Justin Fields is a freshman quarterback who plays for the Georgia Bulldogs. Fields is likely to see the field on Saturday when Georgia takes on Austin Peay at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Few players in the history of Georgia football have come in with as much hype as Fields, as the Georgia native was the No. 2 overall prospect in the country.

Here is all you need to know about Fields

Justin Fields is the best recruit Georgia has ever landed

Matthew Stafford, Todd Gurley, AJ Green. Georgia has landed a number of talented players before, including the No. 1 overall player in the 2015 class in Trenton Thompson. But none of them have gotten a higher player rating than Fields did in the 247Sports Composite rating. 

Fields was the No. 2 player in the country and the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback. In most years, he would’ve been the top player in the country but the 2018 class featured another quarterback from Georgia in Trevor Lawerence who just beat Fields out for the top spot. But prior to Fields’ injury in his senior season, he was actually ranked ahead of Lawerence.

 

Justin Fields likely won’t start on Saturday

While Kirby Smart hasn’t named a starting quarterback, all indications are pointing to Jake Fromm starting, as Smart has said that Fromm has largely been running with the first team.

“Both of those kids have visited frequently with us, as coaches, and we’ve let both of them know where they are,” Smart said on Monday. “Jake’s been going with the ones the whole time.”

Even though he may not start, Fields is too talented not to play. And with the new redshirt rule in place, Fields can play in up to four games and still redshirt, however unlikely that may be. Fans are still pretty excited to see Fields on Saturday, especially after his strong spring game performance where he outperformed Fromm.

Justin Fields has drawn comparisons to Tim Tebow

Georgia hasn’t had a true dual-threat quarterback in a while, but Fields figures to change that, as the 6-foot-3 quarterback figures to add a new dimension to the Georgia offense.

While Fromm proved to be a capable runner last season, he isn’t the athlete that Fields is. And that ability even has Smart excited.

“He gives us an element in our offense that we don’t have. I’m excited to see what he can do,” Smart said.

Given that Fields has Fromm in front of him, some pundits have mentioned that Georgia could use Fields like how Florida used Tim Tebow in 2006, his freshman season. Tebow was a great redzone weapon and made an already great Florida team even better. And while Georgia fans despise Florida, the Gators did win a national title using Tebow and Chris Leak in tandem.

Justin Fields was initially a Penn State commit

For a while there, Fields looked like he might be leaving Georgia and heading up north to play for James Franklin and Penn State. But the 5-star quarterback backed off his pledge in June of 2017 and ultimately settled on Georgia last October.

Fields explained that Georgia’s strong start to the 2017 season was a big reason why he ended up picking the Bulldogs.

“Georgia just kind of separated themselves with what they have been doing this season, how well they improved from last year and just by what they have been doing on offense and defense and also special teams. That’s kind of what separated them,” Fields said last October.

Justin Fields was a big reason Georgia finished with the No. 1 2018 recruiting class

Georgia got off to a slow start in the 2018 recruiting class. But once Fields joined the fold, recruiting took off and never really stopped. Georgia reeled in elite prospect after elite prospect and landed the No. 1 overall recruiting class in the 2018 cycle. It marked the first time since 2010 that Alabama didn’t land the nation’s best recruiting class and it wouldn’t have happened if Fields didn’t join the Bulldogs.