ATHENS, Ga. – How well Gunner Stockton will perform is still unclear. But as the world learns about him off the field, Stockton’s authentic Georgia folk hero personalities are fleshed out: his small-town roots, how he got his name, the fact that he drives a 1984 Ford pickup. Now add one more thing: cows.

Stockton keeps four or five cows at home in Rabun County, which has become a running joke among some of his Georgia teammates.

“He’s old-fashioned,” said terse Oscar Delp, one of Stockton’s roommates. “He’s not a materialistic guy. He’s not into NIL (name, image and likeness) type things. He’s just a guy who likes to be with his friends and his cows.”

There is no known connection between cattle ownership and quarterback ability, and in less than a week Georgia will face Notre Dame in the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff. Here are some football-related takeaways from Saturday, the day before Georgia heads to New Orleans, when offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and four of his players met with members of the media.

The Stockton schedule

Georgia guard Tate Ratledge forgot something at the team facility one evening this week, and when he returned to retrieve it at 10 p.m., he saw Stockton still there, watching film. That wasn’t unusual, according to Delp, who said Stockton watched film for four to five hours after regular-season practice without knowing whether he would even play.

But he knew he was the No. 2 quarterback, and Bobo said he could tell Stockton “took to heart” that he needed to prepare every week as if he were the starter. That helped him seamlessly replace Carson Beck in the second half of the SEC Championship Game and immediately score a touchdown drive. But it was still a game plan focused on Beck’s more pocket passing abilities.

“Now that we’re starting to prepare for the game, things are focused on (Stockton) and his skills and what he’s good at,” Bobo said. “So things are a little more specific to him. He is asked questions about whether he likes this scheme or game in practice and whether we implement it or not. We’re having these conversations whereas before it was with Carson because he was the starter.”

The extra time to prepare should be a big help. Before knowing whether it would play Notre Dame or Indiana, Georgia took a “back to basics” approach in the first week of practice, according to Bobo, putting Stockton in more situational drills: two-minute, third-down and red -Zone situations.

“He has some of it, but not as much as your starter,” Bobo said. “For him to get those reps against our defense, a lot of situations coach (Kirby) Smart can put us in can only help him.”

It helped Stockton take full control of the offense instead of serving as an understudy this year or as the scout team quarterback the previous two years.

“Now I can say he has full control of this group,” Ratledge said.

However, the spark was already there when Stockton entered the game during the SEC Championship Game. The last few weeks of practice have solidified it.

“Just looking at how he’s behaved over the last few years leading up to this moment and doing everything right, Gunner is just a guy you’d want to keep in check,” Ratledge said. “He’s just a great guy, plays with a lot of emotion, brings everyone along, and now he has the whole team behind him and is ready to get started.”

Bobo: “It didn’t go smoothly”

The SEC Championship was a good day for the Bobo family. Mike received his first championship ring as a coordinator, something that eluded him during his first stint at Georgia. And his son Drew, normally an offensive lineman, completed a pass to Arian Smith on a fake punt in the second half, one of the game’s key plays.

However, Mike Bobo admitted that he didn’t know what his son had done. He was upset when the Bulldogs tried to strike again and was looking at his playsheet when tight ends coach Todd Hartley elbowed him: “Hey, we’re ahead on offense.” And it wasn’t until after the game that he learned that his son was the one who threw the pass.

“I’m glad he did it and didn’t screw it up. Then we would have two Bobos that everyone could yell at,” Bobo said.

The offense hasn’t had a stellar year: Georgia ranks 30th in scoring and 42nd in yards per play. But four of his games came against defenses ranked in the top 10 nationally and two others ranked in the top 20.

This is Bobo’s second year as coordinator. When he met with the media this time last year, it was a statistically better year, but the team had no chance of a championship. This time, Bobo still has the chance to dictate history.

“We are a very resilient group as a football team and offensively,” Bobo said. “Somehow it hasn’t been perfect all year. And it’s never perfect. But it didn’t go smoothly. And we kind of assumed that it might be difficult.”

Run the damn ball?

Georgia has two new tailback injuries: Roderick Robinson and Branson Robinson are both expected to miss the remainder of the playoffs after sustaining unspecified injuries during practice. This means that both players’ injury-filled seasons have come to an end and the team’s two best-performing runners are eliminated.

It wasn’t a great rushing season anyway, as Bobo admitted. Georgia ranks just 11th in the SEC in rushing yards per attempt and 15th in rushing yards per game overall. Georgia has been ranked in the top three the last three seasons and was once known as Tailback U., including during Bobo’s first stint as offensive coordinator.

“Of course it’s frustrating,” Bobo said. “We pride ourselves on being able to run the ball. I could sit here and give you reasons, but they would just be excuses. I could say injuries, I could say this, basically it would be excuses.”

Injuries were a factor. Leading rusher Trevor Etienne missed four entire games and was limited in several others with a rib injury. Branson Robinson has played in just six games and Roderick Robinson has played in just two. On offense, Ratledge, center Jared Wilson and tackle Earnest Greene were each missing multiple games.

But the offensive line is pretty healthy now. So is Etienne, and in Nate Frazier, Georgia has two dynamic options out of the backfield, while Cash Jones is an experienced blocker and pass catcher. With Stockton at quarterback, a better running game will be a necessity against Notre Dame and perhaps beyond, Bobo said.

“We have to be able to run the ball if we want to continue winning in these playoffs,” Bobo said. “We have to find ways to move the ball on the floor. We have a good offensive line that I think is the healthiest we’ve ever had. Then it’s the commitment to running. We must remain determined, whether things go well or badly. This helps us maintain balance and ultimately helps with passing.”

(Top photo: Dale Zanine / Imagn Images)