What is to say he cannot do it again? Through the first five games of the season, Georgia's most impressive win was on the road at the Tennessee Volunteers in overtime way back in Week 3. This was Gunner Stockton's first true road start and his first SEC game. It was not easy for Georgia, but the Dawgs came out on top because of his great heroics late when it mattered. Next up is Auburn!
Georgia has played two more conference games since stunning the Volunteers in Knoxville. They lost a heartbreaker at home to perpetual nemesis Alabama by three points, before redeeming themselves the following week vs. Kentucky at home. Stockton has gotten better with each start, so we can only hope the lessons he learned since the Tennessee game will help him win one on the road at Auburn.
This game feels somewhat similar. Georgia is the slight favorite, but everybody and their brother is picking the home team to upset then, or in Auburn's case, to put a really good scare into the Dawgs. The most important part in this is Stockton could begin to develop a reputation as a road warrior. Although Georgia's toughest games on the season are all at home, winning on the road is never easy.
This could come in handy when Georgia has to play in some challenging spots if it makes the playoff.
Gunner Stockton needs to gain even more confidence playing on the road
Look. Auburn is a bitter rival, but this is a beatable team. The Tigers have struggled vs. Power Four teams at home in recent years. This is not the same program that achieve relative glory under Gus Malzahn's watch. Hugh Freeze is quite desperate, as he may not be able to afford a third-straight conference loss midway through his third season at the helm. Stockton needs to send him packing.
So what did Stockton do to help Georgia beat Tennessee? He converted some key passes in clutch situations. He let the game come to him, rather than force things like his counterpart Joey Aguilar did. Perhaps most importantly, he did a great job of distributing the football around the gridiron. He found nine different targets on the day, while he was only able to find five different receivers vs. Alabama.
Ultimately, Georgia needs to make sure Stockton has time to throw. Conversely, the pass rush finally needs to show up and wreak havoc on the sack of potatoes that is Jackson Arnold. Truth be told, Georgia should win this game because it has better players. Depth should prevail, but playing a clean game with few mental mistakes should propel Georgia in the end. Stockton needs to lead the charge.
For now, Georgia fans can feel comfortable about Stockton, as they saw him do this vs. Tennessee.