3 Matchups to Watch in the Gator Bowl for Mizzou Against No. 19 Virginia

Matchups to watch between the Tigers and the Cavaliers in their final game of the season.

Nov 22, 2025; Norman, Oklahoma, USA; Missouri Tigers linebacker Josiah Trotter (40) reacts during the first quarter against the Oklahoma Sooners at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Missouri Tigers have a chance to make program history by recording a third straight winning season, with the chance to do so in the Gator Bowl against No. 19 Virginia. It would be a happy ending to a somewhat tumultuous Missouri football season and the Cavaliers would likely be the best win the Tigers pick up all season.

It won't be easy, however. Virginia was a single game away from making the College Football Playoff, but was upset by the Duke Blue Devils in the ACC title game. That being said, Virginia was one of the most dominant teams in the ACC all season and it finished with its best record since the 1989 season.

Eli Drinkwitz and his Missouri team have made it clear that this is a game that's important to them. Even if the Tigers fell short of their College Football Playoff aspirations, they can still find success by going 9-4 with a bowl game win.

"You always got to find micro goals," Drinkwitz said Dec. 9. "Everybody's goals, we all have high goals and achievable goals, and when those things don't occur, you have to find the ability to reset and refocus, and that's what we've done."

Here are three matchups to watch in Missouri's final game of the 2025 season against the Virginia Cavaliers.

Matt Zollers vs. the Virginia defense

Nov 8, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers quarterback Matt Zollers waits in the tunnel ahead of the Missouri matchup against Texas A&M at Faurot Field. | Sam Simon/MissouriOnSI

This is obviously very broad, but it'll still be interesting to see how Missouri's true freshman quarterback takes ample time to prepare for the starting role in his third start of the season. This will be the first time he has had true time to practice and act like a starting quarterback, thanks to the transfer of Beau Pribula.

Zollers will be facing the No. 44 passing defense in the country when it comes to passing yards per game, allowing an average of 202.8 yards. Players like safeties Devin Neal, Antonio Clary and Ethan Minter, along with cornerback Donovan Platt, have made opposing passing offenses struggle all season.

This secondary is certainly more than enough to cause issues for Zollers, but, on paper, the group isn't much better than the Mississippi State passing defense he faced earlier in the season. Zollers didn't dominate the Bulldog secondary, but he was able to make some plays that he wasn't able to against Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.

It's worth mentioning that Ja'Son Prevard, one of Virginia's standout defensive backs this season, has already entered the transfer portal and will not play in the Gator Bowl. This is a significant loss that may make things easier for Zollers.

Virginia also possesses a solid pass-rushing group that could create some issues for the Missouri offensive front and Zollers. He'll have to deal with Fisher Camac, who recorded 4.5 sacks this season, and senior pass rusher Daniel Rickert, who led the Cavaliers in sacks with six.

This should be a good challenge for Zollers, while also proving to be a good test for where he stands as a decision maker. By no means is it a complete evaluation of who he is as a player and what the season meant for him, but it will be a good tell of where his development is at heading into next season.

Defensive front vs. Virginia's rushing attack

Sept 20, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers defensive end Zion Young celebrates a sack of South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers in the third quarter at Faurot Field. | Amber Winkler/MissouriOnSI

The Tigers will have a full-force defensive line heading into the Gator Bowl after Drinkwitz confirmed that Zion Young would play during media availability on Friday. That means Young, on top of the other usuals, will be ready to go one last time this season.

Virginia is allowing an average of 2.3 sacks per game, which ranks No. 45 in the country. Missouri has faced far more challenging offensive lines in the Southeastern Conference this season. That's going to make scheming quarterback pressure into defensive play calls more important. The Cavaliers have a talented pocket-passing quarterback in Chandler Morris, who's more than capable of throwing darts if he's not under pressure.

Morris is capable of being productive on the ground, having rushed for 245 yards and five touchdowns, but he's also thrown nine interceptions. He doesn't always handle pressure well and constant torment from Young, Damon Wilson and the defensive interior could force him into mistakes.

The Tigers and a chance to make history

Nov 15, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers running back Ahmad Hardy celebrates with quarterback Matt Zollers after scoring one of his three touchdowns on the night. | Sam Simon

As stated before, the Tigers can make school history by recording a third consecutive nine-win season if they capture victory over Virginia. That certainly does raise the stakes for the Gator Bowl for Missouri, which makes it far more important that the Tigers will nearly have all of their starters for the final game of the season.

That being said, Missouri will need to put on a full-effort, high-level performance to ensure they improve to 9-4 this season. Every unit will need to do its job and do it well to secure a win over a good Cavalier team.

Not showing up for the Gator Bowl, for this reason, would be a disappointment. Drinkwitz frequently talks about being able to shift his team's goals if they missed out on one or failed to meet one. The final goal for this roster would be to win this game and surpass the nine-win season for a third straight time. Even if the Gator Bowl isn't the end-all be-all, a loss would mean another missed goal in the 2025 season.