Fox on hot seat as Georgia’s freefall continues
ATLANTA — Mark Fox may be running out of time to find a way to save Georgia’s season — and perhaps his job.
Georgia heads to Wednesday’s game at Florida having lost three straight games and six of seven. The Bulldogs (1311, 4-8 Southeastern Conference) may need to win at least five of their last six games and then have a strong run in the SEC Tournament to be considered for a NCAA bid.
There has been no sign Georgia is poised for
such a strong finish. Instead, Fox is facing perhaps the most difficult challenge of his nine years in Athens.
“Obviously our confidence has been shaken,” Fox said after the Bulldogs’ 78-61 loss to No. 8 Auburn on Saturday.
Each of Georgia’s three straight losses — to Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Auburn — has come by at least 15 points. The trip to Florida provides
a needed reminder of Georgia’s home win over then-No. 23 Florida on Jan. 30, the Bulldogs’ only win since mid-January.
Fox is looking for ways to improve Georgia’s defense and rebounding. He surprised observers Saturday when he acknowledged he’s still trying to replace last year’s leader, point guard J.J. Frazier.
“We’re disappointed in our backcourt play and obviously it’s been a challenge to replace Frazier and we haven’t found a way to effectively do that yet,” Fox said.
Fox had ample time to prepare for the exit of Frazier, a senior. Fox and his staff bear responsibility for the inability to find any reliable backcourt leadership to take the reins after 24 games.
The timing of Fox’s comment on his backcourt was especially bad, because Auburn’s leading scorer in the win over the Bulldogs was guard Jared Harper, from Mableton, Georgia. The Tigers won despite playing without top scorer Bryce Brown, another guard from Georgia.
Despite Auburn’s success finding talented players in the state of Georgia, recruiting could help Fox keep his job.