People, you need to calm down

Look, I'm as worried as you are about the Missouri game and all these suspensions. But some of you bloggers need to find a little more perspective before you take to the Internets.

Or better yet, seriously consider whether every redundant little screed that enters your head is really worth posting at all.

Let's just play Mizzou with half our guys

Don't worry, guys. The Missouri game is only the initial key to the season in a year when we've got a legitimate shot to to fulfill all your championship dreams.

So go nuts.

Bold predictions for 2012

Is it just me, or is already time to get fired up?

Prediction 1: Dawgs win the SEC East going away.
Even in another down year for the East, that's a scary thing to say, because we lose to Florida like it's a career. But this defense will be nasty. Yeah, we got cornerback issues, but quarterbacks taking a dirt nap will make even the thinnest secondary look strong. The offensive line is obviously a question (and when was the last time it wasn't?), but you have to feel good about Aaron Murray's third year under center, the promise our receiving corps showed last year and the talent stacked at running back. The tools are there to run an efficient offense, and efficient offenses, combined with nasty defenses, are deadly.

Prediction 2: Malcolm Mitchell plays a lot of defense.
You'll see him on offense. You might even seen him return a few punts. But I believe it will just be too hard to move him too far from cornerback. Plus ...

Prediction 3: Tavarres King has an All-America type season.
Maybe not first team All-America, but a turn-people's-heads, merit consideration, Biletnikoff-watch-list type season. Sure, it'd be nice to have Mitchell on the other side, stretching the field. But we've got solid WRs all around in Conley and Bennett. If the offensive line can give us a running game and we can throw Malcolm in the mix from time to time, the sky's the limit.

Prediction 4: Malcolm on defense opens doors for the tight ends.
It's not the logjam we had last year at the position, but we've got two talented guys in Artie Lynch and Jay Rome. They're both gonna play, and they're both gonna play a lot. This is going to be a multiple offense with a balance we're not used to seeing.

Prediction 5: Isaiah Crowell does not win the Heisman.
Isaiah, I love you for aiming high, my man. And I got no problem being wrong about this. You've got Heisman-potential talent and, if I have my way, you're going to be a very big part of the best running game this side of the triple option. But you're going to split time with at least two other guys. Plus, how can you win the Heisman when Malcolm Mitchell's going to?

Joe chimes in: I predict 10-2, 1,400 yards from Crowell, defense second best in the nation. I'm banking on Bama or LSU at No. 1. We win the east, Missouri second. Oh, and Tebow screws up the Jets, Dooley gets fired, Kirby Smart takes over UT.

AJC: Kasyn Olivadotti doing "quite well"

Sometimes it only takes a sentence to lift your heart a little. Third item:

Nine months ago, not long after new Georgia linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti and his family arrived in Athens from Washington D.C., his 4-year-old daughter Kasyn was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (A.L.L.). Little Kasyn has been going through treatment since and actually is doing quite well. But the wives of the Bulldogs’ coaches, in conjunction with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, got together to plan a fundraiser for cancer research in Kasyn’s honor.

Tuesday night at the Gwinnett Braves’ Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia and Kennesaw will face off in the Gwinnett Baseball Classic. All proceeds will go to the “Kasyn Cares Fund” at the Aflac Cancer Center. Individual tickets for the 7 p.m. game are $12 and they are being sold in packages up to $1,000. If you have more questions or would like to find out what else you can do, contact Renee Fraley at 404-785-7315.