Florida Football Friday Final: Graham Mertz to start, DJ Lagaway to play in SEC opener vs. Texas A&M

Football

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Image Credit: Hannah White, UAA

Redshirt senior Graham Mertz entered the 2024 season as QB1 for the Florida Gators, and that is the role he will assume Saturday when the Texas A&M Aggies visit Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida. Cleared from concussion protocol early in the week, Mertz took the vast majority of the first-team snaps in practice and is set to start the Gators’ SEC opener at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Freshman QB DJ Lagway is expected to see the field in spurts behind Mertz, though he was also thought to have a such a role in Week 1 only to not see the field until Mertz suffered his concussion midway through the second half.

Lagway did some work with the first team during practice this week, and head coach Billy Napier is confident that he will be able to contribute as the game plan dictates on Saturday.

“We feel confident he can do anything that we have in our offensive system,” Napier said Wednesday, referring to not only using Lagway as a dual-threat option. “I don’t necessarily see it as a menu, compartmentalizing what he does.”

On Monday, Napier reiterated that Florida’s “intention the entire time has been to play DJ in every game.” Coming out of his stellar performance against Samford, the coach concluded that Lagway’s “poise shows that he’s ready to do more moving forward.”

He added: “We’re going to do what’s in the best interest of the team. Both of these players can make our team better. The great thing about it is there’s a great relationship there. There’s confidence, there’s humility from both guys. There’s a healthy respect from the team and staff for both players.”

Mertz and Lagway have a legitimately close relationship behind the scenes — to the point that the veteran helped run walkthroughs for the neophyte before his first career start against Samford. Lagway completed 18 of 25 passes for 456 yards with three touchdowns last Saturday; he set a freshman passing record finishing 28 yards shy of Tim Tebow’s single-game record.

How Lagway will be used against Texas A&M remains to be seen. Napier was understandably tight-lipped in two media availabilities this week. Given the familiarity many Aggies have with the Gators, it certainly would not have behooved him to share any additional details from his game plan.

Still, given what happened against Miami, the proof will ultimately be in the pudding in terms of how much Lagway sees the field and in what circumstances he is allowed to contribute.

Familiar faces

Florida’s defensive staff turnover was drastic this offseason, and nearly every member who left the program — coaches and players — wound up at Texas A&M.

Jay Bateman (defensive coordinator, linebackers coach) and Sean Spencer (defensive line) will roam the sideline for the Aggies after donning orange & blue a year ago, while linebacker Scooby Williams and cornerback Jaydon Hill — both starters in 2023 — will take those same roles entering Saturday’s return appearance in The Swamp.

Napier did not spend much time speaking about the unique circumstances this week, but he did share a quick point of fact on the occurrence. “It used to be just coaches; now, it’s players, too. It’s part of the dynamic,” he said.

Odds & ends

• Napier on what it will take to relieve some heat: “We need to experience more success on the field. That’s where we need to take the next step. Once we do that, much like any culture, it’s being built until it gets established. Then it works, it’s working. We’re ultimately in Year 3, and there’s an effort to establish some expectations and culture. I think we’re closer, but ultimately, wining helps galvanize that in terms of belief and help.”
• Florida practiced with better fundamentals and improved communication this week, Napier said Wednesday after noting Monday that those were both areas of focus entering the week. He believes the Gators need to step up on third down given Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko’s long-term success on that down.
• Napier praised TAMU for being well-balanced offensively getting a lot of success out of the backfield. He also shouted out how well they did in the transfer portal bringing in contributing players that have already made a difference through two games.
• Napier pointed out that redshirt junior EDGE George Gumbs Jr., who is serving as captain just three games after transferring to Florida, had an incredible journey to The Swamp. Initially walking on at wide receiver for Northern Illinois, he moved to tight end and special teams, played so well he got on scholarship and then transitioned to EDGE putting so much quality film on tape that he entered the transfer portal and eventually signed with the Gators.
  
  “A guy whose stayed the course. When maybe others would have hung it up, he stayed the course,” Napier said. … “The guy is resilient, he’s tough, and his work habits are second to none. … The motor, the effort – he’s done that all the way back from training camp. … He’s a good one, or sure.”