While many remain skeptical about the future of the Florida Gators under head coach Billy Napier — even coming off the program’s emotional 27-16 upset victory over the No. 22 LSU Tigers on Saturday — the players are operating under a different mentality entirely. At least according to freshman quarterback DJ Lagway, Napier’s prized prospect, who has emerged as the greatest hope for Florida football since a two-time national champion and Hesiman Trophy winner suited up in The Swamp.
Whether Lagway is the second coming of Tim Tebow for the Gators remains to be seen, but his relationship with and support of Napier is immensely similar to the way Tebow talked about Urban Meyer back in the day.
Lagway on Saturday improved to 3-0 as a starter — when playing all four quarters of a game — having led Florida to the precipice of bowl eligibility after beating LSU. That victory came less than two weeks after athletic director Scott Stricklin randomly gave Napier a dreaded “vote of confidence.” While many rolled their eyes at the idea of Napier returning as coach in 2025, Lagway believes the decisions galvanized the team.
“That was the whole vibe in the locker room: ‘We’re going to change this place, and we’re going to make it what it used to be,’” he explained.
Lagway has undoubtedly been a pied piper for Florida on and off the field. He committed to the Gators early in the process and served as Napier’s top player representative on the recruiting trail as the program compiled what wound up being the nation’s seventh-ranked class in 2024.
Florida’s recruiting has tanked this year under Napier, though much of the reasoning has been situational. While the staff and coaches have continued to work hard in acquiring players on what is presently the No. 45 class in the nation, the Gators’ struggles on the field and uncertainty about Napier’s future off it kept many top prospects from pulling the trigger for UF (and led others to leave the class entirely).
Lagway believes the tide has turned in that regard as well.
“On a recruiting standpoint, that was huge,” he said of Napier’s vote of confidence. “I had a lot of guys hit me up when they saw that.”
Florida doubled down on that surge in interest with a substantial victory against LSU on what was its most star-studded recruiting night of the year in Gainesville, Florida. The Gators had numerous top prospects in attendance, including five-star recruits, uncommitted players and flip candidates.
Lagway did not hesitate to share his pitch for anyone who might be sitting on the fence.
“We’ve got the best fan base in the country,” he said. “We’ve got coaches that care and are going to develop you — will make sure you’re a better player and person on and off the field.”
As far as Lagway goes, moments after becoming the first true freshman in program history to beat a top 25 opponent on Florida Field, he admitted that he was not 100% healthy in the contest.
While Lagway refused to provide an actual percentage, he did stress that his “confidence level in this offense has jumped up tremendously” and stressed that preparations over the last week helped him improve as a player despite his limited athleticism.
“I took it as a challenge to prove to myself that I can play in the pocket,” he said. “… I feel like that was a huge confidence booster for me.”
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