Florida Hopes to Build on Late-Season Surge with QB DJ Lagway Healthy

Florida Hopes to Build on Late-Season Surge with QB DJ Lagway Healthy originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

ATLANTA — The message out of the Florida contingent at SEC media days is clear and concise: Spot the ball.

Few teams played better football down the stretch a season ago than the Gators, who are eager to carry that level of play into the fall. Coach Billy Napier said as much on Wednesday, and his players echoed that willingness to face whomever, wherever after ending 2024 on a four-game winning streak.

“There's a little something different in the air right now in Gainesville,” Napier said. “Everywhere I go, I hear ‘The Gator boys stay hot.’ And to me, how do we keep that momentum? And I think we do that by keeping the main thing the main thing. This is a challenge that's worth pursuing, and there's no other group that I would want to do it with.”

Last year is last year, but there’s still an air of cautious optimism about the program. The wariness can be attributed to the schedule, which once again projects as the most difficult in the country. Florida is set to play seven teams ranked in Athlon Sports’ preseason top 25 with five of those games away from Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. On the other hand, the hope stems — in part — from the players that Napier brought with him to represent the team.

All-American center Jake Slaughter returns to anchor an experienced offensive line. Defensive tackle Caleb Banks is also back after spearheading a dominant unit during that late-season turnaround. And then there’s quarterback DJ Lagway, who wowed as a true freshman after being thrust into the starting job earlier than expected.

Lagway brushed aside concerns about a shoulder injury that limited him in the spring, joking with reporters that he doesn’t have a prosthetic arm. Napier said he's confident Lagway is ready to go.

Florida’s success — and by virtue Napier’s job security — hinges largely on Lagway’s health. His only loss as a starter came against Georgia, a game he exited early with a hamstring injury. The Gators were soundly thumped at Texas the following week with Lagway sidelined. He returned to lead that late surge, playing through injury in upsets of LSU and Ole Miss.

“That’s been a big message this offseason is continue that momentum through our hard work,” Slaughter said. “And the truth is it’s a lot of investment from a lot of guys to build that momentum, and we need to continue to grow it.”

Napier said there was a point Florida hit halfway through the season around the Kentucky game where his team realized they could play with anyone.

“From that point forward, I think they felt like they were good enough, and it was about just going and executing and playing on game day,” Napier said. “So the good thing for us is a huge majority of that group is back. And we've added some more really good young players to the mix.”

There was also an acknowledgement that Napier was coaching for his job, especially after a slow start that included blowout losses to Miami and Texas A&M at home.

“I think everybody was aware there was a lot of noise about it,” Slaughter said. “I think everybody felt a sense of urgency, like, ‘Man, we've got to go out there and perform.’”

The Gators will have more of a ramp-up period this year than at any other point in Napier’s tenure. Florida will not open its season against a Power 4 opponent for the first time since 2021. Still, there is an early four-game stretch at LSU, at Miami, home against Texas and on the road at Texas A&M that could define the season.

“Spot The Ball.” https://t.co/wEGg598VCV

— COACH BILLY NAPIER (@coach_bnapier) July 16, 2025

Preseason prognostications vary for the Gators, who some have pegged as a potential College Football Playoff contender while others think they could stumble against that daunting schedule. Slaughter disregarded outside expectations, but he acknowledged the potential of the 2025 team factored into his decision to return. He said he and Banks looked at each other before Florida’s bowl game last December wondering what they were going to do.

“There was a bunch of other guys in the same spot, and we didn’t have a big sit-down meeting,” Slaughter said. “But it was understood, ‘Hey man, we can take this thing pretty far.’”

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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.