Georgia ended its first season under Kirby Smart with a 31-23 victory over TCU in the Liberty Bowl on Friday, but the real victory came earlier in December.

Junior running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel both announced they would return for their senior seasons on Dec. 15, which was met with excitement from the Bulldogs’ faithful. After Friday’s victory, it’s clear why.

Against the Horned Frogs, the play of Chubb and Michel was paramount. Without the outstanding efforts from the two running backs, it’s likely that Georgia would have lost the game.

Chubb, who moved into second place on the school’s career rushing list in the first quarter, led the way on the ground with 142 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. As he has done throughout his career, Chubb appeared to get stronger as the game wore on and had some of his best carries in the fourth quarter.

Early in the afternoon, it was Michel who did much of the damage. He scored the game’s first touchdown, a 4-yard run in the opening quarter, and then added another score with a 33-yard catch-and-run just before halftime. Michel ended his day with 126 yards of total offense and 2 touchdowns.

Dec 30, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Georgia Bulldogs running back Sony Michel (1) carries the ball for a touchdown against TCU Horned Frogs cornerback Ranthony Texada (11) during the first half at Liberty Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

The duo accounted for 268 of Georgia’s 412 total yards and provided a touch of stability to an offense that looked lost at times during the game.

Offensive line problems were still entirely too frequent and prevented an even better outing for the two running backs. Bolstering the line of scrimmage is a major priority for Smart and his staff, but it remains to be seen how much progress will be made next season.

If the struggles up front remain, that makes the return of Chubb and Michel all the more important. Their patience and experience will help them overcome some of the issues that may hamper a younger back.

That patience paid off in Georgia’s bowl victory. During the first half, the Bulldogs’ backs were constantly met at the line of scrimmage and averaged just 2.7 yards per carry. After halftime, however, Chubb and Michel found much more room to run, and Georgia averaged 7.7 yards per carry.

“Those two backs, now, they wear you down,” Smart told UGA radio announcer Scott Howard after the game. “You tackle them in the first quarter, you’re fresh. In the fourth quarter, it’s 220 pounds of muscle coming at you and you get tired of hitting those guys.”

Entering the Liberty Bowl, all eyes were on true freshman quarterback Jacob Eason. In his first season, Eason had been largely inconsistent but showed small signs of improvement down the stretch.

Despite the extra practice time, Eason very much looked the part of a first-year player. It was a disappointing showing from Eason, who struggled with his accuracy and touch throughout the afternoon.

If Georgia is to even begin to hope for a shot at the Playoff, it will likely depend on Eason taking a big step in his sophomore season. With Chubb and Michel returning, however, the burden on the quarterback’s shoulders is lessened greatly.

As was expected this year, Eason should have the luxury of handing off the ball to two of the SEC’s best running backs. He won’t have to win every game by himself, which is something he doesn’t appear ready to do yet.

Friday’s bowl game provided a microcosm of Georgia’s season. There was inconsistency on both sides of the ball, coaching blunders and fundamental lapses. Despite all of that, Chubb and Michel kept plugging away and helped the Bulldogs stay in the contest.

“Eventually, we ended up breaking some (plays) here and there,” Chubb said at the post-game press conference. “Sony ended up breaking a couple, and I ended up breaking a couple. After a while, no one wants to keep tackling us. We ended up going back to the fundamentals. I think we just kept pounding and kept opening it up.”

In Smart’s second year, Georgia can’t afford to have the same problems that plagued it in his first season. The defense already appears to be improving greatly and the offensive line can’t get much worse, but it’s Chubb and Michel who may be the most important factors.

As they’ve done time and again in their career as Bulldogs, Chubb and Michel turned a potential loss into something much more.

William McFadden covers the University of Georgia for Saturday Down South. For news on everything happening between the hedges, follow him on Twitter @willmcfadden.