Following Georgia’s 30-6 victory over Vanderbilt on Saturday, Kirby Smart was rather supportive of Jake Fromm, despite relatively pedestrian passing numbers by the Bulldog quarterback. Smart said Fromm “put [the UGA offense] in really good football plays,” including him being responsible for “some of those explosive runs (i.e., 11 rushes of 12-plus yards).”

Two days later, during his Monday press conference, Smart was just as appreciative of Fromm’s ability to support a strong ground game.

“He makes a lot of decisions that people don't understand. I don't think anyone in the room would understand what he's doing with some of the [intangibles of a quarterback],” said Smart in preparation for this Saturday’s opponent, Murray State. “Some of it is pass, some of it's run, some of it's nothing. Some of it is window-dressing.”

Although he wasn’t intercepted against Vanderbilt, Fromm completed 15 of 23 passes, including just 7 of his final 14 attempts, for only 153 yards and a touchdown. His 136.5 passer rating paled in comparison to his 164.7 career rating entering the game, and certainly his 212.5 rating in two previous games against the Commodores.

Nevertheless, as far as Georgia’s offense in its entirety, what Fromm brings to the table goes far beyond his passing statistics—so far beyond, in fact, it’s essentially too complicated to explain.

“He does that so that we can be successful, so that people don't get a read on what we're doing—and it's not easy to do,” Smart said regarding Fromm’s intangibles. “Some of the rules he has are complicated. I don't need to get into it right now with you guys. It'd take me another 30 minutes to explain what he's doing on half of the stuff.”

With Fromm engineering a potent Georgia running game in Nashville, the Bulldogs rushed for 325 yards while averaging 8.1 yards per carry—Georgia’s highest single-game mark for rushing average versus a Power Five opponent since the 2018 Rose Bowl against Oklahoma (9.3 yards per carry).

What’s more, Georgia gained at least 40 yards rushing, and as many as 133, in every quarter against Vanderbilt, and remarkably averaged between 6.6 and 8.9 yards per rush in each stanza.

Yet, again, beyond any personal or team statistics, Fromm is simply a cherished quarterback who seemingly helps make many of those around him even better—while leaving others frustrated.

“He does a nice job of making sure we're in successful plays,” said the defensive-minded Smart regarding Fromm. “As a [former] defensive coordinator, I can tell you, going against him every day [in practice] is frustrating, because it's hard to be right a lot of times."