Ranking every quarterback to start for the Georgia Bulldogs during the Kirby Smart era.
Whether it be Gunner Stockton or Ryan Puglisi, the Georgia Bulldogs will be heading into the 2025 college football season with a new starting quarterback. Since head coach Kirby Smart took over ahead of the 2016 season, he Dawgs have had a litany of different starters at the signal caller position with varying successes. Below is a comprehensive ranking of each of Kirby Smart’s starting quarterbacks.
NOTE: Players who did not start a minimum of three games were omitted from this list
As the first full-time starting quarterback of the Kirby Smart era, Jacob Eason’s 2016 season was everything one would expect from a true freshman. Eason started 13 games and completed just over 50% of his passes for 2,400 yards. It would, unfortunately, be Eason’s only in the Dawgs’ season opener during the 2017 season and replaced by Jake Fromm. He would enter the transfer portal the following year and finish his career with the Washington Huskies.
While it started with much excitement, the JT Daniels era of Kirby Smart’s tenure was short-lived. Daniels started for the back half of Georgia’s 2020 season and threw for over 400 yards in his first start with the Bulldogs. However, injuries derailed his career with the Dawgs, and he transferred elsewhere after the 2021 season after making less than 10 starts for Georgia.
Carson Beck’s time with the Georgia Bulldogs is arguably the most interesting starting quarterback saga of the Kirby Smart era. Beck voluntarily waited on the bench three years before earning his start and was overall praised for his performance during the 2023 season. His return for the 2024 season brought much excitement to the Bulldogs fanbase. But inconsistent play and a season-ending injury ultimately led to his decision to transfer to Miami, leaving many Georgia fans upset with him. Despite his controversies, Beck delivered back-to-back SEC championship appearances for the Dawgs and had plenty of high points during his time as Georgia’s starter.
The longest-tenured starting quarterback of the Kirby Smart era, Jake Fromm was an extremely consistent face for the Dawgs during his time as Georgia’s starting quarterback. He threw for at least 20 touchdowns in each of his three seasons and never surpassed more than 10 interceptions in a season.
The greatest walk-on story in college football would be hard to beat for best-starting quarterback of the Kirby Smart era. Bennett made his first start with the Bulldogs in 2020 but was eventually beaten out by JT Daniels for his starting role. After regaining control of the offense midway through the 2021 season. Bennett led the Dawgs to their first national championship victory in over 40 years. He followed up his historic season with another national title and was a Heisman finalist.
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