Good morning. LEADOFF brings you today’s early buzz in Atlanta sports.
Interesting comment by Ron Washington, who interviewed for the Braves manager's job before being hired as the third-base coach instead:
"I thought my interview was good to the point I got that I had the (manager's) job, no doubt in my mind," Washington told the San Jose Mercury News. "But you never know what the other side is thinking and how it will go. They offered me a different job in the organization.
“They really liked the job Brian Snitker did as their interim guy, which is good….”
Washington, most recently the Oakland A's third-base coach, managed the Texas Rangers in 2007-2014. Hiring him as third-base coach is a strong move by the Braves, David O'Brien writes.
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Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl officials won't know until Dec. 4 which two teams will come to Atlanta to play in this season's game. But chances appear good that one of them will be the nation's top-ranked team.
As the site of a College Football Playoff semifinal this season, the Peach Bowl will match either the selection committee’s Nos. 1 and 4 teams or its Nos. 2 and 3 teams. The odds favor a 1 vs. 4 matchup here since the committee’s criteria, as described by playoff executive director Bill Hancock during a visit to Atlanta on Wednesday, indicate the top-ranked team typically would play in the semifinal closest to its campus.
With this season’s other semifinal in the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Ariz., a No. 1-ranked team from the SEC, ACC or even Big Ten likely would be Atlanta-bound.
“We looked at the top 10 teams and every one of them with the exception of Washington (No. 5 in this week’s Associated Press and coaches’ polls) is closer to Atlanta mileage-wise,” Peach Bowl president and CEO Gary Stokan said Wednesday.
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Noteworthy: Donald Trump stirs talk in the locker room, Steve Hummer writes. … Falcons rookie linebackers are set to return against the Seahawks, D. Orlando Ledbetter reports. … Here's Chip Towers on the Bulldogs' tailback fraternity. … And Paul Johnson expects Georgia Southern to bring intensity to Bobby Dodd Stadium on Saturday, JuliaKate E. Culpepper writes.
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