Georgia football quarterback Gunner Stockton is entering his last season as the Bulldogs' starter. Even though he has a full season still in front of him, some fans are wondering who will step up in his place in 2027 when he is gone.
So far in fall camp Ryan Puglisi has emerged as Georgia's clear backup. He was the backup to Stockton last season, and all signs point to that remaining the same at this point in camp.
”While going through drills, Ryan Puglisi was the team’s second quarterback, behind Gunner Stockton,” said Connor Riley via dawgnation.com.
One Georgia insider took it a step further claiming that Puglisi is clearly better than every other backup quarterback option.
”Small sample size, but Ryan Puglisi felt noticeably better than the other backup QBs,” said Hunter DeLuader.
Ryan Puglisi has emerged as Gunner Stockton's successor
The backup quarterback competition got a little interesting throughout the spring, but Puglisi remained on top and that is still the case this fall camp.
Back in the spring each of Georgia's backup QBs shined during the spring game. Stockton and Puglisi did their thing, but Ryan Montgomery, Bryson Beaver and Hezekiah Millender all had their moments as well. In fact, there was an argument to be made that Millender was the most impressive backup of them all.
Puglisi however has been able to hold everyone off up to this point, and that sets him up to be Stockton's successor for Georgia next year. He however will have to continue to earn that role for the next year, but the future at the position is looking extremely bright.
Georgia's bright future at QB could carry them for years to come
Georgia's future at quarterback looks really strong. Not only do they have four players below Stockton right now who have all progressed well this offseason, but they have some elite talent coming in the next few years as well.
Next year four-star Garrett Nussmeier will be the next quarterback to arrive to Georgia. One year later is when things really get interesting though because five-star Jayden Wade, who is the No. 1 quarterback in the country, will descend on Athens.
That is still two years away, so next year Georgia will have to find their next starting quarterback. Puglisi likely will be the leader heading into the offseason, but the three other quarterbacks on the depth chart will be ready to challenge him as they try to take the starting spot from him. Nussmeier might have a tough time winning the starting job next year, but he could be someone to watch the next time the starting job opens.
He will have to battle Wade for that job though. Wade will likely be good enough to play as a true freshman in 2028, but the 2029 season is most likely when he would seriously challenge to be Georgia's full time starter.
A lot has to go right for that to become reality though, and there are plenty of other quarterbacks on Georgia's roster who will be ready to challenge Wade to be UGA's future starter. All of this talent is a good problem to have, but that could leave Smart with some tough decisions to make in the coming years when he's deciding who will lead Georgia's offense.
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