By Brenden Martin GAINESVILLE — The party in The Swamp lasted exactly one night. Florida is No. 8 in both polls, 4-0 and 2-0 in the SEC, and the reward is a trip to Columbia, Mo., to face a Missouri team that let one get away on Saturday night. No. 8 Florida plays at No. 25 Missouri on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET. The AP game preview lists ABC as the broadcast. It is Missouri’s homecoming. What happened to Missouri The Tigers (3-1, 0-1 SEC) led No. 24 Mississippi State 24-17 in the third quarter in Starkville and lost 31-24. Kamario Taylor led two fourth-quarter touchdown drives for the Bulldogs, the second capped by a 24-yard pass to Sanfrisco Magee with 3:57 left. Missouri’s last shot, a Hail Mary from the Mississippi State 38, was broken up in the end zone. “It’s life in the SEC,” Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said, according to the Associated Press. “That game on the road is going to be challenging. You just have to fight and find a way to win.” Before that, Missouri beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 54-14, won 38-21 at Kansas and beat Troy 27-17. Who to watch Quarterback Austin Simmons is the headliner. He has thrown for 947 yards and 11 touchdowns without an interception, and he threw for 295 yards and three scores at Mississippi State. Receiver Cayden Lee had 11 catches for 156 yards and two touchdowns in that game. Running back Jamal Roberts leads the Tigers with 395 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 89 carries. Florida brings Jadan Baugh, who has 600 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns after his fifth straight 100-yard game, and an offense averaging 53.5 points (second in FBS) and 260 rushing yards (11th), according to the AP. Missouri’s run defense is allowing 100.5 yards a game, 32nd nationally. Update, Sept. 27: An MRI confirmed a Grade 1 PCL sprain, the mildest grade, in Vernell Brown III’s knee, sources told GatorBait. Read the latest. The numbers that matter Penalties could decide it. Florida ranks 134th in FBS at 89.3 penalty yards a game, and Missouri is 117th at 73. Both teams are plus-4 in turnover margin. Florida has held the ball an average of 34:04, seventh in the country. Florida opened as a 4.5-point favorite, according to the AP. DraftKings opened the Gators at 5.5 with an over/under of 56.5. The history Missouri leads the series 7-6, according to FloridaGators.com, and Florida is 2-4 on the road against the Tigers. The last meeting went to the Tigers, 33-31 at Faurot Field on Nov. 18, 2023. “We have not arrived,” Jon Sumrall said after the Ole Miss win. Missouri is where that gets tested: a ranked team, on the road, coming off a lead it expected to hold. Editor’s note: More to come this week, including the full GatorBait game preview.

The Gators dominate Ole Miss for a season defining win, but Sumrall notes the Gators are still a work in progress. By Loren Meadows, GatorBaitMedia.com, Football Analyst, Host of the Gator Lowdown with Loren Meadows What We Thought: This was billed as a matchup between two of the nation’s best players in Trinidad Chambliss and Jadan Baugh. Chambliss had been nearly flawless early this season and had played his way into the conversation as the Heisman front runner after knocking off Lane Kiffin and LSU a week ago. Florida countered with Jadan Baugh, who entered the game with four straight 100-yard rushing games. While Florida had played well through three early season wins, the defense had not played to the same level of an offense that was averaging 54 points per game and averaging over seven plays of 20 yards or more to begin the year. Defensively there were concerns for the Gators in particularly in the secondary where they had surrendered 231 yards per game and facing the nation’s eighth ranked pass offense would make life even tougher for a secondary that was under construction. With all that said Ole Miss would win a scoring fest as the Gators would play well but ultimately fall in a close contest that would lend itself to the fact that the Gators were improved but not ready to stand toe to toe with the SEC’s best. What We Got: One of the most important things that a man does as he matures is admit when he was wrong (that’s me). If Ole Miss and Chambliss were supposed to continue their march to the top of the polls and the Heisman podium someone forgot to give Florida the memo. From the opening bell the Gators continued their “work the cut” mentality in systematically breaking down Ole Miss in all three phases to bring home a huge win in front of a raucous crowd of over 90,000. Jadan Baugh was sensational again rushing for 142 yards on 29 carries and three touchdowns. Baugh is now the first SEC back since Derrick Henry to score multiple TDs in five straight games (and we know how that year finished). His compadre Duke Clark was nearly as impressive averaging 10.5 yards per rush for 126 yards and a touchdown. What was lost on the win was how the Florida special teams made an impact with kickoff returns by London Montgomery of 41 yards and 74 yards on back to back opportunities after Ole Miss scores brought the deficit to three. Bailey Stockton would also add a gritty 25 yard return to complete the day for the Gators special teams units that have been great in kick coverage as well. To complete the success of all three phases, Aaron Philo was sharp again completing almost 70 percent of his passes for 196 yards and a touchdown. Philo has now gone all four games without an interception that can be attributed to his own error. The defense, that was the greatest area of concern was better than the score may show making life hard on an Ole Miss offense playing without top back Kewan Lacy. Florida held the Ole Miss offense to 4 of 11 on third downs while limiting the run game and forcing Chambliss into two turnovers. While Florida would only sack Chambliss once they constantly pressured the Heisman favorite and forced him to move off his spots to force errant throws on key downs. Without Lacy the Ole Miss offense was held to 128 rushing yards which exceeded its average (114) but forced the offense to play in a one dimensional space the defensive coordinator Brad White loves to scheme around. The Skinny: When Jon Sumrall was hired, he supposedly asked Florida AD Scott Stricklin if it would be possible for him to hire another Group of Five coach from Louisiana. Regardless of the answer, this seems to be a match made in heaven for the Florida program. After the game Sumrall noted that while this is the best win for the Gators in at least four years, his team is still a work in progress. Putting a 50 spot on the number four team in the country is “not our best football.” Sumrall’s demeanor and the play of his team bring back Spurrier excitement with Meyer toughness. Teams that show up and execute at a high level, make enough plays on defense, and find a way to affect the game on special teams when no one’s looking. The offense is multilayered in a physical run game, explosive passing game, and creative enough to keep even the best defensive minds like DJ Durkin and Pete Golding off balance. The defense, that was the center of negativity among observers (including me) has found a way to make enough plays when it matters including eight takeaways in four games. At this pace the Gators would double their total from 2025 which would have put the Gators in the Top 15 nationally last season. After “working the cut” against Auburn and the “so what, now what” motto against Ole Miss, it will be interesting to see what the intensely motivated Sumrall brings to the table as his team gets ready for yet another Top 25 matchup. One thing is for certain this team has learned to turn the page during games and most importantly in their weekly preparations resonates in any successful program. The most important thing is that Florida’s coaches and players feel truly blessed to be in Gainesville and believe in the plan. That more than anything may be the key to this team’s resurgence. Final Score: Florida Gators 52 Ole Miss Rebels 28 (Prediction Ole Miss 38 Florida 35)

By Brenden Martin GAINESVILLE — The biggest result in the SEC on Saturday happened in The Swamp. Here is everything else that happened in Week 4, and what it means for Florida. The Gators No. 21 Florida beat No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Jadan Baugh ran for 142 yards and three touchdowns, Duke Clark added 126 rushing yards, and the Gators scored touchdowns on their first five possessions of the second half. Florida ran for 302 yards, did not turn the ball over and moved to 4-0, 2-0 in the SEC. Ole Miss fell to 3-1. It was the only loss by a top-five team this week. Full game story: Baugh Game: Gators run over No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28 in The Swamp. Top 25 roundup Rankings are from last week's AP poll. All scores are final and confirmed by ESPN. No. 1 Texas 20, No. 14 Tennessee 17 No. 2 Georgia 41, Oklahoma 13 No. 3 Notre Dame 49, Purdue 10 No. 21 Florida 52, No. 4 Ole Miss 28 No. 5 Indiana 29, Northwestern 23 (Friday) No. 6 Miami 52, Central Michigan 3 No. 7 Ohio State 42, Illinois 19 No. 8 Alabama 49, South Carolina 18 No. 9 BYU (idle) No. 10 LSU 35, No. 23 Texas A&M 6 No. 11 Texas Tech 49, Sam Houston 14 No. 20 Oregon 41, No. 12 USC 27 Wisconsin 24, No. 13 Penn State 20 No. 15 Utah 31, Iowa State 17 Wake Forest 30, No. 16 Louisville 27 No. 17 Iowa 20, No. 18 Michigan 19 No. 24 Mississippi State 31, No. 19 Missouri 24 No. 22 SMU 34, Missouri State 24 No. 25 Houston 42, Georgia Southern 28 The upsets. Wisconsin rallied from a 17-0 deficit to beat No. 13 Penn State 24-20 at Beaver Stadium, handing the Nittany Lions their first loss. Wake Forest won 30-27 at No. 16 Louisville after blocking a 57-yard field goal attempt in the final seconds. Florida's win over Ole Miss was the only loss by a top-five team. The escapes. No. 1 Texas held on at No. 14 Tennessee 20-17 behind Colin Simmons, who tied a program record with five sacks. No. 5 Indiana survived Northwestern 29-23 on Friday night. No. 17 Iowa beat No. 18 Michigan 20-19 on Hank Brown's 16-yard touchdown pass to Reece Vander Zee on the final play. The late games. No. 20 Oregon won 41-27 at No. 12 USC after quarterback Dante Moore was carted off in the second quarter; Dylan Raiola came on and threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns. No. 22 SMU rallied from a 10-0 deficit to beat Missouri State 34-24 as Kevin Jennings threw for 464 yards and became the program's career passing leader. SEC No. 1 Texas 20, No. 14 Tennessee 17 No. 2 Georgia 41, Oklahoma 13 No. 21 Florida 52, No. 4 Ole Miss 28 Auburn 21, Vanderbilt 15 Kentucky 45, South Alabama 21 No. 8 Alabama 49, South Carolina 18 No. 10 LSU 35, No. 23 Texas A&M 6 No. 24 Mississippi State 31, No. 19 Missouri 24 Arkansas 34, Tulsa 6 Georgia forced four turnovers and led 28-0 at halftime. Chris Cole returned a fumble 85 yards for a touchdown, and Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer turned it over three times in the first half. Auburn handed Vanderbilt its first loss behind two touchdowns from Byrum Brown and a blocked-punt return for a score. Keelon Russell threw for 365 yards and four touchdowns as Alabama stayed unbeaten. Sam Leavitt hit Jackson Harris for two touchdowns, one for 57 yards on a fourth-down call, in LSU's win over Texas A&M. Arkansas snapped a 12-game losing streak against FBS opponents. What it means for Florida Missouri is next. Florida plays at Missouri on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET. The Tigers lost for the first time Saturday night, 31-24 at No. 24 Mississippi State. Missouri led 24-17 after three quarters, but Kamario Taylor threw for 360 yards and three touchdowns, including the go-ahead 24-yard pass to Sanfrisco Magee with 3:57 left. Missouri is 3-1; Mississippi State is 4-0. Here is how the rest of Florida's schedule fared Saturday: Oct. 10, South Carolina: lost at No. 8 Alabama 49-18 and fell to 2-2. Oct. 17, at Texas: beat No. 14 Tennessee 20-17 to move to 4-0. Oct. 31, Georgia in Atlanta: beat Oklahoma 41-13 to move to 4-0. Nov. 7, Oklahoma: lost at Georgia and fell to 2-2. Nov. 14, at Kentucky: beat South Alabama 45-21 and is 3-1. Nov. 21, Vanderbilt: lost at Auburn 21-15 and is 3-1. Nov. 27, at Florida State: beat Central Arkansas 34-7 and is 2-2. The road ahead includes both of the top two teams in last week's poll. Texas and Georgia are each 4-0, and Florida has to see both in October. Those two games and Saturday's result are the Gators' clearest path to a playoff résumé: Florida now owns a win over a top-five team, and Auburn's win over previously unbeaten Vanderbilt adds weight to the Gators' 44-39 win at Jordan-Hare a week ago. The poll. The new AP Top 25 comes out at 2 p.m. ET Sunday. Eight ranked teams lost: Ole Miss, Tennessee, Penn State, USC, Louisville, Michigan, Missouri and Texas A&M. Florida handed a top-five team its only loss of the week, by 24 points. Watch: Field level in The Swamp after Florida 52, Ole Miss 28

By Brenden Martin AUBURN, Ala. — Jon Sumrall walked into his first SEC road game as Florida's head coach and walked out of Jordan-Hare Stadium with a 44-39 win, a 3-0 record and a list of corrections long enough to keep the celebration short. Florida piled up 495 yards of offense and rushed for 243, but the number Sumrall kept coming back to was 16 — the Gators' penalty total. Florida was flagged for 138 yards, and Sumrall made clear that winning did not erase it. The penalties were out of control. I mean, 16 penalties. We won't win another game all year if we do that again. Not one more game. Sumrall called the mistakes “inexcusable” and said the responsibility starts with the coaching staff. The message was consistent throughout the press conference: Florida showed toughness and response, but it did not yet show the discipline required to survive the best teams on the SEC schedule. We better. I'm not confident yet because we haven't done it. Florida's offense answered every challenge Jadan Baugh carried 26 times for 162 yards and three touchdowns. Aaron Philo completed 15 of 22 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown in his first SEC road start. Dallas Wilson caught the third-quarter touchdown that pushed Florida ahead 34-17, while Duke Clark scored on a 20-yard run in the first half. Sumrall said he never doubted Florida's offensive matchup with Auburn. I knew we were going to run the ball on them. I knew we were going to throw the ball on them. He also praised Philo's response after an early interception, describing the quarterback as a player with a “cowboy mentality” who is “tough as nails.” Sumrall said Florida's team believes in Philo because of the way he is wired and the way he handles adversity. When something bad happens, we say good. And when something good happens, we say good. Work the cut The phrase that defined the week — and eventually Florida's night — came from combat sports. Sumrall said UFC star Justin Gaethje spoke to the team in training camp, and the staff used the idea of repeatedly attacking a weakness rather than waiting for one knockout blow. This week, the conversation was really three words: work the cut. Sumrall said he repeated the phrase over the headset throughout the game. Florida did not land every punch, and Auburn answered several times, but the Gators kept responding. Eventually, if we keep working the cut, we'll find ourselves victorious... We were the last man standing. WATCH GATORBAIT CLIP — Jon Sumrall explains the “Work the Cut” mentality. A win with personal meaning For Sumrall, winning on Pat Dye Field carried extra weight. He grew up in Alabama studying the state's great coaches and said he keeps a photograph of Pat Dye and Bear Bryant hunting rabbits in Moundville, Alabama, in his office. For our first SEC win as a program with me as a head coach to do it on Pat Dye Field, I can't tell you what that means to me personally. WATCH GATORBAIT CLIP — Sumrall on the penalties and the meaning of winning on Pat Dye Field. The warning after the win Florida's defense produced seven sacks and two takeaways, including an interception by Cormani McClain, but Auburn still scored 39 points. Sumrall praised his team's resilience while repeatedly returning to missed assignments, poor leverage and unnecessary explosive plays. His assessment of where Florida stands was intentionally uncomfortable. If we play like that, we will get just slaughtered. It wouldn't be close. The Gators are 3-0 and 1-0 in the SEC. The next step is not proving they can win. Sumrall's message is that they have to prove they can play cleaner. More GatorBait coverage 2026 Florida Gators roster and schedule • Florida-Auburn By the Numbers • More on Jon Sumrall • Buster Faulkner and the Florida offense • Brad White and the Florida defense GatorBait’s postgame video excerpts are included above. The complete press-conference transcript follows. Full Jon Sumrall postgame transcript Transcript lightly edited for punctuation, spelling of proper names and readability. Questions are identified as Reporter. Jon Sumrall: All right. No bad wins. Always good to win. We still have a lot to improve upon. That's not our best football. We're going to get there. We got so much to work on to improve. The penalties were out of control. I mean, 16 penalties. We won't win another game all year if we do that again. Not one more game. And so, I got to get it cleaned up as a staff. We got to get cleaned up. We got to play with more discipline. I didn't agree with all of them, but still, I'm not going to let our guys off the hook. That's inexcusable. Jon Sumrall: But man, you know, I grew up in this state. As a kid, there was a couple people I always watched, and one of them's name was on this field, Pat Dye. I've got a ton of respect for Pat Dye, God rest his soul. And then the other two across the state, Gene Stallings and Bear Bryant. I watched those guys my whole life. Bear Bryant died basically when I was born, but I idolized the great coaches coaching in this state. Jon Sumrall: And for our first SEC win as a program with me as a head coach to do it on Pat Dye Field, I can't tell you what that means to me personally because I've got a picture of Pat Dye and Bear Bryant in my office in Moundville, Alabama, hunting rabbits. To do it on Pat Dye Field means something to me. But this is about our guys. I'm so proud of them. They found a way. A lot of people doubted them. Heard a lot of people all week second guessing why we were favorite in this game. It didn't have to be as close as it was. They're well coached. They're a good football team. Wish them nothing but the best, and excited to get back on this plane and get back home and get to work tomorrow. Reporter: Jadan had the early bobble that led to the interception, then redeemed himself throughout the game. How about his response and the ability to run against that defense? Jon Sumrall: It was a concern for who? For you guys? I knew we were going to do what we did on offense tonight. I'd watched them enough to know how we were going to play on offense. The interception, we gave them a gift. Didn't need to give that to them, but I had no doubt how we were going to play on offense. The people that were concerned about how we were going to play on offense, I've probably been more concerned about our defense holding up, to be honest with you. But offensively, I knew we were going to run the ball on them. I knew we were going to throw the ball on them. They're good up there, but I felt like we were better. I felt like the matchup leaned our way. Jon Sumrall: But Jadan Baugh did a great job responding. That's a really unfortunate play. Should have caught the ball. Bad play. I grabbed him and said, “Hey, around here when something bad happens, we say good. And when something good happens, we say good.” I went over to him after the play and said, “Good. Got a chance to redeem yourself now. Go make another play next time.” I didn't like it, but that's our mindset. When something bad happens, we say good. Reporter: Talk about the poise you guys played with throughout the game because Auburn made some runs. Jon Sumrall: I don't know if we played with poise. I thought we responded. If we played with better poise, we wouldn't have had the dumb penalties we had. I do think we showed we have some mental toughness and were resilient, but I don't think we played with poise all the time. I think our responses were good. Anytime they countered, we had a couple jabs left. We kept responding all night. So, I don't know if we played with the poise I need to see us play with to really feel like we're where we need to go, but I do think our response was really good. Reporter: What about Aaron Philo in his first road start in this environment? Jon Sumrall: Thought he handled it really well. He's got a little bit of a cowboy mentality, man. He's tough as nails. He don't talk a whole lot just to talk. He ain't that type of dude, but he ain't going to back down enough. I can tell watching him, just how he carries himself. I got a lot of confidence in him. Our team has a lot of confidence in him, just because that's the way he's wired. He's a tough, blue-collar, chip-on-your-shoulder type guy. Reporter: What about Emanuel's performance considering his status coming in? Jon Sumrall: He was a true game-time decision. Him and E were both. I think we'll have a real good shot at getting E back next week. Emanuel really only ran around a lot on Friday and never really fully practiced all week and was very questionable going into the game. So proud of him showing up and playing with the toughness he did. Reporter: How critical were those back-to-back sacks? Jon Sumrall: Huge. Huge, huge. That's where I talk about we made responses. I don't know that we played really clean, but we responded in some big moments where you had to go make a play. Reporter: How do you think the defense did keeping Byrum Brown in the pocket and limiting the unscripted plays? Jon Sumrall: I thought for the most part we did a good job. A little bit leaky at times. The thing I was not pleased with was we felt like, with him, the type of passer he was, we needed to stay on the top shoulder of the route all night and try to force him to make intermediate or short-game throws. We did not do that at times. The run game, really the couple he got, we just didn't stay in our rush lanes. But for the most part, you felt us push the pocket, get frontal on him and not allow him to be real comfortable. Reporter: With the penalties, what's your confidence level that you'll be able to clean those up? Jon Sumrall: We better. I'm not confident yet because we haven't done it. We played really good football week one penalty-wise. We had four in week one. Then we had eight last week. We had 16. I'm not a mathematician, but four to eight's doubling them, and eight to 16 is doubling them again. If we don't get that fixed and get back to how we were in week one, we are about to get absolutely embarrassed when we play high-end SEC teams. Reporter: What were you telling the team about finishing when you were up 17? Jon Sumrall: This week, the conversation was really three words: work the cut. I don't know how familiar you are with boxing or UFC, but Justin Gaethje came and talked to our team back there in training camp. I showed them pictures of Gaethje's fight in D.C. on the White House lawn this year. Everybody thinks you knock the other guy out by just a big hit, and that's not how it happens in fighting or anything in a game. You have to cut the eye and then you keep cutting the eye with the jab and then at some point you wait for the uppercut, but you don't start with uppercuts. You wear the guy down. Jon Sumrall: And I think that was really on the headset all night. When something good would happen or bad would happen, I'd go to the all-call button and say, “Hey, everybody tell the guys, work the cut. Work the cut. Work the cut. Work the cut.” Eventually, if we keep working the cut, we'll find ourselves victorious. They got a couple punches in on us too. They bladed our eye a couple times too, but we were the last man standing. Reporter: That photo of Bear Bryant and Pat Dye — are they hunting rabbits together? Jon Sumrall: They were hunting rabbits. They're in Moundville, Alabama, in a hunting camp getting ready to go hunt rabbits. They were eating rabbit soup or rabbit stew. I got the picture in my office. I grew up in the state. I love football. I love the football that's been played in the state forever, at both schools, at all schools, at Troy. I love Troy football, man. I've idolized Pat Dye, Bear Bryant, Gene Stallings my whole life. They were hunting in Moundville, Alabama. Most of y'all don't even know — even you Alabama people in here don't even know where Moundville, Alabama, is — but I do because I'm from the state. It's a picture I cherish because I love great football coaches and I have a lot of respect for both of those guys. Reporter: Before the game, did you like the demeanor and confidence you saw from your team? Jon Sumrall: I knew our guys were ready to play. I might have used some motivation from outside people that said we weren't really as good, we hadn't played anybody. That's what I heard a lot from some people out in the media. We hadn't played anybody. I think FAU is pretty good. I think Campbell's a decent football team, but they talked about how they had played people. Well, they played us tonight, and so we were going to be ready to play the game the way we need to play it. Jon Sumrall: It still wasn't good enough to go win the big ones we've got coming. We were able to win this one. We turn the page tomorrow to the next one. If we play like that, we will get just slaughtered. It wouldn't be close. So we've got a lot to work on. But I think our guys were mentally prepared to come on the road, take the challenge, hostile environment, great crowd, backs against the wall a little bit, a lot of people against us, and play with the demeanor of what being a good, tough football team looks like. Reporter: How do you evaluate the defense when you get seven sacks and two takeaways but give up 39 points? Jon Sumrall: It goes back to if we would just do our job and stay in tackle coverage. I'm not going to throw this table. I was going to throw the podium or something. We did not at times do simple things that we were going to do, like stay on the top shoulder. We just dive to the low hip, and I'm like, well, that's not what we've talked about. Just do your job. Until we are so on point with everybody doing their job all the time, we're going to give up stupid explosive plays like we did tonight that were not necessary. Credit to them, they made some plays, but there's a couple of them out there that we just decided to give them a gift, and that's not what good football teams do. Reporter: Any special feeling considering the Auburn job discussion? Jon Sumrall: Who said I interviewed for this job? What are you talking about? They didn't want me. I didn't want them. Reporter: How critical were the halftime adjustments and the fast start to the second half? Jon Sumrall: We felt good coming into the half about some things we could do to attack them off of some things we had seen. It's huge to set the tone early. I do think that was really the game-deciding swing back and forth, how we came out of the locker room at the start of the second half. I felt like we were a little bit more dialed in maybe than we had been the whole game, to be quite honest, on both sides for a minute there. I thought it was a huge sequence for sure. Reporter: How did that opening drive of the second half set the momentum for the offense? Jon Sumrall: I just thought our guys played with confidence. If we don't get the holding penalties late in the game there, like I said, I think we stopped ourselves. But it was nice to see us respond coming out of halftime. Sometimes you worry about at the start of the second half a lull or maybe a lethargic vibe, and our guys didn't have that at all offensively. We were really good defensively to start the half. Jon Sumrall: I do want to say one more thing. Kayla Beckley, John Beckley's wife — John Beckley worked for me at Troy. He was a GA for me. He's now coaching at Tulsa. His wife passed young, like 30, really young recently. While I'm celebrating a win tonight, there are people that do this that have real lives and family. John Beckley, a dear friend of mine, somebody I look at really closely because he worked for me when I was head coach at Troy, lost his wife recently and way too young. I just want to acknowledge a lot of the guys that coached with him wore yellow ribbons tonight. I didn't make a big deal out of it, but we're thinking of them during this tough time.

Jon Sumrall at the podium after Florida's 52-28 win over Ole Miss. Photo by Chris Spears, GatorBait Media. By Brenden Martin Jon Sumrall has already moved on from the biggest win of his first season at Florida. He wants his players to do the same. “Told our team this morning, ‘I don’t want to hear anybody talk about that game the rest of the year,’” Sumrall said Monday, two days after No. 8 Florida ran over No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28. “If anybody brings it up in our building about what happened last week, I’m gonna be, like, livid because we have no control over that anymore. It’s gone.” He started the week with the film. “I’ve helped block it out for them this morning by showing them all the bad stuff we put on tape, too,” Sumrall said. “You have to humble yourself or you will be humbled.” Good news on VB3 The best news of the day was about wide receiver Vernell Brown III. “VB3, nothing serious,” Sumrall said. “Relative to what you could get, we got great news after the imaging and everything; the MRI revealed nothing that is long-term.” Sumrall called it “the lowest-grade strain you could get” and said Brown’s status for Saturday comes down to pain tolerance and confidence. “Medically, there’s nothing that’s going to hold him other than his own readiness,” he said. Bailey Stockton will be limited for much of the week with a sore back after what Sumrall described as “basically a car crash on the field with two guys,” though there is nothing structurally wrong. Dijon Johnson has a mild ankle injury, not a high-ankle sprain. “All of them, honestly, could be available this weekend,” Sumrall said. Eric Singleton Jr., who made a big impact late against Ole Miss, should be close to full speed. “I think Singleton’s going to be full-go this week,” Sumrall said. Bloody Tuesday Monday was a lighter helmets day, mostly inside. Tuesday is where Sumrall will find out whether the page has really turned. “Tomorrow we go outside the whole time, and it’s bloody Tuesday,” he said. “It’s like you gotta pay the toll. And so, if guys are ready to go pay the toll tomorrow, and compete and be physical … I feel like alright we got a shot.” Missouri starts up front Sumrall didn’t hide his respect for the No. 25 Tigers, especially their offensive line. “I think this is the best offensive line we’ve played,” he said. “We got our work cut out for us to win upfront this week.” He also pointed to Florida’s recent history in Columbia. “The last four trips we’ve gone to Missouri we’ve lost three of them,” Sumrall said. “So if we think it’s gonna be a freaking cake walk, I don’t care if it’s homecoming or whatever, we’re in for a rude awakening.” The Gators will lean again on quarterback Aaron Philo, whose steadiness has won over his coach. “Ever since Aaron’s arrival, he’s proved nothing but consistent, tough, dependable, reliable, great teammate,” Sumrall said. Florida (4-0, 2-0 SEC) plays at Missouri on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Sumrall isn’t worried about the Tigers’ homecoming crowd, only about the team across the line of scrimmage. “I don’t care who their homecoming king, or queen, or any of that is,” he said.

Jadan Baugh (13) scores against Ole Miss as left tackle Bryce Lovett (53) stands over the play. Photo by Chris Spears, GatorBait Media. By Brenden Martin The SEC office took a long look at Florida's 52-28 rout of No. 4 Ole Miss and handed out hardware to three Gators on Monday. Running back Jadan Baugh was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week, kick returner London Montgomery was named Special Teams Player of the Week and left tackle Bryce Lovett was named Offensive Lineman of the Week. It is Baugh’s first SEC Offensive Player of the Week award and the first SEC weekly honor for Montgomery and Lovett. Baugh keeps rolling Baugh ran 29 times for 142 yards and three touchdowns against the Rebels and caught one pass for 12 yards. It was his fifth straight 100-yard rushing game, according to UF. He led all FBS players with 11 rushing first downs in Week 4, and UF credited him with 103 yards after contact. Baugh has run for at least 135 yards and multiple touchdowns in all four games this season. The junior leads the FBS in rushing touchdowns (11) and scoring. His 600 rushing yards are the most by a Gator through the first four games, according to UF. Montgomery flips the field Montgomery returned three kickoffs for 128 yards, an average of 42.7 per return. One kick after a 41-yard return in the third quarter, he broke a career-long 74-yarder. It was Florida's longest kickoff return since Solomon Patton went 100 yards at Missouri in 2013, according to UF, and Montgomery's 128 return yards are the most by an SEC player in a game this season. Jon Sumrall said Monday he nearly told the return team to take a touchback after an earlier miscue. “And then I was like, you know, I want to see London hit one,” he said. Lovett locks down the edge Lovett, making his fourth straight start at left tackle, played 69 snaps and did not allow a quarterback pressure or hurry, according to UF. He posted an 85.1 Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade. Up front, Florida ran for 302 yards on 53 carries with six rushing touchdowns and did not allow a sack. It was the Gators' highest rushing total against an SEC opponent since they ran for 374 against South Carolina on Nov. 12, 2022. No. 8 Florida (4-0, 2-0 SEC) plays at No. 25 Missouri on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

"You have to humble yourself," he told them, "or you will be humbled." By Buddy Martin GatorBaitMedia.com Four games into the season, Gator Nation already has one hand on a scrapbook and is searching for flights to Atlanta. It was OK for Baugh to do this on Saturday. Photo by Chris Spears, GatorBait Media Watch: Jadan Baugh: "No defense in the country could stop us" | Florida Gators Jon Sumrall would like everyone to stop! "The rankings mean absolutely nothing," Florida's coach said Monday, his voice shredded from the weekend. "Anybody that's feeling really good about us being ranked wherever we're ranked — it means nothing to me today." That's for you, message boarders. And you, talk radio. And you, the guy in the orange-and-blue golf shirt already pricing out Atlanta hotels. This program has spent the better part of a decade teaching its fans to expect a punch in the mouth. Four wins in, some of them have forgotten. Sumrall hasn't. So instead of letting his players soak in a hot tub of their own press clippings Monday morning, he sat them down in the dark and made them watch every ugly rep from Saturday. The busts. The whiffs. The blown coverage. He calls it the "not our standard" tape. Call it an intervention. "You have to humble yourself," he told them, "or you will be humbled." Missouri would be delighted to handle it for you. Bloody Tuesday Sumrall hands out a theme every week the way some coaches hand out lip service. Last week's was "So What, Now What?," which is coach-speak for "Auburn is dead, stop talking about it." If you disobey, you get this: "If anybody brings it up in our building about what happened last week, I'm gonna be, like, livid." Believe him. This is a man who wears out his vocal cords in September. You've heard of taking them one game at a time? Sumrall takes them one minute of one hour of one game at a time. He's put a new spin on the oldest cliché in football. I doubt he even thinks about the second half until the first half is almost over. I've never seen a football coach work so hard to keep himself and his team in the present: right now, this minute, this hour, this day. He laid out the kind of team that wins in this league as if he were reading an indictment: "humble, hungry, gritty, blue-collar." Then he named the kind that loses: "Complacent, soft, entitled, lazy, selfish." Read that second list again, Gator fans. You've watched that team. You've bought tickets to watch that team. Sumrall is trying to make sure you never have to again. His test comes Tuesday, outside, all practice long. He calls it "Bloody Tuesday," which Urban Meyer did also. "It's like you gotta pay the toll," he said. "Get some dirt underneath your fingernails." If his players think they can "just roll out the helmets" and win in Columbia, he said, "I'll be a little bit concerned." That's the diplomatic translation. The real one probably can't be printed in a family publication. Columbia, the Graveyard Here's the part the hype crowd keeps skipping: Missouri has been Florida's personal house of horrors. "The last four trips we've gone to Missouri, we've lost three of them," Sumrall said. "So if we think it's gonna be a freaking cake walk, I don't care if it's homecoming or whatever, we're in for a rude awakening." Three out of four. To Missouri. That's not a rivalry, it's a recurring humiliation. And yes, it's their homecoming. The Gators are the invited guest who's supposed to lie down politely and lose. Sumrall's response: "I don't care who their homecoming king, or queen, or any of that is." He cares about Missouri's offensive line, which he called the best Florida has faced. He cares that Eli Drinkwitz's program runs outside zone as well as "anybody in college football." He cares that the Tigers play "with a demeanor that I respect." Sumrall doesn't respect many people's demeanor. That line should scare you more than the point spread. The Cowboy Doesn't Need A Parade Ten months ago, Sumrall had to take his offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner's word on Aaron Philo. Now he doesn't need anybody's word. "Consistent, tough, dependable, reliable, great teammate," Sumrall said. Notice what's missing: no gushing about arm strength or 40 times. The arm is "good enough." The legs are "good enough." What makes Philo matter is everything that doesn't fit on a recruiting ranking: how he carries himself, how he competes, how he celebrates everybody else. In other words, the exact opposite of the entitled five-star quarterback who's burned this fan base before. He won at Auburn. Good. Now do it again on the road, in a place where Florida keeps handing over its lunch money. Mama Didn't Raise No Piano Player The best answer Sumrall gave all day wasn't about football. Asked where the intensity comes from — the chest bumps, the sideline fury, the voice left in pieces on the Auburn turf — he didn't credit a coaching mentor. He credited his mother, who he said is "tough as nails." "No matter what you do, go as hard as you can go." No halfway. Then came the confession. As a 9- or 10-year-old tired of piano lessons, little Jon would fake a knock on the teacher's door, wait for Mom's car to leave the driveway, and walk half a mile to the ballpark. An hour later he'd stroll home and swear the lesson was great. It worked for about a month. Then the teacher called home. The moral is the one his team is about to learn in Columbia: you can skip the work and fake the knock, but eventually somebody picks up the phone. The Verdict Sumrall reminded everyone Monday that his roster has only 14 players using their final year of eligibility. This is a kid team being told it's a contender. That's the most dangerous thing you can tell a kid. "When things are going good, everybody's going to tell you you're great," he said, "and the same people are going to tell you if they don't go good that you stink." That's the same fan base, the same message boards, maybe even the same guy in the golf shirt. The Gators can believe the hype, or they can believe the coach with the raspy voice. On Saturday in Columbia, we'll find out which one. Watch: Jon Sumrall: "We're going to wake the beast up real fast" | Florida Gators Buddy goes live with The Buddy Martin Show tonight at 9 p.m. ET: Missouri week, the No. 8 ranking and Sumrall's 'Bloody Tuesday.' Watch on YouTube or Facebook.

Jadan Baugh: See How He Runs. UAA Photo Ole Miss Prediction: “Trinidad Chambliss is going to have a FIELD DAY.” By Eddie Gilley GatorBaitMedia.com “Lies, damned lies, and statistics” is a famous quote from Mark Twain who attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. The problem is no one has found that quote in anything Disraeli ever said or wrote! Maybe even the quote is a lie! But people use it all the time to point out that data and numbers can be twisted to prove almost any point you want to make or to highlight any strength that favors your cause. SEC Country: Ole Miss posted the following on Facebook “Something that stands out when comparing Ole Miss and Florida: Florida passing defense: No. 98 nationally. Ole Miss passing offense: No. 8 nationally. Trinidad Chambliss is going to have a FIELD DAY.” The stats are correct. So, let’s look at some more stats between the two teams. Team One is ranked #46 nationally in total offense while Team Two is ranked #3. Team One is ranked #38 in scoring offense, Team Two is ranked #2. Team One is ranked #119 in rushing offense, Team Two is ranked #17. You already know the rankings for passing offense. Let’s look at defensive statistics. Team One is ranked #97 in total defense, Team Two is ranked #65. Team One is ranked #78 in scoring defense, Team Two is ranked #63. Team One is ranked #98 in rushing defense, Team Two is ranked #28. Team One’s opponents are a combined 4-5 and Team Two’s opponents are 7-3. Who is Team One and who is Team Two? The Gators are Team Two in those statistical comparisons. Ole Miss has the edge in passing offense and passing defense but is far behind the Gators in both total offense and total defense. Florida enters this Saturday’s game as a favorite and ranked #21 while Ole Miss comes to town ranked #4 and an underdog? Coach Sumrall may want the answer to why is that to be good drugs out there, but the truth is that the numbers favor the Gators. Remember the quote that started this piece? Numbers can be twisted and skewed. But Ole Miss has played two ranked teams and one really bad team in Charlotte. Florida has played two pretty good teams in Auburn and FAU, and a FCS school that is looking like it might make the playoffs this year. The quality of opponents can definitely affect the statistics, but how much of the difference is who they played and how much is truly the difference in the two teams themselves? Ole Miss and every other team ranked in the preseason poll benefitted from the media bias of what happened last season. The machines that are major media decide which teams are going to be the darlings before a down of football is ever played each year. Most of the time they get it mostly right by the way. Leagues want their top schools to stay at the top of the polls and reach the playoffs for the prestige and the revenue. Numbers don’t lie but they also don’t tell the entire story. The football season is long and grinding. When the playoffs roll around, the body of work is big enough to make more educated decisions about which teams are the best. When the conferences start playing in conference games, the cream of each conference will rise to the top regardless of what the early numbers showed. The numbers say Florida should win on Saturday. But the game isn’t played by the numbers, it is played by guys who wear numbers. We will see if the oddsmakers are right and if the statistical rankings will change dramatically after the contest on Saturday. One crucial number that can make a huge difference is 88,000. The fans in the Swamp could just be the difference maker to push the Gators on to a win over a top-5 team on Saturday afternoon.

How and why Gator Nation and its head coach have fallen in love with Florida’s newest QB. UAA Photo By Buddy Martin GatorBaitMedia.com You’re not the only one smitten with Aaron Philo. Get in line behind Jon Sumrall, who’s gushing like a guy with a new bass boat. “He’s got a little bit of, like, a cowboy mentality, man,” Sumrall said after the 44-39 shootout at Auburn. “Like, he’s tough as nails… He don’t talk a whole lot just to talk, he ain’t that type of dude, but he ain’t gonna back down or nothing… He’s a tough, blue-collar, chip-on-your-shoulder type of guy.” Translation: Florida finally has a quarterback who doesn’t need a ring light. “Cowboy” doesn’t mean gunslinger. Gainesville has had plenty of those, the guys who threw it up and prayed, then blamed the wind. Sumrall means the other kind. Rodeo people have a phrase for it: “Cowboy up.” It means summoning the toughness, grit and perseverance to push through when things turn difficult, dangerous or painful. When the bull throws you and you’re spitting dirt, you get up and climb back on. That’s Philo. Auburn threw everything it had, and Florida still walked out of Jordan-Hare with 44 points. You can’t coach that, and you can’t find it in the portal either. So Does the Cowboy Talk? Well, yes. Philo recently stated, “I'm honored, and I don't take it lightly at all. I don't take this position for granted at all. It's something that I've worked my whole life to get to... I'm gonna do everything in my power to bring Florida back.” He doesn’t say much, but when he does, it’s worth hearing. Daddy’s Proud On the SEC conference call, Sumrall sounded like a father handing out cigars. “He’s got a lot of time on task in the system,” he said. “Buster (Faulkner) trusts Aaron because he’s been in the system for a decent amount of time.” The trust runs both ways. The coordinator isn’t wondering what the quarterback will do next, and the quarterback isn’t freelancing. After years of Florida offenses that looked put together in a parking lot, that alone is worth a parade. Then the clincher: Philo “made other players around him better by helping them understand what to do and how to do it.” A quarterback who makes other players better? What a concept! Somebody tell the last few guys who played there. He’s also protected the football. There are two interceptions on his record, and Sumrall says “both of them hit our pass-catchers in bad spots, the hands.” So the picks belong to the receivers. Promised Nothing Here’s the best part. Philo showed up from Georgia Tech with a couple of starts and no hype. He wasn’t a portal celebrity. “He was promised nothing to come here other than an opportunity to compete for the starting job,” Sumrall said. In an era when transfer quarterbacks want new cars, gold chains, guarantees, NIL deals and their own locker room, Philo took a fair shot at the job. He didn’t whine or threaten to transfer again. He cowboyed up and won it. That’s where the chip on his shoulder comes from. Sumrall’s test for a quarterback is simple: character, competitiveness, toughness. “I don’t care what your physical traits are at the quarterback position,” he said. “If you don’t have those other things, good luck.” “Good luck” is coach-speak for “don’t let the door hit you.” Bottom Line Florida went shopping for a tough guy and came home with a cowboy. He won’t give you a sound bite or talk trash. He’ll just beat you. Ole Miss is next, and The Swamp is no petting zoo. Time to cowboy up. Again.

Update: The new AP poll is out, and Florida is No. 8. “The Gators’ 24-point win over then-No. 4 Mississippi … on Saturday earned them a 13-rung promotion to No. 8, their highest ranking since 2020 and first top-10 appearance since 2021,” the AP wrote. By Buddy Martin GatorBaitMedia.com Jerri Spurrier walked into the media lunchroom a little out of breath and smiling like it was the good old days again. She’d been dropping in on tailgates across the way, and the former First Lady of Florida football was still feeling it. “I don’t know when I’ve seen them so happy,” she told us. “Everybody is happy!” That was before kickoff. That was before the No. 21 Gators took No. 4 Ole Miss out to the woodshed, 52-28, on one of those glorious Saturdays in The Swamp that Gator Nation will be telling its grandchildren about. The grandchildren will pretend they haven’t heard it before. So cue the music. “Happy Days Are Here Again.” The song goes back a ways. Milton Ager and Jack Yellen wrote it right before the Crash of ’29, and it showed up in the movie “Chasing Rainbows.” Franklin D. Roosevelt later rode it all the way to the White House. Barbra Streisand made it haunting, and she and Judy Garland made it immortal. The lyrics are still under copyright, though, and the lawyers get twitchy when you print them. So I have a better idea. Let Gator Nation write its own version. Something tells me this happiness is going to stick around long enough to need a second verse. The Computers Have Spoken If you’re into that FPI projection stuff business ESPN keeps selling, it’s described as “a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season,” representing points above or below average. In plain English, it’s a slide rule with a marketing department. But this time the slide rule agrees with the eyeballs. It says Florida is favored in everything but the Texas and Georgia games. That’s 10-2, and 10-2 gets you into the playoff. Chomp up the charts: Florida is No. 8 in the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll. GatorBait Media graphic; sources: AP Top 25 via NCAA.com, AFCA Coaches Poll via ESPN. I’m not sure it qualifies for a worst-to-first trophy. It does look like a clean move from the outhouse to the penthouse, and nobody even had to call the movers. I believe in enjoying the moment. After a win like that, in a Ben Hill Griffin Stadium rocking hard enough to register on seismographs in Waldo, with every power broker in college football suddenly checking his notes, I say soak it up and sing it loud: “Happy Days are here again!” About That Rat Poison The people who predict and project for a living are all calling Florida a Top 10 team now. Some are whispering maybe top six or seven. That’s where the caution comes in. We all know what Nick Saban says about “rat poison.” In Gainesville, we’ll call it “Gator poison.” Nah. This Sumrall fellow isn’t swallowing any of it. Missouri is next, and Sumrall has already told his team that Saturday in The Swamp is history. Somehow long-suffering Gator fans, people who spent years guarding against despair, are now being told to guard against overconfidence. It’s a nice problem to have, like complaining that your new boat is too fast. It’s all part of the Sumrall routine: “I just want to go 1-0 every week.” Sure enough, by Sunday afternoon the chips began falling Florida’s way in the new AP poll. Bringing the Fire Along with the laser focus, the grit and the stubbornness comes a fire in the man’s belly, and it seems to light up his whole football team. The people close to the program notice. One player’s dad heard him speak and said, “I’d run through the wall for that guy.” Tim Tebow said it best last Saturday: “Coach, thank you for bringing the fire back to this program.” That’s like the world’s most famous arsonist tipping his cap to the new guy for setting a few fires of his own. Happy days, indeed. Quick! Somebody start writing that second verse now.

Update, Sunday: Florida is No. 8 in the new AP and Coaches polls. Missouri, Saturday’s opponent, fell to No. 25 after losing to Mississippi State. This work in progress Florida football team left at least 28 points on the field Saturday at The Swamp, committed eight penalties for 92 yards, one of which nullified a spectacular 67-yard sprint to the end zone by Vernell Brown III, who broke a couple of tackles while juking his way into the clear, and gave the Ole Miss publicity people plenty of highlight reel video footage for their Trinidad Chambliss for Heisman Trophy campaign. The Gators made the kind of mistakes that typically snatch defeat from the jaws of victory but this is not your typical mistake-prone team. Not at all. This Florida team seems to be feeding off its mistakes, transforming the negatives into positive responses. A week ago after the Gators had whacked Auburn 44-39 despite 16 penalties and countless other mistakes that kept the game far closer than it should have been, Jon Sumrall offered glowing praise for the resilience of his team while painting a picture of doom and gloom if games in the future are as rife with an equal or greater number of mistakes. In so many ways, Saturday’s 52-28 win over 4th-ranked Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1 SEC) mirrored the Auburn win in terms of how many times the Gators shot themselves in the feet but just like Auburn, the responses to adversity were clear indications of a very capable team whose best days are yet to come. “I think there's a lot of positive that's going on,” Sumrall said. “I see the warts. I see us practice every day. So the things that maybe don't look the way I want, if we have championship expectations and dreams and goals here, you can have no flaws. While I do think we're doing a lot of great things and I think we're being explosive in scoring and doing some things really well in flashes or in spurts, I think the consistency has to be even greater. But I like the direction we're headed.” What’s this? Championship dreams and expectations? How could that be when just two months ago in Tampa at SEC Media Days, the folks that dwell on intellectual pedestals both nationally and in the SEC were questioning that the Gators could go 6-6 in Sumrall’s first year as the UF head ball coach. The Gators came into Saturday’s game with Ole Miss holding down the No. 21 ranking in the Associated Press poll. It’s doubtful the Ole Miss win will vault the Gators into the top ten, but somewhere between 11 and 15 seems reasonable. The next eight games – seven straight SEC matchups and the season finale at Florida State – had the look of a gauntlet even a couple of weeks ago. Now, it’s not such a far-fetched notion that the Gators could get to ten wins. With the exception of No. 1 Texas in Austin on Oct. 17 and No. 2 Georgia in Atlanta on Oct. 31, every other game looks so winnable that the thought of the Gators being an underdog seems outrageous. At 4-0, 2-0 in SEC play, the Gators have already matched last year’s win total both overall and in SEC action. A year ago the Gators struggled to put points on the scoreboard, logging 259 in 12 games. They averaged 341.3 yards per game. Already in 2026, the Gators have scored 214 points and they’re averaging 532.8 yards per game. What makes the numbers even more impressive is the fact this team is only scratching the surface of its potential. The Gators have put 44 or more points on the scoreboard in each of the first four games of the season, something that hasn’t been done since 2001, Steve Spurrier’s final season as the Florida head coach. The Gators might have scored 70 against Ole Miss if they hadn’t made so many mistakes. They could have easily led 28-0 before Ole Miss even caught its breath but it took awhile to sort through all the adversity and respond with a dominant fourth quarter. It wasn’t until Ole Miss scored so easily on its first two possessions of the third quarter to cut Florida’s lead to 24-21 that the Gators did a collective suck it up Buttercup and flexed some muscle. Florida outscored the Rebels 28-7 the rest of the way, taking their lead from the offensive line, which got into a rhythm and pounded Ole Miss into submission. Even against an Ole Miss defense that loaded the box to stop the run, the Gators imposed their will and there wasn’t anything the Rebels could do about it. “I feel that no defense in the country could stop us from putting up points,” Jadan Baugh said. Baugh ran for 142 yards and three touchdowns, his fifth straight game with 100 or more yards dating back to last season’s finale against FSU. He is second in the nation in rushing yards (600) and leads the country in scoring (66) on 11 touchdowns. “As you all see, we put up a lot of points each and every week, but we have so much to work on to put more points on the board. I tell the guys, I’m trying to put up 70, trying to put up 60, and they understand that and they’re ready to go.” Seventy was achievable Saturday against Ole Miss, but the Gators left points on the field. On their second possession with UF ahead 7-0, Aaron Philo had a wide open Vernell Brown III running all alone down the West sideline but he rushed the throw and led Brown by about six inches too many. Rather than a TD that would have made it 14-0, the Gators ended up settling for a 49-yard field goal by Patrick Durkin. Still ahead 10-0 and with less than a minute showing on the first quarter clock, Sumrall gambled on fourth-and-2 at the Ole Miss 19. Ole Miss loaded the box expecting a handoff to Jadan Baugh. At the snap, tight end Amir Jackson drifted into the left flat all alone. Any kind of catchable throw and Jackson could have waved to friends and family while heading for the end zone. That’s how open he was. It should have been 21-0 at that point. A blatant hold by Bailey Stockton nullified Brown’s 67-yard touchdown on the next Florida series. Complicating matters, a delay of game penalty on the next snap was followed by Stockton dropping a pass that would have kept the drive alive. The Gators punted and were flagged for fair catch interference. Ole Miss, which should have been trailing 28-0, responded with a 5-play drive for a field goal that was assisted by a 15-yard face mask penalty against the Gators’ Jeramiah McCloud. There is a ton of difference in 28-0 and 10-3. To the Gators’ credit they responded positively to the Ole Miss score, taking 7:07 off the clock with a methodical 15-play, 87-yard drive capped off by a 2-yard touchdown run by Baugh, his second score of the night for a 17-3 lead with 2:51 left in the first half. Ole Miss trimmed three points off the lead with a field goal that made it 17-6 at the half, but the game should have been well on its way to carnage status by then. After trading touchdowns to start the second half – Florida retaliating to an Ole Miss TD with a tackle-breaking 45-yard juke job by Duke Clark – Ole Miss drove for a TD to cut the deficit to 24-21, a 14-play excursion that was aided by a defensive holding call on Dijon Johnson. The Ole Miss TD was Florida’s wakeup call. London Montgomery’s 74-yard kickoff return set up a 3-play touchdown drive ended by Philo scoring from one yard out. On the ensuing Ole Miss drive, Jayden Woods made the defensive play of the game with a strip sack of Chambliss, the loose ball recovered by Myles Graham at the Florida 43. Seven plays later the Gators made it 38-21 on a 6-yard run by Dallas Wilson on a reverse with 13:38 left in the game, part of a 21-7 fourth quarter that saw the Gators turn this into a comfortable rout. The people who vote on the rankings will see a 24-point Florida win and respond by moving the Gators up dramatically in the polls but many will overlook the fact the game should have never been this close. The Gators are indeed capable of lighting up the scoreboard with an offense that is as balanced as there is in college football – 1040 rushing yards, 1091 passing – but they do indeed leave points on the field. Defensively, the Gators are vastly better against the run than last year, allowing just 103 yards per game, but the DBs are getting torched. Ole Miss threw for 298 yards and it would have been more if not for the Gators taking nearly 37 minutes off the clock by controlling the ball with the running game. The penalties are a real problem. The Gators are dead last in the SEC (89.3 yards per game) and 134th nationally. As good as the offense has been, it could be even better if not for the penalties and the same goes for a defense that has a habit of extending drives with silly mistakes. The good news is that the problems are all very correctable. Lost in the shuffle of a perfect 4-0 September is the fact that as good as the Gators have been, they’re very capable of taking their game several notches higher. It will not happen overnight as this is an ongoing process but Sumrall sees improvement and knows he has the Gators on the right track. Can they shock the world, win 10 or more games and make the College Football Playoff for the first time? That remains to be seen, but it begins on the practice field which then translates to week-to-week improvement on Saturdays. The win over Ole Miss was the springboard to next week when the Gators face Missouri on the road. Celebrating Ole Miss ends and focus on Missouri begins this afternoon. The idea is to win each day and stack daily wins that become winning on Saturday. The win over Ole Miss cannot be understated. Its impact reverberated throughout the SEC and the college football world. Some are already proclaiming that the Gators are back but Sumrall isn’t buying that. At least not yet. “I believe in our team,” he said. “I believe in the direction we’re headed. We still are not a finished product by any stretch of the imagination.” ELSEWHERE IN THE SEC No. 1 Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC) 20, No. 14 Tennessee (3-1, 0-1 SEC) 17: Texas overcame its own offensive struggles with 10 sacks including five by Colin Simmons. No. 2 Georgia (4-0, 2-0 SEC) 41, Oklahoma (2-2, 0-1 SEC) 13: Georgia managed only 306 yards of offense but took advantage of four Oklahoma turnovers. No. 8 Alabama (4-0, 2-0 SEC) 49, South Carolina (2-2, 0-2 SEC) 18: Keelon Russell threw for 365 yards and four touchdowns to lead Alabama. No. 10 LSU (3-1, 1-1 SEC) 35, No. 23 Texas A&M (2-2, 0-2 SEC) 6: The LSU defense held Texas A&M without a touchdown and only 197 total yards. No. 24 Mississippi State (4-0, 2-0 SEC) 31, No. 19 Missouri (3-1, 0-1 SEC) 24: Mississippi State outscored Mizzou 14-0 in the fourth quarter to pull this one out. Auburn (3-1, 1-1 SEC) 21, Vanderbilt (3-1, 0-1 SEC) 15: The story of the game was Auburn’s defense that bottled up the Vandy running game. Kentucky (3-1, 1-1 SEC) 45, South Alabama (2-2) 21: Kentucky had three 100+ rushers, CJ Patterson (149), Javon Patterson (137) and Jovantae Barnes (100). Arkansas (2-2, 0-1 SEC) 34, Tulsa (3-1) 6: KJ Jackson threw for 309 yards and a touchdown for the Razorbacks. NEXT WEEK No. 8 Florida (4-0, 2-0 SEC) at No. 25 Missouri (3-1, 0-1 SEC) Vanderbilt (3-1, 0-1 SEC) at No. 2 Georgia (4-0, 2-0 SEC) No. 8 Alabama (4-0, 2-0 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (4-0, 2-0 SEC) McNeese (2-3) at No. 10 LSU (3-1, 1-1 SEC) Arkansas (2-2, 0-1 SEC) at No. 23 Texas A&M (2-2, 0-2 SEC) Auburn (3-1, 1-1 SEC) at No. 14 Tennessee (3-1, 0-1 SEC) Kentucky (3-1, 1-1 SEC) at South Carolina (2-2, 0-2 SEC)

FINAL: Florida 52, Ole Miss 28. Read the full postgame story. Halftime in The Swamp: Gators 17, Ole Miss 6. (GatorBait Media illustration) GAINESVILLE — The Swamp is shaking, and No. 21 Florida is 30 minutes from the biggest win of the Jon Sumrall era. Florida leads No. 4 Ole Miss 17-6 at halftime, and the story of the first half is simple: the Gators own the line of scrimmage. Baugh keeps pounding. Jadan Baugh, one of the nation’s top rushers coming in, capped a 65-yard opening drive with a 4-yard touchdown, then punched it in again from 2 yards out to finish a 15-play, 87-yard drive late in the second quarter. He has 83 yards on 17 carries. Florida has run for 133 yards at 4.9 a carry and held the ball for 19:41 of the first 30 minutes. The kickers mattered. Patrick Durkin’s 49-yard field goal made it 10-0 in the first quarter after Aaron Chiles stuffed JT Lindsey on fourth-and-1 and Florida took over on downs. Ole Miss answered with a 36-yard Lucas Carneiro field goal, then added a 46-yarder with 1:11 left to make it 17-6. The big hit. Heisman hopeful Trinidad Chambliss ran for 11 yards midway through the first quarter and went down at the end of it. He walked off under his own power, Ole Miss punted on the next play, and he was back for the Rebels’ next drive. He is 10-of-13 for 88 yards at the half. Targeting ejection. Ole Miss lost safety Joenel Aguero late in the half. He was flagged for targeting on a third-down play that left Florida receiver Bailey Stockton down on the field, and he was disqualified, The Independent Florida Alligator reported. TJ Abrams’ 15-yard catch plus the penalty gave Florida first-and-goal at the 5, and Baugh scored two plays later. Not all clean for the Gators. Vernell Brown III had a 67-yard touchdown catch wiped out by holding, and a delay of game on the same drive backed Florida up before a punt. Sumrall went for it on fourth-and-2 from the Ole Miss 19 in the first quarter, and Aaron Philo’s pass to Amir Jackson fell incomplete. What’s next. Ole Miss gets the ball to open the second half. Florida is 30 minutes from 4-0 for the first time since 2019, and from announcing itself as a real playoff team. First-half timeline FIRST QUARTER Kickoff: Ole Miss kicks off to open the game. J'Vari Flowers returns the opening kickoff 23 yards to the Florida 35. 10:53 — TOUCHDOWN FLORIDA: Baugh 4-yard run, Durkin kick. The 8-play, 65-yard drive included Baugh runs of 12 and 23 yards and a 13-yard Philo pass to Luke Harpring. Florida 7, Ole Miss 0. 9:16: Chiles stuffs Lindsey for a 4-yard loss on fourth-and-1 and forces a fumble that Lindsey recovers. Florida takes over on downs at the Ole Miss 31. 9:00 — FIELD GOAL FLORIDA: Durkin, 49 yards. Florida 10, Ole Miss 0. 6:51: Chambliss goes down at the end of an 11-yard run and walks off on his own. Ole Miss punts on the next play, and he is back for the Rebels’ next drive. 0:47: On fourth-and-2 from the Ole Miss 19, Philo’s pass to Amir Jackson falls incomplete. Turnover on downs. SECOND QUARTER 12:50: Philo’s 67-yard touchdown pass to Brown is nullified by holding on Bailey Stockton. A delay of game follows, and Florida punts. 10:13 — FIELD GOAL OLE MISS: Carneiro, 36 yards. Kick-catch interference on Lagonza Hayward during a Florida punt gave Ole Miss the ball at the Florida 48, and a facemask penalty on Jeramiah McCloud added 15 yards. Florida 10, Ole Miss 3. 3:52: Philo's third-and-8 pass is tipped and caught by TJ Abrams for 15 yards. Aguero is flagged for targeting, and Stockton is shaken up on the play. First-and-goal Florida. 2:51 — TOUCHDOWN FLORIDA: Baugh 2-yard run, Durkin kick, capping a 15-play, 87-yard drive that took 7:17. Florida 17, Ole Miss 3. 1:11 — FIELD GOAL OLE MISS: Carneiro, 46 yards, after Trinidad Chambliss completions of 18 and 10 yards to Deuce Alexander. Florida 17, Ole Miss 6. 0:29: Clark punts 70 yards, out of bounds at the Ole Miss 2. Halftime: Florida 17, Ole Miss 6. File photo from Florida's Sept. 19 game at Auburn. (Photo by Chris Spears) Information from ESPN, The Independent Florida Alligator and Sports Illustrated was used in this report. Correction: An earlier version of this story understated Trinidad Chambliss’ first-half passing yards; he was 10-of-13 for 88 yards.