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Kirby Smart has tough decision in when to start Jacob Eason era
By Chris Wright
Published:
Jacob Eason isn’t ready.
He might not know it. But his defensive coordinator turned head coach does.
Kirby Smart used to live for days when he could scheme all week and turn his defense loose on Saturday against a true freshman quarterback.
Jacob Eason is the best pure passer Georgia has. He might be the best pure passer anybody in the SEC has.
We all know it. But his defensive coordinator turned head coach also knows there’s more to playing the position than dropping back and lofting 40-yard rainbows.
It’s learning to read coverages, and not press clips. It’s handling expectations and parties as well as film study and zone blitzes. There’s no microwave to speed the process.
Smart has tried to calm the growing storm. He’s praised Eason — saying he throws BBs — while reminding Dawg Nation that sometimes those throws are caught by the other team.
When a reporter asked Smart about the different looks the defense used to get to Eason in the spring game, Smart shook it off, saying the scheme was as creative as vanilla ice cream.
There is an undeniable anticipation surrounding Eason’s debut, just as there is an undeniable acceptance of Eason’s talent.
Here’s the rub: Smart likely has one year to run behind Nick Chubb and Sony Michel before both rising juniors head to the NFL. Is he willing to risk the mistakes he knows a rookie quarterback will make when he knows the Bulldogs’ best chance — and perhaps last chance in 2016 — is to let their lead Dawgs run?
That question will determine how quickly Smart turns the offense, the program over to Eason.
It’s not a matter of talent. It’s a matter of timing.
Greyson Lambert is the game manager, the safe pick, nothing more. Hand it off, check it down and move the chains. Run, punt and play defense. Smart ball, you might say.
Critics point to last season’s Alabama game, ironically, in which Chubb was healthy and the offense went nowhere. Lambert was 10 of 24 with more interceptions than first down completions until the final drive.
Georgia’s offense had no chance against Alabama. Of course, Michigan State’s offense had no chance against Alabama, either, and that was with a projected first-round quarterback in Connor Cook.
No matter. Nothing projects hope quite like the future. And nobody’s future looks brighter than Eason’s.
The decision to start the Eason era in the opener against Gene Chizik and North Carolina would be so much easier if Georgia were in rebuilding mode. Any backfield that includes a healthy Chubb and Michel is a threat to win the SEC East, Tennessee be damned.
Georgia was ranked No. 24 in the Associated Press’ way-too-early 2016 preseason poll.
“I didn’t hide anything when I said he’s got an elite arm,” Smart told reporters after the game. “He’s got great arm strength and great arm talent. He makes good decisions most of the time, and he’s got to communicate better.
“So again, I’m glad everybody got to come out and see Jacob Eason. The welcoming and warming in the stands, with everybody clapping, that felt great. But the guy that starts the game against North Carolina will be the guy who gives us the best chance to win the game. If that’s Jacob Eason, it will be Jacob Eason. But it may not be.”
The defensive coordinator turned head coach is trying to protect his young quarterback as long as he can, to arm him with as much knowledge as he possibly can, to give him the best chance.
Once he turns him loose, there’s no pulling him back.
Smart knows what’s coming, even if Eason doesn’t.
And he knows Chizik, the SEC head coach turned defensive coordinator, can’t wait for the Eason era to start, either.
An APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.