let's not start slapping backs just yet Felton fans...

As everyone knows by this point, I am a huge UGA basketball fan, having been a student season ticket holder for 4 years then a regular ticket holder the year after I left. I have on this blog and on the ole myself blog gone into great detail about my dislike for one Coach Dennis Felton. Shoot, I've even written about it on 790thezone.com and AJC.com.

I fully thought entering last night's game that UGA would lose and Felton would NOT be coach 20 minutes after the game.

But a weird thing happened last night. UGA showed effort. They played hard. And they won.

But............let's not start slapping backs just yet Felton fans. Honestly it was one game that you tried your hardest to LOSE.

Felton bashers like myself aren't calling this win last night a setback. I think he has to win a few more to keep his job. Why? Let's look at some of his moments last night.
At WHAT POINT was he going to tell his team STOP FOULING A GUY SHOOTING A 3 POINTER?!?!?!?!?! At the end of regulation, his team leads by 3, the other team has the ball and UGA fouls the guy as he takes a three pointer? I know he leaned into it, but Billy, just contest the shot. Don't foul him! Then in OT, walk-on Corey Butler (WHAT WAS A WALK-ON doing on the floor?) leaves his feet and the Rebel jumps into him, drawing the foul. Butler redeemed himself, but come on. The blunder was NOT GOOD!

Another coaching flaw- when Billy Humphrey can't get the ball across the time line in 10 seconds, WHY do you keep giving him the ball? I know some will say that is a player issue, not a coach's issue, but the coach can teach the other players to come up and help or teach how to beat a trap. It doesn't look like Felton has taught that. If I am Kentucky, I trap EVERY time I can tonight.

Just saying.

Finally, the sad part is that UGA played SOOOOO well, up 13 in the second half, but they still probably should have lost in OT, when they got down 5. UGA played SO well, and they STILL blew that huge lead. Then blew ANOTHER. And ANOTHER. That isn't good.

Give them credit, they left it out there. And Felton actually looked like he was coaching too.The scary part is....he gets Kentucky tonight and his track record against Kentucky...I'd rather be facing Kentucky with no Patrick Patterson than a Tennessee or Vandy squad. He loves playing Kentucky, no doubt a lasting hangover from his WKU days. But they call this CAtlanta for a reason. Kentucky is playing well right now and they always play well in Atlanta. UGA will need to get rested in a hurry. And they will need to be nearly perfect from the line AGAIN tonight. And Albert Jackson will need to be just as dominant down low tonight. And Bliss will have to play nasty/clutch again while staying out of foul trouble. And Bill Humphrey will need to be hot again. And TWood will need to show up again.
That's a LOT that needs to happen for the Dawgs to have a chance tonight.

Bottom line, Felton needs to win today to keep his job. If he makes it to Sunday (which means he'd need to knock off UK tonight and prolly MSU tomorrow) I say he should stay another year.

He'd be in a LOT better shape right now if Memphis' Robert Dozier and his 6'8 215 frame was going up against Kentucky. And Channing Toney could be helping out too. (I am not even counting TKBrown and Mike Mercer, AND if Walter Hill could have come over from the football field to help out the team) But that is another story.

If he wins the SEC Championship (Farfetched I know) I will be a Felton FAN! That's right. I would lay down my sword and kiss his ring.

I don't think I have to worry about that. But I will be rooting, because my dislike of Felton is transcended by my love of the Dawgs. Do you know who felton is?

Tommy Bowden.
He really coached well last night considering he prolly would have been fired had he lost. He's going to coach JUST well enough to keep his job, maybe even an extension, but then it's right back to sucking. Until he's on the hotseat again, then I bet he hunkers down a bit.

And I was thinking about it. Next season may not be so bad with the new freshman and/or Swansey at PG, Humphrey at SG, TWood at Wing, Thompkins at 4 and Albert Jackson/Jeremy Price/Jeremy Jacobs/Chris Barnes at 5. They'll have some bigs off the bench, which is good. New Coach Anthony Grant/Chris Collins/Gregg Marshall will have a strong base with which to work. (See what I did there....)