To no one's surprise, quarterback talk dominated Todd Monken's Orange Bowl press conference.

Georgia's offensive coordinator answered various forms of the question Kirby Smart has heard all season: Why is Stetson Bennett IV starting and not JT Daniels? Monken gave the same response as Smart, that the coaching staff feels Bennett gives the team the best chance to win.

Toward the end of his media session, however, Monken made a declaration. With the bright lights on, Monken doubled down on his belief in Georgia's ability to win with Bennett.

"If you look at the plays he's made, he's made national championship plays. He has," Monken said. "You turn on the film and look at some of the throws he makes, the decisions he makes, the things he does with his feet. There's no doubt in my mind we can win the national championship. There's no doubt in my mind we can win it with Stetson Bennett."

For those who have been under a rock the past four months, here's a recap of Georgia's 2021 quarterback situation.

Daniels began the year as the starter. He missed the second game of the season against UAB with an oblique injury. Bennett stepped in and delivered a strong performance, tossing five touchdowns.

Daniels reclaimed the starting role for the next two contests against South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Bennett stepped back in on Oct. 2 against Arkansas as Daniels went down with a lat injury. It's been Bennett's show since then, as he's started the last nine games for the Bulldogs.

So, how did we get here? According to Monken, Bennett took his opportunity and ran with it. It's nothing to do with what Daniels did or didn't do, but rather what Bennett showed in practice.

The staff "probably undervalued his skill set" at times, Monken said, but when he got his shot, Bennett showed what he can do.

"We've tried to elevate guys that have talent on our roster, and we do that at every position, and some guys just combat that and fight and scratch and continue to play well and try to prove you wrong, and that's what Stetson Bennett did," Monken said.

Monken felt the flow of the season never changed to where a switch back to Daniels had to happen. The Bulldogs kept winning with Bennett under center. His hold on the starting job became stronger and stronger.

"For some reason, we get into this stereotyping of players based on where they were at some point....be it one was a walk-on, one was a 5-star, one was a whatever," Monken said. "Just look at the production of what (Stetson) has done for our football team. It's impressive."

That's not to say Bennett and the offense experienced only sunshine and rainbows since he took over.

The Bulldogs have struggled to move the ball at times in games throughout the season. Bennett has been far from perfect. He's missed throws at times, and he fired a pair of killer interceptions in the SEC Championship Game loss to Alabama.

Monken noted the production ultimately falls on him as the offensive coordinator. But while Bennett hasn't been flawless, Monken still feels he's the best option.

"There are times in games where any of our players don't play their best, and we're disappointed in how they played," Monken said. "But the body of work that we felt like that Stetson had given us I think allowed us to carry it over to the next weeks. The reality is that we don't know what's behind the next decision. We know what we make the decision based on what we see on a daily basis."

For Bennett's part, he said he doesn't listen to the outside noise. That goes for both praise and criticism.

"I wouldn't listen to myself if I was giving a speech on heart surgery. Not comparing football to heart surgery, but it's the same kind of gist," Bennett said. "So why would I listen to somebody who doesn't do this for a living and just watches it happen? It really doesn't bother me. It's a bit frustrating sometimes, I guess, but like I said, I don't have social media, so I don't wallow in it. I don't sit in it. I don't think about it."

Bennett is the guy now for the Bulldogs under center. For better and for worse, he's gotten the Bulldogs to this point.

As Monken noted, Georgia entered the game against Alabama a favorite. The Bulldogs are once again favored heading into the Orange Bowl on Friday against Michigan.

Monken wants to see Bennett continue to do what he's done all year. He also noted that Georgia's quarterback needs to limit turnovers and make the plays that are presented to him.

No matter what happens against Michigan on Friday night, Bennett goes into the biggest start of his life with the full confidence of his coaches.