COLUMBIA, Mo. – Teammates will tell you that running back Daijun Edwards is a man of very few words.

But when Georgia needed the Colquitt County junior the most, his play on the field spoke volumes. It’s fortunate for the Bulldogs that it did.

Up by four points with 3:39 to play, the Bulldogs hoped to run out the clock. And thanks to Edwards, that’s exactly what happened.

With the ball at the 36, Edwards carried seven straight times for 42 yards, picking up three first downs before a kneel-down by Stetson Bennett ended the game.

“He's tough, man. He's from the neck of the woods where they grow up playing football when they're five, six-years-old, and he just wants to carry the football. He took some shots tonight and got some hard-earned yards at the end,” head coach Kirby Smart said. “The physicality at the end of the game was really impressive by our offense. We do that drill every Friday and say you have to get two first downs on the defense, and they're allowed to put every guy they have in the box. I'll be danged if they put every guy in the box, and we still got two first downs and we couldn't do it all night.”

What made Edwards’ effort so impressive was that prior to the final drive, Georgia was barely able to run the ball much at all.

But when they needed to the most, that’s what happened.

“Daijun is a hell of a football player,” Bennett said. “He doesn’t say a word, does his job every single day. He’s a good running back.”

Georgia lost Jalen Carter at the 10:40 mark in the second quarter as the result of a chop block.

He did not return.

“It’s a knee, but I don’t know how bad it is yet. He tried to go back—he couldn’t,” Smart said. “We think it’s an MCL, which is probably good news. Tough, too, because it was a tough block, a tough, tough cut block that they do well. He wanted to go back, but he couldn’t go back.”

… Defensive tackle Warren Brinson is dealing with a knee injury, while linebacker Trezmen Marshall is “banged up,” per Smart.

… Smart acknowledged linebacker Smael Mondon suffered an injury that limited his play. Mondon did leave the game in the third quarter with what appeared to be an injury to his ankle.

… Saturday’s game brought the return of several injured players, although all did not play.

Wide receiver AD Mitchell (ankle) was the biggest surprise, as the sophomore made the trip and warmed up before the game. However, Mitchell did not play.

Also returning was wide receiver Arian Smith, who caught one pass for seven yards.

Kenny McIntosh (thigh bruise) also made the trip and started for the Bulldogs at running back.

Freshman linebacker E.J. Lightsey traveled for the first time.

Freshman Gunner Stockton was one of four quarterbacks to make the trip.

… Smart on the two drives to end the game: “I hate that we had to do that. It begs the question why we couldn’t do that earlier. The determination they showed—we always talk about rising to the competitive nature of the opportunity,” he said. “The opportunity arose tonight, and they answered the bell. If we don’t answer the bell earlier, then we won’t be a very good football team. We’ve got to improve in those areas. It’s not like we haven’t been working on it prior to tonight. We’ve seen some of those things show through. Give Missouri a lot of credit. They tried to make us one-dimensional. It was tough sledding tonight. We didn’t have our best night, for sure.”

… On what Malaki Starks’ game-saving tackle at the goal line on Cody Shraeder’s 63-yard run showed: “It says he’s got a lot of ability. We didn’t fit the play right. We had two guys bust on the play, just things we don’t do. But for the most part, we bottled up the run. If you take that run out, we controlled the run game all night,” Smart said. “But that’s a big play for Malaki; I think he tried to strip the ball out.”

… Smart heaped praise on kicker Jack Podlesny after his four field goals: “Unbelievable. Think about the pressure on each one of those kicks. I feel for the kid. We’re repeatedly putting him out there in those pressure situations; he’s so confident and he has a way about him, he’s got a routine that he really believes in. He was the MVP of the night, him and Daijun Edwards for sure.”

… Smart on Stetson Bennett’s game: “You know, Stetson didn’t play his best game. I think he’d be the first to tell you. I don’t know whether the atmosphere got to him. He kept his composure. He led two really good drives down the field. The one drive before the last drive, he made some big-time throws,” Smart said. “But he missed some throws tonight, and I think he’d be the first to tell you he didn’t play his best game. That’s not all Stetson’s fault. That’s some of my fault, putting a lot on him on the road. Coach Monken will take some of that. We all take it as an offensive staff and a head coach, some responsibility of maybe we’re asking him to do too much. I thought he did a good job of what we asked him to do. He does have to be more accurate.”

… Smart on the team bonding: It was great. We had a great mantra this week. Every player had to pick one brother, and he wasn't leaving without him. He had to hold him accountable for whatever that guy wanted to be held accountable for. I thought the message was taking the 11 best up there or the best 11. There's a big difference. Eleven best doesn't win. When stuff goes wrong, it fractures. When you take the best 11, they stay together. This team bonded tonight. Now don't get me wrong. We've got a long way to go. The resiliency and composure they showed, made me proud.”

… Smart on being exposed: “Oh, every game is going to expose us. We got exposed on defense the week before and we worked on things to help with that. It helped us,” Smart said. “So, they did some really good things tonight that I'm not sure if 'exposed' is the right word, but they certainly did some things that guess what, we have to have some answers for, and we have to get answers for them fast. It starts with getting some wide receivers healthy and being able to run the ball.

… Regarding cleaning up mistakes: It's frustrating, but it happens in football. You don't ever want to put it on the ground. but we had three games without any maybe,” Smart said. “Then all of a sudden you get a little rash. We're not getting them back. We're not playing the ball in the air. I think Chris Smith should've had a pick. We should've had some opportunities to get the ball off them. We can't put the ball on the ground and be successful. We have to do a better job of managing that.

… Tykee Smith started in place of the absent Javon Bullard, who did not travel to Missouri following last Sunday’s arrest on seven vehicular misdemeanor charges.

… Podlesny accounted for 14 points, with four field goals and a pair of PATs. Georgia’s first points cut it to 13-3 in the second quarter. Two key plays on the drive included converting a 3rd-and-9 play with an 18-yard completion by senior quarterback Stetson Bennett to junior wide receiver Dominick Blaylock and a 33-yard reception by sophomore tight end Brock Bowers. Georgia failed to score in the first quarter for the first time since last year’s national championship game, as Alabama led 3-0 before the Bulldogs came back for a 33-18 victory. The Tigers led tonight 3-0 after the first quarter. Georgia finished the first half with 182 yards of offense on 35 plays.

… Bowers was the leading receiver (5 catches for 66 yards). Georgia had 480 yards of total offense on 80 plays. Georgia improves to 11-1 all-time in the series with Mizzou, including 6-0 in Columbia.

… Georgia faced a pair of 13-point deficits in the first half and was down 10 in the 4th quarter. The Bulldogs trailed 13-0 with 8:53 left, and then 16-3 with 3:16 remaining in the first half, and then 16-6 at halftime. Coming in, Georgia was outscoring its opponents in the first half 108-16. Georgia trailed by 10 (19-9) with 4:31 left in the third quarter and by seven (19-12) with 2:15 left in the third and to start the fourth quarter. A 56-yard field goal by Harrison Mevis extended the Tigers lead to 22-12 with 14:09 left, and then Georgia closed it to 22-19 with 9:30 left in the game. Georgia took its first lead with 4:03 left, going up 26-22.

… The Bulldogs overcame their largest fourth quarter deficit (10 points) since the 2021 Peach Bowl, when No. 8 and undefeated Cincinnati was up by 11 (21-10) with 13:20 remaining. Georgia would rally for a 24-21 win.

… Georgia executed a fake field goal as Stetson Bennett rushed for five yards on fourth-and-3 at the Mizzou 22. It was the team’s first since the 2020 Sugar Bowl, when Georgia’s Jake Camarda ran for a first down. Saturday's drive ended with a 34-yard FG. The last time Georgia trailed at the half was last year’s national championship game, to Alabama 9-6 before rallying for a 33-18 win.

… The Tigers tallied 294 yards of total offense on 53 plays and were held to just one TD and five field goals. The Bulldog defense forced a three-and-out to open the second half and again, once Georgia grabbed its first lead of the contest in the fourth quarter. The Tigers hit a 41-yard field goal with 4:11 left in the first quarter for a 3-0 advantage, marking the first time Georgia had trailed this season.

… The leading tackler for the Bulldogs was Jamon Dumas-Johnson with a career-high eight stops, while Starks was next with six.

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