 Lagway after the 2024 Gasparilla Bowl | |
| Florida Gators–No. 2 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback |
| Class | Sophomore |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | August 13, 2005 Willis, Texas, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight | 241 lb (109 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College |
|
| High school | Willis (Willis, Texas) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Derek "DJ" Lagway Jr. (born August 13, 2005) is an American football quarterback for the Florida Gators.
Lagway attended Willis High School in Willis, Texas. [1] [2] As a junior in 2022, he passed for 2,081 yards with 24 touchdowns and five interceptions. [3] Prior to his senior season in 2023, Lagway participated in the Elite 11. [4] As a senior, he passed for 4,631 yards with a Texas Class 6A record 58 touchdown passes, and added 975 rushing yards with 15 touchdowns. [5] [6] He was named the MaxPreps National Player of the Year [7] and Mr. Texas Football. [8] For his career, Lagway had 8,392 passing yards and 100 passing touchdowns with 2,196 rushing yards and 29 rushing touchdowns. [9]
A five-star recruit, Lagway committed to the University of Florida to play college football. [10] [11] [12]
Lagway entered his true freshman season with the Florida Gators in 2024 as the backup to Graham Mertz. [13] After Mertz was placed in concussion protocol following the season opener against Miami, Lagway was named the starting quarterback against Samford. [14] In his first ever start, Lagway threw for 456 yards and 3 touchdowns. [15] Over the following few games, Lagway split playing time with Mertz. [16] Mertz suffered a season-ending injury against Tennessee and Lagway was inserted as the team's starting quarterback for the remainder of the season. [17]
Lagway's first game after Mertz's injury was a 48-20 victory over rival Kentucky. In his start against Georgia, Lagway suffered a left hamstring injury and was carted off. [18] After missing only one game of action, he returned for the final three games of the regular season, defeating #22 LSU, #9 Ole Miss, and Florida State. [19] He also started when the Gators defeated Tulane 33-8 in the 2024 Gasparilla Bowl.
In his seven starts, he helped lead Florida to a 6–1 record and a bowl win. [20]
| Season | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | |||
| 2024 | Florida | 12 | 7 | 6−1 | 115 | 192 | 59.9 | 1,915 | 10.0 | 12 | 9 | 154.9 | 50 | 101 | 2.0 | 0 | |
| 2025 | Florida | 4 | 4 | 1–3 | 83 | 123 | 67.5 | 690 | 5.6 | 5 | 6 | 118.3 | 26 | 23 | 0.9 | 0 | |
| Career | 16 | 11 | 7–4 | 198 | 315 | 62.9 | 2,605 | 8.3 | 17 | 15 | 140.6 | 76 | 124 | 1.6 | 0 | ||
He is the son of Derek and Nikita Nephew Lagway. His father, Derek Lagway, played college football at Baylor University. [21]
