Following its 29-21 victory over then-No. 9 Texas on Oct. 4, the Gators offense didn’t skip a beat in the first quarter on Oct. 11.
On its opening drive against then-No. 5 Texas A&M, Florida marched 75 yards down the field in under four minutes, with sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway going 6-for-6 while completing passes to five different receivers, eventually finding freshman tight end Amir Jackson for a touchdown. Later in the quarter, the Gators once again pieced together another 75-yard scoring drive, this time on just six plays.
With the score even at 14 apiece after the opening quarter, it was clear the Gators’ offense would need to continue firing on all cylinders if it were to capture Billy Napier’s first ranked road victory at UF.
But that would not be the case.
After starting 10-for-12, Lagway completed only 11 of his 25 passing attempts over the next three quarters. Of UF’s 319 total yards, about half yards came in the first quarter of its 34-17 loss to the Aggies.
“My biggest thing is [to] start fast, stay consistent and finish strong,” Lagway said. “[We] started fast, we weren’t consistent and we didn’t finish strong, so we got a lot of things that we can clean up as an offensive group.”
Lagway was under duress all evening. The Texas A&M defensive front consistently pushed past Florida’s veteran offensive line, especially on the left side against senior offensive tackle Austin Barber. The preseason All-SEC left tackle recorded a 30.0 Pro Football Focus grade in the matchup, including a 0.0 pass blocking grade.
Barber was matched up against redshirt senior Cashius Howell, one of the nation’s premier pass-rush specialists and the Southeastern Conference sack leader thus far in 2025. The leader of the Texas A&M defense recorded a sack, two quarterback hurries and a pass deflection.
Overall, Lagway was sacked three times. He also fumbled twice, losing the ball to Texas A&M’s senior defensive end Dayon Hayes on a game-sealing strip sack late in the fourth quarter. The Aggies recorded 12 pressures in the contest, per PFF.
“Defense steps up and starts making a bunch of plays,” Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko said. “I challenged the guys at halftime on defense to go out and get us two turnovers. … And we were able to go out there and cause two fumbles and recover them both.”
The Gators’ third-down struggles were apparent all evening. UF converted once on 11 third down tries, its second-worst conversion rate of the season. The Gators failed to convert a single third-down conversion on 13 attempts in their loss to Miami Sept. 20.
"We were inefficient on first and second down,” Napier said. “Then you are playing third and long, and Mike [Elko] does a great job with his third down package. … In general, it's all about first and second down efficiency and we got to stay out of the third and longs."
Consistently playing behind the sticks and on the scoreboard, Lagway was forced to look downfield to keep UF within striking distance. That, however, would have major consequences for the sophomore quarterback.
On multiple occasions, Lagway held onto the ball for an extended period of time, allowing the Aggies’ defense to make plays. Texas A&M deflected five of Lagway’s passes.
Texas A&M also blanketed Florida’s premier target, freshman wide receiver Dallas Wilson. While the dynamic freshman wide receiver scored his third touchdown in two games in the first quarter, he was held without a catch after the 10-minute mark of the second quarter. Overall, he finished with three grabs for 20 yards on eight total targets.
Lagway’s favored target on the night was wide receiver Vernell Brown III, who recorded six receptions for a team-high 77 yards. The freshman’s 31-yard catch in the late first quarter was UF’s longest play of the game and set the Gators up on their second and ultimate touchdown drive. Brown, however, fumbled and lost possession for UF in the third quarter, which allowed the Aggies to extend their lead to two possessions.
With Lagway and the passing game out of sync, the Gators looked to establish their run game — but to no avail. On 24 rushing attempts, UF only gained 74 yards, barely scratching three yards per carry.
UF’s ineffectiveness on the ground, paired with consistent pressure against the pass, kept the Gators’ offense in check and allowed the Aggies to assert their dominance.
“We weren’t able to run it effectively,” Napier said. “And then obviously at times when we did throw it, they were able to get pressure.”
UF’s offensive struggles have persisted halfway through the 2025 season. In six games, the Gators have averaged 22.3 points per game, which is tied for the lowest mark in the SEC and the worst of the Napier era by nearly a touchdown.
“I'm frustrated,” Lagway said. “This ain't acceptable, I'm tired of it. This ain't our brand of football. It's not what we're coached to do.”
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X @maxbernstein23.
Max is in his sixth semester at The Alligator and now serves as The Alligator's Football Reporter and is a junior sports journalism student. He previously served as The Alligator's Sports Editor, and served as reporter for women's tennis, volleyball and lacrosse. He also has made multiple appearances on the Paul Finebaum Show. He wants to shoutout his cats, Scooter and Zoe, and also loves niche professional athletes (shoutout Tomas Fleischmann).
