Ryan Puglisi found out that Jared Curtis was coming to Georgia just as everyone else did, when Curtis made his announcement on Monday afternoon.

But Puglisi has long known that Curtis could end up at Georgia. The redshirt freshman quarterback, along with others, helped sell Curtis on coming to Athens.

“I know Ryan Puglisi, and I know Talyn Taylor, and a couple of those other 2025 receivers,” Curtis said. “And I think they just wanted me to be a part of it, because I think they realize what Georgia’s building as well.”

Curtis and Puglisi will one day compete against each other to be the starting quarterback for the Bulldogs. Puglisi finds himself in a competition now with Gunner Stockton.

Puglisi isn’t favored to win the battle with Stockton, largely due to the experience advantage Stockton holds in terms of time in the offense and actual game reps.

When the day comes for Puglisi and Curtis, along with Ryan Montgomery and Hezekiah Millender, to compete for the starting quarterback job, Puglisi figures to have the experience edge he now lacks. When Curtis arrives in January, Puglisi will be entering his third season at Georgia.

Curtis is the No. 1 ranked quarterback prospect in the country for the 2026 recruiting cycle. Should he sign with the Bulldogs, he’d be the fourth to do so under Kirby Smart.

Of course, Puglisi is well familiar with the idea of sharing a quarterback room with a highly-touted quarterback prospect. For a good stretch of the 2024 recruiting cycle, Puglisi and 5-star quarterback Dylan Raiola were both committed to play for the Bulldogs.

Raiola was seen as one of the top quarterback prospects in his class, finishing as the No. 3 ranked quarterback for the cycle. But he never made it to Athens, ultimately flipping to Nebraska at the 11th hour.

Puglisi had offers to go elsewhere when Raiola was in the class. Yet he remained at Georgia throughout the process. That says a good bit about Puglisi’s competitive character.

“No matter what at Georgia, no matter who you are, no matter where you are on the depth chart, you’re always going to compete,” Puglisi said this spring. “I think you’re competing with yourself every day as well. You know, just trying to be better than you were yesterday and putting your head down and going to work every single day, no matter where you are on the depth chart.”

Being the backup quarterback at the moment, Puglisi has become quite popular with Georgia fans. Because he hasn’t thrown a single competitive pass, his potential is unknown.

But by the time Curtis comes into focus at Georgia, he will become the shiny new toy that captures the eye of the fan base. He’ll be the one fans clamor for, much in the way some do now with Puglisi.

The redshirt freshman quarterback sees all the online chatter. He knows he can’t let external influences alter his mindset. Regardless of who he is competing with.

“Yeah, I think the biggest thing is just putting your head down and going to work every single day, regardless of the noise, regardless of what people say about you, good and bad,” Puglisi said. “I think you just have the decision to make when you wake up in the morning, am I going to get better or not today? That’s really that simple.”

As has been the case of late under Kirby Smart, quarterbacks are going to have to wait their turn to start. Stockton made his first start in the final game of his third season. Carson Beck had to wait until year four.

Puglisi could well follow a similar track. Curtis may as well when he gets to Georgia. Even with the 5-star ranking he currently possesses, it’s unlikely he will start immediately when he gets to Georgia.

Not just because of Stockton, who could be in his final year of eligibility in 2026. But Puglisi as well, who is either going to be good enough to hold off Curtis or push the phenom enough to where he surpasses Puglisi due to his mastery of the offense and not his lofty recruiting ranking.