Billy Napier provides full injury report ahead of Florida spring camp

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators will have several players limited or sidelined when they open spring on Thursday. UF coach Billy Napier provided a full injury report ahead of the first practice.

The Gators have a total of 16 players that are modified or out this spring. Here’s the entire list:

Florida Gators injury report

QB DJ Lagway (shoulder/lower body)
QB Paul Kessler (lower body)
RB Treyaun Webb (fractured tibia)
RB Chad Gasper Jr. (knee)
WR Eugene Wilson III (hip)
WR Kahleil Jackson (knee)
DL Caleb Banks (foot)
DL Jamari Lyons (ankle)
DL Stephon Shivers (lower back)
LB Grayson Howard (ankle)
DB Sharif Denson (foot)
DB Aaron Gates (knee)
DB Jameer Grimsley (knee)
DB Dijon Johnson (shoulder)
DB Bryce Thornton (ankle)
DB Cahron Rackley (hip)

Here were Napier’s full comments on the injured players.

“You’re gonna see a number of players that will be modified in terms of their participation in spring practice. … The following players will be limited: Caleb Banks has a foot injury. Sharif Denson is still on his way back in return to play mode with a foot from the postseason. Chad Gasper arrived with an ACL reconstruction. Aaron Gates and Jameer Grimsley obviously had the knee injuries. Pup Howard has a soft tissue injury. 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. Dijon Johnson had the shoulder surgery there, so the back half of spring, we’ll get him back. Paul Kessler has a lower back injury.

“Jamari Lyons is still … he’s made a lot of progress, but still lower leg. Cahron Rackley has a hip. Stephon Shivers has a low back. Bryce Thornton has an ankle. Treyaun Webb is still on his way back from a lower leg injury and then Eugene Wilson III is still return to play with the hip. 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 the surgery and return to play. So, and I can address specifics when I’m in front of you, but as far as our players, our assistant coaches, injuries are gonna be off limits this spring.”

Lagway dealt with a shoulder issue early last season and then suffered a hamstring injury against Georgia. He missed the Texas game and played below 100 percent the final four games.

“Some lower body, some shoulder,” Napier said of Lagway’s ailments. “I think our intentions here are to be very smart. I do think he’ll be limited to throwing activities, but he’ll participate in all practices otherwise. And we’ve done a lot of homework here relative to the things that he went through as a player.

“He was an absolute warrior and a great competitor that showed toughness. And we’ve consulted with quite a few experts here from a UF Health and from a national perspective, as we do with a lot of our players in terms of second opinions. In general, he’ll be able to do quite a bit, but there will be some limitations.”

Of the 16 Florida Gators included on the injury report, Wilson is the healthiest and will be able to do the most in practice. He’s working his way back from a season-ending injury for a congenital hip issue.

“He’ll be able to do almost everything,” Napier said of Wilson. “I think we’re managing volume right now and return the play more than anything. So he’s full speed, routes on air, 7on7. And then we’re just basically compartmentalizing the playbook and trying to manage a guy who was put on the shelf for a while, so we gotta ramp up his activity and be smart there.”