Florida sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway has suffered an injury and is wearing a boot on his foot, per Swamp247’s Zach Goodall.
This is the fifth known injury the Gators quarterback has sustained since November 2024. Lagway missed time during the 2024 season with a hamstring injury suffered against Georgia Nov. 2. Then, he failed to throw during spring practices due to a shoulder issue and surgery for a sports hernia injury.
Later in July, Lagway strained his left calf, forcing him into a boot. The Willis, Texas, native did not miss any regular season action, but he wore a sleeve on his left leg for UF’s first two games against Long Island and South Florida.
With Florida on a bye week, Lagway will have an extra week of rehabilitation before the Gators host No. 10 Texas Oct. 4. A source close to the situation showed confidence that Lagway would be ready for the SEC matchup.
If he is not able to start, true freshman Tramell Jones Jr. is next in line to be under center for the Gators. The Jacksonville native completed 12 of 18 attempts for 131 yards and two touchdowns in the win over LIU.
"Tramell has earned the (backup) job,” Napier said post-game against Long Island. “He can really throw it. He's got velocity on the ball. The spin rate is impressive, and he's a very accurate quarterback.”
Lagway has struggled throughout his second season at UF. After throwing for three touchdowns against LIU Aug. 30, he missed multiple throws and threw a third-quarter interception in Florida’s 18-16 loss to South Florida Sept. 6.
“I feel like I still didn't play very well,” Lagway said after the USF loss. “At the end of the day, I know what I'm capable of, my guys know what I'm capable of, and we're just going to continue to work hard. At the end of the day, that's all I can really say about it."
Then, on Sept. 13, Lagway suffered a career-worst performance, throwing five interceptions in UF’s 20-10 loss to then-No. 3 LSU. He had never thrown more than two interceptions in a game during his high school and collegiate career.
“I played horrible football today,” Lagway said post-game. “I've never had a performance like that in my life, so it's kind of hard to process it.”
On Sept. 20 in UF’s 26-7 loss to then-No. 4 Miami, Lagway completed 12 of 23 attempts for 61 passing yards, the lowest total by a UF quarterback since Treon Harris was held to 60 yards in a 23-20 loss to South Carolina Nov. 3, 2014.
Following the loss, Lagway guaranteed that the Gators’ play would improve.
“We’re done with the playing around stuff,” Lagway said. “It’s time to get serious. I know for a fact it’s gonna change.”
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X @maxbernstein23.
Max is the Summer 2025 sports editor. He is a third-year journalism sports & media major and in his fifth semester at The Alligator. He is a big South Florida sports fan and would die for Matthew Tkachuk.
