Eli Drinkwitz takes victory lap on Twitter after Missouri beats Florida
Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz is taking one long victory lap after the Tigers upset the Florida Gators at home, 24-23, to clinch the program’s first bowl game since 2018.
First, Drinkwitz in his postgame press conference trolled Florida head coach Dan Mullen, who after the loss figures to have as hot a seat as ever before. In reference to Mullen’s postgame press conference answers from Florida’s win over Missouri last year — a Halloween game in which Mullen wore a full-blown Darth Vader suit to the news conference — Drinkwitz pulled up his hood, pulled out his lightsaber and said, “May the force be with you,” creating one of college football’s best viral moment of the year.
The win, however, did not always look like it would finish in favor of Missouri, as the two teams traded blows and went all the way to overtime before it was decided. In overtime, Florida struck first, scoring a touchdown and the point-after attempt to take a seven-point lead; then, in a due-or-die scenario, Missouri’s star running back Tyler Badie turned in a 12-yard and 13-yard run to score the equalizer. Rather than settling for the tie game, head coach Eli Drinkwitz opted to go for two, and the rest was history — Missouri converted, took a one-point lead and won the contest.
After the game, Drinkwitz took to Twitter to call out those who were skeptical of his decision to go for two.
Drinkwitz goes for two, Missouri emerges victorious
When the pressure was at its peak, Drinkwitz stood by his decision to go for two and the win, rather than the point-after and the tie.
Quarterback Connor Bazelak took the snap under center for the two-point attempt, rolled right on a play-action play, but Florida brought heavy pressure on a play that could have solidified a Gators victory. Bazelak continued to trot back in the pocket, running back to the 12-yard line before heaving an over-the-top, high-arcing pass toward the end zone, where tight end Daniel Parker Jr. was all alone. Parker reeled in the pass, finalizing Missouri’s 24-23 victory over the Florida Gators.
Bazelak finished the game with 15 completions in 26 attempts, good for 165 passing yards and one touchdown. Badie, the center of Missouri’s offensive attack, had 27 carries for 146 rushing yards and one touchdown, brushing off a slow start with an emphatic finish. On the other side, Jones did everything he could under center to bring Florida within striking distance, completing 20 of 32 passes for 261 passing yards, while rushing 17 times for 45 yards, but it wasn’t enough.
The game was nearly void of offense on both sides, as neither Florida or Missouri scored more than one touchdown in regulation. Florida converted on only five of 18 third-down attempts, while Missouri did so on three of 15 attempts; Florida’s offense did manage to outpace Missouri, tallying 360 total yards to Missouri’s 286, but the Tigers called the perfect play when it mattered most, punching in the game-winning two-point conversion.
The win moved the bowl-eligible Missouri Tigers to 6-5 on the season, while Florida — once ranked as high as No. 10 in the AP poll — fell to 5-6. Next week, Florida’s struggling program will face another subpar in-state program, with the winner of Florida-Florida State going to a bowl game.
However, Mullen could very well not be there to coach Florida next week, should the Gators decide to make a move.