Revealing the silver linings from Florida’s disappointing Week 1 defeat

It may be hard for Florida fans to find many positives following their Week 1 home loss to Miami. Falling 41-17 to the Hurricanes in a game that starting quarterback Graham Mertz also left in the third quarter with an injury.

But Nick de la Torre from Gators Online found some silver linings for the Gators following their loss, starting with the performance from running back Montrell Johnson.

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“I’d like to start with Montrell Johnson,” de la Torre said Wednesday at the On3 Roundtable. “This is the guy when you hear knee injury, you think the worst, especially then for a running back. He was able to come back after having arthroscopic surgery as probably the one highlight on offense, with that 71-yard touchdown run. But for a senior who has never missed a game in college, when he went down, we’re probably thinking man, that’s gonna be tough for Florida to replace him.

“You’re already replacing Trevor Etienne, so to see him come back and have success was really good. Jadan Baugh behind him I think is going to be a dude for Florida, freshman running back,” he added.

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Johnson was ruled as week to week after undergoing knee surgery during fall camp for the Gators. Earning Preseason All-SEC Second-Team honors heading into the year, Johnson lived up to that hype in Week 1 with 106 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. That helped him eclipse 2,500 career rushing yards.

Florida’s backfield has the chance to pickup where it left off last season despite Etienne transferring to Georgia this offseason. But the injury to their starting quarterback also allowed them to get an early look at their future at that position. Former five-star prospect and true freshman DJ Lagway led the offense in three drives and now gets the nod for his first college start on Saturday after Mertz was ruled out with a concussion.

“And then obviously, DJ Lagway. His mobility, Graham Mertz isn’t mobile, he can move around a little bit extend some plays. But not the runner that DJ Lagway is in any stretch of the imagination,” de la Torre said. “So I think seeing DJ get that 16-yard scramble early on, you start to think okay. Well if Florida’s offensive line isn’t good, can DJ make the offense look better?”

Lagway led the team’s lone touchdown drive of the game, where he showed off his athleticism that could have the potential to elevate Florida’s offense in a similar way to a recent quarterback has for the Gators.

“Maybe the offensive line wasn’t very good in Billy Napier‘s first year, but Anthony Richardson erased that with his mobility,” de la Torre explained. “So I think that’s another thing that Florida fans can and should hang their hat on is that hey, maybe DJ gaining this experience now and playing more can help the offense.”

In his three series on Saturday, Lagway completed three of his six passes for just 31 yards and an interception. But this weekend against Samford he’ll have a great opportunity to show Florida fans what the future of the program could look like in a major way.