If you're the parent of a Georgia football player these days - at least the mother of Bulldogs place-kicker Marshall Morgan - you're fighting hard to help embattled coach Mark Richt save his job.
And that's as it should be. Parents theoretically hand their young men over to adults such as Richt in hopes that the coach will make responsible citizens of them by the time their playing careers are done.
So with seemingly much of the rest of Bulldog Nation barking to rid the program of its 15-year head coach in the wake of last weekend's 27-3 loss to Florida - as well as last month's 38-10 home loss to Alabama and 38-31 road loss at Tennessee following a blown 24-3 lead - Dana Morgan-Murphy took to Facebook to defend Richt.
"As a parent of a player and going to several recruiting visits at other colleges, there was no question after meeting Coach (John) Lilly and Coach Richt that our youngest son would be in the best hands possible," she posted. "These two men walk their talk. Coach Richt took the time recently to make sure Marshall knew he loved him no matter what happened when he went in to kick a game-winning field goal a few weeks ago. That mattered to me and my husband more than a national championship."
This has always been the fall-back argument regarding Richt. He's a great person. A father figure to a lot of players who lacked an honorable one growing up. And if Richt weren't already making $4 million a year to produce championship seasons, that might be reason enough to protect him for another year or two.
But the reality is that the more you make, the more you're expected to win. Not 10-win seasons that conclude in the Citrus Bowl. Championships, preferrably national in nature. And while Richt's six SEC East crowns and two league championships are notable accomplishments - as well as the fact that he's averaged 10 wins a season over the four years prior to this one - there's also a growing fear among the Dawgs faithful that his tenure is trending downward now that division rivals Florida and Tennessee again appear to be on the rise.
Georgia head coach Mark Richt encourages his team on the sidelines during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015, in Jacksonville, Fla."Well it's not over yet, for number one," Richt said during his weekly Tuesday news conference. "We didn't make it to the Eastern Division championship, I can say that. It's been up and down. But we're battling."
They've battled to a 5-3 record so far. And much like UT's Vols, the schedule ahead looks much easier than what's in the rearview mirror. Georgia should be favored to win each of its last four games against Kentucky, Auburn, Georgia Southern and Georgia Tech.
Should the Bulldogs accomplish that, it's all but impossible to see UGA athletic director Greg McGarity parting company with Richt.
Beyond that, can McGarity turn to a single person who would take the job - neither Nick Saban nor Urban Meyer figures to walk between the hedges as the Bulldogs' boss - with certainty that Richt's average of 9.7 wins a season could be improved?
If he can't, any and all discussion of a possible change at the top of Georgia football, at least at the conclusion of this season, needs to cease immediately.
Not that it will, especially if Georgia loses one or more going forward. Let that happen and Tuesday's words by wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell will inflame the Richt haters rather than silence them.
"There isn't one person who can come in one year and fix something," Mitchell said. "That's just not the way it works."
Actually, that's precisely the way it's worked at Florida. First-year Florida coach Jim McElwain has the Gators on the verge of an SEC East crown one year after Will Muschamp was fired for going 7-5 (4-4 in SEC play).
Such success is not the norm, but it's possible, and a Bulldog Nation still smarting from back-to-back embarrassments against Florida might see that as an omen to kick Richt to the curb.
Whether completely fair or not, most pink slips involving head coaches in the National Football League and major college football are easy to understand. The Tennessee Titans parting ways with Ken Whisenhunt on Tuesday morning after losing 20 of his first 23 games in the Music City is one of those examples.
You can argue over the fairness of canning a guy less than 1.5 seasons into his tenure, especially with rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota either unavailable altogether or playing hurt for three of your six defeats in seven games this season. But even the Wiz's wife and kids would have a hard time building a strong case for his retention.
Richt is different. The movement to get rid of him is based at least as much on emotion as reason. Especially when one considers he lost his best offensive threat - Todd Gurley last season, Nick Chubb this season - each of the last two years.
But it's also fair to question why Georgia appears to consistently underachieve with all its advantages - a state loaded with talent, a highly respected university, a stunning stadium.
Which brings us back to Tuesday, to Richt being asked how much Georgia misses former offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, what with Brian Schottenheimer appearing to struggle in that role.
"When you leave," Richt said, "everybody loves you."
Though McGarity shouldn't yet fire him, volunteering to leave sooner rather than later might be the best way for Richt to be fondly remembered by the majority of Bulldog Nation from this point forward.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.