Billy Napier and Florida football have been trying to get the best of both worlds from their quarterback situation over the first four games of the season. Graham Mertz gives the Gators experience as a pocket passer, while freshman DJ Lagway offers some of the explosiveness and playmaking that Mertz lacks.

Since Mertz returned from a concussion that he suffered in the season opener against Miami, Napier has been going with a two-quarterback system. Coming out of a bye week, that approach is going to continue, according to Nick de la Torre of Gators Online.

“Gators will continue with a two-quarterback system against UCF and the rest of the season,” de la Torre reported on X, formerly Twitter.

Lagway has shown flashes of someone who can be the quarterback of the future in Gainesville. The former five-star recruit has racked up 617 yards passing on just 51 attempts with four touchdowns and three interceptions. Mertz doesn't have the same explosive play output, but has been reliable and didn't get the benefit of playing against Samford in Week 2.

Can Florida's two-quarterback system work?

Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier stands on the sidelines during the first quarter of a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.
Matt Bush-Imagn Images

Many college football teams have tried to go the route of the two-quarterback system, and a majority of the time it doesn't generate great results.

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Florida's results using the unconventional approach have been mixed. They struggled a lot against Texas A&M in Week 3, as Lagway and Mertz struggled to find a rhythm and combined to throw three interceptions.

In a win over Mississippi State in Week 4, the Florida offense had arguably their best performance of the season. Lagway played a good game in limited time, completing all seven of his passes for 76 yards, but Mertz was the story.

The Wisconsin transfer had easily his best game of the season, completing 19 of his 21 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for another. His QBR for the day was 95.1, which is just about as good as you can get. Due to the performance of their quarterbacks, especially Mertz, the Gators got their first SEC win of the season on the road in Starkville.

It will be interesting to see what the official setup for the Florida quarterbacks will be. Against Mississippi State, Lagway played every third drive, so Mertz was in the game twice as often as the young freshman. Where they have a structured approach like that or if they just rotate them in and out before going with the hot hand remains to be seen.

While the two-QB approach worked against Mississippi State, Florida will have to prove that it can work against some better competition. They play an exploitable UCF defense at home on Saturday before heading to Knoxville for a huge test against No. 4 Tennessee.