Every Georgia football fan in America has expected Gunner Stockton to be their quarterback in 2026. Stockton completed 269 passes on 386 attempts (69.7%) for 2,894 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. He added 462 yards rushing on 129 attempts and 10 touchdowns. This was a big part of why the Bulldogs won their 2nd of back-to-back SEC Championships and made back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances.
It was confirmed on Monday that Stockton has signed a new NIL deal with the Bulldogs for the 2026 season, according to On3’s Pete Nakos.
Gunner Stockton takes less money to play for Georgia in 2026
“Gunner did agree to a deal with UGA for the 2026 season,” his rep, Faryn Healy of ESM, told On3. “He did not feel an announcement was necessary as he is a player who would never consider transferring. He could have earned two to three times more by entering the portal, but Gunner bleeds red and black.”
In an unselfish move, Stockton actually took less money than what he could have gotten. Stockton is a true leader and puts the team before himself.
“Gunner wanted UGA to have the budget to retain and acquire the talent for the roster needed to compete for another championship,” Healy said. “Gunner doesn’t play football at UGA for money. Leading that team is his lifelong dream.”
Stockton’s leadership is one of the things that Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart loves most about his starting QB.
“He’s an effective leader,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart told reporters after Stockton’s first start in August. “He’s a passionate leader. You get what you expect. Gunner cares about every one of his teammates. He treats everyone the same. He leads, he’s passionate about it. People say, well, does he have fire, passion, and energy? If you compete against him in something, he does. He’s got a lot of fire, passion, and energy. I think you saw it on some of those runs, how bad he wants it, and how bad he competes. I mean, there are things that you can look back on this game, and he can do better, and he can make some decisions. But I think everybody on the team loves the guy because he’s so genuine. He’s genuinely him. He’s just, he is who he is. He doesn’t try to put up a fake facade. He’s just a worker.”
2 Responses
I, like all UGA fans are simply thrilled to have Gunner represent our State University…He represents everything great about collegiate athletics
Man, what a quarterback he was at Rabun County. I lived in Douglasville and always waited for the high school scores every Friday night just to see how they did. Strange how a person can get attached to a certain team outside their area. Great young man and an example for other jocs.