Stetson Bennett Jan 14, 2023; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs offensive lineman Sedrick Van Pran (63) and quarterback Stetson Bennett (13) at the national championship celebration and parade at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

After leading his team to their second straight national championship earlier this year, Georgia Bulldogs star quarterback Stetson Bennett IV caused some controversy at the team’s celebratory parade when he apparently spent much of the parade on his phone – drawing negative attention from some.

Following the parade, Atlanta radio host Steak Shapiro to called out Stetson Bennett on Twitter, telling him he needed to “show some graciousness and appreciation to the fans.”

“Stetson Bennett needed someone to tell him to get off his damn phone during a parade and to show some graciousness and appreciation to the fans that were sitting in that stadium. You want to crush the media you think were mean to you do it a press conference,” Steak Shapiro said on Twitter.

Bennett responded to those claims publically for the first time during his press conference at the NFL Combine on Friday.

“You know people are entitled to their opinion,” Bennett said according to Pro Football Talk. “Yeah, I saw it as a parade for us who won, and I was playing music [for teammates] and trying to have a good time. People took it as I was. . . I don’t really know what people took it [as], but they didn’t like it. I’m sorry about that, but I strictly just saw it as a chance for me, Sed [Sedrick Van Pran] and Chris [Smith] one last trip down Lumpkin on the way to Sanford together, and I just wanted to play the best tunes we could at that moment.”

Bennett is participating in the NFL Combine this week with a chance to improve his draft stock as most scouts do not see him as a future NFL starting quarterback.

[Pro Football Talk]