Why the "Training Wheels" Will Be Off For Carson Beck in 2024

As the 2024 college football season approaches, quarterback Carson Beck will likely have much more freedom in the Bulldogs' offense.

As the 2024 college football season approaches, quarterback Carson Beck will likely have much more freedom in the Bulldogs' offense.

When Carson Beck took the field for the first time as the Georgia Bulldogs' starting quarterback in 2023, fans noticed that the offense seemed to be less explosive than it was just a year prior. But the Bulldogs’ “slow starts” on offense were not a result of Beck’s (or any other offensive player’s) lack of skill. Instead, they were due to Kirby Smart and staff limiting Beck’s offensive freedom in an effort to get him adjusted to the game. Kirby Smart discussed his decision to do this in an interview with ESPN’s Chris Low.  

“Early in the year last season, we probably did try to protect him too much. But then you see nothing ever really affects him and know you've just got to let the cat go play because we were either going to make it or not make it on his back. As the year went on, he got better and better, but we were probably a little too slow with him out of the gate”.

The Bulldogs likely “protected” Beck early in the season for a multitude of reasons. For starters, Beck had never made a collegiate start before the 2023 season and had little game experience in college football games. Another reason for the “protection” of Beck in 2022 was the Bulldogs’ extremely forgiving schedule to start the season. In the first four weeks of the season, the Dawgs played their first four games in Athens and faced just one singular power-5 opponent. 

But the Bulldogs will not have the same luxuries as they did in 2023 as they will open the 2024 season in Atlanta against the top-25 Clemson Tigers. Following their week one bout with Clemson, the Bulldogs face top-25 Kentucky and Top-10 Alabama on the road for the ensuing weeks. They will play in Athens just once during this four-game stretch. 

Georgia quarterback Carson Beck (15) warms up before the start of a game against Missouri.

Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK

With such a brutal slate to open the 2024 season, elite quarterback play will be required from Carson Beck.Beck, a fifth-year senior, will presumably be making his 15th consecutive start as the Bulldogs’ signal caller and will be a much more experienced player than he was at the beginning of 2023. 

As the 2024 season approaches, fans should expect Georgia’s offense to start the season much differently than it did last year. As the Dawgs’ quarterback will have much more experience and the schedule will require the Bulldogs to not sit on their hands offensively. 

Georgia Bulldogs 2024 Football Schedule

• Aug. 31 - vs Clemson (Atlanta, Ga.)
• Sept. 7 - vs Tennessee Tech
• Sept. 14 - @ Kentucky
• Sept. 21 - BYE
• Sept. 28 @ Alabama
• Oct. 5 - vs Auburn
• Oct. 12 - vs Mississippi State
• Oct. 19 - @ Texas
• Oct. 26 - BYE
• Nov. 2 - vs Florida (Jacksonville, Fl.)
• Nov. 9 - @ Ole Miss
• Nov. 16 - vs Tennessee
• Nov. 23 vs UMass
• Nov. 30 vs Georgia Tech

Other Georgia News:

• Will Georgia Have a 1,000-yard Rusher in 2024?
• Georgia Football Practice Notes From Day 2 of Spring Ball
• Has Wide Receiver Ladd McConkey Done Enough to Become a First-Round Selection in the 2024 NFL Draft?

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