Jadan Baugh Leading Florida's Player Accountability After Missouri Loss

After one of the worst statistical performances of his career, Jadan Baugh is taking ownership after Florida's blowout defeat at Missouri.

Jadan Baugh was held to just 13 yards on 12 carries against Missouri. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Jadan Baugh entered Saturday as arguably the nation's best running back and a strong contender for the Heisman Trophy. He left with just 13 yards on 12 carries.

The Florida Gators' star back had his worst performance as a starter in the 45-17 loss to Missouri, ending his five-game streak of 100-yard, multi-touchdown games dating back to last season.

His performance, a microcosm of multiple issues for the Gators in the shocking loss, was taken personally, and for the player known for hardly ever using his phone, he sent his head coach a text: "Coach, I'm sorry. I won't let that ever happen again. I didn't play my best," Baugh texted head coach Jon Sumrall.

“Not a guy that does a whole lot of texting or calling. For a little while in December, I could never get a hold of him. So for him to reach out unsolicited on a Sunday after the loss was encouraging,” Sumrall said.

Jadan Baugh was held to just 13 yards against Missouri. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Sumrall was not the only one Baugh apologized to, even if the performance was not his fault.

"He came up and talked to us and was like, ‘Look, I'm sorry, I need to do better,’" center Harrison Moore said. "The first thing I said to him was like, ‘No, I need to do better. We didn't give you the opportunity to play to the best of your ability.’"

Moore is not wrong, and neither is Baugh. For a team that emphasizes Baugh as the focal point on offense, Missouri had Baugh's number from the start.

After a 12-yard rush on Baugh's first carry, his longest rush for the rest of the game was for three yards. He had five rushes that went for negative yardage, including four on the opening drive, after only having three all season leading up to the game. The loss also ended a streak of 10 games with a score.

"He's the one that's going to get a lot of the bad stuff from the media for it, but ultimately, like, offensive line, like, we didn't give him the opportunity to be who he is," Moore added.

While Baugh got plenty of outside criticism for the performance, it was one of many eye-opening issues for the Gators. Florida's offense, averaging over 50 points per game, was stifled with the offensive line struggling to control the line-of-scrimmage, quarterback Aaron Philo struggling to find consistency in the passing game and a lack of vertical threat with Vernell Brown III sidelined.

Those issues extended to the defense, which gave up its most points in nearly two seasons, 340 passing yards from Austin Simmons and 211 yards rushing from Jamal Roberts. The Tigers also had eight plays of over 20 yards, headlined by Roberts' touchdowns of 77 yards and 80 yards in the second half.

After a 4-0 start and a top-10 ranking, complacency at its finest hurt the Gators.

"Definitely was a humbling experience. I think people kind of got a little complacent," defensive lineman Brendan Bett said. "In my opinion, I’m kind of glad it happened because we got to really just get to see where our true weaknesses were and now we can go and go get it off of that.”

Humbled and now on the outside looking in for the College Football Playoff, the Gators return home this week to face three-loss South Carolina, creating a tremendous opportunity for a bounce-back win ahead of games against No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Georgia. Player accountability, which has been a key talking point for Sumrall early in his tenure, will be paramount.

And Baugh, looking to resolidify himself as one of the nation's top backs, will be the leader in that regard.

"You have a great appreciation for guys that want to step up and go, ‘Hey, we're going to get this fixed. I want to take ownership in my part of this,'" Sumrall said. "It speaks to their character, and I think usually it has a lot to do with maybe what their background is because you don't do that without somebody in your life usually helping mold you to become someone that's not afraid of accountability.”

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