ATHENS — College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit said Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm had the “it” factor and predicted big success for the sophomore before this season started.
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Herbstreit’s opinion on Fromm hasn’t changed, as he predicted on the Golic and Wingo Show Wednesday that Georgia would have success against an Alabama defense that recorded back-to-back shutouts over Top 25 opponents for the first time in school history.
The No. 4-ranked Bulldogs (11-1) play the No. 1-ranked Tide (12-0) at 4 p.m. on Saturday in the SEC Championship Game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
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“I think Georgia will have success moving the ball against Bama, (but) will they score when they get into the red area? (that) will be a big factor in this game,” Herbstreit said. “I still think Alabama, as good as they are on defense, as athletic as they are, if there’s a vulnerability, you can throw the football against them.
“The combination of Fromm throwing to D’Andre Swift, and Swift and Elijah Holyfield running, that’s a very difficult offense to deal with.”
Herbstreit said Swift getting healthy after the bye week — he’d dealt with groin and ankle ailments — was a “big thing” in the Bulldogs’ resurgence after the 36-16 loss at LSU before the bye week.
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“Swift is a difference maker, so you combine Swift in the backfield with Holyfield, and then Fromm since the LSU game,” Herbstreit said.
“Finally, we’re not hearing about Justin Fields, the 5-star all-world quarterback that when the season started, there was talk about Fields taking over for Fromm, which is the most ridiculous this I’ve ever heard of because (Fromm) is the Alpha of that team.”
Indeed, while most of the talk has centered on Heisman Trophy favorite Tua Tagovailoa, College Football Filmroom put out a comparison that shows just how well Fromm and the UGA offense has stacked up of late:
Herbstreit said the change in Georgia has been evident since Fromm became the clear-cut No. 1 and the quarterback controversy talk tailed off.
“I think from the LSU game, they just said, ‘we’re done thinking about that, Fromm you’re our guy,’ and they’ve been a different team,” Herbstreit said. “They put the ball in his hands and this guy has been there and done that even though he’s a sophomore
“I think his experience in this game a year ago, if I were a Georgia fan would give me great confidence, and they’ve got outstanding wide receivers.”
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