Welcome Bulldog fans to our Season Preview issue of Bulldawg Illustrated. Plenty has occurred since our spring issue back in early March. The biggest occurrence being the announcement that Vince Dooley’s decades of contributions to the University of Georgia will forever be recognized with the naming of Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium.
Everyone here at BI is already planning to make our Murray State issue extra special to coincide with the dedication of Dooley Field for Georgia’s home opener on September 7. For now, I encourage you to head over to Jeff Dantzler’s column (page 10) on Coach Dooley. As usual, JD nails it concisely covering one incredible career. Congrats Coach Dooley on a well-deserved honor!
As JD points out in his column, Coach Dooley enjoyed equal success as Georgia’s athletic director. So without a doubt, Coach has to be proud to see so many Bulldogs’ athletic programs success during 2019. The Diamond Dawgs have notched over 40 wins and are getting healthy at the right time to make a run to Omaha (College World Series) in June. And literally at our press time for this issue, Jeff Wallace’s Georgia women’s tennis team is playing for the National Championship. What an awesome season for the lady netters!
Chris Haack’s men’s golf team recently pummeled the field at the NCAA Regionals hosted on their home University of Georgia Golf Course. Next up, they head to the NCAA Championships with the opportunity to secure another national title for Georgia.
Like I said, tons of great success for Georgia athletics. And of course, the marvelous recruiting by men’s basketball coach, Tom Crean has Hoop Dawgs’ backers clamoring for the new season to begin in November. Courtney Kupets Carter’s Gym Dawgs made it back to Nationals in March and are clearly letting the collegiate gymnastics world know that Georgia is well on its way to being back.
Then there is “King Football” as Dan Magill used to cleverly coin the unwavering love of our men in Red and Black on the gridiron.
While the expectations for the 2019 season are through the roof, we at Bulldawg Illustrated have chosen to emulate Kirby Smart’s playbook for this issue’s cover. No fancy headlines trying to ignite excitement. Instead simply “2019 Season Preview.”
Coach Smart recently said he likes his team to talk with their helmets. With this issue, our team at BI is talking with their keyboards in providing an in-depth issue sure to help our readers get through the long wait of summer finally turning into football.
Beginning in our sports section on page 13, get ready for havoc, explosiveness and consistent coverage. Those are the 2019 watch-words that have been coined for the defensive, offensive and special teams units by their driven head coach, Kirby Smart.
On page 23, you will find Hamilton Culpepper’s front porch conversation with Jake Fromm and Charlie Woerner that I was fortunate enough to take part in. Since Jake and Charlie have been my neighbors the last two years, I’ve had the privilege of watching them away from the demands of being student-athletes. Much of their relaxation takes place on their front porch, which is why Charlie had the great idea of doing the interview there.
The conversation was less about football and more about delving into what makes both Jake and Charlie good leaders and fine young men. And wow as you will read, that is a huge understatement. But neither shied away when talking about the No. 1 goal for this 2019 season.
As Hammy states in his intro, it truly was amazing to spend some time with the duo, which included their roommate Georgia baseball pitching ace Tony Locey and buddy Eli Gipson sitting in. One thing we didn’t cover in the interview, which is my favorite part of being their neighbor are the occasional gatherings they have where guitar strumming and country lyrics can be heard. Beyond reading the interview, I encourage you go to BI’s website for the audio. We probably should’ve videoed the interview, but I wanted everyone relaxed, which I wholeheartedly think we accomplished.
Enjoy!
Like all issues of BI, this one is full of excellent social coverage beginning on page 29. Our recent hire for Bulldawg Illustrated and new UGA graduate, Becca Grimes provides our readers with fun images of she and friends leading up to their graduation. Beyond Becca’s feature, there are lots of fan photos and our always, popular Proust Q&A with UGA Alumni Association board member, Jon Howell.
I’m now running out of space and time, so must say goodbye. However, before I do, here is something for everyone in the Bulldog Nation to think about … 2019 represents the last year in this decade. And 39 represents the years since our football team’s last national championship. The goal is simple … NINE is for NATTY … now let’s take care of business this season. Enjoy this incredible issue produced by our dedicated team and we’ll see you again in print on August 29 with our Vanderbilt issue. Happy Summer and Go Dawgs!!