Florida vs. Kentucky takeaways: Jadan Baugh, DJ Lagway explode as Gators flex in dominant win

Image Credit: UAA

If there is ever a game that might serve as a turning point in the career of head coach Billy Napier, it is the Florida Gators’ dominant 48-20 win over the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday night inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. With its offensive leaders sidelined and a top defensive star taken out of the game early in the second half, Florida relied on its youth to pull off the team’s most exhilarating victory since Napier’s 2022 debut in orange and blue against Utah.

The Gators’ 48 points were the most under Napier against an FBS opponent, as were their three turnovers — all interceptions, including a pick six, from a swarming defense that continued to level up its play. That sent Florida to its first win over Kentucky since 2020, ending a three-game series losing streak that had not previously been seen since the Korean War.

Thirty of those points came from freshman running back Jadan Baugh, whose five touchdowns tied a single-game record set by Tim Tebow (2007) and matched as a freshman by Trey Burton (2010). Baugh opened the game in place of senior Montrell Johnson Jr., a two-year starter out with a lower-body injury.

Forty-one of those points were orchestrated by freshman quarterback DJ Lagway, who completed 7 of 14 passes for 259 yards with an interception. Lagway averaged 37.0 yards per completion in place of redshirt senior Graham Mertz, a two-year starter lost for the season with a torn ACL last week.

Saturday marked the first time in program history that true freshmen started at quarterback and running back.

Florida’s defense was nearly as outstanding. It allowed just 14 points — and only one sustained offensive drive — on the evening while holding Kentucky to 5 of 18 combined on third and fourth downs.

Let’s take a look at everything that went down Saturday night in The Swamp.

Demons: Exorcised

Napier has a litany of black marks on his Gators career. Among them is going 0-2 against the Wildcats across first two seasons while being outscored 59-30 in those games. Florida left no doubt about its superiority Saturday running Kentucky up and down the field and taking to task the nation’s 9th-ranked defense.

UK entered allowing opponents to score 20.1 points per game entering; UF more than doubled that total on offense alone. The Wildcats entered ranked 10th in the nation allowing 89.3 yards rushing per game; the Gators amassed 155 yards in the first half alone (197 yards in the game).

Napier still made some of his signature questionable decisions — running out of the pistol to the short side of the field on third-and-short in the red zone, milking the clock with 90 seconds and two timeouts in his pocket before halftime — but there’s no doubt that a Florida team with its collective back against the wall rallied behind their coach and a pair of young playmakers that exceeded even the greatest of expectations.

Stars: Born

Outside of a singular mistake — an awful give-back interception in the second quarter that may be blamed on the wide receiver running a wrong route — Lagway offered more than anyone could have asked for a rookie quarterback making his second career start. He opened the game 2 of 8 but finished 5 of 6 throwing for 259 yards while showing patience in the pocket that is usually not developed until players reach their second or third seasons. He also picked up 46 yards on 10 carries with long runs 22 yards and 15 yards early in the game.

No one was a more significant beneficiary of Lagway’s patience than senior WR Elijhah Badger, who made one explosive play after another while amassing 148 yards (50, 28, 58, 39). Senior Chimere Dike (44 yards) and redshirt freshman Eugene Wilson III (40 yards) also contributed explosive plays, though Wilson only touched the ball once in the contest.

Baugh’s breakout was even less expected. Picking up 106 yards on 22 carries, he became the rock upon which Napier relied with Johnson sidelined. Most believed sophomore RB Treyaun Webb, who came off the injury report Friday, would get the lion’s share of carries given he has been listed backup all season; however, it was Baugh whose strong week of practice was rewarded.

👀🐊Baugh so hard since we here. Florida #Gators freshman RB Jadan Baugh scores his first career TD. Jackson, Tyson, Jordan … It's 6.pic.twitter.com/ROEOuxkZ5P

— OnlyGators.com: Florida Gators news (@onlygators) October 20, 2024

It was not only offense that stepped up Saturday, though. Redshirt senior defensive back Trikweze Bridges, who had not lived up to expectations since transferring from Oregon, grabbed a team-high 10 tackles (five solo) with the first interception of the game — an extremely difficult double tip drill grab. Junior DB Devin Moore, finally back healthy, was similarly phenomenal with seven tackles (five solo), including another tip-drill interception and two pass breakups.

👀🐊 I said it ain't no fun 'less we all get some … Florida #Gators keep up the momentum with a Trikweze Bridges with the tip-drill INT. pic.twitter.com/1TPgKnAxxm

— OnlyGators.com: Florida Gators news (@onlygators) October 20, 2024

And then there was sophomore cornerback Cormani McClain, who stepped in late in the second half — his first action in a Gators uniform — to bring back a pick six that sent Florida’s bench storming onto the field in a celebration that resulted in a team unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Napier expressed caution about McClain’s performance given his start at UF has been relatively rocky.

“He’s got a long way to go. Let’s not put the crown on the guy’s head right now, but he stepped up,” he said. “There’s more room for growth. He’s matured, cleaned himself up. Continue to do what you’re supposed to do, good things will happen.”

NAIL IN THE COFFIN @CormaniMcclain1

📺 SEC Network pic.twitter.com/6tf0uNcgnu

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) October 20, 2024

Defense: Real-ish

The Gators have yet to be truly tested by top-tier offensive competition, but the turnaround on defense is apparent — certainly in terms of points allowed but more notably in the way the players perform individually and work together as a unit.

Florida had allowed 24+ points in eight straight games against FBS opponents — all losses — entering its first off week. It has given up 18.7 points per game in the three contests since, which includes an overtime period against Tennessee on the road last week (UF’s only defeat in that span).

Key third- and fourth-down stops are now commonplace. Turnovers are forced and capitalized upon. Tackles are less frequently missed — in fact, some difficult ones are even achieved in situations where it would have been tough to see the Gators making plays previously. The unit is operating with a ferocity not seen to this point throughout Napier’s entire tenure.

Injury: Important

Florida is basically the walking wounded right now. Senior CB Jason Marshall Jr. appeared to seriously injure his right arm or shoulder at the end of the opening drive to the second half. He quickly went to the locker room and came out in street clothes with his arm in a sling. The best-case scenario might be a dislocated shoulder, but given how many key injuries the Gators have already suffered this season, it bears watching.

What went right

• Florida scored on its opening possession for just the second time this season.
• The Gators held the Wildcats to 1 of 5 on fourth down and picked up eight tackles for loss in the game despite only grabbing two sacks.
• Redshirt junior offensive lineman Damieon George made an incredible block that sprung Baugh for his second TD. The offensive line as a whole put together arguably its best performance of the season — not only opening run lanes but providing Lagway with plenty of protection and time to throw.

What went wrong

• Lagway still made plenty of rookie mistakes, including taking a 6-yard loss by running into a teammate instead of throwing the ball away on second-and-goal during the game’s opening drive; that resulted in a field goal instead of a potential touchdown. The interception was particularly difficult to stomach given it came immediately after Bridges’ turnover.
• UF stalled in the red zone on each of its first two appearances but found paydirt  on its next five opportunities.
• UK scored two of its three touchdowns on busted coverages — a 45-yard flea flicker and 99-yard kickoff return — in the second quarter. Florida’s defense played even better than the numbers suggest, but the former TD was undoubtedly a sore spot.
• Beyond the prior Napier criticisms, he also chose to call a timeout with less than 4 minutes left in the third quarter and the ball on the 1-yard line after what appeared to be a Lagway rushing TD was ruled down. Rather than call a timeout, Napier could have used a challenge (getting the timeout anyway), though perhaps he believed that was too risky to potentially waste a challenge given it was only a two-score game at that time.
• The entire SEC Network broadcast. Seriously, what the hell was that bullshit?!

Odds & ends

Florida improved to 54-21 all-time against Kentucky with wins in 34 of the last 38 meetings and a 30-6 mark in The Swamp … the Gators have allowed opponents to score 23 points or fewer in three straight games … Florida under Napier improved to 12-6 at home, 9-0 when allowing 20 points or fewer, 14-2 when leading after the third quarter, 13-4 when leading after halftime and 12-4 when rushing for at least 150 yards … the Gators are 41-13 against unranked opponents since 2018 … Florida has scored in 455 consecutive games, an NCAA record

What it means / what’s next?

The Gators unfortunately wasted an opportunity to go 3-0 between off weeks given the overtime loss to the Vols, but their defensive performances across all three games combined with the steady improvement of Lagway have been impressive. Florida could have been 5-2 entering the toughest part of its murderer’s row schedule but instead sits 4-3 — two games away from bowl eligibility with only one game in which it will be favored over the remainder of the season.

Still, the Gators have plenty of momentum entering their second off week, and getting 13 days to prepare for Georgia will be particularly beneficial for Florida given its long injury list and necessity for additional time to continue teaching Lagway. Putting a freshman up against Kirby Smart’s defense is never going to be a simple task, and it will be both the biggest game and toughest test of his entire playing career.

A hidden benefit of Florida’s momentum entering the off week will be Napier’s ability to go out and pitch recruits on the team’s play and a perceived comfort in continuing his career with the Gators. While fans were understandably blood thirty to replace Napier after the Miami and Texas A&M games, facts are that UF has been much improved the last three weeks even if Napier’s game management and play calling continue to frustrate. Florida has basically been stuck in the mud with an inability to recruit of late, and it even lost a key player over the last week.

It is highly unlikely the Gators will topple the Dawgs in two weeks, but there are winnable games remaining on their schedule, and it’s not an impossibility that Florida could wind up ending the season exceeding its win total and meeting the surprisingly reasonable expectations of its fan base before the campaign.