Should Georgia Fans Be Concerned About Gunner Stockton Two Weeks In?

Should Georgia fans be concerned about quarterback Gunner Stockton two weeks into the season?

The Georgia Bulldogs picked up their second win on the season this past weekend against Austin Peay by a final score of 28-6. It was a game of establishing the run and hard-nosed defense for Georgia, but now they walk into week three with a matchup against Tennessee on the road looming.

Stockton completed his third career start on Saturday. He finished the day with 227 yards, a 76 completion percentage and no touchdowns. It was a lot of taking what the defense was giving him and making the simple play on Saturday from Stockton, while also leaving some yards on the field. So should Georgia fans be concerned about Stockton up to this point?

For starters, it's likely too early to make any judgments on Stockton. To reiterate, it was just the third start of his career. Are there things for him to work on? Absolutely. There are times when he could be more aggressive from within the pocket and show some more confidence. Head coach Kirby Smart said after the Austin Peay game that Stockton shows that confidence in practice; it's just a matter of getting him to do it in the game.

With Georgia going on the road this weekend against a Tennessee team that has shown offensive firepower, the Bulldogs likely won't be able to play offense the way that they have in the first two games. Stockton will need to showcase some more confidence this weekend if Georgia wants to walk out of Neyland Stadium with a win.

Something Georgia fans might recall is that during the 2023 season, when Carson Beck was making his first few starts, it was a similar talking point. Beck was taking the nice, easy throws against opponents like Ball State and UT Martin, but seemed hesitant to make the throws downfield. It wasn't until a road game against Auburn that he started to really push the ball and make some tight-window throws.

The good news for Georgia fans? Stockton has already shown he can and will make big throws when he needs to against big-time opponents. He did it in the second half against Texas and he did it against Notre Dame in the playoffs. Stockton had the second-most passing yards against Notre Dame's defense last season in his first ever start.

It's not fair to expect Stockton to be a polished product after just three starts in his career. It is fair to ask him to do a bit more than what he has shown two games in. The bottom line is this weekend will be a great test to see what Georgia has at quarterback, but with the way Georgia has ran the ball and played defense up to this point, the Bulldogs likely may not have to ask a lot out of Stockton this season.