Kirby Smart names Carson Beck Georgia starting quarterback
Kirby Smart has chosen his quarterback as Georgia looks for a three-peat, and it’s Carson Beck. Smart confirmed the news on Saturday.
“Carson Beck is going to be our starting quarterback,” Smart said. “He’s done the best job. We communicated that early in the week to the other quarterbacks.”
After all the speculation, Smart went with who he believes will best lead the Bulldogs into a new era. With Stetson Bennett on to the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams, expectations remain sky-high, as many believe Georgia should still be the favorite to win the national title yet again.
While the play on the field will be what keeps Georgia ahead of the rest of the pack, the Bulldogs starting quarterback will also need to be the leader of the team, and Smart admitted he was confident in all of his quarterback’s styles earlier this offseason.
“Carson is a very even-keeled individual. He’s been that way since we recruited him, all the way back to his eleventh-grade year,” explained the Georgia leader. “He’s not a highs and lows, he’s not a real emotional guy. He’s not a real fiery guy. He’s very laid back. He understands his job. He’s very intelligent, but he’s — you know, every leader has their own way. He certainly commands the room. I think the players around him understand how bright he is. They trust him. And Carson’s had a lot of reps, a lot of work, they just haven’t all been game reps. So he’s had a huge mass of reps, against a good defense. A really good defense, in ours. But his leadership method’s kind of still being developed.
“No different than Gunner [Stockton] and Brock [Vandagriff] . Each one have different ways about them, and that’s true with the guy that just left too (Stetson Bennett).”
If a three-peat is on the horizon, it’ll be the quarterback play that’s the difference for Georgia. Kirby Smart has tabbed his starter, and now the real fun starts in Athens.
More on Carson Beck, Georgia Bulldogs
Continuing, On3’s National College Football Columnist Jesse Simonton made his prediction on the battle earlier this summer, believing Georgia’s to be “one of the easier battles to predict” among the rest of the college football world.
“This is one of the easier battles to predict because A) There’s been buzz about Beck’s potential for months B) Kirby Smart was fairly transparent at SEC Media Days that Beck is the clubhouse leader entering fall camp,” wrote Simonton, predicting Beck to be named the Georgia starting quarterback. “The junior served as Stetson Bennett’s backup last season (74.3% completion, 4-0 touchdown: interceptions, 8.9 yards per attempt) and showed significant improvement in the spring.
“Vandagriff will play a lot this fall, but unless there’s an injury in camp, this is Beck’s job.”
Additionally, On3’s JD PicKell is a big time believer in the freshly-minted Georgia starting quarterback, as he explained earlier this summer that the Beck is his dark horse for the Heisman Trophy.
“Based on what the award is given for? Carson Beck meets that criteria. One of the best players on what will be, going into the year, one of the best teams,” PicKell said. “Georgia is going to have a chance to win a lot of games. The schedule isn’t exactly a gauntlet. Through no fault of Georgia’s own, they don’t have a super tough schedule. They’re gonna be in that conversation for a College Football Playoff berth. And have a chance to be in the SEC title game. All of the winning side of things for the Heisman Trophy shapes up just fine for Carson Beck.”
“You look around him? (He has) a lot of weapons, a lot of people for Carson Beck to get the football to,” PicKell said. “What does that mean? He has a chance to put up some really good numbers as Georgia wins a lot of games.”