The Univ. of Georgia is set to break ground on a new state-of-the-art indoor football practice facility in January, and Deputy AD CARLA WILLIAMS could not be more excited. She said, “We put a lot of work into this and still have a lot of work to go, but to see the progress feels really good.” The athletic department spent this week preparing for the arrival of incoming freshmen student-athletes who are on campus for summer school and camps. Williams has been meeting with coaches and staff to ensure that guidelines are met and new students make the successful transition. The school is also conducting a program this summer with the help of the NFL that teaches student-athletes about fiscal responsibility and career management.
DAWG DAYS: Our oldest daughter is 19 and in college here at Georgia. The other one is 15 and our son is 10. I try to get out and spend some time with them on weekends, whether it is working out or shopping with my daughters or playing basketball with all three of them. My 15-year-old daughter has a basketball camp this weekend. We will be watching her play some games on Friday and Saturday. I will watch my daughter play as much as I can on Saturday before a bunch of us catch a flight from Athens to Knoxville for the Women’s Basketball HOF induction ceremony. We have one of our former players, JANET HARRIS, being inducted. A lot of former teammates are flying in from different places, so we will have a pretty good contingent on hand to support her. This will be a typical Sunday for me -- Sunday school; go to church; then watch the NBA Finals. I am a huge basketball fan. I played for the Georgia Lady Bulldogs from ’85-89.
GOLDEN SLUMBERS: I am a really good cook. In fact, I try to cook enough on weekends so that the kids have leftovers during the week because the schedule gets really tight. I usually cook a nice brunch on Saturday, and especially on Sunday when we get back home from church services. Then I take a well-deserved nap. I do not get to sleep in on weekends, but I love to get a nap in on Sunday afternoons when we do not have any events going on. If the schedule works out, I can probably get a four-hour nap in. You are going 90 miles per hour during the week -- here before 8:00am and here after 5:00pm -- so to be able to decompress is great. When we do get a get a chance to go out, my family’s favorite breakfast spot is a place in Atlanta called Highland Bakery. I enjoy their cinnamon rolls, sweet potato pancakes, hash browns and they have a bunch of breakfast sandwiches to choose from. Everything is from scratch and is really, really fresh. You really cannot go wrong there.
SWEET TOOTH: My husband and I love going out for dinner and a movie on weekends. We even drag the kids along once in a while. Downtown Athens is full of great eating spots. My favorite is Last Resort Grill. It is pretty popular around Georgia. They serve a mixture of different cuisines. It is not a chain restaurant -- more homegrown. It is a bit of a foodie spot with great salads and chicken dishes. They have great desserts as well. Always save room for the red velvet cake. I love Jack’s Bar-B-Que in Nashville. I just love Nashville, period. We lived there for four years and I am up there quite a bit. It is a good city for entertainment and they have great restaurants.
TAKING A BREAK: My family and I went down to Destin, Fla., over the Memorial Day weekend. That was pretty awesome. I got to spend some quiet time on the beach and enjoy some really good food. We like to go to Lake Oconee in Greene County (Ga.) toward the end of the summer when the crowd is pretty low. We do a little bit of tubing, fishing and swimming. It is very relaxing. My basement is a quiet spot where I can just relax and watch TV. My guilty weekend pleasure is anything chocolate. It does not have to be the weekend, but I love to sit and watch TV and have a nice Hershey’s chocolate bar.
TWISTIN’ THE NIGHT AWAY: I do not read anything that is not related to sports. I try to keep abreast on current news in college athletics such as the Knight Commission, reports on the ED O’BANNON case, cost of attendance, amateurism and restructuring, particularly in the Power 5. I am behind with technology, and my kids let me know that. I do have Twitter and Facebook but I am not really into social media yet. I figure I will have to get into that at some point. I have a few favorite TV shows for the weekend. I am into any of the murder mystery shows such as “48 HOURS” and “DATELINE.” I have recently become a big fan of “AMERICAN ODYSSEY” on Sunday nights. Any “LAW & ORDER” episode is good. I am old school when it comes to music. I love R&B, Gospel and pop music. My music taste is from the ‘60s. SAM COOKE is a favorite of mine. Most people nowadays do not know even know who he is. It is kind of funny, but being in the south and coaching here for five years, our longtime head coach and I would be on the road recruiting and I gained an affinity for some country music.
