There comes a time when perception and reality collide, and none of it makes any sense. That’s what seems to be going on with Georgia freshman Justin Fields right now.

The highly decorated 5-star recruit who spent most of the season watching sophomore Jake Fromm play quarterback, announced a few weeks ago that he was interested in transferring from Georgia. He filed all the necessary paperwork with the NCAA to be entered into the transfer portal, and other schools have now been allowed to have contact with him.

That’s all happening, but there’s Fields, out there still — yes, still — with the same Georgia teammates he wants to leave, going through workouts every day as the Bulldogs prepare for an important Sugar Bowl game with Texas on New Year’s night.

And doing a darn good job of it, too.

“I am pleased with his work towards Texas,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said earlier in the week. “When he’s out there with us, he has a really good demeanor, he’s getting good reps.”

It’s so bizarre and so rare to see someone be so public about wanting to transfer and yet, at the same time, be so willing to help his current team win a football game. So until he tells Smart that he’s leaving, he’s still a Georgia Bulldog.

And like any coach, it’s all about the moment for Smart. It’s about today. We’ll deal with tomorrow when tomorrow comes.

“We’re trying to figure out how to beat Texas, we’re going to do everything we can to beat Texas and whatever that instills for a game plan,” Smart said. “He decided he wanted to play in the Sugar Bowl and I told him absolutely, we’d love you to play the Sugar Bowl and want you there. He’s come out to work and do that and support his teammates.”

Fields wants to transfer because Fromm still blocks him from playing time with Georgia. There was a fair and open competition this year, and Fromm won it. Fromm will be back for at least one more year, which forced Fields’ hand to make a decision.

His name has been tied to Oklahoma, Ohio State and Florida State thus far, and others are certainly interested, too. NCAA rules require that a transfer sits out a year, but there’s been talk that Fields will apply for a hardship waiver.

Those waivers can be hard to get. Several Ole Miss players, most notably quarterback Shea Patterson, used the looser NCAA requirements to transfer last year because of the bowl ban against the Rebels had an adverse affect on their careers. Patterson played immediately at Michigan and led them to a 10-2 record.

There are no such NCAA problems at Georgia, and it seems like Fields is transferring simply because of playing time. His potential application for a hardship waiver might open up a whole can of worms.

Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated wrote last week that Fields’ best chance to play immediately is to use Step 1 in the NCAA’s requirements — “The transfer is due to documented mitigating circumstances that are outside the student-athlete’s control and directly impact the health, safety and well-being of the student-athlete.” — and claim that he fears for his health at Georgia because a former Bulldogs baseball player used a racial slur in referring to Fields.

It wasn’t said in anger, though, and it wasn’t said as a threat. The player, Adam Sasser, was yelling for Fields to be put into the game. Sasser, by the way, was dismissed from the baseball team after the comment.

Staples wrote: “… It wouldn’t be a stretch at all if, in 2019, a young black man such as Fields said his safety and well-being might be affected by continuing to stay at a school where a white fellow athlete would refer to a black athlete by that word — even if it was lobbed from the stands while the player was on the field. Even if Fields wanted to transfer exclusively for playing time reasons, the NCAA would be foolish to challenge such an assertion and Georgia officials would be crazy to do anything except wish Fields well as he plays next season at his new school.”

That’s a slippery slope, and there are many NCAA experts who think the organization might not want to go there in letting Fields play right away, because it might open up a Pandora’s Box for any kid who wants to complain about what might be said on a campus just so he could switch schools right away. It could be a mess.

In Fields’ case, his decision would certainly be made much easier if he knew how they would rule on a waiver application. If he knew with certainly that he could play in 2019, he might evaluate other schools differently.

But if he also knew that he couldn’t play in 2019, then that might change his thinking, too. If the only FBS place he could play in 2019 was Georgia, would that matter?

What’s interesting is that Fields seems to have enjoyed his time in Athens so far, outside of playing time, of course. His teammates love him, his coaches love and, heck, even Jake Fromm loves him.

He might not get that same reception somewhere else.

Ohio State quarterback Tate Martell, the backup to Heisman Trophy finalist Dwayne Haskins this year and the presumed heir apparent for the Buckeyes, fired the first salvo last week. Martell, like Fields, was a heavily recruited quarterback out of Las Vegas who has a big future, too. He’s planning on being the next great Ohio State quarterback.

He basically told Fields without admitting so that playing time at Ohio State wouldn’t be guaranteed as long as he was around.

Oklahoma might be a more viable option, especially if he can play right away because Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray won’t be back. So it’s all wait and see, at least until right after the bowl game on Jan. 1.

Smart feels like he’s done all he can. He wants Fields to stay.

“I don’t think there’s anything you can do (to convince him to stay),” Smart said. “We’ve been very open and honest that we would like him to stay. He’s worked really hard. He competed his tail off throughout the year and played a team role throughout the year.”