Beck on target as Bulldogs wrap up
ATHENS, Ga. — Carson Beck closed spring practices as the leader, but not yet the winner, of Georgia’s quarterback competition.
Beck is at the front of the line to replace Stetson Bennett IV, who led the Bulldogs to the program’s first back-toback national championships, capping his career as the MVP of Georgia’s 65-7 win against TCU in the College Football Playoff final this past January. Beck opened Saturday’s G-Day spring game at Sanford Stadium with the first-team offense.
“I’d say I’m content with the way I attacked and performed through the spring and approached the competition side of it,” Beck said.
Brock Vandagriff also had snaps with the No. 1 offense in the intrasquad scrimmage and throughout the spring. Gunner Stockton is the third contender.
Coach Kirby Smart said he’d have to review video from G-Day before evaluating the performances. Smart said Beck, a junior, earned the first opportunity with the starters on Saturday because “he’s had the most practice reps.”
Beck was Bennett’s backup the past two seasons. He showed good accuracy by completing 15 of 22 passes for 231 yards and one touchdown in the scrimmage. Vandagriff passed for two touchdowns and had a 23-yard run.
“I think I put together a pretty good spring,” Vandagriff said. “… It’s a good, healthy competition between us two. You want to see the other guy do well.”
Beck acknowledged it hasn’t been easy to spend most of his time on the sideline the past three years, including a redshirt season, waiting for this opportunity. Georgia’s runaway wins during its undefeated 2022 season provided opportunities for the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Beck to play behind Bennett in seven games and complete 26 of 35 passes for 310 yards and four touchdowns.
“Obviously it’s really difficult, and I think it’s difficult for anybody when you come out of high school,” Beck said last week. “Really everybody who has come here has had to sit. We’re all four-star and five-star guys here, and we’ve had a ton of them, but there have been a lot of guys who have had to sit, and I’m sure every one of them would agree with me that it’s very difficult.”
Vandagriff (6-3, 205) was a
hometown recruit from Prince Avenue Christian School in Athens. He said he considers himself to be a traditional dropback passer, even though he was rated among the top dualthreat quarterbacks in his high school class.
Bennett recently showed off his arm strength by firing a fastball when he threw out a ceremonial first pitch at the Atlanta Braves’ home opener. He was a former walk-on at Georgia who made his way to a starting job in a winding way, transferring to a junior college for a season before returning to play on Georgia’s scout team and finally capitalizing on his chance.
Bennett again hopes to surprise experts who project he will be a late-round pick in the NFL draft, which is April 27-29 in Kansas City, Missouri. Bennett and other 2022 seniors posed with their national championship rings on the field at Saturday’s scrimmage.
Georgia’s changes on offense this spring have included what Smart described as “an easy transition” to Mike Bobo as offensive coordinator after Todd Monken was hired for the same position with the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. Bobo, a former Bulldogs quarterback and teammate of Smart’s, was an offensive analyst for Georgia last season. This is his second stint as offensive coordinator at his alma mater.
Georgia took a deliberate delay of game penalty before the first play to honor offensive lineman Devin Willock and recruiting staff member Chandler LeCroy, who were killed in a car wreck on Jan. 15, hours after a parade and national championship celebration at Sanford.
In addition to giving fans a glimpse at new players and those stepping into bigger roles, Georgia unveiled its new mascot in its long line of white English bulldogs. Que, who was Uga X, is retiring with a 91-18 record, making him the alltime wins leader among Ugas. Boom, who is 10 months old, was introduced as Uga XI in a ceremonial passing of the collar ceremony.
Not all the Georgia news Saturday came from G-Day. Defensive lineman Bear Alexander, a sophomore, entered the NCAA transfer portal as a 15-day spring window opened for players who hope to be on the move. He had two tackles for losses and a sack in the national championship win over TCU.
“That’s the way of the world,” Smart said of players who are “looking for greener pastures. … More power to them.”