Georgia Beats Hawaii 41-10 in Sugar Bowl

Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno (24) scores his first touchdown of the game during the first quarter of the Sugar Bowl football game against Hawaii at the Superdome, in New Orleans, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008. (Charlie Riedel/AP)

On Georgia’s first possession of the Sugar Bowl, Bulldogs tailback Knowshon Moreno danced 17 yards, untouched, into the end zone. He celebrated by blowing a kiss to Georgia fans.

He might as well have kissed Hawaii and its undefeated season good night. No. 4 Georgia ran over No. 10 Hawaii on Tuesday night, 41-10, to win its seventh consecutive game and finish the season 11-2.

Georgia welcomed Hawaii to the BCS by giving the Warriors a heaping helping of SEC speed and power. Knowshon Moreno ran for touchdowns on Georgia's first two possessions and the Bulldogs took a 14-3 lead on Hawaii after the first quarter of the Sugar Bowl on Tuesday night.

After beating up on unbeaten Hawaii, the Georgia Bulldogs sounded a bit miffed about getting passed over for a shot at the national championship.

Patience, guys.

Next season could be your year.

Showing off a dazzling array of young talent Tuesday night, fourth-ranked Georgia closed its comeback of a season with a dominating 41-10 rout of Colt Brennan and the BCS-crashing Warriors.

At every turn, a freshman or sophomore made a huge play for the Bulldogs, be it Knowshon Moreno (two touchdown runs), Rennie Curran (two sacks), Matthew Stafford (a TD pass) or Asher Allen (nine tackles, two interceptions).

While Florida and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow are the early favorites for next season, keep an eye on the Gators' Southeastern Conference rival. The Bulldogs certainly provided a tantalizing glimpse of their 2008 potential against Hawaii, which came in seeking perfection and left thoroughly whipped.

"It was the fastest team I've probably ever seen," said Warriors quarterback Colt Brennan, a Heisman finalist whose college career ended with a thud.

Georgia coach Mark Richt wasn't about to make any bold predictions, but he conceded the obvious.

"We're going to return a very good football team," he said. "We'll be more of a veteran team than we've had in a while. We'll have some good depth. We'll have a chance to make a run at it. But so do about six or seven others in our league."

Georgia closed the season with seven straight wins after a sluggish start, the last of them on the very same field where Ohio State will meet LSU in the national title game next Monday.

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(The Associated Press)

Georgia sports for Tuesday, June 17th

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves made it a successful one game stopover in Denver last night, scoring the 7-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. Rookie pitcher Jair Jurrjens gave a strong 7-and-two-thirds innings effort, scattering 8 hits with no runs allowed, and recording 7 strikeouts. Offensively, Chipper Jones and Jeff Francouer each produced a pair of hits and 2 RBI's. The Braves have won 3 of the first 7 games on this road trip--they begin a 3-game series in Texas against the Rangers tonight.

Georgia Bulldogs/College World Series--

The Bulldogs have won their first 2 games in the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. Last night, Georgia came back to beat Stanford 4-3. Down 3-0 after 3 innings, the Bulldogs scored a run in the 4th, another run in the 6th, and rallied for a pair of runs with 2 outs in the 7th inning. The Bulldogs next play on Friday afternoon, facing the winner of the Stanford-Miami contest Wednesday.

Bulldogs trounce Trojans, 44-34

Bulldogs' Moreno in action against Troy. (OnlineAthens.com)

There was no need to worry about an early Georgia celebration.

Knowshon Moreno became the first Georgia freshman since Herschel Walker to run for 1,000 yards, going for 196 yards and three touchdowns as the No. 10 Bulldogs worked hard into the final quarter to handle Troy 44-34 on Saturday.

Moreno's second straight three-touchdown game was highlighted by an 80-yard first-quarter touchdown run, Georgia's longest in 10 years. He added two 1-yard scoring runs in the second half and helped the Bulldogs recover after they fumbled away the ball on their first two possessions.

Moreno ended the day with 1,003 yards rushing this season to become only the second Georgia freshman to run for 1,000 yards. Walker rushed for 1,616 yards in 1980.

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(The Associated Press)

Dawgs wreck Tech, 31-17

Georgia Tech quarterback Taylor Bennett (13) is sacked by Georgia's Dannell Ellerbe (33) and Geno Atkins during the second quarter of a football game in Atlanta, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2007. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Georgia won't get a chance to play for the Southeastern Conference championship. At least the Bulldogs still have their state title. Matthew Stafford ran for one touchdown and threw for another, Thomas Brown rushed for 139 yards, and No. 6 Georgia seemed to catch every break in stretching its winning streak to seven in a row over Georgia Tech with a 31-17 victory Saturday.

Late in the third quarter, the Bulldogs (10-2) learned their hopes of winning the SEC East ended when Tennessee defeated Kentucky 52-50 in a four-overtime thriller. Both Georgia and the Vols have 6-2 records in the conference, but Tennessee won the tiebreaker with its 35-14 victory over the Bulldogs in early October.

Georgia Tech (7-5) hasn't beaten Georgia since 2000, and there's plenty of speculation that this latest loss could cost coach Chan Gailey his job. He dropped to 0-6 against the Yellow Jackets' biggest rival, and athletic director Dan Radakovich has said he'll evaluate the program after the season.

Stafford caught Georgia Tech off guard by running for a 31-yard touchdown in the second quarter, one of four lead changes in the first half. The last of those came with 1:02 left in the second quarter, when Stafford hooked up with Mohamed Massaquoi on a 9-yard touchdown that sent the Bulldogs to the locker room up 16-14.

There would be no more lead changes. Brannan Southerland powered over from the 3 after Stafford threw 55 yards to Sean Bailey. Brown finished off the Yellow Jackets with a 32-yard run down the right sideline with just over 11 minutes left.

A 2-point conversion provided the final margin, the first time in four years the game wasn't decided in the closing minutes.

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Georgia sports for Wednesday, January 2nd

The Georgia Bulldogs rolled to an easy victory in the Sugar Bowl, kicking aside Hawaii 41-10 in New Orleans. The final represented the highest-scoring game for Georgia in its bowl history. It topped a 40-26 Bulldogs' win over TCU in the 1942 Orange Bowl.

Knowshon Moreno ran for a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter last night to set the tone early for the Bulldogs. The Georgia-defense dominated the Warriors, harassing highly-touted quarterback Colt Brennan all game long. He was sacked 8 times, threw 3 interceptions and lost 2 fumbles. Brennan's 169 yards passing was less than half of his 348-yard average for the season.

For Georgia, it completed an 11-2 season and solidified a top-5 finish for the season. It's likely the Bulldogs will be ranked in the top-5 going into next fall's 2008 campaign. Hawaii suffered their first loss of the season, finishing 12-1.

Georgia sports for Tuesday, June 24th

Georgia Bulldogs/College World Series--

The Georgia Bulldogs are one victory away from capturing their second college baseball championship. Last night in Omaha, Nebraska, Georgia stormed back from down 3 runs late to beat Fresno State 7-6. It was the opener of the best-of-3 championship series. Down 6-3, Georgia scored 4 runs in the 8th inning. Fresno State went down in 3 straight batters in their 9th inning at the plate to end the game. A win by Georgia tonight would bring the Bulldogs their 2nd baseball title since their first in 1990.

Atlanta Braves--

From major league baseball, the Braves in Atlanta were 4-1 losers to the Milwaukee Brewers. Braves’ batters had little success against Milwaukee starting pitcher Ben Sheets, who scattered 4 hits in throwing a complete game.

Georgia sports for Wednesday, August 13th

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves opening game of a 7-game homestand was rained-out last night from Turner Field in Atlanta. The series against the Chicago Cubs will instead open this afternoon in the form of a doubleheader--1st game first pitch at 1:10. A final tribute for late broadcaster Skip Caray is planning before the evening contest at 7:15.

Georgia Bulldogs/preseason practice--

The Bulldogs' football team is ranked by many as #1 heading into the 2008 season. The team however, suffered a blow this week with the loss of offensive lineman Trinton Sturdivant to a season-ending injury. The talented left tackle sustained a knee injury Monday. He was considered key for the Bulldogs' offense as a protector for quarterback Matthew Stafford's blind side.

Georgia sports for Monday, June 16th

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves lost the finale of their series in Anaheim against the Angels, falling 2-0 last night. Wasted was the complete game effort of starting pitcher Jorge Campillo, who allowed 7 hits in 8 innings of work. His only mistake came in the 4th inning, surrendering a 2-run homer to Casey Kotchman. The Braves' offense meanwhile, had trouble solving Angels' starter Joe Saunders--the Braves had 6 singles on the night.
The Braves did win 2-of-3 games in the series, and move on to Denver tonight to face the Colorado Rockies for 1 game, before moving to Texas for 3 games.

Georgia Bulldogs/College World Series--

The Georgia Bulldogs' baseball team is in action tonight from Omaha, Nebraska for their 2nd game in the College World Series. Georgia will face Stanford. Saturday night, the Bulldogs scored the upset win over Miami in their CWS opener.

Georgia sports for Friday, June 20th

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves wrapped their 10-game road trip with a 5-4 loss in Texas--the Rangers won 2-of-3 games in the series. The Braves with the loss completed a 4-6 swing away from home. Atlanta fought-back with 2 runs to tie in the top of the 9th inning, getting RBI's from Jeff Francouer and Omar Infante. But in the Texas-half of the inning, the winning RBI-single was delievered off of Braves' reliever Jeff Bennett. The Braves begin a 6-game homestand tonight by welcoming the Seattle Mariners to Turner Field for a weekend series. The Mariners currently own the worst record in the majors.

Chipper Jones--

Braves' veteran 3rd baseman Chipper Jones' batting average has fallen below .400 for the first time since April 12th. He was 0-4 in Thursday afternoon's game, and mired in an extended stretch of only 5 hits in his last 27 at-bats.

Georgia Bulldogs/College World Series--

The Bulldogs will have to wait until Saturday afternoon to play their third game in the College World Series from Omaha, Nebraska. Another game scheduled for Thursday was postponed by rain, which is being made up today. Tomorrow, Georgia will face Stanford for the right to move to the championship round of the Series. The Bulldogs have won their first 2 games.

Georgia sports for Monday, September 29th

Atlanta Falcons--

The Falcons suffered a 24-9 loss on the road at Carolina Sunday afternoon. The Atlanta-offense consisted of only 3 Jason Elam field goals. The Falcons' season record fell to 2-2.

College football weekend--

It was a rough night for the Georgia Bulldogs Saturday evening. The Bulldogs were battered by visiting Alabama 41-30 in a contest from Athens. It was Georgia's first loss in five games this season. The Bulldogs fell in the Associated Press writer's rankings from 3rd to 11th. Georgia fell to #10 in the coach's USA Today poll.
Georgia Southern lost their Saturday game in tough fashion in Statesboro, 38-37 in overtime to Wofford. The G-Southern Eagles' record is 2-3.

Atlanta Braves--

The end of a difficult season came Sunday afternoon for the Braves--a 3-1 loss at Houston. The Braves finished their worst season since 1990, a record of 72-90 for the year. Good news came in the form of the first-ever batting title for veteran 3rd-baseman Chipper Jones. His .364 average for the season led all major-leaguers.

Georgia sports for Monday, November 12th

The Atlanta Falcons have won 2-straight games to improve their record to 3-6 overall. Sunday afternoon, the Falcons beat the Carolina Panthers on the road 20-13. The decisive score came with 20 seconds left, as QB Joey Harrington connected with tight end Alge Crumpler on a 30-yard touchdown strike.

The college football weekend wrapup included wins for Georgia and Georgia Tech, while Georgia Southern lost their contest. Georgia's Bulldogs pulled away in the 2nd half to beat Auburn in Athens Saturday, 45-20. The Bulldogs in the new Associated Press rankings have moved up to number-8. Georgia Tech's Yellow Jackets won their game on the road Saturday at Duke, 41-24. Tech running back Tashard Choice ran for 170 yards and 2 touchdowns. Georgia Southern's Eagles lost their game to Furman 24-22.

Women's college basketball from Sunday included Georgia's Lady Bulldogs scoring the victory over George Mason, 84-56.

Georgia sports for Monday, March 17th

The Georgia Bulldogs' men's basketball team completed an improbable run over the weekend, culminating in earning a berth to the NCAA Tournament. Georgia beat Arkansas 66-57 Sunday afternoon to clinch the Southeastern Conference tournament championship. The victory was the fourth in 4 days for the Bulldogs, who won only 4 conference games throughout the regular season. Because of the tornado that hit Atlanta Friday night, the final two days of the SEC Tourney had to be played in Georgia Tech's arena nearby. With Georgia's scheduled game Friday night postponed, they were put in the position of needing to play two games, and win both to advance--they did. Georgia earned a #14 seed in the NCAA's--they'll play Xavier on Thursday. The Bulldogs' weekend run also saved head coach Dennis Felton's job, as Athletics Director Damon Evans announced Felton would return.

Spring training baseball out of Sunday--victory for the Atlanta Braves over the St. Louis Cardinals 3-2. Yunel Escobar nailed a 2-run homer as part of the offense.

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 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 Tuesday, August 5th

Atlanta Braves--

The Atlanta Braves opened their 7-game road trip on a losing note, falling 4-2 to the Giants in the series opener from San Francisco. The Braves have now lost 8 of their last 10 games. The team hopes to get veteran pitcher Tom Glavine back on the roster soon, perhaps this weekend. Glavine could be ready following a rehab minor league start Monday at Class-A Myrtle Beach, going 4 innings with 3 hits, a run and 4 strikeouts on his pitching line. Glavine has missed 8 weeks of action with a left elbow injury.

Braves/Skip Caray--

The Braves’ organization is still dealing with the death of longtime broadcaster Skip Caray. The Atlanta Journal Constitution spoke with Caray’s widow Paula on Monday. She revealed that Caray was feeding birds in the backyard of their home Sunday when she noticed he had collapsed. The Braves’ say the early report of Caray passing away in his sleep was based on information they had at the time. Caray was a radio and TV broadcaster for the club for 33 years.

Georgia Bulldogs football/suspensions--

The Georgia Bulldogs football team is making news again this week--for the wrong reasons. The list of suspended players got longer on Monday. Junior linebacker Darius Dewberry admits he caused damage to property at St Mary’s Hospital in Athens--he’s been suspended for the first two games of the upcoming season. Two other players were suspended indefinitely last weekend for incidents in Athens. Georgia has suspended eight players this offseason. The Bulldogs have been tapped by the national coaches as the top-ranked team in the country heading into the 2008 season.

Warner Robins Little League--

The baseball kids of Warner Robins need to win their game this afternoon in the Southeast Regional tournament to keep their hope alive of returning to the Little League World Series. Last night, Warner Robins, Georgia's state champion, lost to the champion from Florida 3-2. Warner Robins' must-win game is ahead this afternoon against West Virginia at 1pm.

Georgia sports for Friday, October 12th

There was a seismic change at the top of the Atlanta Braves management structure. The team announced John Schuerholz is stepping-aside from his long-time job as general manager. However, he gets a better office with the team, taking the reigns as team president. Assistant general manager Frank Wren now assumes full G-M duties. He’s worked with Schuerholz in Atlanta for eight years. The announcement marks the end of a record era of success in pro sports. Schuerholz was general manager 17 years—in that time the Braves won 14-straight division titles, five National League pennants, and one World Series championship.

From pro hockey, the Atlanta Thrashers have now lost 4-straight games to start the season. Last night, the team was blanked at Buffalo 6-nothing. The Thrashers are off to their worst start in 5 years. They've scored only 4 goals in 4 games.

Setting the schedule for college football Saturday ahead: Georgia's Bulldogs take their 4-2 record on the road to Vanderbilt. Ga Tech travels to Miami to face the Hurricanes--the Yellow Jackets a record of 3-3. The Eagles of Ga Southern are on the road with their 4-1 mark, facing Elon.

High school football has another full schedule of games tonight around the state.

Bad news for the Georgia men's basketball team--the school has suspended three players multiple games for violation of the athletic department's new class attendance and academic policies. Starting guard Mike Mercer will miss at least 15 games. Leading scorer Takais Brown will sit-out a minimum of 9 games, while backup center Albert Jackson will miss 6 games.

Georgia sports for Thursday, January 10th

It was once again the battle of Georgia and Georgia Tech--this time on the basketball court. In men's college hoops action last night, Georgia at home in Athens beat the visiting Yellow Jackets of Tech, 79-72. It was the 12th straight win for the Bulldogs in this series--in games played in Athens at Stegman Coliseum. Billy Humphrey led the Bulldogs' scoring with 23 points. Georgia improved their record to 9-4. Tech fell to 7-7.

Pro basketball action--it was victory for the Atlanta Hawks at home, turning back the Cleveland Cavaliers 90-81.

NFL, the Falcons' search for a new head coach and general manager moves along. A report says the team is interested in speaking with current University of Southern California head coach Pete Carroll. Carroll once coached in the NFL. The Falcons may be willing to offer Carroll the roles of not only head coach, but control over player personnel decisions for the roster. There is no confirmation from Carroll that he is interested in speaking with Atlanta.

Georgia sports for Thursday, June 26th

Georgia Bullogs/College World Series--

Georgia's dream of a 2nd college baseball championship ended Wednesday night in Omaha, Nebraska. Fresno State's Bulldogs beat Georgia's Bulldogs 6-1 to claim the 2008 College World Series title. Fresno's scoring came courtesy of Steve Detwiler's 2 home runs and 6 RBI's. Gordon Beckham homered for Georgia's only run of the game. UGA was hoping to add to their previous baseball title in 1990--Fresno enjoys their 1st-ever baseball championship.

Atlanta Braves--

The Braves bounced-back to top the Milwaukee Brewers 4-2 in Atlanta Wednesday afternoon, salvaging 1 in the 3-game series. Kelly Johnson had 3 RBI's within the Braves' offense. Jorge Campillo recorded the pitching win, with 4 hits and 2 runs allowed over 7 innings.

Bulldogs chew up Gators: 42-30

Georgia coach Mark Richt is doused by his players as Georgia defeats Florida 42-30 in a football game Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Coale)


Georgia flanker Mohamed Massaquoi runs for a touchdown during the first quarter against Florida in a football game Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Stephen Morton)

The Georgia Bulldogs celebrated in the end zone early and on the sideline late.

They probably should have hoisted Knowshon Moreno and Matthew Stafford on their shoulders for both.

Moreno ran for a career-high 188 yards and three scores, Stafford threw three touchdown passes and No. 20 Georgia upset ninth-ranked Florida 42-30 on Saturday in a game filled with big plays and momentum shifts.

(The Associated Press)

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Georgia sports for Thursday, August 28th

Georgia Tech football--

A new era begins tonight for Georgia Tech football. New head coach Paul Johnson will lead the Yellow Jackets into their season-opening game against Jacksonville State. Tech hits its home-turf at Bobby Dodd Stadium with sophomore Josh Nesbitt making his first start for the team at quarterback.

College football / Georgia Bulldogs--

Ahead to the weekend, the preseason no-1 team in the country, the Georgia Bulldogs, will be home in Athens Saturday to face Ga Southern in their opener.

Atlanta Braves--

From major league baseball, the Braves were 4-1 losers to the Florida Marlins in Atlanta last night. Before the game, the Braves traded veteran outfielder Mark Kotsay to the Boston Red Sox for a minor league outfield prospect.