Florida Gators sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway continues to get praise across the board. Whether it’s his potential to play in the National Football League or the best quarterback in college football, we’ve seen it all.
The Gators star quarterback is set to emerge next season on a level to match the consensus five-star status he had coming out of high school in Willis, Texas.
DJ Lagway named best returning college quarterback again
On3 Sports’ Andy Staples is the latest to name Lagway the best returning college quarterback and he has quite a breakdown as to why.
The Gators were 6-1 in games Lagway started last year and 2-4 in games he didn’t. He finished second in the nation behind Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart in yards per attempt, and yet it didn’t feel like Lagway was even close to his ceiling. The discourse around Lagway seems divided into two camps: The people who watched his games and the people who read the boxscores of those games. Because those who watched saw that he can make throws few other college QBs can make. Even as a true freshman, he could adjust the touch on his throws in ways we usually only see on Sundays.
The boxscore readers all point to the fact that nine interceptions — especially considering he wasn’t the starter the first half of the season — were way too many. And they’re correct. If Lagway has a 32-touchdown, 20-interception season as a full-time starter, then Florida won’t improve and probably changes coaches. But if Lagway plays the way he did in a critical stretch against LSU and Ole Miss for an entire season, everything is on the table for Florida.
The bigger question mark is his health. Lagway isn’t throwing this spring because of a nagging shoulder injury. He isn’t expected to throw again until the early summer. As long as he’s back throwing by then, it shouldn’t affect his season. If it goes any later, we may have to reorder this list.
Staples pointing out that Lagway was 6-1 in his starts is the most important factor here. In fact, his only loss was against Georgia, a game he severely injured his hamstring. That ended up being a huge blessing in disguise for the Gators, as his pocket presence improved tenfold.
The other main point Staples made was how different the box score was from the film. His ability to layer the ball over defenders and into tight windows will immediately translate in the NFL and is what makes him special.
