Kirby Smart share shares his first public thoughts on Gunner Stockton

Gunner Stockton isn’t the first prodigious quarterback talent that Kirby Smart has signed at Georgia. Stockton rates as the nation’s No. 67 overall prospect and the No. 7 overall quarterback. He set a number of state records while playing for Rabun County High School in Tiger, Ga., besting marks set by Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson.

But there’s a uniqueness to Stockton’s story that separates him from the Justin Field’s and Jake Fromm’s of the recent recruiting lore.

For one, Smart has known Stockton longer than most realize. The Georgia head coach’s relationship with the Stockton family dates back to when Smart himself was a recruit.

“The recruitment of Gunner was really interesting because we’ve known, at least I’ve known, Gunner since he was a small kid,” Smart said. “His dad hosted me at an official visit at Georgia Southern many years ago, so I’ve known his dad for a long time. My dad was the high school there was Gunner was a young, young kid.”