Despite recent doubts about his long-term future at UGA, Georgia quarterback Carson Beck made it clear on Sunday that he will play when the Bulldogs (12-1) take on Florida State (13-0) in the 2023 Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on December 30.
At a fan event at an Academy Sports and Outdoors in Atlanta, Beck told reporters about his decision, stating that he assumed people knew he would play in the Bulldogs’ postseason bowl game.
For the team’s ’23 swan song, Georgia coach Kirby Smart will start his starting quarterback. However, Beck characterised the decision he made for ’24 as the “hardest decision of [his] entire life.” There have been persistent rumors that the senior would use the transfer site or declare for the NFL draft.
Beck, who recently finished his fourth season at UGA, threw for 3,728 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions in the ’23 campaign and his first as a starter in replacing two-time CFP national championship signal-caller Stetson Bennett. He has one more year of college eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Georgia appeared to be headed for one of the four coveted CFP spots until Alabama (12–1) knocked off UGA in this year’s SEC championship game, dropping the Bulldogs to No. 6 and lifting the Crimson Tide to No. 4 in the final rankings released on Dec. 3.