WATCH: Kirby Smart and players after Georgia football Orange Bowl win
WATCH: Kirby Smart, Kendall Milton, Kamari Lassiter at postgame press conference after Georgia football Orange Bowl win on Dec. 30, 2023
Writing about Georgia football serves a passionate fan base that wants to know about every nook and cranny going on with the program.
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Really, though, there’s probably nothing as a beat writer that validated your work more than if Michael Brochstein, who posted under the handle “Senator Blutarsky,” thought it was worthy of offering his sharp insight into a story you wrote on his “Get The Picture,” Georgia-centric blog.
If he did, it often times felt like hitting a home run. If he didn’t, you thought, huh, maybe that wasn’t as good an angle as I thought.
We bring all this up because it’s a sad weekend for the countless Georgia fans who went to Brochstein’s blog for his perspective—not hot takes—on everything from Mike Bobo and Todd Monken’s playcalling, Kirby Smart’s “manball” philosophy to players emerging from an alley on scooters and getting ticketed by UGA police years ago.
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In the fall, his “Observations From the 35,” gave his sharp-eyed take on what he saw from his Sanford Stadium seat of the game that just passed.
It was an online community for fans to gather to see and chime in on Brochstein’s view on hot button issues in college football and everything and anything related to Georgia football.
The blog had some stops and starts more recently due to health issues—”getting old leaves something to be desired” he wrote in the first week of January after a slowdown on the blog. His final post came on Jan. 23 asking how much Georgia fans were contributing to the Bulldogs’ collective given Ohio State fans reportedly were shelling out big bucks.
Brochstein passed away Thursday, according to a post on his blog Friday night.
Who was the man behind Senator Blutarsky? Here’s what he said in an email to me on Oct. 20, 2014 when I had him and other Georgia bloggers join us for our old podcast.
“As far as background goes, I’m a 1980 graduate of the UGA law school and a season ticket holder since 1981. I live in Atlanta. I started the blog immediately after the 2006 Georgia-Georgia Tech game and haven’t looked back since.”
The photo on top of the blog was Vince Dooley and James Brown together.
“Dooley’s Junkyard Dawgs” is the greatest college football song ever,” he wrote as a truth that is self evident on the blog.
That fit perfectly for someone who did musical palate cleansers with videos of the likes of the Rolling Stones, Muddy Waters, Beatles and most recently the Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York.’
The tributes poured in starting Friday night on X (formerly Twitter):
“This hits hard. Georgia fans have lost one of their best voices. I enjoyed everything he wrote (envy and jealousy, indeed,) and I marveled at how he kept at it day after day. I hope he knew how essential he was to so many of us. RIP, Senator.—Brian Sugrue who posts at Dawgsonline.com.
“The Senator was the gold standard of CFB blogging, an inspiration. Legend. From his daily guidance of NCAA muddy waters, to fun sh** like the Montana Project,the @MummePoll,his viewpoint ‘tween the hedges…deeply sad. So RIP good Senator Blutarsky, will miss you daily—Chris Burnette of Bernie’s Dawg Blog.
“Damn this is really, really terrible news. He had by far the best Georgia specific blog that I’ve been reading for 15 years at least. I always looked forward to his recaps And good Lord did he hate Auburn Rest in Peace Senator Blutarsky. We’re really gonna miss you.”—Three Year Letterman, a light-hearted account that portrays himself as a “Youth Football Coaching Legend.”
“The Senator was the best of Dawg Nation. There aren’t really any words, only he might would have the right ones. Prayers to his family and Heaven got another DGD tonight.”—CoachBG30.
Brochstein was born in Houston and lived in Athens since 1960, according to his LinkedIn page. He graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia with a B.A. in Economics in 1977.
“Three years of watching Virginia’s football program go down the toilet had soured me on the sport as a whole,” he wrote for a Bill Connelly SB Nation story in 2013 where he listed his 10 favorite college football games. “ [Georgia radio announcer] Larry Munson rekindled my love in one night with a radio call that Lewis Grizzard aptly described as ‘better than being there.’ Munson never did call the winning kick good. It didn’t matter.”
Brochstein practiced law in the areas of residential and commercial real estate after becoming a cum laude graduate of the UGA School of Law. He was a speaker on regulation and compliance topics to bank and mortgage companies.
Brochstein surely would have had something to say Friday about Chip Kelly bolting from the UCLA head coaching job to become Ohio State offensive coordinator.
His voice will be sorely missed.
Marc Weiszer is the UGA beat writer for the Athens Banner-Herald. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @marcweiszer.
Despite being committed to USC, defensive lineman Isaiah Gibson still hears from the University of Georgia.Gibson, a Rivals250 and prospect in the Class of 2025 from Warner Robins High School (GA),…
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COLUMBIA – Georgia scored 10 runs in the final two innings of play to sweep the University of South Carolina baseball team, 14-6, Saturday afternoon (May 11) at Founders Park.
Carolina took a 4-1 lead in the third after Gavin Casas homered and the Gamecocks received help from a pair of errors. Georgia tied the game at four with a pair of runs in the sixth and one in the seventh, but Carolina then took a 6-4 lead in the seventh on Ethan Petry’s two-out double.
Georgia took the lead for good in the eighth on pinch hitter Logan Jordan’s grand slam. The Bulldogs added two runs in that inning and scored four in the ninth, highlighted by a Corey Collins home run.
Austin Brinling had three hits to lead the Carolina offense. Petry, Blake Jackson and Casas had two hits apiece. The loss went to Dylan Eskew on the mound. He allowed three runs and two hits in two-thirds of an inning. Garrett Gainey earned the start and struck out seven in 5.1 innings, allowing five hits and two earned runs.
POSTGAME NOTES
UP NEXT Carolina wraps up the regular season with a three-game set at Tennessee starting on Thursday night (May 16) in Knoxville. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. and the game will be streamed on SEC Network Plus.
Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.
Senator Billy Hickman said, “By investing in the training and deployment of regional literacy coaches, we’re not only enhancing educational outcomes but also fostering a more vibrant and prosperous future for our state.”
Members of the Georgia General Assembly convened this week to welcome the executive directors from all sixteen of Georgia’s Regional Education Service Agencies (RESA). During the meeting, legislators and the executive directors proposed a plan to execute the literacy expectations established in House Bill 538 and House Bill 916, the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Budget. The proposed plan includes drafting job descriptions for regional literacy coaches, creating a hiring process, initiating an Advisory Design team for training literacy coaches and implementing an evaluation tool for coaches.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Higher Education Sen. Billy Hickman (R–Statesboro), an advocate for literacy and a member of the Georgia Council on Literacy, applauded the success of the meeting, stating, “As we look towards the future of literacy in Georgia, it’s imperative that we prioritize support for literacy coaches, especially in our rural areas where resources may be scarce. The meeting with RESA executive directors was instrumental in charting a course forward, and I’m encouraged by the commitment shown by all involved parties. By investing in the training and deployment of regional literacy coaches, we’re not only enhancing educational outcomes but also fostering a more vibrant and prosperous future for our state.”
Sen. Clint Dixon (R–Gwinnett), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education and Youth and a member of the Georgia Council on Literacy, echoed this sentiment, “We are committed to ensuring that every student in Georgia has access to high-quality literacy instruction. Through partnerships with RESA and other stakeholders, we can create a robust framework for literacy enhancement that addresses the diverse needs of our students.”
RESA executive directors and other stakeholders also had the opportunity to voice concerns and anticipate challenges through this meeting. The meeting concluded with discussions on potential legislative changes for the 2025 Legislative Session.
RESA executive directors are preparing a status report for the legislature, scheduled to be delivered on August 1, 2024.
Sen. Billy Hickman serves as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Higher Education. He represents the 4th Senate District which includes Bulloch, Candler, Effingham, Evans, and a small portion of Chatham County. He may be reached at 404.463.1371 or via email at [email protected]
Sen. Clint Dixon serves as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education and Youth. He represents the 45th Senate District which includes portions of Gwinnett and Barrow Counties. He may be reached at 404.656.6446 or via email at [email protected]
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