Georgia Football: 5 things to watch in 2019 G-Day game

2. Competition at backup quarterback

For the first offseason in his three years in Athens, junior Jake Fromm enters the 2019 season as the unquestioned starting quarterback. As a freshman, he competed with Jacob Eason and eventually took over the gig when Eason got hurt in 2017. Last year, Fromm had to hold off five-star freshman Justin Fields to retain the job.

There were murmurs throughout the 2018 season with fans clamoring for Fields to get a more extended look as the starter. Smart stuck with Fromm, a decision that was both correct and ultimately costly. Fields departed Athens after one season and transferred to Ohio State where he was given a waiver for immediate eligibility.

With Fields gone, Fromm was the last scholarship quarterback standing. They mitigated that by bringing back former walk-on Stetson Bennett IV, who was given a scholarship after spending last season at a junior college.

Bennett impressed as a freshman with Georgia during his redshirt year, running the scout-team effectively for the Bulldogs in 2017. He won’t push Fromm for the starting job, but his presence was a big boost for Georgia in 2019.

He’ll be competing with four-star freshman Dwan Mathis, who flipped to Georgia after long being committed to Ohio State on signing day. Mathis has the higher ceiling than Bennett, but he’ll likely redshirt barring an injury to Fromm during the season. With the new redshirt rules, don’t be surprised if Smart looks to get Mathis some playing time during games that are well in hand.

Saturday will provide the first look for Georgia fans on whether Bennett has taken a big step forward since his first go-round in Athens, and whether or not Mathis has developed enough to grab the reins in a pinch.