2008 Georgia Bulldogs football team - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The 2008 Georgia Bulldogs football team competed in American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

on behalf of the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

in 2008

2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season

The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008, progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2...

. The Bulldogs competed in the East Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC)

Southeastern Conference

The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...

. This was the Georgia Bulldogs' eighth season under the guidance of head coach

Head coach

A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...

Mark Richt

Mark Richt is the head coach of the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team. His previous affiliations include fourteen years at Florida State University, where he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and one year as offensive coordinator at East Carolina University.-Early...

. During the pre-game ceremonies on August 30, Uga VII was introduced at Sanford Stadium, replacing Uga VI, who died in June.

Georgia was ranked #1 in both the preseason coaches poll and AP poll, marking the first time Georgia has ever been #1 in the preseason version of either poll. However, they finished the season ranked below the top 10 in the AP poll.

Georgia entered the 2008 season with the longest active winning streak among the 66 BCS conference

BCS conference

An Automatic Qualifying conference is an athletic conference in NCAA Division I FBS whose champion receives an automatic berth in one of the five Bowl Championship Series bowl games...

teams having won their last 7 games of the 2007 season. Among the 120 NCAA

National Collegiate Athletic Association

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

FBS teams, only BYU

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...

had a longer active winning streak (10 games). Georgia's winning streak ended at 11 games with its loss to Alabama in the 5th game of the 2008 season.

Rankings

Ranking Movement
Poll	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Wk 15	Final
AP	1	1	2	3	3	11	10	10	9	8	14	13	13	13	17	16	13
Coaches	1	2	2	3	3	10	10	9	9	8	14	12	13	13	19	17	10
Harris	Not released					10	10	9	9	8	14	12	12	13	20	17	N/A
BCS	Not released								7	6	13	10	11	11	16	15	N/A

Schedule

Georgia Southern

Georgia won its season opener over Georgia Southern

Georgia Southern University

Georgia Southern University is a national public university located on a campus in Statesboro, Georgia, USA. Founded in 1906, it is part of the University System of Georgia and is the largest center of higher education in the southern half of Georgia offering 117 academic majors in a comprehensive...

, 45-21. Georgia led 38–0 in the 3rd quarter before replacing many of its starting players. Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Rockwell Moreno is an American football running back for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He was selected 12th overall in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Broncos. He played college football at the University of Georgia.-Early years:Moreno grew up in Belford, a neighborhood in...

scored 3 touchdowns on eight rushing attempts. Georgia lost its #1 ranking after the game and would never regain it, losing it after this game in part to USC's 52-7 win over Virginia and the perception that Georgia's defense was questionable for "only" winning 45-21.

A. J. Green

A. J. Green

Adriel Jeremiah "A. J." Green is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He was selected fourth overall by the Bengals in the 2011 NFL Draft...

recorded his first career touchdown on a 3-yard pass from back-up quarterback, Joe Cox.

Central Michigan

Georgia coasted to a second straight victory to start the season, beating Central Michigan

Central Michigan University

Central Michigan University is a public research university located in Mount Pleasant in the U.S. state of Michigan...

, 56–17. Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Moreno

had 3 touchdowns and 168 yards on 18 carries. Moreno had a 52-yard touchdown run and added a highlight reel leap over Central Michigan defender Vince Agnew on a 29-yard run. Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford (American football)

John Matthew Stafford is an American football quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Lions first overall in the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Georgia....

added 2 touchdown passes including a 54-yard bomb to Mohammed Massaquoi. Demarcus Dobbs picked off a Central Michigan pass late in the second quarter and ran 79 yards for a defensive touchdown.

South Carolina

Georgia beat the South Carolina

University of South Carolina

The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...

Gamecocks in a low-scoring game that was closer than many expected, finally prevailing 14–7. The young offensive line struggled with the South Carolina defense. Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford (American football)

completed 15 of 25 passes for 146 yards, but his biggest play came on a 30-yard 3rd quarter run to the South Carolina 4, setting up a Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Moreno

touchdown run on the next play. Moreno had 79 yards on 20 carries. A. J. Green

A. J. Green

Adriel Jeremiah "A. J." Green is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He was selected fourth overall by the Bengals in the 2011 NFL Draft...

led the Georgia receivers with 3 catches for 61 yards.

Arizona State

Georgia scored 3 2nd quarter touchdowns to take a 21–3 lead at halftime against Arizona State

Arizona State University

Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...

. The 2nd half was rather uneventful, and Georgia rolled to an easy 27–10 win. Stafford had the most passing yards of his career (285), and A. J. Green had a breakout game with 159 yards on 8 catches. Moreno also added 2 touchdowns and 149 yards rushing on 23 carries. A. J. Green was named SEC Freshman of the Week for his performance.

Alabama

ESPN's College Gameday broadcasted their show live from Athens

Athens, Georgia

Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...

before the Alabama game. The visit was the show's first broadcast from Athens since the Tennessee game in 1998. A. J. Green led all Georgia receivers with 6 catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. This game was notable in that it was only the third ever "blackout" game where the team donned black jerseys and the majority of the fans wore black. However, unlike earlier two contests which were both big Georgia wins, the Crimson Tide dominated early in the game and built an insurmountable lead from which Georgia was unable to recover. After the disappointment of this game, is unclear if there will be future "blackout" games.

Tennessee

Georgia ended a 2-game losing streak to Tennessee with a 26–14 win in Athens. Stafford had 310 yards passing in his first career 300-yard passing game. A 28-yard field goal by Blair Walsh capped off a 17 play, fourth quarter drive that ran 10 minutes and 55 seconds off the clock. The drive was the longest by an SEC team since LSU

Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...

had an 11 minute, 2 second drive against Arizona State

Arizona State University

Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...

in 2005.

Vanderbilt

Georgia beat the #23-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores

Vanderbilt Commodores

The Vanderbilt Commodores are the NCAA athletic teams of Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. The university fields 16 varsity teams , 14 of which compete in the Southeastern Conference...

, 24-14, on homecoming weekend. Knowshon Moreno had a season high 172 yards and 1 touchdown on 23 carries, and A. J. Green had 7 catches for 132 yards and 1 touchdown.

LSU

Georgia beat the #11-ranked LSU Tigers

LSU Tigers

The LSU Tigers are the athletic teams of Louisiana State University. They participate in the NCAA's Division I, in the Southeastern Conference. It fields teams in 14 varsity sports . Its official team nickname is the Fighting Tigers and the school mascot is Mike the Tiger...

, 52-38, in Tiger Stadium

Tiger Stadium (LSU)

Tiger Stadium is an outdoor stadium located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is best known as the home stadium of the Louisiana State University football team.Tiger Stadium opened with a capacity of 12,000 in 1924...

. Stafford was 17 of 26 passing for 249 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also added 1 rushing touchdown. Knowshon Moreno rushed 21 times for 163 yards and 1 touchdown on a 68-yard 3rd quarter run. Linebacker Darryl Gamble

Darryl Gamble

Darryl Gamble is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football at Georgia....

, starting at middle linebacker position for the injured Dannell Ellerbe

Dannell Ellerbe

Dannell Ellerbe is an American football linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens for the National Football League. He was signed by the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football at Georgia.-College career:...

, twice intercepted LSU quarterback, Jarrett Lee

Jarrett Lee

Calen Jarrett Lee is an American football quarterback. He currently attends Louisiana State University where he is the starting quarterback...

, for touchdown returns of 40 and 53 yards. A. J. Green

A. J. Green

Adriel Jeremiah "A. J." Green is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He was selected fourth overall by the Bengals in the 2011 NFL Draft...

had 3 receptions for 89 yards, including a 49-yard 3rd quarter touchdown.

Florida

Florida routed Georgia, 49-10 in one of the most heavily-hyped Florida vs. Georgia Football Classic games ever. Stafford struggled, going 18 of 33 for 265 yards passing with 0 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. The loss was the largest margin of defeat in Mark Richt's 8-year head coaching career.

Kentucky

Georgia beat Kentucky, 42-38, after Matthew Stafford threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to A. J. Green with 1:54 left in the 4th quarter. Demarcus Dobbs

Demarcus Dobbs

-College career:As a true freshman in 2006, Dobbs was redshirted, giving him an extra year of eligibility. The following season, in 2007, he appeared in all 13 of Georgia's games, recording his first collegiate tackle against Hawaii in the 2008 Sugar Bowl...

then intercepted a last minute pass from Kentucky quarterback Randall Cobb to preserve the win for Georgia. Stafford had a career high 376 yards passing and 3 touchdowns. Mohammed Massaquoi also had a career high 191 receiving yards with 8 receptions and 1 touchdown.

Auburn

Matthew Stafford threw a 17-yard, 4th quarter touchdown pass to A. J. Green, and the Bulldogs stopped a late Auburn drive to win 17-13. The win marked Georgia's 3rd straight win against Auburn for the first time since winning 3 straight against Auburn from 1980-1982.

Georgia Tech

A disappointing regular season for Georgia ended with an upset loss to bitter rival Georgia Tech, snapping Georgia's 7-game winning streak in the series. Georgia had a 28-12 halftime lead but Georgia Tech outscored Georgia 23-0 in the third quarter. Matt Stafford led the Dawgs with a career high of 407 yds passing and 5 tds. 3 of those went to Massaquoi in the 2nd quarter

Capital One Bowl

The final game of the season would prove to be the Capital One Bowl in Orlando

Orlando, Florida

Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

, Fla

Flå

Flå is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Flå. The municipality of Flå was established when it was separated from the municipality of Nes on 1 January 1905...

against Michigan State. It would be Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford

's and Knowshon Moreno

Knowshon Moreno

's last game at UGA. Stafford threw three touchdown passes in the 2nd half of game. The final touchdown of the game was caught by Knowshon Moreno cementing the win for Georgia in this bowl game.

Team

	Team	Opp
class="wikitable" style="white-space:nowrap;">
Scoring
Points per Game
First Downs
Rushing
Passing
Penalty
Total Offense
Avg per Play
Avg per Game
Fumbles-Lost
Penalties-Yards
Avg per Game

class="wikitable" style="white-space:nowrap;"> Team Opp Punts-Yards Avg per Punt Time of Possession/Game 3rd Down Conversions 4th Down Conversions Touchdowns Scored Field Goals-Attempts-Long PAT-Attempts Attendance Games/Avg per Game

Scores by quarter

Rushing

Name	GP-GS	Att	Gain	Loss	Net	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Knowshon Moreno Knowshon Moreno Knowshon Rockwell Moreno is an American football running back for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He was selected 12th overall in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Broncos. He played college football at the University of Georgia.-Early years:Moreno grew up in Belford, a neighborhood in...	13	250	1463	63	1400	5.6	16	68	107.7
Caleb King Caleb King Caleb King is an American football running back, who plays for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League. He was signed by the Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2011, and then was cut on September 3. He was re-signed to the Minnesota Vikings practice squad on September 5...	11	61	278	31	247	4.0	1	27	22.5
Richard Samuel Richard Samuel Richard Samuel was an English portrait painter who appears as a winner of prestigious medals in the 1770s in London. He is known for a small number of paintings including what came to be known as the Nine Living Muses of Great Britain...	11	26	137	4	133	5.1	1	27	12.1








TEAM
Total
Opponents

Passing

Name	GP-GS	Att-Cmp-Int	Pct	Yds	TD	Lng
Matthew Stafford	13	383-235-10	61.4	3459	25	78
Joe Cox		15-11-0	73.3	151	2	21
TEAM

Total
Opponents

Receiving

Name	GP-GS	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
A.J. Green	13	8	963	17.2	8	54	74
Mohammed Massaquoi	13	1	920	15.9	8	78	70.8
Michael Moore	13	82	451	15.6	2	46	34.7
Knowshon Moreno	13	24	392	11.8	2	37	30.2
Kris Durham	5	16	199	15.3	1	61	39.8
Demiko Goodman	13	85	133	12.1	1	21	10.3
Kenneth Harris	13	88	116	10.5	1	31	8.9
Aron White	13	81	88	29.3	2	48	6.8






Total
Opponents

Defense

Name	GP	Tackles				Sacks	Pass Defense		Interceptions				Fumbles		Blkd Kick
Name	GP	Solo	Ast	Total	TFL-Yds	No-Yds	BrUp	QBH	No.-Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Rcv-Yds	FF	Blkd Kick
Total

Special teams

Name	Punting								Kickoffs
Name	No.	Yds	Avg	Long	TB	FC	I20	Blkd	No.	Yds	Avg	TB	OB


Total

Name	Punt Returns					Kick Returns
Name	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long

Total

Players

Head Coach Mark Richt

Mark Richt

dismissed two players on October 8, 2008. Donavan Baldwin, a safety, and Walter Hill, a wide receiver were removed from the team.

2008 Georgia Bulldogs by Position

Quarterbacks

6 Logan Gray -
Freshman
11 Edward Dent - Freshman
14 Matthew Stafford - Junior
15 Jonathan Batson -
Sophomore
17 Jonathan deLaureal -
Sophomore

Running Backs

4 Caleb King -
Freshman
22 Richard Samuel - Freshman
24 Knowshon Moreno -
Sophomore
27 Dontavius Jackson - Freshman
30 Carlton Thomas - Freshman
25 Josh Cox - Freshman
37 Cortney Newmans -
Freshman
45 Josh Bagby -
Junior

Fullbacks

15 Benjamin Boyd - Senior
36 Brannan Southerland - Senior
43 Kevin Lanier - Freshman
44 Josh Sailors -
Freshman
46 Justin Fields -
Sophomore
48 Fred Munzenmaier -
Sophomore
49 Shaun Chapas -
Sophomore

Wide Receivers

1 Mohamed Massaquoi - Senior
3 Taylor Bradberry - Freshman
5 Craig Sager -
Sophomore
8 A.J. Green - Freshman
10 Zach Renner -
Freshman
12 Tavarres King - Freshman
16 Kris Durham - Junior
20 Marquise Brown -
Sophomore
23 Twoey Hosch - Freshman
26 Tony Wilson -
Sophomore
28 Israel Troupe -
Freshman
80 Walter Hill -
Freshman
82 Michael Moore - Junior
83 Cornelius Washington - Freshman
85 Demiko Goodman - Senior
87 Veron Spellman - Junior
88 Kenneth Harris - Senior

Tight Ends

39 Dustin Banks - Freshman
47 Trenton Turner - Freshman
58 Casey Nickels -
Sophomore
75 Kiante Tripp -
Sophomore
81 Aron White -
Freshman
83 Richard Lowe - Freshman
84 Bryce Ros - Freshman
86 Tripp Chandler - Senior
89 Bruce Figgins - Sophomore

Offensive Line

18 Derek Rich -
Sophomore
54 Tanner Strickland -
Freshman
60 Clint Boling - Sophomore
61 Ben Jones - Freshman
63 Chris Davis -
Sophomore
67 Jonathan Owens - Junior
68 Ben Harbin - Freshman
71 Cordy Glenn - Freshman
72 Vince Vance - Junior
73 Chris Little -
Freshman
74 Kevin Perez -
Sophomore
76 Ben Harden -
Freshman
77 Trinton Sturdivant - Sophomore
78 Josh Davis -
Sophomore
79 Justin Anderson -
Freshman

Defensive Line

41 Roderick Battle - Junior
42 Justin Houston -
Freshman
53 Jeremy Longo - Freshman
55 Jeremy Lomax - Senior
56 Geno Atkins - Junior
58 Demarcus Dobbs -
Sophomore
64 Matthew DeGenova -
Freshman
66 Brandon Wheeling - Junior
68 Wes Jacobs - Senior
69 Andrew Gully - Senior
90 Corvey Irvin - Senior
91 Kade Weston - Junior
92 Neland Ball -
Freshman
93 A.J. Harmon - Freshman
94 DeAngelo Tyson - Freshman
95 Jeff Owens - Senior
97 Brandon Wood -
Sophomore
98 Ricardo Crawford -
Sophomore
99 Jarius Wynn - Senior

Linebackers

33 Dannell Ellerbe - Senior
35 Rennie Curran - Sophomore
37 Akeem Hebron -
Sophomore
38 Marcus Dowtin - Freshman
43 Charles White -
Freshman
44 Marcus Washington - Senior
45 Christian Robinson - Freshman
50 Darryl Gamble -
Sophomore
51 Akeem Dent -
Sophomore
52 Darius Dewberry - Junior
65 Devin Hollander - Junior

Defensive Backs

18 Bacarri Rambo - Freshman
19 Sanders Commings - Freshman
25 Vance Cuff - Sophomore
29 Makiri Pugh - Freshman
30 Eric Elliot -
Freshman
39 Nick Williams - Freshman
43 Stephen Braue -
Junior

Cornerbacks

2 Asher Allen - Junior
3 Bryan Evans - Junior
11 Ramarcus Brown - Senior
16 Chad Gloer -
Sophomore
20 Brandon Boykin - Freshman
23 Prince Miller - Junior
26 Christian Norton -
Sophomore

Safeties

5 CJ Byrd - Senior
6 Andrew Johnson -
Sophomore
9 Reshad Jones -
Sophomore
31 Quintin Banks -
Sophomore
44 John Knox -
Freshman
47 Andrew Williams - Senior

Punters

13 Drew Butler -
Freshman
32 Brian Mimbs - Senior
98 Trent Dittmer - Sophomore

Kickers

57 Blair Walsh - Freshman
95 Jordan Stowe - Freshman
96 Andrew Jensen -
Junior
99 Jamie Lindley - Freshman

Long Snappers

59 Bo Fowler - Senior
94 Billy Johnson - Freshman
95 Ty Frix - Freshman

External links

2008 Media Guide

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