Is Carson Back? The past few weeks were not easy for Kirby Smart’s key player. He was in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. However, last week, he bounced back and led the Bulldogs to a 31-17 victory over Tennessee. Once a top prospect for the NFL Draft next year, the Bulldogs QB1 gave his naysayers all the right stuff to attack his stock- interceptions, poor passes and inability to make plays. The Bama defense exposed something, and since then, it was a downhill ride. Against the Vols, though, 347 yards, 2 TDs, 25/40 completions, and a second half in which Carson Beck reminded everyone why Kirby Smart continues to bat for him. However, not everyone is convinced.

Former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray has an important message for Beck. On November 22, Murray made an appearance at The Next Round podcast, discussed Carson Beck’s performance and highlighted the need for improvement despite a big game against Tennessee.

“I’m not trying to make excuses for Carson. He has to be better. If you want to be a first-round quarterback, which I still believe, if you can bottle up what you saw in Athens a week ago and replicate that going forward. Not only does Georgia becomes a favorite, in my mind, at the National Championship, but he works his way back into the first round. He is capable of playing like that.” 

After a long time, Bulldogs fans got to see Beck at his best. His 19-yard touchdown pass to Oscar Delp was the highlight of the game. However, Murray has more to say.

“I don’t want to say, Hey, you’re going to go on the road; that means you’re going to throw two or three interceptions. That has to be better.” Well, that’s something Beck needs to take care of. If a young quarterback gets associated with the interception tag, it’s a tough road to get back in the good books. However, as we have discussed all along, the blame for Georgia’s bad offensive outings doesn’t lie with Carson Beck in totality. The other things also improved in their Week 12 game.

“The guys around him [Beck] have to be better. And you saw guys step up this past weekend as well. Guys making plays down the field, receivers catching the football. Tight end catching the football. Yurosek. Oscar, who struggled early on in the season. So I think you’re starting to see confidence with him and his weapons. Obviously, the offensive line played the best game they have played in the entire season,” Murray said.

Last Saturday, Beck’s passes were near perfect and landed straight into the players’ shoulders; in fact, one of his passes led to a game-sealing touchdown for his team. The Bulldogs needed that victory to solidify their place in the playoffs.

Carson Beck: “That’s Kirby Smart.”

Is head coach Kirby Smart one of the reasons for Beck’s comeback? He has been defending Beck for more than three weeks. When his inconsistent performances made headlines, Smart was often questioned if he was going to bench his QB1, but Smart just held onto his horses. That is what sets him apart from other head coaches.

Recently, Carson Beck had an interview with Fox 5 Atlanta, where he expressed his gratitude to HC. “It’s awesome; truly, I really don’t know how to explain how that feels. But after that Florida game, obviously, I didn’t perform the way I wanted to. I probably had like three bad plays… but no, I thought like I played really well but those three mistakes obviously make me feel like I’m down in  myself.” This season, Beck has appeared in all 10 games and has managed to put up 2,835 yards and make 19 touchdown passes in total. Although he was off the track for a long time, the Bulldogs’ defense took the responsibility and led the program to an 8-2 record.

Further, Beck appreciated Smart for his constant support and added, “After the game, he (Kirby Smart) stands up in front of the whole team and like gives like a whole speech saying… just kind of talking about me. For him to do that and stand up in front of the team and have my back in that moment, and obviously he’s had my back in front of the media, that’s huge for me. That’s Kirby Smart. It means a lot to me. It makes me want to play hard for him.” That says a lot about their strong bond. But now, to compete for a playoff spot, Beck has to maintain this consistency. Will he?