The lead-up to the 2025-26 season was less about the sport and more about the story for Florida’s DJ Lagway and Texas’ Arch Manning. The two dominated the conversation about who was the best quarterback in the SEC.
Lagway’s true freshman season in 2024 quickly thrust him into the spotlight, and many Florida fans viewed him as the program’s next chance at a title run. Meanwhile, for No. 9 Texas, all eyes were on the redshirt sophomore Manning going into this year — in no small part because of his last name.
Now, the most anticipated quarterbacks in the SEC are set to face off on Oct. 4 in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The season has not been without trials for the pair, and after an offseason spent in distant comparison, they will finally take the same field as Texas (3-1) faces its first SEC opponent.
Besides Florida’s head coach, Billy Napier, Lagway has been the face of the Gators (1-3) struggling offense. In Florida’s last game at Miami, the Gators offense went 0-for-13 on third down, and Lagway was held to a jarring 61 passing yards.
The sophomore fared worse against LSU, throwing five interceptions.
“I played horrible football today,” Lagway said after the loss. “I’ve never had a performance like that in my life, so it’s kind of hard to process it, but at the end of the day, it’s all about how you bounce back.”
Lagway’s recent performance could be attributed to offseason injuries, with a shoulder injury keeping him out for most of the spring and a calf injury shortly before the start of the season leaving him sidelined for practices.
The severity and impact of Lagway’s injuries are unknown. But Ralph Russo, senior college football writer at the Athletic, said in an interview with The Alligator the quarterback “definitely looks like a guy who did not have a normal offseason.”
“You're preparing to play, as opposed to preparing your body to be ready to play,” he said of Lagway’s unconventional spring and summer.
While Lagway and the Gators have trended downwards since their 55-0 season-opening victory over LIU, Texas and its quarterback seem to have recovered from their debut 14-7 loss against then-No. 3 Ohio State, where Manning was held to 17 completions on 30 passing attempts.
Manning continued to experience some ups and downs in the next two games, performing better against San Jose but throwing an interception in each and only completing 44% of his passes against UTEP.
“He looks like he's very much out-of-sorts mechanically, in ways that seem more obvious than Lagway,” Russo said.
However, Manning left some of his struggles in the past in the Longhorns’ 55-0 victory over Sam Houston. He went 18-of-21 passing for 309 yards and three touchdowns. The contest at Florida will be an opportunity to show his performance against Sam Houston was not due to the caliber of his opponent.
The two have maintained a similar forward-looking mindset and have taken ownership of their performances so far. Though Texas is faring better as a unit, both quarterbacks have expressed their teams’ performances rely on them.
“We've got to play better football, and it starts with me,” Lagway said following Florida’s loss to Miami.
Manning said the same following their season opener.
“I thought we beat ourselves a lot, and that starts with me,” he said. “I’ve got to play better for us to win.”
The mentality and rocky starts seem to be the end of the similarities between the pair’s situation.
While Florida’s season has been riddled with struggles and faces major scrutiny, Texas successfully disposed of some easier opponents to open their season and sit at a comfortable 3-1 while remaining in the AP Top 10.
“There’s just a stark difference,” Russo said. “They [Texas] are winning games. They got these three warm-up opponents from Ohio State to their first SEC game, so the conditions are just so much better for Arch to kind of work through his struggles, as opposed to Lagway … ‘Go play LSU and Miami. We don't have time for you to figure it out.’”
Texas’ relentless defense will be another major test for the Gators’ struggling offense. Florida’s defense has impressed itself and kept the Gators alive in the past few games, so neither quarterback will have it easy Oct. 4.
With six ranked opponents left on its schedule, including the Longhorns, Florida will aim to start its comeback with both teams coming off bye weeks. The game could either show Florida fans that they counted out their team too early, or confirm Gainesville needs an offensive change.
Contact Ava DiCecca at adicecca@alligator.org. Follow her on X @avadicecca24.
Ava is a sophomore sports journalism student and the volleyball beat reporter for fall 2025. She enjoys playing basketball and volleyball in her free time and going on beach trips with friends. She has been a Boston sports fan all her life (Brad Marchand we miss you).
