Quarterback Gray will stay at UGA, double as a wide receiver (UPDATED)
(Updated 6:45 p.m.)
MACON — Georgia backup quarterback Logan Gray, after considering the possibility of transferring to another school for the past few weeks, has decided to remain at UGA, where he’ll double as a wide receiver.
Gray informed coach Mark Richt of his decision by phone Wednesday morning.
Richt said in an interview before a Bulldog Club meeting here Wednesday night that Gray will have a dual role with the Bulldogs.
“He’s our second-team quarterback in my mind,” Richt said. “Logan has three years of knowledge in our system. He’s a very capable quarterback, so it’s nice to know that he’s there for that purpose.
“But he would like to spend some time at receiver. I think he feels like he might have a better chance of helping us there. So I’m fine with that, I really am.”
Gray, a junior, began considering the possibility of transferring after being listed as the No. 2 quarterback behind redshirt freshman Aaron Murray on Georgia’s depth chart at the end of spring practice.
Richt said Wednesday night that he doesn’t know yet how Gray’s practice and meetings time will be divided this fall between quarterback and receiver. Richt said he expects Gray to work mostly at receiver this summer as he tries to learn the position, adding that Gray “isn’t going to forget what to do at quarterback.”
Richt conceded that Gray’s interest in playing receiver limits his chances of beating out Murray for the starting quarterback job, although most observers felt those chances were slim anyway.
“If [Gray] is practicing at receiver all day long,” Richt said Wednesday night, “then there’s not a very good chance” of becoming the No. 1 quarterback.
He added: “The way things are shaping up, it looks like Murray is the guy, doesn’t it?”
Later, in his remarks to the Bulldog Club gathering, Richt said Murray “is certainly in the driver’s seat [and] most likely will be the starter.”
Gray’s thoughts of transferring caused much concern in Bulldog Nation because Gray and Murray are the only scholarship quarterbacks currently in the UGA program. Hutson Mason, a recruit from Marietta’s Lassiter High School, arrives this summer, and Richt said Mason can compete for the backup quarterback job “when he learns what to do.”
Gray said in a written statement that he decided to stay at UGA “because I truly do love being a Georgia Bulldog. I want to be a part of this team getting back to the SEC championship game and winning it.
“I’m also looking forward to getting some work at receiver and am going to work hard to make the best out of my opportunity at this position as well,” Gray said. ” I appreciate Coach Richt’s patience while I made this decision and his helpful advice. Now, I want to put all of this behind me and focus on getting to work on preparations for next season at UGA.”
Said Richt: “I’m really excited about Logan wanting to stay and for the reasons he is staying. When he called me [Wednesday] morning, I said: ‘Tell me why you decided to stay.’ He said, ‘I love Georgia; I love my teammates; I think we can win; I want to win; I want to be there.’
“Those were all the right reasons to stay.”
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219 comments Add your comment
Mike L.
May 12th, 2010
2:52 pm
This is odd, but I think we should let him be a regular at WR or another speed position, and still be the backup QB. The guy has good speed and maybe, just maybe, he can develop enough skills in a couple of years to get a shot to play at the next level in some position. Hines Ward played every position short of offensive line and was still able to start at QB when needed. Logan knows the offense already so he can pull it off.
Thanks for staying, Logan.
HugoStiglitz
May 12th, 2010
2:52 pm
He obviously didnt get very much interest from other schools in being their starting QB. No point in being a backup somewhere else when you can be a backup at UGA. Maybe he could get some playing time at another position. It might work out.
UGADAWGZ
May 12th, 2010
2:54 pm
Stop worrying about Murray getting injured he will be fine.
Long Gator- You probably are a tech fan posing as a gator but if you are actually a gator fan the let me say this. Who do you have? john brantley? Logan would start over him at Fla.
Paddy
May 12th, 2010
2:55 pm
He will contribute in many ways over the next two seasons. Real good athletes are hard to come by.
UGADAWGZ
May 12th, 2010
2:56 pm
Thrasherfan- You are joking right if Zach wouldn’t have been kicked we would have 4
Elliot Garcia- He probably will, Richt has never had a class that didn’t go to the SEC championship
ryan
May 12th, 2010
2:56 pm
Long Gator you are wrong we got LeMay coming in. UGA may be sleeper team this year with are new Defence we are blitz the hell out everybody
Big Dawg
May 12th, 2010
3:01 pm
Mark my words…Muray will get injured early in the season and it will be Gray at the Helm with Matson right behind,
nope
May 12th, 2010
3:09 pm
ya’ll act like he will make your team better. you still don’t have a qb who is any good and you still have a coach that is scared to get mean. no SEC East title this year or any year in the near future. The team has gone soft and until that changes, ya’ll should be happy with 8 wins a year.
Slick
May 12th, 2010
3:10 pm
Actually Bobby B…Tech had G.T.A.A. stamped on everything to prevent theft. Coach Russell said, “Hey Men, let’s shift that last A between the G&T and Get After Their Ass. The players then stormed onto Grant Field and did just that in the 2nd half.
RxDawg
May 12th, 2010
3:10 pm
Yay for Gray
DarkCloud
May 12th, 2010
3:11 pm
LMAO!!! This doesn’t do anything for THuga except create even more chaos!! HAaaaa HAaaaaa!!
robdawg08
May 12th, 2010
3:16 pm
I think Logan is getting shafted by Richt. Is Aaron Murray really better than Logan ? Last year when Logan replaced Cox he wasn’t allowed very many passes, only mostly runs. I want the best QB on the field but how do WE know that its Murray ? It sure wasn’t Cox last year yet he was the starter. And for all you Ga Tech nerds out there, we should have had Stafford and Moreno last year on our team but even without them we spanked ya’ll.
tyler
May 12th, 2010
3:17 pm
stay or go it doesnt matter. wake up all you dilusional Dawg fans. your team will finish 3rd in the east at best
Mike Usry
May 12th, 2010
3:17 pm
I still have eligibility left
RxDawg
May 12th, 2010
3:17 pm
” I want the best QB on the field but how do WE know that its Murray ?”
Who ever said WE have to know? I believe we hire a staff of coaches to make that decesion. Put some trust in them. They only average 10 wins a year.
Mike Usry
May 12th, 2010
3:18 pm
pick me….pick me
robdawg08
May 12th, 2010
3:19 pm
I also think richt is too soft as a coach. A coach needs some fire to motivate his players. Being a choir boy on the sidelines wouldn’t motivate even the players’ grandma’s…
robdawg08
May 12th, 2010
3:21 pm
RXDawg, you KNOW that Joe Cox wasn’t the best UGA QB last year. He only started because he was a senior. If Richt can play a lesser QB in 2009 why can’t he do the same in 2010. A lot of promises and politics goes into who the QB is and it shouldn’t.
Logan Gray to Stay with Georgia, Will Work Out at Receiver
May 12th, 2010
3:22 pm
[...] Quarterback Gray Will Stay at UGA – AJC.com Categories: Football Email Print | Share [...]
robdawg08
May 12th, 2010
3:23 pm
Finishing 3rd in the SEC is BETTER than winning the ACC.
Cosmos
May 12th, 2010
3:30 pm
I think Logan made the right decision and he should get a fair amount of playing time. He can play receiver, return punts and Richt will probably install a package of plays for Logan to run at QB. If Murray gets hurt, then he’s the starting QB. He will get a significant amount of playing time and will be valuable to the team.
Wallybutz
May 12th, 2010
3:32 pm
What’s everybody excited about. Loogan Gary is an average player at best and will get racked and rattled against a good SEC defense
We beat Vandy-- yeah!
May 12th, 2010
3:32 pm
Logan- last month we hated you! Now, we LOVE u! yeah go UGAY!!!
tyler
May 12th, 2010
3:33 pm
lol well robdawg08 if thats good enough for you then i guess things will be ok this season. i hope for UGA’s sake not many dawg fans think like you
jzdawg
May 12th, 2010
3:34 pm
Thanks for bleeding red and black Logan!! I’m sure your decision will pay off in the long run. Sounds like we are going to be overloaded at QB with Mason and the 2 impressive walk-ons so maybe once they are up to speed you can get more time at WR later in the year.
EW
May 12th, 2010
3:34 pm
Logan, you are one play away from being the number one guy, stay ready and you will have your chance to make your mark on the program..this was an intelligent and mature decision
We love you Logan!
May 12th, 2010
3:34 pm
Yeah!!!! Now we’ll get back to Shreveport!!!
RyDawg
May 12th, 2010
3:35 pm
If a reciever/back up QB works for Texas A&M….why not for us?…I saw him use a little burst on Gday and he’s got enough speed and elusiveness….not to mention his hands are gonna be like glue… Seems like a great fit to me…
RockSolidDawg
May 12th, 2010
3:35 pm
Anyone remember a QB at UGA named Hines Ward? Moved from QB to receiver. Now a Super Bowl MVP!
Concrete Pete
May 12th, 2010
3:35 pm
Many things happen during the course of one football season, let alone two. Remember Daniel Cobb? Hot shot (over-rated) QB that signed with UGA a year before Quincy Carter quit baseball to play QB at UGA. When Carter was named starter before the first game of his freshman season, Cobb and Nate Hybl bailed and transferred to Auburn and Oklahoma respectively. Carter meanwhile, pulled his loser crap and was gone in a little over 2 years, leaving the STARTING job to a walk-on, Cory Phillips. Cobb and Hybl, each started for 1 year at their schools, but after they could have started at UGA had they been competitors and fought Carter for the job. Cobb’s Auburn career was a train wreck, highlighted by boo’s as a sixth year senior. Hybl did win a national title as a back-up but also was the subject of Sooners fans boo’s when he did not live up to their expectations.
Moral of the story… Stay where you are as long as you’re happy. Fight, COMPETE for playing time. Don’t be a loser and bail. Regardless of who is in front of you on the depth chart, you are 1 split-second away from being the starter. Look to DJ Shockley and not Daniel Cobb for a lesson…
Mark (a different one)
May 12th, 2010
3:38 pm
This is great for UGA, and we can expect Logan to keep pushing Murray and both the benefit from the competition. It is never good when a person receives the position by default.
Logan is also a talented athlete, who can now let loose on kick returns and as a wide receiver. This is his Junior year so no sense in saving it. And, look for the end around pass this season. My bet is that Logan is a better passer on the run than any of the other wide receivers.
As for people worrying that UGA has no battle tested QBs. That is a concern at any position, but it is not unusual. No one seems to be concerned about Brantley down at FL, but he was 7 of 9 in SEC play last year. The good news for UGA is that the other ten offensive starters are back.
We love you Logan!
May 12th, 2010
3:39 pm
I smell a National Championship!!!
We love you Logan!
May 12th, 2010
3:40 pm
Let me re-phrase…I smell a National Championship in Tuscaloosa!!!
Mississippi Dawg
May 12th, 2010
3:40 pm
Reciever / Situational QB + Special Teams…Does sound a little like Hines Ward…Maybe he could also line up a litte at FB ala Tim Tebow (instead of Wildcat)…Coaches will reward this loyalty with some quality PT.
Thrasher fan – stick to your Hockey Team…CMR has done an excllent job recruting top QB’s – we’ve been reloading ever since D Green left…Cox was the only disappointment and that’s because M Stafford left early.
tyler
May 12th, 2010
3:43 pm
i agree with Pete, stop crying and threating to take your second string skills to another team and go to work to make yourself and your team better. Earn that scholarship and quit thinking you deserve the number one spot when you dont. Fact is you put feelers out to other schools and found out nobody wanted you.
PMC
May 12th, 2010
3:45 pm
It’s probably easier all around. Good for him. He is much closer to his degree by staying in school and hopefully he’ll get playing time somewhere and be able to show what he can do. If he couldn’t play he’d never be on scholarship.
PMC
May 12th, 2010
3:45 pm
I should have said staying at UGA. He would have to take extra classes more than likely if he transfered.
Doogan Gray
May 12th, 2010
3:48 pm
Can we move him to WR now?
the facts
May 12th, 2010
4:00 pm
ugadawgz, hate to say it but you’re wrong….this last class of true seniors never played in an sec champ game.
bulldogmaniac
May 12th, 2010
4:02 pm
LES – Nobody “deserves” playing time because they have been loyal! Best players play and the rest are backups. Im not saying Logan shouldnt play but I am saying that he shouldnt play because he has been loyal!
How2fish
May 12th, 2010
4:05 pm
Hey anyone heard if CUM is out of rehab yet?
blade
May 12th, 2010
4:06 pm
Where else was he going, as a starting QB? If, as Junior and you were rated behind a freshman, (actually 2 freshmans, if the other guy didn’t get n2 trouble), he was not going anywhere as a starting QB. Maybe in a Wing-T offense but not as a pro-style system. These GA high schools need to prepare athletes like this kid, who with the good QB training, would have made him ready for a real offensive scheme. What I here, he’s an outstanding athlete but no real pro-style QB experience. GA High School coaches, put away that garbage offense and help these kids out for the next level. GT is about see what happens in the coming years of D/C’s figuring it out.
wsewell525
May 12th, 2010
4:10 pm
Logan can be a great QB, when he’s not trying too hard to win the job. That’s all he was doing the few times he got thrown into a game when we were already down by 20. And he was trying to hard to impress everybody, he would be great if he stuck with what works, and being a mobile QB. He could be a WR, and we could do the WR screen to him, and let him launch it down field….come on, best play in flag football.
Barack Dawg
May 12th, 2010
4:13 pm
Hey naysayers – shut the hell up. Logan is fine. I think he evaluated the situation and knows what is best for him. Who cares if you leave and go play at a lesser school in a lesser conference. That does not get you into the pro’s. I think he is smart by playing receiver and they should use him as the kick off returner not AJ regardless of the upside there is more downside with AJ. Logan is an excellent athlete that we need to utilize just not necessarily at QB.
Thanks for thinking it through Logan. We are glad to have you as a Bulldog and appreciate your loyalty.
gdawginkalamazoo
May 12th, 2010
4:16 pm
How2fish, I though he was in marriage counseling.
get a clue
May 12th, 2010
4:17 pm
@Screven Dawg
I’d say the fact that Florida has more talented players and a better head coach is certainly something that will stop you from winning the East.
@UGADAWGZ
Gray and Murray would both be riding the pine behind Brantley. You clueless Mutts are a tad bit deulisonal but that’s nothing new.
gdawginkalamazoo
May 12th, 2010
4:18 pm
Blade, Gray is from Missouri, not Georgia. I don’t know what he ran in HS though.
gdawginkalamazoo
May 12th, 2010
4:20 pm
get a clue, quick without googling the word try again “deulisonal”
jerry
May 12th, 2010
4:21 pm
Just give him enough qb reps in case he is needed.
athenian
May 12th, 2010
4:24 pm
When he was leaving all of the dog fans said he was no good, couldn’t play, didn’t need him, etc.. Now he is a GREAT player and dogs will win another preseason national title….don’t forget, dog fans, this is a guy who couldn’t beat out JOE COX. I don’t think he makes any difference one way or the other.