Dan Mullen talks what happened in Florida-Mizzou midfield brawl last season

Just over a year after a halftime scuffle broke out in Gainesville between Florida and Missouri, the conference foes are set to meet again on Saturday.

During a Monday press conference, Florida head coach Dan Mullen was asked about the occurrence and if it would be a problem once again this weekend.

“That was kind of something that I think certain things got out of control, but I don’t think it started with anything with the two teams,” Mullen said. “I think it was something that maybe got a couple people, probably made it worse than it needed to be, that were in the middle of it. I don’t see how that would roll into this game to be honest with you. I didn’t even think about it.”

The Halloween night game ended 41-17 in favor of the Gators, but the first half ended with a hit on quarterback Kyle Trask on a Hail Mary pass. Missouri defensive lineman Trajan Jeffcoat was not flagged for the conduct.

As a result of the no-call, Mullen ran out onto the field, both benches emptied and punches were thrown over nearly two minutes. Three players were ejected for the rest of the game, Mullen was fined $25,000, and five total players were later suspended.

Gators, Tigers seeking bowl eligibility

Florida enters Saturday’s game 2-5 in the SEC, while Missouri is 2-4. Both teams are 5-5, so the winner will become bowl eligible.

With an over/under of nearly 70 points, both defenses are expected to struggle. Florida ceded 52 points last weekend to Samford, the most ever allowed by an SEC team against an FCS opponent. 

Missouri has the worst scoring defense in the conference, allowing 35.9 points per game. They are the only SEC team giving up more than 200 yards per game on the ground, and they are well over that mark at 249.6. Florida’s offense notches 492.5 yards per game, which is second in the conference.

Missouri and Floirda played each other just once prior to the Tigers joining the SEC for the 2012 football season. Every game since 2013 has been decided by at least three possessions; the margin of victory for the winning team over those eight games is nearly 23 points.

The teams are tied all-time at five wins a piece, and Dan Mullen’s team has won the last two meetings.

Florida is an 8.5-point favorite, and the game starts at 4:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.