No. 25 Missouri did not just beat No. 8 Florida on Saturday. The Tigers took the Gators apart, 45-17, and in the process rewrote how the SEC race looks heading into October.
Both teams are now 4-1. Florida entered undefeated after a 52-28 win over then-No. 4 Ole Miss. After this, nobody should be calling the Gators a playoff lock.
Missouri finally beats a ranked team
The win snapped a nine-game losing streak against AP Top 25 opponents. It was also Missouri’s first win over a ranked conference opponent since November 2023. Head coach Eli Drinkwitz brushed off the streak afterward, calling it “noise people create on social media for no reason.”
The game was tied 10-10 in the second quarter. From there Missouri outscored Florida 35-7. That is the kind of stretch that tells you one team simply decided it was better.
Quarterback Austin Simmons went 23 of 30 for 340 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Jamal Roberts ran 24 times for 211 yards and three scores. When your quarterback and your back both top 200 yards, the other sideline has real problems.
Florida’s defense and run game both disappeared
Florida’s Jadan Baugh led the SEC with 600 rushing yards coming in. Missouri held him to 13 yards on 12 carries, and the entire Gators rushing attack managed just 30 yards. Quarterback Aaron Philo was 21 of 34 for 197 yards and one touchdown while Missouri piled up three sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
That is the number that should scare Florida. A team that cannot run the ball and cannot protect its quarterback does not win SEC games in November.
Gators head coach Jon Sumrall was furious. “Embarrassing performance in every phase,” he said. “It starts with the coaching and it starts with me.” He also said he is “sick to my freakin’ stomach” over what happened and warned that players who do not take ownership will not remain on the roster.
What comes next
Florida hosts South Carolina on October 10, then travels to face No. 1 Texas in Week 7. That is not a friendly stretch for a team trying to answer questions about its identity. Sumrall has a quick turnaround to fix a team that looked unprepared.
Missouri’s schedule is just as busy. The Tigers are at 1-1 in SEC play and still have plenty of conference games ahead. The difference is that they now have a statement win and a quarterback playing at a high level.
My take: this result tells you more about Missouri than about Florida. The Tigers can hang with the SEC’s top teams when their offense runs through Simmons and Roberts. Florida, meanwhile, has to show it is more than a fast start and one big win over Ole Miss.
The AP poll will reshuffle, and Missouri will climb. Nobody should be surprised if the Tigers stay in the mix for a long while.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
