Georgia quarterback JT Daniels broke some major news regarding the 2020 season for himself. The transfer quarterback announced on Monday that he will be eligible to play for the 2020 season after transferring in from USC.
“Thank you to the NCAA for granting me immediate eligibility and allowing me to play football this fall,” Daniels wrote. “I will not comment on the waiver or transfer, but look forward to a great 2020 season with my teammates.”
Related: More on what JT Daniels’ eligibility means for Georgia
There were a number of initial reactions from the college football world, stemming from the surprise of Daniels being eligible to what this might mean for fellow transfer quarterback Jamie Newman, who transferred to Georgia in January.
Daniels spent the past two seasons at USC. He started 11 games as a freshman for USC in 2018, throwing 14 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. Daniels started the opening game of USC’s 2019 season but tore his ACL in the first half. He missed the rest of the season and announced his transfer from USC in April.
Daniels has shown that he’s back working out with a knee brace on.
What makes the Daniels situation so interesting is that he is the second transfer quarterback Georgia has brought in this offseason, as the aforementioned Newman arrived in January. Newman has gotten a considerable amount of hype this offseason, with some tabbing as a potential first-round pick, while others have listed him as a Heisman Trophy favorite.
Newman does bring the added threat in the run game, as he ran for 574 rushing yards last season and six touchdowns. He also threw for 26 touchdowns last season at Wake Forest.
Both Newman and Daniels will be playing for a new offensive coordinator at Georgia, as the Bulldogs brought in Todd Monken to replace James Coley. Monken spent the last four seasons working in the NFL as an offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Newman and Daniels will have a number of talented weapons to target during the 2020 season, most notably wide receiver George Pickens.
Related: Addition of JT Daniels continues Georgia football inroads into California recruiting
Of course, all of this is up in the air at the moment given the concerns about having a 2020 season due to COVID-19. The Big Ten and Pac-12 have announced they will be playing conference-only games in the 2020 season. The ACC and SEC have said they will make a decision on the matter come the end of July.
As of this moment, Georgia is still planning to open the 2020 season against Virginia on Sept. 7 in Atlanta. The Bulldogs will be able to fully practice starting on Aug. 9, though players will be allowed to go through walk-throughs starting on July 26.
More Georgia football stories from around DawgNation
- Wide receiver position continues to improve thanks to ‘rising star’ Cortez Hankton
- Why Georgia basketball coach Tom Crean embraces being at football school
- WATCH: Inside story from Kirby Smart family life, son Andrew goes viral again
- Brock Bowers: Nation’s No. 3 TE feels ‘Athens is different’ after his latest visit
- SEC commissioner Greg Sankey: College football running out of time to get things right
- WATCH: 3 key factors involved in Georgia football playing games this fall
- Kirby Smart on second-year defensive players: ‘They’ll be a lot better off opportunity alone’