COLUMBIA, Mo. – Kirby Smart echoed what Georgia fans everywhere were thinking at the end of the first half against Missouri.

“We got our ass whipped,” said Smart, referring primarily to the play of the Bulldogs’ offensive line, although he could have said the same for just about every aspect of his team’s play.

While Georgia would come back to beat Missouri 26-22, for a team that prides itself on playing to a certain standard, Saturday night against the Tigers was not it.

“I think we’re going to grow from it; I don’t know if we 'needed it' or any of that stuff,” quarterback Stetson Bennett said. “But that’s what we’ve got, and that’s what we’re going to have to deal with if we want to get better from it.”

They better.

Georgia fans watched in shock as Saturday night’s game against Missouri unraveled before their very eyes. Where do we start?

Favored by 31, the Bulldogs’ opening possession resulted in negative yards, forcing the game’s first punt of the evening.

Unfortunately, it would be the proverbial harbinger of things to come during the first half.

It was ugly. A pair of drops by Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint and Ladd McConkey cost the Bulldogs a pair of would-be first downs.

That was bad enough.

A fumble by Kendall Milton after a 35-yard run wound up not costing the Bulldogs any points, but it summed up the kind of first half it was.

But this was a team-wide debacle, not the responsibility of one man.

Georgia’s offensive line play was dreadful, with the running game netting negative two yards after Milton’s early pickup.

Bennett has enjoyed better days. His first half saw him complete just 10 of 24 passes, while losing the ball on a second-quarter fumble that resulted in one of Missouri’s three first-half field goals.

Georgia’s quarterback was responsible for another turnover when he fumbled on a handoff, also in the first half.

“It’s hard when we’ve got two turnovers in the first three or four drives. It’s hard. Then they go down and get points. We didn’t cash in on our composure card, for lack of a better word. That starts with me,” said Bennett, who finished the game by completing 24 of 44 throws for 312 yards for Georgia, which trailed 16-6 at the half before coming back for the win.

“Two things we talk about all the time are composure and resiliency, and we had to OD on those tonight, because we certainly didn’t start very well, start in good field position,” Smart said. “Look, I couldn’t be prouder of our guys. At halftime, nobody blinked, nobody questioned. It was the most together I’ve ever seen our team.”

The second half did not start any better.

Georgia’s inability to score a touchdown, forcing Jack Podlesny to settle for his third and fourth field goal did not set well, either.

“There’s a ton of things to clean up, and a lot to get better,” Smart said. “I would be remiss if I didn’t give (Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz), his team, the Missouri Tigers—the atmosphere they had tonight—some kudos, too. They played really physical, really hard, and whipped our butt up front.”