Billy Napier recalls DJ Lagway recruitment, fending off late charge from other teams

Florida head coach Billy Napier recalled recruiting DJ Lagway prior to him suiting up at QB for the Gators. He had to fend off schools like Texas A&M late in order to land what NFL teams would call a “franchise quarterback.”

A former five-star recruit, Lagway goes into his second year as the starting quarterback at Florida, following a promising freshman season that was cut short due to injuries. He’s on track to start the 2025 season and, if all goes well, Florida might be soaring high in the SEC due to Lagway.

Things could’ve turned out differently if Lagway went to Texas A&M or another school. That being the case, Napier is sure glad to have him in blue and orange.

“We were fortunate that we found DJ early in his high school career,” Napier said at SEC Media Days. “You know, we built great rapport, DJ stayed the course, you know? And I think one of the things that’s unique about our team is that we recruited each one of these groups with a mantra of, kind of like, you have to be up for the challenge, right? In terms of what we’re trying to take on here. So DJ was no different in that regard. And I think his mentality towards recruitment, the consistency in his attitude and approach, he never wavered, obviously, in a little bit of a difficult time as well.” 

Lagway has the enticing talent and a jump from Year 1 to 2 is expected at this point. It seems like Lagway and his family trusted Napier and the Florida program to get that done.

“So DJ has got great parents, I think he’s got a great foundation in terms of the values, you know, I think he’s a great teammate,” Napier said. “So he was phenomenal throughout that entire process. And he certainly made a difference in our team.”

DJ Lagway can become the face of Florida football

Although Florida hasn’t reached the College Football Playoff under Napier, that’s a large goal this season. Lagway has the ability to get them there, despite a rough schedule again in 2025. The quarterback’s recruiting class in 2024, as well as the ‘25 class, were built with him at the forefront.

“I think that what’s impressed me with DJ is how he has handled success,” Napier said. “You know, we knew DJ before he dominated Texas high school football his senior year, he became the Gatorade National Player of the Year, right? So, seeing the humility, seeing how he treated people, how he embraced his role in that community, on that team, the steadiness, I think his parents obviously provided a great example there. 

“But he did the same things last year as he started to kind of have a bigger role on the team, right? So the other thing I would say is just the competitor on game day is really unique. I think his ability to block out all the external factors and really get consumed with leading the team, playing, winning football, executing, and we built around the guy. There’s no question players want to play with DJ. We built his class around that and certainly some of these guys that are in the rookie group were part of that as well.”