Georgia Bulldogs football facing a Gunner Stockton quarterback worry

Billy Heyen

Georgia Bulldogs football facing a Gunner Stockton quarterback worry image

Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart seems pumped to have Gunner Stockton as his starting quarterback.

The rest of the college football world isn't so sure.

The Bulldogs relied on Carson Beck the past few seasons, but he's in Miami now, so it's Stockton's gig.

Will he deliver?

ESPN's Bill Connelly has this take: "The junior was thrown into the deep end late in 2024, playing the first non-garbage-time snaps of his career against Texas (SEC championship game) and Notre Dame (CFP quarterfinals) thanks to Carson Beck's arm injury. Stockton didn't exactly thrive -- he had 4.6 yards per dropback and took six sacks, including a game-turning strip sack against Notre Dame -- but that was nearly the toughest situation imaginable. Stockton will have an entire offseason to prep. As is one of the themes of this piece, we won't know he's ready for the job until he proves it."

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The key for Stockton will likely be how he used this offseason to prepare for the journey ahead.

Following Beck for the Bulldogs isn't an easy ask, though.

Smart has said of Stockton: "He's got winner written all over him."

At the end of the day, that's all that matters for Georgia, winning. If Stockton does that, everyone in Athens will be happy.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle