Eason, Rochester recall stretch during Georgia coaching change
SAN ANTONIO – When Jacob Eason boarded the airplane for his official visit to Georgia, the five-star quarterback had no clue who would be hired to be the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator.
The Lake Stevens, Wash., standout had met with new coach Kirby Smart but things were in such upheaval, Eason knew very little about the program’s direction and who would be calling the plays when, hopefully, he was leading the Georgia offense.
Florida and Washington were making last-ditch efforts to flip the top-rated pro-style quarterback in the 2016 class but upon landing, Eason got word that Jim Chaney was leaving Pitt for the Bulldogs.
He still didn’t know much about him but after sitting down with Chaney, Georgia kept Eason’s commitment.
“The last month was more like recruiting when you’re uncommitted,” Eason said. “I’d been committed for so long I forgot what it was like."
But Eason's was just one story of a chaotic stretch inside the Georgia recruiting circle.
For Julian Rochester, who has been committed to Georgia since late May, the coaching turnover with Mark Richt getting fired and Smart getting the job was a difficult time.
The four-star defensive tackle from Powder Springs (Ga.) McEachern had a great relationship with Richt and envisioned playing for him. Getting over his firing was tough, but talking with Smart convinced him that the Bulldogs were headed in the right direction.
After years of Richt-on-the-hot-seat talk, Rochester said a new beginning could be good for everyone.
“It was a little difficult because going through the recruiting process you get involved with these coaches that have been there and actually recruited you,” Rochester said. “Seeing the changes, it made me a little nervous but seeing the coaches that recruited me stayed paved the way for me to go to Georgia.
“You really want to be around the greatest coaches who can put you in the best position to win and be successful. ... I love coach Richt to death but this is a fresh start with a new coaching staff and a great class coming in. I feel like we’re going to be really successful.”
Eason is a tremendously important part of this class. He’s having an outstanding week at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and he’s the lone five-star in Georgia’s class which is ranked No. 19 nationally and seventh in the SEC.
That meeting in Athens with Chaney, fresh off the plane from Pittsburgh, was big for Eason and his father, who was also in the room, to make everybody comfortable that the offense would fit the five-star’s abilities.
“I met him the first day he came to Athens when I was down there,” Eason said. “I sat in on a meeting and watched some film with him. He makes it simple for the quarterbacks to do their thing and play up to their full potential, that’s one of the things I liked about it. I’m excited to see what I can do in his offense.
“He’s coached guys like Drew Brees and Kyle Orton, and he’s had a great track record with young quarterbacks. That’s one of the things I want to do is go in and maybe play early but I’m going to have to go and compete with the guys there and earn that spot.”
As the Georgia coaching change was happening, Rochester admitted to being a little uneasy. He loved Richt, wanted to play for Richt and didn’t want to see him go.
One chat with Smart – and seeing some of his jewelry from his time at Alabama – started to change Rochester’s perspective.
“He really told me what he sees in me and what I can come in and do,” Rochester said. “Seeing that he has all these rings on his fingers, I’m pretty sure he knows what he’s doing on the defensive side and what we have going forward, so I’m really excited about it.”
