No. 25 Missouri spoils No. 8 Florida’s brief stint at the top of the AP poll with a dominant 45-17 victory.
Florida’s time in the top 10 lasted exactly one week.
The Gators jumped 13 spots to No. 8 in the AP Top 25 after a blowout win over Ole Miss in Week 4. Now, the Gators will find themselves tumbling down the rankings Sunday after a 45-17 loss at No. 25 Missouri.
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It’s a massive win for a Mizzou program that has struggled against top competition under coach Eli Drinkwitz. Outside of bowl games, the Tigers entered the game just 6-19 against ranked opponents during Drinkwitz’s tenure. And it had been 13 years since Missouri had a regular-season victory against a top-10 opponent.
This one was incredibly convincing.
A week ago, Florida ran all over Ole Miss. On Saturday, Missouri ran all over Florida in the second half as Jamal Roberts put the game away with two massive runs.
With the Tigers leading by 20, Roberts broke off a 77-yard hide-and-seek run to establish a touchdown and a 28-point lead.
And then on the first play of Missouri’s next possession, Roberts had a five-touchdown game with an 80-yard score.
Before those two runs, Roberts had rushed for just 44 yards on 17 carries as Missouri destroyed Florida’s defense through the air. Quarterback Austin Simmons completed 23 of 30 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. The first was a 47-yard strike to Donovan Olugbode. The second was a 36-yard touchdown to Caleb Goodie with 2:05 left before halftime.
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Florida’s disappointment
Florida tied the game at 10-10 with 4:26 left in the second quarter. With 12:24 left in the third quarter, the Gators trailed 27-10.
This seven-minute stretch was a perfect encapsulation of how the game began to unfold for the Gators. RB Jadan Baugh never looked like himself Saturday and ended up with just 12 carries for 13 yards. Twelve of those yards came on single runs. Missouri’s defensive line and linebackers constantly pushed Florida’s offensive line into the backfield.
That put more pressure on quarterback Aaron Philo, especially with the absence of leading receiver Vernell Brown III. Philo didn’t play particularly badly; but as the win over Ole Miss showed, Florida’s offense works much better with a running game that constantly gains momentum.
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Florida finished the game with just 42 rushing yards, and a significant portion of those yards came late in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach.
This is a stark reminder that early season rises can be followed by equally steep drops. And also proof that Jon Sumrall’s turnaround in Florida will likely take more than a few weeks. The Gators host South Carolina in Week 6 before games against No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Georgia to end October.
Missouri’s rebound
The Tigers lost at Mississippi State in Week 4 after giving up 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. While the Bulldogs were beaten at home earlier in the day by No. 7 Alabama, it’s fair to say that neither result will be a surprise among the teams currently occupying the SEC’s second tier.
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Mizzou can safely consider itself a member of this group, especially when Simmons throws the ball as well as he has so far in 2026. The Ole Miss transfer is the most dynamic passer the Tigers have had in years and gives Missouri’s offense an ability to beat teams deep on any given play that it simply hasn’t had in recent seasons.
It’s an offensive aspect that is sorely needed as it seems less and less likely that Ahmad Hardy will return to the lineup anytime soon after suffering a gunshot wound to the leg in the spring. The All-American fullback was the source of Missouri’s explosiveness in 2025 as he totaled 1,649 yards and 16 scores.
Roberts is now the focal point of Mizzou’s rushing attack in Hardy’s absence after rushing for over 750 yards on 124 carries in 2025. Can he and Simmons push Mizzou further toward the top of the conference?
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