Georgia's football team is prioritizing explosive plays in 2026 after a drop in downfield production during Gunner Stockton's first season as starting quarterback. The team's focus is on improving both the passing and running game to achieve this goal.
Georgia football is aiming to generate more explosive plays on offense in 2026 after a decline in that area last season.
The Bulldogs saw a drop in plays of 20 or more yards during Gunner Stockton’s first year as the team's starting quarterback. The team produced 58 such plays in 2025, a decrease from 69 in 2024 and 85 in 2023.
Wide receiver London Humphrey said that spring practices are a good time to work on downfield plays to build comfort between the quarterbacks and receivers.
Under offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, Georgia's passing game saw a significant decrease in explosive plays. The team ranked 56th nationally in pass plays of 20 or more yards with 42 in 2025, a drop from 8th in 2024 (59) and 6th in 2023 (65). The 2023 season was Carson Beck’s first as the starter.
Pass plays of 30 or more yards also fell to 17 last season, down from 26 in 2024 and 29 in 2023. Passes of 40 or more yards decreased to 4 from 9 in 2024 and 16 in 2023. While runs of 20 or more yards increased from 10 in 2024 to 16 in 2025, the passing game's struggles are a clear area for improvement. Bobo needs to find ways to get the passing game back on track.
Coach Kirby Smart said that the responsibility for increasing explosiveness does not fall solely on Gunner Stockton. He said that the team needs to improve in both the run and pass game. Smart specifically mentioned downfield blocking and making defenders miss as keys to the running game's success. He also noted the importance of decision-making, protection, and vertical plays in the passing game.
Smart said the team needs someone to “pop” every year to create explosive plays. He added that explosive plays come from skill players, and teams need explosive players to be explosive. He specifically mentioned needing to get explosive players touches through scheme and personnel. It's not clear whether this Georgia team currently has those players.
Stockton completed 69.7% of his passes for 2,894 yards with 24 touchdowns and 5 interceptions in 2025. He also rushed for 462 yards and 10 touchdowns and finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting. Stockton acknowledged the need to cut loose and take more deep shots without being overly concerned about interceptions.
Former Georgia defensive end David Pollack said that Stockton needs to develop as a passer to take Georgia to the next level. Pollack added that Stockton is a kid that doesn’t want to mess up and wants to be perfect. It's a fair assessment, but one wonders if the conservative approach is by design.
Stockton said that getting the ball to playmakers is key to improving the offense. Tight end Lawson Luckie said that tight ends need to do their part in order to give the quarterback time to take deep shots. Smart said that many of the team’s explosive plays last season came on unscheduled downs and broken plays. He added that the team needs to simulate those situations more in practice to allow Stockton to grow in making those plays. Smart said that the first step for Stockton is to take what the defense gives him, use the skill set of the players around him, and be more explosive.
Smart said the team is “somewhere in the middle” in terms of explosiveness this spring, seeing times when the offense is explosive and times when it isn’t. He said that being explosive is not complicated, requiring only scheme and personnel.
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