Florida Gators given high praise going into 2025 season thanks to the DJ Lagway effect

As we continue to look forward toward the 2025 season, there are a lot of different elements to look at, but the Gators' recruiting surge before and after early signing day has been a massive reason why they have so much momentum.

On3's Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman released their way too early top 10 for the 2025 season and listed the Gators as their ninth-best team.

This isn’t purely a D.J. Lagway confidence pick, but it mostly is. The Gators simply looked different when Lagway took over as QB1. The offensive line, led by center Jake Slaughter, improved dramatically over 2024, and most of that group is back. Florida still needs to develop receiving targets, whether that’s rising junior Eugene Wilson III or five-star freshman Dallas Wilson or someone else. On defense, the return of defensive tackle Caleb Banks might have been bigger than any portal pickup or freshman signing. To truly be a College Football Playoff contender, the Gators probably will need to find more production off the edge. Losing linebacker Shemar James to the NFL doesn’t hurt as much because freshman Myles Graham has a bright future.-Andy Staples

The one thing that nobody is talking about when it comes to the Gators is how important it was that Lagway adapted once he injured his hamstring. His mobility wasn't there and he essentially became a pocket passer for his final four starts of the season.

Lagway still showed some struggles that a true freshman would in that he didn't see defenders and threw a total of nine interceptions as a true freshman. However, he did throw 12 touchdowns on the year, including six in the final four games. Lagway's best ability was finding players down the field and attacking vertically.

Once Lagway is fully healthy in 2025, the sky is the limit with his true dual-threat ability.