This could work in favor of the Irish if they advance to face the Bulldogs
Let’s be clear, Notre Dame football has to take care of its business against the Indiana Hoosiers first before looking ahead to the Georgia Bulldogs, but we have an eye out for what his going on with the potential second-round College Football Playoff matchup.
During the SEC Championship game, Georgia’s starting quarterback [autotag]Carson Beck[/autotag] went down with an injury, and missed the remainder of the game. It is now being reported by Zach Klein of WBS in Atlanta that the fear around the Bulldog program is that Beck won’t be available for the Sugar Bowl in the quarterfinals.
Georgia earned a first-round bye by winning its conference, but it looks like the time off won’t be helping Beck. The most logical choice for the Bulldogs is [autotag]Gunner Stockton[/autotag], who has played sparingly in his first two years, but did lead them to the win over Texas. For his career, he’s thrown 51 passes, completing 37 of them for 354-yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.
The Irish, should they beat Indiana, will be looking at a quarterback who would be making his first career start against a very good Notre Dame defense.
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Georgia lost Carson Beck during the SEC title game due to injury.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new information.
Georgia quarterback Carson Beck was injured at the very end of the 2024 SEC championship game’s first half against Texas on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
After halftime, the No. 5 Bulldogs were without their starter for all but the final play in overtime as backup quarterback Gunner Stockton led the Bulldogs to a 22-19 victory to win the conference title and clinch a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff.
The ESPN broadcast reported that Beck was not expected to return because of the injury, however he was forced back into action on the final play of overtime while trainers evaluated Stockton following a brutal hit. Beck handed the ball off to tailback Trevor Etienne, who rushed four yards for a game-winning touchdown.
Stockton completed 12 of 16 pass attempts for 71 yards and an interception in relief of Beck.
What is Carson Beck’s status for the College Football Playoff?
Following the win, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was understandably mum on Beck’s status.
While he was seen icing his elbow on the sideline during the second half, Beck’s ailment was classified only as an “upper body injury”, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. He is set to undergo an MRI to further evaluate his status, but no timeline was given for his availability.
Latest update as of Monday: It doesn’t sound great, but we’re still waiting on an MRI.
The feeling in talking with multiple sources in and around the Georgia Bulldog football program is QB Carson Beck has a UCL elbow injury and will miss the Sugar Bowl.
Georgia will not play again until December 31, giving the team some time to weigh its options.
It’s an upper body injury for Beck, per Kirby Smart. They’ll be an MRI to better understand the extent of the injury. UGA earned a bye with SEC title game win and will be off until at least Dec 31. https://t.co/MlBs9BnXT9
Considering the College Football Playoff selection committee punished undefeated Florida State for a season-ending injury to starting quarterback Jordan Travis by leaving FSU out of the playoff last season, it’s hard to blame the Bulldogs’ silence here — even if the Bulldogs are locked into a top four seed.
Who is Georgia QB Gunner Stockton?
Stockton is a sophomore quarterback for the Bulldogs, and prior to Saturday’s SEC championship game, he threw passes in just two Georgia games this season: against Tennessee Tech in September and against UMass in November.
On the season, Stockton has completed 13-of-16 passes for 135 yards with one sack and no touchdowns or interceptions.
He threw passes in four games in 2023, including in Georgia’s Orange Bowl win against Florida State.
Georgia wins an 22-19 overtime thriller in the SEC championship vs. the Texas Longhorns.
The No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs (11-2) have played in intense games against tough opponents this year, but none was more important than the SEC championship. Georgia squared off against the No. 2 Texas Longhorns (11-2), a team the Bulldogs beat in the regular season.
In the fourth quarter, Texas tied it at 13 with a 41-yard pass from quarterback Quinn Ewers to DeAndre Moore Jr.. Georgia kicked a field goal, taking the lead with 4:35 left, and the Bulldogs should’ve sealed it with an interception of Ewers with 3:44 left to go. However, Gunner Stockton threw his own interception to give Texas one last shot to drive the field and kick a field goal, which sent the game into overtime tied at 16.
In overtime, Georgia stopped Texas at the 15-yard line, so the Longhorns kicked a field goal. The Bulldogs capped their drive with a Trevor Etienne rushing touchdown to win, 22-19.
This was somewhat a must-win game for Georgia. If the Bulldogs were 10-3, they could’ve risked having to travel in the playoff first round or miss the field entirely. With the selection committee’s decision to leave Florida State out of the playoffs last year partially due to Jordan Travis’ injury, the same fate could’ve happened to Georgia with Beck getting hurt had the Bulldogs lost.
Now, Georgia will get a first-round bye for winning the SEC. This marks the third time in four years Georgia has won the SEC title.
Texas will host a home playoff game, but the Longhorns would’ve been much better off had they received a bye.
HERE ARE FOUR KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM GEORGIA’S WIN OVER Texas:
The Status of Carson Beck
It was great for Georgia fans to see Georgia win the SEC championship once again, but the status of Beck looms over the playoff possibilities for Georgia. Beck came back to hand the ball off to Etienne for the game-winning score, but his injury status will be something to monitor.
Will Beck be forced to miss a game or the rest of the season? After Beck’s first-half injury, Georgia fans received their first extended look at Gunner Stockton. Stockton made some highlight plays and was a legitimate runner, but he threw a ghastly interception under pressure. Regardless of Beck’s up-and-down season against SEC opponents, he has much more experience than Stockton.
The bye week will be huge for Beck’s recovery, but if he misses time, the Bulldogs will have to rely on unproven options at quarterback. It has worked before for Alabama, so could it work for Georgia.
Trevor Etienne’s presence was much needed
Regardless of the quarterback play, the Bulldogs were able to rely on a stout running game. The lead back was Etienne, who put on a stellar performance of 122 total yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner, on 21 touches (16 carries and five receptions). Safe to say, he didn’t appear affected by the rib injury that kept him out the past three games.
Etienne’s presence allowed Nate Frazier to be an effective change-of-pace back. He accrued 47 yards on six carries.
Georgia’s front seven was electric
In Georgia’s last matchup against Texas, the front seven was the story of the game. The Bulldogs produced seven sacks and forced four turnovers in the Week 8 matchup. Georgia allowed 29 rushing yards on 27 attempts.
With Texas’ standout tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. ruled out, the script was similar in this game. Georgia racked up six sacks of Quinn Ewers. While the passing game was pretty effective for Texas, the Longhorns’ running game was stifled again. Georgia allowed Texas to gain 31 rushing yards on 28 attempts.
Daylen Everette had a legacy game
Daylen Everette was also a big story from Georgia’s Week 8 game against Texas. He had a forced fumble, a sack and an interception.
This game was similar, except he was best in coverage. He picked off Ewers twice, and if it weren’t for Stockton’s interception, his pick could’ve sealed the game. Everette had a legacy game against Texas again. He took home the SEC championship MVP as a result.
Gunner Stockton prevailed in the absence of projected early 2025 NFL Draft pick Carson Beck.
Georgia suffered an extreme loss on the last play of the first half of the SEC Championship Game when star quarterback Carson Beck went down with an injury after taking a shot.
There were questions abound as to how the College Football Playoff outlook could suddenly shift to for the Bulldogs, especially considering what happened to Florida State when Jordan Travis was sidelined due to injury.
To make matters even more concerning, Stockton had come into the game with very limited experience, and none in an SEC game at all to this point.
The Tiger, Georgia native entered the game with just six appearances in relief between 2023 and 2024 to his name. Georgia being down 6-3 in the SEC Championship marked his first truly meaningful action.
While such a happening caused many to hold their breath, that was far from what the players and coaches on the Georgia sideline were doing.
They had full faith in the sophomore.
“Everybody was just excited,” Georgia wide receiver Arian Smith said after the game. “Not excited because they wanted him to play or wished that he were starting. But just that he had that moment and that chance to go out and play quarterback for us.”
Running back Trevor Etienne echoed that sentiment, saying that everyone else may have been surprised at how well Stockton performed, but that it didn’t necessarily shock anyone within the program.
“The way he prepares, I expected nothing less of him,” Etienne said. “He comes in and works hard every day. He’s probably played this moment a thousand times at practice. Tonight, he was able to show the world.”
Head coach Kirby Smart described his performance as “tough as nails” and said that the quarterback seemed ready for the moment. Indeed he was as he led Georgia down the field in the first drive in which he took the field, capped off with a 10-yard touchdown by Etienne.
He went on to complete 12 of his 16 passing attempts for 71 yards with a stat line that wasn’t exactly anything to write home about, but with an electric on-the-field performance that injected momentum into what was a lifeless Georgia offense before.
Stockton’s only real mistake came at about the worst time possible with just over two minutes remaining on an interception.
Smart said it wasn’t all his fault, though.
“The only mistake he had, and I feel like it was partially on us… we got the call in early, he didn’t get the call out,” Smart said.
“He didn’t have time to evaluate what they were doing. If he sees that, he can pick it up and do some things with it. But we were down on the shot clock… he throws the pick there that could have been costly.”
“It just goes back to all the love I have for everybody in the locker room. All the seniors, and just wanting them to go out the right way,” Stockton said. “It’s pretty awesome (to do this is a Georgia native.
In a way, it almost reminds you of Stetson Bennett. Two players from small-town Georgia who weren’t exactly the same, but with some shades of the situation in common.
Stockton was a four-star recruit coming out of high school, while Bennett was much more lowly rated as a walk-on with just one FBS offer. But both players overcame incredible odds in situations that looked impossible when they were called upon, sitting behind quarterbacks far more in the limelight than they were.
And depending upon the nature of Beck’s upper-body extremity injury and just to what extent it is, Stockton may have to continue to rise to the occasion as Georgia heads into the thick of the College Football Playoff.
And the big stage is something he is stranger to no more.
Beck was buying time to attempt a Hail Mary pass, but he was sacked and fumbled. Texas defensive end Trey Moore sacked Beck and grabbed Beck’s throwing arm.
Beck’s throwing arm appeared to get hurt on the play. He stayed on the ground for an extended period of time as both teams headed to the locker room.
“Yeah, he’s got an upper extremity injury,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart after the game. “We don’t know to what extent. Basically, we looked at it in there, and it looked OK. But he couldn’t have grip strength and throw the ball in the locker room. So it was a little bit painful for that. So we need to find out exactly what’s going on and have to MRI and look into it.”
Beck reportedly has an elbow injury, but there is no timeline out there for his recovery at this time.
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Georgia played Beck on the final play of the game after backup quarterback Gunner Stockton took a shot to the head. Beck handed off the ball to running back Trevor Etienne, who scored a game-winning touchdown.
Georgia’s next game will not be until the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff on Jan. 1, so Beck will have more than three weeks to heal.
The injury occurred at the end of the second quarter with him rolling out trying to heave a pass towards the end zone and unfortunately he was hit by a Texas defensive lineman while he was in his throwing motion. He was laying down for sometime before heading to the locker room for halftime.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said at halftime ” We have to take a look at him to see if he can go.”
With Beck being out backup Gunner Stockton is stepping into the quarterback role into a crucial matchup with playoff seeding on the line.
Stockton has been in this offense for the past two years so he has familiarity within the offense.Stockton like Beck has waited his turn to take over the offense now he has his chance within the SEC Championship.
Carson Beck has been ruled out for the remainder of the SEC Championship after an injury he sustained in the first half. pic.twitter.com/zlfbt5hpCb
Georgia will be without QB Carson Beck in the second half against Texas
If the Georgia Bulldogs were to defeat Texas in the SEC Championship Game, they were going to have to it in the second half without star quarterback Carson Beck.
Beck injured his elbow on the final play of the first half Saturday in Atlanta when hit by the Longhorns on a pass play.
Beck was 7-of-13 for 56 yards as the Bulldogs left the field trailing 6-3 at the break.
Beck was replaced by Gunner Stockton, a redshirt sophomore. Stockton led the Dawgs on a touchdown drive of 75 yards when they took the second-half kickoff.
Beck was seen on the sidelines with his throwing elbow wrapped in ice..
The bigger issue than the game would be the long-term prognosis for Beck. Remember, last year Florida State was looked at differently after an undefeated regular season because its quarterback Jordan Travis was lost to a broken leg.
Joel Klatt’s predicts who will win the SEC championship game between UGA and Texas
Fox college football analyst Joel Klatt has predicted his SEC championship winner. The Georgia Bulldogs take on the Texas Longhorns Saturday afternoon in the SEC championship.
Klatt went on “The Joel Klatt Show” to discuss the SEC championship at length.
What does Joel Klatt say about the SEC championship?
On Kirby Smart: “We’re going to get underdog Kirby…when Georgia wins against an SEC team they should’ve, you’ll probably catch Kirby saying ‘Man, it’s tough to win on the road in the SEC’ and when Georgia wins a big game against a tough opponent, he’ll say, ‘Nobody gave us a chance to win this.'”
On the first meeting: “Georgia’s defensive line totally dominated the offensive line of Texas, which was a bit surprising. I think Texas has one of the best offensive line in the country.”
“Do I think this game is going to play exactly like the first meeting? No. Sark is too smart to go with the same game plan against Georgia.”
On injuries: “Kelvin Banks, the star left tackle for Texas, is dealing with an ankle injury…Quinn Ewers has been dealing with an ankle injury, so how effective is Kelvin Banks going against a front that was the only front to dominate the line over the course of the year?”
On Arch Manning: “Could the legs of Arch Manning be a factor in this game? It very well might be. Georgia’s defense gave up a ton of yardage to Haynes King. That could be an advantage for Texas. I like Quinn Ewers a lot but I’m starting to come around in that Arch might be a better option. This could be a similar discussion to Alabama back when they had Tua Tagovailoa and Jalen Hurts in 2017.”
On which Georgia team will show up: “I’m not sure. Let’s just hope for their sake that it’s the good version.”
On Carson Beck: “I think Carson Beck’s been better the last three games. He still turned it over three times against Texas and they (the Bulldogs) won, but he’s had twelve touchdowns and no turnovers the past three games. Can Carson Beck drive the ball against Texas and score?”
On the defensive matchup: “Texas’s defense is an elite defense. They’re No. 2 in the country behind only Ohio State, and Georgia’s defense just gave up 500 yards to Georgia Tech.”
Klatt believes that Texas will win in the rematch. “I think Texas wins the rematch. I think they’re a better football team. I think they win it 24-21,” Klatt said.
Reasons why Georgia football can win the 2024 SEC championship game vs. Texas
The No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs play the No. 2 Texas Longhorns on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET in the 2024 SEC championship game. Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, will host the SEC title game.
With the Bulldogs only being three point underdogs here are the reasons Georgia can win the game
New-found offense
This large reason is Carson Beck’s improvement and consistency. In the first matchup between Texas, Georgia was very one dimensional. The Dawgs kept the football in Trevor Etienne hands.
Expect the Georgia playbook to be opened with the 2 seed of the College Football Playoff on the line. Beck has 11 touchdowns and no interceptions over his past three games.
Advantage in the trenches
The matchup between the offensive and defensive lines trend toward Georgia. In the previous matchup, the Bulldogs defense accounted for seven sacks and forced three fumbles. The offensive line held its ground and helped elevate the running game with three touchdowns.
With both the offensive line and the defensive line healthier, the expectation is Kirby Smart and company will have an advantage in the trenches.
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Familiar Opponent
The familiarity between the two teams is going to be a big factor in the result into the SEC championship game. Georgia coach Kirby Smart will show wrinkles that Texas and coach Steve Sarkisian have not seen before.
Georgia football’s best players ahead of the SEC championship game against Texas
The Georgia Bulldogs face a rematch against the Texas Longhorns in the 2024 SEC championship game. Georgia beat Texas 30-15 in the Dawgs’ first game against Texas. The Bulldogs’ dominant defense sacked Texas seven times and forced four Texas turnovers.
Who are four Georgia players to watch in the SEC championship?
Quarterback Carson Beck
Carson Beck has been surgical in his last three games accounting for 313 passing yards per game while throwing for 11 touchdowns with zero interceptions. Beck turned his season around during the 31-17 Tennessee win to close out the season hot. In the Texas game, Beck was not looking like himself and threw three picks in Austin.
Running back Nate Frazier
Nate Frazier has been keeping the UGA running game a float while Trevor Etienne has been out with a rib injury. The freshman running back has scored a touchdown six of seven games when he has 10 or more touches. His burst and quickness is elite.
Trevor Etienne is trending towards playing in the game on Saturday expect Frazier to have a lesser role, but he will still be an important part of the Georgia offense.
Outside linebacker Jalon Walker
Jalon Walker is one of Georgia’s defensive leaders. He has a relentless motor and amazing speed coming of the edge. He leads the Bulldogs with 5.5 sacks with three of them coming from the Texas game.
He will be key factor in the Georgia game plan to neutralize the Texas offense.
Safety DanJackson
Dan Jackson is someone who has been Mr. Consistent for a defense that has had their ups and downs. He is Georgia’s leader in interceptions with two and has the second-most total tackles with 56. He showed up big time with his hit on Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King that help ignite the comeback in the 44-42 eight overtime win against Georgia Tech.