College Football: 5 biggest storylines to follow during summer 2020

4. Is Jamie Newman the guy in Athens?

In 2019, the Georgia offense had one of its most inconsistent seasons in the Kirby Smart era, and no one’s numbers were more emblematic of that than at the quarterback position.

Jake Fromm’s yards per attempt, both adjusted and standard, saw drops of nearly two whole yards. His 61 percent completion rate was the lowest of his career, and that drop in accuracy was even more damning in an offense that so heavily featured the check-down.

Last season also saw Fromm post the worst passer rating of his career.

That’s why the arrival of Jamie Newman in Athens is so exciting. His passing numbers were, similarly to Fromm, solid in 2019. It is the added element of the run that completely opens up this offense. Newman ran for 574 yards a year ago which is 534 more than Fromm had in his entire Georgia career.

There’s never been a question about talent during Smart’s tenure in Athens. The thing that’s held the Bulldogs back has been an offense that stalls frequently and the lack of a quarterback who has the ability to make things happen on his own when these stalls occur. Fromm is a fine player, but he wasn’t that guy.

The one thing that will make this hard for Newman will be the shadow that hangs over him. Georgia already had the dynamic quarterback that could make things happen himself, and his name was Justin Fields. Smart chose Fromm, and Fields left for Ohio State.

Newman is exciting, but for him to be perceived as a success in Athens, he’ll have to make up for the “what if” scenario that Bulldog fans have had to think about after coming up short time and time again with Fromm.