DJ Lagway dealt massive NIL blow after Florida’s upset loss to USF

DJ Lagway and the Florida Gators dropped a game they absolutely could not afford to lose against in-state American Conference rival South Florida, who outlasted the Gators in the Swamp Saturday night for what has to be the program's most legendary win of the 21st century.

After such a season-shaking defeat, Florida quarterback DJ Lagway lost quite a bit of the credit he had built up through his impressive true freshman year in 2024. The Gator QB wasn't abysmal in the loss, but he simply wasn't good enough, clearly, completing 23 of 33 passes for just 222 yards, one touchdown and an interception. Those aren't horrid numbers, but UF needed better from a guy fans hoped would ascend as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation.

Lagway isn't even 10 starts into his college football career. He's a CFB baby still. However, the promise doesn't appear quite as grand as it did during the offseason now that Lagway has failed to get Florida past its first minor test. The consequences? A gut punch to Lagway's NIL valuation, according to On3.

On3 lists specific NIL valuations for many of college football's biggest names, including Lagway, who has ranked in the top 10 of the list for several months now. After a drop in value this week, he retains a spot as the No. 7 highest-value college athlete in the country, per On3.

His valuation is slotted at $3.4 million and $461,000 lower than On3 had his value a week ago. That's more than a 10% drop in total value from last week to this week, and the only thing that happened in between was the loss to South Florida.

Americans don't need to cry over some spilled NIL value on a 19-year-old kid who is still worth, apparently, several million dollars. However, watching On3's valuations fluctuate is fascinating, especially if the numbers do truly reflect the market. As for the players... well, they can basically watch their own personal value fly up and down like a stock on Wall Street.

Seriously, though, if Lagway can string together some impressive individual performances, despite team results, against the gauntlet of SEC defenses Florida is about to face, then his value will skyrocket straight back up.