Florida report card: Defense crushes Missouri

The Gators have lost the last two games in the series and ended up watching the Tigers win the SEC’s Eastern Division both years and advance to play in the championship game in Atlanta. “We didn’t play great”. Lock will get his second collegiate start and look to continue build upon his positive performance from last week, in which he completed 21 of 28 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns.

Florida plays at Missouri (4-1, 1-1) on Saturday night.

Players, meanwhile, never doubted the progress they were seeing in practice against a stout defense. The Gators amassed 337 yards and possessed the ball for 37:53, converting 23 first downs as quarterback Will Grier completed 20 of 33 passes for 208 yards in his fifth start. It’s hard on young quarterbacks, man, when you’re giving a bunch of different looks.

Lock said left tackle Connor McGovern apologized to him for all the contact he took in the pocket. Even with the veteran quarterback under center, Missouri has yet to really put together an impressive win.

Leonard Fournette did not rush for his weekly 200 yards, as he has done the last couple of weeks, but he did go for 158 yards and a touchdown, an 87-yard touchdown run on the second play of the second half to give LSU a 24-10 lead.

Granted, most of the damage Hansbrough did was in a vacuum – his 23-yard run late in the first quarter dug Mizzou out of a field position hole but did little else, and he had three carries for 36 yards in the fourth quarter, with Mizzou down 18.

“It wasn’t pretty by any stretch of the imagination”, said McElwain. They just do it a lot better now. But Florida’s defensive front was up to the task as they racked up three sacks and constantly hurried Missouri quarterback Drew Lock and forced him to hurry his throws and not get comfortable in the pocket.

Even though Chubb went out on the first play of the game, you can’t blame the loss on that. Once again, Taylor capped the 3:57 march with a 1-yard touchdown run, the eighth play of the 82-yard drive.

For the first time in LSU history, the Tigers had two 150-yard rushers and a 100-yard receiver as wide receiver Travin Dural caught four passes for 109 yards with a 62-yard touchdown on a tip by intended receiver, tight end DeSean Smith.

The measure of a well-coached team is the response to an emotional victory in the next game, and Jim McIlwaine and his staff had the team prepared and motivated. Expectations were modest coming into the 2015 season for Florida, but after whipping Ole Miss last week, the Gators have been shoved into the national spotlight, whether they’re ready for it or not.

But the offense couldn’t finish, and Missouri settled for a field goal, the Tigers’ lone score.

Something has to change for Tennessee, and this is the flawless week to do it. A win over Georgia is exactly what the team needs to restore much-needed confidence, and the schedule isn’t going to get any easier with Alabama looming on the horizon.

NOTES: Florida K Austin Hardin did not make the trip to Columbia. But the stingy Gators’ defense is permitting a mere 99 yards on the ground per game.

Taylor Chappell is working with the first team at right tackle in pre-game warm-ups, ahead of Nate Crawford. He injured his ankle against Kentucky and has missed the last two games…. This will be the 104th homecoming game for Missouri, which claims to have begun the tradition in 1911…