Kirby Smart reveals how Trevor Lawrence’s early success at Clemson affected Justin Fields at Georgia
By Adam Spencer
Published:
Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields were the top 2 prospects in the 2018 recruiting class, and both play quarterback.
Both have since become superstars, but it didn’t take as long for Lawrence to become a star at Clemson as it did for Fields, who transferred from Georgia to Ohio State to get his chance.
During a recent appearance on the “All Things Covered” podcast, Georgia coach Kirby Smart revealed that Lawrence’s immediate success at Clemson had an impact on Fields at Georgia (via DawgNation):
“It was very evident to us early on in the year that as Trevor had success, and began to play, and in the Texas A&M game (second of the season) he got in and played more and more, Justin felt the same way that, ‘Hey, I’m as good as him, and I should get an opportunity to play,’ ” Smart said.
“And at the time, we had Jake Fromm, who was playing pretty well.”
Smart admits that the transfer to Ohio State has benefited Fields, who has become a superstar with the Buckeyes:
“You can’t say it (transfer) hasn’t benefited him, because he got to go to a really good program, and he got to play right away, and he’s played a lot more football because he chose to go there,” Smart said. “So you can’t say that it was wrong or right, but I would say what you said earlier, the accountability factor and guys sticking it out, sometimes it pays off to do that. Especially at other positions.”
Can Fields finish off his college career by beating Alabama in the title game on Monday night? We’ll see what’s in store for the former Bulldog soon enough.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
