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topicnews · September 3, 2024

Florida football coach Billy Napier on the quarterback situation before the game against Samford

Florida football coach Billy Napier on the quarterback situation before the game against Samford

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Florida State football coach Billy Napier said freshman quarterback DJ Lagway will be in practice for the first team on Monday ahead of Saturday’s game against Samford.

Napier did not provide a specific update on the injury to Florida Gators starting quarterback Graham Mertz, who suffered a concussion late in the third quarter of Saturday’s 41-17 loss to Miami, but confirmed that Lagway will work with the first team this week.

Lagway, a five-star recruit and 2023 Gatorade High School Player of the Year from Willis, Texas, completed 3 of 6 passes for 31 yards and an interception and ran for 20 yards in his college debut against the Hurricanes. He appeared on three series in the fourth quarter and led UF to a touchdown drive on his second series of the game.

The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Lagway was named the 2023 Gatorade High School Player of the Year after throwing for 4,604 yards and 58 TDs his senior year. A dual-threat quarterback, Lagway threw for 8,392 yards and 100 TDs and ran for 2,196 yards and 29 TDs during his high school career at Willis.

When asked about the possibility of Lagway playing against Samford, Napier expressed his confidence in the UF freshman quarterback, who enrolled in January.

“We would play a brand of football that reflects his experience and his strengths, right? No different than we play every week,” Napier said. “But I have a lot of confidence in DJ. We’ve had him since January. He’s a totally different person and a different player than he was when he got here. He knows our system really well. I think it helps a young quarterback to have coaches and players face each other, right? That’s an advantage you might not have had a year ago.”

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