'Poised' Jacob Eason amazing his Georgia teammates

Georgia freshman quarterback Jacob Eason is winning over coaches and teammates with not only his talent but his poise.
Georgia freshman quarterback Jacob Eason is winning over coaches and teammates with not only his talent but his poise.

CHANGE IN LOCATION?

Georgia’s football game at South Carolina this Saturday night could be moved due to the threat of Hurricane Matthew.South Carolina has canceled classes today and expects to do the same Thursday and Friday. The state’s governor, Nikki Haley, called Tuesday for a coastal evacuation of 1.1 million people and said Saturday’s game status would be decided by the schools.“As of now, I can’t imagine that happening, but certainly we’re going to continue to watch this,” Haley told The State newspaper in Columbia. “I would love nothing more than to see this take a right-hand turn and go out to sea. As it looks right now, we’re looking at Friday afternoon into Saturday being pretty brutal.”Georgia practiced Tuesday using wet balls in preparation for inclement weather, but the game could be played inside if the schools agree on the Georgia Dome as a location.“I’m aware of the weather and have heard some different people say some different statements,” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said in a news conference following Tuesday’s practice. “To be honest, we’re just focused on getting ready for the game. Whatever happens, happens, and it’s out of our control.“There are a lot of scenarios out there.”— David Paschall

ATHENS, Ga. - The Georgia Bulldogs have lost consecutive Southeastern Conference games and now need a lot of help to get back into this season's Eastern Division race, but their long-range forecast is much, much brighter.

Freshman quarterback Jacob Eason is seeing to that.

"He's a great kid, and he's got so much poise for a freshman," Bulldogs senior center Brandon Kublanow said. "Nothing really affects him, which is the craziest thing I've ever seen. I'm proud of him, because he's worked really hard, and he'll continue to work hard."

Eason's 47-yard touchdown strike to fellow freshman Riley Ridley with 10 seconds remaining against Tennessee last Saturday in Sanford Stadium nearly gave the Bulldogs one of the most dramatic victories in program history. Eason's final throw would be upstaged by Jauan Jennings leaping and snagging a 43-yard "Hail Mary" from Josh Dobbs as time expired, which gave the Volunteers a never-to-be-forgotten 34-31 win, but Eason's demeanor in the clutch is worth remembering as well.

The 6-foot-5, 235-pounder, who will play his sixth college game and make his fifth college start Saturday night when the Bulldogs (3-2, 1-2 SEC) face South Carolina (2-3, 1-3), completed 17 of 28 passes against the Vols for 211 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

"He's got to play better and with more consistency, but look at what he can do," Bulldogs first-year head coach Kirby Smart said. "He's got talent, and he's got composure. He's got better composure than I do. I'm out there ready to lose it on him at times when he's not managing it right, but he comes right back.

"He's a guy who doesn't think about what he did last. He moves on to the next thing."

The week before against Ole Miss in Oxford, Eason was facing pressure up the middle from Rebels defensive tackle Benito Jones midway through the second quarter when he made an off-balance throw to Isaiah McKenzie in the end zone from 29 yards out. McKenzie couldn't come up with the catch, spoiling one of Eason's top tosses of the season.

Eason, the top-rated quarterback nationally in the 2016 signing class, has completed 81 of 151 passes for 991 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions. He ranks sixth in the SEC with 198.2 passing yards per game but doesn't rank among the top 10 in efficiency largely due to a 53.6-percent completion rate that has been the result of rushed throws and dropped passes.

"He's still a young quarterback. He's 18 years old," senior guard Greg Pyke said. "When we were going down the field in our two-minute drill the other day, I had all the confidence in him, our backs and our receivers that we were going to make that play."

The Bulldogs are continually looking for ways to increase Eason's comfort level, which has included more perimeter runs for the backs. Smart said that makes things easier for Eason because it allows him the ability to see the whole defense from the shotgun, which is where he's most comfortable.

After this week's trip to Columbia, S.C., the Bulldogs will be halfway through their 12-game regular season, which means Eason will continue to look less and less like a rookie given all the experience he is inhaling.

"I just want him to play with more consistency," Smart said. "He has two or three reads a game where he gets off-kilter and starts looking at the rush. He's not a freshman anymore. He's five games into it, and he's got to grow up and get better."

Odds and ends

Inside linebacker Reggie Carter missed his second consecutive practice Tuesday with what Smart called a mild concussion.... Smart said tailback Nick Chubb is moving around well this week.... Smart on his one year (1994) as a player with Will Muschamp, now the coach at South Carolina: "I was the little prick on the scout team running around, and he was the big man on campus."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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