The Improbable Journey Of Stetson Bennett IV

“The world is made for people who aren’t cursed with self-awareness.”—Annie Savoy, Bull Durham

Indianapolis—The question to Stetson Bennett IV was a good one given where Georgia finds itself on the eve of the CFP National Championship game with Alabama.

A little over a month ago, Dec. 4 to be precise, Alabama beat Georgia 41-24 in the SEC championship game. But thanks to the College Football Playoff, the Bulldogs get another shot at the Crimson Tide, this time for all the marbles.

So inquiring minds want to know:

How much is Alabama going to change from game 1, when the Tide scorched the Georgia secondary?

How much is Georgia going to change?

And how much is Georgia going to change trying to anticipate how Alabama is going to change?

Do you follow me?

Stetson Bennett did.

“(You want to know is) Are you going to outsmart yourself?” Bennett said via Zoom. “Are you going to over think everything? 

"No, we are not.”

And here comes the kicker.

“Obviously when we go out on the field, would we prefer for Alabama, if they’re going to change anything up, to send us an e-mail this week?

“I would love that but I assume they won’t.

“They are not going to change up and go all Arkansas on us. They’re not going to do that. They are going to be Alabama. And we’re going to be Georgia. And we’re going to see who executes better.”

Straight forward. Self-aware. But not overly impressed by his surroundings. That’s Stetson Bennett.

In a game where the rosters are dominated with five-star recruits, Bennett’s journey from walk-on to the starting quarterback in the national championship game is perhaps the most compelling one in Indianapolis.

Unlike Bull Durham’s Ebby Calvin “Nuke” Laloosh, Bennett is the classic example of self-awareness. He understands and is aware that what he has a chance to do on Monday night is pretty remarkable. It is really unprecedented in the history of Georgia football. Win this game and Stetson Bennett IV will never pay for another drink in his home state.

But he would rather focus on the job at hand—which is finding a way to beat Alabama. The fact that it would deliver Georgia’s first national championship in 41 years is just the cherry on top.

“Do I know that (this game) means a lot to a lot of people? Yes. Am I trying to play some kind of savior by winning a national championship for millions of people? No, I don’t think that’s my job.

“My job is to go out there and throw completions to very talented people we have on this team. And I think it is simple as that.”

But, as we have learned this season, nothing that involves Stetson Bennett, is simple.

A former walk-on from Blackshear, Ga., down in the Southeast corner of the state, Bennett followed in the footsteps of his parents, who are both Georgia grads. He walked on to the Georgia team in 2017 hoping to make some kind of contribution.

He did, serving as the scout team quarterback. And when Georgia was preparing to play Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl (CFP semifinals) he played the role of Baker Mayfield, the Heisman Trophy winner. Georgia won the game in overtime (54-48).

After a year at a junior college in Mississippi, where he led his team to a 10-2 record, he returned to Georgia with a scholarship in 2019.

He began the 2021 season as a backup to five-star quarterback JT Daniels. But Daniels was hurt in the second game with UAB. Bennett took over. It has been his job ever since.

Here’s something else of which Bennett is aware. He understands that despite a record of 13-3 as a starter at Georgia, some fans don’t believe you can win a national championship with a former walk-on as quarterback. After the loss to Alabama in the SEC championship game, some fans blamed Bennett despite the fact that he threw for 340 yards.

And there is this nagging fact that can’t be ignored: In Bennett’s last two games against Alabama, he has thrown five interceptions.

He is one victory away from proving all of those critics wrong.

“I thought I played all right in the SEC championship game,” said Bennett. “I made a few mistakes that you can’t do against a good team. But I also made some really good throws, good decisions.”

Last week before the national semifinal against Michigan, Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken took the unusual step of defending his quarterback during a Zoom news conference. Monken said there “was no doubt in my mind” that Georgia could win a national championship with Bennett at quarterback.

Bennett was brilliant against Michigan, especially in the first half, when he completed his first nine passes and 16 of 22 for 234 yards. Georgia scored on its first five possessions of the 34-11 win over the Big Ten champions. Bennett, who threw for a total 313 yards, was named the Orange Bowl’s most valuable offensive player.

Those who wrote about and talked about the game called it vindication. They wrote that Bennett erased the doubts about his legitimacy as Georgia’s starting quarterback.

Bennett ain’t buying the narrative because, in his mind, there never was any doubt, at least not from people who mattered.

“There was no personal doubt,” said Bennett. “I knew what I had to do. I felt like I needed to play that well to beat a team like Michigan because of who they are and how talented they are. But it wasn’t to prove anything to me that I could play football in this league.”

Head coach Kirby Smart has been consistent in his defense of Bennett.

“Stetson gives us the best chance to win,” Smart has said on numerous occasions.

Bennett was asked how it feels to hear that the head coach has his back.

“It feels good,” Bennett said. “Obviously, it’s better than the other way. It feels nice and I appreciate it from him.”

Bennett says he and his teammates have not talked about what a win over Alabama would mean. That conversation will have to wait.

“Hopefully after this season, after this game, we play well enough to beat a great Alabama team. And hopefully every one of us can sit down and talk about ‘Wow, did you see how bright those lights were? That was pretty awesome.’”