A team that was already set to return starter Carson Beck next season, the Georgia Bulldogs have now dipped into the transfer portal to add another quarterback to their 2024 roster, securing a commitment Monday night from Jayden Maiava.
A former three-star prospect in the 2022 class out of Liberty (Nevada), Maiava is coming off a stellar 2023 freshman season in which he helped lead UNLV to a 9-5 season, which was the Rebels first winning campaign since 2013. Across 14 games, Maiava would post a 63.5% completion with 3,085 passing yards and a 17-10 TD-INT ratio, while also rushing for 277 yards and three more scores on 73 attempts.
Named the 2023 Mountain West Freshman of the Year, Maiava also led the Rebels offense to an average of 34.4 PPG to rank No. 22 nationally, as well as 412.7 yards of total offense per game. Maiava himself also led the MWC with a 147.1 passing efficiency rating and 8.7 passing yards per attempt, while also ranking top five in the conference passing yards, completion percentage, and multiple other statistical categories.
BREAKING: UNLV transfer QB Jayden Maiava has committed to Georgia, @PeteNakos_ confirms🐶
The Mountain West Freshman of the Year recorded 3,085 passing yards and 17 TDs in 2023👀https://t.co/pnnxEMZKVx pic.twitter.com/Da2ZQUpsDw
— On3 (@On3sports) January 8, 2024
The addition of Maiava is Georgia’s sixth of this transfer portal cycle so far, joining wide receivers London Humphreys (Vanderbilt), Colbie Young (Miami), and Michael Jackson III (USC), running back Trevor Etienne (Florida), and defensive lineman Xzavier McLeod (South Carolina).
Maiava will now join a Georgia 2024 quarterback room that includes the aforementioned Beck as the returning starter, backup Gunner Stockton, and freshman Ryan Puglisi. The Bulldogs have also had one quarterback transfer out of Athens so far this offseason, as former five-star prospect Brock Vandagriff transferred to Kentucky.