GAINESVILLE, FLA- Following an-impressive 52-17 win over Eastern Washington in week five, the Florida Gators (4-2, 1-2 SEC) stayed in Gainesville and welcomed Missouri to The Swamp in an SEC Conference Bout. In what was a tightly contested game throughout, Florida managed to pull away from Missouri late, defeating the Tigers 24-17 and earning their first SEC Conference win of the season.
In spite of another lackluster performance by Sophomore Quarterback Anthony Richardson, the Gators’ defense made many crucial plays to make up for Richardson’s sluggish play. With this said, Florida will look to record back-to-back wins for the first time this season as they are set to face LSU (4-2, 2-1 SEC), renewing one of the deepest rivalries in the SEC Conference.
Review of Florida’s Week Six Win Against Missouri
After a solid outing against Eastern Washington in Week 5, Richardson struggled against Missouri in Week 6, completing 8-of-14 pass attempts for one touchdown and one interception while running for 45 additional yards. Furthermore, no Florida receiver caught more than two passes or accumulated 20 receiving yards, failing to ignite the passing offense. Through six games, Richardson has flashed superstar potential multiple times, but careless mistakes and inconsistent play have diminished his overall outlook.
As a result of Richardson’s lackluster passing, Napier decided to rely heavily on Florida’s running back committee of Montrell Johnson (10/86/1), Trevor Etienne (10/83/0), and Nay’Quan Wright (5/22/0). As a team, the Gators notched 32 carries for 231 yards and one touchdown while averaging an impressive 7.2 yards per carry (YPC) against a porous Missouri front seven.
In reference to Florida’s poor offensive performance against Missouri, it was the Gators’ defense that stifled and held off the Tigers for the 24-17 SEC Conference win. Following a close 22-26 loss to No. 1 Georgia while completing 20-of-32 pass attempts for 192 yards and a touchdown, Sophomore Quarterback Brady Cook posted similar numbers in The Swamp, completing 22-of-30 pass attempts for 220 yards and a 121.6 Quarterback Rating. As it turns out, Gators’ Sophomore Cornerback Jaydon Hill was able to notch two interceptions against Cook, one of which Hill returned 49 yards for his first career pick-six.
Likewise, Florida’s front seven was able to apply plenty of pressure on Cook, recording 13 tackles for loss (TFL), four sacks, and three quarterback hurries (QBH). Due to this, Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz relied on Senior running backs Nathaniel Peat (20/117/1) and Cody Schrader (8/17/1) to help the offense, as they combined for 134 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 28 rush attempts. It’s worth noting that Florida was able to stop Missouri from converting a fourth-and-2 play with 1:17 remaining to put the Tigers away, sealing the Gators’ first SEC Conference win of the season.
Review of No. 25 LSU’s Week Six Loss to No. 8 Tennessee
Following an impressive 21-17 SEC Conference win over Auburn at Jordan Hare Stadium, LSU returned to Death Valley in preparation for Heisman Candidate Hendon Hooker and No. 8 Tennessee. As expected, the Tigers failed to slow Hooker and the Volunteer’s explosive offense, as Tennessee defeated LSU 40-13. Despite playing in one of the most hostile environments in the nation, Hooker remained poised and focused in Baton Rouge, completing 17-of-27 pass attempts for 239 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions while also running for 56 yards on ten carries.
LSU had plenty of issues slowing down Tennessee’s running back duo of Sophomore Jaylen Wright and Junior Jabari Small. Together, Wright and Small managed to record 34 rushing attempts for 186 yards and two touchdowns while averaging 5.4 YPC. Furthermore, LSU’s secondary struggled in defending Tennessee’s talented receiver room, as Junior Receivers Bru McCoy (7/140/0) and Jalin Hyatt (4/63/2) both enjoyed solid outings on Saturday.
From an offensive standpoint, the Tigers played decent against a tough Tennessee defense. LSU’s Junior Quarterback Jayden Daniels continued his good play, completing 32-of-45 pass attempts for 300 yards and one touchdown, while adding 34 rushing yards on 16 attempts. It’s worth noting that Daniels did throw his first interception of the season, but it was a meaningless play with nine seconds left in the 27-point loss.
As a team, LSU’s running game was extremely poor, managing to notch 55 yards and one touchdown on 28 carries. It’s worth noting that Junior Receiver Kayshon Boutte had his best game of the season against Tennessee, recording six receptions for 33 yards and a touchdown. In addition to Boutte, eight Tigers also caught passes from Daniels, highlighted by Sophomore Malik Nabers (6/80/0) and Senior Jaray Jenkins (3/44/0). Although LSU lost by 27 points to Tennessee, the Tigers didn’t play too bad against a powerful opponent, and will look to rebound in Gainseville against the Gators.
Game and Betting Information for LSU vs Florida
Game Information
- Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida
Date: Sunday, October Fifteenth, 2022 - Kick-Off Time: 6:00 P.M. ET
- TV: ESPN
- Game Spread: -2.5 Florida
- Point Total Over/Under: 51.5
- Moneyline: Missouri +118, Florida -140
- Football Power Index (FPI): Favors LSU at 62.8%
Betting Information
- Florida is 3-3-0 against the spread (ATS) through six games this season.
- Florida has covered the spread once when favored at least 2.5 points.
- Florida is 3-1 in the four games this season they have been the Moneyline favorite.
- LSU is 3-3-0 against the spread (ATS) through six games this season
- When LSU is the underdog by 2.5 points or more, it has gone 1-1 ATS.
- LSU and its opponents did not combine to hit the over in their past three games (Vs. New Mexico, @ Auburn, Vs. No. 8 Tennessee).
Ten Facts to Know for LSU vs Florida
- In the 68 games that LSU and Florida have played each other, the Gators are 33-32-3.
- Furthermore, Florida has the longest win streak in the Florida-LSU series, a nine-game stretch from 1988-1996.
- LSU has dominated the Florida-LSU rivalry as of late, winning the past three meetings and seven of the last ten, dating back to 2012.
- Since 2010, nine of the past eleven meetings have been decided by one possession, including Florida’s 16-10 win over LSU in 2016, which helped the Gators win the SEC East.
- In 18 of the past 25 meetings between Florida and LSU, both schools have entered the game ranked in the AP Top 25. For Saturday’s game, however, Florida nor LSU will be ranked, which will be the third time in the past 38 meetings that has happened.
- In the last five meetings between the Gators and the Tigers, the lower-ranked team or underdog has won four out of the five games, including LSU’s 49-42 win over No. 20 Florida last season.
- In the aforementioned game between Florida and LSU last season, Tigers’ Running Back Tyrion Davis-Price recorded an LSU-record 287 rushing yards and three touchdowns, breaking Derrius Guice’s previous record of 285 rushing yards against Texas A&M in 2016.
- Through six games, Florida has seen its offenses produce modest results, averaging 30.8 PPG, 436.0 TYPG, 222.3 PYPG, and 213.7 RYPG.
- Meanwhile, LSU is averaging 31.8 PPG, 428.8 TYPG, 256.3 PYPG, and 172.5 RYPG.