The No. 1 Reason D'Wan Mathis Should be the Starter

D'Wan Mathis and JT Daniels are in the midst of a heated QB battle in Athens, but there's one primary reason why it's Mathis that should be the starter.

The quarterback position is a leadership based position. Sure, you've got to have the skill to make plays, but without the belief and buy-in from those around you, it's unlikely the team will reach the peak of their abilities.

Well, one thing has been clear throughout this summer and throughout fall camp for Georgia, this team believes in D'Wan Mathis. That's the number one reason this Georgia staff should go with him. Sure, he's talented. He's going to make some dazzling plays, and is a bonafide 4.48 runner with the ability to terrify defensive coordinators, but it's the team's approval that matters most here.

Signs of that approval for D'Wan Mathis started all the way back in July when several members of Georgia's heralded defense began to become vocal about their backing of D'Wan Mathis on social media.

Malik Herring returned for his senior season at Georgia and is undoubtedly one of several vocal leaders on Georgia's defense. He's not shy about his approval of Mathis, and he certainly made it clear that he believes in the 6'6 gunslinger from Detroit, Michigan. 

Dwan Mathis 🔥

— Malik Herring (@HerringMalik) July 14, 2020

The tweet from Herring was quickly quoted by Eric Stokes, saying "He like Dat!!" Then a fellow member of the 2019 signing class, Rian Davis hopped in to say "He been like dat... y'all gone see"

When it comes to just what D'Wan Mathis is capable of, who would know more than the Georgia defense? When Mathis was finally cleared last season following brain surgery, he stepped into the role of scout-team quarterback against Georgia's top-ranked defense from a year ago. This defense not only believes in Mathis, but they are rooting for him.

"He's a bright-eyed talented kid. There's a lot of guys that have confidence in D'Wan. The best thing that happened to him was probably the reps he took on scout team last year because he went down there and got some live bullets coming at him." - Kirby Smart on Mathis

Mathis was a member of the nation's top recruiting class in 2019 along with Nolan Smith who said, "We always say, ‘You’ve got to get excited for your brother.’ That’s something that we love to do. Football almost left him, and he was able to capture that again. I was just excited and happy that he was out there running again.”

It's Mathis that is the vocal leader type according to QB Trainer, Donovan Dooley who's worked with Mathis since the age of 12 and continues to do so to this day,

"Well, I think his teammates love him. D'Wan is a vocal leader. You know, you have some great introverts. He's definitely extravert, he's definitely gonna bring some excitement. He's going to be on the field, he's going to make some plays. You know, he brings a ton of energy. And I think, you know,, this group of kids growing up nowadays, you know, they love the music, they love the energy. And once you bring energy to a good disciplined football team, you got something special, along with good coaching which Georgia has. And so D'Wan definitely brings a lot of energy. And I think the guys rallied behind that. Now he's bringing something different to you that essentially they haven't had in a while at Georgia."

It's simple, win the team over, and you win the job. These players at Georgia know what talent looks like, they know who they want to ride into battle with on Saturdays and if that guy is D'Wan Mathis, then you have to play him. If that's who the team's belief is in, then that's who gets the nod.

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