Damon Evans' Legacy

It was pointed out to me recently that only two of Damon Evans' hires are still around: Mark Fox and head soccer coach Steve Holeman.  (h/t to Royorbisondawg)

Damon Evans

Think about that. He was AD for six years and five days. As of today, he has exactly two hires left. I run hot and cold about one and only know that the Soccer Dawgs made the NCAA tourney to lose the regionals in Durham to National Runner-Up Duke. It is stunning that only two of his hires are still around. Having said that, it is not hard to use hindsight to say the Damon Evans effect might also have been one of the contributory causes for the late '00's swoon in football.

Greg McGarity (Image: Red and Black)

I'm not willing to lay all of that on Evans, because the coaching staff has to want it, too. However, when the your boss is...busy...and not pressing excellence in the same way other ADs are, it isn't hard to get complacent. It also isn't hard to say the football program got very complacent, especially in recruiting, in the last year of Damon's tenure.

This didn't start out as an anti-Damon thing or a pro-McGarity thing. Other than McGarity's quick trigger retaining Perno this season, I haven't really questioned his moves (not that I explicitly question that move, but how quickly McGarity made the decision was interesting), as they all made sense in the context of the sport it happened in. In that regard, I dig the current AD's every year evaluation of the sport and the direction that sport is taking.

As for the current downward trend of Director's Cup Standings, that is something McGarity is going to have to take up with the new President if that doesn't change.

TD

Breaking: Branden Smith Arrested

Not sure how much to trust something called the 'Rickeystokesnews.com,' but I guess as much as I should the AJC (which is simply citing the Rickey Stokes News), right?

It went down in Henry County, Alabama, which is one county above Dothan. If you've been from Athens to Panama City Beach, you go down Hwy 431 out of Columbus to get there.

The maddening part of this story is that, if true, he was with a dude that got caught in the same county last week for smokin' the reefer.  Dude.

TD

Because I don't feel dirty enough, I checked Smith's Twitter time line.  Doesn't look good (MF_CashOnli is someone named D.Woods):

Heading to pc with @MF_CashOnli
— Branden Smith (@Brandensmith1) March 12, 2012

UPDATE:

Henry County (Ala.) Sheriff's office confirms that #UGA CB Branden Smith was arrested early today for possession of marijuana.
— Marc Weiszer (@marcweiszer) March 12, 2012

See also:
-Branden Smith Arrested in Alabama - Marc Weiszer (ABH)