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Georgia Opens Spring Practice With Stockton as the Undisputed Starter and Nine Portal Additions to Integrate
Seventh in Heisman voting last year. Eight defensive starters back to test him. G-Day is April 18. The evaluation question the spring is designed to answer is whether Stockton can generate offense on his own.
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
The University of Georgia opened its 2026 spring practice schedule Monday with Gunner Stockton taking first-team snaps as the undisputed starter under Kirby Smart — the first time Stockton has entered a spring camp without a competition above him on the depth chart.
Stockton finished seventh in Heisman voting in 2025, completing what the program characterized as a strong first full starting season. The evaluation community has not yet reached consensus on his ceiling, but entering the spring, Smart's program is the consensus preseason favorite in the SEC, backed by the depth of a returning roster that includes eight defensive starters and multiple returning contributors on the offensive side.
The spring's most significant additions came through the transfer portal. Wide receiver Isiah Canion arrived from Georgia Tech and is expected to compete for a starting role opposite the returning outside receivers. Defensive end Amaris Williams transferred from Auburn and joins a defensive front that was already among the deepest in the conference. Both additions reflect Smart's willingness to use the portal to address specific positional needs without sacrificing depth-chart clarity at established positions.
The defensive line's depth and the offensive line's continuity under new position group leadership are the two primary structural questions Smart identified entering the spring. Nine portal additions in total are being integrated into a program that has finished in the top five nationally in each of the last four seasons — a volume of change that is significant but manageable given the roster's overall stability.
The Georgia program has G-Day scheduled for April 18 at Sanford Stadium. Spring practice will run fifteen sessions between today and that date. The evaluation of Stockton's growth in pure passing situations — the question about whether he can generate offense independently in games where the structural advantages Smart's system provides are not sufficient — is the organizing question the spring is designed to answer.
Sources: "Georgia football 2026 spring practice schedule," SicEmDawgs | "Georgia spring practice preview — quarterbacks," 247Sports | "SEC football spring 2026 power rankings," Athlon Sports
Offtackle Staff Writers