There is no doubt it was a pretty devastating night for UGA’s star QB Jake Fromm after his team’s loss to the Crimson Tide. Fromm bounced back with a remarkable show of grace, courage and faith. “God is good, all the time. And all the time, God is good,” the young quarterback proclaimed on Twitter shortly after the game. But there was another moment of humility caught on camera that was largely missed by the fanatical sports fans.
As Fromm slumped off the packed-out field in front of a packed Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, a player was waiting for him. It was none other than fellow QB Jacob Eason. Eason, who was the starting Quarterback for the Bulldogs at the beginning of the season, succumbed to injury and had to make way for a new star, increasingly capable and mightily popular Fromm. And it cannot have been easy.
Bleacher Report detailed the tricky media situation at a recent game:
“There is a herd of reporters crowded around the other Georgia quarterback named Jacob, freshman Jake Fromm. The cameras, mics and those holding them are increasingly encroaching on Eason’s adjacent locker space.
In the minutes spent trying to get to Eason, you wonder how uncomfortable all this must be for him, in many respects.”
Fromm has been in the spotlight this season, and Eason has been forced to take a backseat. But he has handled that position with grace and poise and should be highly commended for showing such maturity in a fiercely competitive sports industry.
He could have left his team earlier in the season and transferred somewhere where he would get more game time, but he chose to stick it out. And far from bolting from the field at the final whistle on Tuesday, Eason chose to be there at the end of the tunnel, waiting to comfort his teammate.
As the battered and bruised QB approached, Eason put an arm around him and the two headed into the locker room, brothers in arms, united in defeat.
Watch the touching moment below:
Beautiful moment at end of game.. @skinnyqb10 waits for @FrommJake in UGA tunnel to put his arm around him. Eason handled entire year with class – respect👊🏻 pic.twitter.com/NdiHdqcjdI
— Zach Klein (@ZachKleinWSB) January 10, 2018