Ron Seibel: Georgia, Mark Richt both win
Several years ago, a couple of friends were on the path toward marriage, and they discussed what made a good relationship work.
One subject that came up was the process of resolving disagreements. One of them talked about how human nature prompts people to look out for themselves, forget how it affects other people. As they worked through things, however, they began to realize the power of the win-win, finding what's best for both parties.
Do that, they realized, and both would be better off than if they tried to pursue their individual goals.
That's how I frame what happened this week between Georgia and its former football head coach, Mark Richt.
Mark Richt is a wonderful person and a solid coach. He knows how to work with and develop people. He's fairly successful with the Xs and Os. In short, he ran a respectable program.
Things, however, had become a bit stale. The struggles against Florida have been well-reported. The Bulldogs were falling short in other big games, as well. The win-loss ledger still looked good, but the signature victories were lacking.
It was time to shake things up, both for Georgia and for Richt. Fifteen years is a respectable run, but it was time for a change for both sides.
Indeed, both sides seem to benefit from the change. Richt returns to Miami, where he can build things essentially from scratch with a fresh set of eyes. And Georgia will be getting the services of a former Bulldogs player, Kirby Smart, one of the top coordinators in college football who will be moving into the head coach's role for the first time.
Good things happened for both sides in this. It was a win-win.
ABOUT THAT COACHING CHANGE
Even after Richt and Georgia announced the parting of ways last weekend, the business of football at the university continued.
Georgia defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt, whose destination post-Richt is unknown, was still out recruiting this week. One of those stops was at Stratford, where he was paying a visit to split end/defensive back Quintez Cephus, who is currently committed to Wisconsin.
"You just missed him," a Stratford assistant told me as I walked into the Eagles' football facility Wednesday afternoon to do some preview work for their GHSA Class A private school semifinal Friday at Aquinas.
The sarcastic question soon asked by nobody in particular, "Yeah, but for which school was he recruiting for?"
For the record, I was assured that Pruitt was still representing Georgia.
PLAYOFF PICKS
The brackets weren't quite so kind this week, but four of the teams I predicted for GHSA championships at the start of the playoffs are still in the hunt.
Colquitt County (Class AAAAAA), Buford (Class AAAA), Calhoun (Class AAA) and Prince Avenue Christian (Class A private) are taking part in semifinals this weekend.
Predicted champions seeing their seasons come to an end last week were Houston County in Class AAAAA, Benedictine in Class AA and Marion in Class A public.
Contact Ron Seibel at 744-4222 or rseibel@macon.com
This story was originally published December 3, 2015 at 6:17 PM with the headline "Ron Seibel: Georgia, Mark Richt both win ."