DJ Lagway connects with Tank Hawkins for 1st touchdown as Gators

It took a little bit of time, but true freshman Florida quarterback DJ Lagway still got his first touchdown as a Gator pretty quickly, all things considered. In just his second game and first start, Lagway finally found the endzone in the second half.

And he made a memorable rookie-to-rookie connection, hitting Tank Hawkins on a 36-yard over to put the Gators up 21-0 early in the third quarter. And for Gators faithful, this will hopefully be the first of many.

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From the play fake to the dropped-in-the-bucket throw, Lagway made the whole thing look rather ho-hum.

First career touchdown for @DerekLagway and @Tankk_1k ‼️ pic.twitter.com/iWKlsjA2Bb

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) September 8, 2024

Lagway is starting in the place of injured starter Graham Mertz. While Mertz will presumably retake the starting role if and when healthy, Lagway seems set to have some role in the offense going forward given his play and the possibility of it going into the season.

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Billy Napier was pleased with Lagway’s first half of action

Florida took a 14-0 lead into the half over visiting Samford on Saturday night, led by Lagway making his first start. And the heralded freshman did a pretty good job, as far as head coach Billy Napier is concerned.

Napier, who started Lagway after Mertz was ruled out with a concussion, felt the first half of starting work was crisp. There were a few inevitable blemishes, but it was a successful first few quarters for Lagway.

“I think he was really clean. For the most part he took what the defense gave him, he pushed it down the field a couple times. Only a handful of mistakes on his part,” Napier said. “You know, we had the turnover down in the gold zone, goal line area there, it’d be 21-0. They’re moving it a little bit, but I think our defense has settled in.”

In the first half, Lagway went 8-of-11 for 209 yards. The Gators scored both touchdowns on the ground and had there not been a fumble in the red zone, Lagway could’ve perhaps helped engineer another score.