PFF is far from perfect, but I think these two tweets nail the essence of Stetson Bennett:
https://twitter.com/PFF_Anthony/status/1473649709118070784
“MUG looks” are when the opposing defenses walk their LBs up into the A-gaps around the center. It’s a high pressure look, in other words. Get Bennett in obvious passing situations and show pressure and his game recedes significantly. Generally speaking, that’s what ‘Bama has done.
To be fair, though, it takes a village to put Stetson in that spot.
That’s as good a way to describe Kirby’s problem as you can. The rest of the team has to keep Stetson in the game. If they can, he’s no worse than serviceable. If they can’t…
Get The Picture 
Counter that MUG look with an empty set in 3rd and long and you’re begging for a disaster with Stet:
I’d rather see two backs in pass pro and just run #1 on a 9 vs. double coverage than watch Stet try to throw a dart over the middle vs. cover 2 out of an empty set.
Btw: either outside receiver is open. The bottom 1 for a td and the top for a 1st down.
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Yep. The OL picked everything up and SB had all the time in the world. He missed all of the open guys and threw right into the coverage.
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I’m sure things will be MUCH different if we get past the Wolverines!!’
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This was the one game this year that Stetson couldn’t bring us back from. Here’s a crazy thought. Maybe Monken sees what Bama did and coaches Stetson on how to react properly the next time.
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Brutal. Stet is a f’n 4th-year QB. Can’t consistently read the D pre-snap, can’t see the field. Jeebus.
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The failure to develop a QB that doesnt wilt when LBs walk up to the line is a pretty glaring.
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Does “develop” mean keep one from getting injured?
Don’t recall JT struggling with this look. I guess they put him in a different development program. Or, maybe, he’s just a much better passing qb. Yeah, I think that might be it.
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As usual not sure what your point is.
Seems like you think these players just spring forth from the ground with the QB stats set and thats that.
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I don’t think Tom Brady is great because of Charlie Weis.
I don’t think Indiana State’s coach taught Larry Bird to shoot.
I don’t think LeBron’s hs coach taught him to be bigger and faster than everyone else.
I don’t think Ray Goff deserves any credit for Herschel’s Heisman,
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For guys that arent on the short list of greatest to ever play the game, I would say coaching matters. Coaching probably matters for those guys as well, but they also seems to have an internal coach/voice/drive.
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I agree. Making an average player serviceable IS about coaching. Following that train of thought name 5 former walk on qbs who played better than Stet in 2021.
Ok, lets make it easier, name 5 former 3 star qbs who won a division title and didn’t lose a regular season start.
Man that’s jes coachin’ right thar!
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Why are we in a position where playing a walk on is our best option? You act like CKS was just gifted this QB and he has to make do with him.
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Injuries.
Transfers.
Wash outs.
We’ve recruited that position well. Shits gone horribly wrong with
Fields
Newman
Daniels
Mathis
Beck hasn’t progressed. Fromm was never great and left a year early. BVG is a project.
It ain’t as easy as bitching on a keyboard.
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Wow just an incredible run of bad luck year after year after year after year after year.
You hate to see it.
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Very true.
Pretty tired of it quite honestly.
I really thought we’d be ok this year. And maybe we will be.
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You, like the other short sighted couch QBs on here, mistake a seasoned scout team qb and a winning JC qb with a “walk on” tag. Plus another year as a Dawg qb in waiting. SBIV isn’t a rookie and walk on so drop that tag…there are many four and five star qbs who never get to start much less lead their teams to titles/12 game winning seasons. We/ve got the best qb on staff playing because the coaches see what he has. So go blow y our nose and clear your head…SBIV is a helluva qb.
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That’s really not the issue.
The issue is whether he can bring home a natty and/or whether he’s our best option because of some factor we don’t know OR if the coaches have changed their minds and said Stet should have been the day 1 starter in 2021.
I’ll never say stet is less than a helluva player. He’s better than greyson lambert and JT3 and a few others from further back. He’s no Bryce young, mac Jones, joe burrow, trevor Lawrence, Deshaun watson or tua or even jalen hurts.
He may be a top 5 sec qb right now. Is that good enough? Is that better than jt?
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This may be an unpopular comment, but maybe it’s time that Mike Bobo comes in an coaches QBs at UGA. Dude was and is an excellent QB coach — Bo Nix’s uncoachability notwithstanding.
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I’ve asked this question before: how many programs have a dedicated QB position coach?
I also question Bobo’s ability to recruit, given the state of his health. I don’t see why Kirby would use an on-field slot like you suggest.
Honestly, I find this suggestion more weird than unpopular. I think Monken’s done a helluva job coaching Stetson up this season. He’s a much better player than he was in 2020.
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Yeah, but did you see what Mike did with Joe Cox in five short years?
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I saw what he did with Hutson Mason.
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Lose to South Carolina, Florida and Tech?
Stunning…
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School record for scoring? Yeah that was stunning. Of course, Hutson missed a bunch of tackles in those losses you mentioned.
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It was a LB who threw the pick that ended the tech game, wasn’t it?
We ran for 750 more yards than we threw for in 2014.
Hutson threw for 21 TDs.
Sony, Nick and Gurley ran for 31 TD’s.
We were a great offense in 2014 spite of, not because of, Hutson Mason.
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This offense needs to be producing 1st round picks and Heisman finalist. It isnt. Until we get coaches that are consistently doing that, it feels like we will be a step behind the teams that do.
So Monken is fine, but he aint getting the job done at the level it needs to be done.
Maybe he just didnt have the horses to do it, but that parts of the deal as well.
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I think you mean “recruiting” not “producing.”
Do you really think the difference between DJ Ukelele and Trevor Lawrence or Deshaun Watson is the coaching?
Saban has had his fair share of 5 star qb busts. He’s also had a disproportionate share of guys who weren’t busts. If young went down you’d see a gross lack of development and recruiting because they got no one behind Young.
We will eventually get the kid whose potential meets the results.
Bitching about a former walk on not playing like a heisman winner is a bit insane.
How many better former walk ons have you seen? Doesn’t that say something about the coaching?
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Yeah, that’s it — Monken’s primary responsibility is to get the NFL and the folks with a meaningless awards ceremony to be impressed, rather than, say, to direct an offense that’s currently fifth in the country in ypp. And that’s despite numerous injuries to offensive players he’s had to work around.
Too bad Smart doesn’t share your priorities.
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Why cant we be Louisville 2016?
9-4
Citrus Bowl
Downtown Athletic Club
Pretty sweet!
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Those awards are a by product of getting the first job done.
Listening to you all, you would think that Saban had just been lucky in recruiting all these years.
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And listening to you, you’d think Georgia’s done a mediocre job recruiting football players under Smart.
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Georgia’s done a mediocre job recruiting football players under Smart.
We sure have a shit ton of 5 stars on defense. Now do the QB position. Oh right its takes time and blah blah blah I forgot.
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By the way, did I miss something, or did Georgia have a lead against ‘Bama the last two games when Stetson started?
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We had a lead twice with Fromm too. Id say you did miss something.
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I really don’t think you understand the point I’m making.
Which explains a lot about this discussion thread.
Feel free to take the last shot. I’m tired of discussing this with a brick wall.
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Senator, about a week or so ago I made a comment almost exactly like your 9:11 comment. Can’t remember exactly what I said but it was something about Stet playing very well for a while against Bama. You busted my balls , saying something like : that would be a good point if the game lasted 2 quarters. So do you think Stet’s past play is reason for optimism or pessimism?
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Neither. The point is, he doesn’t play in a vacuum.
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Who are Cooper Bateman, Phillip Sims, Blake Barnett and David Cornwell?
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Alabama QB’s that were beat out by guys that won National titles? Five starts to be sure, they were also behind guys like McCarron, Phillip Sims, Coker, Hurts…..you’d have to say they were busts as five stars, probably didn’t help that they all transferred to places with a much different talent level. I get what you’re saying, but just keep giving me those five star talent type guys, some actually live up to the hype. I believe that Hurts was the first true freshman to ever start for a Nick Saban team.In hindsight, some of those guys were probably better served hanging around, gaining the experience, and competing as upperclassmen guys, with talent around them.
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We lost by a different score. That YPP doesnt mean anything. Remember how you posted how nobody was close to us all season? Didnt mean shit on the 4th.
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So, Monken doesn’t need to worry about coming up with an offense that can move the ball?
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You can move it all you want, it needs to cross a certain line on the field for it to matter. As in the numerous time Bama did, and the very few times we did.
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If you’re arguing that Alabama is better than Georgia, I get it.
Seems like this discussion is broader than that, though.
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Hmmm. JT came to Georgia likely because of Monken. Vandagriff flipped from OU after Monken was hired and he and his father (the coach at PACS) met with Kirby and him. Stockton flipped after Muschamp was out at South Carolina specifically because of Monken. If Monken weren’t in Athens, Arch Manning wouldn’t even be considering Georgia at this point.
Monken seems to be bought in with SBIV for whatever reason that we’ll never hear. He has done wonders with a guy who was never recruited to be a starter. He got JT ready for a stretch run last year that showed what the offense could be. The fact that JT hasn’t been healthy this year shouldn’t be a reflection on Monken’s ability.
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Good point, Senator. I do wonder if maybe an analyst position coach for QB might work — just something to change things up. Then again that might be exactly why Buster Faulkner is in the UGA Football front office.
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Catch there is that analysts aren’t allowed to coach players directly.
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No doubt. I’m saying that the analyst focuses solely on helping coach the QB position — which has to help if the QB coach is also the offensive coordinator.
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PFF dumps on JT every opportunity they get. Anyone who truly believes SBIV is a better option at QB probably thought Newman would win the Heisman and be a high first round draft pick last year. Oh, yeah, that was PFF.
It doesn’t matter now because Kirby made his bed after Jacksonville and now gets to sleep in it. JT’s positive test did him no favors although he probably wasn’t going to see the field for a meaningful snap in Miami any way.
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Everyone might as well get over it, “Kirby is going to stick with Stetson” no matter what. I don’t think Kirby’s personality will allow him to say, maybe Stetson isn’t the best choice. Daniels is probably ruing the day he chose to come to Georgia, just sayin!!!!!
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Or, he’s been injured.
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This is completely counter to the scuttlebutt that I’ve heard. Word on the street is that up until this positive test, JT was looking completely recovered physically. Even several players on the team don’t understand why Stetson’s still the starter other than Kirby being his normal stubborn self (i.e. it’s not like stetson is just out competing JT in practice). They’ve confided that Kirby has placed Stetson in a pretty impossible situation where he’s bearing the angst of a fan base that is watching one of its few chances at a national championship slip way because Kirby is asking some 5 foot something walk on to do something he clearly does not have the physical talent to do.
Fwiw, this is not the first time Kirby has been Dan mullen like in his stubbornness to stick with “his guy” at QB come hell or high water, this was also a key piece of fields leaving.
I know I can’t prove any of this and probably sounds like a tall tale randomly posted on a message board but yeah I’ve heard this from people in the program. Take it for what it’s worth.
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We don’t know what we don’t know.
Until CKS or JT says it, I say it’s entirely possible that there is something we don’t know going on.
We know there was a time when the only thing to consider was: who is the best qb? In august.
JT was picked to start vs. Clemson for a reason. Kirby is aware of that reason.
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You don’t know either, but every time you post on this subject you are operating on the assumption that he is.
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By not assuming anything you’re assuming there’s nothing to assume.
You got me there.
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I’ve watched a lot of football in my life and never before have I heard that the team’s job was to carry the quarterback.
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LMAO. What do you think people mean when they refer to a QB as a game manager?
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What’s Stet without the pick in the rz or a pick 6?
A game manager.
With both?
One big ugly “L.”
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Some who doesnt lose the game. Not someone that needs the other side to win the game everytime.
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If your defense can’t stop the other team, exactly how does a game manager not lose the game?
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That’s probably right but a little speculative in that we don’t know what happens Stet protects the ball as is the main attribute of a game manager.
We probably still lose, but if we’re going with stet he can’t turn it over. Its fatal.
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The 2 3 and outs in the 2nd quarter after Bama hit the play to Williams were devastating to that thing you posted about this morning – momentum. We came back to score to tie and then did the same thing we did in Tuscaloosa last year – we gave up a score right before halftime … the failure to recover Young’s fumble completely changed the outlook of the game at halftime. The problem was we did it again right after the half.
When your game manager doesn’t move the sticks and then turns it over, you lose. Of course, that’s regardless of what type of QB you are playing. You don’t have to score on every possession, but you do have to possess the ball and take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves.
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Against some teams consecutive 3 and outs don’t hurt, when your “D” gets pushed around and you lose the field position battle in a 5-8 minute span, 3 and outs puts you way behind on the score board, time and film has shown SBIV isn’t gonna bring your team back against better than good football teams, for UGA football to move on, a FULL friggin’ team effort (all 3 phases) is required by alllll on the sideline, press box, every fucking where it matters…GO DAWGS!
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Teams like recent Bama teams and LSU 2019 feast on getting multiple quick possessions. Even Rose Bowl 1st half Oklahoma did that to us. You can’t afford to send your defense time and time again after your offense has multiple empty possessions especially when you don’t even get first downs.
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We held the ball for 9 minutes more than Bama. 3 and out’s weren’t our problem. Converting RZ opportunities into points was the issue for the offense. They couldn’t make up for shitty defense.
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That was the problem in the 2nd half when we were already playing from behind.
Bama scores – 10-7
Dawgs go 3 and out
Bama scores – 10-14
Dawgs go 3 and out
Bama scores – 10-17 (I may need to flip those)
Dawgs score – 17-17
Bama scores – 17-24
Dawgs take a knee to halftime
Bama scores 17-31
You don’t think those 3 and outs completely changed the game? That stretch completely changed the outcome of the game. Both sides of the ball contributed.
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No, what turned the game was a defense that gave up TD drives to end the first half a day start the second half. Stetson tied the score at 17, and other than a kneel down to end the first half, the next time he saw the ball was down 31-17. THAT was the problem. Shitty no-pressure defense.
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Agree but Bama had all of the momentum. I have said both sides were the problem in the 2nd quarter.
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How did I know the replies would be in the triple digits?
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I think our frustration, mine included, stems from the fact that we enter the CFP at the end of a season most expected to be “our year” with a quarterback that’s no worse than serviceable. The general feeling being that the way we recruit, a guy like Stetson, though clearly a DGD, should rarely see the field, much less be our number one. He shouldn’t even be our number two. Beck apparently isn’t what we hoped, and no one else is ready. So here we are. Two convincing loses to Alabama have us feeling like even if we beat Michigan, we’re destined to fail yet again and spend another off season debating why we continue to believe next year just might be the year. Soul squashing gets old.
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Yep. JT should be healthy and playing and were posting over 40 every time out and no one can get to 20 on us. That SHOULD be how things are, but they ain’t and that’s maddening.
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Paul never mentioned JT.
The problem is once again UGA doesn’t have an elite QB for the postseason. If this happened once we wouldn’t be talking about this, and if Kirby didn’t recruit so many great QBs we wouldn’t be talking about it.
Iron sharpens iron at every position except QB.
And because I like everyone on here has heard all your deflecting comebacks, yes Fromm did get us very close and yes Kirby can not heal JT Daniels.
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I blame bobo….
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This made me laugh. You win.
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Thanks, this perfectly encapsulates my frustration. Kirby has recruited so we’ll but we’re starting a freaking walk on at the most critical position on the field. Stetson is a great story but the point of signing multiple 5 stars is that we have first round type QB, scores 40 points on everyone type guy, starting for us at all times and a QB like stetson who’s not only not a threat but a massive fucking liability should only see the field on G Day not against Alabama ever. Dan Lanning should be saying that the most impossible to defend QB he ever sees is in practice and by extension everyone else seems easy.
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I don’t think it matters any more, we’re going with Bennett. Nonetheless, I think all the articles like this miss the point. The question is not whether SVB is really good when everything else is working. Wouldn’t Daniels also be “serviceable” in such situations? The real question is who gives you the best chance when the shit hits the fan and you have to get third down conversions and keep up with a team like Alabama? This has all been said before.
I don’t get it. Must be something there we don’t know about. I’m hoping it all works out. We beat Michigan and Bennett gets his shot. If our defense gets redemption, I’m pulling for Bennett to make it happen!
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I have been thinking the same thing regarding JT vs Stetson. Can’t JT do the same as Stetson except be a run threat on the zone read, but then he is better on 3rd down?
What is maddening from a fan standpoint is not knowing the real reason JT isn’t playing. Is he really still hurt or do the coaches really feel Stetson is the better option. If so, why? JT was the starter to begin the season. What happened during or after the injuries?
In my opinion you play JT if you want the best shirt to win it all. If that means facing Bama then if the D shows up then great if not you have a QB who gives us a better shot to win a shoot out.
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“chanc” not “shirt” – WTH was that autocorrect?
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What happened after the injuries? Guys on defense like Nolan Smith called SBIV his quarterback. Kirby heard things like that and thought I can’t bust up my team’s chemistry at this point in the season. It’s the exact same thing Kirby was saying in 2017 when Eason became available again. The team responded to Fromm … no going back.
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All I have read is “as long as the defense shuts out the other side Bennett is servicable”
Imagine bragging about recruiting rankings and all that and being shit at one of the most important positions.
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Sounds like you’ve got more of a problem with reading comprehension than Monken does coaching quarterbacks.
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Back at ya, remember posting all them “we are awesome cause of ?” You didn’t mind being his drummer boy back then. Now you want to parrot another stat MUG? WTF is that?
LMAO, yeah Monken did a great job coaching up our QBs; we’ve got a division title 1 out of 2 years on the shit side to show for it.
Heres a hint, when people talk about elite offenses they say stuff like total yards, touchdowns, etc. Not some weird as stat you have to stretch out and do math on and pretend you were good. “Oh if we had to play the 4th quarter we would have had this or that”
We didn’t have those kinds of stats because we aren’t that good on offense.
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Newman
Mathis
Stet
JT injuries
And we’ve gone 20-3.
Get ahold of yourself.
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Sounds more like we play in a shit division. Stop pretending we are playing murderers row, because when we play a team with a pulse we get shit on.
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Two of those losses were to the sec champion and national champion and current No. 1 seed.
Had we only scheduled a top five team for the opener huh?
If you’d like to find a team who has done better with the same level of adversity at the qb position, go for it.
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Why do you think it’s a shit division?
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All them other teams changed coaches cause they were awesome right?
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“Why do you think it’s a shit division?”
Because we won it, duh! Come on, man. Up your Dawggrading game.
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They’re currently seventh in scoring in the country.
If you’re offended by me constantly referring to stats, you might need to seek out another blog, because I’ll keep doing so.
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Who said offended? I don’t walk on your side of the spectrum. I’m pointing out how ridiculous some of them are and completely meaning less.
I’m aware our scoring average is lower than Bama. I’m also quite sure that head to head its lower as well.
Ill petition the committee to hand us a title cause our YPP, EPA, MUG, are all much more indicative of our greatness instead of the scoreboard. In fact, we should make the megatron show commercials on all the NIL deals,
Sprinkled with tid bits of “Bennett doesnt get sacked on 1st and 5 after an encroachment penalties during games in the 3rd quarter when the stadium is 81 degrees F.”
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Sorry. I assume when somebody sputters at me the way you’ve been doing, that they’re heated about something.
Didn’t realize you were being so mellow here.
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“Serviceable if the rest of the team can keep him in the game” is no way to go through life, at the most important position, for a program with all our chops.
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They were 12-0 in the regular season. How much better did you want them to be?
All this really boils down to is a bunch of whining about how everyone is tired of losing to Saban. Believe me, I get it.
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Its only seven straight losses…
We lived through nine straight losses to UT didn’t we?
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How many teams are O’fer against Saban? He is the best in my lifetime, and I’ve been around a long time.
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While at bama that would be:
Arky
MSU
UK
Missouri
Vandy
Tennessee
Not Georgia btw… We got 1!
A&M has 1, UF has 1, USC has 1
Ole miss has 2.
LSU is at 4.
Auburn has 5.
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But UF also has the best loss…
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I bet you was really proud of Cox’s ability to win a division title and shit the bed in October.
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Wut
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Bobby Cox didn’t win enough World Series for his widdle fee fees.
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Still projecting? Waiting on Corch to post? Poor Dereks little fee fees.
I dont watch baseball genius.
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You wrote the post and hit the button dude.
I guess I was way off on the tenderness of your fee fees, huh?
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I don’t spend hours on end being argumentative with randoms on the internet bright one. I also don’t relentlessly comment on particular posters. You could be a white dude in georgia or an immigrant in Europe and you still don’t matter.
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Merry Christmas!
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Did you not just brag about regular season and say how much better you want them to be?
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Nail hit squarely on the head. We can quibble about the reasons why we keep losing to Alabama, but it still sucks. We went through this with Spurrier too, often losing even when we had superior talent. We got so desperate Richt ordered the end zone stomp. When will we finally break through? Hopefully, before Saban retires. I’d really like to beat HIM..
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How much better did I want them to be?
Well, I wanted to see the other QBs to get some work in the last 9 weeks of the season. I think we would be in a better position with that group heading into next season. Once again, we’ll start next year with QB questions.
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This is where I see merit in all the complaining. Kirby and Monken should have made more effort to get Beck or Vandagriff some meaningful snaps, not just handing off, but running more of the playbook. That was my big complaint about Fields. Chaney just put him out there to “handoff good as f&$k” or make one read and then run.
I see many other teams playing their true freshman QBs and wonder why a top 100, 5* like Vandagriff can’t get some meaningful backup snaps. It will hurt us next season.
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Winning two more games this season will cure everything that ails reasonable fans. There are some that I just believe enjoy complaining.
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Look, I agree with all of yall. I’m thrilled we went 12-0……told my non Georgia friends I was worried the “pulse” of the fans was way too negative given everything is literally right in front of us. We should be fired up !
I suppose my point is that our coach demands that every other position and all aspects of the program piss excellence, and he and they largely succeed at that. They don’t pay me 7large, so my opinion and $1 might get you a coke. I guess I just disagree with Kirby that we are pissing excellence at the QB position. I feel like we are hiding the QB position. But like yall say, we went freaking 12-0, so it’s hard to complain, but WTF else are we going to talk about ?
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Exactly this! And it’s what Kirby believes is the best way to win. Absolutely maddening.
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Man, this fan base needs the Michigan game to get here yesterday. Expectations for the SEC Championship game were through the roof given the two teams’ trajectories coming out of November, jumped out to a 10-0 lead, and then… wahh wahh wahhhhhh.
Since Kirby came to Athens, Saban’s started 3 different guys who now start for NFL teams. All 3 made it to NY. Now’s he got a true sophomore Heisman winner at the position. I don’t know where that stands historically, but it’s an insane run at the position. And fair or not, that’s the contrast people lock in on. Throw in LSU’s Joe Burrow magic carpet ride. Trevor and Deshaun just up the road. How hard is this, really?
Harder than it looks, for sure, as the DJU Experience proves. Looked like a sure Heisman winner coming into the season, now has Clemson fans eager for the next 5 star to get to campus.
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The fact that Dawgnation is still arguing about a game from three weeks ago (not just this blog!) does NOT bode well playing a hungry team with momentum
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If the discussion on a blog affects the team’s mentality, I’m not sure there’s a correlation to the team’s performance in its upcoming game.
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Of course online discussion is largely irrelevant to the players, but I think the fan psyche extends to the team.
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Not being snarky here at all, because I’ve thought this would make for a good post topic. How do you think that occurs?
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Man I don’t know, it’s entirely unquantifiable and may just exist in my head. But I still feel it could be true from 40 years of watching football.
I think there’s a part of fandom that players can’t escape, no matter what. Even if it’s just reporters asking questions that represent the fanbase and its mood.
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It’s a common feeling I get from fans, but I’ve never really heard players confirm it.
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I just know that in the Benz when Williams hit that slant for a TD, you could feel “IT”. That Georgia thing. We all did, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the team did too
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I have to think it’s human nature to be almost impossible to avoid reading about yourself or your organization on the internet, particularly if there’s so many “takes”.
OTOH, perhaps it’s so second nature to those in the spotlight for a relatively extended period of time that they can tune it out, particularly with counsel and training from team psychologists, which I believe is a thing now.
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Players read social media. And if all they hear is about Dec 4, it’s hard to focus on Dec 31. It’s human nature. We need to let that shit go.
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This is what you’re projecting if you were a player, or you’ve actually talked to players who’ve confirmed this?
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No, Coach Blutarsky, I’ve never been in the arena.
Of course I’m projecting. But I’d find it amazing if the ~95 people at the center of our collective obsession were somehow completely isolated from our current obsession with Dec. 4. So you have inside information confirming that haven’t heard a peep about Dec 4?
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Again, I’m not trying to be snarky here. I just wanted to know if you had a source.
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Well, the guy who has the neighbor whose cousin knows a UPS driver who delivered a package to B-M seems pretty tuned in.
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This is what really worries me. Bama may very well beat us again, but it will come on 12/31, not in January.
Beat Michigan!
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Anyone who thinks Stetson Bennett is a better QB than Daniels, as this person does, should not be taken seriously. It begins and ends there.
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I truly trust the coaches to make the right decisions about the QBs, but why don’t we have a Bryce Young or Mac Jones on our roster? Or do we?
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Mac Jones was a 3-star who was developed. Bryce Young is a 5-star living up to his billing.
I tend to think JT could be every bit as good as Mac if healthy. We are where we are because Kirby has decided a QB change late in the year would upset team chemistry (or at least, that’s my opinion).
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Cooper Bateman, Phillip Sims, Blake Barnett and David Cornwell were 5 stars Alabama didn’t develop.
They are 4 of the 7 highest rated qbs saban has ever signed:
https://rolltidewire.usatoday.com/lists/alabama-football-recruiting-top-10-quarterback-signees-of-nick-saban-era/
And no one knows who they are.
Things may be more complicated and variable and less subject to control than we’d like to think.
Mac was an elite 11 qb btw.
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Yeah Saban gets a pass on those guys not working out because a few of the 5 stars he signed actually developed into legitimate weapons for his team while all of ours either transferred or were straight up busts. Not sure how this is that difficult to comprehend. I’ll wait for you to move the goal posts now.
If you want to argue that players like Trevor Lawrence, tua, Bryce Young or Mac Jones are just trancendant players with or without coaching and development then at best Kirby and his staff are recruiting the wrong 5 star QBs every time,or at worst and more likely our system severely limits talented QBs, doesn’t develop them / we play the wrong fucking one (Stetson over JT, Fields over Fromm).
Also for what it’s worth I don’t believe fields would have produced a fraction of what we was able to do at Ohio State had he stayed at Georgia because our offensive philosophy/ scheme is so FUBAR.
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My point was that its the player not the coach.
If it was the coach five stars wouldn’t matter and all five stars would be successful. Doesn’t work that way.
Saban and Belichick are the best. Each has been very fortunate at the qb position. The beneficence that the universe has bestowed upon them with respect to the qb position has allowed them to achieve the heights that they’ve had. I’m sure there were some assholes complaining about NE’s qb play last year and when Saban only had Blake Sims some bammer was likely being all cunty and saying “we don’t pay no nick saban no 8 million a year to play some converted rb recruit and lose to urban meyers and hugh freezer! What happened to all those five stars Nick!”
I’m sure each type of fan was righteously indignant when their unreasonableness was pointed out to them.
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Ok so your point is that it’s the player not the coach. It still doesn’t absolve Kirby, because wait for it, who’s responsible for evaluating and recruiting great football players including quarterbacks to come play for Georgia??? Uh….. that would be Kirby and his staff.
So again under Kirby’s tenure we’ve had 4 5 star qbs on our roster (Eason, Fields, BVG and Daniels) and 2 four stars not counting Stockton (Fromm and Beck). So either 1) it’s all about the player, scheme and development don’t matter, in which case then Kirby is recruiting the wrong quarterbacks because they all turn out to be busts, which means Kirby is to blame. or 2) coaching and development do matter and that’s why none of Georgia’s 4 and 5 star QB recruits have done anything of significance during their Georgia careers, in which case it’s still Kirby’s fault because he’s not putting his 4 and 5 star signees in a position to succeed / developing them.
I believe it’s a combination of 1 and 2 with 1 being more important but the bottom line is this: our inability to develop a difference maker at QB the last 6 years is 100% Kirby’s fault. He and his staff are responsible for evaluating, recruiting, developing and deploying football talent including QBs, if we haven’t been able to produce a difference maker at QB the last 6 years, Kirby and his staff are failing in at least one of those phases along the way. This is not that complicated. You can’t laud Kirby for how great a job he does managing the roster for all the other positions then give him a pass when we fail to put a top tier talent at the most important position. If you want to assign credit, you also have to assign blame.
To imply that Nick Saban has produced multiple first round QB picks over the last 6 years while Kirby has produced none because of bad luck is laughable. Over one season, sure, over 6? That’s not bad luck, that’s perrenial mismanagement manifested.
I’ll wait for you to move the goal posts again Derek.
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Who called for absolution?
I thought it was an explanation.
Forgive me. As coach, CKS is responsible for everything in the football program. Every last thing.
Moving on.
Are you suggesting that cks has had average, normal, typical luck at qb position over the last 6 seasons?
I wouldn’t. I’d call it a shit show.
Who among those qbs would you have not signed or recruited? Which ones did you know wouldn’t pan out or would leave or just fucking quit or would go in shell the first time they took fire?
Monday morning quarterbacking the impossible to predict is a fine w(h)ine ain’t it?
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Actually, Sims broke passing records while at Alabama, won an SEC title and played very well. The problem for Alabama during that time period was that they couldn’t handle the fast passed offense with a running QB. While you heard groans about the QB situation from fans, it went away quickly enough when Sims played well. Maybe the running back turned QB was developed after all……
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Go back and look at how many times Saban signed two QBs in each class. That’s the difference. They haven’t faced a depth issue at Qb since 2007.
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Yet somehow they have a depth issue today.
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We had Jacob Eason, but he was benched and transferred out.
We had Justin Fields, but he was benched and transferred out.
We have JT Daniels, but he’s benched.
At some point, you have to conclude that Kirby is what he repeatedly does.
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When was Fields benched?
Eason got injured.
JT got injured.
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“The rest of the team has to keep Stetson in the game”
How about when other teams who out coach us & force our hand to play a shootout? What about when our other facets of our team like the D, Special Teams, RBs are struggling a quarter or 2 & QB play is needed to carry the team on its back? How is it the rest of the team that’s required in order for him to perform at his own job down to down? Yea he needs a supporting cast, but their brains & arms are not the things doing the work every snap.
QBs are always gonna have a Saturday in the fall, where they gotta step up and make a final drive to win. Especially natty winners, and that’s why it’s hard to go undefeated. But, almost every natty team you likely find moments in games where the QB had to make long, game winning drives, stringing together multiple “good decisions with the ball” ti come from behind multiple scores. Bennett has not had to do that, nor is anyone confident he will ever be ready for that moment. The big worry was that we were almost expecting other facets of team to fall short at some point, that time came vs bama, and it showed Bennett was still not the “come from behind kind of QB” we could count on. Let alone a guy who needs to make multiple quick strikes in short, tight windows, with his team down multiple scores vs post season defenses in the 4th quarter. He’s also not tall enough to hit the short throws in the middle of the field over the Dlines. JT has the height, the gusto & “between the ears capability” to see the field, with much more awareness, both presnap & post snap. He seems to have the it factor in those situations
Watching this bowl season, QBs like Lucas Johnson from San Diego State for example, makes one realize there are better, more serviceable QBs than Bennett who make more consistent throws, better decisions, even more accurate throws on the run, all over the field, at teams all over college football. As shown above, there are two many things like pressure that make Bennett’s mind skip and its shown incorrectable or 2 seasons, he coach refuses to address this. He might be a 3 quarter guy and that’s his ceiling. When will we ever be the team that goes up multiple scores in a championship setting vs bama? Bama had to play from behind vs us in all of our games under Kirby, they did it with elite QB play. Dead horse beaten.
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Some of y’all keep asking this question as if you haven’t read anything here I’ve posted.
Stetson isn’t built to win a shootout, or to keep up the chase. That’s his shortcoming. That’s why I keep saying the first question Smart has to answer is whether his defense can control the other team’s offense the way it had until the SECCG.
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That’s why I keep saying the first question Smart has to answer is whether his defense can control the other team’s offense the way it had until the SECCG.
You would think the last 4-5 games against them he would know that he isn’t capable of doing that.
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I feel like “control” is maybe the wrong word. Control implies for the entire game, IMO, but YMMV. The problem with Bennett in those games is not that we need him carrying the team the entire game, but that we just need it for maybe 2 quarters and that looks sketchy at best. The Bama games haven’t been breakneck punchouts the entire games, but we have to figure out how to keep up in the middle rounds when they start throwing a few haymakers.
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Uga isn’t built to win a shootout under Kirby. This isn’t an argument vs for or against Stetson. This is observations from 1000s of people who see 6 years of coaching who doesn’t appear to want to be that kind of team which starts with a Good QB at 6’3″ or talker. Look I could buy a Porsche Carerra with all the bells & whistles, except it comes with a 6 inch diameter tiny steering wheel and enjoy the ride on a flat, mildly curvy road without any issues. But once the road is bumpy curvy, up down hill, that steering wheel is now a detriment. That is a UGA QB under smart. The car is still wonderful but the main tool is rendered limited & useless once those high performance moments arrive.
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I guess that Rose Bowl win was a mirage.
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It helped that Oklahoma was allergic to tackling.
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I don’t think that’s the question. If Smart actually has a choice (i.e. if JT is healthy), then the real question is: Is there a type of game Stetson can win that JT CANNOT also win. Seems to me JT can also win games the defense controls. So why not play JT just in case you find yourself in a shootout. That’s why I think something else is going on.
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I got tickets to the boca bowl. Man it was fun watching that guy throw.
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We all seem to get it – you need a stud at the QB position. That being said you also need STUDS on the offensive side at every skill position. That is the difference between Bama and us.
Go look at the last 4 or 5 recruiting classes and compare the QB and WR groups at Bama vs us – that is the difference.
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Guys, Alabama lost to *** checks notes *** Zach Calzada this year. Surely Stetson Bennett is at least as good as Zach Calzada.
Having an elite QB is great and all, but Georgia lost the SECCG first and foremost because it got out-coached.
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Got out played at the qb position.
Maybe Young wasn’t superman vs. A&M like he was vs. us.
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A&M got after Young (4 sacks). Big difference with our game. LSU and Auburn also got pressure on Young.
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Hmmm… it’s almost as if the rest of the team helped keep Calzada in the game. 😉
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Senator, I think we’re on the same page here. SBIV isn’t the QB you want out there if you have a deficit to overcome. You better play in front of the chains if you’re going to win with Bennett.
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But if we do play bennett, he can’t turn it over, and if he doesn’t theres a sliver of hope.
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Depends on the size of the deficit.
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The game was over when we went down by 14. We weren’t going to outscore them by 3 scores the rest of the way.
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Could have lost in OT tho.
I mean, lets be optimistic.
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Exactly Bama struggled putting away 4 teams this year *checks notes Florida, LSU, Auburn. But the calzada thing is overblown- Checks notes Bama pass D the 62nd ranked defense in the country. Plus 1st half of season Bryce Young was still learning how to be a starter.
I believe Jimbo knows how to coach QBs far beyond Monken.
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How do you figure?
https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/_/id/4259553/stetson-bennett
https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/_/id/4426847/zach-calzada
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Could JT be Aaron Murray? If so, he should be playing (prior to his positive test). Murray was a damn good college quarterback. You put 11 in this offense with healthy skill guys around him, and it would absolutely hum.
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Depends which one showed up.
Sometimes he was locked in.
Sometimes he was overwhelmed.
He always had the arm and brains. His mental toughness waxed and waned.
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The Aaron Murray of 2013 was a damn good college QB.
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Wasn’t that the year he lost the play clock twice in the second half at Clemson? One penalty and one lost TO. After the second one they showed his face and he looked scared/lost/nervous/deer in headlights, whatever….
Pretty sure I remember blowing a vocal cord over that.
In 2013….
Now after Clowney clowned him? Dude was on…
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Forget Aaron Murray. 1992 Eric Zeier in this offense would reset the college football record books.
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Very true.
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Monken has done pretty good considering that we don’t have an elite RB or an elite WR to go with our walk-on or injury prone transfer QB’s. The only skill players we have who could start for Bama today is Bowers or perhaps Cook, who is more of a utility player than a RB. It is what it is at this point. I know a lot of you guys are getting your hopes up about beating Michigan and turning the tables on Bama the 2nd go around, but just get the Bama thing out of your head. The only thing that can take them down at this point is COVID. If we play them again, it will likely be a beat down. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer. Just keeping it real.
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If we get past Michigan, I think a rematch with Bama can be monumentally different if we get pressure on Young and put our best press guy on Williams (with help over the top). Just beat the absolute shit out of him before he can get into a route while the wolfpack pins its ears back. I think a heavier dose of Jalen Carter over the big man may help too. No knock on one of our best players, but Carter has a better motor, IMO.
If our defense can play with its hair on fire and disrupt the hell out of their timing, we have more than a fair shot.
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WHy dON’t kiRbY gOEs GEts hIM oNe o DEm QBS wHO tHRowS fER 40 POIntS oN baMMer?
Because his order at Amazon is backlogged in logistics for delivery.
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kiRbY hAd tWo o DEm QBS, but he benched them and they transferred out.
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Exactly Bama struggled putting away 4 teams this year *checks notes Florida, LSU, Auburn. But the calzada thing is overblown- Checks notes Bama pass D the 62nd ranked defense in the country. Plus 1st half of season Bryce Young was still learning how to be a starter.
I believe Jimbo knows how to coach QBs far beyond Monken.
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Great thread, “full of sound and fury signifying nothing”. Stetson, has the ability to do good things when he is not under pressure. Now he also can get himself out of trouble with his feet, “IF” he would just do it every time he needs to. On third downs he presses on the pass plays to actually throw a pass. This is part of his third down problem. He misses open receivers because once he looks at a guy he moves on, but they often get open but he has panicked makes a high risks throw to try and pull it out. If the routes are slow to develop he just has no patience. I don’t know how to coach it out of him and think it maybe too late.
As far as next year, if JT comes back (he has probably graduated by then and would transfer) he will be the starter even if SB4 comes back too. As far as Beck, who knows, we certainly didn’t let the backups play as much at QB as I would have though given the scores in our season. QB recruiting is the biggest crap shoot. These HS kids are not going to see players in high school like in college and some can adapt (Young) but some never do.
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How did I know the replies would be in the triple digits?
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Game manager.
See:
AJ MCCarron
Greg McElroy
Blake Sims
There could be an argument that these were all game managers.
Could be. I’m
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You can have that argument and I am in some agreement even advocated back then that Richt was overly focused on Elite 11 QBs while other areas suffered. You could win it all with great D, a good Offense that didn’t turn it over if the OL was good enough, and special teams that was automatic.
Saban has also stated since then that elite offense beats elite defense and has shifted priorities to reflect it. He has said Kiffin was brought in to outscore other teams. Smart recruits at a very high level but not at WR and arguably QB.
The game has changed over the past decade. Further Bama’s D while not the absolute best, it is upper tier SEC D but with an offense as good as anyone in the country. Bama’s D could regress quite a bit and Bama could still frequently win conference championships in the other P5 conferences regularly. UGA has the O and D flipped to what Bama is. If UGA is to play Bama with a 50/50 chance of winning QB play and WR skill/speed/depth must improve otherwise Bama wins 90% of the time.
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