Georgia football is drawing closer to their first College Football Playoff game at the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. And while there are many major storylines heading into this game, the biggest has been who will be the starting QB for the Bulldogs for this game.
That question was answered on Thursday as Carson Beck was ruled out for Georgia's entire CFP run, meaning it is officially time for Gunner Stockton to take over. Stockton played a great second half against Texas in UGA's SEC Championship win over the Longhorns, but it will be much more difficult this time around because Georgia's opponents will know to prepare for him as the starting quarterback.
And while Georgia fans may be concerned with Stockton taking over, Georgia's team has all the confidence in the world that Stockton can lead them to a National Championship.
Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker recently spoke about this confidence on The Paul Finebaum Show in the below clip posted on social media.
"When Gunner Stockton stepped on the field, I had no doubt."
"I always had confidence in him. He's played big time football cause he sees it every day... Our team will have Gunner's back no matter what happens and I feel like we'll be put in the best position by him and the offense."
Jalon Walker watched Gunner Stockton facing Georgia's No. 1 defense every day pic.twitter.com/zUoFcUBxTz
— Radi Nabulsi (@RadiNabulsi) December 20, 2024
Stockton will be more than prepared by Jan. 1
Typically a backup QB taking over at this point in the season is a recipe for disaster, but that is not the case with Stockton and Georgia.
Georgia has almost an entire month between their SEC Championship win and quarterfinal matchup on Jan. 1, and while it was just publicly confirmed that Beck is out for the entire CFP, this has likely been known inside the Georgia program for awhile now. So Georgia has this entire month to get Stockton ready to go which is more than enough time.
It's also worth mentioning that Stockton gets to prepare against one of the best defenses in the country every day in practice. Georgia's defense likely is better than any other defense UGA could face in the playoffs, so Stockton can use that to his advantage as it should help him both in preparing on the field and with his confidence.
Georgia's CFP matchup is just two weeks away, and later on Friday night they will find out who their opponent is, but it is nice to hear that the entire team has faith in Stockton as that will go a long way in the confidence that he has in himself.