Blog: Richt Personality No Surprise

The usually mild mannered Mark Richt has come out of his shell. Why is this such a surprise?

He?s been quiet leader of the Bulldog nation, leading the team to two SEC championships and 3 visits to the conference championship game. A look into the past reveals why this is not a surprise here.

Mark Richt played for Howard Schnellenberger at Miami. Yes, Coach played at The ?U?. He was Jim Kelly?s backup. He then cut his teeth as an offensive coach and later coordinator under Bobby Bowden at Florida State. HELLO!

Coach is no stranger to having fun. He?s is just now letting that side of his personality out?. again. I remember New Year?s Day 1988, Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz. Nebraska taking on Florida State.

My good buddy, Tom Jurich, now the Athletic Director at Louisville was the AD at Northern Arizona. I was the sports anchor at the CBS station in Phoenix. We had sideline passes for the game and my former coach Lee Corso set me up with Bobby Bowden early the week of the game. Coach Corso was a quarterback and in the same backfield with Burt Reynolds at FSU and remains a popular alum and buddy to Bowden.

It?s 4th and goal from the Nebraska 17 yard line late in the game. Bowden doesn?t call time out, just sends in a play and Danny McManus, a fat, hairy-bellied quarterback threw a strike for the game winning touchdown. Afterwards, Bowden would tell me on the field, ?I couldn?t take it anymore, either we win it there or go home.?

Classic Preacherman (my nickname for Bowden since I learned he said if he wasn?t? a coach he?d be a preacher). The man who called that play? Mark Richt!

When Coach took the Georgia job, I had the pleasure of meeting him and told him I actually saw him play and that I was a Coach Bowden fan.

I told him ?Coach, I saw the Florida State Nebraska Fiesta Bowl -- 4th and goal from the 17.?

He interrupted and said, ?867-X-Go, I called that play.?

Why is all this rambling relevant? Easy, Mark Richt has personality, as we used to say back home, he?s got a little ghetto in his game.

He played for Schnellenberger, and coached with Bobby Bowden. Don?t be surprised if has more tricks up his sleeve. He has done a great job building on what was already there. Jim Donnan left plenty of talent behind and admitted to me he didn?t do a good job coaching his last year. Mark Richt has taken that, built on it and now has a championship caliber program.

The Bulldogs danced when they scored on Florida, good. He pulled out the Notre Dame trick from 1977, coming out in one color and returning to play the game in a vintage color. He has the program on track and is an easy guy to pull for.