Despite a rich history of sending players to the National Football League who go on to successful careers, Georgia has a dismal record when it comes to quarterbacks at the next level.
Of course, you can point to Matthew Stafford, owner of a recent Super Bowl ring, who has thrown over 370 touchdowns and for nearly 60,000 in passing yardage. He's the automatic answer to "Who is the best UGA quarterback in the NFL?"
But then you'll be stuck to pick the next one. And you can't go by what they did in college, no matter how celebrated and revered they were. Did they make it in the NFL? Were they able to raise their game to the highest standard and enjoy a successful playing career as a pro?
The unfortunate answer is "not really."
Of the eight high-profile Georgia quarterbacks in the last 30 years, Quincy Carter is the likely best next choice. Drafted in the second round (2001), he played four seasons, threw for 32 touchdowns, and had a winning record as a starter (18-16). Unfortunately some off the field issues sidelined his career quickly.
Success at Georgia isn't translating to success as a pro in the NFL
Here's a quick run down of Georgia quarterbacks who are household names in Athens and Bulldogs fans' homes everywhere, but who floundered in the NFL.
- DJ Shockley - drafted in the 7th round (2006), never started a game in four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons.
- David Greene - drafted in the 3rd round (2005), but never played a regular season game in four seasons with four different teams.
- Eric Zeier - drafted in the 3rd round (1995), started 12 of 28 games with three different teams over six seasons.
- Aaron Murray - drafted in the fourth round (2014), but had no starts while in reserve for three different teams.
- Jake Fromm - drafted in the fifth round (2020), and had 11 starts, but mainly was a practice squad player with four different teams.
- Stetson Bennet IV - drafted in the fourth round (2023), he is a reserve player with the LA Rams.
When will the next Georgia quarterback break through in the NFL and be successful? Will we need to wait until Gunner Stockton gets drafted to find out? At this point he is looking like UGA's next best chance even though he only has one career start to his name.