Georgia
Georgia begins spring practice looking to get back on top after falling just short in 2023
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Carson Beck returned for another season at Georgia to take care of some unfinished business.
He’s doing it in style, too.
The Bulldogs quarterback shrugged off his new ride — a $300,000 Lamborghini he called “just a car” — and began spring practice Tuesday focused on bringing another national title to Athens.
In Beck’s initial season as the starter, Georgia just missed a chance to become the first team in the Associated Press poll era to win three straight crowns with a three-point loss to Alabama in the Southeastern Conference title game.
That defeat influenced Beck’s decision to pass on the NFL draft and return to the Bulldogs for one more year.
“We had a really good year. Obviously our goal is always to win it all,” Beck said. “We didn’t achieve that goal. I’m coming back with that same mindset because we didn’t reach that goal.”
Of course, the NIL era has made it financially viable for many college athletes to spend additional time in school.
Look no further than Beck’s luxury Italian sports car.
“I’ve always been a huge car guy,” he said. “Being able to get that car, obviously it’s a blessing.”
Beck’s lucrative return is a big reason that Georgia should remain one of the nation’s top teams. After spending three years as a backup, he finally got his chance to start and took full advantage of it.
Leading the Bulldogs to a 13-1 record, he completed more than 72% of his passing attempts for 3,941 yards and 24 touchdowns, with just six interceptions.
“He has high standards. He has high expectations,” coach Kirby Smart said. “His decision to come back was built around doing something different, doing something special.”
For Beck, spring practice feels a whole lot different than a year ago, when he was battling for the starting job with Brock Vandagriff and Gunner Stockton.
There’s no doubt who’s taking the snaps this season.
“Last year, I was coming in and wasn’t sure if I was going to be the starter or not,” Beck said. “Now, coming back, having been the starter, I can kind of hone in and focus more on what I need to improve on compared to just trying to compete against other guys. I can really focus on competing against myself.”
Coming in as a dethroned champion rather than a defending champion makes no difference to the way Smart is approaching the new season.
“Every year starts fresh,” the coach said. “For me it’s a fresh beginning with a new team. I’ve been trying since the last whistle to recreate this team. What does the 2024 team look like? That would be regardless as to how last year finished. Each season is independent of the previous.”
Even with stars such as Brock Bowers moving on to the NFL, Smart heads into his ninth season having built a program that is more about reloading than rebuilding. Another stellar recruiting class was augmented by a group of talented transfers, led by former Florida running back Trevor Etienne.
Etienne transferred to Athens after rushing for more than 700 yards each of the last two seasons with one of Georgia’s biggest rivals.
“Everything that we’ve heard about Etienne before he got here has held true,” Smart said. “He’s a tremendous leader, high-character kid. He immediately surges into a leadership role because he’s not a first-year player. He’s been in our league, in our conference. He has standards and expectations.”
Beck is looking forward to incorporating Etienne into the offense.
“It always helps to have a good running back,” Beck said. “You feel comfortable turning your back to the defense and handing it off.”
The Bulldogs are eager to tackle the challenge of an expanded SEC, which has added powerhouse programs Texas and Oklahoma to its already stacked lineup. Georgia faces a daunting schedule that includes road trips to Austin and Tuscaloosa.
“I’d be lying if I said if I wasn’t looking at any of that,” senior linebacker Smael Mondon said with a grin. “It’s real exciting to see the teams we’re getting to play next season. It’s every kid’s dream schedule. You want to play in those big games.”
___
Get alerts on the latest AP Top 25 poll throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
APPLING COUNTY, Ga. (WCYB) — The co-owner of Yurezz Home Center in Greeneville has been arrested in Georgia, according to a report obtained by News 5.
Earlier this week, News 5 told you about the dealership in Greeneville that abruptly shut down last month.
This has left homeowners with partially built homes and employees without jobs.
It is not yet clear why Richard Altman was taken into custody.
This is a developing story.
Georgia
Georgia Supreme Court upholds convictions of men in deadly shooting during gas station carjacking
Two men found guilty of murdering a man while he was pumping air into his tires at a Georgia gas station will remain in prison, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled.
Miles Chatezal Collins and Josiah Hughley, Jr. had appealed to the state’s highest court after they were found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, violating Georgia’s Street Gang, Terrorism and Prevention Act, and hijacking a motor vehicle, among other charges in 2025.
The men’s charges stem from a shooting on July 10, 2022, at a QuickTrip gas station in Peachtree Corners. According to the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office, 30-year-old Bradley Lamar Coleman had stopped at the gas station to fill up his tires when Collins, Hughley, and a third man pulled up beside him and tried to steal his Dodge Charger.
When Coleman tried to stop the men, officials say they shot him and fled the scene.
Authorities say the three men were members of the Blood gang and had tried to steal the car to increase their status.
While their first trial ended in a mistrial due to a comment by the prosecution, a jury found Collins, Hughley, and their co-defendant, David Jarrad Booker, guilty of more than a dozen charges in 2025. They were each sentenced to life plus 145 years in prison.
In Collins and Hughley’s appeal to the state Supreme Court, they argued that there was insufficient evidence to support some of the charges and that the judge in the case improperly admitted certain evidence and committed errors in instructing the jurors.
The justices’ rulings disagreed, finding that their attorneys failed to object to the supposed errors and that the two men’s claims were insufficient.
The judges also found that a claim by Hughley that his counsel failed him by not asserting that a statement made to law enforcement should have been suppressed. With those findings, the Supreme Court chose not to overrule the case, letting the convictions and sentences stand.
“We are grateful for this affirmation from the Georgia Supreme Court,” Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said. “Thanks to the incredible work of our team of trial and appellate prosecutors, and all of the staff that assisted with defending these convictions, two dangerous criminals will remain in prison.”
Booker’s appeal remains pending.
SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. – A Georgia State Patrol trooper sustained injuries Tuesday afternoon after striking the rear of a stopped vehicle on Georgia 400, triggering a three-vehicle chain-reaction crash.
What we know:
The collision happened around 3:43 p.m. on the northbound lanes just south of Abernathy Road.
A trooper was traveling north on Georgia 400 when traffic in front of the cruiser came to a sudden stop. The trooper was unable to halt in time and struck the rear of a second vehicle, which then slammed into a third vehicle.
All three vehicles sustained enough damage to be towed from the scene, according to the state patrol report. The trooper had visible injuries and received treatment onsite, while medics transported the second driver to a local hospital. The driver of the third car complained of injuries but refused medical treatment at the scene.
What we don’t know:
Officials have not yet confirmed the current medical conditions of the hospitalized driver or the injured trooper. It remains unclear what caused traffic to come to a sudden halt before the chain-reaction collision occurred.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Lt. E. Starling of the Georgia State Patrol DPS Public Information Office, who provided the preliminary crash details in an official statement.
-
Wisconsin1 minute agoNew Wisconsin AD Shawn Eichorst: Badgers Need ‘Texas Swagger’ And Less Humility
-
West Virginia6 minutes agoWest Virginia retailers told to allow people to purchase soda with SNAP benefits
-
Wyoming13 minutes agoWyoming women escape black bear attack on their tents in the Big Horn Mountains
-
Crypto16 minutes agoBinance maintains commitment to EU, seeking more licences in Asia
-
Finance21 minutes agoHow Banreservas mobilised diaspora capital
-
Fitness28 minutes agoI’d Fallen Into an Exercise Rut—Until Trail Running Reminded Me How Joyful Movement Could Be
-
Movie Reviews36 minutes agoMovie review: Supergirl is a blast
-
World41 minutes agoTrump Says He Thinks He Will Remove Syria From US Terrorism Sponsor List
