What is Georgia football going to do with all of these quarterbacks?

Georgia football is loaded at quarterback with four potential starters on the roster, and two more possibly on the way in the next two recruiting classes.

When the 2019 season ended, the future at quarterback looked bleak for Georgia football. Three-year starter Jake Fromm was on the way to the NFL, and in his place would be either redshirt freshman D'Wan Mathis or true freshman Carson Beck.

With a roster loaded at every position besides quarterback, 2020 is not the season to hit the reset button. So instead, head coach Kirby Smart signed graduate transfer Jamie Newman in January and sophomore transfer JT Daniels in May.

And with an eye kept towards the future, Georgia gained the commitment of Prince Avenue star Brock Vandagriff in January. MJ Morris has been made a clear priority for the 2022 class and recently, 2022 Rabun County prospect Gunner Stockton narrowed down his recruitment to just Georgia and South Carolina.

By the fall of 2022, Georgia could have five quarterbacks on the roster with high ceilings. What are the Bulldogs supposed to do with all of these quarterbacks? Surely some will transfer if they don't win the starting job.

Georgia's history with quarterback depth

The Mark Richt era of Georgia football was known for producing great college quarterbacks. David Greene, DJ Shockley, Matthew Stafford, and Aaron Murray are some of the best passers in school history. But it was occasional deficiencies at the position which defined Richt's time in Athens and ultimately played a part in his firing in 2015.

Georgia wasn't always loaded at quarterback under Richt, and when a great passer left school, Georgia didn't always have someone who could fill the void properly. 

After the Greene-Shockley years were over, Georgia turned to Joe Tereshinksi III in 2006. The third-generation Bulldog put up decent numbers before injuries derailed his season, leaving the ill-prepared Stafford and Joe Cox to take over. The two struggled in their time in the spotlight, leading to four losses in the middle of the season which had the defending SEC Champions barely above bowl eligibility.

Just three years later, Stafford had become enough a star to leave school early. But Georgia failed to sign a quarterback with starting potential during Stafford's run. This left Cox to compete with 2009 signees Murray and Zach Mettenbeger.

Richt chose Cox and redshirted the two freshmen. Cox had moments of brilliance, and Georgia's defense that year was likely a bigger problem, but Cox didn't do himself any favors by throwing 15 interceptions. Georgia finished the year (8-5) and unranked.

Hutson Mason did a well enough job replacing Murray in 2014. But his successor was an even bigger drop-off from the 13,000-yard passer; Greyson Lambert. The Virginia transfer wasn't a turnover machine, but he wasn't productive either, throwing just 12 touchdowns and not even reaching 2,000 passing yards. 

Lambert couldn't even hold down the position, conceding the field to Brice Ramsey and Faton Bauta at different points of the year. It's a miracle Georgia reached 10 wins that season. With that defense, good receivers,  and the greatest running back duo in school history, the 2015 Bulldogs should have been competing for a national championship.

This is the history Kirby Smart and the coaching staff is hoping to avoid by loading the quarterback room to such a degree. Some passers will undoubtedly transfer out of the program, but that's a risk the team is willing to take to ensure the future is never in doubt.

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