Jalen Tabor remembers the homecoming embarrassment two years ago.
Florida’s star cornerback watched from the sideline during Missouri’s Marcus Murphy’s 96-yard kickoff return on the first play of the game.
He remembers Murphy’s punt return, Markus Golden’s fumble return and Darvin Ruise’s interception — all which went for Mizzou touchdowns.
And above all, he can’t forget how quarterback Maty Mauk threw for just 20 yards in Missouri’s 42-13 thumping of the Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in 2014.
“That was just embarrassing how we came out,” Tabor said. “I mean, jeesh.”
Now, Tabor and the rest of Florida’s football team have extra incentive to avenge that ugly and disappointing loss.
For one, national critics like Clay Travis of Fox Sports called the Gators scared and accused them of using Hurricane Matthew to dodge LSU.
And plain and simple, UF hasn’t looked like the SEC-Championship-Game-caliber team it wants to be over its last six quarters of football.
Even Steve Spurrier will talk to the team today about the importance of this game.
“We’re coming out trying to make a statement, especially offensively,” running back Jordan Scarlett said. “Just to show everybody in the SEC that we’re coming to play no matter who it is. We’re just trying to take care of business.”
It’ll also help tremendously that quarterback Luke Del Rio is returning this weekend. The redshirt sophomore led Florida’s offense to more than 30 points and 450 yards per game before missing the last two games with a sprained ACL.
Scarlett said having Del Rio back helps him because he forces opposing defensive backs to account for receivers instead of playing the run. He also said Del Rio is more comfortable with the offense than backup Austin Appleby.
“Luke takes a little bit of load off my shoulders. He has everybody in command,” Scarlett said.
“He’s like a general. He calms everybody down in tough situations and brings us all together.”
But even with Del Rio back, Florida should look to the ground game for success.
Missouri surrendered 418 rushing yards two weeks ago to an LSU offense that was missing an injured Leonard Fournette.
That game alone has Scarlett and the rest of UF’s backs salivating.
“They did a really good job of running the ball against them,” Scarlett said of LSU’s attack versus Missouri. “I feel like we have better backs and we can get the job done.”
While Missouri is important for the Gators to bounce back, it’s also pivotal for UF’s chances at going to the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. The rest of its conference games are, too.
And Tabor is aware.
“You know whoever wins in Atlanta will be in the Final Four, unless you have two losses,” he said. “Everything is in front of us.”
Contact Patrick Pinak at ppinak@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @pinakk12.
Jalen tabor (31) celebrates with teammates after intercepting a pass during Florida's 45-7 win over Kentucky on Sept. 10, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
