Kirby Smart celebrates Stetson Bennett's selection in 2023 NFL Draft

Kirby Smart must’ve felt like he won another title when he saw Stetson Bennett get drafted on Saturday afternoon.

The Los Angeles Rams selected the former Georgia Bulldogs quarterback with the No. 128 overall pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. After leading Georgia to back-to-back national championships and making it to New York this past year as a Heisman finalist, Bennett will now have the ability to take his skills to the next level, with Smart proudly rooting him on from afar.

After the news became official, Smart took to Twitter to publicly congratulate his former quarterback, explaining how much he meant to the Bulldogs program over his time with the team.

Congrats @StetsonIV !! So excited for you to be a part of the @RamsNFL You meant so much to this program & I’m thankful for your time in Athens. What a story! You’re going to make a great man, great leader & great person. Dawg Nation loves you. GO DAWGS !!

— Coach Kirby Smart (@KirbySmartUGA) April 29, 2023

“Congrats @StetsonIV !! So excited for you to be a part of the @RamsNFL,” tweeted the Georgia Bulldogs leader. “You meant so much to this program & I’m thankful for your time in Athens. What a story!

“You’re going to make a great man, great leader & great person. Dawg Nation loves you. GO DAWGS !!”

Over his last two seasons in Athens, Bennett threw for 6,990 yards and 56 touchdowns as he helped the Bulldogs get back to the mountaintop. This past year, he set a new career high with 4,128 passing yards to go with 27 touchdowns in the air in addition to his 205 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground as part of the run game.

The Rams may be the perfect landing spot for the quarterback, as well. He won’t be pressured into playing anytime soon, and can sit and learn behind a true professional in Matthew Stafford for a couple of seasons, who ironically enough is also a former Georgia quarterback.

Additionally, Bennett will be playing for one of the top coaches in the entire league in Sean McVay, who will be able to help take the former Georgia star’s game to the next level. All in all, it’s a pretty fantastic scenario for Bennett as he takes his game to the next level.

All the success at Georgia will live on, but Stetson Bennett has plenty left to give on the football field at the NFL level.

Stetson Bennett played high school football at Pierce County (Ga.) High School, where he was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 185 overall recruit in the 2017 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

On3’s Nick Schultz contributed to this article.