The Florida Gators survived the first four weeks of the season thanks to a strong rushing attack by Jadan Baugh.

The Gators earned their first two victories over non-Power 4 programs FAU and Campbell before going on to beat Auburn 44-39 and blow out Ole Miss 52-38.

Florida was humbled on Saturday in Columbia, losing to Missouri 45-17. Running back Jadan Baugh could not lift the Gators, rushing 12 times for 13 yards.

The same problems that plagued Florida in the first four weeks led to a lopsided loss. The Gators were penalized eight times for 80 yards. The defense gave up 340 passing yards.

During the "Josh Pate's College Football Show" on Monday, the host argued that Florida will have to get things corrected quickly to stay on the trend of making the College Football Playoff just a week after "some" (but thankfully not Pate) were comparing the Gators to 2019 LSU.

With a first-year head coach, Pate expects Florida to be a "high-variance team" under Jon Sumrall. While they overperformed against Ole Miss, the Gators hit their lowest point on Saturday.

Pate also noted that every year in college football there are teams that get hot in September before falling away in October. The Gators could be that team if they don't get their serious issues corrected.

If Sumrall can get the secondary to play better, the penalties to stop, quarterback Aaron Philo and the offensive line consistent, Florida has a chance to make the CFP.

The best news for Florida is that they have a sort of tune-up game before playing No. 1 Texas on Oct. 17 and No. 2 Georgia on Halloween. The No. 16 Gators will host a South Carolina team that has lost three consecutive SEC games in a row this season and appears to be in disarray under head coach Shane Beamer.

The Gators need to focus on playing clean football to blow out the Gamecocks.

Then the real test starts. Florida will need to beat either Texas or Georgia to stay in the CFP picture. The Gators have shown that if they play their best, they can compete with the top teams in the SEC.

The Longhorns appear to be the more vulnerable opponent, though their defense is legit. If they lose both of those games, it can still be a great season for Florida, but not as good as it could have been.

Source: Yahoo Sports