Ad Disclosure
DJ Lagway excites Florida fans with 77-yard completion in first Gators start
By Sean Labar
Published:
DJ Lagway has been waiting for his chance to showcase his talents as the future starting QB of the Florida Gators.
With just over 4 minutes remaining in the first quarter in Saturday night’s home game against Samford, Lagway showed off his cannon, connecting with senior wide receiver Elijhah Badger on a 77-yard pass that almost resulted in a touchdown.
https://twitter.com/onlygators/status/1832562917826244773
Lagway’s bomb set Florida up for its first touchdown of the night, with Montrell Johnson Jr. finding the end zone to cap off an impressive drive that gave the Gators a 7-0 edge.
While Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz entered the season as the Gators’ starting signal caller for a second-straight season, he suffered a concussion against the Hurricanes which led to Lagway taking over at QB for Florida. The dual-threat QB closed out the Miami game with just 31 passing yards and 21 rushing yards in his first collegiate action.
The 6-3, 241-pound QB was a massive addition to Billy Napier’s roster as he was ranked as the No. 1 QB and No. 3 overall player of the 2024 class, according to 247Sports.
Last year, he rushed for 957 yards and 16 TDs last season at Willis High in Texas.
With 7 minutes remaining in the second quarter, Lagway was a perfect 6-of-6 passing for 196 yards. He also had 1 rushing attempt that only resulted in a 1-yard pickup, but the Gators’ true freshman has looked poised and in control of the offense in his first collegiate start.
Florida has a 14-0 edge over Samford at the midway point of the second quarter.
Sean Labar is an SEC football contributor for Saturday Down South.
