Paul Finebaum makes it clear he’s not a believer in Georgia’s Gunner Stockton

As Georgia prepares for a new offensive era after the transfer of starting quarterback Carson Beck, college football analyst Paul Finebaum is clearly not a believer in Gunner Stockton.

Stockton replaced Beck in the second half of the SEC Championship Game against Texas, in which he led the Bulldogs to an overtime win. The redshirt sophomore went on to log his first career start in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal against Notre Dame, a 23-10 loss.

With Beck now at Miami, head coach Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs are expected to ride with Stockton this season as a first-year starter. It's a major change within coordinator Mike Bobo's offense after a inconsistent season that included regular season losses to both Alabama and Ole Miss.

Georgia faces the same SEC schedule in 2025, including home matchups against playoff caliber competition like Alabama, Ole Miss and Texas.

Having those games at Sanford Stadium gives a talented UGA roster a chance at getting back to the postseason. However, Stockton is going to be the Bulldogs' "undoing," according to Finebaum.

“Georgia had terrible luck last year,” Finebaum said on ESPN's "First Take." “They had a great team. They start off number one, but they had to play on the road in Alabama, Texas and all this. They lost a couple of those games, two of them, to be exact. This year they have those games at home, so they have a chance. But I don’t think Georgia has a quarterback, which is what is going to be their undoing."

Finebaum wasn't pleased with what he witnessed in Stockton's performances against Texas and especially against Notre Dame.

“Gunner Stockton did not show me anything in the just epic loss and loss of not only the game, but loss of composure and maybe loss of traction," Finebaum said. "So I think Kirby Smart has a lot to answer for when he gets here this week. But, NIL is is the reason just to double up on what everybody else has said, there’s just so much going on you, you can’t hold on to your rosters, so you’re going to lose critical backup people or starters that may be the difference between an undefeated season and losing two or three games.”

Stockton signed with Georgia as a top-10 quarterback in the class of 2022 after setting state records at Rabun County High School in Tiger, Georgia.

In his first meaningful appearance against Texas, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound passer completed 12-of-16 passes for 71 yards while leading a Georgia comeback to beat the Longhorns in overtime, 22-19.

Georgia asked more of Stockton in the playoff matchup against Notre Dame. The offense wasn't lethal by any means, putting up just 10 points, but Stockton showed glimpses of ability with a career-high 234 passing yards, a touchdown and no interceptions.

Growth should be expected for Stockton entering a critical season, as he is coming off an entire spring as the expected starter and has fall camp to develop further. When the bright lights come on, though, only game reps will show if he has what it takes to lead UGA back to the promised land.

That is something that Smart is optimistic on, according to previous comments made by the two-time national champion head coach to Finebaum this summer.

“I’m excited. Gunner got the message. He got the message. You did your job,” Smart told an unconvinced Finebaum. “He’s a tremendous leader, but that’s nothing I didn’t already know. He’s done everything right since he’s been here. … He earns people’s respect by how he works and how he carries himself. He’s got a tremendous amount of confidence in his ability.”

The Bulldogs will open the 2025 season at home against Marshall on Aug. 30 at 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN).