It is New Year’s so I will make this one short and sweet. Another year has come and gone and a great deal happened in the sports world.
I was extremely pleased that my Florida Gators replaced the adolescent Will Muschamp with a staff of actual grownups. It showed on the field as the Gators won the SEC East for the first time since 2008. Coach McElwain has followed up a solid first season with what appears to be an elite recruiting class. I look forward to 2016
Georgia finally decided to step away from the shore and actually test the waters by cutting ties with head coach Mark Richt. Richt was safe but predictable. Making a change was risky. Richt was almost certain to get you nine or ten wins every year. Kirby Smart might win you a championship, but he might also go 6-6. You never know. If I were a Bulldog fan I would consider it worth the risk. They should be looking forward to 2016 as well.
The Atlanta Braves broke fans hearts by trading away the entire roster for prospects. This might pay dividends in the future, but it was a brutal 2015 season and promises to be an even worse 2016.
The Atlanta Falcons started great going 5-0 to begin the season but failed to make the playoffs. The highlight of the season was ruining the Carolina Panthers’ undefeated season. There were multiple games during the losing streak where the Falcons had second half leads over bad football teams and lost the games. Winning any two of those games would have clinched the playoffs already for the Falcons. Shoulda, woulda, coulda.
The Atlanta Hawks turned in their best season since Dominique Wilson left but still failed to make it to an NBA Finals. It was fun while it lasted. I have absolutely no expectation of ever seeing the Hawks in the Finals.
There was much more that transpired in sports in 2015 but not enough time or room to cover it all. The fact that we are still here to read this means the year could have been worse. Let’s toast the end of this year and welcome in the next one. I hope your 2016 is everything you hope for and more.
