Kirby Smart criticizes Georgia's execution during 1st half vs. Missouri

The No. 2-ranked team in the country, Georgia found itself heading into halftime tied with No. 12 Missouri 10-10 on Saturday. The Bulldogs — who are in the midst of a 23-game home winning streak — had an up-and-down first half as both offenses found the end zone once.

According to Kirby Smart, he thinks there’s plenty of room for improvement. He told CBS’ Amanda Guerra his team needs to lock in and follow the game plan in the second half.

“We’ve done a good job,” Smart said on his way to the locker room. “We’ve gotten them to jump offsides. Stole three points. We’ve had a good, disciplined game plan. We’ve got to execute our jobs. Especially up front. We’re not winning 1st and 10, offensively, and they’re on the field too long with our defense.”

Georgia got the scoring started with a field goal on the opening drive, but allowed Missouri to go down the field for a touchdown drive capped by a 39-yard pass to Luther Burden for the score. The Bulldogs responded well with a six-yard pass from Carson Beck to Dominic Lovett, but the Tigers tied things up with a field goal to make it a 10-10 game into halftime.

Kirby Smart knew the challenge his defense would have against Missouri’s fast-paced offense. Brady Cook gets the ball out quick, meaning Georgia has to be ready for plays to unfold right away. However, he noted it’s not always a quick release from Cook, and he knows the Bulldogs have to be ready.

“I probably wouldn’t have a good answer on that,” Smart said when asked about other quarterbacks in the league and their time to throw. “That was only on my head because it’s so quick he gets it out. And there’s averages in there, there’s play action, there’s rolls — he’s not 2.2 all the time. But that ball comes out quick.”

Smart even joked that the defense might do something extreme and see if it forces Cook to hold on to the ball.

“We’ve been thinking about dropping all 11, just seeing if it works,” Smart said.

Georgia is looking to not only extend its home winning streak, but also jump back up to the top of the College Football Playoff rankings. The two-time defending champion Bulldogs checked in at No. 2 in the first top 25 of the year behind No. 1 Ohio State. Missouri, meanwhile, entered Week 10 ranked No. 12 — and that could give UGA a good resume win.

On3’s Andrew Graham contributed to this report.