Florida football can’t have nice things. Or so fans complain, in the aftermath of Florida Gators freshman quarterback DJ Lagway being carted off the field tonight gripping his left leg.
The Gators were playing the Georgia Bulldogs in their annual matchup at Everbank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, and Lagway went down in the second quarter following some botched footing in a first-down scramble.
This was only Lagway’s third appearance of the season and second start as the starting quarterback for Florida.
His teammates surrounded him – patting him on the back and wishing him well – while the entire stadium chanted his name.
It has been a hard season thus far for the Florida Gators. Between losing their veteran starting quarterback Graham Mertz three weeks ago to a season-ending knee injury to near constant discussions of how much longer Billy Napier will remain in Gainesville as the head coach to devastatingly close losses, the Gators have been through it left and right.
Now, the Gators have indefinitely lost their five-star freshman quarterback in Lagway.
“He’s got a hamstring. Pretty significant one,” Napier said when asked about Lagway’s status on the sidelines. “But he’s a tough kid. I can promise you one thing, this team will rally behind him for sure.”
Lagway led the Gators to a massive 46-20 win over Kentucky two weeks ago, and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium lit up with a rejuvenated energy; a level of excitement that the Swamp has not seen in decades. According to Pro Football Focus, Lagway was the most accurate deep ball passer entering Week 9 and was ranked first in the country in completion percentage at 63.2%.
Needless to say, fans were devastated and brought a lot of emotions to X in the aftermath of the game.
Most emotions centered around what could have happened if DJ Lagway had not left the game injured
Everyone in the entire country knows that if DJ Lagway doesn’t get injured the Florida Gators win this football game. But that’s not what happened. Tough pill to swallow but don’t really have a choice.
— Barstool Florida (@UFBarstool) November 2, 2024
If Graham Mertz never goes down against Tennessee, Gators win that game. If DJ Lagway never goes down against Georgia, Gators win that game. I can’t be convinced otherwise
— Jalen McCready (@jalen_mccready6) November 2, 2024
DJ Lagway, playing beautifully against No. 2 Georgia, gets hurt.
Unbelievable.
Florida football can’t have nice things.
— Neil W. Blackmon (@nwblackmon) November 2, 2024
Florida was without:
• QB1 Graham Mertz
• QB2 DJ Lagway
• RB1 Montrell Johnson
• WR1 Eugene Wilson III
• DB1 Jason Marshall Jr.
• Starting DB Devin Moore
• Starting DB Dijon JohnsonAnd was tied 20-20 with Georgia with under 5 minutes left in the game. pic.twitter.com/ZlwyWrv1je
— CFB Kings (@CFBKings) November 2, 2024
From having the #2 team in the country on the ropes to being on your 3rd string QB…
Such a beautifully painful game 🤦🏽♂️
Win for DJ Lagway, pray for Aidan Warner #GoGators 🐊pic.twitter.com/fW5ZekPjTH
— Sebastian Fearon DPT, CSCS, OCS (@TheDegenDoc) November 2, 2024
However, some Florida football fans appear to be coping with the news with humor.
Hello @UFHealth I am outside of Shands and ready to give DJ Lagway my hamstring. Please bring the surgery paperwork, I will try not to cry on it. #Gators pic.twitter.com/1VWPYovybo
— Rachael Merritt (@rachaelwmerritt) November 3, 2024
At this point, no one knows how long DJ Lagway will be out. Yale transfer and Florida native Aidan Warner came in to replace Lagway tonight against Georgia and will most likely remain there until Lagway returns.
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