No such luck for Kirby Smart and Georgia in 2025—they’re one of the few top programs losing their starting quarterback. And not to the NFL like the others, but to the Miami Hurricanes, as Carson Beck switched teams. But maybe that’s a blessing in disguise. Beck’s 2024 season was a mixed bag, throwing 12 interceptions and showing signs of inconsistency. But the concern wasn’t just on the field. It now seems clearer that Georgia’s locker room wasn’t fully behind Beck, and Gunner Stockton might be the guy Kirby Smart really needs under center.

Sure, talent matters—but in college football, that’s only part of the equation. The other big one? Locker room reputation. We’ve already seen how Florida’s Billy Napier struggled with Colorado transfer Cormani McClain, whose laid-back attitude clashed with the Gators’ culture. At Georgia, Kirby Smart knows the value of culture firsthand, especially after seeing the impact of someone like Jake Fromm.

Fromm went 35-7 as Georgia’s starter and led them to three straight SEC title games—not just because of his skill, but because of his leadership. Former Georgia QB and current analyst Aaron Murray backed that up when talking to J.D. PicKell last week, giving Beck’s off-field presence a hard look.

“There wasn’t this guy that was a true locker room guy,” Murray said bluntly, describing what he saw as a “disconnect” between Beck and his teammates. He even suggested that then-backup Stockton earned more trust from the players. “Guys kind of rallied around Gunner Stockton. They had a little bit more of belief in him as maybe person, just a human being.” Meanwhile, Beck’s relationship drama and social media antics didn’t help his case. “It’s too much mess. It’s too much for a guy that’s going to be 23, 24 years old. I need you focusing on football,” Murray added. And on the June 6 episode of the Saturday Down South podcast, Murray doubled down—this time not picking on Beck but praising Stockton’s leadership and comparing his locker room presence to none other than Jake Fromm.

During a chat with Connor O’Gara, Murray shared, “Jake Fromm, kind of built like me, 6’1” 6’2”. Not super athletic, average arm strength, but guess what dude worked his bu- – off. And I once again, I’m not saying that he didn’t do any of these things. I’m just saying Jake Fromm did these to the extreme, was an incredible teammate, made guys around him better. Did the right things on and off the field, was the first one in the last one out. Always studying the film.” Now that Beck is gone, Smart must still be looking for someone to have the Fromm touch in him. It turns out that the universe granted his wish. As Murray dropped a bold take, “To me, that’s what Gunner is.”

He continued, “Gunner is that guy who is still talented, very athletic. Obviously, more athletic than Jake Fromm was. Has a good arm, maybe not like first-round caliber arm talent, but still a good arm, but can bring a locker room together.”

Stockton knows he needs to play better for Georgia to win a championship. He feels that leadership and communication with teammates are key, especially to get comfortable with his receivers. His main goal is to build strong connections and learn how each player runs their routes. Besides working on his own skills, Stockton now wants to understand how everyone runs a little differently. Smart saw proof that his players want to help Stockton succeed. When Stockton stepped in for the injured Beck during the Sugar Bowl, teammates like Trevor Etienne, Oscar Delp, and Tate Ratledge openly praised and supported him.

As Murray noted, “I always tell quarterbacks this time that that’s part of your job. You have to be a guy that makes other guys around you play better, that makes other guys around you want to play harder. And it seems like there was a disconnect with Carson a year ago. And it does seem, based on what I saw in the SEC championship game and what I saw against Notre Dame, that guys do want to play harder for Gunner.” Even though the Bulldogs took an L in the Sugar Bowl against Notre Dame, Stockton was effective, completing 20 of 32 passes for 234 yards and one touchdown with zero interceptions.

After this, the quarterback himself said in an interview with UGA that, “It was a little bit of a roller coaster, just trying to ride it. But I thought I handled it pretty well. Just seeing my teammates, they helped me out a lot.” While the quarterback is expected to do great, Smart must be losing sleep because of his offensive coordinator.

Can Gunner Stockton help Mike Bobo find his lost pride? 

Connor O’Gara had another question ready for Murray. “Your man, Bobo, how would you evaluate his 2024 performance?” In 2024, Georgia finished the season with the second-worst rushing offense in the SEC (124.4 yards per game). Their running game was crushed under the feet of the best defense in the nation, Texas. So, all these factors combined left Mike Bobo in a hot seat.

Murray shared, “I would say it was very difficult for him with the lack of explosiveness in the run game, the lack of consistency in the pass game, whether that was Carson pressing, whether that was receivers dropping the football, and could Bobo have been better 100%. And he’ll be the first to admit it, and I know Kirby would say the same thing. You know, there’s improvements that need to happen.”

Only based on improvement, Smart might consider Bobo’s contract extension. As Marc Weiszer reported, Bobo’s current salary of $1.403 million will go up to $1.503 million on July 1, 2025, and will increase to $1.603 million on July 1, 2026. However, the analyst has no doubt about Smart’s OC’s potential for a turnaround.

Last season, Murray saw inconsistent tight ends, a struggling running game, and too many dropped passes from receivers. “So, like, who would you target if you were Mike Bobo? Where would you go in a game plan to move the ball consistently against SEC defenses? It was a difficult spot. So, not to defend Bobo or anything like that, I think he’s a great offensive coordinator. I’m hoping he does terrific this year with hopefully better talent around the quarterback position,” he added. That’s when Stockton enters the chat. 

We could see what Gunner Stockton can bring to the table in his feat against Texas. He completed 12 of 16 passes for 71 yards and an interception against an elite Texas defense. His first start against Notre Dame was a bigger sample size. One thing was evident. Stockton is more willing to escape the pocket when things break down as compared to his predecessor, Carson Beck. Plus, Stockton was Georgia’s quarterback for six quarters last season, and in those six quarters, UGA’s wide receivers only had one drop. Now, that was way better than what the wide receiving corps was around Beck. Looks like Kirby Smart and Mike Bobo have found their spark plug—and his name is Stockton.