“He did not feel an announcement was necessary… He could have earned two to three times more by entering the portal, but Gunner bleeds red and black.” That’s how Gunner Stockton’s rep, Faryn Healy, confirmed the Georgia QB has signed on to stay through 2026. While other QBs test the market, Stockton chose to stick around, and now a former UGA QB offered his take on what that commitment reveals about Stockton and Georgia’s culture.

“This is the real deal… this is authentic. This is just Gunnar Stockton in a nutshell.” Jake Fromm said in the February 11 episode of DawgNation. “He loves Georgia. Wants to stay at Georgia… he’s not just talking the talk, he’s walking the walk, too, taking less,” Fromm said, noting that Stockton “could go places and probably make probably double what he is making at UG.”

While there are no exact official figures, On3 predicts Stockton’s NIL at $1.5 million. And yet, he waited until the transfer portal window closed before signing his new deal so that Georgia could allocate resources elsewhere.

“The rest of the guys in the locker room… they see that and they respect it,” Fromm added. “They may not quite understand it, but man, they respect it. They like it. And they want to play for a guy that is bought in.”

Stockton came to Athens as part of the 2022 class and patiently sat behind Carson Beck, throwing just 19 passes in 2023 and 64 in 2024. He never ever tried hitting the portal even as other QBs did. When Stockton finally took the reins in 2025, he proved to be a capable starter, putting up 2,894 passing yards and 24 touchdowns. His dual-threat ability was evident, as his 10 rushing scores tied him for the lead among SEC quarterbacks.

In clutch moments, Stockton was at his sharpest, completing 83.6% of his fourth-quarter passes with seven touchdowns and no interceptions. “You just can’t fake it,” Fromm said. “You’re around these guys so much… you just can’t fake it.” The production along with the SEC Championship run and a CFP appearance.

But Fromm believes Stockton’s impact goes way beyond scores. “He plays reckless, but reckless in a good way… he’s really throwing his body out there… doing anything he can to win football games,” he said. “When you make plays on Saturday and you get the defense fired up, you get the special teams unit fired up, that’s when you know that you have a guy.”

Dawg fans have seen the Heisman buzz leading up to 2026 and moments in big games when Stockton tucks the ball early on third-and-long rather than allowing deeper routes to develop. However, after playoff losses to Notre Dame and Ole Miss in the last two seasons, it’s clear Georgia has work to do to reclaim its spot among the nation’s elite.

Inside the locker room, there are no doubts. “You get the defense fired up… that’s when you know that you have a guy,” Fromm said.

The hidden flaw

If you look back at how last year began, it still seems a bit unreal to see Gunner Stockton entering 2026 with his name mentioned in Heisman conversations. He was Carson Beck’s replacement twelve months ago, and now he is the face of Georgia’s offense, a Manning Award finalist who led the team on an SEC championship run. Rival SEC coaches have already circled the areas they think they can poke at. Rusty Mansell said exactly what defensive coordinators quietly admit.

“Tennessee played him man-to-man, and he shredded them,” Mansell said. “If you give him one-on-one, Gunner’s got a good enough ball.” When defenses line up in man coverage, Stockton looks confident and willing to rip it. But once teams started dropping into zone, that’s when it slowed down.

“The next progression… was playing zone. They were dropping back, making you dink and dump, making you make the reads and get down the field,” he said. “We wanted to see Gunner had to beat us in the passing game… down the field, progressions, he had to beat us.”

Early in 2025, those zone looks started to bother him, with his first four interceptions coming against defenses sitting back and baiting him.  Instead of ripping it downfield, he’d drift underneath, hit the tight end, take the checkdown, and live for the next play. It was just that half-second of doubt, but well, that’s all it takes.”

And that really shows up in numbers. Last season, Stockton only completed 36% of his deep balls. When compared to quarterbacks who pushed the ball and stretched defenses vertically, he averaged 7.5 yards per attempt.

And to push Georgia all the way up, he’s going to have to hang in there when things get really uncomfortable. So when defenses dare him to throw it deep, will he stay patient?