Special teams often fly under the radar, especially when it comes to the player responsible for the snap on the field goal and punt units. Without the long snapper, a change of field position or a game-winning field goal would never happen.
Georgia football faces the challenge of replacing its starting long snapper in 2024, following William Mote’s declaration for the NFL draft. He was one of the best in college football and is expected to find a home in this year’s NFL draft.
UCLA transfer Beau Gardner is on the short list to replace Mote in the fall. While the Bulldogs did add Luke Raab, the No. 6 ranked long snapper by Khol’s Kicking Camp, in the 2024 recruiting class, Gardner provides experience as a starter. He is set to join the Bulldogs in the summer as a graduate.
Gardner recently joined myself and former Georgia tight end Arthur Lynch on the “UGA Football Live” podcast to share some insight into his decision to transfer to UGA. He jumped at the opportunity to share his journey to Georgia faithful.
High school recruitment
Gardner was born and raised in San Francisco, Calif., and went on to attend St. Ignatius College Preparatory School in his hometown. Long snapping was something Gardner didn’t consider until later in his high school career. He played center throughout his first two seasons and later moved to offensive tackle during his junior and senior seasons.
A handful of small college programs offered Gardner a chance to play on the offensive line as a walk-on, but Gardner wanted to play in the Pac-12. He grew up a Stanford fan and dreamed about playing Power Five football on the West Coast.
Gardner took up snapping on the side during the latter part of his career at St. Ignatius after his coaches realized he had a natural talent. As Gardner began to seriously consider the different paths he could take to college football, he realized the opportunity that long snapping could provide. A trip to a Rubio Long Snapping camp made the difference.
“That’s where I kind of learned that it was possibly a path to play big time college football and possibly a path to the NFL,” Gardner said. “So that’s kind of when I zeroed in on that, and just talking with my family, It seemed like a good life decision.”
Interestingly, Georgia was one of the few eastern schools to recruit the former three-star prospect, although Gardner says the interest was minor. North Carolina and Virginia were also showing similar interest. Gardner recalls the letter he received from UGA special teams assistant coach Adam Ray coming out of high school.
“I got a letter from coach (Adam) Ray, which was pretty special. I still have it now. And I sent it to him when he recruited me out of the portal and it was pretty funny.”
The 6-foot-5, 265 pounder went on to commit to UCLA as a preferred walk-on, choosing the Bruins over USC and California. He felt that UCLA provided the best chance at seeing the field early.
UCLA career
As a member of the 2020 recruiting class, Gardner faced some unique challenges as the COVID-19 lockdown shook up college athletics. Los Angeles shut down and the Bruins football program was the only team still on campus by the fall.
UCLA’s depth at defensive line had lost a lot of depth by that point, forcing Gardner to step in on the scout team. As Gardner prepared for his first game in the shortened season, he broke his foot the day before his college debut. He underwent surgery and missed the remainder of the season. Gardner redshirted the next year and played in three games in 2022.
Looking back at the adversity he faced as an underclassman, Gardner says it was a key learning experience.
“So I think I learned the most from not playing and like being on the bench. And obviously, it’s not at all where I wanted to be at the time. But looking back, it was probably the most valuable experience I could have asked for…”
The Bulldogs know a thing or two about waiting your turn. Star quarterback Carson Beck is a glowing example of that path. Beck has said that waiting behind Stetson Bennett prepared him for his time to shine as the starter.
UCLA long snapper Jack Landherr IV passed the mantel to Gardner in 2023. He went on to start all 13 games for the Bruins.
“Because I knew at some point, I was gonna get a shot to play and that, to me, looking back, is where I made the most growth,” Gardner said. “Just like having that in the back of my mind that I wasn’t where I wanted to be yet. And that was something that just drove me every day to keep progressing.”
Why UGA?
Gardner says the Bulldogs contacted him within an hour of his entrance into the transfer portal on Dec. 20. It wasn’t a tough decision for Gardner to commit to Georgia a day later.
“I just couldn’t envision a better opportunity than what I was being presented with and what I was hearing from the coaches. And it came down to like, a day where I just sat down with my parents and I was like, ‘No matter what happens in the rest of this recruiting process, like I want to go to Georgia. They have everything I’m looking for and I want to win a national championship’… There’s nothing that’s going to beat this.”
One of the biggest differences Gardner sees in the way UGA’s staff approaches special teams compared to his time at UCLA, or the other programs he spoke with, is the level of importance they put on special teams as a whole. Scott Cochran, Kirk Benedict and Adam Ray made Gardner feel needed.
“It’s clear that they really care. And they seem like they really want me to be there… which is awesome. I mean, I feel like it can kind of be overlooked as a part of a football program, like the special teams unit. And it’s just that like desire for elite special teams play, it’s sick to me and I’m stoked to add into that group, because they already have a great group going. And I think that my skill set will be a great addition to that.”
Georgia is consistently one of the best special teams programs in the country and last season was a testament to the fact. In 14 games, the Bulldogs allowed zero punt return yards.
“The difference to me, how I’ve seen it, was just like how they (UGA) value special teams and like the importance of the punt and field goal operation… Because I’ve seen that through how the coaches talk about it, and how it basically is just how they are, as masters of special teams. And hearing that from them has been really cool.”
Gardner is also a fan of the Bulldogs’ punt scheme. UCLA runs a spread-pro mix, while Georgia runs primarily a pro scheme. Gardner sees this as an opportunity to stand out to NFL teams next year.
“The pro scheme they (UGA) run there is perfect, exactly what I was looking for. It’s what they run in the NFL and to get some tape with that scheme will be huge for me going into the next level.”
Another aspect that drew Gardner nearly 2,500 miles from his hometown is stepping out of his comfort zone. He’s never lived anywhere else than California.
“And I kind of just wanted to step out of my comfort zone a little bit and like push myself. I’ve never lived in anywhere but California, and I mean to be the best, which I want to be, you got to kind of surround yourself by the hardest workers and the highest achievers.”
What does Gardner bring to Georgia?
After speaking with Gardner for just over 30 minutes, it’s already clear to me that he’s bought in to the Bulldogs’ way of football under Kirby Smart. Gardner echoed Smart’s classic “selfless” mantra when it comes to winning games.
“I think what I can bring to the room, to the specialist room, is some experience for sure. A good work ethic that I’ll show up every day with with. I mean, I’m a selfless guy, I’m there for the team, I want to do anything I can to help the team win…”
Gardner is in for some culture shock when he makes the move to Athens. He’s already got a taste of how the state appreciates its Bulldogs after tweeting his commitment announcement. Gardner says the amount of positive engagement he received makes him even more excited for the opportunity ahead.
“Well, honestly, I’ve never been to an SEC football game in my life. So I’m so stoked to see what that environment is like, and to be a part of that… Those people care and I’m excited to work hard for them and make them proud.”
You can listen to the full conversation with Beau Gardner below:
