Georgia QB Carson Beck has decided to enter the NCAA's Transfer Portal after initially declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft. The two-year starter for the Bulldogs immediately becomes one of the biggest names to enter the portal and is sure to generate a ton of interest, and quite a bit of NIL dollars.
Beck entered the 2024 season as a projected first-round draft pick but suffered through some injury issues and uneven performance. Beck struggled with turnovers, doubling his interception total from last season. He tossed 12 picks, but still managed to rank 8th in the country in QBR at 80.9.
Inconsistent play from his wide receivers undoubtedly had a big impact on his performance. The Bulldogs were not able to replace the production and trust Beck had in Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey.
Beck is likely to miss spring practice after undergoing elbow surgery but is expected to be fully healthy for the summer and fall camps, meaning he'll be more than ready to go at the start of the 2025 season.
Beck is a polarizing player. A lot of Georgia fans seem happy that he's moving on, ready to begin the Gunnar Stockton era in Athens. But the grass ain't always greener with those things.
I think it's ultimately unlikely that Alabama is a serious contender for his services. He is going to command serious NIL money and the Crimson Tide has been reluctant to get into bidding wars.
The early favorite appears to be Miami. The Hurricanes are desperate to win the ACC and get to the College Football and they are willing to pay a pretty penny to make it happen. With Cam Ward gone, the need at QB is obvious. Couple that with the fact that Beck's girlfriend is at Miami, and it makes sense that they are the likely landing spot.
But Beck is sure to listen to offers. Along with finding the right money, Beck has to be interested in going somewhere that could recover his NFL Draft stock. That would make Alabama an intriguing landing spot for the Georgia star.
Since Jalen Hurts, all of Alabama's starting quarterbacks have been drafted within the first two rounds of the draft, including three first-rounders in a row in Tua Tagovailoa, Mac Jones, and Bryce Young. Jalen Milroe is likely to go within the first two rounds in 2025, which would mark the fifth straight Alabama starting QB to do so.
Beck would have a ready-made championship-level offense around him. Ryan Williams, Germie Bernard, and Isaiah Horton at WR is a big upgrade from what he had at QB in Athens this past season.
Why Beck would be interested is obvious, but should Alabama ultimately pursue him? Currently, Alabama only has three scholarship quarterbacks on the roster after Milroe declared for the draft and Dylan Lonergan transferred to Boston College.
Is Kalen DeBoer, who is entering a pivotal second season in Tuscaloosa, confident that Ty Simpson can be the guy? Or that Austin Mack will take a big leap? Or that Keelon Russell will be ready to start right away as a true freshman?
In particular, if he isn't sold on Simpson, then Beck would be an obvious one-year bridge QB that would allow Russell and Mack to sit and develop one more year before battling for the starting job in 2026.
Of course, I wouldn't want Alabama to break the bank for Beck. And understandably if they pursue him then they probably lose Simpson to the portal as he has run out of time to get on the field.
Ultimately, I think Beck is a worthwhile gamble for Alabama and they should at least make a cursory phone call to his agent to confirm mutual interest. Proven quarterbacks like Beck don't become available all that often and he probably gets more grief than he deserves for the Bulldogs' offensive struggles in 2024.
Alabama looks to be a proven QB away from being one of the title favorites in 2025. Beck could be that guy.