Take Two: Should Jake Fromm return to Georgia in 2020?
Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling an issue in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and an expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites or a regional analyst.
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THE STORYLINE
There are opinions all over the spectrum on Jake Fromm and whether the former five-star quarterback who has led Georgia to No. 4 in the CFP rankings should come back for one more season with the Bulldogs or leave for the NFL.
Fromm has not put up big statistics this season, but the Georgia offense has also been dialed back to lean on the running game as the Bulldogs work in talented but young receivers. Leaning on the outstanding defense has been a focus as well.
Fromm has 2,131 passing yards this season, good for No. 37 among Power Five quarterbacks. He has 17 passing TDs, tied for No. 27 nationally. Those are hardly mind-boggling stats, but Fromm does not make many mistakes, either, and there’s no question he knows how to win.
Coming out after this season, Fromm would be in the same quarterback class as LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert and others. That’s not the greatest situation.
But if he waits until after the 2020 season, he would be in the same draft class as Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, Ohio State’s Justin Fields - possibly the first two overall picks in that draft - and that’s not a terrific position, either.
Should Fromm return to Georgia for one more season where he could show off his passing skills with receivers George Pickens, Dominick Blaylock and others a year older or should he leave the Bulldogs, especially if he projects as a fringe first-round pick?
FIRST TAKE: ANTHONY DASHER, UGASPORTS.COM
“Before the season began, there was probably a 75 percent chance Fromm left early for the NFL Draft. After his play in recent weeks, I now feel like there's a 75 percent chance that he will return.
"Jake was asked after the Texas A&M game if that was his last game at Sanford Stadium. He gave the compulsory 'I haven’t thought about it' answer but he honestly sounded surprised the question was asked. Stats aren’t always the be all end all for NFL scouts, but based on his play and some of the inconsistencies we’ve seen in his game, it might behoove him to come back for his senior year. I think he does.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM
“He should come back. The last few games he’s shown flashes of what he can do but he’s also struggled. The game plan against Georgia, first and foremost, is to stop the run. It’s not how to control Fromm. Defenses making him make tougher throws and putting him in tougher passing situations and they’re not getting done.
"This past weekend his best completions were back-shoulder throws, but underthrown deep back-shoulder balls. I was very high on him being a potential late first-rounder, but now I feel he could drop to the third or fourth round. There are a lot of questions about him. He won’t get ahead of Lawrence or Fields in 2020, but he could get himself in the first-round discussion.”