5 Takeaways from Florida’s Loss to Missouri
Gators coach Jon Sumrall kicked off Week 5 with a promise: If you don’t humble yourself, someone else will do it for you. Florida football made its choice Saturday.
No. 8 Florida (4-1, 2-1 SEC) entered their matchup against No. 25 Missouri (4-1, 1-1 SEC) with confidence, focus and high expectations. But after a 45-17 loss to the Tigers, the Gators’ shining season has dimmed.
1. Baugh Shows First Signs of Struggle
Jadan Baugh has been the star of Florida’s highlight reel this season. Heading into Missouri, the running back led the SEC and sat as the nation’s No. 2 rusher with 600 yards and 11 touchdowns. After five straight games of rushing for at least 100 yards, the Tigers snapped Baugh’s streak, holding him to just 13 yards on 12 carries.
Against Florida’s rush-focused offense, Missouri contained Baugh and the large majority of Florida’s offense as the game continued. Florida’s running back room finished with 13 carries for 30 yards and an average of 1.7 yards per carry throughout the game.
“This doesn’t change who you are,” Sumrall told Baugh near the end of the game. “We all have to own what happened today. And you’re a leader on this football team, so it starts with how you handle your business. Like, how you look in the mirror.”
2. Defensive Unit Still Inconsistent
Defensive coordinator Brad White identified consistency as an area of weakness for the Gators last Tuesday. Against Missouri, it was once again called into question.
The Gators allowed 560 yards from the Tigers’ offense, with 340 yards credited to the passing offense.
Missouri quarterback Austin Simmons threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns with a 76.7% completion rate, while running back Jamal Roberts recorded 24 carries for 211 yards and three touchdowns. Defensive leader Bryce Thornton was notably ruled out at the start of the game due to injury. However, with or without him, Florida’s defense remains a glaring issue for the Gators moving forward.
“It would be really easy to fix if it was just one guy,” Sumrall said about the Gators defense. “It would be a really easy fix if it was just one thing. The problem is right now it’s different guys wearing the hat that maybe are giving something up, and then different issues that are presenting that are really, when you’re trying to maybe plug one hole, and another opens.”
3. Penalties Persist
Florida’s broken record has sung again.
The Gators earned eight penalties for 80 yards against Missouri, making this the third consecutive game where Florida has been flagged at least eight times in a game.
Following the game, Sumrall didn’t seem to have an answer as to where the issue stemmed from.
“I can’t pin it down to one thing,” Sumrall said. “What bothered me was our lack of execution, our lack of discipline, our lack of detail.”
Two of the penalties, including a flag on Bryce Lovett for a personal foul and a holding penalty in the fourth that prevented London Montgomery’s kickoff return for a touchdown, negated big plays that could’ve helped turn the game around for the Gators.
Defensively, the Gators also exhibited several mistakes, including a personal foul call on Aaron Chiles, unsportsmanlike conduct to Jamari Lyons in the fourth and a delay of game penalty to Jeremiah McCloud for clapping during Missouri’s snap.
4. Pressure in the Pocket
Gators quarterback Aaron Philo has remained cool and confident in the pocket since Game 1. Missouri, however, presented a different challenge for the quarterback.
Throughout the game, he failed to gain an edge on the Tigers, consistently throwing passes to receivers with layered coverage and missing open receivers. Philo ended the game completing 21-for-34 passes for 197 yards and one touchdown, with his longest completion going for just 24 yards.
Florida’s star receiver Vernell Brown III was ruled out just hours before the game, but the Gators’ receiving room was strong enough to fill the gaps. Dallas Wilson stepped onto the stage, leading with four catches for 66 yards and a touchdown.
The disappointing performance is partially credited to inconsistencies in Philo’s game. However, the Gators’ offensive line didn’t provide the quarterback any additional support. Missouri was able to notch three sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
“(Missouri) did a really good job of playing with physicality,” Sumrall said. “They played good defense, and we didn’t execute.”
5. Too Much Pressure?
Florida entered its matchup against No. 25 Missouri following a dominant 52-28 top-five victory that propelled the Gators to a No. 8 AP ranking. Saturday’s game marked their first challenge where Florida’s success came with expectations attached.
Although favored, their first two games of the season against FAU and Campbell began the Sumrall era. Wins were expected, but there was still an air of uncertainty surrounding the program.
But in Week 5, after an impressive rout of the Rebels, Florida appeared lackluster. Its previously formidable offense looked confused, easily stopped by the Tigers’ defensive talent.
Despite Sumrall’s clear statement that “rankings in Week 4 mean nothing,” the top-10 ranking seemed to have given the Gators something to lose. And lose it they did.
It’s not yet clear what set back the Gators — underestimating Missouri’s strength, overestimating their own or forgetting the “1-0 every week” slogan that Sumrall has emphasized since August.
Following the game, Sumrall made his thoughts on the result clear.
“The fact that we put less than our best out there absolutely makes me freaking sick,” he said. “I am freaking livid over the fact that we just did that. I told the guys in the locker room, anybody that’s comfortable with that, come see me tonight. We ain’t moving forward like this.”
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