Nine for Nine, Then Came the Bill

Evening Edition — filed after the afternoon news cycle.

GEORGIA MONEYBALL — Sunday, September 27, 2026

Gunner Stockton opened Saturday like a man who couldn't miss, then found out in the second half what the rest of us already knew: nobody stays perfect for long.

ALBANY, GA — · By the RFA Sports Desk

For a while on Saturday, Gunner Stockton played quarterback the way the rest of us remember playing it in the backyard. DawgNation reported that he completed his first nine passes against Oklahoma, and one of them was a 35-yard touchdown to Talyn Taylor. Nine for nine. Any sensible Southerner who strings together nine of anything, whether ringers at the horseshoe pit or green lights on the way to church, knows to quit while he's ahead. Luck is borrowed, and the lender always comes back to collect.

The lender came back in the second half. Stockton's first throw after halftime was intercepted, and it was his first interception of the season. By DawgNation's count it came on the 57th pass he had thrown this year, which is a long time to go without a single one going to the wrong shirt. After that he went 4 of 13 for 68 yards, and Georgia scored 13 points after halftime. That was the Bulldogs' lowest-scoring half of the season. It still counts as a win, but you wouldn't call the second half a pleasure.

A young quarterback who hands the credit to somebody else and keeps the blame for himself will be all right in this town.

What I liked came afterward. Stockton didn't hide behind the scoreboard. Dawg Post reported that he talked about the other side of the ball first, saying the defense 'played their butts off' and 'gave us a really good position.' About the second half he said, 'it's not gonna be perfect,' and that the team has to keep a next-play mentality. That's how a grown man talks. A young quarterback who hands the credit to somebody else and keeps the blame for himself will be all right in this town.

The next test comes to Athens looking familiar. Georgia, now 4-0, hosts Vanderbilt for homecoming on Oct. 3, with kickoff at 12:45 on SEC Network. The Commodores come in 3-1 after losing 21-15 at Auburn, and their quarterback is true freshman Jared Curtis, who was once committed to Georgia. So Stockton gets a week to get over his first interception, and then he'll look across the field at a young man who once planned to wear the same colors he does. That's the sort of thing people in the stands will be talking about.

Meanwhile, down in Gainesville there's a party going on that I didn't RSVP to. No. 21 Florida beat No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28 and put up 498 yards on them. Jadan Baugh ran for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns, and the Gators scored touchdowns on all five of their second-half drives. Georgia people should pay attention. When the team from Jacksonville's other sideline scores on every possession after halftime while we manage 13 points, that's worth a quiet word at Monday's film session.

None of this is cause for panic. Georgia led 28-0 at the half, won by 28, and stayed No. 2 in the Associated Press poll. But a season has a long memory, and Stockton will be judged less by those nine straight completions than by the throw after the interception, and the one after that. He already sounds like he understands it. Perfect is a nice place to visit. The good ones learn to live without it.

The Notebook

• LAST SNAP IN ANN ARBOR: No. 17 Iowa beat No. 18 Michigan 20–19 on a touchdown pass on the final play of the game. It was Iowa's first win over Michigan since 2016.
• NO. 1 SWEATED IT: Texas held on at No. 14 Tennessee, 20–17, and Colin Simmons had 5 sacks, tying the program record. The Vols recovered an onside kick, but their last throw into the end zone was broken up.
• BADGERS BITE BACK: Unranked Wisconsin trailed 17-0 at halftime and came back to win 24-20 at No. 13 Penn State. Colton Joseph threw a short pass to Jacob Harris that went 72 yards for the go-ahead score with under two minutes left.

Written in the tradition of Lewis Grizzard, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 1946–1994.

Hear the desk read tonights report on Radio Free Albany, WPFQ 96.7.