Georgia earned their fifth victory of the season against Vanderbilt on Saturday. The Bulldogs used a dominant second half performance to run away from Vanderbilt 38-14, but it was Gunner Stockton and the offense who stole the show.
Georgia's offense played well all game long, and a big reason for that was the impressive game from Gunner Stockton. He arguably had the best game of his season as he threw for nearly 300 yards to go with three touchdowns and a 78 percent completion percentage.
Kirby Smart was asked about his quarterback after the game, and he used the words tough and smart to describe just how great of a player and leader he is.
"We got one of the toughest quarterbacks in the country. Smartest quarterbacks in the country."
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) October 3, 2026
Kirby Smart gives his QB1, Gunner Stockton, his flowers 💐 pic.twitter.com/QeDnTEUBTS
Gunner Stockton's leadership can carry Georgia the rest of the season
Stockton has never been the most talented quarterback in the country in most people's eyes. Georgia fans are much higher on Stockton's ability than the rest of the country, but even they would admit he didn't have the most talent out of all the quarterbacks in country entering this season.
Stockton however has always been able to make up for that with his intangible qualities. He has always been one of the toughest players in the country, and according to his head coach he is one of the smartest too. When you combine those attributes with even just an average level of talent great things can happen for Georgia.
Stockton however has taken his physical attributes to the next level this season, and that is why he could eventually be recognized as one of the top quarterbacks in the conference and country by the end of this season.
Gunner Stockton's arm is what makes him one of he best QBs in the SEC
Similar to Stockton's intangible attributes, he also has always been an above average runner. The one thing however that seemed to hold him back last year was his arm.
Stockton had some NFL caliber throws last year, but he wasn't consistent enough. He also struggled with letting plays develop long enough to let his receivers get open down field and instead would tuck the ball and run too fast. That however hasn't been a problem this year.
Through five games this season Stockton has only run the ball 20 times for 122 yards, and through the first five games of the 2025 season he ran the ball 39 times for 194 yards.
If you told Georgia fans Stockton would only have 122 rushing yards through five games they might think he is having a bad season. The exact opposite is true though because he has thrown for two more yards through five games this season compared to last year while not playing all 60 minutes in one game yet.
Stockton's improved arm is the biggest reason why he looks like a better player this year. His patience in the pocket has helped take his game to the next level as well. Combining those improvements with the intangibles Smart mentioned make Stockton one of the best quarterbacks in the country, and now he has a chance to prove himself in front of a national audience at Alabama next week.
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