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Gunner Stockton a Top 5 College QB? ESPN Says Not Yet

Did ESPN make the right call?
Dean Legge|
Georgia QB Gunner Stockton against Oklahoma.
Georgia QB Gunner Stockton against Oklahoma. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Georgia Bulldogs

ATHENS - Georgia football QB Gunner Stockton still has not broken through to be a top-five quarterback in college football.

Stockton checked in at No. 8 on the Worldwide Leader’s list of college football signal callers. The top of the list is jammed with the usual suspects. But ESPN’s Bill Connelly, who tabulated the list, said that Stockton would have a hard time being higher on the list because he’s not had to do much so far this season.

It is hard to argue that point. Here’s Connelly on Stockton so far in 2026:

“He's eighth only because he has been asked to do the least of any of the top eight guys. Stockton has had to average only 20 dropbacks per game because of early blowouts, but he has brought an extra level of explosiveness to the table this season, and it might be making Georgia the best team in the country. Among power conference QBs, only Stockton, Sayin and Russell rank in the top 15 in both completion rate and yards per completion. His Dawgs are rolling.”

Gunner Stockton throws a pass during the second quarter against Alabama
Gunner Stockton (14) throws a pass during the second quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the 2025 SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This is the sentence to focus on:

“(Stockton) has brought an extra level of explosiveness to the table this season, and it might be making Georgia the best team in the country.”

It certainly might. The worry coming into 2026 about Georgia was two fold: could the Dawgs be explosive, did UGA have pass rushers? Explosion from the offense has not been a problem four games into the season. The Bulldogs are the No. 1 scoring offense in the country. Kirby Smart has expressed some impatience with his pass rush so far, but Georgia’s defense has been suffocating.

Former Alabama coach Nick Saban mentioned on ESPN’s Gameday Saturday in Knoxville that Georgia “is the most-complete team in the country.”

Georgia football WR Talyn Taylor catches a pass against Oklahoma.
Georgia football WR Talyn Taylor catches a pass against Oklahoma. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Stockton has shown the capability to have explosive plays by running and passing. The Bulldogs scored more points against Oklahoma than anyone since 2023. Stockton has not yet had to do a ton, but history has proven he can get the job done when he needs to. And that might be just what the Dawgs need after this weekend’s game against Vanderbilt.

The next stretch of the season - at Alabama, vs. Auburn, vs. the Gators and at Ole Miss - will define the year and be the four games that dictate if Georgia will get to the College Football Playoff, and where they will be seeded.

Stockton will have to play well in those game for Georgia to prove that it is the best team in the country as Connelly suggests.

ESPN’s Top-Ten Quarterback Rankings

1. Darian Mensah, Miami
2. CJ Carr, Notre Dame
3. Julian Sayin, Ohio State
4. Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss
5. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State
6. Jayden Maiava, Southern California
7. Keelon Russell, Alabama
8. Gunner Stockton, Georgia
9. Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State
10. Lincoln Kienholz, Louisville

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Dean Legge
DEAN LEGGE

After two-plus decades of covering the Georgia Bulldogs and the SEC, Dean Legge is one of the definitive voices in Athens and beyond. Legge has authored two books - DAWGSTRUCTION and DOUBLE DAWGS - with each chronicling Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs' run to national titles in 2021 and 2022. Legge has been a Heisman Trophy voter since 2005 and a Biletnikoff Award voter since 2009. He’s covered SEC Championships, Peach Bowls, Orange Bowls, Sugar Bowls, the Rose Bowl Game, College Football Playoff National Championship Games, the NCAA Tournament, the College World Series as well as a slew of college football, basketball and baseball games. Legge graduated from Coker College in 1999 with a degree in Political Science. He played both tennis and basketball for the Cobras. After graduating, Legge completed his academic career at the University of Georgia where he earned a Master of Public Administration from the School of Public and International Affairs in 2001. In 2008, Legge was elected President of the Coker College Alumni Association. He served on the Board of Trustees at Coker from 2009 to 2017 and was a member of the Executive Committee, Student Services and Enrollment Committee and Athletic Committee in that time. Legge is a native of Tucker, Georgia.

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