Adam Greene
UGA Sports Communications

On Saturday, the Georgia Bulldogs have a chance to vanquish what’s long been a thorn in their side: the Alabama Crimson Tide. Making a record-tying fifth straight SEC Championship Game appearance, the Bulldogs head back to Atlanta ranked as the No. 3 team in the country.

Earlier this season, the ninth-ranked Crimson Tide ended Georgia’s six-year-long home undefeated streak when they beat the Bulldogs 24–21 on Dooley Field. Currently standing as the Dawgs’ only loss this season, the chance to avenge that result on one of college football’s brightest stages is one every player on the team is excited about.

For Georgia and every other football program at all levels of the sport, so much of a team’s success hinges on the quarterback position. Earlier this season, Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart said, “They’re going to be the face of your organization, so you want to go after the right kind of person. They’re probably the sole person that makes the most decisions outside of the offense coordinator and defense coordinator during a game. You want to get the right guy from mental makeup.” 

They’ve found the right one in Tiger, Ga., native Gunner Stockton, who has thrown for 2,535 yards, completing 70.2% of his passes, with 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions. He’s also rushed for 403 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns. The redshirt junior has his squad in prime position to make a deep playoff run in his first season as the starter.

“I’ve grown my confidence as the season’s gone on … at the start of the season I didn’t have that many banked reps,” Stockton said. Playing “on the road at Tennessee, Auburn, those environments have boosted my confidence. Being able to play week in and week out with my teammates, they give me that confidence that I need.”

Stockton has consistently put his team in good positions to win and has had some memorably clutch moments this year; his performances against Tennessee and Ole Miss come to mind. “He has brought toughness, he has brought wisdom, he has brought consistency,” Smart said. Now, each of them knows the challenge in front of them.

“Everybody knows the history of Georgia-Alabama,” he said. Stockton grew up as a Bulldogs fan, so the opportunity to win an SEC championship against Alabama is one he’s prepared to take head-on. “Getting to play a team for a second time, one of the biggest parts is you get to watch the film from the game before. You can learn some things from the previous game.”

Driving around campus in his grandfather’s 1984 Ford F-150, Stockton is as old school as they come. When he’s not playing football, he’s likely back home tending to his herd of cows. He attended Rabun County High School and was named Georgia’s 2021 Gatorade Player of the Year. For Stockton, football was everything.

His drive and determination to win are clear by the way he plays, practices, and carries himself. Stockton has received praise from all of his teammates for being the “same guy” day in and day out.

“He’s physical, he’s super smart, and he can read the defense, even when they try to disguise it,” linebacker Chris Cole said of Stockton last week. “He’s super good at reading the defense.”

While Stockton may come off cool, calm, and collected, don’t mistake his competitive spirit. “As a competitor, I can’t stand to lose,” he said. “[Finishing] the regular season 11–1 set us up for a chance to play in the SEC championship. Just a chance to play in an unreal game.”

Despite how well Stockton has played, the Georgia coaching staff doesn’t seem surprised by the first-year starter. “He’s had to make [decisions.] You get more comfortable doing things the more you’ve done it,” Smart said. “He’s done a great job in terms of making the right decision with two, three options, and that puts you at an advantage. It also puts stress on that position, and they’ve got to be able to handle it and make good decisions.” He also commended Stockton for keeping them out of bad situations, too.

With the reps he’s taken this year, the team believes in Stockton and where they can go with him at the helm. As a third-string or backup, Stockton explained, you can still lead, but once you’re in the starting spot, it’s taken to another level.

“Now as the starter, [it’s] a different mindset of leading the team, but it’s an opportunity, and I’m blessed to be in this situation. Glad I get to go do that with my teammates,” he said. Beloved by both coaches and teammates, he has his team ready to do battle with the Crimson Tide once again, eyeing a different result this time around.

No matter the outcome of the SEC Championship game, Georgia finds itself squarely inside the College Football Playoff bracket as the No. 3 team in the latest rankings, but Stockton’s focus is clear before Saturday: “We’re getting to play in the SEC championship, a game that is an awesome venue. We’re excited for the opportunity.”