The Pablo Creek Saints, a Jacksonville, Florida-area Pop Warner team then led by an 11-year-old Carson Beck, trailed Normandy 20-0 in the fourth quarter – during a tropical storm. The game had been delayed hours and started at 9 p.m., only for Beck to throw a couple of interceptions and help his team fall into its deficit.
It might’ve been hard to see, given the weather, but little Beck showed what type of player he’d become amid the rain and 40 mph winds.
“I put my arm around him and said, ‘Here’s where you stand up as a leader because your men around you are counting on you,” said Chris Beck, Carson’s father and coach. “I told him, ‘We’re going to throw the ball just about every play.’ He looked at me like, ‘What?’”
Three onside kicks and four touchdowns later, the Saints won. Players, friends and families celebrated in four inches of rain because the team improbably made the city championship.
Georgia is seeing what the Pablo Creek Saints did that evening: No matter the weather, don’t count out Beck.
After sitting behind Stetson Bennett IV, Beck entered the season among Georgia’s bigger question marks simply because he hadn’t been tasked with starting-quarterback responsibilities since high school. Outside chatter didn’t have him concerned.
According to Beck’s father, before the quarterback began preseason camp, he told his grandmother, “You need not worry about anything. Regardless of what happens during the game, it’s always going to be OK.”
The elder Beck: “Whether it’s life, business or competition, (Carson is) just calm.”
Over halfway through the season, Beck has met or exceeded expectations, improving each week. His level-headed approach already has proved important. In his return to Jacksonville, facing his childhood favorite team, he dismantled the Gators in Georgia’s 43-20 win Saturday.
Coach Kirby Smart and Beck’s teammates echoed each other in saying they knew Beck would embrace the moment. It would’ve been understandable if there were jitters, but instead he never wavered. That’s becoming a trend.
A couple of months ago, Beck and the Bulldogs’ offense seemed off-kilter at times against vastly inferior opponents. It was forgivable since Beck and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo were new to their positions, but Bulldogs fans these days have higher standards than any time in their history.
The two-time defending champions, a program that has lost one game over two seasons shouldn’t slog its way through games against Tennessee-Martin and Alabama-Birmingham, regardless of the changes. South Carolina led Georgia in the fourth quarter. Auburn darn near defeated the Bulldogs.
August and September created a perception that Georgia is vulnerable. Compared with the past two seasons, perhaps it is. But this team is still finding its best self. It’s evident that form is built around Beck.
“We go as he goes,” receiver Ladd McConkey said. “He’s done an awesome job leading us. We’re super lucky to have him.”
When Bennett and offensive coordinator Todd Monken left for the NFL, it wasn’t expected Georgia would be such a pass-reliant team this season, but that’s what it’s become. The defense is pretty good, as usual, but the passing attack largely has keyed Georgia’s undefeated run thus far.
Bulldogs fans are accustomed to good stories with their quarterbacks. Bennett was the walk-on turned two-time champ. Beck was the more-coveted recruit who opted to wait his turn, a rarity in these transfer-portal days.
Beck has been at Georgia since 2020. He acknowledged that maintaining patience was frustrating, but he saw it through and he’s reaping the benefits now.
“He knows the bigger picture of what’s out there,” Beck’s father said. “He focused on determination, work ethic, leadership and finish what you started. He was truly set on this team. These players grew up together. They came as freshmen, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, with expectations through the roof, but they learned very quickly that life can be humbling. He’s acknowledge that himself, what he had to learn and go through.
“But he lives by carpe diem, seize the day. He wanted to finish what he started. He wanted to win one leading it.”
For most of October, Beck has looked like a top-tier signal-caller. There’s even been quiet buzz about his Heisman Trophy candidacy and NFL outlook. That’s what begins surfacing when you string together the outings he’s had. (The older Beck dismisses that talk, “You can only control the controllables.”)
Beck has looked sharp since the second half of the Auburn game Sept. 30, when he and tight end Brock Bowers ensured that Georgia remained unbeaten. He’s found that delicate balance of playmaking and taking what the defense allows. He’s thrown lasers and perfect lobs. Fans expect a couple of “wow” throws a game.
He’s navigated pressure extremely well. He’s increasingly vocal as a leader, according to teammates, and McConkey said Beck is showing more “swagger” as his confidence grows. And as Georgia gets deeper into conference play, Beck looks even better.
This month, against Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Florida, Beck is 76-for-102 passing (75%) for 965 yards with seven touchdowns against two interceptions.
“That’s how he’s grown up: He absolutely did not shy from competition,” the elder Beck said. “He thrives in the moment. It’s just how he’s wired.” Georgia will need his performance to continue this month, with Missouri, Ole Miss and a trip to Tennessee looming.
But that probably doesn’t look daunting compared with a 20-point deficit in a tropical storm.
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
