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Florida star quarterback DJ Lagway continues to be mentioned for honor not accomplished since Tim Tebow
Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The Florida Gators have a storied history at the quarterback position. Just in the last 20 years, they have seen three quarterbacks selected in the first round of the NFL Draft with six in the college's storied history. 

Among those quarterbacks, the Gators have seen three of them win the prestigious Heisman Trophy:

  • 1966: Steve Spurrier
  • 1996: Danny Wuerful
  • 2007: Tim Tebow

ESPN names DJ Lagway player to watch for Heisman Trophy

The Gators have that history mainly due to the success Spurrier had as both a coach and a player. His legacy is incredibly important to the Gators football program as a whole.

The next great quarterback in program history is already here in true sophomore DJ Lagway. His performance as a true freshman was tremendous for the Gators with a 6-1 record, and the only loss came against Georgia, a game which Lagway severely injured his hamstring.

ESPN named Lagway as the fourth-best Heisman Trophy contender in the nation heading into the 2025 season.

There was some concern this spring about Lagway's throwing shoulder, but coach Billy Napier said Lagway should be 100% by June. He was one of the top true freshmen in college football last season and led the Gators to wins in their last four games of the season after Graham Mertz was injured. At 6-3 and 240 pounds, Lagway has elite arm strength and is extremely tough to bring down in or outside the pocket. He threw 12 touchdown passes in 192 attempts last season. 

When you watched Lagway from his early games all the way through the bowl game , you can see the immense improvement he made from a processing perspective. The hamstring injury forced Lagway to become a significanlty better pocket passer, and he obliged in a big way.

Things weren't flawless for Lagway, as he still had issues. However, he flashed every single tool at a very high level throughout the season, which should easily project forward into 2025 with an offsesaon to get more knowledge on the playbook and how to be better with the little things. 

Don't be surprised if Lagway is the Heisman Trophy winner when all is said and done.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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