Stetson Bennett keeping defenses honest with run ability amidst passing struggles
ATHENS, Ga. — Kirby Smart has been praising Stetson Bennett‘s running ability for a long time now, but Saturday’s 64-yard score against Auburn gave him another opportunity to do so. It’s what separated Bennett from other options at quarterback last season and once again is a big part of the reason why he has success in Georgia’s offense, even during a time he’s not throwing it quite as well as he would like.
“He brings the ability to make defenses play him honest. You know, you can’t play a guy that can take off running a certain way. And if you do, he’ll expose you,” Smart said on Monday, asked about his quarterback’s running ability. “He gives the ability when people man-match, play split safety converges, he can do things with his feet; third down he becomes a weapon, boot and nakeds, read plays, where you can read and read the backer and read the flow. And, you know, you’re actually defending one extra person. We know that defensively, from some of the quarterbacks we’ve had to face, the nightmare that can create. So we got to do a good job of utilizing that skill set while also keeping him safe.”
Keeping Bennett safe certainly is important. Smart said on Monday that Bennett was “dinged up” after the Missouri game with a shoulder that was bothering him. He took some hits and got knocked down a couple of times. The CBS broadcast crew mentioned it during the course of the game on Saturday, but Bennett didn’t miss any practice as a result of the bumps and bruises. It only forced him to stay warm on the sidelines.
Still, something seemed off about Bennett on Saturday. He went through a different warm-up routine than normal. He was off target on a couple of passes, both short and long, in the first half when he threw for just 25 yards on seven-of-13 passing. While he did turn it around in the second half, completing 15 of 19 attempts for 183 yards, he finished the day without a touchdown pass for the third straight game after throwing for five in his first nine quarters of action alone.
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“I feel great about Stetson as a passer. Always have,” Smart said when asked how he feels about Bennett and his confidence in him after the struggles of the last few weeks. “He does a tremendous job seeing the field. He does a great job going through his reads. He’s got great arm talent. He can throw touch passes. He can anticipate throws as good as anybody in terms of anticipating a guy getting open while he’s getting pressure. I’ve seen him repeatedly do that here. And he’s done a good job in the passing game. So I’m very pleased with where he is in regards to that.”
On the season Bennett has 1,744 passing yards and five touchdowns on 138-of-199 passing. He’s also added another five scores on the ground, most on the team, with a total of 156 yards picked up.
Bennett and the Bulldogs are back in action this week with another SEC matchup between the hedges. Georgia takes on Vanderbilt in the homecoming game at Sanford Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff time is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.
