Georgia Football: 3 Bold Predictions for Rivalry Match-up with Florida
1. Justin Fields gets extended playing time
Jake Fromm struggled against LSU two weeks ago and the Georgia offense couldn’t get off of the ground because of it. The Bulldogs were shut out in the first half of the game, and didn’t score their first touchdown until the waning seconds of the third quarter.
LSU took away the Georgia ground game, holding the Bulldogs to just 113 yards on 30 attempts. They sacked Jake Fromm three times and generally harassed him all afternoon, keeping Georgia behind the sticks and forcing Fromm into uncomfortable third-and-longs.
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Fromm ended up completing 16-of-34 passes for 209 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, posting his worst passer rating of his career. It was surprising that Kirby Smart didn’t look to change it up with freshman phenom Justin Fields more than he did. Fields got in for a handful of snaps, but the training wheels remained on.
Fields was just as highly regarded coming out of high school as Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, so it stands to reason that he could provide more value than running four or five read-option plays a game, especially when you look at how well Lawrence is doing for the Tigers.
With the bye week in place to get him ready, I’d expect to see Smart utilize Fields’ talent in Jacksonville this weekend. The Florida defense offers many of the same challenges that LSU presented two weeks ago in Baton Rouge with a fast and physical defensive front that can take away Georgia’s traditional rushing attack and put loads of pressure on Fromm.
Georgia could mitigate that some with Fields, whose threat as a runner and as a passer make him especially dangerous if the Bulldogs are willing to give him so RPO opportunities. So far, Smart has been unwilling to let Fields throw in situations other than mop-up duty, so letting Fields loose on Saturday could catch the Florida defense off guard and lead to a big play or two that could swing what should be a close game.