The Georgia Bulldogs have had yet another Heisman top ten finalist in Gunner Stockton in 2025. Stockton has had unprecedented success in his first year starting for the Bulldogs, leading Georgia to several clutch victories and even leading them in rushing touchdowns as a quarterback for the first time in over 80 years.
In the Kirby Smart era, there have been four players who finished in the top ten in Heisman voting. So far, every year coach Smart has had a Heisman top 10 finalist, Georgia has gone on to play for a National Championship.
Kirby Smart makes Natty every year he has a Heisman-Caliber Player
The four players in the Kirby Smart era that have been in the top 10 in Heisman voting are Roquan Smith in 2017, Jordan Davis in 2021, Stetson Bennett in 2022, and now Stockton in 2025.
In 2017, Georgia went on a phenomenal championship run. The Bulldogs won the SEC Championship and Rose Bowl that season but eventually fell just short against Alabama in the National Championship. Roquan Smith played a major part in Georgia's success that season, winning the Butkus Award and was a First-Team All-American.
Next up was Jordan Davis in 2021. Davis was the centerpiece of one of the best defenses in college football history. Davis, with his massive 6'6", 330-pound frame, won the Outland Trophy and the Chuck Bednarik Award and was also a First-Team All-American. Georgia won their first National Championship under Smart in 2021, avenging their previous loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship game.
In 2022, Stetson Bennett was the focal point for Georgia. Already leading Georgia to a National Championship in 2021, Bennett made sure the Bulldogs would go back-to-back in a 65-7 route of TCU. That season, Bennett placed fourth in the Heisman voting and was the first Georgia player since Garrison Hearst in 1992 to finish in the top four.
2025 is yet to be determined for Stockton and the Bulldogs, but history is on Georgia's side. Smart has made it to the National Championship game each season he has had someone finish in the top 10 in the Heisman voting, and this team has proven, along with Stockton, that they have the potential to repeat history and bring another trophy home to Athens.