Kirby Smart gives blunt assessment of Georgia’s QB battle

This isn’t the first time University of Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has had to replace a starting quarterback, but it may be the first time he isn’t working with a clear-cut frontrunner.

While Brock Vandagriff, Carson Beck and Gunner Stockton battle to replace national championship-winning QB Stetson Bennett, Smart admitted after UGA’s first spring scrimmage that no one has exactly separated from the pack.

“I can think of really good things each one did, and I can think of really poor things each one did,” he said. “So, it’s not like one guy’s sticking out. We got three pretty good quarterbacks and they’ve grown, each one of them, and they’re all three different on their own ways. It’s still a tough evaluation.”

Beck, a redshirt sophomore and former four-star recruit, and Vandagriff, a redshirt freshman and former five-star recruit, have taken the lion’s share of the starter’s reps. They’re the two most experienced QBs on Georgia’s roster, and Smart appears to be comfortable — for now, at least — with either one running the offense.

Beck appeared in seven games last season, completing 26 of 35 passes for 310 yards. He has 58 career pass attempts in two seasons. Conversely, Vandagriff has appeared in five games and attempted just three passes.

“Carson has really good command of the offense, he understands it inside and out, he communicates it, he gets things correct,” Smart said. “He had a couple poor decisions and choices today, but he also made some plays, he made some really good throws. He’s got a really good presence in the pocket to move around.