Gunner Stockton explains what happened in latest Georgia football clapping incident

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Once again, there was a clapping incident during a Georgia football game.

On a fourth-and-8 in the second quarter, Georgia was aiming to get Florida to jump offside. Florida did and Georgia’s Gunner Stockton fired an incomplete pass down the field.

But when the official came to announce the penalty, the head official flagged Stockton for “simulating the snap count.”

“It’s a mechanic thing that they think that he’s overdoing the clap, which is, I mean, whatever,” Smart said. “He overdoes it all the time. I’m like, ‘Gunner, quit gyrating before you clap, because you’re telling the defense when the ball’s being snapped.’ He did the clap on that play exactly like he did every play. But it got called, so we honor the call.”

The penalty led to a Georgia punt, instead of additional points.

“I think I was just movin’ too much,” Stockton said. “I think I have a pretty loud, like, aggressive clap, and I just need to not do that.”

Georgia ended up not needing the points, in part because of how Stockton played in the fourth quarter. While it wasn’t a flawless game for Stockton, he again made it count when Georgia needed it most.

Georgia trailed 20-17 with just under eight minutes to go when Stockton fired an 18-yard pass to Zachariah Branch to pick up a third down. It marked Georgia’s first first down since its opening drive of the second half.

Stockton completed his next two pass attempts to Frazier and then Branch again to put the ball at the Florida 36-yard line.

The junior quarterback then won with his mind. He audibled Georgia out of its initially called running play into a different run.

Chauncey Bowens and the offensive line did the rest, as Bowens’ 36-yard run proved to be the difference in the 24-20 win.

“I thought that the check on the run for the touchdown was the second-biggest play of the game, because Gunner saw something, changed the O-line, picked it up,” Smart said. “It’s really hard to run that, it’s hard to defend that play with them stunting the line as they were doing. It was a great check by him.”

On the game-winning drive, Stockton completed all three of pass attempts for 38 yards.

After a defensive stop from Georgia, Stockton iced the game by helping Georgia pick up two first downs.

The final drive became the latest area where Stockton showed how much he’s grown. After picking up a third down conversion, he could have walked into the end zone to put Georgia up 31-20.

Instead, Stockton knelt down just shy of the end zone. Much to the dismay of Georgia bettors and those with Stockton Heisman futures.

“Really just don’t score like I did at Auburn, so make sure our defense didn’t go back down on the field,” Stockton said. “And this is the best play, victory formation, so I’m glad we ended that way.”

Stockton didn’t have his best game, throwing for 223 yards. His 13 rushing attempts, a career high, netted only 11 yards.

He had touchdown passes to Dillon Bell and Noah Thomas. But a first-quarter pass went off the hands of Thomas and into the waiting arms of Florida’s Devin Moore.

Yet Stockton was again at his best in the biggest moments. He’s made the clutch common for Georgia this year.