Fromm trying to become second true freshman QB to win it all
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Jake Fromm hardly looks like a guy less than a year removed from high school.
Poised and confident, he was thrust into a starting role in his very first game at Georgia. Fromm quickly gained the respect of his teammates, guided the Bulldogs to one win after another, and now he's got them positioned to make a run at the biggest prize of all.
Jamelle Holieway can relate. He remains the only true freshman quarterback to lead his team to a national title in the modern era.
Back in 1985, Holieway took over for the Sooners after Troy Aikman went down with a broken leg in a loss to Miami. They didn't lose again, going on to claim the No. 1 spot with a victory over Penn State in the Orange Bowl.
"If he does win it, he won't understand what it all meant until years later," Holieway said Monday, referring to Fromm. "When you're a freshman, you just want to play and make a difference on the team."
Fromm began the season as the backup to Jacob Eason, who started for the Bulldogs in 2016 as a highly recruited player right out of high school.
Then, as it did 32 years earlier with Holieway, fate intervened.
Eason sustained a knee injury in a season-opening victory over Appalachian State . Fromm took over and the No. 2 Bulldogs (9-0, 6-0) just kept rolling, claiming the top spot in the first College Football Playoff rankings and clinching a spot in the Southeastern Conference title game.
"There's just a total take-control, a total confidence about him," former Georgia coach Vince Dooley said. "If he makes a mistake, he's a quick learner from the mistake that he makes. He's not intimidated by anything."
Fromm made that clear in the second game of his career, his very first start for the Bulldogs. On the road in one of college football's most hallowed venues, the youngster kept leading Georgia from behind for a 20-19 victory over Notre Dame . It wasn't a great performance statistically — Fromm completed 16 of 29 for 141 yards, with one touchdown and one interception — but he never flinched.
No one left South Bend thinking Eason would ever get his job back.
This is Fromm's team now. "That's just his personality," Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said. "He's been that way his whole life. He's got a lot of intangibles. He's a good leader. He's not afraid of competition."
Fromm will face another tough environment Saturday when the Bulldogs travel to Auburn to face the No. 10 Tigers (7-2, 5-1).