HAWKING: Georgia leads the Southeastern Conference with 14

NAPA, Calif. -- The Tiger comeback has become the Tiger tease.And not just for golf fans.It cant be easy for Tiger Woods to feel healthy enough to play, only for the little voices in his head telling him to wait.For all the speculation about whats going on with Woods, only he knows why his game would be good enough to commit to the Safeway Open one day, and why three days later it was not. That wouldnt seem to leave much time for what he said was a lot of soul searching and honest reflection before deciding to withdraw.Woods said on Sept. 7 that he hoped to play this week in the Safeway Open at Silverado, along with the Turkish Airlines Open in early November and his Hero World Challenge the first week of December in the Bahamas. His progress following two back surgeries last year allowed him to make such plans, which looked more like a reality when he officially entered the Safeway Open on Friday.He was gone before he was ever back.The portable signs leading to Silverado flashed a warning to drivers to expect delays because of the golf tournament. Traffic isnt likely to be an issue any longer. Wine tasting goes back to being the main event.There was no shortage of apologies from Woods. He was fully aware of the ramifications. He said he had every intention of playing and wouldnt have entered if he felt otherwise. This isnt what I wanted to happen, he said.It was the right decision because it was his decision.Woods showed plenty of loyalty to the PGA Tour by also canceling in Turkey, which will attract a strong field as part of the final stretch of events in the Race to Dubai on the European Tour. That leaves the Bahamas as his next comeback, subject to change.Most disconcerting to Woods is that according to his statement, this had nothing to do with his health, and everything to do with his confidence.Its one thing to say his game is not ready. Its another to say his game is vulnerable.Vulnerable to what -- scoring or scrutiny?The 14 months since Woods last played have been filled with mixed messages. Woods has used defeatist terms like Ive had a pretty good run and saying anything else he accomplishes in golf will be gravy. Then again, he has never failed to express his desire to play again.Jesper Parnevik, in an interview with Golf Digest in the November issue, said they have played nine holes at the Medalist Golf Club in Florida and by the way, hes been hitting a lot of balls, and hes hitting it great.On the range, at least, his trajectory and ball flight are like the Tiger we knew 15 years ago, Parnevik said.Hank Haney, his former swing coach, said Tuesday on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio that a well-known tour pro watched Woods about a month ago in Florida and described every other chip or pitch as a blade or a chunk.The mystery deepens.Golfers say all the time that their expectations are higher than anything the fans can put on them. That especially rings true in this case. Does anyone really expect Woods to play anything like the Woods who toyed with competition for more than a decade? Probably not. But does Woods expect that?The aura of Woods is not what it was and never will be again. Thats simply age. Woods is 40 and seems a lot older because of seven surgeries, including three on his back in the last 30 months. He has been gone from golf from 14 months and it feels much longer.Johnny Miller, the NBC Sports analyst and host at Silverado, suggested Monday that Woods has got to break the ice sometime. Even with the attention Woods brings, the Safeway Open would have been a safe return. Its the middle of football season and baseball playoffs. More than anything, it would have been a start.Now it feels like stage fright.Woods does not want to return until he feels he can compete. He missed a full week of practice while being an assistant at the Ryder Cup two weeks ago, though that still doesnt explain why he felt good enough to return to the PGA Tour on Friday and withdrew on Monday.Woods says he wants to play. He says his body will allow him to play.But hes not playing. Hes waiting.The scrutiny has never left him, and it never will. And until he plays again, his game will always feel vulnerable. ATHENS, Ga. -- Once they were eliminated from their respective conference races, Georgia and Georgia Tech began focusing on other goals.Winning records and bowl eligibility, that sort of thing.Now they get a shot at a really sweet consolation prize.A victory over their state rival.Georgia hosts Georgia Tech between the hedges Saturday in a matchup between 7-4 teams that failed to meet their preseason goals but havent lost sight of how important this game is to fans on both sides.It doesnt matter the records or whats going on between the two (teams), Georgia offensive guard Greg Pyke said. It is going to be heated out there, probably a little bit chippy too.This will be the first meeting between the coaches, though there are some ties between Georgia Techs Paul Johnson and Georgias first-year leader, Kirby Smart.When Johnson was coaching at Georgia Southern, he interviewed Smart but didnt offer him a job.I didnt really know him, Johnson recalled. Im not sure I had an opening or whatever.Johnson said he spent time with Smart at a celebrity golf tournament last spring.Nice guy, Johnson said. I mean, hes no different than any other coach when youre around him. You tend to get along. I think sometimes fans dont quite understand that relationship. Its not all `dont speak to guys and cant stand them and that kind of thing.But rest assured, they wont be on friendly terms Saturday.---Some other things to watch for in the latest edition of the rivalry known as Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate:QUARTERBACK DUEL: Justin Thomas is winding down his Georgia Tech career. A three-year starter, he is adept at Johnsons triple-option offense and will go down as one of the rare players in NCAA history to pass for 4,000 yards and rush for 2,000 yards in his career. Georgia counters with freshman Jacob Eason, who took over the starting job in the second week of the season and never looked back. While there have been some growing pains along the way, Eason guided the Bulldogs to a couple of last-minute victories as well as an upset of Auburn.X FACTOR: When asked about containing Georgia running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, Johnson quickly shifted his attention to receiver and return specialist Isaiaah McKenzie , who has the school records with five punt returns for touchdowns and six overall TD returns.dddddddddddd Hes the guy who has been their big-play guy, Johnson said. When he gets the ball in his hands, whether its on a kick return or a pass or reverse or counter, hes got the ability to take it the distance.BIG PLAYS: The Bulldogs will be going against an offense they havent seen in any other game this season. Discipline is always a key when facing the Yellow Jackets, who try to wear down their opponents with ball control and tedious runs in hopes of getting defenders to venture out of their lanes, opening up a shot at a big play. Smart emphasized that Georgia didnt just start studying the triple-option this week, but the Bulldogs did give up five plays of at least 25 yards in last weeks victory over Louisiana-Lafayette. And Georgia Tech is coming off a game in which it had scoring plays of 54, 60 and 67 yards against Virginia .BALL HAWKING: Georgia leads the Southeastern Conference with 14 interceptions, so Georgia Tech doesnt want to get behind and have to rely on its shaky passing game. Overall, the Bulldogs are plus-seven in turnover margin.COACHING FALLOUT: A victory over Georgia would go a long way toward cooling speculation that Johnsons job might be in jeopardy with Georgia Tech bringing on a new athletic director, Todd Stansbury. Johnson has a 2-6 mark against the Bulldogs. Smart is on much more secure footing as he wraps up his first season as the Bulldogs coach. Still, his Georgia debut has hardly been a rousing success, marred by ugly losses to Florida and Vanderbilt, and the grumbling would surely intensify if he lost his first meeting against the Yellow Jackets. Its worth noting that Smarts predecessor, Mark Richt, went 13-2 against Georgia Tech.---AP Sports Writer Charles Odum in Atlanta contributed to this report.---Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/paul-newberry .---For more AP college football coverage: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '