Georgia football QB JT Daniels has ‘gunslinger moxie,’ says Eric Zeier

ATHENS — Former Georgia star and SEC all-time leading passer Eric Zeier sees a lot of himself and Jake Fromm in current Bulldogs’ quarterback JT Daniels.

But he also sees some “gunslinger” in Daniels.

That might be just what Georgia needs to win the SEC Championship and compete for a College Football Playoff spot in 2021.

Daniels was the highest-rated returning quarterback in college football from the time he took over as the Bulldogs starter with four games remaining, completing 67 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns and 2 TDs.

The fact Daniels enjoyed that success immediately impressed Zeier, who provides color analysis for the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.

“There’s a lot to respect for JT Daniels, and I’ll start with this: It is extremely difficult to have yourself prepared to lead a team midseason, especially coming off an injury where at times you were third or fourth off the depth chart,” Zeier said on a recent podcast with fellow former UGA QB Buck Belue.

“For him to stay mentally sharp and mentally prepared, and step into a huddle and lead men and elevate the play of everyone around you … I was remarkably impressed with his mental aptitude and his leadership ability,” he said. “The next part of it is his mentality to attack the defense and leverage playmakers around him.

“We’ve got a set of great receivers on this football team — talent at the tight end position, obviously skill talent access the board. He’s not afraid, if you give him the opportunity, to let those guys make a play for you.”

Daniels’ ability to distribute the ball, and UGA’s talent and depth at the receiver position, has made the Bulldogs one of the preseason favorites to win the SEC.

In the Georgia offense, which features Air Raid concepts, Daniels’ decision-making is integral to success.

“He’s extremely intelligent, understands what we are trying to do, gets us into the right play, reminds me of Jake Fromm,” Zeier said. “But then there’s a gunslinger moxie — he’s gonna take some shots, play with some cockiness, take some punishment and stand in the pocket and make plays.

“He’s not a guy that will run a 4.4 (-second) 40 but he’s athletic. He can make every throw and he has the attitude that he’s gonna take shots when you give him shots, and everybody is feeding off that.”

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