As football approaches for the Florida Gators, injuries still remain a hurdle in sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway’s ability to be a full participant in practice.
On July 27, sources told The Alligator that the starting quarterback was dealing with a lower-body injury, but the severity of the injury and timeline of recovery were not disclosed.
In his first press conference of fall camp on July 28, head coach Billy Napier confirmed the reports and shared that Lagway was dealing with the injury for about a week. He also shared he will be limited in participation during fall camp with just over a month before the Gators kick off their 2025 season.
Napier remained positive about the situation, however.
“The good thing is that I think we’re about a week removed, so in general, he’s made a lot of quick progress,” Napier said.
The former five-star recruit came into his sophomore season with the ninth-highest betting odds to win the Heisman Trophy according to BetMGM. Now, fans across the country will have to potentially wait an additional number of weeks to see Lagway’s run at the prestigious trophy.
This injury adds to the list of setbacks Lagway has endured as a Gator.
Last season, he came down with a left hamstring injury against the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs that kept him out of UF’s following contest against the No. 5 Texas Longhorns.
During this past spring, the Willis, Texas native was limited in Florida’s practices and was sidelined for the Orange and Blue scrimmage due to a shoulder injury.
Napier pointed out how difficult these injuries have made it for Lagway to practice with the first-team offense.
“It’s not ideal. I mean, in a perfect world, he would have been perfect every day of the off-season,” Napier said. “Ultimately, we’ll come up with the best plan we can to have him ready.”
All signs indicated that Lagway was on track to return in time for the upcoming season, and he even gained more confidence following his press conference at the SEC Media Days on July 16.
When asked if he could still make some of his throws that sparked the Gators’ late-season success, the Florida quarterback said, “Oh yes, and imma make more of them for sure.”
Lagway was a crucial piece to Florida’s late-season success in 2024, leading him to ESPN Freshmen All-American Honors.
The sophomore’s first start was against Samford after former senior quarterback Graham Mertz suffered a concussion in the game prior against No. 19 Miami. In the week two matchup, Lagway threw for 456 yards, the most for a true freshman in program history, and three touchdowns.
After Mertz suffered an ACL injury against No. 8 Tennessee. Lagway was given the keys to a Florida offense that cruised through many of its remaining opponents.
Following the contest in Knoxville, Tennessee, Lagway won each of the games he started and finished in for Florida, including ranked wins over No. 21 LSU and No. 9 Ole Miss at home.
To finish the season, Lagway led Florida to a 33-8 victory over Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl: the first bowl game victory for Florida since the 2019 Orange Bowl in Miami against Virginia.
Overall, Lagway finished his first year at Florida with 12 passing touchdowns, 2,016 scrimmage yards and a 60 percent completion percentage.
Heading into his sophomore campaign, Lagway was named to the Maxwell Award watch list, which recognizes the most outstanding player in college football.
If Lagway is unable to make it back in time for the beginning of the season, one backup option under center would be redshirt sophomore Aidan Warner, who appeared in six games last season for the Gators.
The former Yale transfer finished his first season in Gainesville with 228 passing yards, one rushing touchdown and three interceptions. Warner’s lone start last season was against No. 5 Texas in Austin on Nov. 9, where the Longhorns dominated the Gators en route to a 49-17 victory.
Florida’s offensive coordinators, Russ Callaway, praised Lagway and Warner for their growth during the offseason.
“Both those guys have really taken the next big step in their development, Callaway said.
Florida opens its 2025 season against the LIU Sharks at 1 p.m. Aug. 30 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Contact Jeffrey Serber at Jserber@alligator.org. Follow him on X @JeffreySerber.
Jeffrey is the Summer 2025 women's tennis beat reporter and a second-year journalism sports & media major. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends and family, and rooting for the Miami sports teams.
