Five Takeaways From Florida's 23-6 Victory Over Missouri

This game was never close, despite it being a one-score contest for over a half of football.

The No. 11 Florida Gators (9-2, 6-2 SEC) kept their uncontrollable SEC East hopes alive with a 23-6 victory over the Missouri Tigers (5-5, 2-4 SEC) in Columbia, MS. on Saturday. Should the No. 12 Auburn Tigers (7-2, 4-2 SEC) upset the No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs (8-1, 5-1 SEC) at Jordan-Hare Stadium, the Gators will still have a path to Atlanta next month.

Behind a dominant defensive showing and quarterback Kyle Trask's 282 yard, two touchdown performance, Florida ended their two-game skid to the Tigers dating back to the 2017 season.

Here are five takeaways from the Gators' triumph.

Jonathan Greenard earned some serious NFL cash today

The graduate transfer pass rusher had a career day against Missouri, and at the perfect time as he prepares a résumé for the upcoming NFL Draft.

Credited with three sacks - one came as he quickly pressured quarterback Kelly Bryant into an intentional grounding - six total tackles, five tackles for loss, and what felt like a million quarterback pressures (that stat will be on Pro Football Focus early this week), Greenard was a wrecking ball on Florida's defensive front on Saturday.

Greenard not biting on the fake toss for a second and takes Bryant down pic.twitter.com/8iNpqMuZCy
— libgator (@lib_gator) November 16, 2019

Now standing at seven sacks, 12 tackles for loss, an interception, three defended passes, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovered for a touchdown on the season, Greenard is cementing himself as one of the more disruptive edge rushers in the 2020 NFL Draft class. PFF credited Greenard with 30 QB pressures entering the Missouri game, and that number should be around 40 when stats are updated.

Greenard received an invite to the Senior Bowl last week.

Speaking of the NFL, Dan Mullen needs to sell Trevon Grimes on returning for 2020

Florida is set to lose four receivers this offseason, as Van Jefferson, Josh Hammond, Freddie Swain, and Tyrie Cleveland will graduate prior to the 2020 season.

Head coach Dan Mullen can't afford for that count to hit five.

Trevon Grimes is the most physically gifted player in Florida's wide receiver room. Standing at 6-5, 214 lbs., with a 4.48 second 40-yard dash and 34" vertical jump on record, Grimes is not only a deep threat from a speed perspective, but he's a dominant specimen who will win contested catches more often than lose them. He showed those skills off on Saturday, nabbing three receptions on four targets for 66 yards.

Great catch by Grimes saves this play and picks up 41 yards pic.twitter.com/u4OKZvxamT
— libgator (@lib_gator) November 16, 2019

With such an impressive skillset, Grimes would be selected in the NFL Draft if it were today, even without elite production. He has all of the traits that the NFL looks for in an X-receiver. Considering Grimes only has 30 receptions, but has accounted for 470 yards (15.6 yards per catch) and three touchdowns along the way.

Mullen can guarantee more opportunities in the passing game next year to further elevate Grimes' draft stock after a senior season in orange and blue. He needs to do that.

Toney found a sweet spot

Wide receiver Kadarius Toney found his sweet spot against Missouri, in the long-fought debate over how many touches he should receive a game.

Right around four. He had four against the Tigers, and the 3-5 touch range is just right.

On two of Toney's touches - a rush and a reception - the junior utility weapon found gains of 25 and 48. On the other two, Toney rushed for a loss of eight yards once and no gain on the final carry.

That's just the nature of Kadarius Toney, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. At the end of the day, he averaged 16.25 yards per touch vs. Missouri. Florida doesn't need to risk more negative plays with that level of production in spurts.

Florida should have won by more, which is a reoccurring feeling

23-6 makes this game feel close. It never was.

Florida was far more talented than Missouri in all aspects. Offensively, Kyle Trask and Co. moved the ball at will to gain 386 total yards, averaging 7.72 yards per play. Six receivers had multiple receptions, with running back Lamical Perine and slot receiver Josh Hammond hauling in scores.

Meanwhile, the Gators' defense held Missouri to only 76 yards on the day. The Tigers only crossed the 50-yard line three times on 14 drives, while the Gators compiled three sacks, 10 tackles for loss, and an interception in the contest.

There were moments were Florida simply needed to execute better, which has been an issue throughout the year. As David Wunderlich of GatorCountry pointed out, the team is still having miscommunication errors in the passing game. Is that a coaching issue? Is Trask struggling pre-snap? Or are the receivers just running the wrong routes?

The bottom line is, these miscommunications shouldn't be happening by Week 12, and they are. A good bit.

Another offensive tackle is needed by National Signing Day

While Florida had a productive day offensively, it's clear that Florida still needs to land a left tackle in the 2020 signing class.

Left tackle Stone Forsythe still struggles with bending rushes off of the edge, unable to anchor against agile edge rushers while he stands at 6-7. This has been a consistent issue for Forsythe on the left side, while right tackle Jean Delance has had plenty of pass protecting issues of his own on the other side.

Presented without comment. pic.twitter.com/feiN7Q70BG
— libgator (@lib_gator) November 16, 2019

In Gerald Mincey, Jovens Janvier, Richie Leonard IV, and Issiah Walker, Florida happily has four offensive line commits across their line for the 2020 class, but no sure-fire left tackle. Could Walker train there? Sure, but he is a bit of a project from a technique standpoint and has more experience on the right.

Most recruiting analysts predict four-star offensive tackle Marcus Dumervil to end up at LSU, but Florida has been pushing for the St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, FL) prospect to stay in state. With little other viable options out there (unless the NCAA transfer portal can provide some relief), Florida needs to push all of their chips into the center of the table to get Dumervil to Gainesville.