Will Kirby Smart declare his starting QB during SEC Media Days? How the Georgia HC expects to replace Stetson Bennett 

Many fans of the Georgia Bulldogs are looking forward to the SEC Media Days and in particular Kirby Smart's appearance at the events. The Media Days are set to kick off on Monday, 17th of July in Nashville, Tennessee.

Smart will be in attendance in the company of three Georgia players, cornerback Kamari Lassiter, Tight end Brock Bowers, and Center Sedrick Van Pran.

From a single glance at the Georgia entourage, one can easily tell what most Bulldogs fans will be curious about at the events. The conspicuous absence of a quarterback among the attendees from Georgia is reflective of the single worry many supporters of the Bulldogs have.

For the past two seasons, Stetson Bennett IV was the starting quarterback for the Bulldogs. He was at the heart of the Georgia team that won consecutive national championships.

2023 CFP National Championship - TCU v Georgia

The Heisman Trophy finalist was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams during this year's NFL Draft and left Kirby Smart in search of a new starter.

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Two candidates are in contention for that spot. Carson Beck and Brock Vandagriff.

It was expected by many fans that Kirby Smart would bring at least one of these two along to the Media Days. That would have been the resounding approval for who among them would be his anointed starter this season. And not bringing either of them may be termed as indicative of the coach's indecision, a situation feared by most fans.

Fans may just be overreacting, however. Smart's reason for leaving Beck and Vandagriff behind may have nothing to do with who starts at quarterback for Georgia this season. The media days are usually intensive and attendees are subject to rigorous questioning by the press.

Not bringing any of them might be Smart's way of protecting them from merciless exposure to the media. It may also be his way of keeping the fans and media guessing about who gets the spot. Whatever his reasons are, he's surely going to be answering questions on that piece of decision at the events.

Beck appears to be ahead of Vandagriff in the race for the starting spot as Georgia's quarterback. Beck was Bennett's primary backup last season and he threw for 310 yards and four touchdowns. He also started for the first team for most of the spring games.

But Vandagriff should not be mistaken to be a pushover. He committed to Georgia as a four-star prospect and ranked 34th in the overall ranking for the 2021 class.