In CFP Quarterfinal, Gunner Stockton Fills Role As Prototypical Georgia QB

The former backup takes the reins against Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl with few snaps under his belt, but a storied history full of Bulldogs ties.

Stockton (14) will get his first start against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal. / Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If you were to build the ideal Georgia Bulldogs quarterback in a lab or in the latest edition of the NCAA Football video game, you would not have to go back far in program history to find some prototypical examples to use as the underlying blueprint.

Matthew Stafford might be the most talented signal-caller to toss the ball between the hedges, with a rocket of a right arm that allowed him to become the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick and have a potential gold jacket career in the NFL. David Greene was meticulous in taking care of the football and was at one point the winningest quarterback in Division I history. 

D.J. Shockley underscored the ability to play as a dual-threat under center, while the prolific Aaron Murray rewrote most of the SEC record book during his time in Athens, Ga. Stetson Bennett’s clutch nature allowed him to go from little-known walk-on to leading the Bulldogs to back-to-back national championships.  

When it comes to backstory for such a hypothetical quarterback though, it might be hard to go with anyone other than new Georgia starter Gunner Stockton as the starting point. 

He hails from the far northeast part of the state in the die-hard red-and-black territory of Rabun County and calls tiny—population just over 500—Tiger, Ga., home. The grandfather he was named after took him to games at Sanford Stadium when he was younger, encouraging his fandom in all things UGA as well as gifting him the vintage 1984 pickup he drives around campus at the moment. 

In his prep days, Stockton set state records for career passing touchdowns, yards and rushing touchdowns and was the Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior. He was even more highly touted as a recruit than his predecessor Carson Beck was coming into the program and the 14 cows—yes, cows—he has owned since his sophomore year in high school have only added another layer to the budding legend off the bench.

Soft spoken and shy in nature, Stockton is now no longer just a good story to recount or a fun topic of debate on message boards by a Georgia fan base constantly looking ahead at the next wave of talent. As he prepares to make his first start at the program he grew up rooting for, in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the redshirt sophomore is now the man of the moment and sounding more than ready to meet it for a second-seeded team that continues to maintain championship-level aspirations.

“It’s a dream come true,” Stockton said. “It’s a special opportunity. I’m enjoying it. It’s pretty awesome.”

Stockton isn’t losing sleep over the pressure that comes with being announced as a starter for the first time on such a grand stage and noted he is anxious for Wednesday night’s prime-time clash of CFP favorites to get underway. 

That’s a welcome attitude in such a big spot for the still unknown quantity with just 51 career pass attempts. He has been thrust into the spotlight after stepping in for the injured Beck at halftime of the SEC championship game against the Texas Longhorns. Despite the limited sample size of live action, though, the Bulldogs remain incredibly confident in what they have under center moving forward.

Stockton throws a pass during the second half against Tennessee Tech in September. / Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK

“I think the No. 1 thing a quarterback has to have is decision-making skill. No. 1, and [Stockton] makes really good decisions. No. 2 thing for a quarterback is accuracy. Not necessarily arm talent, but accuracy. He has accuracy,” coach Kirby Smart said. “Athletic ability and talent probably takes over third. He has those traits. All the intangibles in terms of toughness, character, embody what he was raised on.

“All the players play harder for him. Do you make the players around you better is what you look for in a quarterback. I think he raises the skill level of everybody around him because of who he is.”

One saw that in the comeback against Texas, with Stockton leading a touchdown drive on his first series and his mobility adding another dimension to the offense that simply wasn’t there when Beck was taking snaps. He completed 12-of-16 passes for 71 yards and proved to be incredibly elusive in the face of constant pressure from one of the best front sevens in the country.

It was a giant spark the team needed to win the conference and get into the playoff and was hardly a surprise to those who had seen Stockton do everything asked of him, and sometimes more.

“He prepares as well as anybody I’ve ever had,” says offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, who initially recruited the quarterback to the South Carolina Gamecocks when he was an assistant there. “Usually guys that are really good at what they do and they’re successful, they do put pressure on themselves and they seek out that pressure. He’s one of those types of guys that likes that pressure. That’s why they want to come to the University of Georgia and play games like this. He’s said he wanted an opportunity like this, and I just want him to go out there and be Gunner Stockton.”

It helps Stockton that his transition from lovable backup to first-time starter is not really a change beyond the extra reps during practice. The jerseys of his opponent may say Notre Dame instead of, say, the Massachusetts Minutemen, but the quarterback has remained as even-keeled as ever, according to teammates. 

He’s still watching film with his offensive line twice a week, pointing out things in the game plan or that he sees the opponent doing. He’s still throwing the ball around with the usual zip. He’s still leaning on his dad, Rob Stockton, a coach and former Georgia Southern Eagles quarterback, for advice when needed.

“He’s been preparing like he was QB1 since I met him. I feel like he’s only going to get better as the season continues,” tailback Trevor Etienne says. “He’s fearless.”

“He’s been locked in since last year,” Oscar Delp, Stockton’s roommate, frequent golf partner and top tight end target, said. “He cares about the team. He watches more film than anyone I know—that’s just what he does.”

The larger question is if Stockton can translate all that into more than just one half of play against a good team and lead Georgia to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, just 71 miles down the road, for the national championship game next month. 

Against Texas at the same venue, he rallied the team from an offensive funk but also threw a late interception that nearly cost it the win. Stockton has completed just two passes beyond 20 yards this season, still hasn’t thrown a touchdown and had his longest scramble for only a nine-yard gain. 

Now he’ll make his first start against one of the saltiest defensive units in the country, ranking third in FBS in points allowed while being the stingiest pass defense for opposing quarterbacks.

If there is any silver lining, Stockton’s lack of game action on film might be much more of a hindrance to his opponent trying to prepare than the other way around.

“It’s kind of like having all the puzzle pieces to do a puzzle, without just one singular puzzle piece,” Irish defensive tackle Howard Cross III says. “We have schemed up everything he’s probably going to do or that he could do. We’re pretty sure he’s this type of quarterback. We know the skill players, we know the line, we know everything else. So at this point it is just to go out and play and figure it out.”

“I don’t see them changing the system at this stage. They’ll gear it toward what he does really well,” Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden said. “I think the way they rallied around him, against Texas, tells you a lot of what you need to know and how they believe in him in the locker room. It wasn’t all perfect, but he’s a competitor and a winner and he’s been that way his entire high school career. So we have to be ready for any and all of it.”

If Stockton needs any last-minute inspiration to rise to the occasion, he can call up one of his grade-school teachers from Tiger, improbably the legendary Scott Woerner who had moved to the quarterback’s hometown a few decades ago. The former Georgia corner had a Hall of Fame career at the school but saved one of his best games for the Sugar Bowl in 1981 against Notre Dame, notching three pass breakups and a pair of interceptions that sealed the program’s first modern-day national title.

Though he will play on the opposite side of the ball from Woerner, Stockton will have to hope that level of play on the same big stage is within his reach. 

“Gunner’s quiet, except when he gets on the field,” Georgia offensive lineman Tate Ratledge says. “When he gets on the field, he’s got a little more juice.” 

Against the Irish in a win-or-go-home playoff game, we’ll soon see just how much for a quarterback who has seemed destined for such a moment.