From OnlineAthens.com
October 9th, 2015 10:17 AM
College quarterbacks never forget their firsts — first game, first start, first completion, first touchdown, first victory.
By the time D.J. Shockley hit the checkerboards at Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium in early October 2005, he’d already experienced just about all of the firsts. But on that day in Knoxville, the senior came face to face with something he’d not encountered before — starting at quarterback against a top-10 opponent in an intimidating and decidedly unfriendly setting.
Shockley — who’d spent the previous three seasons at Georgia as David Greene’s understudy — didn’t have the greatest game of his career in that 27-14 victory over the Volunteers that day. He completed 16 of 27 passes for 207 yards and an interception and rushed 11 times for 51 yards.
But what he did do was help lead the Bulldogs to a critical victory, and in the process bolster the trust of coach Mark Richt and his teammates as they two months later won the Southeastern Conference title in Atlanta, the last time Georgia has been able to do so.
“It ranks pretty high because of some of the things I had to go through during that game,” Shockley, now 32, recalled. “It was the first really big game for me as the starter in a hostile environment, having to control the show against a really good opponent in Tennessee.”
Although Georgia held a 10-0 lead at the half, Tennessee changed the tenor of the game in the third quarter when Jonathan Wade intercepted a Shockley pass and returned it 34 yards to the Bulldogs’ 1-yard line, setting up the Volunteers’ first score of the day. But what happened after that costly turnover helped mold Shockley into the offensive leader he subsequently became.
“I remember that (interception) was the first time when things weren’t going my way,” Shockley, who now lives in Duluth with his wife, Portia, and children Milan, 5, and Mekhi, 3, said. “On the first offensive play after I threw the interception, coach Richt called a deep post route and I hit it and it was a 34-yard gain. And at that point I was like, ‘OK, you can get over stuff.’"
“And I knew, at that point, that coach Richt really trusted me. He could have called a simple draw play or some other run, but he wanted me to shake that interception off and get my confidence back. That was big for me — it was my first big-time start and they weren’t going to baby me, they were going to throw me right back in the fire. For me, that meant a lot that (Richt) trusted me enough to call that pass. It was huge for me.”
Shockley was injured on Oct. 22 against Arkansas and had to sit out the Florida game (a 14-10 loss), and then Georgia dropped a heartbreaker two weeks later against Auburn at home, but the Bulldogs still managed to reach the SEC title game and put the boots to LSU in a 34-14 victory. While the former North Clayton high standout is appreciative of all the games he was able to start at Georgia, squashing LSU stands out as his most memorable day at the yard.
“(Boise State) was like it was a great coming-out party,” Shockley, who in that game tied a school record with five touchdown passes, said. “But I think about the way the game is now and it’s been 10 years since we’ve won an SEC championship, so I go back and look at the 2005 game when LSU was No. 3 and could have played for the national championship. We dismantled them and played so well — that’s the one I really look back on and go ‘Wow.’”
In other firsts, Shockley, who in 2005 was a first-team All-SEC selection, is recognized as the first player Richt signed in 2001 as Georgia’s new coach. And as is usually the case, there’s a good story that goes along with the signing.
“I went to Florida State’s team gala and I’m sitting at coach Richt’s table with my family and he’s telling me how great Florida State is and how I should be coming there, and I’m sitting there loving Florida State, thinking this might be the place for me,” he said. “And two weeks later, he takes the job at Georgia, and on the same day he took the job, he was in my living room. And he says, ‘You know, Georgia’s the best place for you.’
“And I said, ‘Coach, two weeks ago, you were saying Florida State was the best place for me.’ What he really was saying was, ‘Where I’m at is the best place for you.’”
Although it wasn’t of his making, Shockley’s years in Athens weren’t free of controversy as there were almost always fans who called for him to be the starter in favor of Greene. Shockley assented there were days of frustration, but feels that experience helped toughen him mentally and physically when his number was finally called.
“When I thought about transferring, (Richt) was the last person I talked to before I made my decision,” he said. “He was the main reason why I stayed. I told him I was thinking about transferring and he said, ‘Shock, first off, I love you and I want you to be at Georgia.’ He reminded me about the opportunity for a great education. He didn’t promise me anything except that when I left Georgia, I’d have a smile on my face.
“When I left his office, I realized he could have said anything in the world to get me to stay and keep me happy, but he didn’t do that. He was honest and up front, and this was the type of man I wanted to be around and play for because I knew exactly where I stood with him. It went a long way to the decision I made.”
After his college days ended, Shockley spent five years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons before retiring in 2010. Now a veteran broadcaster who appears on a host of television, radio and internet shows covering the Falcons and college football, Shockley says he sees a lot of similarities between the 2005 Bulldogs and this year’s edition.
“Offensively, you’ve got some great skill players,” he said. “We had three great running backs, like they have now; they’ve got some playmakers on the outside and a veteran offensive line.
“But the real similarities come on the defense. Those guys fly around, they’re really athletic and they’ll try to take your head off. …It’s a team that looks very similar to ours in 2005 and has all the tools to take it to the next level and bring the SEC championship back to where it should be — it hasn’t been here for a while.”
...READ MORE HERE...
October 9th, 2015 10:17 AM
College quarterbacks never forget their firsts — first game, first start, first completion, first touchdown, first victory.
By the time D.J. Shockley hit the checkerboards at Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium in early October 2005, he’d already experienced just about all of the firsts. But on that day in Knoxville, the senior came face to face with something he’d not encountered before — starting at quarterback against a top-10 opponent in an intimidating and decidedly unfriendly setting.
Shockley — who’d spent the previous three seasons at Georgia as David Greene’s understudy — didn’t have the greatest game of his career in that 27-14 victory over the Volunteers that day. He completed 16 of 27 passes for 207 yards and an interception and rushed 11 times for 51 yards.
But what he did do was help lead the Bulldogs to a critical victory, and in the process bolster the trust of coach Mark Richt and his teammates as they two months later won the Southeastern Conference title in Atlanta, the last time Georgia has been able to do so.
“It ranks pretty high because of some of the things I had to go through during that game,” Shockley, now 32, recalled. “It was the first really big game for me as the starter in a hostile environment, having to control the show against a really good opponent in Tennessee.”
Although Georgia held a 10-0 lead at the half, Tennessee changed the tenor of the game in the third quarter when Jonathan Wade intercepted a Shockley pass and returned it 34 yards to the Bulldogs’ 1-yard line, setting up the Volunteers’ first score of the day. But what happened after that costly turnover helped mold Shockley into the offensive leader he subsequently became.
“I remember that (interception) was the first time when things weren’t going my way,” Shockley, who now lives in Duluth with his wife, Portia, and children Milan, 5, and Mekhi, 3, said. “On the first offensive play after I threw the interception, coach Richt called a deep post route and I hit it and it was a 34-yard gain. And at that point I was like, ‘OK, you can get over stuff.’"
“And I knew, at that point, that coach Richt really trusted me. He could have called a simple draw play or some other run, but he wanted me to shake that interception off and get my confidence back. That was big for me — it was my first big-time start and they weren’t going to baby me, they were going to throw me right back in the fire. For me, that meant a lot that (Richt) trusted me enough to call that pass. It was huge for me.”
Shockley was injured on Oct. 22 against Arkansas and had to sit out the Florida game (a 14-10 loss), and then Georgia dropped a heartbreaker two weeks later against Auburn at home, but the Bulldogs still managed to reach the SEC title game and put the boots to LSU in a 34-14 victory. While the former North Clayton high standout is appreciative of all the games he was able to start at Georgia, squashing LSU stands out as his most memorable day at the yard.
“(Boise State) was like it was a great coming-out party,” Shockley, who in that game tied a school record with five touchdown passes, said. “But I think about the way the game is now and it’s been 10 years since we’ve won an SEC championship, so I go back and look at the 2005 game when LSU was No. 3 and could have played for the national championship. We dismantled them and played so well — that’s the one I really look back on and go ‘Wow.’”
In other firsts, Shockley, who in 2005 was a first-team All-SEC selection, is recognized as the first player Richt signed in 2001 as Georgia’s new coach. And as is usually the case, there’s a good story that goes along with the signing.
“I went to Florida State’s team gala and I’m sitting at coach Richt’s table with my family and he’s telling me how great Florida State is and how I should be coming there, and I’m sitting there loving Florida State, thinking this might be the place for me,” he said. “And two weeks later, he takes the job at Georgia, and on the same day he took the job, he was in my living room. And he says, ‘You know, Georgia’s the best place for you.’
“And I said, ‘Coach, two weeks ago, you were saying Florida State was the best place for me.’ What he really was saying was, ‘Where I’m at is the best place for you.’”
Although it wasn’t of his making, Shockley’s years in Athens weren’t free of controversy as there were almost always fans who called for him to be the starter in favor of Greene. Shockley assented there were days of frustration, but feels that experience helped toughen him mentally and physically when his number was finally called.
“When I thought about transferring, (Richt) was the last person I talked to before I made my decision,” he said. “He was the main reason why I stayed. I told him I was thinking about transferring and he said, ‘Shock, first off, I love you and I want you to be at Georgia.’ He reminded me about the opportunity for a great education. He didn’t promise me anything except that when I left Georgia, I’d have a smile on my face.
“When I left his office, I realized he could have said anything in the world to get me to stay and keep me happy, but he didn’t do that. He was honest and up front, and this was the type of man I wanted to be around and play for because I knew exactly where I stood with him. It went a long way to the decision I made.”
After his college days ended, Shockley spent five years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons before retiring in 2010. Now a veteran broadcaster who appears on a host of television, radio and internet shows covering the Falcons and college football, Shockley says he sees a lot of similarities between the 2005 Bulldogs and this year’s edition.
“Offensively, you’ve got some great skill players,” he said. “We had three great running backs, like they have now; they’ve got some playmakers on the outside and a veteran offensive line.
“But the real similarities come on the defense. Those guys fly around, they’re really athletic and they’ll try to take your head off. …It’s a team that looks very similar to ours in 2005 and has all the tools to take it to the next level and bring the SEC championship back to where it should be — it hasn’t been here for a while.”
...READ MORE HERE...
