Considering his defense struggled against him Shooter Stockton Bulldog defensive coordinator for three years Glenn Schumann has an idea of ​​what kind of problems Georgia’s new starting quarterback could cause Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.

“He makes you defend the whole field and he makes sure you play honestly on defense. “You have to account for him with every move,” Schumann said on Friday. “It opens up a lot of the plays we talk about with Riley Leonard, where he extends plays and can throw the ball down the field that way. He does that. You have to take him into account in your haste when you play certain coverages.”

While Georgia won’t change its offense, Schumann said Stockton’s ability to extend plays with his legs should serve the Bulldogs well.

Defensive end Mykel Williams said Stockton’s knowledge of the crime was obvious.

“Gunner has a steady, steady hand. I feel like Gunner has the team behind him at the moment. We believe in his abilities,” Williams said. “We believe in his ability to get the job done and do what we need. So I guess I’ll leave it at that.”

Linebackers Jalon Walker agreed.

While Walker can’t predict what will happen in the Sugar Bowl, the Butkus Award winner said Stockton will have plenty of confidence.

“Gunnar is a confident player,” Walker said. “He has confidence in his abilities and is always determined to make the best plays possible, not only for himself but for our team.”

Security Malaki Starks knows Stockton better than most.

The two were high school rivals, with Starks’ Jefferson High team clashing with Stockton’s Rabun team twice during her prep career and three times before that.

“I think I’ve been playing against Gunners since I was five. He beat me every year in rec league when we were little. I met him twice in high school. But you know, he’s always been that guy,” Starks said. “Ever since I grew up he was always the guy that, you know, we’re going to play Rabun County, damn we have to play Gunner. That’s just how it is. He sat and put in his time. He worked while he waited and now he gets the chance to go out and prove what he can do. I believe in him 100 percent.

After quarterbacking the Bulldogs to help Georgia win over Texas in the second half of the SEC Championship, that belief has only grown stronger.

“I mean, he’s the guy you want to lead and get behind. A lot of people have trust in him. I think you saw it during the SEC game, a lot of people believed in him,” Starks said. “He’s easy to follow. But he also puts in a lot of work and wants to get better. He asks questions every day. You can see where he’s going with this. I think that’s something big that everyone loves to see about him.”

If Stockton is able to repeat his performances in practice, Schumann is confident the first-time starter will perform well.

“A big part of quarterback play these days is letting the defense play honestly,” Schumann said. “I think that’s the biggest thing about Gunner, he’s extremely competitive. He adds a dimension to the offense that you’ve all seen a little bit of in the past, and we’ve seen a lot of that over the years.”