Kirby Smart details Stetson Bennett's role, offseason transfer discussion

With starting quarterback JT Daniels dealing with injuries, Stetson Bennett has gotten more opportunities in recent weeks for Georgia. Daniels warmed up ahead of the Bulldogs’ Week 5 game against Arkansas, but Bennett instead got the nod. On Monday, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart talked about Bennett, who thought about transferring ahead of the season.

“No, I knew he was frustrated,” Smart said Monday of Bennett’s thoughts of transferring after last season. “I know he was frustrated with his reps and his volume of reps. For him, it was more about competition, getting opportunities. It wasn’t necessarily about getting ones reps, it was about twos reps because he wasn’t getting a lot of those. But the way we practice, he was able to get work in. Probably not as much as he likes.”

This season, Bennett has seen action in four games for Georgia. He was 10 of 12 passing for 288 yards and five touchdowns in a start against UAB. In Week 5 against Arkansas, Georgia ran the ball a lot, but Bennett finished 7 of 11 for 72 yards. On the season, Bennett is completing 70.7 percent of his passes for 515 yards, six touchdowns, and two interceptions.

Bennett saw limited action in 2019 with Georgia, completing 20 of his 27 passes for 260 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Last season, Bennett completed just 55.5 percent of his passes for 1,179 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions.

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Smart also said on Monday that Daniels is out on the practice field with the team but not throwing on Monday while still dealing with a lat injury. Daniels was able to throw some last week in practice and took pregame warmups Saturday, but appeared to be struggling while doing so.

“He’s practicing, he’s doing everything but throwing,” Smart said. “The biggest thing he’s got to do is rest and recover and heal. We’re hopeful he’ll be able to throw Tuesday, Wednesday, like he was able to do last week some days.

“There’s a lot more to quarterback than just throwing the ball. He does a lot of that stuff well and he’ll do those things today.”

If Bennett has to continue seeing time as Georgia’s quarterback, Smart is confident in him.

“I’m very pleased with the quarterbacks we have,” Smart said. “I’m not losing any sleep over it because it’s beyond our control. And Stetson Bennett is a really good quarterback. I keep saying that, and people don’t believe us. But he’s a really good quarterback.”

Whether it’s Daniels or Bennett at quarterback, Georgia has a tough schedule in the coming weeks. The Bulldogs travel to take on Auburn in Week 6 before returning home to face Kentucky and Florida in Weeks 7 and 9 with a bye in between.