Missouri vs. Florida odds: Gators heavy favorites over Tigers on Saturday

The Missouri Tigers travel to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to take on No. 7 Florida on Saturday in the first game between the two teams as SEC opponents.

Missouri has had a tough time in their first season in the SEC after going 8-5 in 2012 and winning the Independence Bowl over North Carolina. The Tigers are just 4-4 so far in 2012, including three losses against top-ranked SEC teams. After a 42-10 loss at home against No. 1 Alabama the Tigers responded with a 33-10 win over Kentucky and will attempt to build on that momentum against Florida.

The road will be tough, however, as the Gators are favored by 17 points in the game according to OddsShark.com.

The Gators sport the nation's No. 4 defense, allowing just 12.8 points per game this season, while Missouri has averaged just 24.4 points per game, good for No. 89 in the NCAA. Florida lost for the first time this week in a 17-9 defeat to No. 10 Georgia, dropping the Gators out of the top five teams in the BCS rankings.

Florida faces Missouri on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT, with coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN 3D.