Missouri's One Big Mistake in the Gator Bowl loss to Virginia

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The 2025 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl was interesting, thrilling, and for Missouri fans, infuriating with the way the coaching staff used star running back Ahmad Hardy in one of the game’s biggest moments. 

But Virginia held up, made the plays, and came up with a 13-7 win to cap off a wonderful season.

Here are five takeaways from the game, along with what’s next for each team. 

Missouri vs Virginia: Five Takeaways From the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl

5. The winningest season in Virginia football history

Virginia has enjoyed a few nice years in its 122 seasons of playing college football.

The 1989 team was No. 1 at one point, but it lost three games – finishing with a Citrus Bowl loss – in the program’s only ten-win season.

The Cavaliers have never won an outright ACC Championship, have just two co-championships, and lost in painful fashion in this year’s title game.

However, with this win, Virginia has its first 11-victory season ever. This comes after five straight non-winning campaigns and a horrible tragedy that cut the 2022 season short. The team earned with a tough Gator Bowl performance, and was helped by  …

4. Missouri’s frustrating night was summed up with one big mistake

The frustration for the Missouri offense – and the fans on social media – was off the charts.

The heartbreaking final play might be what everyone will remember, but one big biff on the previous drive was the problem.

Going back to the final play, on a night when the Mizzou O couldn’t move, starting quarterback Matt Zollers – main man Beau Pribula is in the transfer portal – got hit and came out for one play, but it was with a few seconds left and the Tigers down six. 

Brett Brown was thrown into the fire, and he delivered a perfectly lofted pass into the end zone, but Virginia’s Devin Neal broke it up with the play of the game, and that was it. However, again, it might not have come down to that if the Tigers didn’t mess up their previous drive.

Missouri running back Ahmad Hardy was the best player on the field.

Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love was the best running back in college football this season, but Hardy was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award after tearing off 1,560 yards and 16 touchdowns.

He didn’t get the first quarter – and only – rushing touchdown, but he set it up with a 43-yard dash.

Against FBS teams, Missouri was 7-0 when Hardy ran more than 20 times, 0-5 when he ran 20 times or fewer. 

Hardy ran 15 times for 89 yards against Virginia, averaging close to six yards per carry.

It was getting late, Missouri was on the Virginia side of the field, and after a false start penalty, Hardy ran for four yards on third down. On fourth and two on the Virginia 41, and under two minutes remaining …

Missouri took the best player on the field, off the field.

Zollers tried to run for the first down, but didn’t quite reach the ball out well enough, turnover on downs, Virginia ball.

Mizzou did have that one last chance, but again, the desperation might not have been necessary.

3. This was a massive win for the ACC

NC State started out the ACC’s bowl season with a blowout over Memphis, and Miami pulled off the one that really mattered against Texas A&M, but Louisville was less than impressive in a 27-22 Boca Raton Bowl win over Toledo. And the ACC hit a snag.

Cal lost to Hawaii on Christmas Eve, Clemson couldn’t get going in a loss to Penn State, Georgia Tech lost a heartbreaker to BYU, and worst of all, two-touchdown favorite Pitt gacked away the Military Bowl to East Carolina.

There are still three more bowl games and at least one more CFP game for the ACC, but it needed something positive on Saturday.

Virginia beat an SEC team. For the ACC, that just meant more.

2. What’s next for Missouri going into the offseason?

Eliah Drinkwitz and the Missouri coaching staff didn’t have their best night in Jacksonville, but it was still a decent season, there were plenty of positives, and …

(It’s not like Missouri beat anyone who was any good.)

Mizzou has become great at beating almost all the teams it’s supposed to beat, but it could use a few breaks – like healthy, steady quarterback play next year.

The quarterback stable is solid, but the Tigers will likely look for another option in the portal, but no matter who it is, the No. 1 job will be to hand it off to Ahmad Hardy. 

The line will lose star tackle Caden Green to the NFL, but the Tiger front five is always solid, and there’s a nice mix of young receiving talents to add more pop.

The defense will require more help. The depth is okay, but the back seven could use an infusion of experienced producers coming in to add to the rotation.

1. What’s next for Virginia going into the offseason?

The Cavaliers proved under Tony Elliott that they can win, but this was a magical run that came up just short. 

And now they have to go on without the top rushers and star quarterback Chandler Morris.

This was a veteran team that has to rely on a slew of underclassmen next year in the defensive back eight. It will have to catch lightning in a bottle again with the transfers, and it’ll need a near-overhaul on the offensive line, depending on how the next few weeks shake out.

And now there are expectations. Virginia is supposed to keep winning, or at least be a problem for the rest of the ACC.

Related: BYU Star Takes Over in Win Over Georgia Tech: 5 Pop-Tarts Bowl Takeaways

This story was originally published by College Football News on Dec 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add College Football News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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