Official Game Thread 2023 Week 12: Florida Gators at #9 Missouri Tigers 11/18/2023

[Escambia94]

Overview
Once again the mighty Gators face off against Tigers in back-to-back weeks. The Gators are coming off a 35-52 loss to the LSU Tigers and currently have a 5-5 (3-4) record. The Gators desperately need a double-digit road underdog win order to become bowl eligible. #9 Mizzou is 8-2 (4-2) with losses to UGA (21-30) and LSU (39-49). The Tigers are favored by 11.5 and the over/under is 58.5.

Season Leaders

Category	FLA	MIZ
Passing	Graham Mertz 247 337 73.3 2,720 8.1 18 2 50 30 157.5	Brady Cook 201 296 67.9 2,746 9.3 17 6 76 19 160.7
Rushing	Trevor Etienne 106 628 5.9 7 62 Montrell Johnson 122 625 5.1 4 48	Cody Schrader 197 1,124 5.7 11 52 Nathaniel Peat 66 270 4.1 2 19
Receiving	Ricky Pearsall 62 876 14.1 4 50 Tre Wilson 51 479 9.4 5 30	Luther Burden 68 984 14.5 8 56 Theo Wease 43 547 12.7 5 33
Defense	Shemar James 55 24 31 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jordan Castell 54 24 30 2 0 0 1 -1 0	Ty'Ron Hopper 55 36 19 3 3 0 0 0 0 Joseph Charleston 53 35 18 4 0 1 0 0 0

Both teams feature former transfer players as their statistical leaders:
Florida
- Mertz - Wisconsin
- Johnson - Louisiana
- Pearsall - Arizona
Missouri
- Peat - Stanford
- Wease - Oklahoma
- Hopper - Florida
- Charleston - Clemson

Injury Report
Florida will be without its leading tackler LB Shemar James, most experienced offensive lineman LT Austin Barber, and backup receivers Caleb Douglas and Andy Jean.

Players to Watch
Scooby Williams will step into Shemar James’ MIKE linebacker role. WILL LB Mannie Nunnery will likely see additional action in the run game against Missouri RB Cody Schrader.

Keys to the Game
The Gators pulled off a 24-17 win in Gainesville last year when these evenly matched teams met up in the Swamp. This year the Tigers are vastly improved and are ranked in the top 10 with notable victories over ranked #13 Tennessee (36-7), #15 Kansas State (30-27), and #24 Kentucky (#38-21). The Tiger offense has been revamped since last year with excellent results launching the team into the top of the offensive statistical rankings and the polls.

Prediction
I doubt the Fightin' Napiers get their bowl eligibility on the road as double digit underdogs. I predict another loss, 42-17, and another week of misery for the Gator Nation.

 

[DRU2012]

Overview
Once again the mighty Gators face off against Tigers in back-to-back weeks. The Gators are coming off a 35-52 loss to the LSU Tigers and currently have a 5-5 (3-4) record. The Gators desperately need a double-digit road underdog win order to become bowl eligible. #9 Mizzou is 8-2 (4-2) with losses to UGA (21-30) and LSU (39-49). The Tigers are favored by 11.5 and the over/under is 58.5.

View attachment 870

Keys to the Game
The Gators pulled off a 24-17 win in Gainesville last year when these evenly matched teams met up in the Swamp. This year the Tigers are vastly improved and are ranked in the top 10 with notable victories over ranked #13 Tennessee (36-7), #15 Kansas State (30-27), and #24 Kentucky (#38-21).

Prediction
I doubt the Fightin' Napiers get their bowl eligibility on the road as double digit underdogs. I predict another loss and another week of misery for the Gator Nation.

And as I try to establish clearly over on the "Gators at LSU" thread, all that isn't even our most immediate concern on this sinking ship:
MY main focus is currently on our sadly dwindling 2024 recruiting class...
Billu's fate, and hence our OWN, has LONG been tuned to that, whether we acknowledged it or NOT. Only on getting out AHEAD of all thatvin so impressive and encouragingly aggressive style did he have at least SOME of us (quite counter-intuitiveky, considering what was happening ON THE FIELD the 2nd half of the season!) amazingly calm and reassured:
"Oh well--the season is turning out just as forecast by the experts after a stirring start, but he IS bringing in that first bog recruiting class, as promised, right on SCHEDULE..."
BUTthat falls away, as now is threatening, and his "safety net/maneuvering room" falls away WITH it--very quickly!
If I bothered thinking about it AT ALL at this point, I'd stick with what has been the one waning chance we had in my view at Bowl eligibility all along: A win against the "cross-state academic ineligibles" in the annual Thanksgiving (and this year once again "possible season-SAVING?") "Rivals Bowl"!
No, it ISN'T especially "likely" (for all kinds of reasons, this season less seemingly so than EVER), but NEVER totally out of the realm of "ya never KNOW!".
BUT win or lose (though perhaps a stirringly successful showing plays a PART in all this?), it is no longer our record or the extra practices or ANYTHING ELSE that most shapes our future:
To paraphrase a political epithet in a close presidential race some decades back:
"IT'S THE RECRUITING, STUPID!"

 

[Escambia94]

Florida Injury Report for Mizzou
Out
WR Caleb Douglas
LB Shemar James
CB Devin Moore
TE Jonathan Odom
EDGE Jack Pyburn
LT Austin Barber
WR Andy Jean

Mizzou Injury Report for Florida
PROBABLE
Luther Burden III
Brady Cook
Cam'Ron Johnson
Tre'Vez Johnson
Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
Cody Schrader
Kristian Williams

QUESTIONABLE
Realus George Jr.
Ty'Ron Hopper

 

[DRU2012]

Sigh...Knew this was gonna be a tough year, but at this point I'd say the "Bad News" has all come (or at the very least is ON THE WAY), the "autumn rains" a MONSOON, and if anything is NOT expected to be moderated by some happy arrival of a warm "Florida front".
Yes--I have become somewhat "The Voice of Doom".
Sorry.

 

[Escambia94]

UF has made 6 trips to Mizzou. 5 different head coaches.
2013 - Will Muschamp - Mizzou won 36-17
2015 - Jim McElwain - UF won 21-3
2017 - Randy Shannon - Mizzou won 45-16
2019 - Dan Mullen - UF won 23-6
2021 - Dan Mullen - Mizzou won 24-23
2023 - Billy Napier

 

[DRU2012]

For what it's worth, I am here...but possibly not for long.

 

[DRU2012]

Have sound off for the moment...may just go with WRUF feed while I do other things.
Meanwhile, disaster in first half for Noles in what was SUPPOSED to be a "scrimmage"...
NOT tge s ore (though down a coupla scores in the 2nd quarter)--but rather the reportedly "gruesome" injury to their star (Heismann competitive) QB-1, gone directly from fiekd to hospital.
Feel badly for the kid, of course (but less so for their loud-mouthed trolls whom have taken relentless pleasure this season in OUR endless difficulties). Injuries a part of the gane--but of COURSE we hate to see this sort of attrition.
Aw shoot--Mizzou knitting straight down the field.
Coupla plays abd they are already in our red zone!
Looks like we will hold them to 3, though.
Hope Billy was ready to score the way they did LAST week.

 

[DRU2012]

Yeah. 3-0, Tigers. No reason to panic--neither to PARTY though, either.
It is their DEFENSE that has been their strong suit so far this season. Unless we can show a number of things we haven't thus far in many years, things will likely deteriorate ftom here.
Sorry. That is what this team has TAUGHT us to expect.

 

[DRU2012]

Mertz and Piersall, looking sharp.

 

[DRU2012]

Yes! MERTZ TO WILSON III! TD.

 

[DRU2012]

There is talent on this Gator team.
That is EXACTLY why some of the bewildering sloppy play has become progressively more indefensible.

 

[Escambia94]

Gators looking good in spurts.

 

[Escambia94]

Not sure why a CB like Jaydon Hill is the only one hitting Missouri running backs in their backfield.

 

[Escambia94]

Gators up 7-3 at 6:08. Getting ready to start their next series, the first unscripted series.

	FLA	MIZ
1st Downs	2	4
3rd down efficiency	1-1	2-4
4th down efficiency	0-0	0-0
Total Yards	80	72
Passing	76	16
Comp-Att	4-4	1-4
Yards per pass	19.0	4.0
Interceptions thrown	0	0
Rushing	4	56
Rushing Attempts	1	10
Yards per rush	4.0	5.6
Penalties	0-0	0-0
Turnovers	0	0
Fumbles lost	0	0
Interceptions thrown	0	0
Possession	2:44	6:08

 

[Escambia94]

The Gators look good on the first drive because it is scripted. It is all downhill from there on the unscripted drives.

 

[DRU2012]

Funny you say thst--I was just THINKING how that really showed out there now with this series.
Now comes the SUCCESSION of UNFORCED ERRORS, taking us way deeper in our own end.
PATHETIC. This us what I do not like about our Coach.

 

[DRU2012]

Well, the D is holding its own so far...Something Billy's scripting cannot screw up.

 

[Escambia94]

I liked the edge pressure from the corner blitz. Rather than over-pursuing, Jalen Kimber sealed the edge and disrupted the passing lane.

 

[Escambia94]

0:27 1Q. Still 7-3. Gator offense stalls again.

	FLA	MIZ
1st Downs	2	5
3rd down efficiency	1-3	2-5
4th down efficiency	0-0	0-0
Total Yards	96	86
Passing	83	23
Comp-Att	6-8	2-7
Yards per pass	10.4	3.3
Interceptions thrown	0	0
Rushing	13	63
Rushing Attempts	3	12
Yards per rush	4.3	5.3
Penalties	3-15	0-0
Turnovers	0	0
Fumbles lost	0	0
Interceptions thrown	0	0
Possession	6:30	8:03

 

[DRU2012]

It just keeps on sucking. Penalty after penalty...4 of the 5 last plays!!!
And gge play calling they are barely able to RUN?
JUST LAUGHABLE.
I am truly starting to despise the way thus offense bumbles through whatever its gameplans were SUPPOSED to be!
Once again, we had our chances to take control here--but we have squandered it--giving then time to recover and get their feet under them.
We will lose ftom here, you'll see.
I BLAME IT ON OUR COACH/OC.
(Read that, "Coach SLASH OC"!)