Jacob Eason came to Georgia as one of the highest sought out recruits in school history in the 2016 recruiting class. He won the starting spot and produced impressive numbers last year as a true freshman, and now, with a year under his belt, how the sophomore quarterback will take on a leadership role is a huge question. During post-practice interviews on Thursday, Terry Godwin and Jackson Harris weighed in on Eason and his growth as a leader since last season.
After starting 12 games as a freshman last season where he passed for 2,430 yards and 16 touchdowns to only 8 interceptions, leading Georgia to eight wins which included a Liberty Bowl victory and trophy, there were questions on whether or not Eason was comfortable of being a leader. Now, looking to his sophomore campaign in 2017, Eason seems to have emerged as a leader this off season. He is confident, and we have seen him take control of the team during practice.
Terry Godwin, a junior wide receiver with the Bulldogs, talked about how Eason has grabbed the offense by the horns and taken control, and he has seen him grow as a quarterback and a leader.
“I feel like he’s grown,” Godwin said. “He’s pretty much taking the offense by the horns and telling us what to do. He’s become that mature quarterback that we knew he would become. I feel like he’s gotten a lot better this year at commanding the offense.”
Jackson Harris, a junior tight end for Georgia, said that he could tell Eason’s comfortable with the offense and the pace of things. Harris said Jacob takes initiative and puts the offense where it should be.
“You can tell he’s a lot more comfortable and he’s used to the speed of the game,” Harris stated. “He’s doing very and you know he’s always been this great player and he’s starting to take it to that next level of leadership. He takes initiative and he is just doing what quarterbacks do. Eason takes control of the huddle take control of the line and lead the offense in that direction.”
Harris said that Eason has always been a leader, but it shows more now. He just had to grow into the offense and get comfortable.
“I feel like it’s kind of constant, for anyone the more experience you get the more comfortable you’ll feel and the greater you do every time. So I feel for him it’s just been a growing process just like it has been for anyone else. He’s come along great and he’ll do great things this year,” Harris says.
Eason’s leadership role seems evident through his teammates’ eyes. Now, it’s time for the young quarterback to take it to the field and allow everyone see him be that leader when the lights are shining brightly on game day. While part of being a quarterback is there to make plays with his arm, I think it is equally important that he be that guy who’s there for his teammates no matter what. And that is all a part of a leader.
For Terry Godwin’s and Jackson Harris’s full interviews check out the YouTube videos below:
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