How Carson Beck's First Start Compares To Georgia Greats

Was Beck's first career start too different from that of other great quarterbacks in Georgia football history?

Georgia handed the keys of its offense to quarterback Carson Beck on Saturday in a 48-7 win over UT-Martin.

The junior from Tampa had a slow start, completing seven of his first 11 passes for a mere 59 yards. However, he quickly overcame those struggles, started pushing the ball downfield, and led Georgia's offense to points on four of his last five drives behind center. Beck finished the night 21-of-31 with 294 yards and two total touchdowns (one rushing, one passing). 

Beck's hot-and-cold first start brought out a bevy of naysayers, especially with talented backups Brock Vandagriff and Gunner Stockton ready to pounce on the starting job at a moment's notice.

Are those critiques justified? (Kirby Smart likely doesn't think so) Answers may lay in the past, with Beck's predecessors in Athens and how they performed in their first starts. Particularly with quarterbacks who either played for head coach Kirby Smart, or Georgia's returning offensive coordinator Mike Bobo.

Stetson Bennett III - 2020

17/28 - 240 yards - 1 touchdown

Beck's immediate predecessor Stetson Bennett had one of the most outstanding first starts in Georgia football history, leading the Bulldogs to a 27-6 win over bitter rival Auburn. Bennett led Georgia's offense to four scoring drives in the first half to take a 24-0 lead into the break, but they slowed down significantly in the second half by only scoring three points.

Yet, this isn't quite a fair comparison. First, Bennett played against Auburn, so the playbook was wide open. Beck's first start came against an FCS opponent, Georgia is still hiding parts of its playbook. 

Second, "The Mailman" already had starting experience, having been the leading quarterback at Jones College in 2018. JUCO is a far cry from FBS, but Bennett already knew what it was like for a team to put their complete faith in him.

Third, Bennett's first start came a week after he came off the bench to lead Georgia in a comeback, blowout win at Arkansas. Those first-game jitters were already out the window.

Jake Fromm - 2017

16/29 - 141 yards - 1 touchdown - 1 interception

The first and last point holds true for Jake Fromm. The 2011 Little League World Series champ relieved an injured Jacob Eason in Georgia's 2017 season opener against Appalachian State. His first start came a week later at no. 24 Notre Dame, in Georgia's first-ever trip to South Bend.

Fromm played well, and completed most of his passes including a highlight-reel touchdown pass to Terry Godwin in the second quarter. However, he also threw an interception near midfield before halftime. Still, the moment wasn't too big for Fromm as the Dawgs won 17-16.

Aaron Murray - 2010

17/26 - 160 yards - 3 passing touchdowns - 1 interception - 1 rushing touchdowns

Beck's first start was more akin to Aaron Murray's. His fellow Floridian debuted against Louisiana-Lafayette with somewhat pedestrian stats aside from four total touchdowns.

Like Beck, Murray also played without the prior year's leading receiver A.J. Green, who was serving the first of a four-week suspension. The similarities don't end there as Georgia's final offensive touchdown came from a backup quarterback (Hutson Mason), while the final touchdown of the game was a pick-six.

Aside from scoring half as many touchdowns, Beck was more efficient than Murray. He completed a higher percentage of his passes (67.7% vs. 65.3%), for more yards per attempt (9.48 yards vs. 6.15 yards).

Matthew Stafford - 2006

10/17 - 107 yards - 0 touchdowns

Matthew Stafford is one of the most talented quarterbacks to ever come through Athens, but it's easy to forget how raw that talent was in 2006. Georgia started the year with redshirt senior Joe Tereshinski III at quarterback because head coach Mark Richt though he was better prepared.

However, Tereshinski suffered an injury midway through Georgia's week two game against South Carolina. Stafford had a rough night, throwing three interceptions in relief duty. Fortunately, the defense played outstanding, forcing three turnovers and scoring a safety. Georgia did more than survive despite Stafford's errors, winning 18-0.

A week later Stafford made his first start against Alabama-Birmingham. The freshman from Texas kept the ball out of the Blazers' hands, but he didn't do anything spectacular on offense either. Georgia won 34-0 as the defense pitched eight-straight shutout quarters.

The season didn't get much better for Stafford in the following weeks. He was benched the following week against Colorado, and had to watch as Joe Cox led the Bulldogs to a 14-13 comeback win. Cox earned the start at Ole Miss, though Stafford took back over midway through the game. Tereshinski returned for Georgia's week six game against Tennessee, but another injury a week later against Vanderbilt handed the reigns over to Stafford for good.

Other Georgia News:

• WATCH: Kirby Smart Previews Week 2, Talks Carson Beck's Performance
• Kirby Smart Updates Injury Report Heading Into Week 2
• LSU Finds Out it Isn't the "Two-Time National Champion Georgia Bulldogs" in Loss to FSU

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