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Florida football head coach Billy Napier probably needed a big season opening win over their in-state rival Miami Hurricanes to quiet the hot seat rumors that have emerged. Unfortunately, the results did not favor the Gators on Saturday. They lost to the visiting Hurricanes 41-17 in a game where the visitors dominated in all three phases of the matchup. Napier spoke to reporters after the tilt, including ESPN.
“It's embarrassing, to be quite honest with you,” Napier stated to the press. “That's how I feel. That's how our kids feel. There's no excuses. Keep our mouths shut, show up and work. We have to do better. I do think that our players will show up and they will respond.”
The frustration from the third-year head coach is understandable, especially since Napier and his staff know that their program has to show signs of improvement as soon as possible. They lost starting quarterback Graham Mertz to a concussion in the loss, so five-star freshman DJ Lagway was able to get some playing time. As the Gators look forward to next week's matchup against Samford, it might be time to see what they have in the Texas native. The future of the program could depend on just how well he does moving forward.
DJ Lagway could provide hope for Billy Napier, Florida football
Although Napier's third recruiting class fell apart as his program struggled throughout the 2023 season, Lagway and fellow five-star LJ McCray hung with the Gators. The two top recruits hope to lead their respective sides of the ball (Lagway at quarterback and McCray along the defensive line) back to respectability, sooner rather than later. Hopefully, those efforts are rewarded starting in the upcoming matchup versus Samford on September 7th.
Lagway only played a couple of series towards the end of the matchup against Miami, but still impressed in that limited time. He led a touchdown drive that was capped off by a one-yard touchdown run from running back Treyuan Webb. The freshman signal caller was intercepted on the next drive with the Gators near midfield.
That pass was the final offensive play of the game for Florida, and Lagway finished the contest 3 of 6 passing for 31 yards and an interception. His QBR of 57.4 wasn't too bad considering the circumstances in which he was introduced to the matchup. Despite the rough final score on the day, Napier still showed he believes in his program.
“I still have confidence in our team,” the third-year head coach said postgame. “I think we've made progress. Today is disappointing, not only for myself but for the entire team and organization and for our fans and for all the people that care about this place. Like I said before, I've got conviction about the young men that we have on our team. I think we have better football in us. But we have to go prove that.”
Seeing what Lagway can do with a full week of game prep before likely starting against Samford might just provide a sneak preview to a potential promising future for the Florida football program.
