Florida football injury report: Billy Napier identifies multiple Gators sidelined in Spring

Florida returned to the practice field Friday for the first time since last Fall for the start of Spring practices, albeit with some noticable exceptions. Entering his fourth season in Gainesville, Gators head coach Billy Napier began Thursday’s pre-Spring press conference by rolling through Florida’s injury list this Spring.

Buried on that list was sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway, who will be limited during Spring practices while the team chooses to be “very smart” with the former Five-Star Plus+ 2024 signee. Napier said Lagway is dealing with shoulder and lower body injuries.

“DJ Lagway will be limited in terms of his participation in spring from a throwing component with the shoulder and then also the lower body,” Napier said Thursday.

“I think our intentions here are to be very smart. I do think he’ll be limited in throwing activities, but he’ll participate in all practices otherwise,” Napier clarified later. “We’ve done a lot of homework here relative to the things he went through as a player. He was an absolute warrior, and a great competitor that showed toughness. We’ve consulted with quite a few experts here from UF Health, from a national perspective. … I think in general, he’ll be able to do quite a bit, but there will be some limitations.”

Lagway did deal with an injury that limited him at times last season, but that was primarily as a runner. He had a hamstring injury that forced him out of one game and to miss another.

Florida clearly wasn’t the same team without Lagway, so making sure that he stays healthy has to be priority No. 1 this spring. Still, for a player so early in his development, it’s an interesting decision.

Among the other “limited” Gators this Spring, Napier listed: senior defensive lineman Caleb Banks (foot); senior defensive back Cahron Rackley (hip); junior defensive backs Sharif Denson (foot), Dijon Johnson (shoulder), and Bryce Thornton (ankle); junior linebacker Grayson Howard (soft tissue); junior defensive lineman Jamari Lyons (leg); sophomore defensive back Aaron Gates (knee); sophomore running back Treyaun Webb (leg); sophomore receiver Eugene Wilson III (hip); freshman running back Chad Gasper Jr. (knee), freshman defensive back Jamroc Grimsley (knee); freshman quarterback Paul Kessler (back); and freshman defensive lineman Stephon Shivers (back).

“A lot of these guys may participate in some form, and then we’ll have some that won’t be able to participate because of where they’re at relative to their surgery, return-to-play,” Napier added.

On3’s Thomas Goldkamp contributed to this report.