ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm, who has guided the Bulldogs to three consecutive SEC East titles, will bypass his senior season and enter the NFL draft.
Fromm made the announcement on social media on Wednesday.
Go Dawgs and God Bless pic.twitter.com/hz0qxJLumE
— JakefromStateFromm (@FrommJake) January 8, 2020
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Fromm as the fifth-best quarterback eligible for the 2020 draft, behind LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert and Washington’s Jacob Eason.
Fromm, a junior from Warner Robins, Georgia, was 35-6 as a starter, including a 13-5 record against Top 25 foes. His 41 career starts were the most among FBS quarterbacks who played this past season.
As a true freshman in 2017, Fromm helped lead the Bulldogs to their first SEC title in 12 years — after he was thrust into the starting job when Eason was injured in the opener. Fromm threw for 2,615 yards with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions that season, helping the Bulldogs reach the College Football Playoff National Championship, losing to Alabama 26-23 in overtime. Eason transferred to Washington after the season.
Fromm completed better than 60% of his passes in each of his three seasons. His numbers dipped in 2019, after Georgia lost its top five pass-catchers from 2018. He still completed 60.8% for 2,860 yards with 24 touchdowns and five interceptions.
Fromm had one of his best games of the season in the Bulldogs’ 26-14 victory over Baylor in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, completing 20 of 30 attempts for 250 yards with two touchdowns.
The Bulldogs had already lost three top juniors to the NFL: offensive tackles Andrew Thomas and Isaiah Wilson and tailback D’Andre Swift.
Without Fromm, Georgia is left without an experienced quarterback for the 2020 season. Backup Stetson Bennett completed 20 of 27 passes for 260 yards with two touchdowns as Fromm’s backup in 2019. D’Wan Mathis, a 2019 signee, had emergency brain surgery in May. His status for next season isn’t known.
Georgia signed Carson Beck of Jacksonville, Florida, who was ranked the No. 16 pocket passer by ESPN Recruiting.
The Bulldogs are expected to explore the graduate transfer market. Stanford’s K.J. Costello and Wake Forest’s Jamie Newman recently entered the NCAA transfer portal.
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