ATHENS, Ga. - New Georgia football coach Kirby Smart successfully created enough hype the last few weeks to produce a spring game Saturday that packed Sanford Stadium.
Smart may have to spend the next several weeks diffusing the hype surrounding touted freshman quarterback Jacob Eason.
The first G-Day game of the Smart era drew an announced crowd of 93,000 sun-splashed spectators, which set a Southeastern Conference record by topping Alabama's 2011 A-Day audience of 92,310. The stadium has an official capacity of 92,746, but fans were packed on the stairwells and some couldn't find a viewing spot and left.
"For the fan base to come out and support our program and support our kids the way they did touches me in my heart," Smart said. "It was a special moment, and it lets you know they've got your back and your program's back. There were a lot of doubters out there who said it couldn't be done and that people had other stuff to do, but they came and they came in droves.
"I appreciate that more than they know, and our kids appreciate that. I don't think we necessarily put on the best show for them, because we had some sloppy ball at times out there. But they came to support us, and that speaks volumes to where Georgia is headed and what Georgia can do."
Ohio State state set an NCAA record Saturday with a spring game crowd of 100,189.
The multitude of Bulldogs backers saw the Black team win 34-14 over the Red, but the outcome took a back seat to the crowd and Eason, the five-star talent out of Lake Stevens, Wash. Playing before his largest audience, the 6-foot-5, 211-pounder completed 19 of 29 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown for the Red team, which consisted of the second-team offense and first-team defense.
Eason did not appear until early in the second quarter, with his arrival drawing a rousing ovation, and he impacted the game immediately. At one point early in the fourth quarter, he was 13-of-17 for 186 yards and the score.
"I thought he did a good job of moving the ball down the field, but I want to reserve some judgment until I watch the tape," Smart said. "Just being out there, I don't think he knew that there were 93,000 people there, because he sure didn't act like it. He executed the offense and did what he had to do. He's a very level-headed kid."
Said sophomore receiver Terry Godwin: "That was normal to us. We've seen him grow up. Actually he came in doing that."
Greyson Lambert and Brice Ramsey quarterbacked both teams Saturday, with Lambert going a combined 11-of-22 for 140 yards and Ramsey 16-of-25 for 224. Lambert threw an interception late in the third quarter that was returned 98 yards for a touchdown by Aaron Davis, which gave the Black a 27-7 lead.
Smart was asked afterward about the perception that Eason had the best day.
"Why would people say that?" Smart said. "He ended up at 60-something percent, and Brice was at 60-something percent. Greyson had a couple of drops, so for people to say that - maybe they should go to Coaching 101, because I don't see that being the case.
"What I see going into fall camp is three guys with three different traits, and all three of them have some growing to do."
Rodrigo Blankenship's 46-yard field goal for the Black team was the only score in the first quarter. That drive was led by Lambert, but Ramsey quarterbacked the Black to a six-play, 72-yard drive in the second quarter that included a 39-yard pass to Reggie Davis down the left sideline.
Eason entered with 10:36 left in the half and promptly threw two screens over the right side to running back Brendan Douglas, totaling 15 yards, and connected with Riley Ridley for 35 yards down the left sideline. That got the Red team to the Black's 20-yard line, but the drive stalled and was followed by a missed field goal.
The second drive for Eason was a 12-play, 70-yard touchdown march capped by his pass over the middle to tight end Isaac Nauta for a 7-yard score. Eason was the top-rated quarterback nationally in the 2016 signing class, while Nauta was the No. 1 tight end.
Sony Michel had eight carries for 38 yards for the Black team to lead all rushers, while Jayson Stanley had four catches for 87 yards for the Black to top the receivers. Juwan Taylor led the Black team with seven tackles, while Reggie Carter led the Red with six.
"The Black defense did pretty good, and our defense didn't show up like we should but still had some good stops," outside linebacker Davin Bellamy said. "I was proud of all the quarterbacks."
And everyone was proud of the 93,000.
"My biggest takeaway today was the crowd," Michel said. "At a spring game, you don't expect that."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.