Wednesday news and notes

Georgia’s game at Notre Dame two seasons ago in South Bend was certainly one Bulldogs fans and players won’t soon forget.

That’s no doubt true as it pertains to quarterback Jake Fromm.

A true freshman, Fromm was thrust into the national spotlight after taking over at quarterback for Georgia when Jacob Eason went out with an ankle injury a week earlier in the season-opener against Appalachian State.

Still just 18, Fromm’s first collegiate start took part in one of – if not the most – hallowed grounds in all of college football – Notre Dame Stadium.

Although many questioned how Fromm would handle the moment, he obviously did just fine, completing 16 of 29 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown to help lead the Bulldogs to their 20-19 win.

Flash forward to Saturday night’s game in Athens.

Now a junior, Fromm has taken part in some of the biggest games one can play, a list that includes two SEC Championships, a Rose Bowl against Oklahoma and national championship against Alabama.

Irish coach Brian Kelly remembers Fromm well.

“I thought he played with great poise; he was extremely efficient,” Kelly said. “He took care of the football. I think all the things you get a glimpse of with somebody when they’re a freshman — when they exhibit those kinds of traits, you realize you’ve got somebody who's going to be a special player."

Fromm has played in 30 games since that September night in South Bend.

After improving from a statistical standpoint in each of his first two years, the former Houston County is off to another solid start in 2019, completing 42 of 56 passes for 601 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions.

“There’s a world of difference he was a young, nervous, composed freshman and now he’s a confident, experienced junior, and he continues to get better, he makes good decisions,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “I thought he moved around in the pocket well (against Arkansas State), and they gave him some tough different looks."

No doubt Notre Dame defensive coaches will attempt to give Fromm some different looks that he hasn’t seen so far this year.

But Fromm doesn’t seem too concerned.

Fromm wasn’t made available to beat writers this week, but after last week’s win over Arkansas State acknowledged the obvious when it comes his thoughts on the upcoming game.

“You don’t worry about the atmosphere,” Fromm said. “We know it’s a big game, but we can’t treat it as such. We’ve just got to get to work the same as we always do.”

Kelly expects nothing different from the quarterback his team faces Saturday night.

“Generally, look, when you get down to the really great teams, you're going to get Trevor Lawrence. You're going to get you know, you're going to get the great quarterbacks that are the reason why they start to separate. Fromm is one of those guys that gets you to start to separate,” Kelly said. “He showed great poise and has continued to obviously develop into being one of the premier quarterbacks in college football.”

Wide receiver Demetris Robertson missed last Saturday’s game against Arkansas State with what Smart has described as an injury to his “lower extremities.”

The Bulldog junior returned to practice earlier this week, but his status remains a bit unclear after Smart was asked about him during Wednesday’s SEC teleconference.

“Demetris continues to work and is progressing well,” was all Smart had to say, when asked if the Savannah native would be available for Saturday night’s game.

Before missing last weekend’s contest, Robertson had scored touchdowns in each of Georgia’s first two games and comes into play against the Irish with six catches for 44 yards along with two rushes for an additional 29.

For sophomore Georgia tight end John FitzPatrick and Notre Dame freshman safety Kyle Hamilton, Saturday night's game will serve as a reunion for the former Marist High stars.

"Kyle was so good," FitzPatrick said after practice Wednesday. "He's still one of my best friends in high school. He's strong, he's fast, he can run side to side, he can play the holes; he's a good player."

Hamilton displayed his skill in Notre Dame's victory last week over New Mexico when he returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown.

A former four-star recruit, Hamilton was a Rivals100 selection (No. 75) his season before choosing the Irish over a host of other programs, including Georgia.

FitzPatrick, who hosted Hamilton during a visit to Georgia, joked that he couldn't quite seal the deal.

"I tried my best but he had a great opportunity at Notre Dame," he said. "Everyone has their personal reasons, just like I did. Guys just feel certain ways about schools. I tried to make him feel the same way, but Kyle had a great school at Notre Dame with a great tradition. He couldn't pass that one up."

The two still remain close friends.

In fact, FitzPatrick said that he and Hamilton spoke with each other on Wednesday, giving each other a hard time before Saturday's highly anticipated game.

"We were just joking around. Nothing too serious," FitzPatrick said. "He joked he's going to take me out and and I said the same thing back to him."

...Wednesday’s practice was closed to the media for the second time in three days this week. Typically, the media is allowed to view two early periods Monday-Wednesday. This marked the first time this year two of the three days have been closed.

…Georgia may not have what you’d consider a dominant defensive line, but Smart is pleased with the “committee” that’s anchoring the position right now.

That primarily includes Tyler Clark, Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, David Marshall, Malik Herring, Travon Walker and Michael Barnett, with hopes of others getting their opportunities as the season moves along.

“We’ve got some very workmanlike players and they play really hard. We’ve challenged them that this week is their week to step up and play on a big stage,” Smart said. “That’s what most of these guys come to Georgia for. That front group has worked really hard. They kind of do it by committee, and hopefully it will be no different this game playing a committee with the upfront guys.”

One player who could ultimately join the fray is senior Julian Rochester (ACL), who has been cleared and has practice since the start of camp but has yet to play.

…Don’t look now, but Jake Camarda is off to a fast start as Georgia’s punter.

Although he hasn’t been called on often, the sophomore is averaging 50 yards on seven punts with a season-long of 65. However, that’s not necessarily what’s been the most impressive.

Of his seven punts, only two have been returned (for 17 yards), thanks to two fair catches and three placed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.

“He’s hit some boomers. The things he’s got to continue to work on is his directional kicking, but he’s done a good job of that,” Smart said. “They’ve got some very good returners who have been doing it a long time and they’re one of the best teams in the country at holding you up and attacking you. They do a very good job in the return game so Jake will be very important with his ball placement, his hangtimes, and where he’s kicking the ball.”

…On the backfield:

“A lot of those guys we have seen. We saw James (Cook) last year, we saw Brian (Herrien), just not to extent that he’s gotten to work, Zamir (White) coming back has been a pleasant surprise for us and he continues to do good things and gets better,” Smart said. “Kenny has been a good asset for us, he’s going to be a good football player so I’m pleased with how far they’ve come and I feel I’m really talking about the two guys who didn’t play last year. But again, the important thing is finding roles for those guys and finding ways to use them.”

On Dominick Blaylock, who has seven catches for 160 yards through three games:

“Dom’s been a good addition. He’s came in the summer and picked things up quickly. He’s a competitor, he has a low center of gravity,” Smart said. “He’s kind of sneaky, hard to tackle. It’s not that he’s overly elusive, he runs tough and does a good job breaking tackles. He’s very sharp, understands leverages and is very savvy player. I think he’s starting to develop a comfort level with Jake which is very important.”

…On Stetson Bennett who has completed 18 of 23 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns:

“Stetson did a good job last week when he came in. He understood his role, the game plan, and I really thought he executed at a high level,” Smart said. “We’ve challenged him to do that in practice because he gets so many more reps in practice than he does in games and preparing himself. We always talking about playing to your strengths and he’s got to do that.”