Mizzou football report card: Grading the Missouri Tigers after Gator Bowl loss
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Mizzou offense sputtered after opening TD, managed seven points in loss
- Defense held Virginia to 13 points and sustained game competitiveness
- Coach Drinkwitz accepted blame; play-calling and fourth-down choices harmed outcome
Mizzou’s 2025 football season came to a dull end in Jacksonville Saturday night, the Tigers’ offense stalling out for just seven points in a 13-7 Gator Bowl loss to Virginia.
MU scored a touchdown on its opening drive, an impressive march covering 74 yards. But the Tigers’ next 10 drives went for just 186 combined ... and produced zero points.
Virginia quarterback Chandler Morris went 25-of-38 for 198 yards through the air. Matt Zollers was less effective, going 12-for-22 for 101 yards and an interception that UVA cashed in as a field goal.
Zollers did lead the Tigers down the field for one last rally at the end of the game but was pulled by the on-field officials — they were apparently concerned about a head injury after hard contact with the ground on a third-and-10. Walk-on backup Brett Brown threw the ill-fated Hail Mary to end the game.
A bright spot: All-America Mizzou running back Ahmad Hardy became the program’s single-season rushing king, surpassing Cody Schrader’s mark from 2023. Hardy, a Doak Walker Award finalist, finishes the 2025 season with 1,645 yards on the ground after running for 89 Saturday.
“Obviously very disappointed with the result,” Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz told media in Jacksonville. “Thought our guys had great resolve and fight throughout the game. Obviously gave us an opportunity right there at the end of the game.
“It’s on me. I didn’t do a good enough job calling plays tonight or getting us into a rhythm or giving (us) things we could do and execute quick enough. Bottom line, it’s on me.”
Here are our grades from the game in Florida:
Offense: F
Outside of the opening drive, Mizzou’s offense was flat and uninspired. Also at fault was some questionable play-calling — for instance, not having Hardy on the field for a crucial fourth-and-2 in the final period.
Overall, Mizzou’s offense just couldn’t stay on the field. The Tigers were crushed in time of possession, controlling the ball for 21 minutes, 26 seconds to Virginia’s 38:34, and once again struggled on third downs.
Mizzou went 3-for-12 on third down and was unsuccessful on three fourth-down attempts.
“We were just off,” Drinkwitz said.
Grade: F
Missouri defense: A
Does this sound familiar? Missouri’s defense did just about everything it could.
This has often been the case for Mizzou this year, and the Gator Bowl was no different. The defense allowed the Cavaliers just 13 points, putting MU in a good spot to win its third straight bowl.
The Tigers just couldn’t come through offensively.
Grade: A
Missouri special teams: C
Another familiar assessment: We saw nothing special from Mizzou’s special teams.
The Tigers recovered a muffed punt toward the end of the first half but came up empty-handed after Oliver Robbins missed a 42-yard field-goal attempt.
Connor Weselman had four punts for 161 yards, averaging 40.3 with a long of 52.
Grade: C
Area for improvement
Drinkwitz commonly uses the phrase “It’s on me” after defeats. And that was pretty apparent this time around.
Again, the decision to keep Hardy off the field in a fourth-and-short situation, along with the entirety of the Tigers’ final drive, was puzzling. Drinkwitz didn’t explain it after the game.
The offense may have been flat in its execution, but the play-calling didn’t help.
Player of the game: Brett Brown
Seriously, the best throw of the night was Brown’s Hail Mary attempt. It was on-target but was batted away by Virginia defenders in the end zone,
This story was originally published December 28, 2025 at 1:37 PM.
