Don’t believe what you hear: Georgia wanted quarterback Carson Beck to return in 2025
It’s all Carson Beck’s fault. He’s selfish, wasn’t a good teammate, wasn’t the same, dependable player after signing an NIL deal and driving a Lamborghini around Athens.
There, feel good, Georgia fan?
Now, some harsh truth: when Beck, the former Georgia quarterback, decided last week to enter the transfer portal after initially declaring for the NFL draft, the first team and coach to try and secure him – the very first – was Georgia and Kirby Smart.
A person close to Beck’s decision making, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the process, told USA TODAY Sports that not only was Georgia at the front of the line for Beck – who has been eviscerated by Georgia fans on social media since the Bulldogs’ early exit from the College Football Playoff – but SEC heavyweight Alabama was next to call.
Beck signed with Miami less than 48 hours after hitting the portal with a do not contact request, leaving one lingering question to the quickly evolving and strange process: Who is really to blame for Georgia’s offensive regression this season?
The easy answer is the quarterback. The difficult reality is the coach, and the roster built around the quarterback.
Georgia scored 10 points against the Irish, rushed for 62 yards on 29 carries and got a meaningless 200-yard passing game from backup quarterback Gunner Stockton. The offense under Smart never looked more inept.
The problem is, that CFP loss was simply the final ugly performance from an offense that was dysfunctional all season. But for a second-half performance in a loss to Alabama, and the overtime win over Georgia Tech, it was a mess.
Georgia’s typically dominant offensive line was inefficient all season, and struggled in pass protection. The Georgia receivers, never really a team strength in nine seasons under Smart, were exposed week after week through a difficult SEC schedule.
Then the College Football Playoff began, and Georgia – playing without Beck, who sustained a season-ending elbow injury in the SEC championship game – looked like it didn’t belong in an embarrassing loss to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl quarterfinal.