Gunner Stockton headlines Georgia's SEC Media Day Attendees

NCAA Football: Sugar Bowl-Notre Dame at Georgia — Jan 2, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Gunner Stockton (14) drops back to pass against against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

When all of the Southeastern Conference descends upon Atlanta, Georgia, on Monday for the start of SEC Media Day, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart will be flanked by Gunner Stockton, Daylen Everette, and CJ Allen on Tuesday.

It will be an upperclassmen trio, with Stockton and Everette both being seniors, while Allen is a junior. However, beyond that, the announcement of Stockton being picked to attend Media Day seems to be another hint that the Tiger, Ga., native is the starting quarterback for the Bulldogs.

After he took over for the then-injured Carson Beck at halftime of the SEC Championship and proceeded to lead Georgia to a come-from-behind win over Texas before making his first career start in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal versus Notre Dame, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Stockton is being positioned as the starter.

Spring practice continued that trend of Stockton looking to be the starter in all but name only. In the annual G-Day game, it was Stockton who played all but one drive with the Red team (first-team offense).

It remains to be seen if an official announcement from Smart will be made about the quarterback situation. Nevertheless though, the optics point to the “competition” being one where Stockton holds a clear lead over the redshirt freshman, Ryan Puglisi.

Stockton will be one of 11 starting quarterbacks to attend the festivities in Atlanta this year. The others include: Taylen Green (Arkansas), Jackson Arnold (Auburn), DJ Lagway (Florida), Garrett Nussmeier (LSU), Austin Simmons (Ole Miss), Blake Shapen (Mississippi State), John Mateer (Oklahoma), LaNorris Sellers (South Carolina), Arch Manning (Texas), and Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt).

Simmons, Manning, and Lagway will join Stockton as the first full-year starters in the SEC.

Elsewhere, Georgia fans will see a familiar face in Atlanta. Attending the festivities with Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman will be former four-star linebacker Xavian Sorey Jr.

He is entering his senior season, and just his second with the Razorbacks after transferring to Arkansas following three years in Athens. Starting in all 13 games last season, Sorey led the Razorbacks in tackles with 99, 9.5 for a loss, two sacks, an interception, a pass breakup, and three quarterback hurries.

Media day coverage will kick off Monday, July 14th, and run through Thursday, July 17th.