Carson Beck's two touchdowns lifts Georgia to 30-21 over Missouri

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia fought back from a couple of deficits to move its record to 9-0 on the 2023 season on Saturday. The Bulldogs absorbed Missouri’s best punch and beat the Tigers 30-21 in front of a packed Sanford Stadium.

Carson Beck connected on 21 of 32 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Daijun Edwards pitched in with 16 carries for 77 yards while Kendall Milton piled up 55 yards on nine carries and scored a touchdown.

Georgia got the ball first and drew first blood. The Bulldogs extended the drive on 4th and 5 when they drew Missouri offsides and Beck took advantage of the free play by hitting Rara Thomas for a 26-yard gain. The drive stalled at the top of the red zone and Peyton Woodring opened the scoring with a 33-yard field goal to stake the Bulldogs to a 3-0 lead.

That didn’t last long as Missouri’s offense put together a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a touchdown. Brady Cook found star receiver Luther Burden for a 39-yard score with Daylen Everette in coverage. The Harrison Mevis point after gave Missouri a 7-3 lead.

Beck and company answered right back with a drive of their own. Georgia used 12 plays to go 70 yards and Beck found Dominic Lovett, a transfer from Mizzou and St. Louis native, for a six-yard score to put the Bulldogs back up. The PAT gave Georgia a 10-7 lead.

Missouri tied it up later on in the second quarter when its 11-play drive stalled in the red zone. Mevis came on and hit a 37-yard field goal to tie it at 10. That was the score going into the half.

The second half started with the ball in Mizzou’s possession and the Tigers came out swinging. They were in Georgia territory within three plays but the Bulldogs got a sack from Tykee Smith on third down to force another Mevis field-goal try. He connected once again, this time from 42-yards out, to give the Tigers a 13-10 lead.

UGA’s offense came alive on the ensuing possession and the Bulldogs reeled off 14 straight points. A 15-yard touchdown run from Milton gave the Bulldogs a 17-13 lead. Then Georgia got a five-yard touchdown pass from Beck to Oscar Delp to extend the lead to 24-13.

But Missouri had an answer. The Tigers put together a nine-play scoring drive that traveled 75 yards. It ended with a 12-yard touchdown run from Cody Schrader around left end. The Tigers went for two and got it, cutting the Bulldog lead to three.

The ensuing possession saw Georgia get points for the third straight drive in the second half but this time it was just three. The drive stalled at the Missouri 13-yard line and Woodring came on to hit a 30-yard field goal to give the Bulldogs 27-21 advantage.

Missouri got something going with its next drive, getting the ball to midfield before the Bulldog defense came up with a big play. CJ Allen pressured Cook and got a hand on the pass as it was being released. It fell into the hands of Nazir Stackhouse who returned it inside the Tiger five-yard line. The return was called back due to an illegal blindside block on Smael Mondon but the Bulldogs still turned it into point.

The Bulldogs took it to the Tiger 30-yard line and asked Woodring to come on and try a 48-yard field goal to make it a two-score game. The freshman came through, giving Georgia a 30-21 lead with 3:57 left to play.

A turnover on the ensuing possession put the game on ice. Missouri picked up a couple of first downs and got it near midfield. Then Cook was flushed out of the pocket and overthrew Burden. The pass was picked off by Javon Bullard at the Georgia 17-yard line to give it back to the Bulldogs with 96 seconds left to play. Georgia salted the game away from there, earning its 26th straight win.

Next up for Georgia is a matchup with No. 10 Ole Miss inside Sanford Stadium. Kickoff has not yet been announced but it will be at either 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS, 7 p.m. on ESPN, or 7:30 p.m. on The SEC Network.