Beck's Last Stand

Editor's Note: When this story was first published on 12/23/24, it was believed that Carson Beck would be declaring for the NFL draft after the season. Since then, he has transferred to the University of Miami and will be competing at the NCAA level for one more year. For transparency, the story below remains unchanged since it's initial publication, even though it is no longer accurate.   

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    Earlier today, University of Georgia officials announced that quarterback Carson Beck will miss the remainder of the college football season after undergoing surgery to repair the UCL in his right elbow. Beck sustained the injury during the final play of the first half in the SEC Championship Game against the Texas Longhorns back on December 7th.

  Winning this game meant that Georgia earned a first round bye in the College Football Playoffs, so their next game isn't until January 1st. Bulldogs fans were optimistic that having almost a month of rest between games would be enough to get Beck healthy enough for the next round, but the injury was too severe for anything other than season ending surgery. Backup quarterback Gunner Stockton will be under center when the Bulldogs take on #3 ranked Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day.

  The latest details of this injury do not help Carson Beck's draft odds. His final appearance saw a stat line of 7 completions on 13 attempts for a total of 56 passing yards. No touchdowns, no interceptions, no resemblance to the quarterback we saw over the last few weeks. Georgia had only put 3 points on the board when Beck got injured, then went on to score 13 more points without him in the second half to take the game into overtime. Given the timing of the surgery, he will likely not be able to participate in the Combine. A younger player in the same situation might get told to go back to school for another year.

    Regardless of what happens next for Carson Beck, he should be remembered for his final play in college. What the box score of that SEC Championship Game won’t tell you is that after Beck suffered that UCL injury that would later end his season, he actually came back out onto the field for one more play. He wasn’t asked to do anything amazing on that play, but the fact that he went out there is a heroic display of fortitude and an intangible team-first attitude that NFL teams should remember when weighing their options in April.

    On the second to last play of the game, Gunner Stockton dropped back to pass and elected to tuck it and run for the first down. He got it, and kept going for the endzone. He made it just inside the 5 yard line, where he was met with a brutal hit from Longhorn defensive back Andrew Mukuba. Stockton was dropped and his helmet went flying a few feet behind him. It was the kind of hit that makes everybody in the stadium go silent. Mukuba was flagged for targeting on the hit, but after review there was no penalty on the play. It was a legal hit, but it knocked Stockton out of the game.  

    Georgia has other quarterbacks on the roster, but head coach Kirby Smart decided to send Carson Beck back in to replace the injured Stockton. As he jogged back onto the field, he was very clearly dealing with a lot of pain and discomfort. His throwing hand dangled motionless at his side while he re-joined the huddle, and one announcer said “I don’t think he can move his arm”. In the end, he only needed to be out there for one play. On that 1st and goal to go from the 4, Trevor Etienne took the handoff from Beck and got all 4 yards he needed to walk off with the SEC Championship.

    Handing the ball off one more time isn't going to get him any individual glory, but the fact that he was out on the field at all in that situation is a testament to the toughness of Carson Beck and the type of teammate he is. His college career should've been over at halftime, but with his team down by 3 and the conference championship on the line, he got an opportunity to help his team earn an overtime victory and he took it. He battled through the pain when his team needed him and did his job on the final play to win the game. That's how his college career should be remembered.