View point: Is Hutson Mason ready for D-I football?

With quarterback Logan Gray considering a transfer, Georgia fans are fretting over this: What if starter Aaron Murray, a redshirt freshman, gets hurt? Is true freshman Hutson Mason, a soon-to-be Lassiter High graduate, ready to take over? Chip Lindsey, his former Lassiter coach, currently an assistant at Troy, thinks so ... but he hopes he doesn’t have to. Former Georgia quarterback Buck Belue, who knows a little about playing as a freshman at Georgia, says yes, Mason can handle it.

Chip Lindsey

Hutson is a good player and he’s even a better person from a great family. He has a lot of faith, but he’s also a regular guy, too. During his senior year, he was the unquestioned leader of his team. We changed offenses from what we he had been doing and he very well could have gotten our most improved award. He is a true student of the game and has the qualities to be very successful.

That being said, I don’t know if anyone can jump from high school to Division I football these days. Will he be prepared mentally, with coach [offensive coordinator Mike] Bobo and the other folks coaching him? Yeah, I think he will. But there are things high school players have to get better at -- the speed of the game, the bigger guys -- and that just doesn't happen overnight. He’s committed to it. So he will get there.

Aaron Murray was highly recruited and he redshirted, which was good for him. I think it’d be good for Hutson, too. But if anyone can do it, he’s one who could. It would do him some good to learn for year; it’s what we all anticipated. But things happen that are unpredictable. He’ll work as hard as he can to get there. As a coach, I don’t want to have to do that, but if I had to go through that situation, he’d be the one to do it with.

He is very accurate, which is something that is hard to coach. He does a great job with footwork and where he holds the ball. His throwing motion is simple with a quick release. He understands protections and where the free guy will be coming from on the blitz. His football IQ is high and as for his arm strength, he’s got plenty. People have tried to bring him down on that, but he went to all those camps for all those colleges and not a single college said he didn’t have enough. He’s no Matt Stafford, but accuracy is the most important thing and it’s his best thing.

Buck Belue

Incoming freshman Hutson Mason knows that the QB situation at Georgia offers him a great opportunity. Interesting how things work out. Back in December, he was wondering why the Bulldogs weren’t knocking his door down. Now, coach [Mark] Richt and coach Bobo are thanking their lucky stars they jumped in late in the process and were able to sign him.

Obviously, the Dogs are thin at quarterback. [Zach] Mettenberger is suddenly gone. Logan wants to play football and not just watch, so he might be getting some reps at receiver at some point. That leaves Aaron Murray. And that is awesome for Hutson, who rewrote many of the state passing records during his two-year run at Lassiter.

So Hutson won’t be like most freshmen quarterbacks who show up knowing they’ll be buried on the depth chart and concerned they’ll get killed running the scout team. He’s getting ready to play ball. Looks like he’ll step right in and get some reps with the No. 2 offense.

Message to Georgia fans: Don’t freak out, because this guy is far ahead of most freshmen. His experience at Lassiter will help him. He threw 850 passes in two seasons and that’s two to three times more than the average dude gets. You can’t put a price tag on all those reps and the lessons he learned along the way. Plus, Hutson gained a lot of confidence during that time, too.

Reflecting back on my experience, I thought I was dedicated to improving and working on my game, but this guy is taking it to a new level. He’s already got a grip on the Bulldogs' playbook. Hard work in the weight room has his frame up to a solid 198 pounds. His boxing workout has improved his arm strength. This young man is committed, fit and focused.

Which brings me to this: Hutson Mason is a high-character person. And that will carry him through all this. The pressure and scrutiny won’t bring him down. He’ll stand strong. And teammates will respect that, which will allow him to lead.