Saturday, November 16, 2019 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
THE QUICK SLANT
No. 11 FLORIDA 23, MISSOURI 6
WHAT HAPPENED: The 11th-ranked Gators took their time to warm up the scoreboard Saturday -- much like the weather here at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Mo. -- but once they did, they took control in the third quarter with a pair of touchdown throws by quarterback Kyle Trask. The first came with Florida nursing a 6-3 lead when Trask dropped back and threw deep to receiver Josh Hammond, who swirled around to catch a 34-yard touchdown pass with Tigers safety Joshuah Bledsoe in coverage. Two UF possessions later, Trask drove the Gators 75 yards on eight plays for a 20-6 lead, connecting with Lamical Perine for a 15-yard touchdown pass. Perine made the catch in the back corner of the end zone, getting a foot down before falling out of bounds. Officials reviewed the play to ensure Perine got a foot in-bounds and had possession before ruling it a touchdown, Perine's fourth scoring reception of the season. The Gators led 6-3 at halftime in a battle of field goals, with sophomore Evan McPherson good from 47 and 39 yards for UF, and Missouri's Tucker McCann connecting on a 37-yarder in the second quarter to make it a 3-3 game. The teams combined for 10 punts in the first half. Florida outscored Missouri 17-3 in the second half to hand the Tigers (5-5, 2-4 in SEC) their first home loss of the season.
Senior receiver Josh Hammond hauls in a 34-yard TD catch from quarterback Kyle Trask on Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Mo. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
WHAT IT MEANS: A nine-win regular season for the second year in a row under head coach Dan Mullen. The Gators (9-2, 6-2) closed the Southeastern Conference portion of their schedule with their first win over the Tigers since 2016. With six SEC wins, that is a one-game improvement over Mullen's first season in 2018 when the Gators went 5-3, losing to Kentucky, Georgia and Missouri. This season, the Gators' only conference losses came to No. 1-ranked LSU and No. 4 Georgia. Florida's only hope of getting to Atlanta for the SEC Championship game is to have Georgia lose today at Auburn and then next week at home to Texas A&M. Regardless, you can expect them to watch the Georgia-Auburn game closely on the flight home this evening.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Trask threw for 282 yards and a pair of scores, threatening to become the first UF quarterback since Tim Tebow during his Heisman Trophy-winning season of 2007 to have three 300-yard passing games in a season. Meanwhile, reigning SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week Jonathan Greenard posted another award-worthy performance, registering two sacks and five tackles for loss.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: The Tigers entered Saturday's game with a seven-game winning streak at home, including 5-0 this season. In those five wins, Missouri averaged 40.4 points and 461.8 yards. They finished with six points and just 256 yards on Saturday.
UP NEXT: Another bye week. That's right, the Gators have their third and final bye of the season before they host Florida State on Senior Day at "The Swamp" Nov. 30. An additional week to prepare for the Seminoles gives players such as DE Jabari Zuniga (ankle) and LB Amari Burney (knee) more time to heal. Neither player made the trip to Missouri.
