Tennessee Vols true freshman quarterback Jake Merklinger admitted earlier this year that he rooted for the Georgia Bulldogs while growing up in Savannah, GA.
Merklinger had a good reason to cheer for the Bulldogs beyond just growing up in Georgia — the former four-star recruit’s mom graduated from UGA.
“So, my mom went to Georgia,” said Merklinger in January. “I did grow up a Georgia fan. I grew up looking up to (former Bulldogs QB) Jake Fromm. I like the way he played. I would go to the games and he was always playing so that was cool.”
Former Tennessee quarterback Josh Dobbs, who played for the Vols from 2013 to 2016, also grew up in Georgia. Dobbs is from Alpharetta, which is just 60 miles from Athens.
Unlike Merklinger, Dobbs didn’t cheer for the Bulldogs while growing up in Georgia. In fact, Dobbs said this week that he would cheer for whoever Georgia was playing against.
“I just cheered for whoever Georgia was playing against because I didn’t want them to win,” said Dobbs (via WBIR). “So I really had — not a vendetta, I really just disliked them.”