All eyes on Ryan Puglisi entering first spring practice

There’s not much to worry about this spring when it comes to determining the depth chart in the Georgia quarterback room meaning it’s an opportunity for development of all three. Carson Beck is solidified as the starter. Gunner Stockton is positioned to be the backup. Then there’s the true freshman Ryan Puglisi in his first few months on campus, still getting settled in.

If attention was on one thing, it’d be Puglisi in his first collegiate action, especially after the showing he reportedly had during Orange Bowl preparation. His new teammates said his performances in practice were particularly eye-popping.

“We were practicing and coach played it in film, bruh, Puglisi threw like, I guess it’s hard to do as a quarterback running away from his throwing arm, flicked it to back corner of the end zone, London caught the ball. We looked at that throw probably like five times,” Georgia defensive lineman Warren Brinson said. “He was making them throws against the starters at bowl practice, he’s nice. He was cool. I was in his face talking s*** to him before the play and it doesn’t even phase him.

“When Puglisi had his first practice, we were doing 7-on-7 and we’re watching. He’s just dicing,” added walk-on running back Jacob Hardie. “We’re all looking like, dudes behind him are forgetting to go in because we’re all just like, ‘Wow, he’s really good.’ Everybody was just astonished like, ‘Yo, he’s cold.”

A 6-foot-3, 210-pound freshman out of Avon Old Farms High School, Puglisi was one of the top ranked quarterbacks in the Class of 2024. He committed to Georgia during his junior season after impressing the Bulldogs’ staff that summer. He would go on to complete 133 passes for 1,904 yards and 16 touchdowns in nine starts.

Puglisi put together a strong senior season too, recording 118 completions for 1,693 yards and 14 touchdowns while adding three scores on the ground too. It came on the heels of his participation in the Elite 11 Finals and prior to being named Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Connecticut.

“Ryan came down here, I bet 5 or 6 times, and he checked the box every time for the right kind of kid, the right kind of competitor,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “He’s embraced the part about learning. He sees himself as a guy that needs to come in and develop under a system. He’s seen Carson’s success, so I think he understands that. He wants to grow and get better.”

“The physical traits are size, speed, intelligence. For the intangible traits, character, what the kid’s makeup is, the velocity with which he throws the ball. We have guys that throw it hard. We’ve had guys that can’t throw it hard. They’ve had different levels of success. The common denominator for us has been intelligence, ability to create and extend plays. So we look at all those things,” Smart added. “… Quarterback is the leader of the team and leader of your class. He’s a really intelligent, fun kid to be around. He’s been out here at practices, competing. He’s got a really live arm. He’s another one of these baseball guys that can catch it and get it out really fast, which I think is really important in today’s day and age.”

Puglisi will have a chance to sit back and watch one of the nation’s best this season with Beck back to lead the Bulldog offense once again. After throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and finishing with a school-record 72.4% completion rate, Beck made the decision to return for another season at the helm. He got to see Puglisi in action at the Orange Bowl and is looking forward to seeing more out of him in the future.

“I remember seeing him, I guess he came over the spring or the summer and then obviously now getting to see even more of him. Super strong arm, great kid, super smart. Having a guy like that added into addition into the quarterback room is always good and always drives competition and you know pushes all the guys around us to be better,” Beck said. “I think we’ve built a great relationship. You know, it started over the summer. So I hosted him whenever he came and visited, so I’ve gotten to get to know him a little bit better. Super strong arm. Great, great person as well. Very smart, very talented. I’m definitely excited to see him as, you know, he continues to develop over the next couple years.”

Georgia is set to begin spring practice on Tuesday. The Bulldogs will hold 15 sessions, including three scrimmages, in a little more than a month with things wrapping up on Saturday, April 13th at Sanford Stadium with the annual G-Day spring game.