Jake Fromm: The Decision, Draft Prep and His Time at Georgia
Jake Fromm and his high school coach Von Lassiter remain close. The two talk often and when they do it's for, "an hour or two at a time." So, it's safe to say that there are few people out there that have more insight into the mindset of Jake Fromm as a player and a person. Recently, I caught up with Lassiter and was able to discuss the Jake Fromm's decision to go pro, his preparation for the draft, and his mindset and attitude through the ups and downs during his time at Georgia.
THE DECISION
For months, the Georgia football faithful and many in the college football community as a whole were consumed with the topic of whether or not Jake Fromm would go to the National Football League. Needless to say, it was one of the more polarizing topics that have come about in Georgia football lure. For many, Fromm was a legend that deserved respect and those people clamored for the experienced signal-caller to return. Others were underwhelmed by the performance of No. 11 and were ready for a changing of the guard.
Von Lassiter and Jake Fromm on a turkey hunt
It's well documented that the decision was not easy for Jake. Coach Lassiter gave details of the process that Fromm went through.
"I know it's cliche and a lot of people probably don't want to hear it, but he spent a lot of time talking to people that he trusts and spent time praying about it. He made a chart with 'Go', 'Stay', and 'In Between' and he read and studied over the entire book of Proverbs. Any Proverb that he thought related to one of those three areas, he wrote down in there. So he used scripture to help him decide. At the end of the day, the people he trusted, God, and God's Word were pointing him in the direction of leaving. I learned a lesson from that. I've been saved a long time and I have been able to pour into him and help him through his salvation and his walk. But, I learned something from a 21-year old that I wish I would have known a long time ago. When making decisions, there are only a couple of places you can go to. You can't Google it. Can't Google it like the world wants to do today, you know 'Should I go to the NFL?' It doesn't work that way, can't trust that. You can't listen to the media or read articles. You can only go to certain places you trust and, for Jake, his faith has helped him work through that." - Von Lassiter on Jake Fromm's decision process for declaring early
DRAFT PREPARATION
Once Jake Fromm did declare for the NFL Draft, the scrutinizing continued. Hands size, arm strength, and speed were all things called into question by draft analysts and experts. The NFL Combine did nothing to quelch those concerns as Fromm's hands measured under nine inches, he struggled on a few downfield throws, and ran a 5.01 40 time.
QB Country Trainer David Morris, Jake Fromm, and Von Lassiter (Bleckley County)
Despite the detractors and those who were not excited about Fromm's combine performance, Lassiter indicated that Jake is not one to second guess decisions. Even if Fromm were to fall further than expected and go in the 4th or 5th round, his former coach does not believe there will be any doubts or regrets in the least.
"I think he's got the confidence and knows that this is a marathon and not a sprint. I think that 10 years from now, and several, several million dollars later, he's gonna look back and say 'You know what? I was pissed off about my 40 time and the media saying this or that. But, 10 years from now, none of that is going to matter. I remind myself because sometimes I worry about it more than he does, as a ninth-grader we were wondering when anybody was going to offer him? And then, we were wondering, why hasn't Georgia offered him? Now, seven years later, we look back and think, you know, it always works itself out. I'm sure Kirk Cousins, who signed an 84 million dollar deal, isn't too worried that he was drafted in the 4th round. I'm sure Tom Brady doesn't sit around every day and say, 'man I wish I had been drafted in the 1st round instead of the 6th round.' Jake is a ballplayer. That's what God created him to be and I think that he always proves that. He fights against what the media says, what scouts say about his arm strength or his speed. He always proves everybody wrong and I definitely think that's what is going to happen in the NFL."
Lassiter acknowledged the there are a lot of things that he and Jake talk about when he calls. Everything from scripture to how things are going with his family and his girlfriend, to football concepts. Fromm's former coach tries not to pry and, or inundate Jake with questions about the preparation for the NFL. However, Lassiter did allude to the fact that Fromm has met with several teams and is in line to meet with more leading up the draft.
On those meetings, Lassiter said, "I know that all of the individual meetings that he has done with teams have gone very, very well." Lassiter also said of the media coverage of the combine, "You know, I would hear the media talk during the combine about arm strength, speed, negatives, how things went last year at Georgia. But, all the people that know, all the people that matter, in the NFL are talking about how awesome his interviews have gone and about how well all the things he'd talked about with them have gone."
GEORGIA CAREER
While at Georgia, Jake Fromm was almost a folk hero at times. A true 'Georgia Boy' that loved to hunt and fish, boldly proclaimed his faith in Jesus Christ and seemed unflappable early on at Georgia. As an 18-year-old kid, Fromm went to Notre Dame and won. He also had a lot to do with Georgia making their run to the College Football National Championship in 2017 and he lit up Alabama in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. In 2018 Fromm had his best year statistically and again played his best in the big games. Coming into his junior campaign, Fromm was thought to be Heisman contender and a sure-fire first-round NFL Draft pick.
Jake Fromm helping to lead Georgia to a Rose Bowl victory in 2017
Fast forward to now and we all know how the passing game struggled. James Coley, Fromm, and the receiving core all shared the blame and were the object of the ire of many in Dawg Nation. Through it all, however, you never saw Jake Fromm lose his composure or show frustration publicly. In front of the cameras, he handled things with poise, with grace, and with unquestionable character. When asked how this past season was for Fromm personally and behind the scenes, Von Lassiter gave a very direct and detailed answer.
"Jake is such a consistent guy. I don't know if you've ever read the book Extreme Ownership, but he has always had that mindset since I met him. Everything is his fault and he takes responsibility for anything and everything. He loves the game of football so much that he's willing to take that on his shoulders, while other people choose to blame the circumstances around them. Whether it was not being in a spread offense, not having the same quarterback coach for three years, having young receivers, or whatever people want to bring up, he always wants to bring it back to himself and what he could have done better or worked on harder. He always takes that."
"You know, he and I talk about a lot of things and it's never, ever been, 'hey if we had better receivers.' No, that never, ever came out of his mouth. Not once. But, if you know football, you can see what the deal is. You did have young receivers, inexperienced guys. When Cager was in, it was like over 70%, when he wasn't it was below 50%. That's not hard to figure out if you know football. He knows what the deal is, I mean he didn't forget how to throw the football and be accurate, but not even with me, he's not going to put that off on somebody or blame anyone else. Anytime you have weaknesses in a certain area, there are going to be struggling, but you can't let the media and the outside world know you're frustrated with all of that. If anything I think this past year has helped to prepare him and I believe he's going to play a long time in the NFL." - Von Lassiter on how Jake Fromm handled criticism while at Georgia
People tend to forget that college football players are not just athletes. Even though they're expected to perform like professionals, they still have classes, they still have personal lives, and not everything is going to be perfect at times.
Regardless of which camp people align themselves in when it comes to Fromm and his legacy, the way he went about representing his family, his faith, and his university should be respected and commended across the board. Only time will tell if Von Lassiter's prediction of a long and successful career for Jake Fromm in the NFL will come to fruition. But in the words of another and more recent Head Coach of Fromm's, "Don't ever doubt Jake Fromm."
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