UGA Football: The Two Jakes and the Coming QB Competition
By W. M. Lawson
With Spring Ball in full swing, UGA Football has two Quarterbacks named Jake, and the coming competition looks to be an interesting one.
After a couple of years where UGA Football fans grumbled about the dearth of quality Quarterback play in Athens, the Dawgs have two QBs on campus who come hyped, show promise, and flash major potential. The competition between the “Two Jakes” should be intriguing.
Rewind to 2008, if you will. Georgia had Matthew Stafford, a future #1 NFL Draft pick on campus. Aaron Murray, a 5* QB in High School, was close to committing. Both had careers of note while donned in Red and Black. Both went on to play in the NFL, and continue to do so. After Murray departed, the Quarterback position, while not awful, wasn’t a strength.
These days that position seems to have been converted back to the asset column. Returning starter Sophomore Jacob Eason and True Freshman Jake Fromm give the Bulldogs a 1-2 punch at that position for the coming years. This is not news.
What is news is the vibe coming out of Spring practice and what that means for the team. Word is already emanating that Fromm is pushing Eason in film and meeting rooms. This is of note because one thing Eason lacked last year was competition. No offense to other Quarterbacks on the 2016 roster, but if anyone other than Eason had started a game, after that UNC game, fans would’ve rioted. Even though starting a True Freshman is usually not a good thing, and inexperience was a factor, the talent disparity was fully evident.
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That’s not true anymore. Jake Fromm comes in as a known and touted leader. He’s a locker room favorite. Fromm, with a prodigious High School career at his back, has come into Athens to compete.
When asked recently about the possibility of redshirting Fromm, Coach Kirby Smart rejected that notion. One would think that the ideal would be for Eason to start all 12 games (or 16 depending on how the season goes), and for Fromm to redshirt. But that is not something a coach would cop to, and is certainly not something a coach would plan on.
To be sure, there are depth issues at this spot for Georgia. Eason and Fromm are the only scholarship QBs on campus. That’s not good. What is good, though, is that for the first time in years, UGA Football has healthy competition at the most important position on the football field.
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What’s also interesting is that both current QBs sort of resemble the aforementioned Stafford and Murray. Eason, with the larger frame, huge arm, and High School hype from across the country like Stafford. Fromm, with the smaller frame, but mobile, touted leadership qualities, and from the Southeast region.
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The difference is this time they are on campus at the same time. And this time, they can help make each other better. The “Two Jakes” can help make the team better.