Another game in the SEC for Mizzou, another loss for the new conference doormat. This time the Tigers avoided a blow out but were embarrassed in another way. their offense could only manage 7 points in 60 minutes of play.
Florida defense stymies Mizzou in bounce-back win | Fox News
Six times Missouri crossed midfield in the second half only to be turned away by a staunch Florida defense.
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Missouri (4-5, 1-5) was coming off its first-ever SEC win last week against Kentucky and lost for the third time in four games. James Franklin threw for 236 yards and was intercepted four times in defeat
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Missouri followed with a march inside the Florida 10, but it soon stalled and the Gators came up with a blocked field goal to keep it even. The Tigers then drove to the Florida 27 with their next possession, but Franklin overthrew an open receiver near the goal line and Matt Elam returned the interception 42 yards to the Florida 46.
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Missouri drove to the Florida 24 on its next series, but went backward from there as an incomplete pass was followed by an intentional grounding penalty and a sack to force a punt.
Mizzou offense sputters in 14-7 loss to Florida | Kansas City Star
The frustration was clear in Sheldon Richardson’s voice, though his face was unemotional. Roughly 30 minutes after Missouri’s latest loss, a 14-7 defeat at the hands of No. 8 Florida on Saturday, he sounded like a man who had been here before…when asked how it felt to dominate the Gators, to keep getting the ball back to a struggling offense that couldn’t make the leap, Richardson replied quickly.
“I’m used to it now,” he said.
—the Tigers were shut out in the second half. Missouri, which entered the game 12th out of 14 SEC teams in total offense, reached Florida’s side of the field six consecutive times in the half and came away empty-handed.—Three of Missouri’s last five offensive drives ended with interceptions as Franklin finished 24 for 51 passing for 236 yards.
Mizzou’s offense can’t cash in defensive gifts | STL Today
Entering Saturday’s game at No. 8 Florida, Mizzou hadn’t won on the campus of a top 10 team since 1978 at No. 2 Nebraska.
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And then it all came to this:
With 11 seconds left, MU was at the Gator 21, facing fourth and 6.
“We had it in our hands,” linebacker Will Ebner said.
But the monumental chance was squandered for good when James Franklin’s overthrown toss for Gahn McGaffie was picked off in the end zone by Florida’s Josh Evans, preserving a 14-7 Florida win.
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“Right now, we’re the bottom-feeders of the SEC,” said exaggeration-prone defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson, who also said, “This is the best defense Missouri’s ever had.
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Mizzou has had all season to cope with those injuries, and it still had plenty of chances to topple the Gators (8-1, 7-1) only to self-destruct on three interceptions in Florida territory, a blocked field goal and an intentional grounding-sack combo on back-to-back plays.
That was all in a second half that featured six MU appearances on Florida’s side of the 50 … for no points.
Offense blamed in Mizzou’s loss to Gators | Kansas City Star
In the aftermath of Missouri’s 14-7 loss to Florida on Saturday, much of the blame for the defeat — both on Twitter and in print — was dropped right at the feet of the offense, particularly quarterbackJames Franklin.
This is certainly justified.
—“We don’t want to have to put that much pressure on James.”
But going forward, it’s clear that’s exactly where the pressure will be, especially after Franklin’s struggles in the passing game against the Gators.
