Georgia football got their 2026 season underway with a blowout 63-3 win over Tennessee State. This is the result that was supposed to happen, but it doesn't take away from the good things Georgia showed throughout the game.
While a lot of different observations stood out on Saturday, there were five takeaways in particular that stood the most.
1. Georgia did what they were supposed to do
Georgia was predicted and expected to win this game by a wide margin. Vegas oddsmakers had UGA favored by 47.5 points, so a blowout victory was what was supposed to occur. Just because that is what people expect doesn't mean it will actually happen though, but on Saturday Georgia did what they were supposed to do and won by 60.
Georgia covered that spread easily which was the first time under Kirby Smart that they covered a spread of at least 38.5 points.
No one should make too many positive judgments from this game since Tennessee State was nowhere near the level that Georgia is on, but Georgia still deserves credit for handling their business and wining with ease.
2. Georgia's TE room has depth on top of depth
Anyone who has followed Georgia football this offseason knows how much depth they have tight end, and on Saturday they proved it.
Jaden Reddell, Elyiss Williams, Kaiden Prothro, and Ethan Barbour were the four tight ends who combined for six catches. Lawson Luckie most notably didn't have any catches and he might be the best tight end Georgia has.
All six catches went for at least 10 yards with two of them popping for over 20 yards. Half of these receptions turned into touchdowns as well.
It looks like Georgia plans on highlighting the tight end position this season, and thanks to their depth they will hopefully find a lot of success.
3. Gunner Stockton looked like a seasoned vet
Gunner Stockton is entering the season with a lot to prove. Most people in Athens believe in him, but fans and analysts outside of Georgia aren't sure he is good enough to lead UGA to a national championship.
It's impossible to say he can lead Georgia to a national title based on this performance alone, but just like most everyone else on Saturday he did what was expected of him.
Stockton only played in the first five series of the game, but all five drives resulted in a touchdown. He completed 15 of 16 passes for 202 yards while throwing three touchdowns which shows he was about as efficient as he could possibly be.
Stockton will have to play well against a much better team before people outside of Georgia believe in him, but he handled his business on Saturday like a seasoned vet should.
4. Kirby Smart got some answers on the backup quarterback battle
Thanks to Gunner Stockton and the rest of the starters impressive start to the game, the Bulldogs were able to play their backups for a large chunk of the game. All eyes were on the backup quarterback battle specifically as Kirby Smart himself said they weren't sure who their current backup was.
After Saturday's game it seems like Ryan Puglisi is that guy. He didn't play any noticeably better than Ryan Montgomery or Hezekiah Millender, but he played four series while Montgomery and Millender both only played one series each. They both led touchdown drives in their one series and looked good while doing it, but it's hard to judge a player fairly who didn't play much.
Puglisi on the other hand looked bad in his two first half series, but he responded by leading two impressive touchdown drives to start the second half.
Georgia may have a chance to play their backup quarterbacks again next week against Western Kentucky, but based on their playing time on Saturday it seems like Puglisi is No. 2 on the depth chart.
5. Nate Frazier had one of the most efficient games from a Georgia RB in a long time
There were mismatches across the board in Georgia's favor on Saturday, but Nate Frazier may have been the biggest mismatch of all. He only carried the ball four times, but he turned three of those into touchdowns while rattling off 72 yards.
Like with every starter it was Georgia's goal to get them off the field as soon as possible. Frazier helped make that possible by being as efficient as he realistically could be.
It's hard to judge any performance because of the discrepancy in talent, but Frazier did what he was supposed to do and dominated a significantly weaker opponent.
Add us as a preferred source on Google