RECAP: Mizzou’s big win over Florida was built during the week

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The most important thing that Mizzou football did in its statement win over Florida may not have even happened at Faurot Field, on Saturday.

It happened Monday through Friday.

After a fourth-quarter collapse at then-No. 24 Mississippi State in Week 4, the Tigers went back to work. They didn't run from the problems that cost them the game in Starkville, but instead addressed them.

"We talked all week. If we wanted to win this game, we needed to be a tough team," head coach Eli Drinkwitz said. "Tough teams stop the run, run the ball and cover kicks and that's exactly what we did today."

The result of all that work was a 45-17 routing of then-No. 8 Florida on homecoming — a performance that showed just how quickly the Tigers could learn and grow from their mistakes.

"Players, coaches, teams are allowed to improve and a game doesn't define the season," Drinkwitz said.

And on Saturday, Mizzou proved that...in a big way, resulting in a surge up to No. 14 in the latest AP Poll, on Sunday.

That response came in just about every facet of the game, too.

On defense, just one week after struggling to stop the run against Mississippi State, Mizzou stifled Florida's ground game. That included shutting down Jadan Baugh, who entered the game as the nation's No. 2 leading rusher. He had been averaging about 150 yards per game through the first few weeks, but was held to just 13 yards on 12 carries in Columbia.

"I think coming into the game, Florida might have had a mindset that they'll be able to run all over us, especially with what we put on film in the past,"defensive tackle Sterling Webb said. "Going in and fixing mistakes was the big contributor to being successful this week."

The Tigers didn't simply talk about correcting their mistakes. They showed the corrections on the field

That showed on offense, as well, as quarterback Austin Simmons and company kicked it into another gear against the Gators.

The offense is a unit that's been search for more consistency, particularly early in games. Against Florida, it found it, as Mizzou amassed 560 yards of total offense. In particular, Simmons looked tremendous, throwing for 340 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

"Honestly, I think the pass game is the story right now," Drinkwitz said. "Our ability to throw the ball was the difference in the game."

Simmons played with confidence and command.

"He's playing extremely confident, knows where to put the ball, has great confidence in his wide receivers," Drinkwitz said.

And for Simmons, the key to success against Florida was moving forward.

"I think for us, turning the page early was really just a big factor for us," he said. "It kind of just seemed like we never played that game last week throughout this whole week of preparation."

On Saturday, Mizzou showed its ability to learn the lesson and leave the event. And they got tested on just how much they learned, early on, against the Gators.

Florida briefly made it a game, tying the score at 10 with just over four minutes remaining in the first half.

However, Mizzou's will to respond was greater than anything the Gators brought to the field, showing that that heartbreaking loss against Mississippi Sate had not lingered in the minds of this Tiger team.

Kicker Blake Craig knocked in a 50-yard field goal to regain the lead before halftime. Then, Simmons and his guys opened the second half with four-straight scoring drives, resulting in 35 unanswered points.

"We talked about no scoreboard mentality," Drinkwitz said. "And that's part of playing fast and free."

Simmons and his receivers put on a show, but running back Jamal Roberts delivered the knockout blow.

When Florida desperately needed a stop late in the game, the St. Louis native broke free for an 80-yard touchdown, which was one of his three touchdowns on the day. He finished with 211 yards on the ground, altogether.

"Noise don't really bother me," Roberts said, after the game. "It's nothing to it. It's just noise. I mean, they're not on the field. They're not part of the living man that's on the field with us."

Mizzou followed that lesson, too: stay the course, ignore the noise and trust the work.

Coach Drinkwitz and his team took what happened in Starkville, Mississippi and used it as an opportunity to move forward, and not let one loss define the season.

"I knew that this team could continue to get better," Drinkwitz said. "That one game wasn't the summation of a season, and this game isn't a summation of the season."

And he's right. There's still a long, long road ahead, as Mizzou has seven SEC clashes left on the schedule this season.

Next up - No. 14 Mizzou will host Texas A&M on Saturday, Oct. 10. Kickoff is slated for 11 a.m. on ABC 17.