Georgia Bulldogs: Is Lack of QB Depth A Concern for UGA Football?
By W. M. Lawson
The Georgia Bulldogs football team wrapped up spring practices with the annual “G Day” game on April, 22nd. Subsequently, a quiet murmur of concern surrounds their Quarterback depth.
After two consecutive years of recruiting at an elite level, the Georgia Bulldogs football team is unusually loaded at the Quarterback position. In fact, one could argue that they have more talent in that room, and at the same time, than at any point in their history.
2016 delivered the statuesque and sequoia-like Jacob Eason all the way from Washington state. His laid back west coast demeanor, couple with a 6-6, 245 lb frame, and a cannon attached to his shoulder, immediately had fans expecting bombs.
The very next year, and in Kirby Smart’s first full recruiting cycle, Jake Fromm switched commitment from big bad Alabama, and early enrolled in Athens. By all accounts, dude is a leader on and off the field, and has an earnest knowledge of the game.
Both of those guys will see the field. Both are assured, barring injury, to be the starting QB at UGA for multiple years. So, what’s the concern? What’s the problem?
More from ATL All Day
- Atlanta Braves: Felix Has Already Shown Enough to Win a Rotation Spot
- Atlanta Braves Implode Late To Phillies, Cole Hamels Remains Sidelined
- Kyle Wright Shines As Folty Struggles In Atlanta Braves Loss To Red Sox
- Atlanta Hawks Sweep Back-to-Back Games Over Weekend
- Atlanta Braves: Grapefruit League Play Check Up
The problem is that great programs recruit “down the road”, both metaphorically and literally. The 2018 recruiting class is off to a very slow start for Kirby and Co. That has fans anxious. Especially, when no less than three elite QBs are in this Georgia 2018 high school class. All three are committed elsewhere.
That fact, along with the fact that Eason and Fromm are the only two scholarship QBs on campus, has folks murmuring. Some are actually openly questioning.
A quick look at the numbers and things aren’t all that bad. Eason will start in 2017 and 2018. Much like Matt Stafford, he’s then off to the NFL after three years. You can mark that down.
Fromm is more “Aaron Murray” than Stafford. My guess here is that he’ll start in 2019 and 2020. That would give him two years running the offense.
The point being that UGA doesn’t need a QB to start until 2021. If there is a quality Quarterback in the 2019 class, he’ll be ready by then and will, presumably, be a Junior. Going Junior, Senior, Junior, Senior, Junior (2017-2021) isn’t a bad thing.
The problem is that until then there is no depth. And that is a concern. Injuries happen. They happen often. If that were to happen to a UGA QB, it could mean serious trouble.
Yes. It is troublesome that Georgia Football could miss out on in-state talents like Trevor Lawrence, Emory Jones, or Justin Fields. Those dudes are ballers, and will succeed wherever they go. All have the ability to lead a team to a National Championship at some point.
Next: UGA Football: The Two Jakes and the Coming QB Competition
But, that Georgia Bulldogs Football car can still race. They still have the horses. That car could win 10 races this year. But the idiot light is on. And you’d have to be an idiot to feel great about only having two scholarship Quarterbacks.