No. 25 Mizzou dominates No. 8 Florida in massive blowout, handing Gators first loss
By Andrew Olson
Published:
It’s a happy homecoming in Columbia for Mizzou. After a week of criticism about being ranked and struggling to beat top-25 teams, Eli Drinkwitz‘s team proved it belongs in a big way. The No. 25 Tigers handed No. 8 Florida its first loss of the 2026 season, swamping the Gators in a 45-17 blowout, a final score that will turn heads in the SEC and around the country.
Mizzou quarterback Austin Simmons was the star of the first half, throwing for 238 of his 340 yards. Tiger running back Jamal Roberts dominated the second half with runs of 77 and 80 yards en route to a 200-yard day on the ground.
A native of the Sunshine State, Simmons reminded Gator fans why former coach Billy Napier recruited the quarterback to UF before the lefty flipped his commitment to Lane Kiffin‘s Ole Miss program before he eventually landed in CoMo. The Tiger QB put on a show, completing 23 of his 30 passes for 340 yards and 2 touchdowns. Simmons’ favorite target was Cayden Lee who had 8 catches for 110 yards.
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Florida running back Jadan Baugh entered the game hyped as a Heisman Trophy candidate. Baugh’s streaks of triple-digit output and multiple touchdowns were wiped out by the Mizzou defense. The Tigers made Baugh a nonfactor on Saturday, holding the UF star running back to 13 yards on 12 carries.
The top running back on the field Saturday was Mizzou’s Jamal Roberts. Roberts finished with 211 yards and all 3 of MU’s rushing scores.
From the opening kick, Mizzou showed that it was ready to take down a top-10 opponent. It was a 10-10 game with 4:26 to go in the half. The Tigers won the “middle 8” 17-0, adding 10 points before the end of the first half and opening the second half with a 6-play, 75-yard touchdown to make it a 3-score game, 27-10, at the 12:24 mark of the 3rd quarter. Instead of Florida clawing back, the Tigers kept rolling and made it 35 unanswered points.
The final stats are every bit as lopsided as one would expect from a glance at the score. Mizzou exposed the Florida defense, as the Tigers outgained the Gators 560-325 in total offense. The Tiger defense recorded 11 tackles for loss and 3 sacks.
Mizzou, sure to surge in the rankings, will look to keep things rolling against Texas A&M in Week 6. Jon Sumrall‘s Gators will be in bounce-back mode as they return home to host South Carolina.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaign of Fred Taylor.
