Fromm and Fields were duking it out. It became one of
the most-talked-about position battles in the country.
Smart maintains now that everyone inside the program
knew who the starter was, even if he never said it outright.
“The media looooves to make a big deal about that,” he
says. “Our kids, they know. They’re out there every day.
There’s no doubt in the offensive line’s mind who the
quarterback is, because he’s in the huddle with them for
70, 80% of the reps.... Jake Fromm was never not going
with the [first-teamers] when it mattered.”
As the season began, though, Smart allowed doubt to
linger. Fromm started every game and played the majority
of the snaps, but Smart also rotated Fields in for a few
plays nearly every week. The general assumption was
that Fields would transfer if he didn’t get at least some
playing time.
When it came to the media, Smart did what he could
to temper the attention surrounding his quarterbacks.
Georgia did not make Fromm available for interviews
during preseason practice, and a team policy—one Smart
brought from Alabama—forbade freshmen, including
Fields, from doing interviews all season. Smart also told
Fromm’s family something to the effect of: I can’t stop
you from talking to a reporter, but what are you getting
out of it? When the Associated Press called Emerson
Fromm, he said, “I’m not getting into it with Kirby. Kirby
doesn’t want me to do interviews.” Before agreeing to be
interviewed for this story, one year later, Emerson asked,
“Kirby knows about this, right?”
When Jake has spoken about Fields publicly, he’s said
all the right things: “There was a lot of talk. I just decided
I didn’t want to listen to it. I knew when I came into the
building who I was, what my teammates thought of me.
I just came in and did my work.”
The Fromms understood the tough position Smart
was in. “Put yourself in Kirby’s shoes,” Emerson says.
“Kirby had to do what Kirby had to do. He had two good
quar terbacks.”
In private, though, those closest to Jake could tell he
wasn’t entirely thrilled with the arrangement. He felt that
leaving the game intermittently messed with his rhythm,
and at some point, he thought he had played well enough
to end the competition. “He was definitely frustrated at
times,” says Woerner, Fromm’s fishing buddy, who’s a tight
end on the team. “He felt like he was doing all he could,
and Justin would still get reps. [Jake] is a competitor. He
wants to be the guy.”
Fromm has a hard time turning off that competitiveness.
In each of his first two years at Georgia, he went duck
hunting the week after the final regular-season game,
ostensibly to relax, recalibrate. The first year he took Ben
Cleveland, an offensive lineman. At one point that day,
Cleveland remembers dropping two birds that were flying
Surprise! Bad teams are looking for franchise
quarterbacks. But then expect a run on defense
BY ALBERT BREER
(WAY TOO EARLY)
MOCK DRAFT
1. JUSTIN HERBERT QB OREGON
With his size, arm strength and athleticism,
Herbert might have been the first QB taken
in 2018 if he had declared.
2. TUA TAGOVAILOA QB ALABAMA
Size is a drawback. And NFL teams will be
watching his health closely, given the end
of his 2018 season was marred by injuries.
3. CHASE YOUNG DE OHIO STATE
With as high an athletic ceiling as any
player, he made up for the loss of Nick Bosa
on the Buckeyes’ line.
4. DERRICK BROWN DT AUBURN
A better prospect than Christian Wilkins
(13th overall last year), Brown returned
because he wanted to be a top five pick.
5. GRANT DELPIT S LSU
A more athletic Jamal Adams (the sixth pick
in 2017), Delpit can cover the slot, making
him very attractive to NFL teams.
6. A.J. EPENESA DE IO WA
He led the Big Ten in sacks despite splitting
time. Scouts would like to see more, but his
tools are off the charts.
7. JERRY JEUDY WR ALABAMA
Some teams have pressed pause on
receiver needs, expecting a bumper crop in
- Jeudy is the top of the ’19 bunch.
8. JEFFERY OKUDAH CB OHIO STATE
Finishing an up-and-down sophomore
season strong, he has shown toughness and
competitiveness on special teams.
9. LAVISKA SHENAULT JR.
WR COLORADO This 6' 2" 220-pounder
has NFL No. 1 potential, but he has to stay
healthy and evolve to reach his high ceiling.
10. RAEKWON DAVIS DL ALABAMA
At 6' 7" and 312 pounds, he’s an elite run
defender with the athleticism to become
more of a factor in the passing game.
TOP DRAFT PROSPECTS
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