Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
Posted:
Tue Nov 29, 2022 2:37 am
by PointGuard
Yes, I've received budget increases...difficult to get, but definitely not impossible. Have also received facilities improvements...more difficult to get, but great when that happens. Personally I don't get concerned about the budget and coach pay being close to reality. I kind of look at it as it is what it is. And I think the major (high prestige) programs have sufficient capability at getting the best recruits.
There is a suggestionin the CB23 Suggestions List for coaches to be able to negotiate their contracts. (again, not something that really interests me personally, but I can understand how it could be an improvement and something at least some game players would like). It's one of nearly 200 suggestions, so I have no idea if Gary will consider it this year, though. Time will tell.
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2022 12:11 am
by jksander
SEC Tournament- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/9 (10) Mississippi W 90-74 25-7 E. Hancock (18 pts 13 reb 4 ast) C. Bryant (10 pts 2 reb 11 ast)
3/10 (3) Mississippi St. W 98-83 26-7 E. Hancock (23 pts 9 reb 3 ast) D. Patrick (18 pts 4 reb 3 ast)
3/11 (4) Tennessee L 58-65 26-8 E. Hancock (22 pts 7 reb 2 blk) D. Patrick (9 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
Florida and Kentucky both lost in their first games of the tournament, seriously jeopardizing their postseason hopes as each team finished the season at exactly .500 -- even Florida’s #55 Net Rating won’t likely get a team without a winning record into the postseason, even in the Cellar-dweller Basketball Tournament (I mean CBT). We blitzed our way to the title game, but were held in check by a tough Volunteer defense, losing by seven and leaving us fully focused on making our way deep into the NCAA Tournament. In what was supposed to be an “off” year, we’re heading into the selection weekend with a legitimate shot at a top three seed. Not bad at all!
Here’s our final recruiting list, now that all seven players have committed!
6’6” SF Shane Swanson (HS Senior, Largo FL) 2.8 GPA (#7 Ntl, #3 Reg) 23.3 ppg 7.9 rpg 2.6 apg 6.6 spg 1.2 bpg
6’8” C Jerome Williams (HS Senior, Hazard KY) 3.0 GPA (#10 Ntl, #4 Reg) 20.0 ppg 17.0 rpg 1.5 apg 6.3 spg 3.8 bpg
6’2” PG Garrett Bibby (HS Senior, Greeleyville SC) 2.9 GPA (#12 Ntl, #5 Reg) 22.2 ppg 5.8 rpg 8.1 apg 5.4 spg 0.6 bpg
6’1” SG Ray Kurtz (HS Senior, Quitman GA) 3.2 GPA (#97 Ntl, #33 Reg) 14.7 ppg 2.9 rpg 1.6 apg 1.7 spg 0.7 bpg
6’8” PF Paul Holmes (HS Senior, Chattanooga TN) 2.9 GPA (#115 Ntl, #38 Reg) 15.0 ppg 7.0 rpg 3.9 apg 1.7 spg 2.3 bpg
6’6” PF Derick Thomas (HS Senior, Ocilla GA) 3.1 GPA (#117 Ntl, #35 Reg) 14.4 ppg 3.5 rpg 3.4 apg 1.6 spg 1.9 bpg
6’7” PF Paul Dumic (HS Senior, Oxford MS) 3.1 GPA (#181 Ntl, #40 Reg) 15.0 ppg 4.7 rpg 2.9 apg 2.6 spg 1.8 bpg
Swanson, Williams and Bibby are ***** candidates, while Kurtz, Holmes and Thomas are ****’s. Dumic is a *** who chose us for our facilities and academics, hoping that we’d be able to help him maximize his game while still getting a shot at a real education. Depending on how he handles summer workouts, I may consider him for a redshirt to maximize his time with us.
SEC teams heading into the NCAA Tournament:
Dayton: (12) Texas A&M -- playing into Columbus bracket
East Rutherford: (2) Tennessee
Columbus: (2) Missouri
Columbus: (6) Alabama
Oklahoma City: (3) Georgia
Phoenix: (4) Mississippi St.
Texas A&M (19-14, 10-8) finished the year with a #37 NET ranking, so winding up in Dayon definitely sticks in their craw. I would expect them to be a dangerous 12-seed for sure.
Florida, at 16-16, somehow made the NIT as a 4-seed, not deserving it a bit. Arkansas (21-9) and Kentucky (15-15) each made the third-tier CBI Tournament. Kentucky shouldn’t have made it, but the Razorbacks, despite their 8-10 conference record, had a #57 NET ranking and earned a top seed. They probably should have gotten Florida’s spot in the NIT.
NCAA Tournament- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/17 (14) Niagara W 81-60 27-8 E. Hancock (18 pts 8 reb 2 ast) M. Lampley (15 pts 2 ast 1 stl)
3/19 (6) Purdue L 70-92 27-9 D. Patrick (13 pts 4 reb 1 ast) C. Finley (15 pts 2 reb 1 ast)
Texas A&M got the seeding they deserved, as UNLV handled them easily in Dayton 69-63. On Thursday afternoon Tennessee manhandled (15) Tennessee Tech defensively 69-56, while Missouri stumped (15) Oral Roberts 87-65. Alabama also won a solid defensive matchup against (11) Navy 69-53, getting head coach Shawn Boardman back into the second round for the first time since March of 2025 -- not bad, considering his team was in the CBT two years ago and finished 12-18 last year! On day two we had a solid wall-to-wall win against an overmatched Niagara team, while Mississippi State steamrolled the (13) High Point Panthers 84-69.
On Saturday Alabama had the toughest test, facing (3) VCU in the first game of the afternoon, winning a killer overtime affair after they gave up a 12-point halftime lead, outscoring the Rams 8-4 in overtime to win 81-77, their first Sweet Sixteen in almost a decade! The Crimson Tide haven’t been to an Elite Eight since 2004, and they have never made the Final Four, only winning a pre-tournament era title in 1930. Tennessee rolled as well, beating (7) Memphis 72-65, and Missouri advanced in a tough defensive matchup against (7) Providence 79-69! Mississippi State won a shootout against (12) BYU to make the Sweet Sixteen as well, 05-81. But in our game against a hard-nosed Purdue squad, Hancock fouled out early and our bench had to put in signifiant time. Unfortunately we lost this one in a blowout, 70-92. What a bummer of a way to end our season.
In the first day of the Sweet Sixteen, Alabama’s run came to an end against (2) Missouri, falling to their SEC compatriots 70-83, while Tennessee lost a stunner against (6) Oklahoma State, 59-74. That left Mississippi State as our lone major tournament team as they faced (1) Duke on Friday, and they fared equally badly, losing 79-94. Only Missouri would advance to the Elite Eight (their first since 2009) and they had to face (1) Gonzaga (33-3) if they wanted to get to the Final Four for the first time ever -- they, like Alabama, only have National Titles from the pre-Tournament era (1921 and 1922). But they’ll have to wait another year if that’s the goal, since they fell to the Zags 60-68.
The Final Four was all chalk, except for (6) Oklahoma State, which managed to win their way to a shot against (1) Gonzaga, which they managed to win 68-60! That earned them a title shot against (1) Duke, which had dismantled (1) Kansas 80-62 in the semifinals. The championship game was an equal disappointment -- Duke led 45-36 at the half and coasted to win 83-65. It was head coach Shane Moore’s first National Title in his fourth trip to the Final Four in six years, and the school’s sixth overall, but first since 2015 when Coach K won his final championship.
Florida made the NIT Final Four, but lost in the semifinals to Minnesota 59-61. Kentucky, however, managed to win the entire CBI Tournament, beating Marshall in the finals 66-54. Whether that will be enough for their coach to keep his job will remain to be seen.
Team Leaders
Scoring: Eddie Hancock (17.6 ppg) David Patrick (13.8 ppg) Damian Strong (9.6 ppg) Cedric Bryant (8.7 ppg)
Rebounding: Eddie Hancock (11.8 rpg) Scott Ware (7.4 rpg) Damian Strong (4.5 rpg)
Assists: Cedric Bryant (6.0 apg) Damian Strong (2.7 apg) Eddie Hancock (2.6 apg)
Steals: Eddie Hancock (2.8 spg) Damian Strong (1.5 spg)
Blocks: Eddie Hancock (2.6 bpg) Scott Ware (1.4 bpg)
Though he did not match Jason Sanders’ school record for single season scoring, Eddie Hancock did shatter Gary Taylor’s record of 375 set back in 2026, with 401 rebounds this season. He also broke Taylor’s 2026 steals record (69) with 95 steals this season, though his 88 blocks fell short of Taylor’s 99 in 2026. His 599 points scored will place him second behind Sanders’ 638 from 2026.
Graduating Players
Derick Paige (4.0 GPA) 4.9 ppg 0.9 rpg 1.4 apg 0.1 spg 0.1 bpg (114 games)
C.J. DeMond (3.2 GPA) 3.1 ppg 1.5 rpg 0.8 apg 0.3 spg 0.1 bpg (102 games)
Scott Ware (4.0 GPA) 8.2 ppg 5.8 rpg 1.3 apg 0.6 spg 0.9 bpg (134 starts)
Leaving Early
Eddie Hancock (3.0 GPA) 17.6 ppg 11.8 rpg 2.6 apg 2.8 spg 2.6 bpg (34 starts)
David Patrick (3.0 GPA) 13.2 ppg 3.2 rpg 1.7 apg 0.5 spg 0.3 bpg (66 starts)
I’m thinking Jeff Robins may transfer out. He redshirted the season and has shown marked improvement in his play during practices, but I have not been able to break through his guarded façade. I’m hoping he’ll give us a chance to see him play in a Georgia uniform in the fall, but if he chooses to leave I’ll understand as there will be a lot of competition with incoming players for playing time. He’s never seemed overly concerned with that, but sometimes it’s hard to gauge when a kid just won’t open up.
Awards
Norton Award: Eddie Hancock
National Player of the Year: Eddie Hancock
National Freshman of the Year: Eddie Hancock
1st Team All American: Eddie Hancock
SEC Player of the Year: Eddie Hancock
SEC Defensive Player of the Year: Eddie Hancock
SEC Freshman of the Year: Eddie Hancock
1st Team All SEC: Eddie Hancock
Tennessee’s coach D.J. Shaw won SEC Coach of the Year.
With us not making it to the Sweet Sixteen our school prestige dropped slightly, and I took a lot of crap over not making the Final Four, though they were happy we won more than 20 games and recruited as well as we did. I made it clear that if they want to keep expecting sky high success, they’ll need to start putting some money where their mouths are. But despite surprising job openings at Duke and West Virginia, I’m happy here and ready to keep bringing top classes in … better to win a title with the program I built from scratch than jump ship to another where I piggyback off the work of others.
Steve Asbury kept his job at Kentucky for another year, while North Carolina coach Bucky Berry made national waves by leaving to take the open Duke job! Berry was coming off a dismal 9-23 performance at UNC two years ago for which he’d been fired. An odd hire indeed. UNC wound up hiring Leland Morton last year after Berry’s firing, and he went 15-17 in his first season. West Virginia hired Mike Wright, who went 127-77 in six seasons coaching Pittsburgh to an NIT Title and a Sweet Sixteen. The other two big open jobs this year were USC and Washington out in the Pac 12. USC hired Vidal Gibbs (81-56 after four years at Houston), while LSU’s Greg Largent left to take the Washington job after his 12-19 record last season amid rumors they were going to fire him if he didn’t leave.
Interesting stuff.
We had a lot of work to do in the offseason regarding OUR coaching situation. Brooks Jackson decided not to accept our offer of an extended contract, trying his hand at finding a head coach job that never materialized. So I was able to talk him into a three-year deal worth $109,650 per year, a 7.5% raise to keep my top-notch development coach. I’ve had him on my staff since the beginning, and I’m very confident in his abilities.
Associate HC: Brooks Jackson (62, $109,650 / 3 yrs) - Development: 88%
2nd Assistant: Jeremy Morris (50, $21,500 / 4 yrs) - Recruiting: 67%
3rd Assistant: Brian Thunell (43, $17,450 / 2 yrs) - Scouting: 37%
And the board finally gave me their vote of approval, boosting our budget overall to $251,000 per year, a 13% inrease that will help us both with recruiting and with hiring stronger assistant coaches in the coming years! With three years left on my contract I am getting the impression that they are definitely wanting to work to keep me leading the Georgia Bulldogs well into the next decade.I mean, hey, I’m only 42! The sky’s the limit with our program here in the SEC.