Despite a commanding 55-0 victory over Long Island University, Florida sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway is focused on personal growth and team development as the Gators prepare for tougher challenges ahead.
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Lagway, the Freshman All-American who missed significant time in the off-season and didn’t throw in the spring due to injuries, completed an impressive 83 percent of his passes and threw three touchdowns against LIU in what marked his first public display in 2025 following eight months of health uncertainty. However, the quarterback’s performance didn’t meet his own high standards.
“No, I didn’t, man. I didn’t. Hopefully next week I can do that and play better brand of football,” Lagway said when asked if he reached his “flow state” during the game. “I definitely think it got more comfortable for me as the game went on. I know I need to play better than that and I’m going to play better than that and I’m just thankful you always get another week. You get to start over and you get to prepare and that’s what I’m excited for.”
The 6-foot-3 signal-caller completed 15-of-18 passing attempts for 120 yards in a turnover-free performance, but made several mistakes including taking a sack on Florida’s first offensive play and missing open receivers downfield on multiple occasions.
Head coach Billy Napier has noticed Lagway’s determination to improve as the team prepares for their next challenge against USF, a team coming off a 34-7 victory over ranked Boise State.
“There’s no replacement for actually playing in the game and practicing in the game,” Napier said. “I think he would tell you the same thing. You gotta rip the band aid off and get back in the mix. You’re playing tackle football, the pocket’s live, and regardless of the opponent, there’s just something about getting back into that feel for the game, right? So, he’s on a mission this week. He’s showed up with an edge every day, and I think he’s excited about getting back out there and proving he can play better.”
The quarterback’s self-critical attitude has positively influenced his teammates. UCLA transfer receiver J.Michael Sturdivant, who caught his first touchdown pass as a Gator against LIU, has been impressed by Lagway’s leadership.
“We are all looking forward to getting better each and every week. DJ is going to be the hardest on himself out of anybody,” Sturdivant said. “Being able to see him be very detailed this week in practice has been great. It’s made everybody else want to be even more detailed and go even harder. Being able to have a leader like that in DJ is amazing. It just makes the rest of the team better.”
Following the season opener, Lagway acknowledged both the team’s defensive success and offensive struggles.
“It felt great to be back out there. I feel like definitely wasn’t what I expected to go out there, feel like I definitely could play better. Just as a group I feel like it was very sloppy. I feel like we weren’t playing our brand of football. Defensively, they played their butts off, shutout, that’s always great when you get a shutout from the defense, you know,” Lagway said, “but I feel like offensively, definitely in the first half, feel like we started off a little slow. But that’s part of it, week one, stuff to build on.”
As Florida faces a grueling schedule ahead, Lagway’s commitment to improvement and leadership will be crucial for the Gators’ success this season.
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