DJ Lagway Breaks Silence on Billy Napier Being on Hot Seat
DJ Lagway and the Florida Gators did not have the easiest of seasons in Billy Napier’s third year at the helm.
The Gators had one of the most demanding schedules in college football and managed to go 8-5, reaching Napier’s second bowl game and achieving his first postseason win.
However, Napier was on the hot seat heading into last season after six wins in 2022 and five in 2023.
Lagway revealed on a recent edition of “Outta Pocket with RGIII” that Florida used hot seat discussions as motivation during the 2024 season. The Gators felt that Napier and their team were being disrespected.
“That was definitely motivation because I feel like they were disrespecting our coach and disrespecting us, genuinely,” Lagway said. “So we had to go out there and show them what we had. Obviously, it took some bumps in the roads, a lot of ups and downs this year. But I feel like, at the end, we kind of pulled it all together and figured it out. Hopefully, we can put that momentum into the 2025 season.”
Lagway was a former five-star prospect in the 2024 class. He was the No. 1 quarterback and No. 3 overall recruit, per the On3 Industry Rankings.
Lagway did not start for Florida right away, sitting behind Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz. The former five-star prospect started the second game against Samford, but Mertz took over the lead role up until the Tennessee game.
Mertz’s season was ended after suffering a torn ACL in the 23-17 overtime loss to Tennessee.
Lagway started the following game against Kentucky, leading his team to a 42-20 win. He started the Georgia game before exiting with an injury and missing the matchup with Texas.
Lagway started the remaining games on Florida’s schedule and finished his first season with 1,915 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
He is expected to start full-time under center in 2025 for the Gators. Florida’s season opens with Long Island on Aug. 30.
