Gunner Stockton didn’t just steer Georgia past Alabama on Saturday night. He took another big step in building a reputation that now feels impossible to ignore.
In the Bulldogs’ 24-? win at Bryant-Denny Stadium - a place that packed 100,077 fans and plenty of pressure - Stockton delivered the kind of performance that keeps adding to his legend. Georgia moved to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the SEC, and the victory pushed the Bulldogs to No. 1 in the rankings.
It was another road masterpiece for Stockton, whose comeback win in Tuscaloosa joins his rally jobs at Tennessee’s 101,915-seat Neyland Stadium and Auburn’s 88,043-seat Jordan-Hare Stadium last season. The pattern is getting hard to miss: when the environment gets loud and the moment gets heavy, Stockton seems to settle in rather than flinch.
That’s why his rise has become one of the more striking stories in college football. Georgia fans may now be asking themselves whether they should be grateful Arch Manning chose Texas, because Stockton ended up in Athens. It’s a fair question after what he has become.
The numbers tell part of the tale. Stockton owns the Peach State’s career total touchdown record with 254 and the passing touchdown record with 177. That’s a staggering place to land for a quarterback who came out of the 2022 class rated as a 4-star and the No. 7 quarterback prospect.
And yet even now, the national numbers are only beginning to catch up to what Georgia already knows. Stockton ranks third nationally in NCAA passing efficiency at 198.57, trailing Miami’s Darian Mensah at 212.25 and Indiana’s Josh Hoover at 200.52.
Inside NFL circles, the view on Stockton has started to shift too. A former NFL scout said he had been viewed as a good college quarterback, “but,” the scout added, “he doesn’t have an NFL draft grade” entering the 2026 season.
That same scout said Monday that Stockton made throws against Alabama that looked like pro-level passes, the kind he had not previously shown, or maybe simply had not been asked to show. Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo has brought him along carefully, and Bobo says that approach matters.
“You see a guy that constantly prepares day-in and day-out, and sometimes you think, ‘man, maybe that guy has reached his ceiling and maybe that’s who he’s going to be, “ Bobo said in an exclusive interview with UGA’s NIL-content site, ‘Glory Glory.’
“But I’ve learned over the years that if guys continue to work and don’t think they know everything, and don’t think they have the answers, and go out every week and try to improve on how they can improve as a football player, they’re going to get better,” said Bobo, the play caller for the No. 2 scoring offense in the nation (46.2 points per game, behind Miami’s 49.6) and the SEC’s top third-down conversion offense (54.7%, sixth in the nation).
“Gunner is a perfect example of that, he’s constantly working to get better at his craft and getting better.”
Against Alabama, Stockton completed 18 of 22 passes for 249 yards, with a touchdown and a deflection that was intercepted. Even more telling was what he did when Georgia needed answers on third down. He went 9 of 10 for 104 yards in those situations, repeatedly finding windows that were tight and firing with confidence.
Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who has coached quarterbacks at a high level, had plenty of praise for Stockton’s work in the clutch.
“Yeah, I think Gunner Stockton was clutch,” said DeBoer, who’s considered to be a bit of a QB guru having coached up two first-round picks in Michael Penix Jr. and Ty Simpson, and one of the best young quarterbacks in the nation in Keelon Russell.
“You know, (Stockton) moved the chains, and so many times his guys, you know, (were) making catches right down towards the ground there.”
DeBoer added that Stockton was in control and extremely efficient.
“You gotta give him credit for those plays that he made,” DeBoer said. “He was in control, just extremely efficient. You know, that’s been the story of the season for him.”
Bobo said there’s still more room for Stockton to grow, and Georgia’s next chance to see that comes Saturday at 3:30 p.m. against Auburn.
“I think the more he does day in and day out, the drills he does with coach (Brandon) Streeter, and the film work he does, has given him confidence to go out there and seeing things faster, and get through his progressions faster,” Bobo said. “But there’s still a lot of room for improvement.
“Playing in big ball games helps give you more confidence, and he definitely has confidence right now.”
For Stockton, the formula in those pressure-filled moments is simple.
“I look to the sideline to get to the next play,” Stockton said. “and just try to get the play and get to the next moment.
“I just try to be calm in the chaos.”
In Other News...
Georgia Just Beat Alabama And Still Has A Disrespect Problem
Georgias win in Tuscaloosa should have settled plenty of arguments, at least for a week. Instead, the Bulldogs still found room for a little ranking debate after climbing to No. 1 in the updated AP Poll following their first victory at Alabama since 2007. Even with that breakthrough on the road, four AP voters left Georgia outside the top spot, a reminder that one statement win does not erase every opinion already baked into the national picture.
The bigger disconnect comes from the computers, and from one of the sports more familiar blue-blood comparisons. Georgia may have the rsum boost of beating Alabama in its own building, but the conversation has not fully lined up around the Bulldogs just yet. If the season keeps trending toward the playoff path many expect, the next meaningful chance for Georgia to settle another debate could come against Notre Dame, though that kind of matchup would require both teams to make it to the College Football Playoff first. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia May Be Forced To Trust An Improvised Backfield Again
Georgia had to lean on Dwight Phillips Jr. and Bo Walker against Alabama when Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens were unavailable, and the backup arrangement held up well enough to keep the offense moving. Kirby Smart made it clear afterward that there are no plans to shuffle other players into the backfield, which leaves the Bulldogs relying on the same group if the depth chart stays thin.
Now the focus turns to Auburn, where the matchup could invite another heavy dose of the ground game if Georgias top backs remain out. The Tigers have struggled against the run, so the Bulldogs may again be asking an improvised rotation to do work that normally falls to more familiar faces, with the bigger question hanging over whether that setup can last for another SEC week. [Read more 🡒]
Georgias Young Players Just Proved How Much Kirby Smart Trusts Them
Beating Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium usually comes with a few fingerprints all over it, and Georgias latest win had plenty of them from a younger group than many expected. Peyton Woodrings 23-yard field goal sealed the 20-17 victory, while Gunner Stockton steadied the offense with 249 passing yards, a touchdown through the air and another on the ground in a game Kirby Smart described as physical from start to finish.
What stood out afterward was how much the Bulldogs leaned on freshmen in a place where every mistake gets magnified. Smart pointed to the role those young players had in the outcome, a sign that Georgia is not merely surviving with youth but trusting it in one of the toughest road environments in college football. The bigger question now is how far that confidence goes as the schedule keeps tightening. [Read more 🡒]