DJ Lagway injury update: Florida Gators QB will practice, remains ‘day to day’ for LSU game

Football

1

Image Credit: Maddie Washburn, UAA

The Florida Gators were severely shorthanded last week at Texas, but there is hope that reinforcements will come this week as Florida prepares to host the No. 21 LSU Tigers on Saturday afternoon inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Chief among those potential reinforcements is freshman quarterback DJ Lagway, who will practice Monday while continuing to recover from a Grade 2 hamstring strain.

Lagway, who got injured late in the second quarter against two weeks ago Georgia, was listed as a game-time decision last Saturday despite being a longshot to step on the field in his home state. Ultimately, he watched from the sideline wearing a jersey without pads or a helmet.

Head coach Billy Napier said trainers “felt good” about what they saw from Lagway moving around Monday morning. While he remains “day to day” for the LSU game, Lagway will return to practicing in a more significant manner compared to the light work he accomplished last week.

A Grade 2 hamstring strain usually requires a minimum recovery of two weeks; however, some athletes can be out as many as 4-6 weeks depending on the rehabilitation process.

Redshirt freshman Aidan Warner, a transfer from Yale, completed 12 of 25 passes for 132 yards and two interceptions in place of Lagway against the Longhorns. On Monday, Napier said he never considered moving to redshirt junior Clay Millen, a more experienced transfer from Colorado State who completed 72.2% of his passes for 1,910 yards and 10 touchdowns for the Rams two seasons ago.

“There’s only so many people you can get ready,” said Napier in reference to Warner, the No. 3 quarterback, taking the vast majority of first-team snaps in practice last week.

Beyond Lagway, Napier expects the Gators will get multiple players back against the Tigers noting that many were “close” to seeing the field last Saturday.

Florida was missing its top two quarterbacks, top two running backs, top two wide receivers, top three cornerbacks and other starters against Texas.

Napier addressed criticisms of the Gators’ depth by noting that the roster overall is stronger than it has been since his arrival, but at some point, mounting injuries will take a toll on any team.

“We’re more equipped than we have been [in prior seasons],” he said. “… We’re just playing with 3s [third-stringers] in some spots.”

LSU is be the sixth top-25 opponent Florida will face over its first 10 games this season. The prior five were all ranked in last week’s top 10.