About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 2018)
SPORTS Bill Murphy Sports Editor | 770-718-3415 | sports@gainesvilletimes.com Unties gainesvilletimes.com Friday, November 30, 2018 SEC CHAMPIONSHIP JOHN BAZEMORE I The Associated Press Georgia wide receiver Jeremiah Holloman (9) makes a catch for a touchdown as Georgia Tech defensive back Malik Rivera (36) defends during the first half of the game Nov. 24 in Athens. Battle on the outside Wide receivers will KAYAK OLYMPIC ASPIRATIONS likely be big factor As No. 4 Georgia prepares to take on No. 1 Alabama Saturday in a rematch of last year’s national championship game, much of the talk surrounding the contest is centered around quar terbacks Jake Fromm and Tua Tago- vailoa squaring off in the second round of last year’s overtime epic. Quarter back play will certainly be a major fac tor on Saturday, but equally important will be the players on the receiving end of Fromm and Tagovailoa’s passes. The Crimson Tide’s group of Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III and Jaylen Waddle have each accounted for at least 37 catches, 675 yards and six touchdowns — Jeudy leading the way with 56 grabs NATHAN BERG for 1,079 yards nberg@ and 11 scores. gainesvilletimes.com Alabama’s explosive receiving options have been instrumental in mak ing the team the nation’s fourth best in terms of total offense. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Ala bama’s wideouts,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “I think they’re tre mendous. I think they’re probably the best unit we’ve faced. They’re talented, and they can get vertical. ” And while Georgia’s receiving corps has not been quite as heralded a group, the unit has gotten the job done throughout the year. The Bulldogs leading trio — Mecole Hard man, Riley Ridley and Jeremiah Hol loman — have each accounted for at least five scores. Terry Godwin, who was the top returning option coming into the year, chipped in three touchdowns on limited playing time due to an early-season injury. Diving even deeper down the roster, Tyler Simmons has hauled in a pair of scores on only eight receptions and Demetris Robertson added a long rush ing touchdown on an end around. “We’ve got a good wide receiver corps,” Smart said. “We’ve got a deep wide receiver corps across the board. A lot of guys have stepped up, and Jake ■ Please see BERG, 3B Godwin Georgia vs. Alabama When: 4 p.m. Saturday Where: Mercedes Benz Stadium, Atlanta TV: CBS Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Shaye Hatchette, a 22-year-old from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, was selected on the NBC Sports show “Scouting Camp: Next Olympic Hopeful” to train in the sprint kayak. She has moved to Gainesville to train with the Lanier Canoe & Kayak Club at the Lake Lanier Olympic Park. Reality show winner has moved to Gainesville in hopes of making 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo Oklahoma native Shaye Hatchette, 22, was selected on the NBC Sports show “Scouting Camp: Next Olympic Hopeful” and now lives in Gainesville as she pursues the dream of making the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. BY BILL MURPHY bmurphy@gainesvilletimes.com Shaye Hatchette moved to Gainesville in September with one suitcase, two backpacks and dreams of qualifying for the next Summer Olympics. Fresh off being selected from a field of 90 hopefuls who appeared on a two-part real ity show “Scouting Camp: The Next Olympic Hopeful”, which aired Nov. 24-25 on NBC Sports, the vivacious 22-year-old from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma dove head first into training at the Lake Lanier Olympic Park as a sprint kayak hopeful for the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. The kicker to the whole story? Hatchette has no back ground in paddling. Her closest experience on the water was rowing at the University of Central Okla homa, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2018. However, it’s been a life long dream to make it to the Olympics. “As a kid, I loved watching the Olympics and how it was a way of bringing people together,” said Hatch ette, who as a child idolized Team USA gold medal gym nasts Shawn Johnson, Shannon Miller and Aly Raisman. However, her path to the Olympics is going to be in a boat not on the balance beam. And she’s willing to do what ever it takes to make that happen. So, if it meant moving 800 miles east to a town where she only knew her training coach, Morgan House, so be it. “This entire experience is a dream come true,” said Hatch ette, who plans to remain in Gainesville until 2020 and train with the Lanier Canoe & Kayak Club. From the jump, Hatchette knew she made the right deci sion moving to Georgia. The new friends she’s met have made the transition much easier. “I love the sunrises and sun sets you have in Georgia,” said Hatchette. “All the colors in the sky are just beautiful. ” A three-sport athlete in col lege, Hatchette compiled a last-minute video in May for the show, after seeing an ad on Facebook the final day for applicants to send in a five-min ute clip highlighting their quali fications. She never expected to make the cut, despite having a wide-ranging athletic back ground in swimming, track and field, soccer and gymnastics. But she did. And in the final week of July, she took part in train ing and conditioning at the US Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. There, she was hand picked by ■ Please see SHAYE, 4B JULIO CORTEZ I Associated Press Atlanta United midfielder Miguel Almiron, left, and New York Red Bulls midfielder Tyler Adams go up for the ball during the first half of tine second leg of the MLS soccer Eastern Conference championship on Thursday in Harrison, New Jersey. Atlanta Uniteds success has fans ready for a title Usually, cheering for an Atlanta sports team is equivalent to willingly consuming E. coli-laced romaine let tuce as you watch the acclaimed film, Titanic. You know the inevitable is coming — that ship is going to sink, Leo is going to die and that BLT you just consumed had already bought you a trip to the emergency room. Metaphorically speaking, the ship on the screen is your favorite Atlanta franchise and that spoiled sandwich is the winning season you thought would bring satisfaction, but instead leaves you bedridden, dehydrated and sick. Harsh? Maybe. But it’s true, I’m afraid. For decades that has been the real ity of Atlanta fandom, the epitome of mediocrity. With every fresh SARAH WOODALL swoodall@gainesvilletimes.com season comes a reason for opti mism, but always seems to end in disappointment. It can be argued that the Atlanta Braves have been the exception, but 14-straight division titles and only one World Series can be considered as ■ Please see WOODALL, 2B LAKE LANIER FISHING REPORT Aim for deep ditches for best chance at biggest bass BY ERIC ALDRICH For The Times Lake Lanier is holding steady and the water level is at 1,070.32 or .68 below the normal full pool of 1,071. Lake surface temperatures have dropped significantly with the colder weather and are from the mid to low 50’s. The main lake and lower lake creeks are clear in some areas and stained to very stained in other locations from rain and lake turn over. The upper lake and rivers remain stained to muddy from lake turn over and recent rain inflow. The Chattahoochee below Buford Dam is very stained, but it clears slightly after water generation. Check generation schedules before heading out to the river below Buford Dam at 770-945-1466. Note: I am now offering instruc tional trips for bass fishing. We will cover electronics, techniques, knots and anything else an angler wishes to explore. I have added the second console to my Nitro Z8 that’s equipped with a 250 HP Mercury and those awesome Low- rance Electronics. Email me at esaldrich@yahoo.com or PM me on Facebook for very competitive pricing and available dates. Bass fishing rates from fair to tough for the bank beaters, but is excellent for the deeper ditch bite. My Lowrance Carbon 12 and 16 units are essential tools for target ing deeper bass. I have received some interesting looks from people when gassing up the Nitro on these colder morn ings. They may think I am crazy but the bite has been very good. Charge your batteries, bundle up in layers and make sure to have an assortment of spoons, SPRO Deep Divers, jigs and drop shot rigs. The shallow bite has waned sig nificantly, except for early in the day. Hit the shallow guts of the ditches with moving lures at dawn and follow the bass out deeper as the sun rises. We have been con centrating on the ditches all week and have been having great results. Start out very early around shal low rock close to the ditches. Bass go through an early feeding period as they trap baitfish against the bank. Grind a SPRO Little John DD or Fat Papa 70 around rocky areas. Stay a cast away from the shore. While these plugs will run from 12 feet to as deep as 20 feet, most of our early bites have come ■ Please see LANIER, 2B
