Missouri’s biggest swing came after Florida got the game level—not before. With the score tied 10-10 late in the second quarter, Austin Simmons hit Cayden Lee for 29 yards, then found Caleb Goodie Sr. for the go-ahead touchdown with 2:05 left. The Tigers added a 52-yard field goal before halftime, and the momentum in Columbia had turned. Florida’s stunning win over Ole Miss a week earlier was already starting to feel distant.
Missouri kept pressing after the break. Simmons threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns, while Jamal Roberts—stepping in for Ahmad Hardy—broke loose for 211 rushing yards and three scores. His 77-yard burst helped widen the gap; an 80-yard touchdown later delivered the knockout. Missouri piled up 35 unanswered points before Florida scored late, closing out a 45-17 victory.
The damage began up front. Florida’s Jadan Baugh, who entered as the SEC’s leading rusher, managed just 13 yards on 12 carries. Missouri limited the Gators to 42 rushing yards overall and repeatedly put them behind the chains. The defense that had struggled against the run earlier in the season instead set the game’s terms, forcing Florida to chase through the air.
For Missouri, the win snapped a nine-game skid against ranked opponents and lifted the Tigers from No. 25 to No. 14 in the next AP poll. Florida fell from No. 8 to No. 16, only a week after rising 13 places following its 52-28 defeat of then-No. 4 Ole Miss. That whiplash leaves the bigger question: was Florida’s breakout win a sign of a real turnaround, or did Missouri expose how quickly the Gators can be pulled away from their run-first identity?
