The Florida Gators returned to football after being out for two weeks due to a COVID-19 spike. The Gators first opponent back was against the Missouri Tigers in the Swamp on Halloween night. We have the three takeaways from the Florida-Missouri game that made this one of the more complete Gators’ outings of the season.
Three Takeaways From Florida-Missouri Game
The Gators not only defeated the Missouri Tigers 41-17 but it was their most complete game of the 2020 season. The offense was rusty early in the game but got in sync and looked like the offense they’ve been all season.
The biggest surprise was how good defense looked without three starters in the secondary. Defensive tackle Kyree Campbell made his season debut and definitely helps Florida’s defensive lien stop the run and put pressure on the quarterback. Here are three takeaways from the Florida-Missouri game.
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Defense Has Been Performance Of 2020 Season
For the first time this season, the Florida defense looked like the defense everybody expected it to be. The defensive line played very well against a good Missouri offensive line. The Gators had six tackles for loss and three sacks in the win over Missouri.
Zachary Carter and Brenton Cox played their natural positions for the first time this season and looked very comfortable. Kyree Campbell and Tedarrell Slaton were moving people around and clogging up the middle.
The secondary had its best game of the season as they didn’t allow any passing touchdowns. Missouri quarterback Conner Bazelak only threw for 208 yards and a lot of those yards came in garbage time. Jaydon Hill, Trey Dean and Rashad Torrence all performed well as the Gators were missing Marco Wilson, Shawn Davis and Donovan Stiner.
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Offense Continues To Impress
The Gators offense has been terrific through the first four games of the season. Redshirt-senior quarterback Kyle Trask continued to play like a Heisman contender on Halloween night. Trask has completed 21 out of 36 passes with four touchdowns and one interception.
Two other Gators that had a big game against the Tigers defense were Kadarius Toney and Kyle Pitts. Toney had a huge game as he had four receptions for 60 yards and two touchdowns. Toney also had three carries for 23 yards and a score. Pitts leads the Gators in receiving with five catches for 81 yards.
Senior wide receiver Trevon Grimes had three receptions for 33 yards and a touchdown. It was his first touchdown since the season opener against Ole Miss. Former five-star recruit and Penn State transfer Justin Shorter caught his first touchdown of his collegiate career.
Florida also had a good day with their rushing attack. The Gators rushed for 169 yards and averaged 4.8 yards per carry. The Florida offensive line also had a good game helping Florida’s rushing attack and giving Trask a clean pocket to work with.
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Jaydon Hill Should Start Next Week
Sophomore cornerback Jaydon Hill made his first career start of his collegiate career and played exceptionally well. Hill looked very comfortable in coverage and played better than most expected.
He didn’t get many passes targeted towards him but he did have a pass breakup on the night. Hill started the game due to Marco Wilson being out for an undisclosed reason. The Florida defense played more aggressive and looked like a Todd Grantham defense.
Hill has played well when he’s been on the field and should be on the field for most if not all of the Florida vs. Georgia game coming up on Saturday. Wilson is having his worst season of his collegiate career. This game might determine Florida’s season so, it might be time for Florida to play Jaydon Hill at corner if they believe he gives them the best chance of winning this Saturday.
