Vandagriff relishes the lessons he's learned from Todd Monken

As the son of a successful high school football coach, quarterback Brock Vandagriff has been learning about the game his entire life.

Knowledge is everything.

That’s why, when people ask Vandagriff about his future role in a competitive quarterback room with the Bulldogs, he’s got a stock answer ready to go.

Thanks to offensive coordinator Todd Monken, lessons continue to be learned. And that’s why the former Prince Avenue star is apparently content where he’s at in this stage of his Georgia career.

According to Vandagriff, if he felt he wasn't developing as a quarterback he "would already have left," adding that every rep he gets under Monken is "invaluable."

Vandagriff said Monken was the main reason he decided to come to Georgia after de-committing from Oklahoma.

Although Athens was obviously closer to home, it was the opportunity to play for the former NFL offensive coordinator which attracted him the most.

“With Coach Monken, it was just the fact he’s an NFL guy and almost everything he does is statistically driven,” Vandagriff said. “Plus, just the way he coaches and carries himself is something I wanted to be a part of.”

With Stetson Bennett moving on, Vandagriff, along with Carson Beck and Gunner Stockton, will have the opportunity to put their stamp on the starting job this spring.

Expect the competition to be fierce.

“Everybody in the quarterback room is my friend, and I’d say everyone else feels the same,” Vandagriff said. “But we compete outside; we play pool, we play ping pong—it’s just a good dynamic that we have going.”

Last fall, Vandagriff was essentially Georgia’s third-team quarterback behind Bennett and Beck, playing in just three games after the scores became out of hand, attempting just two passes and receiving only 11 reps over that time.

However, that does not count all the hours and all the reps put in during the course of the spring, fall camp, and practice during the season, time which Vandagriff once again says has been invaluable to his development.

All three quarterbacks have been the beneficiaries.

“It’s been kind of a thing where everyone is just learning from each other. The reps that you get in practice are invaluable, whether it’s scout team reps, going with the twos, or going with the threes. Whatever it is, all your reps are invaluable here,” Vandagriff said. “Whenever you’re going in intrasquads, you’re probably going against either the No. 1 or No. 2 defenses in the nation. Coach Monken treats every quarterback the same, how he’s coaching, what he’s relaying to you. I appreciate that, and I know the other quarterbacks do as well.”

Along with improving his physical skills, getting the mental part of the game down has certainly been important, too.

When Vandagriff talks about “preparing to start” every game, he’s not kidding.

“You have to go through every week like you’re the guy. I know I do, Carson does, and Gunner does. We take all our meetings very seriously, and you have to go in and do your job,” Vandagriff said. “There’s a lot of people who are counting on you. Carson was one ankle away, I was two ankles away—you’ve always got to be prepared, and if your number is called, you have to go out and do your job.”

Vandagriff said his current situation with the Bulldogs is the exact situation he spoke about with his father Greg before deciding on the Bulldogs.

“We said, 'Would you rather go somewhere and get thrown in the fire right away, and maybe not be as prepared you want, and maybe not have the guys around you as you would want, or would you rather go to a place like Georgia and know you're going to get developed by one of the best offensive coordinators in the nation?'" Vandagriff said.

The choice was simple.

Come spring, we’ll see what kind of impression he ultimately makes.