Stetson Bennett gets his shot at Alabama once again
You all know the story by now.
Senior quarterback Stetson Bennett started his career at Georgia in 2017 as a walk-on. He left for junior college, returned, then, against all odds, became the team's starter not once, but twice.
Senior defensive tackle Jordan Davis said that sounds like a 30 for 30 in the making. Bennett's journey will add one more chapter on Saturday afternoon, when the lifelong Georgia fan turned Bulldog signal caller gets one more shot at Alabama.
Bennett's history with Alabama predates that of most of his teammates. He's one of the few Bulldogs left standing from the 2017 squad that lost to the Crimson Tide in the national championship game.
Three years later, Bennett started against Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The Bulldogs led 24-20 at halftime, thanks in part to a pair of Bennett touchdown passes. But two second-half interceptions aided the Crimson Tide as they rallied for a 41-24 victory.
Bennett said neither he nor the team are focused on any "revenge" aspect of this weekend's matchup. He did acknowledge he's grown as a quarterback in his mechanics, along with his understanding of the system in year two of Todd Monken's offense.
One of Bennett's biggest areas of improvement has been ball security. He tossed six interceptions in 155 attempts in 2020, with half of those coming against Alabama. In 2021, he's allowed five picks in 183 pass attempts.
"Just knowing that incompletions don’t kill you," Bennett said of his better ball security. "You don’t have to win the game on every play, and you can’t win it on every play. Our defense and the players we have, just focusing on the strengths of our team and not trying to do it all yourself."
Head coach Kirby Smart said Bennett's improvement comes down to three main factors.
Bennett's increased experience is the first and most obvious one. Smart also said offensive line protection is vital, along with avoiding tough situations such as third-and-long.
"If you get yourself in a bunch of third and longs, I don’t care who your quarterback is, he’s going to struggle, because those take longer routes downfield to develop, if you’re going to try to get a first down," Smart said.
Bennett's challenge is to keep his aggressive mindset while also avoiding the same killer mistakes he made last year.
"You can’t go out there and think, ‘Be careful here,’ because that’s how you play not to lose instead of play to win," Bennett said. "It’s just those million reps that you have to practice with the mindset of protect the ball and also be a ballplayer."
The unlikely story of Bennett will add its first SEC Championship Game start at 4:00 on Saturday. He briefly entered the 2019 LSU title clash when Jake Fromm went down with an injury. Bennett described the moment as sending a "giant shock of lightning" through him when he realized he'd be entering the game.
Now, he's tasked with guiding the Bulldogs in their biggest game of the season. One more time, the former walk-on from Blackshear gets his shot at dethroning the kings of the SEC.