Billy Napier Addresses DJ Lagway Injury, Opt-Out Rumors

Gators coach Billy Napier provided an update on quarterback DJ Lagway and addressed any opt-out rumors that have been circling the program this week during his SEC teleconference on Wednesday.

Lagway was reportedly seen in a walking boot on Monday after being stepped on during the Miami game Saturday, per Zach Goodall of Swamp 247, for the second time in a matter of months — one of the many setbacks he has had to endure since spring ball.

Good news for Florida fans is that the boot was out of precaution and the second-year quarterback is all good and practicing during the bye week.

“Yeah, no, DJ’s fine,” Napier said Wednesday. “He got stepped on there during the game, we put a boot on him, there’s no issue at all. He practiced yesterday, he’s 100 percent.”

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Lagway, who has not looked like himself this season, is completing 67% of his throws for 690 yards and has a five-to-six touchdown-to-interception ratio. While there are a multitude of reasons for the poor play, the biggest one evident is that all the missed time during the offseason has led to Lagway being rusty. This week marks the sixth full week of full-pad practices for Lagway, during which he will hopefully gain valuable reps to help him return to his previous form.

Lagway should be all systems go next Saturday when Florida welcomes Texas back to The Swamp for the first time in 85 years. Speculation arose about if this recent health speed bump would be enough to keep him out the remainder of the year, given the current status of the program and timeline to still opt out and redshirt this season.

Napier does not have time for the outside noise and won’t allow swirling around the team.

“It’s comical. The kid has been back in here since Sunday, working his butt off. Monday, yesterday, had a really good day,” Napier said. “So yeah, we can’t control that outside narrative, obviously. But no, he’s just fine. He’s been in the building, just like he’s on the staff, so he’s been back to work. And certainly, yeah, that’s a total myth that’s out there.”

Roughly 10 minutes before Napier’s teleconference appearance, the Gators’ social media team posted a clip of Lagway throwing a ball down the field.

Back to work . pic.twitter.com/MKKPIk1Qnm

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) September 24, 2025

Florida aims to return to the drawing board during the bye week and reassess its offensive game plan. The Gators are sitting 100th in the nation in scoring offense (22 points per game) and 108th in total offense. 

While Lagway will be at the forefront of the offensive issues, Napier says the unit as a whole must get better.

“I think there’s a renewed emphasis on accountability. Obviously, we have to play better. Every position group is contributing to our issues, so I know obviously a lot is made of DJ and his situation, but I do think when we look at it from a big picture standpoint, we’ve got to play better around them,” Napier said. “And then, just some of the points of emphasis are eliminating negative plays. And I do think that first-down efficiency has contributed to some of our problems as well. But in general, I think we have to address that part of our team, and there’s gotta be some changes, and certainly that’s what we’re doing.”

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