My Valentine's Present: Georgia Beats Florida Twice on TV

Be forewarned: I'm going way off topic here.

Last night I was watching Tivo and caught the end of the Tyson Invitational, a track meet that was held on Valentine's Day. Now those of you who aren't old friends might not know I used to be a big time runner and track and field junkie. I still record track meets and watch the events that interest me. In fact, I believe that Tivo is God's gift to televised track and field.

Anyway, as I fast forwarded through, I caught the familiar Red and Black of the Georgia Bulldogs. I tuned in and saw a remarkable performance. Georgia's Torrin Lawrence, fresh off a world leading 46.18 in the individual race, ran a 45.1 split to make up a 10 meter gap and crush Florida's Calvin Smith, a U.S. Olympian, on the anchor leg of the race. Georgia's vaunted sports information department may just need to give a little media training to that relay team, as they might be getting some more air time on TV if they keep running nation-leading times. Keep in mind that this was the same day the Dawgs beat the Gators at home in hoops. A double dose of victory to be savored.

Anyway, track and field doesn't get nearly enough coverage, and from time to time we have some remarkable track athletes at Georgia. Torrin looks to be the latest. Kudos to Chip Towers for writing a story for the AJC, and check out the You Tube video of his anchor leg below -- even if you don't like track, seeing UGA beat Florida at anything right now is a big positive. Especially in the most exciting race in track and field, the 4 x 400 meter relay (and no, the Gator track was not handicapped by competing in jean shorts).

P.S. And in a thinly-veiled effort to further "localize" this post and not just write about a favorite sport, I will report that former Oconee County pole vaulter Jordan Scott continues to re-write the record books at the University of Kansas, vaulting over 18 feet this season.