Jake Fromm is well established as Georgia’s No. 1 quarterback, but the question about his backup is ongoing.
Obviously, there’s plenty of interest in freshman early-enrollee D’Wan Mathis, but Stetson Bennett – a former Bulldogs scout-team player who returned to Georgia after a season at Jones County Junior College in Mississippi – also is getting his share of attention.
When asked how Mathis and Bennett divvied up duties Saturday, Smart said, “It’s a competition. They didn’t split the 2’s 50-50. Stetson got a little bit with the 1’s. He got some with the 2’s. D’Wan got some with the 2’s. D’Wan got most of the 3’s. They got about the same number of reps, but not the exact same groups.”
Smart was asked about Mathis’ progress this spring and offered measured commentary for concern that fans and the media might get the wrong impression of his thoughts about the 6-foot-6, 205-pound 4-star prospect.
“It’s tough because anything I say is going to look like it’s a negative for D’Wan,” said Smart. “D’Wan is straight out of high school. I have no expectation that he’s going to come in here and conquer the verbiage and the words by scrimmage one. Stetson even has the advantage of being in the offense before.
“I don’t want anything I say … every quarterback we have has to get better. Every player we have has to get better. D’wan has a lot of growth because he hasn’t been here, he hasn’t taken reps, he hasn’t done the work. I was very pleased with where he was today.
“Y’all may take that and say he’s ready to start. I’m taking it that he is improved and he has a long way to go, but I’m pleased with where he is right now. We tried to simplify it for him today so he could go out there and play football, and we could evaluate it where he is now, not giving him the same menu that Jake’s got. That’s just not fair.”
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