Georgia cranked its offense just in time at Missouri, winning a 43-29 shootout Saturday.
The No. 2-ranked Bulldogs (4-0, 2-0 SEC) didn’t score their first offensive touchdown until the second half, about the same time Tigers quarterback Drew Lock was getting warmed up.
Lock finished 23-of-48 passing for 221 yards and scored on an 11-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter as the Tigers (3-1, 0-1) cut the lead to 40-29 with 10:47 remaining.
The Bulldogs missed a chance to extend the lead when Rodrigo Blankenship had a 36-yard field-goal attempt blocked with 6:08 remaining, leaving it up to the defense to stem the comeback.
Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker and linebacker Juwan Taylor came up big, drilling Missouri’s Damar Crockett a yard short on his fourth-and-3 reception at the Missouri 41. The stop forced a change of possession and sent many of the 58,284 in Memorial Stadium to the exits.
“I thought it might become a shootout, but not in that form,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “I am proud of the way we competed; they made a play, we came back and made a play.”
The second half featured see-saw scoring after Georgia took a 27-7 lead on Riley Ridley’s 33-yard TD grab on the opening possession.
Lock answered, engineering a 75-yard TD drive capped by a 5-yard Crockett run that made the score 27-14.
Georgia went back up 33-14 when Jeremiah Holloman caught a 61-yard touchdown pass from Fromm with 6:59 left. The Bulldogs 2-point conversion attempt failed.
Missouri answered, Tyler Badie rushing for a 3-yard touchdown that, coupled with a 2-point conversion, cut the lead to 33-22.
Georgia looked to have put the game away when Jake Fromm, appearing in the fourth quarter of the game for the first time this season, hit a wide-open Mecole Hardman to extend the lead to 40-22 with 14:52 left.
Fromm finished 13-of-23 passing for 260 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.
Georgia held a 20-7 lead at the half thanks in part to three Missouri turnovers, the first two quarters bearing no resemblance to the shootout that ensued.
The Bulldogs scored first when freshman cornerback Tyson Campbell stripped the ball from tight end Albert Okwuegbunam after a catch and raced 64 yards for a touchdown.
Missouri tied the score at 7-7 with 2:03 left in the opening quarter on Larry Rountree’s 7-yard run, capping a nine-play, 55-yard drive.
Georgia stretched its lead to 13-7 in the second quarter on a pair of Rodrigo Blankenship field goals from 44 and 21 yards.
The Bulldogs closed the first half scoring when Eric Stokes blocked the punt of Corey Fatony. Stokes snatched the football out of the air after it bounded off the turf, running 8 yards into the end zone for a touchdown to make the score 20-7 with 5:45 left in the half.
The Bulldogs saw three starters leave the game with injuries: left tackle Andrew Thomas, right guard Ben Cleveland and Campbell.
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