Skip to main content
georgia logo

Stetson Bennett being praised for big day against Oregon

Palmber-Thombsby:Palmer Thombs•09/04/22•

palmerthombs

On3 image
Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett carved up Oregon for a career-high 368 passing yards, as the Bulldogs trounced the Ducks 49-3. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Stetson Bennett has been criticized throughout his career, but that wasn’t the case on Saturday. Bennett, who helped Georgia to a season-opening 49-3 win over No. 11 Oregon on Saturday in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, earned plenty of praise from former SEC quarterbacks Jesse Palmer and AJ McCarron after the game on ESPN.

“This is the best I’ve ever seen Stetson Bennett play,” Palmer said as he gave him a helmet sticker on ‘College Football Final.’ “25 of 31, a career-high 368 passing yards against Oregon. If he plays like that, this offense is on a completely different level. There’s a chance they could be really special.”

“He looks like a 24-year-old playing a sixth year of College Football,” he continued. “He was in total control of Todd Monken’s offense, knew exactly what to do with the ball. If there’s been a knock on him throughout his career, sometimes he’s cavalier, he turns the ball over in big games. In this one against Oregon, when guys were open, he took shots down field, when they weren’t he checked it down, he threw it away. His mobility, his ability to escape has always been the X-factor for him. He is surrounded by so much NFL talent at the skill positions, when he is playing this efficiently, this offense is unstoppable.”

McCarron also praised Bennett’s ability on ESPN’s ‘The Wrap Up’, citing his confidence as a clear difference.

“This was the kind of swagger he had in the National Championship Game against Alabama. He played lights out in that game, and it has really just carried over into the start of this year. That’s a good sign for Georgia fans. That’s a good sign for Kirby Smart and the team. To have his confidence at an all-time high and be able to separate confidence and playing with stupidity because you can also be so confident that you think you can do everything. Then you get yourself in some bad situations. For him to play smart and to play with that kind of level of confidence he had and swagger, unbelievable performance by Stetson. I’m looking forward to this year for him.”

Bennett completed 25 of his 31 pass attempts for a career-high 368 yards and two touchdowns. Of those 25 completions, 10 of them went for 15 yards or more. In total, eight different Georgia receivers caught a ball from Bennett. What was he most proud of though? Georgia did not fail to convert a third-down while he was in the game, scoring touchdowns on all six of his drives.

You may also like