The nation’s No. 1 quarterback for the Class of 2016 is still going to play at UGA. Jacob Eason, the 5-star quarterback from Lake Stevens High School in Washington, reaffirmed his commitment to UGA on Tuesday.

Eason had wavered over the last 10 days in the transition after Mark Richt was fired and Kirby Smart was hired by UGA. There wasn’t an offensive coordinator in place at his favored school so he searched for a back-up plan to his long-standing commitment to UGA.  That resulted in an official visit to both Florida and in-state Washington, but his last official visit before the dead period was to UGA.

“I always just kind of knew I was still committed to Georgia through the tough times and hard times and whatnot,” Eason said. “I didn’t want to break that commitment just because a couple of coaches got fired. I was really going to wait it out and see what was going on and it all worked out in the end.”

By all accounts, the visit went well. That’s obvious in light of today’s announcement he was standing by his July 2014 commitment to play at UGA. Smart’s naming of offensive coordinator Jim Chaney and offensive line coach Sam Pittman had to erase about doubts in the Eason family’s mind about who Smart was going to surround him with at UGA.

Eason was a vital piece of re-recruiting for Smart’s first 10 days at UGA. He’s rated as the nation’s No. 1 quarterback and as the No. 4 overall prospect for the Class of 2016.

It was a memorable day for Eason for a different reason. The 5-star QB was presented with the Gatorade 2015 National Football Player of the Year honor in a surprise ceremony at the school. The near 6-foot-6 senior completed 235-of-338 passes for 3,585 yards and 43 touchdowns against just six interceptions this past season, leading the Vikings (12-1) to the Class 4A semifinals.

— Eason says the offensive coordinator hire was huge for him sticking with UGA

 

Jeff Sentell covers UGA football and UGA recruiting for AJC.com and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow him on Twitter for the latest on who’s on their way to play Between the Hedges.

 

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