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SEC typically preys on freshman QBs — will Georgia’s Eason be next?
By John Hollis
Published:
Quarterback Matthew Stafford appeared shaky at times as a true freshman in 2006, but he quickly grew into the job and went on to enjoy a stellar college career at Georgia before becoming the No. 1 overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft.
The Dawgs are hoping for similar magic with Jacob Eason as the former five-star recruit competes for the starting quarterback job with incumbent Greyson Lambert and Brice Ramsey this spring. Barring injury or something else unforeseen, it’s not if, but when Eason permanently assumes the helm.
But Bulldogs fans with lofty fantasies with him under center this coming season had best know that big-time success rarely comes immediately to true freshman quarterbacks.
Not even Stafford.
They typically struggle to varying degrees at the outset in picking up greater speed and additional nuances of the more complicated college game.
Playing a true freshman quarterback too early backfires more often than not, but that hasn’t stopped programs from starting first-year quarterbacks. Their immense talents and long-term upside makes it worth the risk.
Sometimes the gambles reap big dividends, such as in the case of Oklahoma’s Jamelle Holieway, the elusive option wizard who in 1985 became the only true freshman quarterback to lead his team to a national championship.
Other notable true freshman quarterbacks to enjoy solid rookie campaigns include Tennessee’s Peyton Manning, who started the 1994 season as the Volunteers’ No. 3 quarterback before injuries catapulted into the starting lineup for good. Manning threw for 1,141 yards, 11 touchdowns and just six interceptions.
USC’s Matt Barkley in 2009 became the Trojans’ first true freshman to start at quarterback, and he threw for 2,735 yards with 15 TD passes and 14 interceptions. Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor also enjoyed a banner inaugural college season in 2008, when he threw for 1,311 yards with 12 TD passes and just four interceptions.
But most true freshman quarterbacks see decidedly more pedestrian results, especially in the SEC. Theirs is often a steep and sometimes painful learning curve that takes place under the intense scrutiny of as many as 90,000 fans every fall Saturday.
The risk in the gamble, however, is equally as great as the team could struggle as their new quarterback learns and his confidence could be irreparably damaged as a result.
It’s no accident that coaches prefer to redshirt quarterbacks when possible so that they become physically stronger and better able to digest everything suddenly being thrown at them.
But necessity sometimes makes for no such allowances.
Georgia has enjoyed great success in the past when having that luxury of carefully grooming a quarterback for a year with the likes of former quarterbacks David Greene and Aaron Murray, but new Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart could go a different route and play the young Eason from the outset.
Lambert is a known commodity after struggling at times with the Dawgs last year and with the Virginia Cavaliers the year before that. Ramsey has been more impressive as a punter than quarterback.
Eason has to learn, so why not now? A healthy Nick Chubb at tailback could make the decision easier for Smart.
The SEC featured two true freshman quarterbacks of note this past fall in Missouri’s Drew Lock and South Carolina’s Lorenzo Nunez, with varying circumstances catapulting them into early playing time.
Lock assumed the job following the suspension of starter Maty Mauk, but struggled mightily, completing a paltry 49 percent of his pass attempts with twice as many interceptions (8) as touchdown passes (4).
Gamecocks coaches had hoped to redshirt Nunez in 2015, but a lack of production at the quarterback position forced their hand. Nunez appeared in eight games, but the results were mixed as he is currently a more accomplished runner than passer.
But a lack of success as a true freshman is hardly indicative of future failure.
Like Eason, Stafford enrolled in school early to get better prepared for his freshman season, but he still wasn’t ready for what he was to see in the SEC when he became the first quarterback to start for Georgia right out of high school since Eriz Zeier in 1991.
That worked out pretty well for the Bulldogs, too.
Stafford appeared in all 13 games in 2006, starting the final eight games in place of Joe Tereshinski. As is often the case with true freshmen, Stafford struggled with his accuracy (53 percent), throwing nearly twice as many interceptions (13) as he did touchdown passes (7) as the Bulldogs went 9-4.
But Stafford quickly grew into the job and became the top overall selection by the Detroit Lions after opting to leave for the NFL following his junior year.
The Dawgs are hoping Eason follows suit, but it won’t be easy.
Georgia opens the season in Atlanta against a formidable North Carolina team on Sept. 3. Georgia likely will face two more ranked teams within the season’s first five weeks. The Bulldogs play at Ole Miss on Sept. 24 before hosting Tennessee the following week.
Eason might have to learn in a hurry.
John Hollis is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Georgia and Florida.
