming game in Atlanta. Bad news was the injury to running back Tashard Choice—MRI test results are expected later today.

Georgia Southern held-on for a big win on the road at Appalachain State, 38-35. The Eagles led 38-20 and were able to preserve the win down the stretch. Running back Lamar Lewis ran for 74 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Georgia sports for Friday, October 19th

After 6 losses to open the season--and then firing their head coach--the Atlanta Thrashers found victory for the first time last night by scoring the 5-3 win over the Rangers in Atlanta. The victory came with general manager Don Waddell coaching the team in the interim. The Thrashers scored the first 4 goals of the game to take control. There was bad news, as goaltender Kari Lehtonen had to leave in the 1st period with a strained groin. It’s an injury that’s plagued him for much of his young career. Today, the team placed Lehtonen on the injured reserve list. They've called-up goalie Ondrej Pavelec from their minor leauge affiliate in the AHL.

Setting the college football weekend ahead: Georgia Tech is home in Atlanta to face Army Saturday afternoon. Georgia Southern's Eagles are on the road tomorrow to face Appalachain State.

Around our state tonight, it's another full schedule of high school football.

Georgia sports for Monday, October 1st

The Braves on Sunday were 3-0 losers to the Astros in Houston--the final game of the 2007 season for Atlanta. After a surge of 8 wins in 9 games, the Braves within the last week lost 4-of-5 to get knocked out of the playoff race. Atlanta finished with a record of 84-78 for the season. Chipper Jones was hitless at the plate Sunday to finish with a .337 batting average. In his quest for the batting title, he is 2nd to Colorado’s Matt Holiday, who is hitting .340, and has a 1-game playoff game to play today which will count in the statistics. Off-season questions for the Braves to answer include whether to re-sign centerfielder Andruw Jones, who will become a free agent.

From the NFL, the Atlanta Falcons posted their 1st win of the 2007 season, knocking-off the Houston Texans in the Ga Dome, 26-16. Joey Harrington threw a pair of touchdown passes, and Morten Anderson kicked 4 field goals in the victory. The Falcons beat their former backup quarterback, Matt Schaub. The Falcons improve to 1--3 on the season, and its the first win for new head coach Bobby Petrino.

Wrapping up the college football weekend, victories across the board for Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgia Southern, and Valdosta State. In Athens Saturday, the Bulldogs ran all over Ole Miss 45-17. Georgia running back Thomas Brown rushed for a career-high of 180 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Bulldogs are now 12th in the new Associated Press rankings, a record of 4-1, 2-1 SEC. For Georgia Tech, it was sweet revenge for a blowout loss at Clemson last season. The Yellow Jackets at home Saturday used great defense to turn-back the Tigers 13-3. Tech running back Tashard Choice piled up 145 yards and a touchdown--despite nursing a nagging hamstring injury. The Jackets snapped a 2-game skid, upping their record to 3-2, and 1-2 ACC. In Statesboro Saturday, Georgia Southern scored the 50-21 blowout of Western Carolina. Senior quarterback Jayson Foster threw for 147 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 96 yards and a score. G-Southern is now 3-1, and 1-1 in the Soutnern Conference. For Valdosta State at home, they dismantled Ouachita Baptist 31-3. Running back Michael Terry ran for 181 yards and 2 scores. VSU is now 4-0 for the season.

Georgia sports for Monday, September 17th

The Falcons are off to an 0-2 start to their NFL season, following their defeat at Jacksonville Sunday afternoon, 13-7. The Jaguars defense sacked Falcons' quarterback Joey Harrington 7 times, while Falcons' kicker Matt Prater missed 2 field goals--including one from only 26 yards.

The college football weekend included wins for Georgia and Georgia Southern, while Georgia Tech lost their showdown with Boston College. Tech's Yellow Jackets were dominated 24-10 in Atlanta Saturday night. Now with a 2-1 record, the loss dropped Tech from the top-25 rankings. Georgia's Bulldogs got back on the winning track with an easy 45-16 win over Western Carolina Saturday in Athens. Georgia's record is now 2-1. For the Eagles of Georgia Southern, they are off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2001, following their win at Coastal Carolina, 42-34.

From baseball, the Braves blanked the Nationals 3-0 Sunday afternoon in action from Washington D-C. Tim Hudson posted the first complete game for a Braves starting pitcher this season. He scattered 7 hits and recorded 6 strikeouts in the 9-inning effort. The Braves-offense included Mark Teixeira's 2-RBI single, and a Kelly Johnson solo home run. The Braves won 2-of-3 games in D-C, and finished the road trip going 3-3. In the race for the National League wild card playoff spot, the Braves remain 5-and-a-half games behind leader San Diego. The final homestand of the season starts tonight--the Braves host Florida.

Georgia sports for Monday, September 10th

The Braves fell to the Nationals 7-4 Sunday afternoon from Turner Field in Atlanta. The Braves won 2-of-3 games in their series against Washington, and completed the homestand with 4 wins in 9 games. In the bigger picture, down the stretch to the season, it will be a tall order for Atlanta to get to the postseason as 19 games remain. The Braves are 4-and-a-half games behind the wild card leader, and are 8-and-a-half games off the pace of the Mets in the NL-East. The Braves open a road series tonight in New York against the Mets.

It was the opening weekend of regular season action in the NFL, and for the Atlanta Falcons, life began without Michael Vick: the Falcons lost their opener on the road at Minnesota Sunday, 24-3. Quarterback Joey Harrington was 23-of-32 passing for 199 yards, but threw 2 interceptions--both were returned by the Vikings for touchdowns. Minnesota's defense registered 6 sacks of Harrington.

The college football weekend in the state included wins for Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern, and defeat for Georgia. The Bulldogs at home in Athens fell to South Carolina 16-12. With that defeat, Georgia tumbled 12 spots in the Associated Press rankings to #23. Tech's Yellow Jackets were big winners on Saturday, beating up on Samford 69-14. Tech improved their record to 2-0, and jumped to a #15 national ranking. Georgia Southern's Eagles opened their season in Statesboro, and made a winner of head coach Chris Hatcher in his debut, 45-21 over West Georgia.

Georgia sports for Thursday, Sept. 6th

The Braves came back from a 6-run deficit after 7 innings yesterday, stunning the Phillies at Turner Field 9-8. The Braves scored 4 times in the 8th inning, then a final 3 runs for the victory in their half of the 9th. With 2 outs, Matt Diaz delivered a bases-clearing double to right field. The Braves are hoping somehow this might spur a big comeback in the playoff race, where they are 5-and-a-half games back of a wild card spot. They remain 7-and-a-half back of the Mets for the NL-East division lead.

The football weekend approaching adds Georgia Southern, and the NFL's Atlanta Falcons to the schedule. On the college gridiron, both Georgia and Georgia Tech look to go 2-0 to open their seasons. The Bulldogs are in Athens hosting neighbor South Carolina on Saturday for a 5:45 kickoff. Tech's Yellow Jackets stage their home-opener in Atlanta Saturday afternoon, a 1:30 start facing Samford. Georgia Southern's Eagles open their schedule at home in Statesboro against West Georgia--a 6pm kickoff for Saturday evening. On the pro level, its the opening of the NFL season this weekend: the Falcons begin life without Michael Vick, on the road at Minnesota Sunday.

Georgia sports for Friday, August 3rd

A wild and tough loss for the Braves last night, falling 12-11 in 14 innings to the Astros from Turner Field in Atlanta.

Houston pitcher Jason Jennings was used as a pinch-hitter in the 14th, and came up with an RBI-single off Oscar Villareal for the eventual winning margin. Before that point, the Braves turned-around an earlier 5-1 deficit into a 9-5 lead by the 6th inning. The offensive comeback included a Mark Teixeira 2-run homer, Willie Harris' 2-RBI triple, and a 2-run double from Jeff Francouer. However, an 8th inning Houston grand slam set the table for extra innings. For the night, the Braves pounded-out 22 hits. They've scored in double-digits in 4 straight games (49 runs with 68 hits).

The Braves have now fallen to 4-and-a-half games behind the Mets for 1st in the NL-East division. One injury note from last night: Shortstop Edgar Renteria suffered a right ankle sprain in the 8th inning. It's expected he might miss a few games at the least.


From the NFL, the Atlanta Falcons are into their 2nd week of training camp workouts at team headquarters in Flowery Branch. The team is looking ahead to their preseason opener, next Friday in New York to clash with the Jets.

Georgia sports for Thursday, May 24th

The Braves lost to the Mets 3-0 at Turner Field in Atlanta last night. Once again, the Braves were not able to solve Mets-starter Oliver Perez: he allowed only 4 hits in 7 scoreless innings of work, and beat Atlanta for a third time this season. Chuck James took the pitching loss for the Braves.

The teams have split the first 2 games of the series, with the finale tonight. Again, it will be a battle of former teammates likely headed to the Hall of Fame: John Smoltz and Tom Glavine. The Braves won both previous games this season in matchups of the two. Smoltz is going for career win number-200. Glavine is 5 wins away from hitting 300 for his career.


From the college baseball conference tournaments on Wednesday, it was victory for Georgia Tech, while Georgia Southern and Georgia State lost their games.

Georgia Tech's Yellow Jackets beat North Carolina 8-4 in the ACC Tournament in Jacksonville. Tech will face Virginia today at 4pm. From the Southern Conference tourney in Charleston, a loss for Georgia Southern's Eagles to Elon on Wednesday, 14-7. The Eagles take-on Western Carolina today at 12:45, needing a win to move on.
Georgia State's Panthers fell to Old Dominion at the Colonial Athletic Association tournament, 5-2. State faces George Mason today at noon.